Subaru Crew Problems & Solutions

w8ifi · March 2007

Sorry for the late reply....my cousin just sent me pictures of the storm you had(He lives in Superior Wi) Pretty serious storm even for us from the U.P. I don't have a garage even....brrrr

Jim

gherman131313 · March 2007

Help me figure this out:

After last week's ice storm, I drove my 2003 Forester 2.5X automatic over a rough and bumpy patch of ice-covered highway, pretty jarring for about 10 seconds.

I don't know if that's what did this:

Vibration and rattling under the gated shifter cover. At first, it happened whenever I let up on the accelerator, while the car was in drive and moving.

Now, it only happens when I shift into reverse from park. Once the gear engages, no vibration.

Is this some type of linkage problem, something that may have been jarred loose?

The car still drives fine, no delay in gears engaging and no vibration anymore while in forward gears. (remember, this is automatic transmission) :confuse:

paisan · March 2007

There is no linkage in an automatic trans car. The "shifter" is merely an electronic selector switch!

-mike

fisheymofo · March 2007

owned vdc sedan since 38k miles first cds wouldn't play then all of the sudden it worked. last week the whole thing took a dump. it won't go off weather band 3 and thevolume isfull blast static

c_hunter · March 2007

Out of curiosity, with what did you replace your '05 XT?

Acura RDX.

samiam_68 · March 2007

What did you find so annoying about the FXT that you dumped it after two years? I know the FXT is full of quirks and is virtually a zero on the comfort scale, but still, what was the last straw for you?

n3mqr · March 2007

Can you tell me how to get into the fog light to replace the bulb? I have a 2000 Legacy

c_hunter · March 2007

I had an Outback XT. The main pluses for the RDX were a much roomier passenger space and better handling. I also like the longer highway range of the RDX on ski trips. I can now make one gas stop on a 650 mile round trip, as opposed to three gas stops with the OB XT.

Ironically, if Subaru offered a Legacy GT wagon with with VDC for 2007 or 2008, that would have been a consideration.

ateixeira · March 2007

Bummer! My clock light went out. :sick:

It's in the overhead console. I haven't looked yet, but is it easy to get to? I have the one with the single sunglasses holder.

xwesx · March 2007

Ahah! And so it begins...... :P

paisan · March 2007

Juice, I'll take a few hundy off the price for that

-mike

ateixeira · March 2007

DOH!

With my Miata it happened gradually. On the stereo, there are 3 sets of lights, right-middle-left.

First, the right bulb burned. I could still see all the stations, it was just a bit dim on the right.

Then the middle bulb burned out. Now I could only see about half the controls. I kept using it for a while, until...

Boom, the 3rd bulb blew out. :sick:

Couldn't see what station I was on, or the clock.

So I caved and just replaced the stereo, since the CD was skipping anyway, and got an MP3 player.

I'll fix the Forester clock, I'm sure it can't be too hard.

zman3 · March 2007

I'll fix the Forester clock, I'm sure it can't be too hard

Roh roh. Shouldn't have typed that. :P

dryfly · March 2007

hi

I have 2001 Forester. For last year I've had a squeaking noise when I push in the clutch (its a manual trans). Now it seems to squeak just during and after I depress the clutch. A co-worker said it might be throw out bearing. Okay. What does it do? How much to get it fixed? What if I don't get it fixed? It only has ~80K miles.

paisan · March 2007

Sounds like a throwout bearing. It will get squeekier and squeekier, eventually it will fail and you won't be able to shift easily and you may damage your flywheel and/or clutch disc. When you get it done, I suggest getting a clutch kit done which includes throwout bearing, clutch plate and pressure plate.

-Mike

xwesx · March 2007

To answer the "what does it do?"

The throwout bearing is a small bearing that rides on the transmission's drive shaft. The clutch "fork" (I call it) presses against it when the clutch pedal is depressed. It, in turn, presses against the pressure plate to disengage the clutch plate.

Someone correct me if I am wrong. I may have mixed up my part names, but I can still put one together correctly.

Not sure about Subaru, but clutch replacement typically requires dropping the transmission, so labor cost from a shop is going to be your largest expense.

fibber2 · March 2007

Last weekend I finally changed the battery on my OBW. I picked it up the week before when it began cranking slowly on the coldest days. It is the original, so after 5.5 years, it done it's duty, and owes me nothing.

