I have the same problem noted on last weekend's show with another Subaru owner. My car has a burning type smell (burning rubber or burning oil) only when driving uphill on a mountain road. I'm not sure the answer given on the show is correct about the rubber under the carpet smelling because of the catalytic converter. The smell comes through the venting system.
View 2 RepliesMy 2010 Subaru Legacy has been leaking oil since the last oil change, and also smelling like burning oil. I took it back to the mechanics, and they told me something about oil pooling from previous oil changes into the splash pan, soaking into the foam in or around the splash pan, and the foam got so saturated that it is now dripping oil. The good news: no new leak, only a residual leak.They cleaned it up, replaced the foam, and topped me off-no charge.
My questions: Does this sound right/common? Or are my mechanics sloppy to be saturating foam in or around the splash pan? And is the burning oil smell related to all this splashing and pooling oil? This is the third oil change related issue I've had with them. First they didn't fill my oil to the appropriate fill line (I believe they over-filled
Then the next time they did not tighten my oil cap enough, which caused oil to spill and burn, and they couldn't diagnose the issue (I took it in complaining of the smell of something burning-almost like plastic burning, and they looked at me like I was crazy, and told me they couldn't smell anything burning. Getting it fixed took a chance encounter with a different mechanic, and he knew what it was by smell! Now I do, too).
what could be causing a terrible odor when the fan is used to heat or cool my 1998 subaru legacy wagon? note: this occurs only when the outside air vent is open.
View 2 RepliesAcquired a 1997 Subaru Legacy a few weeks ago. Drive it for a prolonged time in the heat, at speed, and you can smell warm coolant from the engine compartment. And the temperature gauge hovers in the middle of the dial, no matter what.
My wife explained the smell away by guessing she'd spilled coolant when she topped it up. But it's been weeks since she did that. Also - this sucker drinks coolant. I'm guessing every 2-3 days I'm adding another gallon.
It occurs to me that ... maybe .. a leak on top of a pipe so the coolant doesn't drip out, but the loss of pressure (from the hole) causes the fluid to boil and flash out? This might explain the 'higher than I'd like to see' operating temperature.
1995 Subaru Legacy wagon.
If I drive up a steep hill for 5-10 minutes, the engine will smoke copiously.
It's fine when I drive 200 miles over lightly rolling terrain.
The temperature gauge doesn't get above medium.
It's been doing this for at least two years (since I bought it from a friend).
What's the story?
I have a 1997 Subaru Legacy sedan with a 2.2L engine with AWD. When I step on the brakes I hear a ratcheting type of sound and feel pulsations in the brake pedal.There is no problem with brake performance that I have noticed. We have replaced the front rotors and front brake pads.We also replaced the rear passenger side brake caliper. It still makes a loud ratchet/groaning-like sound. It makes the sound when you first start braking after starting the car and intermittently while driving. It's not constant when you step on the brakes.
View 3 RepliesWhile driving a mountain road (hwy 17) going downhill this morning I lost power braking and power steering and a got the following error message on the display
TRANSMISSION P LOCK MECHANISM
PARK CAR ON FLAT SURFACE AND APPLY BRAKES
I was able to stop the car on a flat area. I turned the ignition off and then restarted the car and the power steering and brakes came back, but the red triangle remained. I drove to the Toyota dealership and left the car for service.
We have a '96 Subaru Legacy Wagon with about 175K on it. Bought used. Ran OK for 2 years and suddenly we get this: going up a hill, even a slight, steady grade for more than a block or two, the car starts shuddering...power ebbs...car slows...check engine light flashes madly...it turns into a cartoon car with tongue dragging out, then dies if you don't pull over and let it pant like a dog. If it dies,one can restart it in half a minute or so.
Our excellent mechanic cleaned engine, valves, checked fuel-related stuff, replaced things, even worked on it for free because he was so stumped. Consulted w/worldwide Subaru experts. Conclusion: some cylinder/valve or something has sort of carved itself a new notch and so doesn't seat properly, evinces itself under pressure of grade or hill, would cost 2-3K to fix...an amount we simply don't have.
