Hocrest

So last night I finally got the '08 back home after a 4 hour drive. Luckily I didn't get to the car from the airport until after midnight. So, for the first time since the issue started I wasn't in a "high traffic" area where I didn't know where I was going. I was able to pay a little more attention to when it was acting up and what Torque was showing. I unplugged/replugged the MAF and checked all of those pipes. The road at the beginning was wet enough to create a "spay" and that didn't seem to make things worse. Filling it with fresh gas didn't seem to do anything. I noticed that I could reliably get codes for 1 and 4 misfires. If I let it run rough for a while, I could get codes for all 6. If I could keep it around 3K rpm it ran fine. And it would even self clear the CEL if I kept it in that range long enough. For most of the trip, I used the "Manual" shifting to run it between 3-3.5k. I didn't get home until close to 5am and had to be at work for 8am so I haven't looked at anything else. The way that it was consistently coding 1 and 4 makes me think the coils are bad. I did order a 6 pack of coils and Amazon will have them here tomorrow. When I replaced the plugs a few months back, I replaced the boots, but not the packs. If it's not raining tonight after work, I'll probably try to drain some gas to see if there is any water, but I think a fuel issue would be giving more random cyl numbers.

I didn't replace the filter but I had it opened up a few weeks ago, I'll check all of that. On the dx, no other codes. The misfires are randomly across all 6, but not all at once. After running it long enough they're pretty much all there though. Definitely both sides. I'm down to about 5 gallons, I want to burn up another 2 then fill. That way if it was bad gas I'm not mixing to much of the bag with good. It's currently parked at the airport until Sunday night when I get back to it to drive home.

S Sorry I wasn't clear. I drove for about 80-100 miles since it started misfiring so the mileage is on par. During the 2 hour drive running like crap, the temp stayed normal. It's been stuck in a valet lot since I got to this work conference. I'll be getting access to it when I'm done today and plan to look at the fuel and fuel filter.

I filled with about 13 gallons the day before, and put about 70-80 miles on that tank before it started acting up. I'm down below half a tank now.

My 200k mile outback has been running great, then yesterday while sitting at a red light, it started misfiring and stumbling. Codes are just the various misfire codes for cyl 1-6. It seemed to be mostly cyl 1 but I think all have thrown a code at some point. Running with the RPMs at cruising (2-3k) it's not to stumbly but will still throw codes. For the next week I'm traveling for work between hotels and airports, and a few hours away from home, so work/diagnosing is limited. I have my my OBD plug and Torque so I have basic access to lookup. What are some things I should look at.

The logs for the engine temp sensor looked normal. I am fairly certain that it is the Immobilizer acting up. What I didn't notice at first is that every time it stalls out, the "security" lite comes on.

It is still acting up, since taking it all apart, it is now down to 2-3 start/stalls which is much better than the 10-12 it has been in the days prior. I had the original key and a new key programmed at the dealer last year. It gives the same issue with both keys. I am going to swap out the antenna first, since that is cheap and doesn't require programming. If that doesn't work, I'm not sure other than taking it to the dealer?? If I swap the ECU/BIU and Gauge cluster, I think I also need the original key that is coded to that set or even the dealer can't reprogram??

This may be it???? I just pulled the lower dash apart and disconnected the wires going to the antenna and reconnected everything. It just started and stayed running 4 times in a row! Just a few hours earlier when leaving work, it took about 20 start/stall/remove key cycles before it stayed running. We'll see ho it acts over the next few days?

Here is a video of the initial start/stall this morning...

We didn't make it to the Dragon this year. Bone stock, OEM Keys programmed at the dealer. I thought maybe the battery was the issue, so I put a new one in, the terminals are clean. I checked the grounding straps going to both heads. I want to check grounds around the ECU. The FSM doesn't give a lot of info on those codes. Can anyone tell me what happens if a key without the immobilizer chip is used to start? Does it crank, but not start or does it do nothing?

This is on my 2008 3.0 Outback.When the engine is cold, the car will start right up, idle for about 1-2 seconds and then shut down like the engine was turned off. If I immediately turn to start again, it will crank but not start. When this started happening 2 months ago, if I turned the key off and then back to start it will start up normally and continue running. Over the last couple weeks is has gotten worse, sometimes taking 10-12 start/stall cycles before it will stay running. I can sometimes prevent it from stalling by using the throttle to keep the revs up for the first few seconds. Once it stays running through startup, it will run great with no idle or stalling issues. When the engine is warm or hot, it will start up normally.I do get occasional 0420 code, but I have been getting that for a while, the starting issue is only for the last month or two.I have had the car for about 14 months, I did the head gaskets last September. Other than that it has been running strong. Over the past few weeks, I have tried; Turning the key multiple times to on before starting to cycle the fuel pump. Cleaning the MAF New battery Logging multiple sensors with ROMRaider during multiple start/stall cycles. Different keys (due to immobilizer codes) ROMRaider gives codes P1572 and P1578 but they don't trigger a CEL. Any thoughts on where to look? I do have Free SSM and the ROMRaider on my laptop if any of that data would help?

Paul, Gary. How's it been? What's new?

How is everyone? I hadn't visited for a while, then a few times I tried to log in but was locked out. Thanks to Matt and Rob, I now have my account back. I still have some of the Soobs I used to have and have cycled through a couple of others. Currently DDing an 08 OB, 3.0.

I know this is an old post, but I just had the same problem and wanted to add some info. In my 2001 OB the clicking would continue after the switch returned to normal and the lights stopped flashing. At first it was mostly after turning left and I could stop there clicking by blipping the stalk to the right. It had no impact on the operation of the turn signals. They all worked fine when they were supposed to be flashing, and when they weren't supposed to be on but it was clicking, the lights weren't on at all. I replaced the flasher behind the knee panel, all that did was provide a slightly different clicking. I was going to grab a switch at Harry's, but decided to just pull it out and see if cleaning would help. Once the switch was removed it was very easy to open up and investigate. Before taking it apart, move the stalk around to get used to how it is supposed to feel. There is a clear cover with a tab on each corner, gently pretty this away. Next to remove is a white panel, this is held by 2 small Phillips screws on one side and 2 black trans on the other. When you pull this off, it will expose 2 small loose parts, so remove the white panel slowly. Lift the white panel off of the black assembly and the parts should stay with the black assembly. The small white loose part is the slider for the low/high beams and flasher. At the edge is a small black slider with a copper pad, this is the slider for the turn signal. Look at the white panel and you will see the brass buttons that the slider makes contact with. I'm not an electrical engineer, but the inside of this assembly is covered with non conductive electrical lube. In the area of the turn signal slider it looks like the copper and brass have slowly worn away adding enough material to make the lube slightly conductive. I cleaned out the dirty lube. Unfortunately both of my cans of contact cleaner were dead and I didn't have a good lube to put in there. So I just cleaned it out with an old tooth brush and pit everything back together. After getting the switch back into place I was happy to hear no clicking after testing it. Since i did a somewhat sloppy job, and i have a couple of vehicles with this same switch, I do plan on grabbing a switch from the junkyard as a spare on my next trip down. When I do, I'll get some pictures so my non technical ramblings make a little more sense...

Is anyone interested in organizing a small car meet to be a part of the Pagoda Hill Climb in Reading PA on the 3rd weekend in June. A small donation to charity would get each of the participants a reserved spot near the start line, a parade lap up the closed course, and entrance to the driver/volunteer dinner. They are looking for a group of ~20 cars. I already have plans for that weekend, but one of the organizers of the hill climb invited me to get a group of Subaru's together to participate. If anyone is interested, let me know and I'll get you in touch with the hill climb group.