Ravenwoods

We installed new NGK plugs six months ago. New wires too.

My daughter’s 96 Legacy Brighton (MT, 119,000 miles) has been acting up for months now. There are no trouble codes. I looked at live data with the OBDII reader and noticed Ignition Advance is 14 degrees when the engine is warm and idling. So I Looked at live data from two other Legacies (1995) and their Ignition Advance is 20 degrees when warm and idling. Is this a clue as to what the problem is? Swapped out the following parts from our 95 Legacy to try and find the fault but nothing helps: MAF, Coolant Temperature Sensor, Knock Sensor, Camshaft Position Sensor, Crankshaft Position Sensor, Fuel pump. The problem is rather intermittent. Sometimes real bad and other times hardly misbehaves. It stalls out while driving but the engine doesn’t usually die. It jerks etc. It acts like either suddenly there is no fuel or no spark in all cylinders.

I swapped the fuel pump and there is no improvement.

We replaced the coolant temperature sensor but there was no improvement. We still don’t have any trouble codes. So I swapped out the following sensors from a 95 Legacy one at a time with no improvement: Knock sensor, camshaft Position sensor, crankshaft angle sensor. Now I’m planning on swapping the fuel pump too. Any other suggestions?

Thanks everyone for the help and advice. I jacked up the car today and the left cv was broken. I put in a old functional cv axle to test the car out and it drives normally. I bought it for $425. The engine is strong. Check Engine light is off but I attached my code reader and there are 4-5 codes, such as cylinder misfire. I’m assuming new plugs and wires will sort that out. Our family now has three 1995 Legacies, a 96 Legacy, and a 1998 Forester S. So this new Legacy will be the backup car for when one of the others needs work done on it. The Forester needs work now so it’s going to be sitting around for a bit.

We put in a different MAF for a week and initially it was much better— but then returned to the way it was previously. Then it can be problem free for a day or two. Now we finally got a code for the coolant temperature sensor. Where do we find the one connected to the ECU?

I’m in Alaska. The seller was too busy today for me to go over and jack the front up to see which cv is broken. She says Sunday morning will work for her. I told her what the problem most likely is and that it is an inexpensive repair in case she decided to keep it. She just wants it gone as she doesn’t have time to deal with it at the moment.

I've only done CVs on Subarus from 95-98 and they all had rollpins. So I've never encountered anything else. I got the impression from 3Pin that this is an easy fix if it is the short axle stub. But el_freddo indicates it is much more involved.

So when you remove that short axle does a bunch of oil come out?

I’ll be going out this evening to jack up the front and see which cv is broken. I’ve got an old cv ready to swap out.

Thanks for the very helpful advice.

If I buy it I only have to drive about six miles on a lightly traveled road to get it home.

Automatic transmission.

I went to look at a 95 Legacy Wagon today that has the same symptoms. So if it is a broken front cv joint is it ok to drive it six miles? I might be able to get this car at a low price.

I found a thread by japcs777 about a 96 Legacy with what sounds like the same problem. Title “Legacy makes clicking noise when driving and rolls in park.” Fairytax4me replied: “Putting the trans in park engages the parking pawl to the output shaft of the trans. This only locks the front pinion shaft from turning. The pinion shaft prevents the ring gear on the differential from turning, but it does not prevent the side gears inside the differential from turning. The axles are connected to the side gears. The side gears will rotate opposite of each other. (This is normal operation for a differential.) If one axle breaks, the axles can then rotate and the car can roll away. (The broken one will rotate the opposite direction of the wheel) The rear wheels are powered by a clutch set in the rear of the trans. The clutch set needs fluid pressure in order to engage. It only gets fluid pressure when the engine is running, and the transmission is in gear. When you start driving the clutch engages and the rear wheels will propel the car. When parked the clutch is free so no power can go to the rear wheels. This also means the rear wheels will not hold the car still when the trans is in park. Put a new axle in it and you'll be set.”

Do you have to pull the engine to get to the parking pawl?

I just had a look at this wagon with some sort of problem. The seller is asking $600. 243,000 miles, but they say the engine was rebuilt or replaced about 100,000 miles ago. The engine looks pretty clean so could be. A bit of rust on left rear fender, very little body damage. Struts need replacing. Tires low on tread. The car starts fine but Park doesn’t work. The car will roll forward in park. The car drives but there are some alarming clanks and noises, not typical of bad cv joints. None of the boots are torn. I only drove the car at 5 mph or slower. I only used Drive and reverse. The steering felt normal at five mph. The seller was hesitant to let me go faster but she can’t explain why. i couldn’t see anything in the car obviously wrong. It seems very odd that the transmission appears to work normally but park doesn’t. Anyway I told her if she didn’t get any higher offers I would give her $300. Maybe there is an easy fix? We already have Three Legacies in the family: two 95s and a 96. So it could serve as a parts car at a minimum. Any ideas or suggestions on what to look for as the cause of the problem?

Two days ago I swapped out the MAF sensor and put in the sensor from my currently idle 95 Legacy. My daughter reports the car behaved much better but was not symptom free. Maybe there are two issues: 1. Failing MAF Sensor; 2. And something else. We got a used MAF sensor from the junkyard about five months ago for $50 and seems like it has already started to fail. Maybe it’s time to get a brand new one.

We haven't tried anything in Reverse but we can give it a try. Where is the Crank Position sensor?

It doesn’t usually die. You take your foot off the accelerator and put the clutch in and it is idling. No detectable pattern What is CTS?

I’m going to the junkyard to see if there are any struts and mounts still in decent shape for a very reasonable cost. Little bit short on money the moment and it’s not a big job changing them out in a year if necessary. Does the Forester use the same struts as the Legacy?

It goes from perfect to cutting out on all four cylinders instantly. So none of your ABC options.

I put in the MAF sensor last night from my new 95 Legacy and she said there were no issues on her trip home. But that was the initial result for the first trip when I borrowed the MAF from the 99 Outback. The second trip is when it started acting up again. Then I tested that sensor in our Forester for a short trip and it was fine. But I did not leave it in for additional trips. So I didn’t do a thorough job eliminating the MAF as the culprit.This time I’ll leave the MAF from the 95 Legacy in for as long as needed as I’m doing some work on it for the next few weeks.

The left strut mount has a broken bearing and the rollers are falling out. I imagine that could cause the slight pull to the right. One can get replacement bearings to tap in I suspect?

That would be great.