Cougar

It is hard for me to tell looking at the blurry picture if that is the correct part. The wires tied between the motor and the resistors should lead you to the correct piece. I have replaced the resistors in other vehicles before but not in a Subaru.

I wasn't kidding when I said that. You have a good knowledge of the way things work and good troubleshooting skills. The fact that you stuck with solving the trouble until it was found says a lot also. You should be able to help out in a shop somewhere. If you like doing that kind of thing then you may want to pursue that.

If the car is a automatic then the trouble may be with the inhibit switch. If the trouble is occurring and car starts while the shifter is in the neutral position then the inhibit switch is the culprit. From your statements it sounds like neither the starter or the ignition switch is bad. One other area that can be trouble at times is the connector in the steering column for the ignition switch. Sometimes the contacts in the terminals get burned due to loose contact.

Looking at the info I have for a '01 Forester it appears the problem is more upsteam than the relay Nipper. It looks like the main wire between the battery the power panel under the hood is open. The wire may be red but I can't say for sure what it is. Follow the lead from the battery to the fuse panel and check for damage on each end and in the middle of the wire. This wire supplies power to a 80 amp fuse in the panel along with other items you mentioned. If the 80 amp fuse has no power then that main power lead is bad. If there is power there then there may be damage to the wiring in the panel that ties the other areas to the feed wire. Check your ground leads also for any damage to them.

Maybe you can find some work at a Subaru repair shop.

First thing to do is remove the battery cables and clean them with a battery brush. Then check to see if the car starts up. If not, check the fuses in the power panel under the hood and make sure voltage is getting to both sides of the fuses there. If they are good then move on to the fuse panel inside the car and check those fuses with the ignition turned on. If there are any dead circuits let us know what fuses are dead.

Check to see what fuses in the fuse panel inside the car have voltage getting to them while the ignition is ON. Let us know what fuses don't have power getting to them.

It is more common for the resistors to be burned out when some of the speeds for the motor don't work. The resistors look like coils of wire. You will find them by following the wires between the motor and the resistor block fastened to the duct. Remove the block and see if any of the coils are open. If the switch really is the trouble that is a dealer item I think.

I agree that the relay is the most likely cause of the problem. My info says to look for it on a bracket, on the fuse panel.

The heater switch controls the blower motor speed.

Thanks for letting us know.

I think Npper meant exchange the coils so the coil for 3 & 4 will move to position 1 & 2 and vise versa. Then if the codes change to misfire on 1 & 2 you can bet the trouble is with the coil. I would get the best plugs myself but you don't have to. The better the plug is the longer you can go without changing them. The best ones may last you 100k miles. I recommend you put a small amount of antisieze compound on the theads. So they will be easy to remove later on.

That terminal is connected to a coil of wire and will show a low resistance to ground normally. When power is applied to the terminal it becomes a electromagnet and pulls the solenoid shaft in to engage the starter motor. Power should only be going to this terminal when the key is in the START position. The best way to test that is to apply power to the terminal and body ground. The starter solenoid should move then. The lead I was concerned about being shorted was the main lead to the battery, but you said it was not shorted to ground so it appears that is not a problem. In the past I have seen that lead short out due to a problem inside the starter with the stud bolt holding the wire contacting the starter body. This causes tremendous sparks naturally when trying to connect the starter up to the battery. Since you stated the starter was getting very hot and the battery was dieing this all added up to a shorting problem in my mind.

That sensor is pretty important to have working properly. I wouldn't delay in fixing it.

I think you may be ok with the connection but it still may be best to get a better terminal so you can terminate the original wire properly. A good electronic of electrical parts store should have a better selection of larger wire terminals. A stereo install shop also may have a good selection since they deal with the power area.

You may cleared the short just be moving those wires. Did you inspect the wires for any damage to them?

First clean the battery connections with a battery brush, even if they look ok. Then check the fusible link connections in the small box mounted on the coolant reservoir.

Thanks for the clarification Nipper. Perhaps there is another fuse in the circuit to the controller that may have blown out. Hopefully just removing the installed lead will solve the trouble.

Looking at the chart it looks like pin 1 is a hot lead and pin 7 is a ground lead or a return of some sort. I don't believe you can just tie them together since they are supposed to tie to a load (the light bulb). I seem to remember something is different about the dimmer circuit in the newer cars. There may be a solid state controller in place of the old standard rheostat. If removing the connection you made doesn't make the lights work again, and there is voltage getting to the fuse you checked then, sorry to say, you may have damaged the light controller.

There must be a headgasket leak causing this to happen. Replacing the cap as Nipper suggested may save the hoses if the cap is bad but this must be one serious leak. I have never heard of this kind of thing.

Hmm. Did you change the rear bumper or something else? Maybe the short is in the wiring to the reverse lights themselves. The problem may just be a coincidence.

Glad you passed. Once again, great info from OB99W. Thanks.

At least get the battery load tested. If the battery is weak it will put undue load on the alternator and possibly damage your recent investment.

I suspect the code you will find out to be is P030?. This is the code for a misfire problem and the last digit tells what cylinder it is. I wouldn't worry about using the Seafoam. It may solve the problem. First verify that my hunch is correct.

You need to go over your wiring connections. It appears you connected to a wrong wire somewhere and tied into the reverse light or the shifter circuit. Perhaps the wire colors are the same and you picked the wrong wire.