Cougar

I think the brown/red is what you are looking for. The black wire may be ground. You could test the wire with a test light to verify that.

I haven't done the surgury myself but I would assume the door panel will have to be removed to get at it and to see what your doing.

From what I understand the problem may be due to a dirty or bad switch that is mounted on the lock mechanism in the door. Someone had a good photo of the fix they did for their car but I don't remember who did that. Edit: After doing a search I found the post. Here is a link for you to look at. http://www.rweddysolutions.com/Subaru96fix

I would suspect the problem is with the remote and not the receiver but I could be wrong. I purchased a spare OEM remote for my '01 Outback from Ebay for $10 dollars so you could try replacing yours to see if that helps. If it still doesn't work correctly you have a spare remote at least and then I would look at the receiver for a problem. I'm not sure what the antenna is made up like for this but that would be the first think to check if is external to the receiver box.

Have you checked the plugs to make sure there is spark getting to them while this is happening? If not, I would check that out. Sorry, I don't know where to find the FPR on this model.

I would say it will depend on how long you would like to keep the car. If you want to keep it longer than a couple more years then it may be worth the cost. If you don't want to keep it then you could reduce the price of the car by around $1,500 dollars for the new owner to make repairs. If you do keep it, hopefully you will not have any more real trouble for some time though the rear end may be talking to you. If you can afford a newer vehicle it may be time to trade up. It is hard to say what the value of your car would be in your area. I would search the want ads and see how prices are going there and then decide a price.

I would first inspect the cable and make sure the other end is ok by pulling it out of the housing. Since the gauge worked before the work it is doubtful that it is the problem. The end of the cable may be broken and a replacement is needed or the cable just needs to set in the gauge end correctly.

I would first inspect the cable and make sure the other end is ok by pulling it out of the housing. Since the gauge worked before the work it is doubtful that it is the problem. The end of the cable may be broken and a replacement is needed or the cable just needs to set in the gauge end correctly.

If you take the car to the tech I would have him check the current draw for each of the light systems you have and make list so you will have a reference to go by for the extra loads. He should have a amp clamp to do that.

The tranny may have a broken drive gear for the speedometer. I think the gear is plastic but not sure. Your hubby may be able to verify the speedometer is working ok by using a cordless drill attached to the cable and turn the cable. If the unit works ok then he will have to repair the cog. I think there is an access plate to get at the cable drive and replace it.

I don't know about the newer models but the older ones could leak coolant into the cylinders through the intake manifold ports. This may be another thing to check.

There are usually two sets of connectors near the ECU. One set is black and the other set is green. The green are the ones you connect together to go into the diagnostic mode.

If there is a button for "clock" try pushing that button and then the H or M buttons. I think the crank is for the moon roof possibly.

I think the duty solenoid is the one used for the fuel charcoal canister recycling system, I may be wrong though. Here is a link to a site that explains it doing a different function. http://autorepair.about.com/library/glossary/bldef-122a.htm

Here is a link to a site that shows the codes for various models. It looks like for your model and year, code 14 is the 'duty solenoid or circuit'. http://www.troublecodes.net/Subaru/

Thanks for the info SVXdc. This should go into the archives for future reference.

The dash's did have a fairly common problem with the connections in the dash. Some folks have had success by resoldering them.

Hopefully the problem is in the power circuit for the AC rather than the compressor. I would first check to see if the clutch is engaging on the compressor when you turn the switch on. If not, check for voltage getting to the magnetic clutch. I assume you have already checked the fuses for a problem.

Your wondering if the ECU could still be at fault and the answer is yes. I would first try to make sure that voltage is getting to the ignition system before replacing the ECU and if you do replace it I would hope you could find a used one for under $100 from a salvage yard. The ECU may be the problem but I would really try to prove it before replacing it. I would recommend you purchase a factory service manual for the wiring of the car so you could check suspected areas if you want to try and fix this yourself. The problem may also be a simple wire connector that is making poor contact when cold. I would hate to see you spend a lot of money on parts and find out later it was something like that causing the problem.

If your plugs aren't NGK get a set of those and try swapping them in.

I doubt that this problem is due to a diode. Doing a power fail reset type action like that is not normally associated as a fix for a diode problem. Diodes either work or they are bad. Electrolytic capacitors are more prone to that kind of fix, or a microprocessor circuit. These type of components and circuits will be found in the ECU. I would try changing that first to see if that helps. Since they are expensive you might want to try finding a used one from a salvage yard.

What I stated in my post should be correct for your disty also. All the wires go to the ECU.

For cars of that era I think the trouble code is flashed through a LED light in the ECU, have you found it?

I think there are some connection procedures you have to do before you use a timing light on the system, otherwise I think the timing will show 20 degrees when things are normal. So you may be correct with what you had before, doing the timing by ear.

I have a manual for the '88 model that shows both the SPFI and MPFI wiring. The colors of the wires match the colors you mention except the green one, mine is black/red, which ties to shield. All wires go to the ECU though the shield also ties to other areas. The drawing does not get detailed enough to show the inside of the disty. You may be able to figure the wiring out using a meter and looking at the voltages.