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Hello again;

about 6 months ago i got code 35, asked my mechanic if i should bother or not; he said not really..
2 weeks ago i changed Purge Valve Assembly (see pic) with used one (new costs ~100 USD);


But the problem (code) is still here....

Questions:
1. the used valve is probably broken; any idea how to test it?
2. can i test electric circuit?
3. can i exclude this sensor from OBD (make it thing the valve works ok)...
4. go and buy new valve?

2.2 N/A, 1990...

1) All the ECU does is check that there's an electrical load present. So just put an ohmmeter across the two terminals of the used valve. If it's okay, you should see about 36 ohms of resistance, and that should remain even when you bang on the solenoid and stuff.

2) Yes. Your wiring harness may be different from the North American one, but it still may be useful to look at the procedure outlined in the service manual posted in the Stuff You Need to Know forum.

3) Yes. Wire a 100-ohm 2-watt resistor between the ECU's purge control pin and an ignition-switched +12v source.

4) It sounds like your problem is the wiring harness, not the valve. You could try running a new wire if you want to maintain purge functionality.

thnx.

Seems like valves (both of them - both used) aren't working... i get reading "infinity" ohms on valve terminals and about 500 ohms on ECU side of wiring; same readings with engine running or not...

You shouldn't be trying to measure the resistance through the car side of the harness. You should unplug the valve from the car to test it.

I unplugged and mesaured both valves - the one that is built in and the old one (one that i replaced). I measured at connector. I got same readings on both...

Bummer... it does sound like you have two bad valves, then.

If the wiring is okay, you can eliminate the Check Engine light by sticking the resistor (instead of the solenoid valve) into the contacts of the connector.

If you want to maintain the functionality of the valve, though, you should be able to use pretty much any normally-closed solenoid valve from pretty much any car. If you have any automotive recyclers near you, maybe you could ask them for one.

thnx...

will try with 100-ohm 2-watt resistor; at least until i get new valve for resonable price (costs about 100 USD);

resistor trick works fine; check engine light is off...

thnx for your help

Hi all,

I got the same code 35 on my 91 L Wagon. I replaced the solenoid valve with a new one from my local dealer but the CEL still won't go off. I called the dealer and they told me that it's a "hard code" that won't go away on its own even though the problem is fixed. They said I had to bring it in and have them use a scantool clear the code. Are they telling me the truth?

No, they're not. If the problem goes away, the CEL goes away.

But if you want to try asking your ECU to clear its codes, you can:

http://www.surrealmirage.com/subaru/engine.html

You can also brainwash it by disconnecting the negative battery cable, going to grab a beer in the air conditioning, then coming back and reconnecting the battery cable.

If it still isn't fixed, then you're basically in the same boat as this thread

So... the new solenoid valve did not solve the problem. I wonder what the problem is then...

vrg3 wrote:No, they're not. If the problem goes away, the CEL goes away.

But if you want to try asking your ECU to clear its codes, you can:

http://www.surrealmirage.com/subaru/engine.html

You have no other trouble codes?

Have you taken an ohmmeter and checked the wiring harness as per the service manual?

i've done the following

1) checked the wiring harness - OK
2) checked the solenoid - OK
3) replaced the ECU
4) nope no other error codes

none of that helped. that's when i complained to my local subaru dealer that the solenoid they sold me didn't fix the problem. and that's also when they told me it's a "hard code" that had to be reset by them. *shrug*

vrg3 wrote:You have no other trouble codes?

Have you taken an ohmmeter and checked the wiring harness as per the service manual?

If they'll reset it for free, go ahead... but I suspect they're more likely to charge you for the service, potentially as much as the valve cost in the first place.

Wait -- the code remained after the ECU was replaced with a different one?

i've already tried that. looks like that resets the ECU but does not erase the code. i'll try the other procedure to erase the code. hope that works.

rallysam wrote:You can also brainwash it by disconnecting the negative battery cable, going to grab a beer in the air conditioning, then coming back and reconnecting the battery cable.

If it still isn't fixed, then you're basically in the same boat as this thread

of course they're not going to do it for free. they quoted 50-75 depending on what the code it. don't even know why that should matter.

no, the code stayed the same.

vrg3 wrote:If they'll reset it for free, go ahead... but I suspect they're more likely to charge you for the service, potentially as much as the valve cost in the first place.

Wait -- the code remained after the ECU was replaced with a different one?

Depending on what the code is... that's hilarious. Almost as hilarious as charging 50 bucks for thirty seconds of labor.

But if the code remained even after you changed ECUs, then that means there probably is some actual problem, right?

When you tested the harness, did you test both the ECU-switched side and the hot side?

Hi guys, I have an almost identical problem on my 95 wagon. My mechanic has tried two brand new solenoids from Subaru and they did not clear the code so he has given up. It seems to me that it could well be a wiring harness problem - how exactly do I test this and if it is faulty how easy is it to run a new wire?

Have you tried clearing the code from the ECU yourself?

Sometimes the codes won't go away until you manually clear them.

Josh, Yes my mechanic said he had wiped the error codes at least three times and it (code 35) came back each time. I hadn't tried doing this myself since I never had any error codes showing - it was my mechanic that discovered someone had previously removed the 'Check Engine' globe in the dash; obviously this problem had been on the car some time before I bought it! I still think it must be a wiring problem but would welcome any other suggestions.
Mike.

Is the CEL displayed all the time?

Yea Josh the CEL is on continuously. I have downloaded the wiring harness checks from the manual on this website but haven't done them yet (heavy weekend!) so will get round to it later this week. I have removed the pipe which goes to the inlet manifold and it does not seem to be sucking so I am guessing the valve is seized closed. Any further clues - or tests I can do?

Hi there,

New to the forum but I came across it when I was searching for an answer to the same problem. One thing that I found out about this code is that it sometimes comes up when the pressurized fuel system is not in sync with the computer...or basically the pressure in the fuel tank is incorrect - this is often caused by a faulty fuel cap. Sometimes they are clogged and sometimes they let too much air out. Fuel tanks are supposed to be pressured up to around 3psi so if there's a problem with the tank pressure, this code comes up.
It's worth a try to replace the cap since it's relatively cheap...I'd be interested in hearing the results.