mikeamondo

Everyone was pretty much spot on … my brother took the car to local a Subie shop and they fixed the car in the parking lot while he waited. Thanks for the quick responses and expert info as always!

As a follow up … can all that be done with the motor still in the car? Sounds like it …

Thanks for the replies and the fantastic info … as always. I knew it didn’t sound correct when I heard what he had been told. In all fairness … I can’t be 100% certain what was said … but I know a replacement car is being shopped for…. Thanks again!

This is my brothers car… mechanic said the crank pulley was digging into the timing cover and he needs a new engine. I’ve never seen this … any thoughts? Does this alone mean the motor is toast? 05 legacy 2.5 … probably 150k on it now.

Guys.... thanks for all the great tips.... this and other reading leads me to think the issue is the speed sensor ... or rather one of them. I'll pass the info on to my daughter and we'll most likely get the car to a repair shop.... been a crazy few weeks... just realized I posted this a month ago!

Hi Guys... been a while! My daughter's 95 Legacy Sedan has a strange ABS issue.... when you first start out from park, it can engage... sound and brake pulsing just like you'd hear while on ice. It only lasts a second or two then quits. Also, as you come to a gentle stop, it will come on for a second.... and, my daughter has reported that during a hard deceleration from 50 mph or so, it will kick on in the same manner, and if feels as though the car is not slowing while it's engaged. The car is in Colorado and I'm in WV. We visited this weekend, and I test drove the car, but the traffic was too heavy for me to replicate the higher speed symptom. I couldn't find any direct posts here (I'm sure there are, but the search terms are highly varied) .... On another site, I found a thread about later cars... 98 and 04 ... that indicated sensor issues and something called a 'tone ring' .... which I am unfamiliar with. I'm going to have her take it to a Subie guy there, but I wanted to get some info from the experts here, first, so I can have a semi-intelligent conversation with him about the issues via phone. As always, thanks in advance for your help! Mike

I think we might be onto something with the connector.... climbed under there and wiggled the wires a good bit while hooked up to the scanner... came on once and went back off. Problem is.... anyone know how to get the obd connector out of the bracket that holds it? No screws.... looks like clips but I can't get it to release. Can't find anything on YouTube. Without dropping it I can't really see the wires at the back... Thanks.... This is 03 Outback... mounts thru a metal bracket attached to the dash framework, right behind the hood release....

Yeah.. the scanner does not work in any operation mode on the car. That had caused me trouble in diagnosing another problem. The scanner has always worked before and connected just fine, so when the car quickly started running like crap last week, I popped on the scanner and it wasn't connecting.... I naturally connected those two issues in my mind and decided the ECU was toast. Turned out it was the plugs or wires. Car is running fine now, but still no connection to the computer with a scanner. I was thinking about taking it to Subaru and seeing if they can scan it. Advance uses the same scanner I use.

2004 Outback, 2.5L, 140k miles, automatic AWD. My scanner which I've used for years on this car suddenly won't connect to the car. It flashed on and off a couple times then just went blank. Same with car running, car off, key on, etc. I've also tested the scanner in my other car.... good to go. So it must be in the OBD connector or something near the ECU itself..... Can't remember if it's ECU (unit) or ECM (module) on the Subie. Right now, the car seems to be running fine... just want to fix it for future diagnostics and make sure it's not a larger issue with the ECU... Any ideas? Thanks! Mike

It is a cheap scanner, but I've used it on this car for years.... So the test drive went great... drove 30 miles or so, no miss. No problems at all. Back his usual great running self. So I'm going to consider the sputtering issue solved for now. As a note for others, I find it interesting that the issue came on so fast.... from an intermittent miss to not starting in 2 days and a 100 miles. Problem was most likely plugs from the condition of them, but may also have been the wires. If you're doing plugs, just do wires at the same time since you'll have them out anyway. And take out the windshield washer fluid jug to access the driver's side plugs... super easy. Same for the plastic box under the air intake hoses on the passenger side. Thanks for the help and for pointing me toward the plugs. I'll start a new thread for the Computer Communication issue under the title '04 Outback no communication Computer to Scanner.'

sorry... thought it might make someone smile. So I did buy NGK plugs... carquest wires were all they had. Old plugs were AC Delco. So.... looks like a case of misdirection. New plugs and wires are in, and the car started right up, and idles smoothly. The scanner, however, still can't see the CEM. I'm gong to take the car for a test drive. If it looks like it's running okay, I'll take a longer run of about 20 miles home which will get it nice and hot. I'll post the results after that. If anyone has any other thoughts on the CEM communication issue, let me know.

Could head gasket failure lead to fouled plugs? Mine just looked really old, and now I've gone out and bought new ones, and the gap should be .044... the one I took out is 060. I going to replace those and the plug wires as soon as I get done with my incredibly delicious Sheetz salad.... I'll post the results.... of the new plugs and wires, not the salad. Thanks! Mike

Ok... pulled one plug... it's a mess. Also, the gap is about .060 which seems way large. Obviously I need to swap out the plugs to diagnose... I assuming with the over heating there is a concern that the head gasket may be blown... car ran perfectly cool. There is no frothiness in the oil, and no sludge/ brown in the fluid jug... coolant is still nice and green in the jug...

By the way... after replacing the thermostat, and test driving it, i was able to maintain full speed on the highway, only miss was at low rpms before an downsift on hills.... I'd say it was running 90% at first....