The real surprise to me was the damage done by what I can only describe as my neglect. You know that white/blue fluff? A bad thing.... I didn't realize how bad until I peeled back the red cover to behold what was probably the prime cause for the slow cranking. Pulled out the tray, threaded J rods and top brace, the terminal clamps, etc. It cost me an hour of scrubbing and neutralizing, but I saved it all. Turned out the battery case had a small crack at the top, so acid was escaping.

I didn't want to have to go thru the whole reset thing, so I rigged up a little 12v / 1 amp regulated power supply that I had built for hobby use. Accidental shorting would not hurt it (LM340, or something like that), so it was low risk. Kept everything alive while the battery was out.

Steve

xwesx · March 2007

You are amazing, Steve... and I mean that in a good way!

Sounds like you caught it in time, so good news that the battery gave out when it did! Personally, I cannot imagine getting 5 years out of the stock battery (if I keep this car it will have a new battery before winter), but more moderate temperatures - both high and low - probably help it last longer and/or display its mediocrity less often.

It seems that vehicles are subjected to less corrosion in every respect here than in the east, but I find that an annual (or even bi-annual!) scrub of the terminals with a wire brush keeps everything in tip-top shape. Red anti-corrosion spray helps to seal the deal.

locke2c · March 2007

interesting, but what's so bad about a reset?

~c

fibber2 · March 2007

Wes: Well, sometimes you just have to admit it when you get sloppy with routine maintainance, and end up having to work harder to get back on track. And yes, I gave it a hearty dose of that lovely, messy red spray!

Colin: The car runs just fine, so the idea of an ECM reset and relearn just seemed like an unnecessary risk. Plus the need to reset a dozen radio stations, listen to the horn blair while resetting the alarm, etc. Maybe I am being unnecessarily fussy about this stuff, but attaching and working around my little alligator clip power supply was an easy enough way to avoid it.

Steve

c_hunter · March 2007

The battery on my OB XT died after only 2.5 years, which I think is lousy (and right at the 36K mark as the basic warranty was expiring). After changing the batt, I was back to crappy shifting -- apparently the 2.5 years of training I put into the TCU mattered. After the reset, I was hating how the car shifted. To me, that's reason enough to keep the juice flowing while the battery is changed.

Actually, I think the way the battery died, then getting a couple jump starts, then replacing the battery, may have frazzled the TCU beyond a simple reset. It was shifting far worse than I remember when the car was first new, and took a long time (many weeks) to begin shifting better.

Craig

fibber2 · March 2007

If you look up under the bumper and behind the light assembly, you will see that there is a black plastic cover. Remove the single plastic fastener at the bottom (pry out center 'screw' with a screwdriver, then pry out the wider assembly), and pull this cover downward. The bulb socket is held into the lamp housing with three philips head screws. For more play, loosen the tab retaining the slack in the wiring harness. Or to remove it entirely, undo the in-line connector.

Steve

ladywclass · March 2007

My battery was replaced after about 5 1/2 years .. no problem with it, but just knew it was getting 'old' ... wasn't even having any "slow" starts, or any indication it was weak in any way ...

(the alternator was another story however ... lol)

pathtomax · March 2007

My car still has the original battery- 01 Outback Ltd with 111,000 miles. I am in NH and it started pretty quickly on even the coldest sub-zero days here this winter. I haven't really though of replacing it?!

xwesx · March 2007

I think the battery does okay to about -10F. At -20F it kills power to the radio in order to start the car (and this is with the engine oil/block heated), thus resetting all personalized settings. It has, so far, started the car every time, but would be a far better battery if it had around 500 CCA rather than... I want to say... 260 CCA (07 stock). So, when it starts dumping system support at only -20F, I do not want to chance it dumping everything (i.e., no start!) at substantially colder temperatures like -40 and colder. :surprise: Which, by the way, we (Fairbanks, AK) do see at least one day every winter.

In the absence of searing heat or numbing cold, the battery probably performs just fine over a 5 year duration.

paisan · March 2007

Also the MTs get a less CCA battery than the ATs. I think I need to replace the battery in the Ramada it's starting to get weak especially when the carputer decides it doesn't want to turn off and stays on all night. I may get a deep cycle one for it if I keep it.

Anyone know what temp diesel starts to Gel at? If I go with the 2500HD Duramax I wonder if I'll have to plug it in to start it in the winter or if I'd be ok with it just sitting outside in NYC temps.

