Subaru Crew Problems & Solutions

xwesx

Hmm. Well, I can only relate that I had a stalling problem with my '96 OBW for a while and it would usually happen within 2-3 miles of startup, so well before the engine was up to operating temperature. It was very intermittent and so extremely unpredictable, but it also did not record an error code in the ECU. After spending a few hundred dollars on diagnostics, etc., a mechanic finally suggested that it might be the mass airflow sensor (MAS). I found a used one at a place in Seattle for about 1/3 the cost of new and figured it would be cheaper than paying another mechanic to guess again, so I installed it and have never had a stall problem since....

 

Now, mine always took a few minutes to start back up after the stall, but that may have been related to another, more nagging and persistent/predicable, problem. Anyhow, the MAS may be worth a try.

fibber2

Keeps all of the sand and salt off the underside of the engine, tranny and the wiring. Makes future repairs and maint easier, with less chance of contamination. Get the clips or make new screw holes.

 

Steve

bat1161

Or, get a skid plate for added protection.

 

Mark

hypov

 

-Dave

ateixeira

Now that looks *beefy*...

 

-juice

bluesubie

I have one of those on my Forester. :-) Much less of a pain in the neck than the screw/clip thingy's.

 

-Dennis

leo2633

Nice skid plate. If I had one, though, I'd immediately round off those 90 degree corners, to eliminate taking off a chunk of flesh. Ouch!

 

Len

hypov

leo2633, "Subaru Crew: Care & Maintenance" #9140, 25 Jan 2005 2:30 pm

 

So far, since early 2003 it's been on and off [oil changes + others], it hasn't taken off anyone's chunk of flesh plus the plate that's on my WRX is the prototype that RallyArmor later refined for retail.

 

-Dave

fibber2

for my tastes. I just want to keep the underside of the mechanicals a little cleaner. That thing looks like the mods they are making to the Humvees to better protect our troops in Iraq!

 

Steve

hypov

hee hee, nah, the plate is only 1/8 thickness, good for street to light offroad. Won't cut it for rallying or ballistic protection. ;-)

 

Shoot paisan an e-mail if the plates interest anyone

 

-Dave

ateixeira

They look great as-is. Good for the type of duty Subies typically see. Thumbs up.

 

-juice

xsailor8

Seem to be losing 1 qt. of oil every 6000 miles on a new baja turbo. Dealer cant find any leaks and there is no smoke. Sometimes smell cooked oil. After two visits to dealer they are now saying that baja turbos can lose 1 qt. of oil every 6000 miles and it is normal. Is anyone else having this experience with a subaru turbo engine?

zman3

I can't offer any specific help but I would not consider 1 qt every 6000 miles excessive by any means. I would recommend changing the oil by 5K anyways.

flashman

Well, my transmission finally gave up today before I time to diagnose what the problem was. I just had it towed to the shop and will find out soon enough what the problem was.

 

I'll post the resolution when I find out.

 

====== I wrote:

Heather,

  

I've got the same year model and the exact same problem at 64K miles. What was the verdict on your problem?

  

Thanks,

Allen

  

===== Heather wrote:

My 1999 Legacy Outback has 88000 kilometers (about 45000 miles) and the transmission is a big problem. It's automatic and when i put the car into drive, it doesn't engage until i give it a lot of gas. then of course when it finally does engage, it jerks fairly violently. it will even shift out of gear and into neutral when i'm coasting to a stop at a light or something. it's getting fairly dangerous. these problems started happening the day after i took it in for a routine maintenance. is this a common subaru problem? any suggestions?

   

thanks,

heather

dbpubs

Just signed on, have not been able to read all posts, so I apologize if this repeats an earlier topic. I just bought a base Forester X, now with 3000 miles. When I get the oil change done, I'd like to go synthetic.

Does anyone have any experience with this?

Thanks, TimF

fibber2

Tim,

 

Recommendations vary all over the scale, but the most frequent comment is to wait a little longer (maybe 7k or so?) until all of the ring/cylinder scuffing is complete and everything is well seated before going to the ultra-slippery stuff. I changed something around 10k or so, am now nearing 30k and all is well. M1, either 10w-30 or 5w-30, depending on the season.

 

Steve

joekane

By unresponsive, I meant no braking effect. The petal pushes to the floor, no stopping. Problem quickly disappears.

