ChubRock Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 Got a new one for you all. Yesterday while out with friends my car experienced something I've never come across before. We drove an hour out to play paintball, no issue. From there we went to a bar, no issue. Upon leaving the bar, I turn the car on and instantly smoke starts funneling in from every vent. I see smoke from the fuse panel, attempt to open it. Shut off engine. I run to the trunk to get my tools. Smoke coming from the trunk (I have an amp and subwoofer). The fuse panel showed the below image; http://imgur.com/a/WUhvP Edit: No idea why its not working, heres the direct linke http://imgur.com/a/WUhvP This is the number 24 fuse, which appears to be linked to the Audio Unit and Clock. I tore it out. I did not have another 15amp Fuse to replace to try. The wires that were connected to it were run to two footwell lights I had installed. These were the premade kind from AutoZone that were already "resisted" for 12v. I've had the Amp and Sub and Footwell Lights set up and running for at least 3 years, no issues. Why today? Why now? In any case, I unplugged the power wire from the Amp. I then tried to start the engine without the fuse in the #24 spot. The car turned over, started, and promptly died. What am I looking at here? Did I fry anything crucial? Did the Fuses fail? I've never seen this happen before I've no idea what to expect. I feel like someone sabotaged my vehicle, this is insane. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
08SpecB_DE Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 No one sabotaged your car. It looks like subpar work finally showed it's ugly face. You need to see what fuse 24 powers. You may want to check all the wiring going to that fuse box and replace as needed. A new fuse box will most likely be needed as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChubRock Posted July 25, 2016 Author Share Posted July 25, 2016 Hey thanks for the kind words! Is it difficult to replace a fuse box or is it just tedious ? Guess I'll start looking around for walkthroughs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChubRock Posted July 25, 2016 Author Share Posted July 25, 2016 Here's another question, would there be any reason the vehicle would not be able to run with the #24 fuse removed? The manual states it controls Audio Unit and Clock. I'm wondering if I can get back out there, put in a new fuse, and drive it to a shop to save myself from a $300 tow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laz Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 Disconnect that cable going to fuse 24 and install a new fuse and see what happens. Do you have an inline fuse on that cable? You may have the cable connected to the non fuse side of the fuse holder, that is why the fuse did not blow and the cable burned. I honestly hate to plug in a piggyback cable to any fuse like pictured. There are better ways to get power. --- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChubRock Posted July 25, 2016 Author Share Posted July 25, 2016 Laz, Thank you for your advice. I disconnected the wires that were tied around Fuse #24 (for the record a "professional" did this, not I. I simply used the other end of those wires for the footwell lighting 3 years after these were installed. Looking at it now it does seem very shotty and prone to jumping). There is an Inline fuse for the Amp and Sub sitting in the engine bay. I did not have the tools to take a look at it, but its probably a good bet that it did not blow. The Amp and Sub have been installed and running without issue since 2008. What worries me is how the car will start, but not continue to run. Something else must have gotten fried right? In any case, the car is over an hour away at a local Subaru dealership. I just got off the phone with the Service manager. He will assess it and call back. I'm looking at a $300 tow job back to my shop. Hopefully I receive a call back from the manager that perhaps they can get it running for less than that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JmP6889928 Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 Do you have anything on the odometer showing up when you turn the key on? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
08SpecB_DE Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 Some fuses power many more things than what is indicated on the fuse box cover. There's a chance you fried some wires in the fuse box but you won't know until you open it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChubRock Posted July 25, 2016 Author Share Posted July 25, 2016 I get my hands on it tomorrow afternoon. The dealership that looked at it today said simply placing a new fuse in the #24 slot allowed the car to run just fine. That was my number 1 concern, so I can get it back home and to my mechanic if need be. I will of course look around and try to make sure I do not have a repeat incident. Obviously the footwell lighting will need to be rewired, properly, or just nixed completely. Is there anything I should do or look at initially? JmP i'll let you know about the odometer. If memory serves, on Saturday all electrical worked fine after ripping the fuse and cords out. It was keeping the engine running that was failing me. More to follow... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ehsnils Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 If the car starts and dies it's probably the immobilizer that don't work. And the immobilizer is a beast of its own since it involves multiple matched components. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChubRock Posted July 27, 2016 Author Share Posted July 27, 2016 Got the car home from the dealership today. They simply put a new fuse in and it got me home. Only lingering thing I can notice is that the car almost stalls out as I come to a stop. With my Jeep, this meant a dirty IAC. I've never cleaned it on the Subaru before. Guess I'll look into how to do that now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apexi Posted July 27, 2016 Share Posted July 27, 2016 That's normal if the battery has been disconnected recently. It should go away within 1 week of driving. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quick4dr Posted July 27, 2016 Share Posted July 27, 2016 you couldn't install it properly, don't even try and repair it. http://www.parts-express.com/littelfuse-add-a-circuit-fuseholder-for-mini-fuses--071-585 that's how you add a circuit to a powered source in a panel. your lucky you didn't have a complete car fire. electrical is not a joke! good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anavrin351 Posted July 27, 2016 Share Posted July 27, 2016 If you're on the wrong side of the fuse, and added to an existing wire that came off the wrong side, that's your problem. These things take time. The insulation on wire won't melt off over a few days. It can take years. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChubRock Posted July 28, 2016 Author Share Posted July 28, 2016 Thanks for showing me that quick4dr, never seen those before. Thank you Anavrin351, That helps explain why now, why all of a sudden. Apexi, I took the car to the shop this afternoon and am going to let my local dealership look at it. I've not heard of a vehicle having idle issues after a simple battery disconnect before. I figure something in the computer system just needs a reset but its in their hands now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apexi Posted July 28, 2016 Share Posted July 28, 2016 Common issue with non-turbo subaru's. They might do something like uncle scottys procedure in the link below to help speed up the relearning process. http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2209950 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChubRock Posted July 30, 2016 Author Share Posted July 30, 2016 The dealership called and claims its a bad spark plug issue. First off they want $400 to change plugs (My GOD! is it really that difficult? I've changed them on my jeep twice, not hard. But I do know some vehicles can be a PITA). I'll try the relearning process first and then order plugs if it does not improve I suppose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChubRock Posted July 30, 2016 Author Share Posted July 30, 2016 well, I tried to do Uncle Scotty's method. The moment I turned the car back over it immediately stalled. I tried it again, it stalled again. I tried it one last time, this time touching the throttle (against Scotty's persistent warning) and it stayed running. I'm letting it run now until the fans move. I have my doubts now though after having to touch the throttle. It very well could be spark plugs. I'm about 25k mi removed from the last time I changed them out. But it is curious how the Spark Plugs are now all a sudden an issue after last saturdays "fuse fire". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apexi Posted July 30, 2016 Share Posted July 30, 2016 Something else is going on. If your plugs only have 25k on them, it's highly unlikely they're the problem in my opinion. Could be a number of other issues, really hard to pin it down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ehsnils Posted August 1, 2016 Share Posted August 1, 2016 Something else is going on. If your plugs only have 25k on them, it's highly unlikely they're the problem in my opinion. Could be a number of other issues, really hard to pin it down. I agree - plugs should seldom be an issue unless you have used them way beyond their designated lifespan. At least as long as the correct plugs are used. And changing plugs is a bit tricky on these engines so make sure you have the right tools first. The most useful thing with the plugs aside from giving a spark is that you can "read" them to see if they have correct color and they are all alike when you have removed them. Never underestimate this for diagnostics. And I can see that in some cases you may need to use the throttle to keep the engine running. It's not causing serious harm to the re-learning as the system actually is doing this all the time and not just when idling. But the idle problem may also be an indication of the donut gaskets leaking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChubRock Posted August 1, 2016 Author Share Posted August 1, 2016 I tinkered around yesterday. Got to the Throttle body, cleaned it out best I could. Tried scotty's process again. This time, no throttle needed to get it started, but there was a constant stutter every 3rd second. Walked around to the engine bay to see sparks / arcing. At the very least, my spark plug wires are bad. I removed two of them and saw corrosion on the one that was arcing. As far as I can find online (still have yet to find a "walkthrough" on this model engine) Changing spark plugs and wires for this engine is a PITA. Guess I will go with the dealer's quote afterall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apexi Posted August 1, 2016 Share Posted August 1, 2016 Don't do it, I can post some very quick DIY pictures (or video maybe) later if you want. It's really not too bad after you have done it once Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apexi Posted August 1, 2016 Share Posted August 1, 2016 So, I put together a quick video on replacing the plugs. I've never done a video like this, so it's not the best, but it's really not that bad to replace the plugs. Also, I sort of rushed the video so it wouldn't be too long, and wanted to correct myself on something. On the front passenger spark plug that I show in the video, you can actually use a longer extension to remove the spark plug. On the rear passenger plug, and the 2 driver side plugs, that's when you might have to drop the spark plug socket and extension into the hole first, before attaching your ratchet on the end. *After giving it more thought, I remembered something. I think on the rear passenger plug, and the two driver side plugs, i might actually drop the spark plug socket into the hole, and then drop the 3" extension into the hole, and push the extension into the socket with my finger. I can't remember, but for some reason I don't think there is enough room to drop the socket extension and socket into a couple of the spark plug holes. https://youtu.be/DJny6t_U7co Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChubRock Posted August 2, 2016 Author Share Posted August 2, 2016 Apexi, Let me just say thank you very much for this. This is above and beyond the effort and level of help I expected. Also, thank you for putting up the first video I've seen on this Gen Legacy spark plug change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarK1D Posted August 4, 2016 Share Posted August 4, 2016 Probably nothing but just a thought, noticed in your picture where the wire had melted it runs along the top of other fuses. The little dots on top of fuses are contact points, which connects to the wires you can use to test the fuses without pulling out the fuse. May be worth seeing what those connect to, as the burnt wire could have had contact with them? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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