I've got a 15 outback premium 2.5 w/ 31000ish miles. I drove the car Monday. It sat Tuesday. Today I drove it like 3 miles round trip to get gas for the lawnmower, then mowed the lawn. Then drove it just under 3 miles to soccer practice for the kids where it was parked for an hour. When I went to leave it gave me a check engine light (xmode light was blinking as well as traction control and brake, abs light on as well) and ran a little rough. I tried to pull it from the back lot to the front lot of the school and it would only go 5-7 mph (even floored) couldn't even really rev the engine while in park. I got to the lot and shut off and restarted. Quick googling lead me to check the fuel cap was tight (I hadn't gotten gas since Monday morning and was at 1/2 a tank currently) I restarted again and the car was slow to start I tied to go home but the car wouldn't move over 10 and there's no way I could cross the highway and railroad tracks at that speed so I went back in the school lot (drove about a block) Shut the car off, removed the gas cap and re tightened the gas cap. I restarted the car (very slow to start) this time it would allow me to drive at a normal speed. I buzzed the few miles home. Tried to restart the car at home and it was dead. Put it on the charger, found my cheapie code reader and pulled a p2102 (throttle actuator control motor circuit low) and 2 O0073 More googling (and the correct trouble code) have lead me to think both are caused by a low battery but Battery and alternator tested good a few weeks ago by both my electronic charger and the test at oreiley. I had an issue where after driving for 30 minutes and then sitting for 30 minutes the car acted like it didn't want to start. But I drove for an hour and 30 the day before and it started just fine) We put on a good 600 miles this weekend. The car didn't act slow to start. I'm just wondering for thoughts if it's the battery? (Which I'll replace with a diehard Or an optima or something like that) or it's something I should get towed in? (I'm still under full warranty) Thoughts, Suggestions & advice would be very helpful! Thanks Mike
It's going in at noon today. They said as long as the check engine isn't flashing it's fine to drive. But if I can't get it to go over 7mph again, I'll be calling back and having them tow it.
Dealer claimed to never have seen those codes before. They are checking it and the battery. They gave me a new legacy as a loaner. I'm pretty sure I only got a loaner because of how pissed my wife was looking when we pulled in. But it works.
So the update is they don't know. The dealers mini scanner pulled the same codes mine did. But when plugged into their computer it gave them a long list of errors. Which pointed to the battery, but their long test says the battery is ok. They just road tested it, and let me keep the loaner because I had to go home to get my kids. There was talk they may replace the battery anyway... but at this point they had no idea what is happening. In case you are curious I was able to go faster than 7mph to the dealer. Though the car was running noticeably rough this morning.
Another update- Dealer called. Throttle sensor tested out of spec for the resistance. They ordered a replacement. It should be in Saturday. So I've got this loaner legacy until at least Monday when they can get the part replaced and troubleshoot further to see if anything else is wrong.
Sounds like progress! And you get to drive a loaner for a bit, not too terrible of a situation. Hopefully the throttle sensor will fix the issue completely!
The Legacy is nice. Though it's a keyless one, and I keep reaching for the keys because it feels so much like my outback. Progress is good. I'm thinking I'll call them back tomorrow and have them check the wind noise on the drivers door as well...
Dealer replaced the throttle control relay. This appears to have been the issue. They did not replace my battery. The car ran nice and smooth on the way home though. Also I did call them on the wind noise, and they replaced the sail window on the drivers side. The cabin is considerably quieter now. I'm going to miss the moonroof and push button start of the loaner though.
