agentargo Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 I have a 1999 Legacy Outback automatic with 130K. I'm having an issue and it seems my mechanic is not able to solve. At random times when I am driving my car, it stalls at slow speeds or when stopped. Sometimes it will go days with no issue, other times it will happen a dozen times in one trip. It has always started right back up. How it happens: I've noticed before it happens my engine will start to idle exceptionally low, almost bottom out the tach. One time I could hear the accelerator through the radio (as I pressed the accelerator, a buzz would get louder on the radio). Then, usually when stopped, the car with completely shut off, radio and and all. The electrical stuff will turn back on immediately because the key is in, but I need to restart the engine. Sometimes it will die almost immediately again, other times it will last a few minutes, sometimes a few days. One time, I had the issue multiple times, but managed to get it home. A few hours later I tried to start it to bring it to the mechanic and it would not start, the battery was fine because all the elelctrical stuff was working, but it just clicked when I turned the key. The next morning, it started fine. When the stalls happen, usually the check engine light will come on. My mechanic says it is showing code P1100. The first time I brought it to my mechanic, he said it was the ignition switch. They replaced it, but it did not help at all, 2nd time driving the car after I got it back it had the issue. It happened a few more times so I brought it in again. They claim they checked it up and down and could find nothing wrong, nor could they replicate the issue. Just a day after I got it back the second time, of course the issue happened again. My mechanic said he will check it again, but I am loosing my faith and think he will again insist it is fine. I know it is not fine and it's getting to the point where I fear driving the thing because it might break down or get worse. some recent repairs: At about 90K I had the head gasket problem and had that repaired. 100K new starter 120K body work, front right side, headlight (hit deer) 120K plugs/wires, CV boot 130K (3 months ago): Timing belt, water pump problem developed just a week after the timing belt/water pump job. 2.5 months ago: new ignition switch did not fix problem So anyone have any idea? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbennett2u Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 THIS sounds like a ground issue. Possible bad battery or alternator too. Especially the part saying once when you tried to restart it the car just clicked. That makes me think it isnt getting the amps to keep the car running. Try cleaning battery terminals and make sure the ground wires from engine to body arent badly corroded. Just because the electronics worked doesn't rule out a battery issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agentargo Posted January 3, 2012 Author Share Posted January 3, 2012 I actually tried to check the ground wires, but: I'm not really sure what I'm looking for, is it just rusty, falling apart usual type corrosion or something different? and if I know where they all are. Is there any sort of guide or image with all of them highlighted. Another problem is that everything is quite dust caked under the hood. I used to live in Denver and it's a dusty city. Is it OK to clean all the grime off the wires to see them better? I should also add that if it dies while I am rolling I can usually press the gas and it sometimes pops the engine back on. Thanks though, very much appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caboobaroo Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 May I ask who is your mechanic if you're willing to divulge that information. I actually work for an independent Subaru shop in the Seattle area so I might be able to help you out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agentargo Posted January 3, 2012 Author Share Posted January 3, 2012 It is actually not a Subaru specific shop. I just moved to the area from a few states away and don't know a soul so I relied on Yelp, though they seem to do a lot of Subaru jobs. It's Superior in Ballard. I just want to say I'm not really upset with them or anything, I realize it's quite hard to pin this sort of intermittent thing down. Just frustrated at not being able to trust my car at all right now. Also, the more I read about what might be causing this sort of issue I see other systems electrical systems being mentioned. This might be totally unrelated but my keyless entry has recently almost completely stopped working. I thought it was the keychain battery but replacing it did not help. It now rarely works so I have stopped using it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 Lucky Texan Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 I'm gonna suggest you add corroded battery cable(s) to any list of possibilities. My daughter just had your exact symptoms fixed with new cables on a 06 Chevy Impala. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agentargo Posted January 3, 2012 Author Share Posted January 3, 2012 Well I just cleaned the battery terminals. They were quite covered with dust and grime and little bit of build up from the battery. I also checked the ground connections. All of them were also quite covered with dust and dirt. I cleaned them off as best I could. Some were also rusty/corroded. I'll put some pictures up of them shortly. I'm going to test drive it now to see if any of this did anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agentargo Posted January 3, 2012 Author Share Posted January 3, 2012 Well I can't seem to attach images but here are some pictures: http://imgur.com/a/Sr93r Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 Lucky Texan Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 Well I just cleaned the battery terminals. They were quite covered with dust and grime and little bit of build up from the battery. I also checked the ground connections. All of them were also quite covered with dust and dirt. I cleaned them off as best I could. Some were also rusty/corroded. I'll put some pictures up of them shortly. I'm going to test drive it now to see if any of this did anything. I should have been more clear. Yes, my daughter had some buildup on the terminals, however, the cables had hidden corrosion under the insulation. To the extent we even heard arcing during one jumpstart event. It isn't uncommon for battery CABLES to go bad over time. I think water/acid/fumes/condensation/salts can 'wick' or flow down the strands under the insulation. Just a consideration, but, as said, she also had intermittent stalling and intermittent starting failures and odd CEL occurrences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lefty2053 Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 My son-in-law just replaced a ton of parts on an Isuzu Truck. I asked him one day if the cables were all OK. He said yes. After buying another part he decided to look at the cables and found the ground cable had a crack in it. I asked him long before he replace the Voltage Regulator,Battery,Carb kit,Plugs,Wires and ECU. It would idle just fine and then would stall at lights or after idling for a long time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the3rsss Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 I would start by replacing both battery cables. They are cheap, and it sounds like they may be the problem. Clean all the connections and coat them with electric grease or the old standby....vaseline. chances are, that will take care of the problem. Also, how old is the battery? Have you tested it and the alternate output? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agentargo Posted January 5, 2012 Author Share Posted January 5, 2012 (edited) Well after cleaning everything I don't think it really helped. The issue did not occur again but since it's so intermittent I guess I have to expect that. I drove it around quite a bit and the only problem was the idle was quite low (550 exactly at idle) and it seemed quite underpowered but it never stalled. My mechanic said he was willing to take a look at it again so that's where it is right now. Haven't heard anything back. edit: sorry did not see your reply on a new page. The battery is about 3 years old but tested fine. If I get it back and they still can't find any issue I will start there with new cables and replace the battery itself. thanks again everyone Edited January 5, 2012 by agentargo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kanurys Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 So what was the final verdict on this (3.7 years later)? I have a 1999 engine that has been doing the same thing for two years and it's, ironically, driving me crazy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 What model 99? Does it have the square top MAF sensor? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kanurys Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 I'll double check. I believe it's a phase II EJ22 from an outback sport. I'll post back when I can check on the car. There seem to be very similar symptoms to what is described here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kanurys Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 The MAF is more round and the plug and hump is on the side, not the square one on the top. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Obwobbles Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I have the same car with 196k on it. I received it with no info or title, and corroded terminals. When i tried to replace the terminals, corrosion was 6 inches into the cables. Replacing the cables fixed it. Replace the cables all the way back to the starter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bushwick Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 (edited) So what was the final verdict on this (3.7 years later)? I have a 1999 engine that has been doing the same thing for two years and it's, ironically, driving me crazy. The fusible link in the fuse box under the hood can cause the clicking and no start, then minutes later fire right up. They get corrosion in them and burn out, but can keep enough of a contact to periodically start and run as the wire arcs where it breaks. They use a high quality stainless connector at both ends (it's a " U " shaped jumper wire coated in silicone and is actually a fusible link) of the wire, so either reuse them or get the best you can find since it has a decent amount of current passing through it. When mine failed, I took an awl and pick set and very carefully opened the crimping. Went to AZ and tried to match the diameter of mine with their universal fusible wiring. The 1st wire used, despite being the same OD, got too warm from the engine running, so I went back and got the next size up. I was able to reuse some of the crimping to secured them, then went ahead and soldered the remaining copper wire directly to the connectors to be 100% certain they were getting full contact. The 2nd wire doesn't get warm. A quick test is start the car, and touch the silicone cover of the fusible link (it's the only " U " wire in with the relays under the hood in that fuse box near the battery) after the car has been running for a couple minutes. If it's really warm or hot, replace it. Can also wiggle it and see if the car goes from a start to no start scenario. Edited October 2, 2015 by Bushwick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kanurys Posted October 3, 2015 Share Posted October 3, 2015 Thank you. I'll check it out. I got the new battery cables in as well as a new main power cable and engine ground. Testing is still commencing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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