Lately, my 2002 subaru forester (manual) has trouble starting. the battery is relatively new, and the contact points are clean. but when i initially turn the key, the engine kinda groans (like an old man trying to get out of bed first thing in the morning). sometimes, a couple of quick jabs on the gas peddle helps. once it does fire up, it runs normally. no hesitations. i'm guessing it's the starter. any thoughts?

SOURCE: Transmission hesitates when put into drive 2000 subaru Forester

You did not mention model or miles. Off hand sounds like fluid. Check level and condition of fluid. If many miles maybe needing to change filter and drain and replace fluid. Hope this helps, good luck and have a good day.

SOURCE: Same diesel-like noise in subaru engine

Essentially what the shop told you is that they want to do a total engine rebuild.... On a 89 vehicle this will easily exceed the street value of the car. In my opinion, this is not wise. If the noise is only present at startup and for a short time thereafter, you are at the beginning stages of failure.( a difference of a few thousandths of an inch can cause a noise) I would switch to a heavier grade oil (if you use a 10W anything, change to a 20W anything (like 20w50) or a straight weight like sae40.
This will mitigate the effects of wear for a while and give you time to save for another vehicle or find a good used engine to install (better option than rebuild as long as you can first hear it run and can verify it's not worse than the one you have) Using a thicker oil will not "repair" worn parts but can help buy you time. Don't rev the engine to make the noise go away...you will do more harm to it than if you just drove it normally.

SOURCE: subaru forester heater

take back to the dealer,hopefully the will find that the blend door cable is off or not adjusted properly

Mike Butler

• 6674 Answers
• Posted on Aug 23, 2009

SOURCE: 2004 subaru forester, 99,000 miles. Check engine

Drop in to an Autozone, or Pep Boys, or similar big parts store & they will usually scan for codes free. This will hopefully eliminate all the guess work, or at least point everyone in right direction for better diagnosis. If not obvious from codes what the problem is, get back to us and we'll help you out.

Testimonial: "Thanks for the great suggestion . I'll have Autozone read the codes on Monday. Thanks again!"

SOURCE: Subaru Forester 1999 GLS spark plug gap?

spark plug make= ngk
plug type =BKR6E-11
GAP=1.1mm A TURBO MODEL WILL BE 0.7-0.8 MM GAP