 

The car has 30k miles on it. I'll have to look into if/when we flushed the brake lines on this yet, good question.

dbpubs

[re #4620]

Thanks Steve, I appreciate positive feedback. After reading some of the stories in these forums, I was beginning to get worried. I love my little Burro, but the first time I get stranded, that will change.

edunnett

I agree with zman. 1 qt every 6000 is normal. Oil is SUPPOSED to be used during normal combustion. In fact 1 qt every 3000 miles is within normal limits for most makes/models. My '01 Forester burned about 1/2 Qt/ 3000 miles - so the exact amount as yours. My '86 Civic burns about 1 Qt every 1000 miles - but it has big leaks :-). Keep in mind that the 2.5L engines with the Turbo might take 5Qts per oil change rather than the more normal 4 Qts. Also get under the car and check for external leaks for your peice of mind. My '01 Forester used about 3/4 qt/3000 miles when it had a Piston Pin Access hold cover leak. 1/2 Qt/3000 miles when all was well.

Elissa

samiam_68

Sounds like you either have air in the brake lines or the fluid level is low. Does the brake indicator light up when the pedal goes to the floor? I would bring it in to have the brake fluid replaced and while it's in the shop, have them check the booster and lines for leaks.

nozer

I just got off the phone with a dealer in Toronto, Canada. After replacing my timing belt tensioner a year ago, they are finally replacing the pistons. The car is a 2001 Outback with 47,000 km on it and was making the ticking noise since I've had it.

 

I didn't have to complain too much. Just had to wait for the area rep to hear the noise so I left it overnight on Tuesday, they looked at it Wednesday and said it would be ready on Friday. They gave me a loner car as well. Let's see if this fixes the problem.

jam05

Help! help! I'm being driven mad by the non-stop chime our new outback repeats over and over when you don't have your seatbelt on. Don't get me wrong, I regularly wear it but there are times I do not and would prefer a peaceful QUIET drive. I have heard that there is a way to totally disable the "reminder" chime all together. If anyone knows how to do this, please reply with instructions and I will be forever in your debt! Thank you!!!

 

Other than this we love our '05 Outback - no other complaints except the RE92 tires that I had the dealer swap out for Turanza's before we took delivery of the car. What junk those stock Potenzas are it's amazing. Subaru must get a phenominal volume discount from Bridgestone or something to OEM those things.

 

thanks for your help!

 

J

kev_xt_owner

Personally I'm baffled why anyone would know how to eliminate the chime. You're asking for help in disabling a car reminding you to use the most basic of safety features.

 

If you want a quiet drive, wear your seatbelt. ***Seatbelts save lives***

 

I'm open to any legitimate reason why the driver not wearing your seatbelt is a good idea.

volkov

Got it from Paisan too. I had gouges in the plastic one after a couple of months. Great for bombing along gravel roads, and not very heavy.

 

Volkov

jmtreetop

If you search in the "2005+ Subaru Legacy/Outback" forum there is instructions there. It's something like click and unclick the seatbelt 20 times within 30 seconds after the initial chiming stops while the key is turned to the ignition.

subden

well, how a bout these for starters:

1). Pulling into the bank drive thru and unbuttoning my seatbelt while I get my wallet out and reach around car to my briefcase..have to sit there and listen to the thing the whole time.And no, I don't care to have to rebuckle immediately just to stop the thing.

2).Placing my briefcase on the passenger seat and having to listen to the chime forever. (I don't know what weight Subaru has it set for to set off the alarm, but it's way too low).

 

3). Drving 50 yards from my driveway to pick up my mail. Sorry, but I don't care to buckle up and unbuckle just to do that.

 

Sorry, but the subaru alarm is extremely annoying compared to other cars in my and other's opinions here.

kev_xt_owner

Owning a 2004 Forester XT and not a 2005 Outback, I'll admit I'm biased based on lack of experience.

 

But it seems as though some of the annoyance can be removed through behavior modifications: place your bag/briefcase on the floor in front of the seat & walk to the mailbox instead of driving to it.

 

I'm able to retrieve my wallet (back right pocket of pants) without undoing my seat belt. I've also carried a backpack with approximately 20 pounds of weight on the passenger seat with no chime (or warning light), so maybe the passenger seat chime is exclusive to certain Subaru lines.

 

Seat belts are great lifesavers in accidents. The problem is not everybody wears them while driving. Car manufacturers are required to give an audible warning that must last between 4 and 8 seconds (but can actually continue beyond the 8 seconds). Some evidence has shown the 8 seconds to be insufficient for those already tending not to wear seat belts. Unfortunately it sounds like Subaru made the alarm so annoying that people are disabling/desiring to disable it, thus preventing its potential effectiveness.

jam05

Thank you SubDen for adding some common sense / real world examples here on the topic. Also thank you Imtreetop for the info., I will check it out.

