It looks like I'm moving from the Loyale world to the Legacy world thanks to an icy road and a fence post. My sister has a early 90's Legacy that has been sitting more then driving for the last year. Now she says it won't start (turns over but will not start). What are the top five things I should investigate when I head over there this weekend?

1. Fuse or fusible link. Fuel pump, Ign, or ECU.

 

2. Timing belt- remove end covers to verify

 

3. MAF leak/unhooked.

 

4. Main engine harness connector loose connections. Inspect carefully.

 

5. Cam/Crank angle sensor or Transistor unit. Check for spark.

check for gas in tank-maybe someone stole the gas out.

watch out for critters in the air box.

Most types of gasoline will degrade over a period of a year or so. If it hasn't been filled up in a very long time, it may have gone off.

yup, add a few gallons of fresh gas, check timing belt, check for spark and fuel. (make sure plug wires are tight, and check the airbox for critters as mentioned)

if it hasnt been started in a while it could take a bit to get her to fire, and it may run like crap for a minute or two - until everything gets loosened up and old varnished gas in the cylinders gets burned off. if everything is kosher it should smooth out after a minute or two - if it doesnt, then it is time to dig deeper - fouled plug, bad injector, possible timing jump...

 

good luck and keep us posted

Take the tube off the intake manifold and spray some starting fluid in there and try to fire it up

Well I got her started. It was just an old and very nasty battery. Some water and baking soda on the cables and a fresh battery was all it took. It would not idle until I noticed the air intake was disconnected. She needs some TLC but she drove the 60 miles home with no problem. BTW, my brother in law is a slob...It may take a week to clean the inside :-\