Fairtax4me

I can't tell in the picture, is the charge lead disconnected from the alternator? If it is then that explains the strange reading. When the alternator charge lead is disconnected it will keep running up the output voltage because the system voltage, which is fed back through the wires in the plug, is not increasing as the alternator is attempting to charge. The voltage regulator steps up charge voltage until it sees the system voltage increase. It can go well over 100V given the right conditions. Connecting your meter leads between the output post and charge lead, as it appears you've done in the picture, is showing you the difference in potential (voltage) between the output post and the charge lead (which goes to the battery at the other end), not the amount of voltage the alternator is producing. A voltmeter works by showing the difference in voltage between two points. If you put both probes on the positive battery terminal it will show 0v. Because there is 12v potential on each probe, there is no difference in potential, which the Voltmeter displays as 0v. It's a 0V difference between those two points. To check for stray AC voltage output from the alternator it needs to be connected as it normally would be (charge lead securely fastened to the output post). Start the engine, ground the black meter lead to the battery negative, and touch the red meter lead to the alternator output post. An Alternator only produces Alternating current on its own (hence the name) so it has to use a group of diodes (usually 6, called a Rectifier Bridge) to convert that AC into DC. They do a pretty darn good job too, if there is any stray AC getting past a brand new rectifier bridge it will usually be less than 0.1v. If a diode shorts there will be a large amount of stray AC, anywhere from about 2.0 - 10v. Generally if there is more than 0.5v AC output it means there is a problem developing.

What engine size? 2.2 or 2.5? How badly did it overheat? Was the coolant boiling out of the overflow bottle? Leak sounds like its coming from either the thermostat seal or the water pump gasket. If you can post a picture of it we can narrow it down further. This could be a 30 minute fix if its just the thermostat gasket, or it could be time for a timing belt of its the water pump gasket.

Can't check ACv with the engine off. Those are useless numbers. The "ghost" in the wires. Battery can show 12+ volts unloaded but it may not have the amp capacity needed to start the car. I had one that showed 12 volts charged but dropped to about 4 volts trying to crank the engine. Wouldn't do anything except make the starter click once or twice. The real test is to watch the voltage while cranking the engine. If it drops to less than 10v the battery is not holding enough amperage.

Gas smell is often the filer tube. It has a plastic cover on it that catches and traps all the dirt salt and moisture from years of driving and causes the filler to rust out. Replacements are about $120. Overheating when cold is due to the thermostat not opening. And this can either be caused by a clogged or partially clogged heater core, a partially clogged bypass hose, or a cruddy aftermarket thermostat.

I didnt know you could get these anywhere but the dealer. But anything that says "inner" is going to be the front control arm "front" bushing, and is not the bushing you need. You need the Tranverse link "rear" bushing or Front control arm "rear" bushing. Some manufacturers will refer to this as the "front lower control arm", which technically is right. It's the lower arm, but it's also the ONLY control arm.

The wires for the glove box light run through a very sharp edged hole drilled through the metal part of the dash structure. Not a very good place for them IMO.

Yup.

Call and ask is the best way to find out. A lot of guys who do bumpers on the back lots get their paints mixed and often delivered while they're prepping to paint. A lot don't have sprayer equipment because its expensive and needs frequent maintenance and cleaning. Much cheaper and easier to buy pre-mixed aerosol cans (though I think most use propane for propellant now).

Doesn't surprise me. As a matter of fact I'm pretty sure Subaru has a TSB out for the front control arm bushings. Doesn't mean they'll replace them for free, just means they've sent a bulletin out so their technicians will know how to diagnose and replace them. Checking the bushings is really easy and you can do it in your driveway without even jacking up the car. Grab a flashlight and lay down next to the car, looking under the car about between the front wheel and the front mud-flap/rock guard. Look slightly forward and you'll see the front control arm where it arcs towards the back of the car, and at the end it meets a large round bushing that secures it to the frame. This is called the "Transverse link rear bushing" by Subaru. Some call it a front control arm rear bushing, both mean the same thing. On the older cars this bushing was filled with a heavy silicone fluid that helps control motion while maintaining low NVH (noise, vibration, harness) transfer to the vehicle chassis. Pretty sure that's still a fluid filled bushing though the design has changed in recent years. If the bushing splits, the silicone fluid leaks out, and it loses its ability to control the motion of the transverse link (control arm). Check the bushing for signs of leaking a heavy greyish colored grease. If its leaking, the bushing will need to be replaced.

