I think the starter on my `1997 outback needs to be replaced. Does anyone know HOW ???? Is it hard to do ???? Thanks !! peryea

you need to go to the newer generation forum.this forum is for cars 1980 and older

starter shouldn't be going out this soon. are you sure your battery cables are on the battery posts tight? any corrosion around the battery terminals? try to jump the car with cables, if that works fine then the starter is fine. if you're stuck, knock the starter a couple times with a hammer and it'll keep working (that's not a joke). i did that to mine in january (on my 89 XT6) and it's been working fine since....which reminds me i meant to replace that when it got warmer. thanks for reminding me.

 

it's really easy. i saw my 97 outback starter while changing the plugs the other day, looked straight forward to replace. probably 2 bolts and the electrical connections to get it out. it's a little tight back there but looks fine. go at it, it's only two bolts!

Not hard, the bottom nut can be a pain sometimes. Otherwise disconnect the battery, pull the positive lead and switch wire off the starter. Pull the bottom nut 17mm, pull the top bolt 14mm. Put it all back the other way.

Another suggestion--use the search function. Topic has been discussed a lot in the past year.

I think i have a similar problem, whenever it's sort of cold out, i turn on the car, and right after the motor catches and fires up there's a scraching noise. I'm guessing it's the spring that disengages the starter... any thoughts?