Not sure how hot it got... my daughter was driving it and I think she pulled over due to the sputtering on the hill she was pulling more than the overheat, but it was def boiling over at the jug. She was 1/4 mile from home, all down hill so once it cooled off I had her pull out get up to speed and put it into neutral, drifted into the drive and shut it off. I added fluid and took it for a drive.... watched it heat up to 3/4 range and took it home.... lower hose cold, upper hose boiling.... swapped out the thermostat and she ran pegged at at the middle. Also... ran pretty good... only a slight miss... which over the next 2 days and maybe 100 miles turned into a sputter and then the current non-starting condition with no ECM communication. I hooked back up the battery and there was no change in the status. i can pull a plug and see what it looks like.... I'm looking for fouled plugs, I assume....

Also... backfires may be too strong a word... there are mini-backfires.. not loud.... not a 'bang' but more of a boooof.... and it makes the same booof back up thru the top of the engine as it's trying to fire. 'boooof'.... highly technical term.

timing belt was replaced about 20k ago... guess it could be a problem again. I just tested the scanner in the Camry... works 100%. Today, I can't get it to show in the Subie at all. We're looking for something that went bad quickly, but not instantly. There was a miss for a week or two, mainly in low rpm moments, just prior to a down shift as you headed up a hill. That became more of 'stutter and sputter moment' as it got worse. My daughter had the car out and it over heated on her.... I confirmed the overheating issue and swapped out the thermostat, which fixed the over heat, but the sputtering continued to get worse. I made one 15- 20 mile drive with it, for which it was super hard to get started, and the sputter became what I'd call severe. After getting back, I haven't gotten it start but once, now it won't start at all. The scanner at first yesterday came on and off a couple times when plugged in, and actually scanned once, as mentioned above. Then it went blank. Today, i can't get it so come on at all in the car. I checked all the fuses, all good. Can't find any loose wires anywhere, tho I don't really know where all to look. I guess that would be everywhere. Right now, I'm letting it sit with the batter disconnected to see if that might 'reset' the ecm and at least getting it talking to the scanner.

That was my first thought as well... but that wouldn't cause a communication issue for the scanner, would it?

Sorry.. I'm sure this is covered somewhere, but the system won't let you search 'ecm'.. not enough letters... Our 04 Outback, 2.5L, auto, AWD, wagon, 140k ish. Started missing last week.. became worse and worse. Had trouble pulling hills... helped to shift into 3rd or 2nd to spike the rpms.... Became to bad to continue and I parked the car. Now.. it cranks, back fires sometimes out the back, sometimes up thru the throttle body. This afternoon I could not get it to start at all.... AND... the biggest clue I guess... my scan tool would not come on when plugged into the obd port. Just a blank screen at first. Then after bit it flickered on, then off. Once it stayed on long enough to read the codes, but it only showed p0032, which it's shown for years, even after I replaced the 02 sensor. So where do I start here... is the ECM plug and play for a swap in my car... it's an 03. Any likely culprits for something shorting out the ECM? I saw another post similar which turned out to be a corroded air pump sensor? Ideas? Thanks! Mike

Hi folks.... My 03 Outback is throwing the iac valve codes and having typical high idle, then rough idle at stop lights, etc. Took off the iac valve and cleaned it out as well as the throttle body, which I cleaned while still on the car, reaching in with a rag, as best I could. But it all back together with no improvement. So, I looked up the IAC at Advance Auto.... found it to cost $343! Then, at Rock Auto, 3 options $182, $252 and $232, So.... I googled the number on the blue sticker on my IAC..... A33-661 R02 .... and found one listed at alexnld.com for $13 .... wtf? Here's the link to the cheap one..... http://alexnld.com/product/idle-air-speed-control-valve-for-subaru-22650aa19c-a33-661-r02-iac/?gclid=CjwKEAiAj7TCBRCp2Z22ue-zrj4SJACG7SBEcBcsQu9JiwehHyavJQOITly2ihpk0zHVy04iejhutxoC1U_w_wcB So.... what's up.... will the cheap one work? I guess I could just order and see, but I thought I ask if anyone else is familiar with this issue. Thanks! Mike

Hello.... just a quick note to the participants of this thread.... Thanks for saving me a bunch of money and time! And specifically to xntryk1.... dude, don't feel bad. I've been trying to track down this issue since I replaced my LH harness 2 months ago... same thing... dim headlight, no highbeam. Due to the fact that the bulb was on dimmly, I thought the fuses must be good and failed to spend the 30 seconds to check..... duh. Best advice on this thread.... with electrical problems, treat every change like a fresh start, double checking all the little things..... Once again, USMB saves me money! Thanks!

and... @lstevens76... thanks for the link to the FSM... did not even know what it was until it downloaded, but holy crap what an awesome resource! Do you happen to have the link for an 03 Outback 2.5 Legacy? Thanks! M

@johnceggelston -- the idea of the car not know whether it's in park or not makes sense, especially with 180k on the ticker. Where would the 'worn' bits be.... in the shifter mechanism or down on the tranny? How would we fix it? Also.... I'm assuming if the horn does not work when the car won't start, that would indicate a wiring issue.... how are the horn and ignition related? And to all.... a couple more questions. Is the neutral safety switch 'easy', 'hard' or 'gonna cost you a knuckle or two' to change? How about cost? And..... the same questions on the brake pedal switch.... hard to change? Cost? I haven't laid down in the floor yet to look for it. Looking for the cheapest, easiest solution to start with..... thanks!

By the way... what is the function of the really small switch at the base of the shifting mechanism on the passenger side? It has a couple or three black wires attached. Seems activated by shifting out of and back into park......

Ah... so yet another possibility... Does the neutral safety switch fit the symptom that pushing forward on the gear shifter would 'fix' the issue and let the car start? With the shifter in park, foot on the brake, key turned to 'start'.... you hear a hum, but it doesn't turn over.... and then you push on the gear selector .... (only moves a fraction of an inch to the stop)... and something connects to let the car start... turns over and starts. We repeated that test several times.... enough to believe it's not a coincidence that it fired at that instant...