erikvr Posted September 20, 2008 Share Posted September 20, 2008 I have an 89 GL non-turbo 4WD wagon. I replaced the distributor and wires last year after having a mysterious problem. Now I have another. When driving, my car dies on me....the check engine light goes on and the engine dies. I pull over and after about four minutes I can start the car again. Fuel pump? I have spark, and replaced both the fuel filter under the car and the one in the engine compartment. Am I on the right track> ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted September 20, 2008 Share Posted September 20, 2008 Since the CEL light is turning on you may be able to get some clues to this trouble by getting the codes that are stored in the ECU. Here is a link to help you retrieve the codes. http://www.troublecodes.net/Subaru/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edrach Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 Did you check for spark immediately after it died? I found the ignition module on my '85 wagon would intermittently fail (Hitachi distributor) whenever it got warm. It looked like it had spark, but not enough to run the engine until it cooled down after 5 or 10 minutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erikvr Posted September 21, 2008 Author Share Posted September 21, 2008 Yeah, had that problem already and replaced the distributor last year. Thought along those line and tested for spark with a buddy the other day (was good) and engine started when I rattled the fuel filter in the engine compartment, which I then replaced and thought I fixed the issue. Now the car dies when I am on the road alone, so any tips for testing spark by yourself? Because the car is only dead for five minutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparrowhawk Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 You say it starts again but takes about 5 minutes. Next time pop the fuel cap and see if it starts. I don't know all these years and models yet but if it has a carb and you suspect fuel you should be able to remove the cover off of the air filter and work the throttle linkage to see if the accelerator pump is pumping fuel. Shooting in the dark without the car in front of me but who knows? Barry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank B Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 It could also be a relay, like the fuel pump relay, getting hot. When it sits for the five minutes it cools off enough to work again. I haven't heard of this in a subaru yet, but in other makes it's common. I believe all the relays in the subes are the same throughout the car, it's a 4 spade relay. So you could swap out the fuel pump relay with say, the ac realy and take it for a drive. It does sound like an electrical component heating up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erikvr Posted September 21, 2008 Author Share Posted September 21, 2008 It's fuel injected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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