legacycentral bbs

Hi everybody, I'm new to forums but have been searching through them for sometime. The posts have been extremely hepful in solving mosts problems but I haven't been able to find anything about this problem. I wasn't sure where to post so hopefully this is right.

I recently bought a 94 Legacy (AT) with the CEL on. I was able to fix all but 4 of the codes: 24, 42, 49, & 51. The 42 just showed the other day so I haven't looked into that and the 51 shows up randomly. I did clean out the IAC valve and replac the MAF with a working one from my 92 Legacy (MT) but the codes still show up. When I do a cold start, I have to press the gas or else the engine will stall. I don't have to press the pedal for very long but have to ease off or else the engine will stall as well.

Once I have done this, the engine idles around 650-750 but if I use an electricial accessory such as AC, headlights, rear defogger, power windows, etc., the engine loses some power. The RPMs drop by 50-100 when using a single accessory but the AC causes a drop of 200-300. Sometimes the engine stalls if too many accessories are used at the same time.

When doing a warm start, I don't have to press the gas. Also with the engine warm, the loss of RPMs is cut by over half so I don't have to worry about the engine stalling. The other error codes I had were 12 & 22 so I replaced the starter and knock sensor. I was thinking of testing the ECT sensor but haven't gotten around to it yet. Thanks for any help.

When you replaced the MAF, did you replace plastic with plastic?

I think so...I swapped the covers over the air filters but left the MAF attached.

Not an expert, either. But it sounds like electrical problem. I'd start with the battery, alternator, coolant temp sensor, and most importantly proper grounding.

Good luck,
Subaru_for_Life

Thanks for the advice; I'm definitely no expert. I think the main problems are electrical but would this have any effect on having to give the car some gas to start?

That also reminds me: when resetting the ECU, you're not supposed to push the gas but I can't start without hitting the gas. What happens if you hit the gas or the engine stalls while resetting the ECU?