I'm doomed to drive this thing for the next 2-3 years, finding grade-less routes in my hilly Northwest city--not an easy task, but got to keep it chugging. Works beautifully on the flat (should I move to Kansas?). Will happily charge up a one-block hill as long as you then go sideways on the flat for a block or two. Big Sigh Here. Whether it could be some other problem? One website yaks about catalytic converters breaking up and blocking lines.
I have a 2002 Subaru Outback that has started overheating only when I try to go up into the mountains. It starts within a few miles of starting up a steep grade and cools down the instant you start down the mountain. I have had no problems with regular driving conditions. The only pertinent info might be that it did have a coolant leak last summer and overheated then.
View 8 RepliesI purchased a new Outback Limited (2.5) in April of this year. I've got a service appointment coming up next week for an oil change anyway, and I noticed that the road noise from the sunroof is very loud.
I own an `09 Legacy Limited which also has a sunroof and it's not even close in terms of loudness.
When I called to make my service appointment, I was told that this is really "normal" for the sunroof, and I obviously don't think so.
My Outback has a sunroof air deflector which might be causing the problem - none of my other cars have had this option and it came with it when I purchased it. I'm considering removing it, but I want to be sure this is the cause rather than a problem with the sunroof itself.
Has driven an `11 Outback with a sunroof (with or without an air deflector), and if you have, is it noticably louder than other cars you've driven?
I have a 1999 Subaru Legacy 2.5 GT and I get a whining noise that is directly proportional to road speed when I drive. The noise is ONLY heard when the car is moving and your foot is on the gas. The second you lift your foot to coast the whining stops. If you are stopped, no whine. If you change gears, the frequency of the whine doesn't change. Turning the wheel left/right doesn't change anything. If it sounds like anything I've heard, it sounds like a dry differential. I've checked the front diff fluid level (the whine comes from the front) and the fluid level is full.
View 6 RepliesSo I heard some low-pitch but still the squeaky-type noise under the wheel when I turn it while driving/parking. In addition, once in a while, while driving the car, it will automatically honk on the street. I sense the car may need some check-up for its electric system. But what shall I do at this moment?
View 5 RepliesFor the first time while towing a bumper pull trailer, started getting a very strong burning smell, only while going up decent size hills. After the climb, smell goes away. Kind of smells like burning rubber or wiring, but that should be constant and not just while up hill.
Checked tranny fluid and it didn't look burnt or low and never saw visible smoke. Have seen this discussed before but with no definitive conclusions. Truck has 150K on it and has long ago lost most of its towing power and the hills also drop the speed to around 45mph from 70 when I hit the big ones.
Took my 2007 Honda Pilot in on Thursday for an oil change and trip inspection to a very reputable mechanic that specializes in Japanese cars. He said he found a small amount of leakage on the rear cover of the transmission (it is a two wheel drive) so he removed the cover, resealed, and refilled the fluid. The evening after I picked it up, as I was driving up a hill, the car started rolling backwards and no gears would engage. Had it towed back to my house.
No fluid in the reservoir and the dipstick smells burnt. Obvious trans fluid on the underside of car. Is the transmission fried? Does he owe me a new transmission? No trans problems in it's history. It has been a great car and I am anal about the maintenance. I have all records since new. Should I have it towed back to him on Monday morning or towed to a dealer? The car has 89,000 mostly highway miles on it.
I have a 2004 Subaru Legacy Wagon with around 90,000 miles on it. I purchased the car in 2008 with about 26,000 miles on it. Starting two years ago, whenever the air temperature is below 15-20 degrees, my car will develop a smell of antifreeze in the cabin when I start it and let it warm up for a minute or two. It did not do it for the first winters I owned it. I have not been able to detect the smell outside of the vehicle, and I have not been able to detect the smell in the summer months, even if the car is left idling for several minutes. The White Whale (my cars name according to my wife) was worked on by my local mechanic (where the car was purchased) last winter. They considered and replaced the thermostat, a leaking (or at least they thought it was possibly leaking) hose, and then finally after consulting over the phone with the Subaru dealer that is a little over 45 miles from my house, decided that the problem was likely the head gasket.
