starts and dies, no charge electrical troubleshooting.

[juice91si]

while installing my autometer boost gauge, i seemed to have either caused, or uncovered a problem. the previous owner had removed a command start sytem prior to giving the car to an auction house.

i was poking around with my test light trying to find an underdash wire to hook up my gauge light to. while poking, i removed some of the old wiring and cleaned up some loose ends, in the process, i hit a green wire, which made a click sound. not thinking much of this, i continued looking. i hit that same wire a couple more times while looking. i finally found a wire for my dash lights, and tapped into it.

after the install, my car wouldnt start. the battery was drained to the point of the starter was not even moving. i left my charger on it for a few minutes and charged the battery up. the car then started, and seemed fine, i drove it around for a few days too. now, i am having the same problem, except the car will not stay on. if i start it, it will die before it reaches op temp. sometimes while running, if you hit the gas, it will want to die, and then it will.

my immediate thoughts after searching are starter, and alternator but after searching, while some people have experienced similar issues, i am still wondering because of the fact that it seemed to have stemmed from my guage install, but, i did notice a few times, dimming lights, and the radio flickering when i applied the brakes.

i have access to 3 91-94 awd legacy parts cars. i just came back from grabbing a used alternator from my buddy with the parts cars. i have just installed brand new negative grounds and a battery terminal as well as swapping the alt.

all fuses are good. the main plug into the alt, has about 5mm exposed at the plug. i would like to know if anyone has some ideas of what it could be. if its the alternator or starter, or is there a possibility that i screwed one of them up somehow?

im still kind of a subie newbie, even though ive swapped my 4eat 3 times already. i bought an acdc multifunction meter so i can test some things, but im usure of what/how to test the right things.

sorry about being longwinded, i just want to be accurate and give all details.

is it the starter solenoid? ignition switch possibly? atm, my batt is charging, the grounds did not fix the problem, and im just waiting to test the alternator. (alt is used, and looks to be in almost worse condition that my previous, and the places around here that test alternators dont have the plugs for a subaru)


phew!

[juice91si]

well, i put in a fully charged battery and the swapped alternator, and it fired right up. pretty sure its just my alternator. ive got a reman'd unit with a two year warranty on the way for 170 bucks. i dont want a used one because i dont want it to fail on me in the immediate future.

[juice91si]

i installed a new alternator, and a spare battery i had in my basement, and it seems to be running 100%, but will have to check at night time for colder starts and dimmming lights.

i just hope i dont get stranded at school tonight, my university is located (for some reason) right in the ghetto. and i park on a very rough street. lol