kwkslvr Posted July 26, 2009 Share Posted July 26, 2009 Or maybe I should call it my Outback Agony... 2.5L losing power, regaining power, backfiring, stalling... Suby shop said p0301 - 0304 cylinder misfires, replaced the ignition coil, plugs and wires. Replaced fuel filter and air filter... front cat would appear to be fine, good blow out the pipe. (No. 2 connection on the old i. coil was burned, btw.) It's running so badly now that we can't do a drive cycle reset to finish the codes. It will start fine, will idle for a few minutes until it starts warming up and the rpms drop fast, go back up, drop, go up, doing this repeatedly. Pull it out onto the road, it will run fine for a few minutes at low rpms but when gaining speed (anything over 30) it bucks, stalls and backfires. Even driving at low rpms for more than 10 minutes or so will cause stalling and the whole mess to recur. Oxygen sensor? PCV bad, clogged or hose plugged? Low fuel pressure? Sending unit? Throttle positioning sensor? When the air filter box was pulled apart, it was about 1/4 full of dead bugs, dirt and road grunge (no oily mess, though. Former owner evidently didn't take very good car of the car.) Changed the filter, reassembled everything and it ran ok for about 20 minutes, then started messing up, again. The Suby tech. says that since we can't do the drive reset he has to go through every last component, all relays, hoses, filters, etc etc etc to find out what's wrong with it. I honestly can not afford to pay upwards of 3K to fix this car. Would appreciate any input you folks can give. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVOthis Posted July 26, 2009 Share Posted July 26, 2009 Fuel filter? IACV? carboned up throttle body? vacuum leak? ...Is it still missing or just a poor idle? If I where you I would get a scan tool and clear the codes..chances are if its running this poor some code will come back to you after you clear the current ones... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olnick Posted July 26, 2009 Share Posted July 26, 2009 How handy are you, kwkslvr?!! From your discoveries in the air filter box and the coil, sounds like you found the problem--poor maintenance by the previous owner. What EVO suggested is a good start. With a bit of research, a Haynes manual and asking questions here you can probably solve the problems yourself. Next best thing would be to find a small, independent shop--one that specializes in Subarus if possible, or at least foreign/Japanese cars in general. See what they think, get an estimate and decide if you're comfortable with them. For me going to a dealership is a last--and usually most expensive--resort. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwkslvr Posted July 26, 2009 Author Share Posted July 26, 2009 There is a guy in a nearby town who has been known to work on Subys. He is the only person around who does Lamborghinis, Porsches and so forth. I may decide to haul it up on the trailer and pull it over there for him to look at. It's only 10 miles buy the way the car is running it wouldn't make it even half way without stalling out multiple times. Or losing speed. A further question? What would cause the contact on the ignition coil to burn like that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olnick Posted July 26, 2009 Share Posted July 26, 2009 Hmmm, your friendly neighborhood Lamborghini shop! Might want to call him first before you go to all the trouble of packing up your Subie. As far as the burnt coil contact-- a short? Accidental grounding while the engine was running? Hopefully someone with more electrical knowlege will chime in here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwkslvr Posted July 26, 2009 Author Share Posted July 26, 2009 I think it's pretty funny that there are several Lamborghinis, at least on DeLorean and a bunch of Porsches around. Here we are out in the midst of cornfields with folks cruising in fancy, high-powered imports! I'm not real clear on what the idle air control does. What function does it have beyond controlling idle air? It really doesn't idle badly, it only messes up really bad when you're trying to get moving and stay moving. Will check the throttle body and the pcv and it's hose. If this was an old vehicle with a carb., distributor and points, would think it might be timing thrown off by the full 4-cylinder misfire. Wouldn't off-timing explain the backfires? But too lean or too rich fuel to air ratio? Or the brand new fuel filter might be bad and the engine isn't getting the right amount of fuel... Or the sending unit might be going out. Then there is the MAF. Argh. This is giving me a huge headache. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olnick Posted July 26, 2009 Share Posted July 26, 2009 Do you have any idea of the car's history? How long have you owned it? Any maintenance or repair bills in the car? You've already done some good things--air/fuel filters, plugs & wires (hope you used Subaru OEM wires). I'd check vacuum lines carefully, replace the PCV and clean the connecting hose, clean the MAF sensor and the electrical connector contacts, remove and clean the IACV, might even replace the Engine Coolant Temperature Sensor (the one that communicates with the ECU). Maybe replace O2 sensors if you don't know long they've been in there. By the way, any record of timing belt changes? Should've been done at 105k I believe. Don't get discouraged--it's all do-able! Just some thoughts. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted July 27, 2009 Share Posted July 27, 2009 Gte a better tech. A sooby dealer can use thier select monitor and see things happening in real time and get a handle on what is going on. A sooby factory scanner can read the sensors in real time, it doesnt matter if the car is in open loop or closed loop. First thing I would look for is the obvious disconnected vac line at the airbox. Next I would suspect the knock sensor. nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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