When I shut my car off my parking lights don't turn off, i have to undo the battery cable to shut them off. Anyone know what might be wrong? Thanks.

Flip the switch on the top of the steering column.

 

-=Russ=-

Welcome to the board, you've now been initiated, i had the same problem for a week, a new battery and a flick of the switch and i was good to go.

 

 

Hopefully you won't need a new battery.

Well hot damn! How about that. Thanks guys!

LOL Jimbo..I think that darn switch gets everyone when they get thier first EA82! Arent you glad though it was something simple?? Welcome to the group

The good Lawd is still makin' virgins! Hallaleluja, we are SO easily entertained.

Another thing It took too long for me to figure out with my electric door locks.

 

If you lock them from the inside and shut the drivers door, it doesn't lock.

 

Try again, but hold up on the exterrior handle when shutting your door, then they lock.

that is not just a subaru thing either - a friend has an Mazda RX-7 Turbo II, and you have to hold the handles up on that car for the doors to lock too - something with the Japanese??

that is not just a subaru thing either - a friend has an Mazda RX-7 Turbo II, and you have to hold the handles up on that car for the doors to lock too - something with the Japanese??

 

Must be. My Toyota, Subaru and Isuzu all did that. My Mazda MPV does not, though.

I like having to hold the handle up when locking the doors.

Why in yhe world is that park light switch there anyway?

that is not just a subaru thing either - a friend has an Mazda RX-7 Turbo II, and you have to hold the handles up on that car for the doors to lock too - something with the Japanese??

 

You have to hold the handle on my Subaru GL and my Mitsubishi truck. I thought it was a japanese thing, but I don't think Toyota pickups do.

 

As for the parking light. I saw an ad in the paper today for a '91 legacy wagon with electrical problems, for $900. They said the parking lights wont turn off and keep draining the battery.....

I'm proud to say I used that parking light switch about a month ago....my car had to be trailered home, and there was some fog leaving town, and the lights on the trailer didn't work....I just flipped the switch, and the lights came on, but I didn't have to worry about leaving the ignition on and draining the battery!!

 

we did, however, spend about a week pulling the fuse for the lights everytime we wanted to park in my mom's '92 legacy before we figured out the switch

 

I think the locking handle thing is to prevent you from accidently locking yourself out of the car. you have to actively be trying to lock the door for it to lock. no bumping the switch and closing the door.

You have to hold the handle on my Subaru GL and my Mitsubishi truck. I thought it was a japanese thing, but I don't think Toyota pickups do.

 

As for the parking light. I saw an ad in the paper today for a '91 legacy wagon with electrical problems, for $900. They said the parking lights wont turn off and keep draining the battery.....

yes they do. my dad's 82' pickup does that. the new Toyota trucks don't. that handle thingy is for like to prevent you from locking your keys inside. supposedly

that got me for like an hour once. pretty sad but it happened.

my sister's Honda Del Sol does it and when I gave her a ride home from work the other day, I told her she had to do that and for some reason, she thought the Honda was special cause it was the only car she's had to do it on....

I have gotten 2 GL-10s now because of that switch.. The first time, I didn't know about it. Discovered the board and the clouds parted and I had the epiphany of the subaru that every EA82 n00b has sometime in the first few weeks or months:D

i dont think the switch got me. i like to push buttons and press levers and whatnot. my friend's 87 and 91 300zx's both did the door lock thing. the buggy does it too, i think its a PITA.

Yay I'm an uber EA82-noob and that switch has never caught me out. Then again, I never knew what it did, so I just always left it in the Off position

of course since mine is an '85 it does not have a funky parking light switch (85-86 use a different dash:D) so I thought everyone on the board was crazy when the topic came up ...... anyway, I realized the difference the next time I was in a JY - I like the 85-86 dash better, (its simpler - and the only stalk you have is the turn signal, and the add-on cruise control was the only thing on it) but that's just me

that handle thingy is for like to prevent you from locking your keys inside. supposedly

 

Nah. You just get used to automatically holding the handle whenever you close the door, and still lock the keys in there....

Nah. You just get used to automatically holding the handle whenever you close the door, and still lock the keys in there....

that's why i see no point in that handle thingy

Nah. You just get used to automatically holding the handle whenever you close the door, and still lock the keys in there....

yeah - a while back I got home ~3am after a LONG day, and SOMEHOW managed to lock my keys in the car (including my housekey) - with the car running - hidden magnetic keybox saves the day yet again ....

My borther used to own a 1970 ford half ton pickup that did the "Hold handle to lock deal"

 

So not just the japanese cars did that.

 

~Dayten~

Just bought my FIRST Subaru this evening, a 92 Legacy AWD sedan, and I noticed when I picked it up that the parking lights were on. I didn't think twice about it since it was starting to get dark and the guy I bought it from had just returned from washing and vacuuming it for me, he must have just left the lights on, right?. I was about to post a message here asking if anyone knew what was going on or what I could do, but decided to SEARCH first. That's what I'm supposed to do, right? Found my answer right away! Thanks!