 

Kev XT Owner - I don't think anyone is disputing the effectiveness of seat belts in saving lives and no one here has said we don't wear them regularly. However, there are certain circumstances where they are simply not needed. Modifying your behavior to justify putting a repetitive, annoying chime in a vehicle is non-sense quite honestly. It's the same as saying people cannot be trusted to do the right thing for themselves. Seatbelts are clearly good and useful. However, no one should have the right to dictate or mandate to others how they should behave in order to protect themselves. One thing I enjoy about living in New Hampshire is the fact that common sense typically rules in governmental legislation. For instance - it is not illegal to ride a motorcycle without a helmet (unlike many states). Hundreds of bikers do, but would I? Heck no, but neither do I have the right to tell some woman or man I don't know from Adam that they have to in order to protect themselves from themself!

 

I agree with you that since Subaru made the alarm so annoying that people are disabling it. But I don't agree that in the absence of such an alarm people wouldn't wear their seatbelts regularly.

 

Safe and peaceful driving!

bkaiser1

How easy on-off is that steel plate for oil changes? I positively hate that plastic plate on my 04 WRX when it comes time to change the oil filter...it takes me twice as long to wrestle those stupid little clips off than it does to do the whole oil change. Does the steel plate screw on or use clips? I don't want to omit the plate since I'm sure it's on there for good reason, so I'd be interested in replacing it with something better.

 

Brian

hypov

The plate is bolted on [5 bolts for mine], and with powertools it would take no more than 2 minutes. Even with handtools, it wouldn't take more than 4 minutes.

 

-Dave

c_hunter

I always buckle my seatbelt when driving (by habit) but the chimes on the 05 are annoying in all sorts of non-driving situations. Fortunately, they can be disable by the repetitive clicking procedure mentioned above.

 

Craig

jam05

Agreed.

Thanks for the confirmation Craig - I will try it tonight. I assume it worked for you?

xwesx

I have one question about that: does it disable the feature indefinitely, or just until the vehicle is shut off?

 

I would venture to guess that people who tend not to wear their seatbelts will not do so, even with the chime. If nothing else, they are going to latch the seatbelt then get in the seat, or just wedge something into the latch to shut off the chime. The chime is only helpful for those folks who want to wear the belt, but are forgetful. In those cases, a short chime will typically work. The only chiming any of my cars make is in my '96 when I have the key in the ignition and I open the driver's door. If it was supposed to chime for the seatbelt, then it has fallen victim to Subaru's unreliable electrical system. Yet, I've not once failed to wear my belt when on the road, though if it did chime nonstop while I was working it like pulling stumps, recovering a vehicle, etc., I'd be justifiably annoyed.

 

Disabling other safety features like DRLs, now there I can see why someone would be potentially baffled about a request to disable....

p0926

It's the same as saying people cannot be trusted to do the right thing for themselves

 

And your point is?!?! People are constantly doing things that are stupid and bad for them. Not wearing a motorcycle helmet for one, I have no problem with someone choosing not to wear a helmet, but I think they should sign a medical waiver stating that no public funds will be wasted on them in the case of a head trauma.

 

-Frank

mnf

I had it Done at 10,000 on my 2004 as said below to get everything sealed first is why to wait a little... Good Luck... Matt

bkaiser1

Bolts have got to be easier to manage than those silly little clips...when they're crusted with mud and road grime, they don't function very easily and take quite a bit of contorting to remove and replace. I might just have to look into that metal skid plate....

bkaiser1

So i posted earlier about my search for a place to do my 30k mile service -- with quotes ranging from $400 to $750 from the local dealers. I saw a recommendation over on another site for a local Subaru specialist in town and called them. They're doing the 30k service for $275, which is a steal in my book. I don't have the time nor the inclination to do it myself, so this seems to be the best route. This will be my car's first time in for service by someone other than myself, so I don't mind spending a little more for the major work to be done. I'll take care of the little stuff in between the 30-60-90 intervals.

 

In that price, they are doing the oil/filter, air filter, fuel filter, coolant flush, brake flush, and transmission/diff flush, along with various "checks"...basically by the book.

 

Brian

c_hunter

It worked, but then I had to disconnect the battery during a stereo upgrade and it came back. One of these days I will do it again. I have to confess, I forget the exact procedure and it is kind of important to have the details, otherwise you will waste your time. So make sure you research it and find the instructions!

