ThosL

OK thanks for the feedback on this. 1996 2.2 wagon with 190K or so.

My sister has been having occasional starting and loss of power issues. Codes at Auto Zone were #420 and 335; crankshaft position and Cat converter issue. Vehicle was going into flashing CEL after starting up and going up a hill within a couple minutes, you'd have to pull over and let it sit for a few minutes then it would run fine. I ran it for an hour and a half with no problems today. My sister drives like the proverbial old grandma.

I was hiking in northern New England and had one pull apart on a class 4 road near Monson, somehow I was able to jack it up and temporarily get it driveable until Keith Bishop in Monson fixed it; it happened later when a friend's son forgot to put in the pin and it pulled apart, which is a fun job at the side of the road. No hard for the experts, one guy around St. Johnsbury did them for under $100 each installed.

My sister said the problem has continued even after the replacement of the starter, I don't know what her problem is. She tries to start it, no go, then comes back with a friend and it then starts.

Thanks for the thorough insight; I will keep looking for a solution on this,.the MAF was changed out from one of my cars which had been a problem. Possibly the temp. sensor or similar problem. It has run like a top when it is warmed up. Starter problem was solved for $200, with a Bosch rebuilt.

It actually does run better after the reset, sister said the CEL was off. She doesn't want to do any more at this point.

I would ask the workers at Auto Zone, Advance Auto, I got excellent leads doing that. You could also check the junk yards, there is one in the Sheffield area I have gotten parts from. I know Pete at Berkshire Hills Jewelry and Coins, they are pretty street smart may be able to recommend someone. They are across the way from Advance, which bought out a better parts place IMO. For the historically minded, both Berkshire Hills and Advance are on the same road as the Melville homestead, a few miles south.

Best of luck making the decision; I have had many 2.2 Subarus and a few 2.5s; the 2.5 has a lot more power, I noticed when I had a 2.2 engine put in my Outback that originally had the 2.5, a little loss of power especially going up hills. Do your own thorough DD. and then treat the cars with TLC once you make your decision. Quality motor oil and preventative maintenance can go a long way in maintaining the car.

My sister went to "Accurate Auto" earlier in the week and they replaced the battery clamp which did nothing to help the starter issue. I should leave them a snotty review for doing nothing and charging for it. They reset the check engine light without telling her what the codes were. I called the local Subaru dealer who said they had a $140 diagnostic minimum fee; and a weird one with them, "Garaval", was they said they try to get the customer to give them a maximum repair fee when they drop vehicles off so they know they can go ahead not worrying about unauthorized work. That is a recipe for abuse, IMO.

It was regularly maintained but the sporadic loss of power has stumped a number of garages.

We're in the Norwalk, CT area; by the way, I went down to AZ to get the CEL read, and what a crappy ride my sister has and the guy at AZ said it was too late for him to go you. On the highway, driving around with trying to get power out of it, it was very sporadic, even after the car warmed up fully. I have no idea what sensor is the issue. A friend of hers called with an Hispanic mechanic who comes to you to work, but you know how that would work out with the language barriers.

Thanks a lot for that information; the next step will be to get the codes which I will try to do later. It makes perfect sense that it is a sensor; my sister paid for a radiator flush which did nothing for the core problem. Mechanics may not know how to diagnose these problems.

I'll have to run it over to Auto Zone to check codes again. Is the engine temp. sensor an easy fix? Starter issue cost around $200 installed, Bosch rebuilt from Napa.

A number of mechanics have checked it out, none of them figured it out. Wires etc. have been changed out. Every single time it starts up, if you drive right out as soon as you go up a hill it loses power and the CEL flashes, happened to me yesterday on the way to the mechanic. I asked them to check it out, they said the codes would point in the right direction; unfortunately in many cases the codes don't nail down the cause.

Thanks for the advice; I dropped it off at my mechanic today and they are putting in a rebuilt Bosch from Napa. I also asked them to check on the flashing check engine light that happens every time when the car is run without being fully warmed up.

Thanks for the feedback. She has been having the problem nearly every day now. Yesterday at the Y a nice man recommended a mechanic she went to today who replaced one of the battery cables; it failed to start again later. AAA came when my disabled sister was looking at swimming suits and it didn't start, she does not have a cell phone. Someone called for her as has happened every time. Hopefully if I run the problems by my mechanic or a guy my brother knows they will get to the bottom of this.

Night and day difference; terrible, horrible ride with the broken spring and non-functioning strut. Now the ride is pretty smooth. I had contacted the highway department about the crappy roads and the state representative about the state roads (numerical).

I had the suspension fixed this week; turned out the spring also broke. I got a strut, spring, etc. for $50 for passenger side, installed, etc. for $80 plus tax.

Very sorry that happened, too bad it wasn't caught quickly, not sure that would have helped because lubrication protects in so many ways. I hope you find the best solution.

I was just looking at my sister's bill from Valvoline, instant oil change in Norwalk. $81.85; add ons were two 1157 light replacements and a drain plug gasket. Valvolline MaxLife 5 w 30 oil. Just crazy. I tell her over and over again she drives like "grandma Millie" why is she going there every 3 months at the longest?

https://www.ericpetersautos.com/2017/10/03/oil-change-pratfalls/

My disabled sister was at the local YMCA again today, came out and the car wouldn't start. Last week same problem, someone put the jumper cables on last week and it started. The battery is relatively recent from AAA. The next day AAA made a house call spoke to my sister and said it may be an electrical problem, the tow truck guy said he once worked at a Subaru shop. Today, same problem the brother's mechanic took her to the YMCA banged on the starter probably with a hammer and it started up. My sister thinks this is the end of the story, I think she may need a new starter. What are the best options at this point? Thanks.

Fairly common to the fill spout or top end to leak at some point, I think I may have that, I just don't fill it up; the last had that problem.

Junkyards are clearing out over half their yards and renting them out in this pricey part of CT; so they did not have them when I stopped in this week. So assuming the spring is still good maybe the mechanic will just to the strut for me; I'm hearing rattling metal when I go over bumps on the passenger side.

I have tried all of the stop leak products, email me if you want my experience.