-mike

xwesx · March 2007

#2 diesel, which is, I think, the type used as road fuel in most lower 48 states, gels between +10 and about -15F, depending on the specific blend. "#1," a diesel-kerosene blend, gels at something like -60F, depending on the ratio. #1 is used as winter road diesel up here, as well as heating oil for above-ground tanks. Thankfully, I have never seen it get cold enough to gel that, but I am sure there are those who would swear it has happened..... :surprise:

paisan · March 2007

Thanks! It rarely gets to 10 degrees here for a sustained period of time, at most it'll dip there overnight to 10 degrees but then it'll be in the teens and 20s during the day.

-mike

xwesx · March 2007

I remember, back in the 80s, it would occasionally dip below zero in Eastern Oregon. One of our school teachers had a monstrous Chevy sedan of some sort that had a diesel engine. His daughter was a classmate so we would always hear about the saga of trying to get the car started!

Never heard about problems in the mid or late 90s, so the blend must have been adjusted at some point to prevent that.

If you get that 2500 and think it is ever an overnight risk, I am fairly sure there are additives you can buy and dump in the tank to reduce the gel point, but you better run it a bit afterward because it is the lines that are always the first to gel!

n3mqr · March 2007

Hey thanks, that doesn't sound too bad.

Jerry

paisan · March 2007

Yeah I'm sure I could do that if I had to. Also around here we are near the interstate with tons of trucks so the Diesel is the price of Regular Gas or even lower sometimes and tons of additives I can probably put in. Heck it comes with a remote starter. I could just remote start it every 2 hrs in the cold!

-mike

jfl · March 2007

interesting, but what's so bad about a reset?

Quite some time ago, my battery died just before a long trip. You know how the mixture runs rich while it's learning? Horrible gas mileage during that trip!

Jim

asa · March 2007

The squeak could also be from your clutch master cylinder. My truck does it. It's an easy fix in most vehicles whether master or the slave. Pop the hood and have someone work the clutch pedal while you look around to see where the sound originates. Good luck.

fibber2 · March 2007

Craig & Jim,

Thanks for validating my odd behavior!

The key, though, is to do it safely - with a very current limited power source. Otherwise, it could be a very dangerous practice.

Steve

leo2633 · March 2007

I remember growing up as a kid, there was a neighbor down the block that had some kind of diesel car, maybe a Mercedes (?), and on those really cold winter nights, he would just let the thing run all night in his driveway, to avoid a cold-start problem. In the '70s, I worked part-time at a trucking outfit. We used to start up all of the 20 or so White-Freightliner diesel tractor-trailers in the morning and let them run for hours until ready for use. I recall having to use lots of starting spray (ether) to get them to fire up. I got to really appreciate the smell of those oil-burners running for hours!

Len

w8ifi · March 2007

Sometimes when a battery gets old one cell or more will get weak and the acid ratio gets low. When it gets real cold it's mostly water in the cell and it freezes and cracks the top of the battery. A sudden draw of current (ex. to start) creates resistance enough to heat the cell and make a connection but the response is sluggish. Used to happen to us up here a lot on the old 6 volt systems. Usually ours would freeze solid and then it can only be replaced.
Jim

sixtystacks · March 2007

I had a couple of starting problems in the Fall so I bought a new battery. My 2002 OBS has 56K. A few months ago I noticed my radio backlight would glow even after turning the car off. Since then I had to jump it 2x. My mechanic said it was not my alternator. This afternoon I went out to start it and after I turn the key - I just get a very fast clicking/whirring sound.

All the dash lights work; no engine sound just the clicking at high speed. Starter? Bad battery?

samiam_68 · March 2007

A few months ago I noticed my radio backlight would glow even after turning the car off.

You have a problem with your radio - it is draining your battery.

xwesx · March 2007

Sounds like a drain on the battery, for sure. If your battery is too weak to engage the starter, you can sometimes hear the clicking - the solenoid is trying to engage, just not quite enough juice to pull it off!

How long was it since the start prior?

sixtystacks · March 2007

It started the night before. I suspect that the radio is to blame. I bought the Subaru new in 2001 and the radio/cd always ran hot on trips; would start skipping easily. I had it replaced but the same thing happened. On my most recent long trip was the first time I noticed the backlight glowing; it was night time after driving about 800 miles. That worried me but let it go. Then weeks went by and I started having a dead battery every few weeks or so. At one point I pulled the fuse out for the radio but later put it back in; (don't remember what my thought was). Now it has started to die again. About a month ago my mechanic said the alternator was ok; Autozone wanted to sell me another when I had them check their recently purchased battery; battery about 6 months old.