Thanks for the link Millers. What's described in the posters situation there is a sharp jerking and lurching type of problem. This is common with a failed TPS, and that dealers inability to diagnose it is based on the tendency of many technicians to have a heavy right foot. The TPS sends a voltage back to the ECU that varies based on throttle position. Low voltage is low throttle, high voltage is heavy or wide open throttle. It varies from about 0.5 - 4.5v, and will sweep smoothly from low to high and back as the throttle is opened or closed. The most common failure of a TPS is that it develops a "dead spot", basically a point in the resistive contact that has worn out or been damaged. This causes the TPS voltage signal to be jumpy and irregular, and confuses the ECU. The ECU uses the TPS to determine fuel delivery, spark timing, and transmission shift points. If the TPS signal quickly jumps between high and low, the ECU may not detect that there is a circuit problem, but it will react to the changes in the signal. The ECU can make these changes in real time, usually only taking a few milliseconds to alter fuel and spark, which is where we get most of the problems when a TPS fails. The ECU sees a smooth increase in TPS voltage up until the throttle opens far enough for the sensor to hit the "dead spot", now the ECU sees a jumpy signal and assumes you've opened and closed the throttle very quickly several times. It adds fuel, cuts fuel, adds fuel, cuts it, in rapid succession, which causes the jerky jerky feel. It could also decide to make the transmission downshift or upshift, throwing another mechanical motion into the mix. The result is you get a very rough ride until you press the throttle pedal down far enough to open the throttle past that "dead spot". Now its smooth again, but you're accelerating much faster than you might want to, and when you reach the speed limit, letting off the throttle moves the TPS over that dead spot again. Jerkiness ensues until you either let off the throttle entirely or give it the beans again. And most of the time when a TPS gets a dead spot, its right in the range where you tend to keep your foot the most, right where you need it to sit in order to maintain speed, or accelerate very lightly. The other type of failure is for the TPS to short to the 5v reference, so any touching the throttle sends a 5v signal to the ECU which it reads as WFO! The engine will redline itself even if your foot isn't on the pedal anymore. Very scary, but also very uncommon. This is why I say if you're getting a more of a light stumble or hesitation, its probably not the TPS. Tires I could probably go on about all day too. But in a nutshell, only tires of different sizes and tread depths will damage the vehicle. Subaru specifies no more than 1/4" difference in overall circumference between the tire with the most tread, and the tire with the least tread. Any more than that and you could cause long term damage to the AWD system in the transmission. Tires will not generally cause an intermittent rumbling sensation, though they can if they have just the right amount of imbalance, but this is generally going to correlate with road speed, and not engine speed or throttle angle. I would have to think that the rumble/stumble issue is just a coincidence, and not related to the tires or brake services.

Just about any auto body supply store can mix paint to match factory color code and put it in an aerosol can for you. The dealers and small body shops all get their stuff somewhere locally. I picked up a can of Pure White for the bumper on my 96 from one of the local paint supply places here. Can't remember exactly what I paid, but seems to me it was about $20 for a 12oz can, and they mixed it while I waited. Also got a can of primer and a small can of clear. Everything was under $40. Two coats of grey primer and two coats of white turned a dark grey outback bumper to solid white, and I still have some white left over. I didnt bother with adhesion promoter since it was already painted, but if you plan to paint a bare plastic bumper you'll need a can of that too.

When seals start popping out on their own I check all of the breather ports and hoses for the crankcase ventilation system. The hose that leads to the block from the PCV valve tends to clog, and can lead to increased pressure in the crankcase. Same with the PCV valve. If its clogged the crankcase pressure goes up. The breather the ports in the valve covers can clog, and the breather hoses can clog where they attach to the valve covers or to the intake tube.

I'm not sure on the newer ones, both my 95 and 96 have a separate button on the end of the stalk for the spray. Pulling the stalk does a single wipe. Also on both of those, turning the dimmer wheel all the way down turns the dash lights completely off.

The first one you listed there. About the car that went to the dealer 5 times.

Do you have a link to the blog you mentioned above? There are a lot of relatively simple things that can cause misfires, the two biggest are plug and wires. If you replaced the plugs hoping to fix this problem, did you have the wires replaced as well? What else was replaced? How long has this problem been going on?

That method will work for an older style TPS. This style works a bit differently, though the method above can apply if its modified a bit. There are 4 wires for the TPS, 2 signal wires, a 5v reference, and a ground. I'm not convinced the TPS is the problem. If it is a problem I think the ECU would set a code for it. The ECU monitors the TPS signals continuously and will set a code immediately if it detects a fault. Also since the throttle body is probably very expensive to replace, and likely only available from a dealer, I think its better to rule out fuel or spark related misfires first. I would try to find a shop that specializes in Subarus, and has the equipment to properly monitor the various sensors on the engine, to look at the car and try to get an accurate diagnosis.