So at around 65,000 miles I had the head gasket replaced by the Subaru dealer. Problem is, they replaced it in March, and the temps were high enough that I couldn't really tell if the fix had fixed the original problem or not. It had seemed that the smell was at least less intense, but hard to tell. So, here we are in the midst of January, yesterday the car started beautifully (which is one reason that I love this car) after sitting outside all night at -11 degrees Fahrenheit with wind chills down to below -30. Last winter, in these conditions, the smell would be so strong that I would get nauseated driving the entire 15 minutes to work.
This winter, since the repair, the smell seems limited to only the first idling time. After that, the cabin seems to get cleared out with fresh air, and the smell dissipates. There have never been any check engine lights, the oil and coolant levels have never been a problem, the temperature is never higher than just above the mid-line on the gauge which has stayed the same all throughout the time I've owned it, and performance has been completely unaffected by the smell, other than my performance as a driver when trying to navigate in a car that reeks of antifreeze. Also, I have never noticed what some describe as a haze or liquid building up on the windshield when a heater core goes out and my mechanics, both dealership and local, assured me that this was not the problem.
The other day I was driving off-road with a 04 V8 Treg with Nokian WR2's tires and got stuck going uphill in mud (there was a small river running that had created the mud on the side). I engaged the low differential along with the lock (both rear and front lock option) but could not get out. I finally had to reverse downhill and back out of my pursue to go further up the hill. What did I do wrong? Are the tires not suitable? Did I have to leave Treg on high differential? Should not lock the differential?
View 6 RepliesWhen I turn the key all the way over, I hear only one click, and no engine sound. Playing with park or neutral positions do nothing. Battery and connections are good. I am getting a raw fuel smell out of the tail pipe after it finally starts. The check engine light intermittently comes on, by now it is mostly on.
My guesses are: fuel pump/relay problems, starter/connection problems.
Our 1994 Suburu Legacy runs on Petrol or LPG. For some unknown reason, there is a strong petrol smell in the car. When this happens, the car will eventually stop and the engine stops. There is power, but the engine will not start. Several minutes and many attempts later later, it starts. What may be happening?
View 2 RepliesI recently bought a 1997 Subaru Outback. There is a burning smell sometimes and can't quit put my finger on any specific time that this occurs. Also, I find the heat is really crummy. Takes a very long time to heat up and never gets really warm. I might add that when I bought this car the air conditioning "condenser" was not hooked up. It came with the car and looks like a small radiator. Could this have anything to do with either problem?
View 2 RepliesI have a legacy. Notice some slippage between 2nd and 3rd and 3rd and 4th. Also noticing an extreme burning smell when vehicle first gets started (for about 15 min) it's gagging it's so strong and pours in through defrost but can be smelled standing outside car also. Finally I parked in friends garage and notice some dark weird colored fluid on ground when I backed out, I dont know if it's oil or transmission fluid.
View 1 RepliesI have a 2004 Turbo Forester. It's been maintained since purchased new at the same dealer with oil changes every 3500 miles or so and all the "big" required/recommended maintenance every 15000 miles. After the 75000 mile check, I kept smelling a burning oil smell, especially when car was idling. I had it back to the dealer several times but they couldn't find anything wrong. The car did not seem to be using excess oil, there were no "puddles" under the car where it was parked. Today I brought the car in for routine oil change (78400 miles). On the way in, started smelling the burning smell again and saw smoke around the turbo charger.
The mechanic saw "Moisture" (oil?) around a lower bolt on the heat shield around the turbo charger. He said it was likely a failing turbo charger causing oil to leak on making that bolt wet? The engine is not making any noise, nor is the turbocharger, and there was no "check engine light" illuminated. I'm scared now to take the care elsewhere for a second opinion...don't really want to drive it and trash the engine. It's out of warranty now, and this is a painfully expensive fix that couldn't have come at a worse time on a car that's been maintained "by the book". I'm reading a lot about this "banjo bolt screen" problem. Would that be something to find out about on a 2004 Forester? Is there anything else that could be causing the problem (mechanic couldn't think of anything).