2001 Subaru Outback question

[stonej]

When the car starts up it takes about a minute for the radio and the
windshield wipers to start working, any ideas
why this would be? I'm thinking maybe the battery is old and needs
replacing.

[stonej]

Any idea on how a bad ground, sticking relay or switch that is not
operating properly would
cost to fix? Is this something that should be done by a Subaru
dealer or would most auto repair
places be able to deal with it?