 

Craig

jam05

Point well taken Frank, I can only agree! That's a good idea actually.

xwesx

Yeah, but here we go down the slippery slope:

 

<begin silly rant>

Pretty soon waivers will be signed for smoking, drinking alcohol, using chewing tobacco.... then what? Oh, how about red meat? How about eating non-organic foods that contain trace amounts of known carcinogens that could cause cancer? Oh, well, while we're at it, better ban extreme sports because it is better to prevent the possibility of injury than to treat it. Heck, let's just ban all sports. Oops. I forgot to tell you that driving increases your risk of injury. We don't do that any more. Wait wait! Where are you going? Didn't you hear that it is more dangerous to leave your house than to stay at home? There's a standing order that you may only travel outside the home for 1 hour of each day. Hello! You have a newborn! Please have your infant sign here stating that due to accepting the terminal condition of life, it holds the rest of the world harmless for any injury, affliction, or illness it may receive regardless of cause or intent. Thank you. Have a good life and stay well. ;-D

 

Ridiculous, yes, but once choices begin to be limited, there's always a good justification for taking away another one. Then again, we are not talking about disallowing the choice, merely requesting the person sign a waiver for it, but where would it end?

 

Hahahaha. Who knows, but darn it, let's start with seatbelts!

</end silly rant>

 

Seriously, though, at least Subaru designed a disable mode to prevent the endless chime from being a customer retention problem. It is just too bad that it is all-or-nothing.

 

Just out of curiosity, how many of you allow passengers in your car the option of not buckling up? What are your reasons for your choice?

hondafriek

Geez Louise I wish this damn deep freeze would move out. I have had new rotors sitting for 2 weeks to go on Titan but it is too bloody cold.

 

 30 below celsius tonight again.

 

  Cheers Pat.

locke2c

I tell passengers to buckle up, but I won't stop the car if they refuse. If they just brush me off I'll haze them a bit and I can be pretty convincing.

 

...But if they still resist, it's their life not mine.

 

~Colin

dcm61

...But if they still resist, it's their life not mine.

 

In PA, it's your fine, not their's. :-(

 

DaveM

locke2c

it's not ticketable in Kansas unless you're stopped for some other violation.

 

~c

xwesx

I take pretty much the same stance, Colin, unless the person is a family member. In that case, I demand the seatbelt; I'm not sure why. Maybe I feel more comfortable about giving them heck about it. In AK, it is also not ticketable unless for some other violation, and it is also not ticketable if there is not a belt available for a passenger as long as the passenger is in a seat(for example, if I had 3 people in the cab of my pickup because there are only two belts). However, if you are over capacity (say, with 6 people in a 5-passenger car like the OB), then you can be pulled over for that as well as fined for unbelted passengers.

 

However, I have given stranded folks rides lately (breakdowns, etc), and never will they buckle up. I try to reason with myself that, like Colin said, it's not my life, but then I think about how terrible I would feel if we were in a wreck with ME as the driver and the passenger died primarily because of not wearing a seatbelt. The whole guilt thing......

p0926

user777

that commercial that's slow motion with the young kids in the back seat that aren't buckled up, and the car hits something, and those kids from the back end up smacking into the people in the front (or something like that). i think everyone ends up dead.

 

while a dramatic commercial, i think it may be more accurate to say everyone's life is jeopardized when someone doesn't use their seatbelt.

leo2633

Anyone ever have an oil leak inside the spark plug "tubes" in the valve covers (2001 Forester)? I pulled one of the spark plug boots and found oil inside the tube. I bought four new rubber seals (which go inside the valve cover at this point) from the dealer, along with two valve cover gaskets. I plan to replace them within the next week or two. Anything I need to be aware of?

 

Thanks in advance for any and all info.

 

Len

jfl

The only chiming any of my cars make is in my '96 when I have the key in the ignition and I open the driver's door.

 

That's to remind you that the key is still in the ignition, not an issue with Subaru's electrical system. 8~)

 

Jim

rob_m

I hated seatbelts, and rarely wore them.

 

My 92 Loyale wagon had the automatic shoulder belt, you know - when you turn on the car, the belt zips across the door frame.

 

I got to tolerate it. Barely.

 

Wouldn't you know one rainy Saturday morning, I was running errands in town, and some boob in a CRX pulled out in front of me. I dumped the clutch, hit the brakes and slid into him, hitting him broadside, with enough force to spin him 180 degrees onto the sidewalk.

 

I was sore and severely bruised. The seatbelt kept me from hitting the windshield or steering wheel.

 

I am now a convert.