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Subaru Crew Problems & Solutions

19285 messages,  Last post on Jun 03, 2013 at 10:22 AM

You are in the Subaru Crew Forum.

What is this discussion about? Subaru Impreza, Subaru Outback, Subaru Forester, Subaru Legacy, Coupe, Sedan, Wagon, SUV


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Your Community Leaders are ateixeira and rsholland.

Messages Page 672 of 1930

#6704 of 19285 acceleration lag by alaskanwill

Jun 11, 2006 (5:55 pm)

I should preface this post with a disclaimer that I am not the kind of guy who condones drag racing, and I didn't buy either of my Subarus to use as a race car. In fact, as a 25 year old single male with $22,000 to spend on a car, I believe I'm somewhat of an anomaly in my selection of a Subaru station wagon over something with more performance.
 
My last car was a 2000 Legacy sedan with the 2.5L engine and manual transmission. I now drive a 2006 Legacy 2.5i wagon with the same engine and tranny (although the hp has been bumped on this engine to 175).
 
Something I noticed on both cars is a lag in acceleration from a standing start. I've tried two methods: revving up to around 4000 RPM then dumping the clutch while flooring it, or letting the clutch out with moderate throttle as I normally would, then flooring it. Either method seems to result in some pronounced initial hesitation while accelerating, which seems to last about a second. Happened in both cars.
 
My friend, who has an old beat-up 1993 NA Legacy AWD wagon with a 5-speed, is able to consistently beat me in drag races to 50 MPH. His car just seems to pull faster off the line, as though he isn't suffering from the same hesitation problem. I shift at around 5000 RPM when I'm trying to achieve maximum acceleration, by the way.
 
I should also note that I could never get either Legacy to peel out on dry pavement. I just got back from LA, where I rented an HHR with an AT and (approximately) 150 hp engine, which would peel out when I floored it.
 
Any idea why I'm experiencing this lag? Have others noticed it in their 2.5L powertrains? I crunched the numbers and even though my car is 200 pounds heavier than my friend's and I had a passenger at the time, my hp and torque to weight ratios are still higher than his.
 
Sorry for the lengthy post. Any input would be appreciated.

#6705 of 19285 Re: acceleration lag [alaskanwill] by locke2c

Jun 12, 2006 (7:13 am)

Replying to: alaskanwill (Jun 11, 2006 5:55 pm)
Every manual transmission Subaru produced since 2003 except for the STi (oh, and I guess the '07 spec.B) has a clutch force limiting device. Basically it is a valve on the clutch cylinder that prevents you from dumping the clutch.
 
To get around that, you have to launch perfectly. It sounds like you're describing two kinds of slowness to your launch, the first one is unquestionably the force limiter and the second is probably bogging the engine.
 
Here's my old post about it:
locke2c, "Subaru Legacy/Outback 2005+" #8692, 17 Feb 2006 2:06 pm
 
Good luck! It actually is possible that your car is slower than his. Your car is probably more than 200lb heavier.
 
~Colin

#6706 of 19285 Electrical short? by p0926

Jun 12, 2006 (8:28 am)

Help! I took my FXT to the car wash on Friday (yes I know shame on me ) and when I got home, the DRLs and the tail lights stayed on after I took the key out of the ignition. FYI, I normally leave the headlights on all the time since they go off automatically when you shut off the engine. My first thought was that an electrical connection got wet so I disconnected the battery and let everything dry out. However, the problem persists (everything else seems to work fine). Any suggestions?
 
-Frank

#6707 of 19285 Re: Electrical short? [p0926] by locke2c

Jun 12, 2006 (8:30 am)

Replying to: p0926 (Jun 12, 2006 8:28 am)
Do they still have that light switch on top of the steering column?
 
~Colin

#6708 of 19285 Re: Electrical short? [locke2c] by ateixeira

Jun 12, 2006 (9:55 am)

Replying to: locke2c (Jun 12, 2006 8:30 am)
The euro-style parking lamps, bet that's it. Top of the column, and old secret handshake Subaru has. Fooled me once, too.
 
-juice

#6709 of 19285 Re: Outback turn signal speed [once_for_all] by andytnj

Jun 12, 2006 (10:13 am)

Replying to: once_for_all (Apr 12, 2006 7:31 pm)
Ah, good one. Next problem, how do I get the left front turn signal assembly out? I can't figure out what is holding the bottom/rear of the lens unit in place.

#6710 of 19285 Dying Dash Lights by captstoobing

Jun 12, 2006 (11:03 am)

I have a 1998 Legacy GT LTD. Over the course of the last year and A half, some of the dash lights have been fading and going out. The first to go was the hazard light button. All function still work, save for the light. So far I've lost the hazard, cruse, defrost, all climate control lights except the green light for the A/C and the green light that shows which air position is selected, the fog light switch and most recently, the lights for the automatic shifter that show what gear your in. At first I thought there might be a fuse gone but this seems too random for that.
 
If anyone has any ideas I wold love to hear them.
 
Thanks

#6711 of 19285 Re: acceleration lag [alaskanwill] by samiam_68

Jun 12, 2006 (11:23 am)

Replying to: alaskanwill (Jun 11, 2006 5:55 pm)
Don't floor it off the line - you're flooding the engine. Slip the clutch, punch the gas about half-way from stop in 1st gear, then floor it around 15 MPH.

#6712 of 19285 Re: Dying Dash Lights [captstoobing] by samiam_68

Jun 12, 2006 (11:26 am)

Replying to: captstoobing (Jun 12, 2006 11:03 am)
Could be loose / corroded contacts. Gen 2 Legacys had finicky dash lights. I had a '96, and every once in a while, the climate control lights would go out. A swift punch on the center console would usually bring them back.

#6713 of 19285 Re: Dying Dash Lights [captstoobing] by masteryoda

Jun 12, 2006 (11:28 am)

Replying to: captstoobing (Jun 12, 2006 11:03 am)
Captstoobing,
 
I feel your pain. I also have 98 GT and same issue here. My AC controls don't have any lights at all. And now, my right blinker is blinking too fast, as oppose to left blinker. I'm hoping that the blinker issue is a fuse. As far as the dash lights, my guess is that the bulbs are giving out. It seems like there was a bad batch of them installed on 98s. If you search the forum you'll see a few other folks with the same problem.

Messages Page 672 of 1930

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