5 volts on the reference wire is good. Ground should show close to 0 ohms with the key on. The third pin should show around 0.5v with the throttle fully closed. Use a paper clip to back-probe the connector while its still plugged in. If the voltage is less than 0.45v the TPS will need to be adjusted. If the voltage is above 0.55v the throttle bore may need to be cleaned. Buildup in the throttle bore and on the edge of the throttle plate can hold the throttle plate slightly "open" and cause the TPS signal to be out of range when the throttle is closed. The problem may be that someone has tried to adjust idle speed by moving the throttle stop screw on the side of the throttle body. There should be paint marks on the screw and the locking nut, check to see of they align, or look like they've been disturbed. If the throttle stop screw has been disturbed you'll need to verify the clearance between the throttle plate and bore inside the throttle body. The throttle plate should stop just before hitting the bore of the throttle body. Adjust the stop screw until it stops the throttle plate just before the plate hits the bore. Now you'll need to adjust the TPS sensor by loosening the holding screws. Adjust until the sensor output pin shows 0.5v. Once adjusted, reset the ECU by unhooking the battery negative for a few minutes. Reconnect then start the engine and allow it to run at idle to operating temp then go for a drive. If the codes persists after cleaning the throttle body and adjusting the sensor, the sensor may need to be replaced.

Basically, yes, you need a pretty high end scanner to be able to watch the TPS signals while actuating the throttle control and look for irregularities in the signal. Thnig is, the electronic throttle body uses TWO position sensors. Redundancy here improves the accuracy of the throttle position detection circuit, which also means that if one sensor is reading differently than the other the ECU will pick up on the difference and set a code because there is a failure. It seems far fetched to me that there could be a problem with the TPS and not have a Check engine light with a code. But anything is possible with the right type of failure.

Did you accidentally roll the dimmer wheel on the headlight stalk all the way to the off position? And yes, if someone installed an aftermarket stereo and tried to hook up the dimmer wire, they cooked the Illumination module. Illumination control module is under the drivers side dash near the steering column. Has a 6 pin black connector. Edit again, I was looking at the wrong wire diagram. Your rear lights should be supplied power by fuse 5 in the under-dash fuse panel.

Do you know what kind of spark plugs were installed? TPS is possible. I'm thinking that 07 has an electronic throttle body. According to Subaru the TPS is a non-serviceable part on the electronic throttle body, which would mean replacing the entire throttle body if the TPS is bad.

If you have a bad diode you'll have excessive AC voltage on the charge lead. Set your meter for AC while the engine is running and the lights on. Should have less than 0.1v AC. Anything above that will indicate a bad rectifier diode. You may also consider taking the car to a parts store and get them to run an alternator test on it. It's best to do this when the engine is hot since a cold alternator can still show a good charge, which will lower once the alternator is hot.

Does this happen while turning, or when driving straight? Intermittent sensor issues can be very hard to diagnose, and often will not set diagnostic codes. If this were a sensor issue I would expect it to be either O2 sensor or MAF sensor related. Though I'm not sure if your 07 has a MAF sensor. This problem sounds like you are having an intermittent misfire. Often a few quick misfires will not trigger a code, so hooking up a basic code scanner will offer no help. A more sofisticated diagnostic scanner is needed to monitor possible misfires while the vehicle is driving. At your vehicles age, if we assume you've driven an average yearly 15,000 miles, you are approaching 100,000 miles and possibly the end of the recommended lifespan for your spark plugs, as well as the O2 sensors.

P1139 : Front oxygen sensor heater circuit problem A problem with the heater circuit or wiring to the circuit may affect overall performance of the sensor. Its likely that if the heating element in the sensor burned out it damaged the sensor element in the process, which could be causing the P0420 code. You should check the wiring and connector to the sensor before replacing. Also make sure the sensor housing is not covered in grease from a split CV boot, as that can cause problems with the way the sensor reads. If the boot is split replace the boot (or the axle) before replacing the sensor. If grease from the torn bolt is slung on the new sensor it may damage the new sensor as well. The heater is not designed to burn off buildup from the sensor element. It merely warms the sensor to operating temp (about 650 degrees) faster than allowing the exhaust to warm the sensor on its own. Since the O2 sensor doesn't work until it reaches operating temp the ECU has no feedback on exhaust oxygen content until the sensor is warm, so it cannot fine-tune the air/fuel mixture to compensate for an overly rich or lean condition. To reduce possible emissions the heater is there to make the sensor warm up and start working faster so the ECU can fine tune the A/F ratio sooner. Often once the sensor reaches operating temp the heater is turned off.

Springs are fairly cheap to ship. I shipped 4 to someone in either Alabama or Colorado (don't remember exactly) just coiled them all together and stuffed them into a box just barely large enough for them to fit (6x6x15 IIRC), and it was like $11 ground shipping. Pretty sure they would fit into a Priority Flat rate box for $16. For that matter you don't even have to box them. Coil them up, zip tie them together, and wrap them in cellophane.

Those are European models. Rockauto currently only lists springs for this car in their European warehouses. So their listings are for european models. They'll also charge you a boatload for international shipping to get them across the pond. From what I can tell the only good source for new springs in the U.S. is a Subaru dealer. You can order from an online dealer and save about $40 over retail cost. Otherwise try to find some good used ones.