jenders74 Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 So my 97 Legacy Outback left me stranded on the highway tonight in single digit temperatures (below 0 with wind chill) and I have no idea why. I had to get it towed to a garage, but I'm wondering what to expect when they diagnose it on Monday. Any help would be appreciated. So its a 1997 Subaru Legacy Outback with 120,000 miles on it. I bought it at 88k and was told that the head gasket was already replaced. I've had the front brakes (pads, rotors, calipers) replaced at 105,000. All maintenance has been done on schedule since I've owned it. I'm going to list all the symptoms I saw plainly so there is no confusion. Turn on: I noticed the brake light and battery indicator were on. 10 mins in: The ABS light kicked on. I checked the brakes felt fine. I was cruising at 60 at normal RPMs. 12 mins in: My radio turned off. (I knew I was in trouble here) 13 mins in: Check engine light came on. 14 mins in: Dash lights dimmed, lost all power, and cruised to the shoulder of the highway. The car did not shut off, but I gave it gas to see if I could limp it home and it barely moved. The car sat at a very low idle until I turned it off. I turned the hazard lights on and I got another interesting symptom. The alarm beeped and the doors locked every minute or so. The alarm on my car beeps when the battery is disconnected so I'm assuming that the battery was dying enough that it caused the alarm to initiate for a brief moment. I had someone pick me up and we got a battery to try. When we came back the hazards had turned off and the alarm beep had worn down to a quick wimper. We put the new battery and the alarm went off loudly and I had power to everything, but the car wouldn't turn over.. Initially in the drive I thought bad battery and separate brake issue. Then I thought it was the alternator when the car died while driving. Then there is the fact that car didn't start with a new battery. So that makes me think starter. So. Anyone have any ideas? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuckyBob Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 Sounds like the alternator to me. Had that happen on both my previous Volvo and our Escort race car. I'd be just about 100% sure that was the issue provided the battery you threw in the car wasn't fully charged. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenders74 Posted January 23, 2011 Author Share Posted January 23, 2011 The battery that I put in it was brand new from Wal-Mart (it was the only thing open at that time). If it was the alternator then how would that explain the car not starting? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuckyBob Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 If it was brand new it was probably sitting on a shelf for months. Probably plenty of juice to run the electronics but nowhere near enough to power the starter. The load placed on the electrical system to run things like the car alarm, interior lights, etc. is an order of magnitude or two less than what a starter requires. When we were testing our race Escort, we unintentionally put a bad battery in it; it had no problem running the fuel pump, projector HIDs from a '06 Legacy GT, interior lights, four brake lights, motor blower, and interior fan, but it would struggle badly to turn the car over. Usually a battery with insufficient juice will appear just fine until you try the starter, and then everything else in the car will go dim/off as the starter current draw takes away available power from everything else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenders74 Posted January 23, 2011 Author Share Posted January 23, 2011 I find it very hard to believe that walmart would be selling batteries that are already dead. This walmart had an auto service department and my battery had sticker on it stating that it was shelved this month. Even if the battery had drained, I think the starter would crank enough to give some indication of life. There wasn't any noise at all. The other suggestions I've had have been either issues with the timing belt or possibly the ECU. Anyone have any ideas to back that up? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baddog Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 Have the Alternator tested? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuckyBob Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 Just trying to help based on personal experience, man . Close to dead battery = everything but crank, on multiple cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenders74 Posted January 23, 2011 Author Share Posted January 23, 2011 @LuckyBob, yeah I'm really hoping that you're right. It would save me a ton of money! @Baddog, No the alternator hasn't been tested. I'm sure the shop will do that on Monday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnegg Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 any time you remove the battery the alarm will ''lock'' up the ignition when re-installed. put the key in the ignition and turn it to run, just shy of start. then attach the battery. this will make the alarm happy. now, why did it die. it sounds like it was the alt is bad and you were running off the battery for electric power. if you still have a key, you can buy an alt from a parts store today, and install it. the new alt and the new battery should put you back on the road. you may not need the battery, but if it has a few years on it it may not come back all the way and will fail in a few weeks any way. a bad alt can kill a battery. if you haven't given the keys to the shop yet you can just drive it home. if you have given them the keys you need to wait till monday and talk to them. shops don't like cars disappearing off their lots. it's call car theft. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baddog Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 When my alternator failed. I was stupid and replaced the battery. My gauges would not work but I would still have a running engine. It was in fact the alternator. And unless the starter is making some sort of noise I am willing to bet its the alternator. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troutman Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 I'm with the alternator crowd. I had one going out and my Astro. Was taking longer to start. It had a voltmeter and the voltage was slowly diminishing. On older cars you could start it and disconnect the battery and if it kept running the alternator was probably is good. If it died the alternator was bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenders74 Posted January 24, 2011 Author Share Posted January 24, 2011 any time you remove the battery the alarm will ''lock'' up the ignition when re-installed. put the key in the ignition and turn it to run, just shy of start. then attach the battery. this will make the alarm happy. now, why did it die. it sounds like it was the alt is bad and you were running off the battery for electric power. if you still have a key, you can buy an alt from a parts store today, and install it. the new alt and the new battery should put you back on the road. you may not need the battery, but if it has a few years on it it may not come back all the way and will fail in a few weeks any way. a bad alt can kill a battery. if you haven't given the keys to the shop yet you can just drive it home. if you have given them the keys you need to wait till monday and talk to them. shops don't like cars disappearing off their lots. it's call car theft. Well I still have the keys, but the car didn't start even with the new battery. Also, this is my only car, I live in an apartment without a garage, and its currently 9 degrees outside. I think I'll leave this one to the garage I appreciate all the reply's though. I was really worried that it might be something more difficult than the alternator. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenders74 Posted January 24, 2011 Author Share Posted January 24, 2011 Went to the garage to give them my keys this morning. Connected the battery and what do you know? The thing started. Still not sure why it didn't start on the side of the highway, but now its pretty safe to call it an alternator problem. Thanks all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.