So my guess is a drain somewhere possibly the battery. I am a novice but from what I read I can spend some of my time to track down the drain by using a voltmeter/multimeter from Radio Shack. But could someone just explain the process?

Once I get it jumped and re-charged - how to I use the voltmeter. Place the leads on the battery posts and start pulling accessory fuses and see what increases my voltage when I pull it? Thx guys...

sixtystacks · March 2007

++So my guess is a drain somewhere possibly the battery.++

I meant probably the radio/cd.

ateixeira · March 2007

My Forester's battery died, but it was my fault because I let the fluid levels go low on 2 of the cells.

Since then I've been good, and all are topped off with distilled water.

fibber2 · March 2007

track down the drain by using a voltmeter/multimeter

Maybe, but you need to know what you are expecting to see, or you will drive yourself crazy. Unfortunately, it is not easy to see a small leakage with a voltmeter. If you were to apply a big load, such as turned on and off the lights, you would probably see a deviation on the meter of a volt or so. That is the result of placing a 20 amp load on the system.

What you probably have here as a constant draw of probably only an amp or so. Unless you used a digital meter and can monitored millivolt deviations, it might very well go unnoticed. Plus, there are legitimate constant draws, such as the clock ckt, alarm, engine and transmission control units, etc.

To really see what is going on, you actually need to monitor current draw. In this case, you would remove the ground battery wire, and place the meter into the circuit (in series). The problem is, many inexpensive meters are only rated for an amp or even milliamps. If you are not careful and say open a door (and dome lights go on), you could smoke your new meter!

There are shunt current meters that utilize the known resistance of a small bar stock that you put in series (you measure voltage drop across the bar), but that's a more involved subject for another day.

Steve

fibber2 · March 2007

You are most welcome, Jerry! Let us know how it went.

wcskjb · March 2007

Just a question re the Forester, Outback, and Legacy wagon:

Is it possible to fit four adults and four sets of golf clubs for a two-hour trip in any of these models?

ateixeira · March 2007

Four, yes.

If you said Five, I might say no, because the person sitting in the middle hump wouldn't be happy for long.

My Forester's cargo area is big enough that I can take my clubs in the tripod carrier and not even fold it up. Let me see if I can find a pic...

Bingo, I have one of these, and can actually leave my bag still attached, and close the hatch. This without even folding the rear seat. Pretty convenient. :shades:

xwesx · March 2007

Floor space in the cargo area of legacy/outback is quite generous vs. previous generations, but not sure of the length of a golf club. Seat of my pants, I would say yes. The cargo room in these wagons diminishes as one gets closer to the ceiling, while the Forester's space is much "boxier."

Four adults should feel quite comfortable for 2 hours.

xwesx · March 2007

So, my wife wakes me up at 0400 this morning to tell me that the "car is acting funny." She says that she could barely turn the bend in the driveway, that it was pulling heavily to the right, and that it "does not want to move."

I toss on my shoes, coat, hat, gloves, and GLASSES!, then trudged out in the pre-dawn glow to find the car. She has driven it about 200 ft (down the driveway and just out onto the road) and left it in the middle of the road. My first thought was an iced up brake on the right front tire. Sure enough, I get in the car, start it up, and after a fun moment or two trying to get it to move, gave up and headed home to get the propane torch.

Arriving back, I lit the torch and applied heat to the disc itself around the circumference of the outer side, about 5-10 seconds per spot to help it heat evenly. After a minute or two of this, I could see some water run from the area of the brake pads. I had my wife get in the car to move it and it took right off.

But, since then, I keep hearing this metallic "clink" sound, almost like taking a ball peen hammer and tapping a loose sheet of metal. It happens only once, but every time I have applied the brakes and then let off. Any ideas? At first I thought it was just a rock tapping off the wheel, but its consistency leads me to suspect that it is related to the freeze up this morning.

This car seems highly susceptible to brake pad freezes. In only 3 months of owning it, I think we have had the brakes frozen a dozen times or more (though they always let loose with some decent torque, save for this morning) and there is hardly any snow this winter!

paisan · March 2007

My guess is that the tin noise is a bent shim behind the brake pads.

-mike

ateixeira · March 2007

My suggestion would be to R&R the calipers and clean them up while you're at it.

My dad's brakes used to squeek but some red anti-squeel goo and some new pads cleared that right up.

The rotors can rust and the rust can also "swell up", sort of, but if it hit hard enough to make that noise the metal would break off. :confuse:

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