Why won't your 1996 outback start?

Answer 1

An engine requires 3 things to start and run. Air, Fuel, and Spark (assuming it is not diesel). The first thing to do is determine what is missing. Normally Air is not the problem unless the air cleaner is so plugged up it can't get air. (extremely rare) A dirty filter normally allows the engine to start then run rich. Look for black smoke out of your tail pipe. First check for spark, you can do this by removing a wire from one of the plugs and attaching it to a spare plug laying against ground. The old "let's see if it will arc to ground" method can screw up some of the new electronic systems. If you have no spark, pull the distributor cap and turn over the engine. If the rotor is not moving, you have a broken timing belt. Since there are two timing belts on a Subaru, you have just checked one of them. If the rotor is moving and no spark, it is time to get knowledgeable help. Next is fuel. Easy to check, get a can of starting fluid from your auto parts store. Remove the air cleaner and spray a shot into the the carb, or if fuel injected, the throttle body. Crank over and if it runs momentarily it is a fuel problem and time to check the fuel pump, hoses, and crash sensor that can sometimes get tripped. It's job is to cut off the fuel in case of an accident and can get tripped by packages or a wayward knee. If every thing else appears to be present air, fuel, and spark it is time to check the other timing belt. Again a knowledgeable friend can help you with this. If you have not changed the timing belts in the last 50,000 miles, you need to. Many Subaru engines are "interference" type engines. That means that when the belt breaks, the valves can come in contact with the pistons creating severe cash drain problems. I know you asked what time it is and got the history of clocks, but the question has no one size fits all answer. Fred W4JLE@W4JLE.COM