PhantomSubaru

Thank you for your input. I was far away on vacation now back in the neighborhood. It sounds like either one of those plugs being loose would cause non-starting issues. They seemed to be tight but maybe not quite fully seated in their proper placement. Or else I have a poor ground somewhere else or loose connection which would explain the intermittent starting. I hate electrical issues but at least I am learning things along the way.

Thank you for your input. I was far away on vacation now back in the neighborhood. I will double check on the codes when I return to work on the Subaru. I know for sure the pump primes when turning the key and there is plenty of fuel pressure. I will double check my brake booster hose and other vacuum hoses.

I noticed something yesterday that may or may not be related to the starting issue. After pulling the key and opening the door, the open-door icon lights up on the instrument cluster as if the ignition were still turned on. The ignition itself is kinda funky to get the key to the right place where it clicks when removing the key but I always make sure it does. I figure if the ignition were faulty it would not crank the engine though so maybe this is a separate issue.

Thanks. I will double check those.

Ahhhh yes, there is that one by the dogbone from the transmission mount to firewall. I checked to make sure it was there and had a good connection. I had not seen it the other day hidden behind the air intake. Could not hurt to add more grounds in other places.

Thank you. I am open to anything. Today when I was tinkering and got it running there was no smell of excess fuel or smoking. I remember pulling a plug last month to check for spark when I was previously having the non-starting issue but it did not seem to be damp with fuel then.

Great advice on how to probe the harness without piercing the insulation. I will have to give that a try. So here is what I discovered today. Upon arriving I connected the positive battery cable and cranked the engine just in case it might have fixed itself. Nope. Next thing I did was fiddle with three large connectors on the back side of the engine, one of which goes to the injector harness. I did not unplug them but simply wiggled them a bit to make sure they were fully seated which they seemed to be. I tried the key again and it started. Go figure. I would like to think messing with that connector was what made it work but the previous time I had the non-starting issue I do not remember doing anything with that connector so I am somewhat skeptical. One thing I followed up with was making sure the grounding cable from the battery to body had a good connection which it seemed to be fine but I scratched it up just to make sure. I was looking for a ground wire somewhere between the engine and body but did not see one. Should there be one? I am pretty careful about marking everything when swapping engines but maybe that is something I overlooked.

Excellent. I will be heading out shortly do do some work and check out the Subaru. It sounds like I should leave the harness plugged into the injectors while testing and pierce the wire insulation with testing probe rather than unplugging the harness and checking directly on the pins? I would rather not pierce the insulation unless I have to but maybe they need to remain plugged in for this test. Will be checking the large connector and grounds to body too.

Thank you for the detailed information. Everything was fine for a few weeks of periodic starting to move the car around as needed then one day last week I went to bleed the brakes and the car would not start. Same issue as before. I pulled an injector plug and tested with a light. The light was on with the positive yellow wire. With the other wire the light was on but dim and it did not fluctuate when cranking engine. I will check the big connector between the intake and body. Where would I locate the two sets of contacts that are actuated by the main relay? Unfortunately my car is stored in a barn with no heat about 20 minutes away from home so working on it has been a challenge but I plan to go there tomorrow for some other work and check things out with the car. If anyone has feedback it would be greatly appreciated. I am good with mechanics but electronics are a weakness.

UPDATE: I pulled one of the injector plugs and hooked up my voltage meter. I got 12V+ then put the meter's prong into the other receptor and turned the key. The car fired up! I put the plug back on and cycled through a few starts just to make sure it was not a fluke. I am perplexed as to why it had not ran numerous times before but now it works so I am stoked. I have a P0270 code (cylinder 4 injector control circuit low) that was not there when I was previously attempting to start it. I hope I did not damage the plug while inserting the meter prong. Maybe it threw that code since I had the plug removed and has not yet reset. I should have erased the code and see if it comes back. That will be my next step when I head back out to the barn.

Thank you for the offer. I have an extra set on my parts engine if needed.

I have the feed hose from the filter properly connected to the top metal pipe. Great advice on what to check with the injectors. I will get at it ASAP and report back. I sure hope it is the injectors and not some elusive electrical issue.

Fuel lines are in check. I wish they were swapped and that would have been the end of the story.

No backfiring and the IACV hose is connected. It crossed my mind the timing may have slipped somehow. I had rotated the gears while I had it out of the car but that does not quite have the same effect as a running engine. I am not sure how these systems operate but I wonder if the timing could be out even though it runs smoothly with starter fluid. As of now I am leaning towards a fuel delivery issue. I could be completely wrong though.

Pretty sure I have everything connected properly but of course sometimes things get overlooked so I will double check.