Car: 2002 Subaru Legacy L
Mileage: ~110,000
Problem: Dad was driving last night with my mom from Cohoes yesterday and the car shuddered, jerked, and made a noise then proceeded to shut off while he was under the I-90/I-787 interchange.
I went out there with the battery charger and some tools. I figured I’d take the charger and connect it to see if the car would start, thinking maybe the alternator died and the battery has been dead? Grasp at a straw, I know.
Regardless, that wasn’t the issue. The Tranny fluid was low, but I do not think that would cause the car to shut off.
Upon trying to start the car on the side of the road, the car cranked, but it was a very interesting sound. You could see/hear the alternator spinning, but it didn’t seem like the motor was trying to start. The sound it made was kind of like a rubbing sound…not really sure how else to explain it. I did not seem like the motor itself was actually cranking. All of the belts on the front of the motor were spinning. Me and my dad think it’s the timing belt after conferring with my brother-in-law in Philadelphia who owns a bodyshop/does some mechanics work on the side.
Is our diagnosis correct? We’re going to be tearing it apart today after we both get home from our jobs, so it would help to know (since some of you have subies) if that is the likely issue.
My car has a Timing Chain, so this isn’t something I’ll probably ever experience.
i’ve done plenty of timing belts on those boxer subarus, but never one that had already broken. They are cake to do, make sure you get a OEM belt though, the one time i had to get aftermarket it didn’t fit properly and had to return it and get OEM. Fucking people don’t listen.
Anyway, does it sound like you’re cranking it with the spark plugs out? like a real fast rrrrrrrr rrrrrrrrrr rrrrrrrrrrrrrr. Like you can’t “hear” the compression?
Uhm…yes. It’s like a wooshhhhh wooooshhhhh sound almost…like metal on metal rubbing/sanding. I dunno, I hate describing car sounds on a forum. lol. It’s hard.
Sounds like it to me… If the belts are spinning then the crank is moving but if it doesnt sound like its trying to fire and its making an “odd” noise then it sounds like thats the case
It’s in Selkirk at home (I have a full garage with lift, tools, etc.). We had it towed by Dotts Garage (Central Ave.) who by the way did a very nice and quick job. Kudos to them. $190 was a bit higher than I wanted, but hey, we had to get it home. We figured bringing it to our home would be better than taking it to my brothers (who’s in Cohoes and closer - meaning less tow $$).
yea, fuck, you don’t even need one. those things are rediculously easy. just double check all the timing marks with the book and you’ll be fine. hopefully if it did snap, it didn’t fuck up the valves etc. could go either way.
Okay. We should be able to handle it. We’ve done everything else on our own cars from power steering racks, transmissions, etc. Thanks for the offer Wayne.
no idea, depends how far in you get and what exactly you need me for. keep me posted on how it goes, and if you have questions don’t hesitate to call. advice = free.