springer- Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 Any comments on using a '89 XT-6 5MT awd for off roading? Are lift kits available for them? It has a locking diff button on it, was this for the rear or center? It has 112K original and lite rust. $1000 Any comments appreciated. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markus56 Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 The diff lock is for the center. You "could" make it into an offroader, but they are harder to get parts for when you break something. All our lift kits are made by board members, and they are not hard to make at all if you have basic tools. Also, this car does not have a dual range transmission so wheeling it would mean roasted clutches every time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
one eye Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 The approch and depture angle are no good on an XT for a wheeler......... all the Difflock does is change it from a full time 4 wheel drive to a more or less just like a pushbutton 4X4 Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
springer- Posted January 4, 2010 Author Share Posted January 4, 2010 Thanks for the quick replies. I am going to look at the car tomorrow. I'm not looking to do rock crawling and serious 4 wheelin. More or less some mud/dirt trails, through the wood, across streams and that sort of stuff. The approach angles are not so important. Availability of parts might be an issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Qman Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 Any comments on using a '89 XT-6 5MT awd for off roading? Are lift kits available for them? It has a locking diff button on it, was this for the rear or center? It has 112K original and lite rust. $1000 Any comments appreciated. Thanks There have been a couple of them to date. Chuck from Tacoma built one that he ran in local tough truck competitions. Then there was one in Eugene. It ended up using a full Toyota frame and running gear. Running off-road will not "mean roasted clutches every time". Especially from what you describe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 this car will absolutely suck - send me a link so i can see it. Offroading means all sorts of things, it would be worthless for some things, fine for others. I use mine all the time and it does exactly what I need it to do. they're fantastic in the snow and off road for what i've used it for. they do have lots of quirks and some hard to get parts, but otherwise are really nice for an older subaru. they're old as dirt, cheap, but still run and feel like a nice ride. mine is a daily driver and it's not gutless to the point of annoying. the air suspension rides really nice (if it works ) visit subaruxt.com for all your xt related needs. mine is lifted, you can see pictures of it posted here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yo'J Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 That xt6 has a lot of parts for a old gl if you want to hot rod one out. Ej an old coupe or something with center diff lock and 5 lug conversion....MMMM tasty! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
springer- Posted January 4, 2010 Author Share Posted January 4, 2010 Here is the info I have on it. AWD subaru XT6 (6cyl) all power- brakes, windows, etc. runs good 111k mi 5spd cpe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MilesFox Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 OFF-Road. You either are driving up a mountain, or bombing around in open fields. If you are going up mountains, get a jeep. otherwise the xt6 will do ok. the diff lock operates the center diff. you can swap in a dual range transmission if you swap on 23 spline axle cups from turbo axles onto the xt6 axles, or swap in 23 spline axle stubs onto the suspension. clutch and driveshaft will fit the same. you will have to modify the center console for the d/r lever the lift kits you see around here will bolt onto the xt6 outside of a lift kit, you can get FWD rear struts from ea82 wagons or sedans to bump up the rear, even use honda accord springs on the ea82 struts. The fwd struts are longer below the spring perches. the front struts can be changed out with outback or forester struts since they are taller. the xt6 has 5 lug hubs that are similar to that of impreza and legacy, you can even swap in the whole front knuckles and have larger brakes, even brembos. doing this will allow you to use fwd impreza axles which will fit on a 23 spline trans(dual range) the car has a 3.9 final hear, so you can swap in a vlsd rear from a turbo legacy, or find any regualr 3.7 lsd from turbo ea82's and swap in the ring gear. chances are the xt6 may already have a vlsd in rear The car has potential and a lto fo stuff can be swapped on. bonus oints for the motor since it has 145 hp vs 95 in ea82, 110 in ea82 turbo, or 135 in a ej22(which will require bellhousing mods. the xt6 trans crossmember will allow you to swapin legacy/impreza transmissions, and with that you can go with ej22, ej20, ej25, and with the room under the hood, an eg33 svx motor or the 3.0 outback h6 if you study your subarus, you will learn that the xt6 is a bridge somewhere betewwn ea82 and legacy, being a hybri of both technologies and subaru was developin their current technology Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monstaru Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 are you going out for the sake of trails, or roads?if it is trails i would stray away do to the rarity of parts, if roads , i would say rock it and have fun....... and you would be surprised how involved approach and angles are , especially with something that has a nose like that.... water crossings are not always forgiving.just something to think about. cheers, brian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MilesFox Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 are you going out for the sake of trails, or roads?if it is trails i would stray away do to the rarity of parts, if roads , i would say rock it and have fun....... the bonus side of things is the rarer parts can be swapped out and retrofitted with current models that have lots of parts availability. the rarest arts are going to be related to the engine itself, mainly the cams/heads. the piston and rods share dimensions with ea82 engines. the alternator/waterpump/timingbelt are xt6 specific the front hubs and axles are xt6 specific but can be directly replaced by newer impreza or legacy parts all of the rear suspension is the same as any other ea82, so wheel bearings are universal, brakes are same as ea82 turbo, and trailing arms are same as any ea82 (dimensonally) or turbo models that had the rear swaybar. transmission will swap out with any ea82 so long as you know what gear ratios and axle splines you are