legacycentral bbs

hi. my 90 legacy does this weird thing and its random and so i don't know whats wrong with it. sometimes i'll try and start my car and all i'll hear is a click. i don't know if there is something wrong with the starter or battery or what not. either way, i took it into the shop and they replaced the starter and i exchanged my battery at costco and the same thing still happens randomly. any thoughts? anyone in the san jose, ca area can help?

Starter contacts.

ok, update if anyone can help me out i'd be much indebted. i took my car in and got a new starter. then i got a new battery (costco picked up the tab) and its still happening. i don't get it. every once in a while i'll turn the key to start it and nothing. all i hear is a click coming from the engine compartment somewhere which i assume is the starter. so i took it in again and my mechanic told me he cleaned the battery terminals and changed out the starter but its still happeneing!!!!! i don't get it. oh, and each time that it doesn't start, if i jump it, it starts up right away. i don't get it.

what makes things even weird is that the other day it wouldn't start. so i moved another car to jump it and just out of curiosity i tried to start it and it started up no problem after a few minutes of trying to start it and only getting that clicking sound? anyone have any ideas??? please help me out!!

Mine does the EXACT same thing!

If you're positive all the work done, battery, starter, etc was done properly. The next thought is the part(s) might be bad, but I doubt that..

Next would be wiring/cables....but I know in my case, that's not it, because I have extra cabling.

Here's the next and only thing I can really think of right now.

First off....is your legacy a MT or AT?

This diagram shows the starting leads
http://www.surrealmirage.com/subaru/fil ... arting.jpg

In the MT setup, you've got the main lead coming from the battery to the starter....there's really not much too that. Next you have the starter interlock relay & clutch switch, and the ignition switch.

In my mind, if you hear a "clicking" sound from the engine bay, the starter solenoid is engaging.....so the previous mentioned relays & ignition switch "should" be good. However at that point, I don't really know what further to do....

I may try energizing the starter manually, or with my swap wiring, I could put the wiring back the way it was when it was an AT, and bypass the relays. That would just leave the ignition switch.

If your legacy is an AT, and you don't hear a click from the starter solenoid, it could be the ignition switch.

Sorry for the rambling....thinking/troubleshooting out loud.

i have an AT. and i do hear a click sound everytime i turn the key so i really don't know what's going on!!!

Had a friend with a Maxima that did this, no matter what I did to it. I finally installed a ford starter really down near the starter (shortest cable from relay to starter that I could find). I then ran a short jumper from the big terminal on the starter over to the solenoid terminal to engage the starter. the factory solenoid wire goes to the Ford realy start terminal. Something to do with the full 12 volts being applied to the starter and solenoid at the same works wonders. She never had the problem after that....

If there are any relays in the start system they are probably the faulty part... Battery and starter have not fixed it, so why change them again....

Check voltage att eh soleniod terminal while attempting to start to see if it is actually getting power to the starter.

check the power cable to the starter for corrosion, if there is a lot of corrosion "in" the wire or at the connections, it could be causing unwanted resistance and not allowing the full 12v to the starter, causing the click. the click is the starter gear engauging but it dosent have the full power to turn the engine over. another thing to check it the park-neutral-safty switch.

how bout the alternator?

hello,
My 91 legacy 4wd (automatic) is having the same exact issue. It is completely at random. Anyone have an update?

I have the same symptom with my '91 SS 5MT. It was starting up consistently for a week or two after not starting up at all, but now the problem is back again hit and miss.

It is most likely the Ignition cylinder itself. Ya know, the thing the key goes into. That and he starter/sarter solenoid are really the only moving parts that could move round and create inconsistent performance.

Example: I could try to start my car and it would only click, then an hour later it would start right up.

I had this same problem but I couldnt pull off the plastic bezel pieces that cover my steering column so I couldnt replace it.

My fix: Wire up a push button starting switch. Super easy.

Imprezive wrote:It is most likely the Ignition cylinder itself.

I had this same problem but I couldnt pull off the plastic bezel pieces that cover my steering column so I couldnt replace it.

My fix: Wire up a push button starting switch. Super easy.

that is awesome!