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Subaru Legacy/Outback "Check Engine" Light Problems

406 messages,  Last post on Mar 07, 2013 at 11:38 AM

You are in the Subaru Legacy & Outback Forum.

What is this discussion about? Subaru Legacy, Subaru Outback, Wagon

Messages Page 41 of 42

#394 of 406 Re: Gripes with '07 Legacy [mcharlie] by xwesx

Feb 18, 2013 (10:07 am)

Replying to: mcharlie (Feb 16, 2013 6:10 pm)
Was there one against Honda? I know that Hyundai was taken to task on their Elantra claims.
 
The CVT certainly sounds different than other automatics (DSGs sound different than others, too), I didn't find it noisy or unresponsive in the Legacy I drove.
 
I certainly agree with lifeson34 about the handling on the third generation outback and fourth-gen Legacy cars. It was wonderful; night-and-day different from the fourth/fifth generation (2010+).

#395 of 406 Re: Gripes with '07 Legacy [xwesx] by mcharlie

Feb 18, 2013 (10:23 am)

Replying to: xwesx (Feb 18, 2013 10:07 am)
I just looked it up..it WAS Honda..the hybrid model. I never drove an earlier Outback, so have nothing to compare. I know our 2011 is very nice...but, oddly enough, it is not as wind stable as our old 2000 Forester.....Not as stable on ice and snow either, but still quite good. We had opportunity to rent a new, 2013 Forester a few months back. WOW..what a piece of crap..sounded like we were in a tin can....not solid at all...close the door and instead of a 'THUNK', it sounded like a stone dropped into a bucket. Sure glad we didn't find a 5 speed Forester and opted for the more cush Outback! Now..if only Subaru would get the electrical issues ([Check Engine Light] park brake, cruise control, etc.) solved, I would feel a little more secure on trips with the car.

#396 of 406 Re: Gripes with '07 Legacy [mcharlie] by winter2

Feb 18, 2013 (3:41 pm)

Replying to: mcharlie (Feb 16, 2013 6:10 pm)
I purchased a 2013 Outback 2.5i Premium in October of 2012. I have a bit more than 4K miles on it and it is fine.
 
This is my first car with a CVT and this CVT is different from the 2012 and earlier Outback CVT. I have driven both and the newer version is more responsive and has significantly less of a "rubber band" sensation than the older version when accelerating. This version is noisier when accelerating as it whines. On level pavement, the CVT is dead quiet.
 
Fuel economy is good for what the car is. The one long trip my wife and I took from MD to NYC got us a bit more than 27 MPG with average cruising speed at about 70 MPH through hilly country (we do not take I-95) and the engine barely had 1500 miles on it. Our 2010 Mercury Milan with 2.5L four and FWD does not do any better on that trip.
 
The doors and body structure on the Outback are solid and all of the doors and the tailgate give a solid "thunk" when closed. Even the base Subaru we considered had the same solidness to it. Even at speed there is no "hood shake" that I can see.

#397 of 406 Re: Gripes with '07 Legacy [lifeson34] by fibber2

Feb 20, 2013 (7:52 pm)

Replying to: lifeson34 (Feb 16, 2013 3:37 pm)
I cannot argue with a number of the man's comments, as unfortunately it doesn't sound like he had the best ownership experience.
 
One area where I'll object:
 
4. Oh, the... tires. Three times I had to replace four tires because of a single sidewall cut to a single tire. Stretch a $125 tire replacement into a $500 4-tire replacement anyone?
  
...despite the amazing ways in which that Legacy zipped through snow while everyone else skidded, especially on slopes.
 
Catch that? The tight control of uniform wheel rotation - both a blessing and a curse....

#398 of 406 Re: Gripes with '07 Legacy [fibber2] by xwesx

Feb 21, 2013 (10:31 am)

Replying to: fibber2 (Feb 20, 2013 7:52 pm)
Aye; I can commiserate on that one. I suspect many of us have been there over the years. My only sidewall loss in four Subaru vehicles cost me $900 last summer to put a new set of tires on it. But, that's the breaks, too. Sidewall cuts are pretty rare in normal road use, so that's just plain bad luck having three over such a short period of time.

#399 of 406 Re: Gripes with '07 Legacy [xwesx] by bob192

Feb 21, 2013 (1:23 pm)

Replying to: xwesx (Feb 21, 2013 10:31 am)
I had a left rear tire damaged and needed to replace it. we put two new tires on the front and moved the front two to the rear. That was nearly a year ago. No change in handling or winter driving.

#400 of 406 Re: Gripes with '07 Legacy [bob192] by xwesx

Feb 21, 2013 (2:18 pm)

Replying to: bob192 (Feb 21, 2013 1:23 pm)
Whether it impacts your car's AWD system adversely all depends on how much wear difference there is between the two pair of tires. By replacing a pair, you eliminated the most noticeable issue, which would be a rotational difference between the tires on the same axle, but the two axles would still rotate at slightly different speeds, which then puts stress on the center differential to compensate. You won't necessarily feel it, but the strain will do its damage over time.
 
As long as the tread depth on the tires is within 2/32's of the same, it shouldn't be an issue at all.
 
Unfortunately, that wasn't the case for my car, plus I wasn't going to pay the money the local shops wanted for replacing the stock tire. Those things are junk, anyway. So, I spent $900 on a new and far, far better set. The other option was $350, and that was just a single tire. I don't feel bad about the new set; I just wasn't planning to buy it for another couple of years!

#401 of 406 Won't start, wait 10 minutes, starts??? by maxjackson

Mar 01, 2013 (8:29 am)

I shut the engine off yesterday and sat in my car for no more than 5 minutes listening to the radio. All of the sudden the radio turned off, alerted, I tried to turn the engine on and the battery was dead. I had all accessories available, it cranked weakly a few times and then stopped. I went inside and made a phone call for help. Maybe 10 minutes passed, and I cranked it and it started right away. Bad battery? Alternator? Sensor? I can't find anything conclusive. And "YES" the check engine light has come on intermittently for a week prior.

#402 of 406 Re: Won't start, wait 10 minutes, starts??? [maxjackson] by ateixeira

Mar 01, 2013 (9:09 am)

Replying to: maxjackson (Mar 01, 2013 8:29 am)
A battery can recover slightly, but find out why it was discharged in the first place.
 
If it starts again after a long drive, the alternator is working.
 
How old is it? 5+ years and I would no longer trust the battery. I replaced the one in my van at Costco for less than $80. Piece of mind well worth it.

#403 of 406 Re: Won't start, wait 10 minutes, starts??? [maxjackson] by xwesx

Mar 01, 2013 (10:46 am)

Replying to: maxjackson (Mar 01, 2013 8:29 am)
What car do you have? The issue may be poor grounding rather than a problem with the battery or the alternator. That would make perfect sense if you were experiencing what seemed like a weak battery, then it seemed to work fine shortly after.

Messages Page 41 of 42

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