subyfiend
07-22-2009, 01:18 PM
Hello,
I am new to the site & have gotten recommended by one of the other sites I goto to come here for issues with Legacy's. I have been into Subaru's for at least 6yrs or so. I lived in CO where I was apart of many subaru clubs, recently moved back to IL. I will try to keep this short, I own a 1997 Legacy L (EJ22) with 220,900K on it. I have a few problems that are going on with it that I would like help with diagnosing.
1. The AT oil temp light flashes upon start up around 20 times, after countless of shops etc I found out its more likely a solenoid issue with the car. This hasn't caused much issues over the years of owning the vehicle & I occasionally hear a pinging noise when in reverse which I was told was the transfer case. Like mentioned not a big ordeal for the car, its run great over the years and I have put almost 100K on it since buying it.
2. More recently the check engine light has stayed on completely, it was for about a wk going on & off. I had the code run and its the Knock Sensor, an issue with the car thats not too big of a deal from what I was told. Now a ? in regards to that can that 1. cause the car to be overheating & 2. would that have anything to do with the way it accelerates?? (ie lack of power)
3. Overheating, this is the part that is causing me to become frustrated with it. I took it in and they replaced the thermostat, they came back & said it was still overheating and it was the HG's. I took it to the dealer in town who said the same. Now I have done hours of research online & have found out that is a huge problem with this car. At first the coolant would sputter out the reservoir tank while doing thi. Now I have noticed in the period of 2wks since the initial diagnostic that it doesn't do this, in fact there isn't much coolant in that tank. The bottom hose remains cold, the top is hot, and the fan to the passenger side is running fine. Ok for the symptoms which happens to vary quite a bit...it tended to go about 2 miles & would immediately start to overheat(all the way to top) even after turning the heater on it would do so. Now if I shut the car off for a few minutes & started it up it would take a bit to overheat once again. I have noticed if I turn the heat on right away as the needle reaches the normal point it won't overheat. Now such things as the accelerating issue, etc have caused it alot to start to overheat & immediately go down upon deceleration. Very strange for me, & leaving me wondering what the issue really is. I don't wanna think its the HG's if it isn't. Especially considering tonight I drove it at least 30+ miles & it barely had any overheating issues. Of course the heat was on majority of this time, when I got home then it started to overheat.
4. Which may be tied into this whole ordeal, electrical issue in regards to the passenger side turn signal blinking fast when foot off the brake, slow signal when on the brake. Acceleration seems to play a role in this problem as well.
Thank you for your time & if anyone is from the Chicagoland area & knows a very reputable shop (assuming this is worth fixing, etc) please let me know. I greatly appreciate any help I can get, whereas looking for a newer car has become a huge hassle, if this is worth fixing then I don't wanna deal with that hassle. This car has been great for me, with the minor axle breaking (ya mud isn't my cars friend let's just say that ) & the ballancer bolt issue, this car hasn't had any major problems at all. In fact those were 2 of my worst!!
~Shelley
I am new to the site & have gotten recommended by one of the other sites I goto to come here for issues with Legacy's. I have been into Subaru's for at least 6yrs or so. I lived in CO where I was apart of many subaru clubs, recently moved back to IL. I will try to keep this short, I own a 1997 Legacy L (EJ22) with 220,900K on it. I have a few problems that are going on with it that I would like help with diagnosing.
1. The AT oil temp light flashes upon start up around 20 times, after countless of shops etc I found out its more likely a solenoid issue with the car. This hasn't caused much issues over the years of owning the vehicle & I occasionally hear a pinging noise when in reverse which I was told was the transfer case. Like mentioned not a big ordeal for the car, its run great over the years and I have put almost 100K on it since buying it.
2. More recently the check engine light has stayed on completely, it was for about a wk going on & off. I had the code run and its the Knock Sensor, an issue with the car thats not too big of a deal from what I was told. Now a ? in regards to that can that 1. cause the car to be overheating & 2. would that have anything to do with the way it accelerates?? (ie lack of power)
3. Overheating, this is the part that is causing me to become frustrated with it. I took it in and they replaced the thermostat, they came back & said it was still overheating and it was the HG's. I took it to the dealer in town who said the same. Now I have done hours of research online & have found out that is a huge problem with this car. At first the coolant would sputter out the reservoir tank while doing thi. Now I have noticed in the period of 2wks since the initial diagnostic that it doesn't do this, in fact there isn't much coolant in that tank. The bottom hose remains cold, the top is hot, and the fan to the passenger side is running fine. Ok for the symptoms which happens to vary quite a bit...it tended to go about 2 miles & would immediately start to overheat(all the way to top) even after turning the heater on it would do so. Now if I shut the car off for a few minutes & started it up it would take a bit to overheat once again. I have noticed if I turn the heat on right away as the needle reaches the normal point it won't overheat. Now such things as the accelerating issue, etc have caused it alot to start to overheat & immediately go down upon deceleration. Very strange for me, & leaving me wondering what the issue really is. I don't wanna think its the HG's if it isn't. Especially considering tonight I drove it at least 30+ miles & it barely had any overheating issues. Of course the heat was on majority of this time, when I got home then it started to overheat.
4. Which may be tied into this whole ordeal, electrical issue in regards to the passenger side turn signal blinking fast when foot off the brake, slow signal when on the brake. Acceleration seems to play a role in this problem as well.
Thank you for your time & if anyone is from the Chicagoland area & knows a very reputable shop (assuming this is worth fixing, etc) please let me know. I greatly appreciate any help I can get, whereas looking for a newer car has become a huge hassle, if this is worth fixing then I don't wanna deal with that hassle. This car has been great for me, with the minor axle breaking (ya mud isn't my cars friend let's just say that ) & the ballancer bolt issue, this car hasn't had any major problems at all. In fact those were 2 of my worst!!
~Shelley