working with Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeamCF Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 From the pics it looks too nice to be beating around in the dirt. (Would look cool in a Rallycross though ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Qman Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 You mean like this? The street tires are 225/60R16 Rallycross tires are 27" Kuhmo mud terrain Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monstaru Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 i was thinking of body panels and such;)cheers , brian the bonus side of things is the rarer parts can be swapped out and retrofitted with current models that have lots of parts availability. the rarest arts are going to be related to the engine itself, mainly the cams/heads. the piston and rods share dimensions with ea82 engines. the alternator/waterpump/timingbelt are xt6 specific the front hubs and axles are xt6 specific but can be directly replaced by newer impreza or legacy parts all of the rear suspension is the same as any other ea82, so wheel bearings are universal, brakes are same as ea82 turbo, and trailing arms are same as any ea82 (dimensonally) or turbo models that had the rear swaybar. transmission will swap out with any ea82 so long as you know what gear ratios and axle splines you are working with Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezapar Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 Mine was only an xt turbo. I took it out with some lifted Soobs, and it went toe to toe with them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murph Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 did u say it's a 5 speed ? uuuummmm , where did u say this car was ? yeah , probabley not what your looking for . maybe a nice wagon or hatchback ! keep looking - lots of good deals out there . where did u say that xt6 was ? just a thought . cheers , murph Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
springer- Posted January 5, 2010 Author Share Posted January 5, 2010 The car is in Maine. When I went to look at it I was expecting the worst since it lived in Maine all its life. The pictures looked good and the guy said it was just out of inspection which means it passed in the last year (a good thing). He seemed firm on the price from what I could tell on the phone and priced it "low" so he could sell it quick. He has health problems and is getting rid of all his toys. I got there and it was buried in a snow bank, we have just had 16" of snow this past weekend. After digging it out some I convinced him it was only snow and he could drive out of it, which he did. At a glance from the top the body looks to be in nice condition. I sat in it and the interior is fairly complete and everything I could test worked. He put a booster battery on it and it started right up. Let it warm up and it had good oil pressure and sounded good overall. Might have a hint of exhaust leak. He said it recently had a timing belt put on by the guy who owned it before him. He did a recent tune up. The tires look decent and basically it was a good deal for a $1000. BUT wait, I still had to get under it and check out the structure, floor pans, rockers, etc. RUST ... ALL RUST. What I expected but hoped was not the case. I assessed the extent of the rust and offered $500 for the car. Figure it was worth 3 times that in parts since it was basically a cream puff otherwise. He said he had too many calls on it and it would sell for $1000 but he would come down to his rock bottom price of $800. I took out my flash light and lit up the rust laying on the ground where I stuck my hand into the rocker panel. I told him if a kid with glazed over eyes looked at it and never looked under it he would likely get $1000. I also mentioned that it would never pass inspection again and he would be ripping the kid off. I firmly believe that to be true. I said I know exactly what I am getting into and if he wanted $500 for it he would never see me or it again. It's mine for $500. Now to find someone that wants to do some rust repair ... If I can get it done for $500 or less, I would be happy. I will likely have to find someone that needs the work but I suspect there is someone around that will. If I can get it fixed enough to pass inspection then I will look into the lift, tires and wheelin it. If not there may be a lot of XT parts available in the classified section Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbone Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 (edited) Use a screwdriver and poke to look for frame rot. It may or may not be repairable. Edited January 5, 2010 by Turbone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murph Posted January 6, 2010 Share Posted January 6, 2010 so ....it is a 5 speed ? mine is an automatic - lots of fun to drive - but i really like to shift myself ! let me know what u find on the rust , hope it's not too bad . no matter what you should do ok on your investment ! keep me informed please , thanks , murph Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
springer- Posted January 9, 2010 Author Share Posted January 9, 2010 UPDATE ... So I went and got the car today. It is a tough call whether to save it or not. I drove it home about 65 miles, 40 of it highway. Pretty much everything on the car works, even the cruise. Slight shimmy at 60 mph. After a thorough warm up the oil pressure runs steady at 45-50 and drops to maybe 10 at idle. When moving down the highway the water temp stays in the middle of the gauge but at slow speeds around town type driving it steadily climbs. Clutch seems a bit high on the pedal but works well. Tranny shifts nice and I was impressed that I didn't have to hit 5th until on the highway. In my 98 OBW I can be in 5th at 40mph!! The XT has good power and moves out compaired to the OBW. Windshield is cracked, rusted pretty bad overall, car looks good from 10 feet. I enjoyed driving it. The stereo is stock and still cranks well. Great brakes too. Lights work and go up and down smoothly. Not sure what I am going to do with it at this point. Might be a good parts car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subafreak Posted January 12, 2010 Share Posted January 12, 2010 I was looking at that car on craigs list....$500 is a pretty good deal. So what do you do for a parking brake if you swap in Legacy brakes up front? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Beast I Drive Posted January 13, 2010 Share Posted January 13, 2010 I was looking at that car on craigs list....$500 is a pretty good deal. So what do you do for a parking brake if you swap in Legacy brakes up front? Nissan 240 SX rear calipers and Legacy E brake cables -Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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