Mike_N_Austin Posted April 16, 2004 Share Posted April 16, 2004 I just recently purchased a used 1999 Subaru Forester with 150K miles. My previous 3 vehicles have all been Chrysler/Dodge products. First off....let me say that I'm totally impressed with the workmanship of this vehicle. Based off my initial experience with the quality and craftmanship of this vehicle....I'm not going back to Dodge. The engine appears to be easier to work on than the later model Dodge/Chrysler. There is a lot of room under the hood and everything seems to be nicely placed (not to many layers). But I'm having difficulty locating a Chilton or Haynes on this model. Can anyone help ? I did locate a listing for a professional manual....but it states that it is not for do it yourselfers....so I'm not sure that it would be a good investment. Does anyone know if Haynes or Chilton or an alternate company puts out a do it yourself manual on this year and model ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legacy777 Posted April 16, 2004 Share Posted April 16, 2004 Not sure if they're going to have a chiltons or haynes for that one.....you may want to check out their sites to see if it's available. The factory manuals are really nice.....a lot of info, which I prefer. other place you may want to look to d/l some stuff is http://techinfo.subaru.com and yeah.....I much prefer working on subarus then most other manufacturers.....so much easier. I've had my intake manifold off, timing belt off....really wasn't bad here's pics if you want to gander http://www.main.experiencetherave.com:8080/subaru/images/injectors http://www.main.experiencetherave.com:8080/subaru/images/timingbelt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike_N_Austin Posted April 16, 2004 Author Share Posted April 16, 2004 I'm glad to hear that these are easy to work on from someone who obviously has extensive first hand experience. I need to replace the Left and right Cam seals as they are leaking. How hard are these to get to. Can you tell me what major components I have to remove to get to them. I also need to adjust the valves and replace the valve cover gaskets....but these two items are not as urgent. The CAM seal leaks are not currently contaminating the Timing Belt....but I don't want to take any chances :- ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejlain Posted April 16, 2004 Share Posted April 16, 2004 Hi Mike. I don't think Haynes has a book out for your MY yet. I have a Haynes that covers model years 94-98 I believe. For my 1998 Legacy L sedan, I rely on it all the time. You might want to pick that one up. I think you'll find that it will answer most of your questions. I don't think there were many changes between 1998 and 1999. - Ed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike_N_Austin Posted April 16, 2004 Author Share Posted April 16, 2004 Thanks Ed I never thought of using a 1998 model year manual.....but your idea definitely sounds like the way to go. I was told by the mechanic who did the pre-inspection on my car that this engine and drive train have been in production for 10 to 15 years. Which is what explains the low cost on parts as well as one of the reasons behind the high craftmanship of the engine. So I would definitely expect to be able to use a 98 model book. Thanks for the advice !!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ferret Posted April 16, 2004 Share Posted April 16, 2004 Mike, the 98 is the ONLY year the Forester was DOHC, so a manual there, especially for cam seals is not the way to go. EBAY has a CD-Rom for the 99-04 for a buy-me-now price of $14.99. I bought one of these for my wife's Highlander. After getting used to using and searching in Adobe Acrobat, I like it better than the full hardcopy. Seems I can search on a word, phrase or code, then print the pages I need. If I get them oily or greasy, well.....I can just reprint them. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=7900137373&category=6762&sspagename=WDVW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike_N_Austin Posted April 16, 2004 Author Share Posted April 16, 2004 Ferret, Thanks for the headsup. I have put my wife on that link....she is the EBAY queen. This definitely looks like a better deal than a hard manual. PDF's don't scare me and this CD appears to have 1000 times more information than the manual. BTW: what is the differnce between SOHC and DOHC. I have seen this term quite a lot...but I'm embarrassed to admit that I don't know what it means. Thanks for the feedback on the CD !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lothar34 Posted April 16, 2004 Share Posted April 16, 2004 Single overhead camshaft and double overhead camshaft. http://auto.howstuffworks.com/camshaft.htm The SOHC engines have one camshaft (on each side) to open both the intake and exhaust valves. The DOHC engines have two cams (each side). One for the intake valves, one for the exhaust. IIRC, that Chilton or Haynes manual that goes up to 1998 only covers the base Legacy and Brighton with the 2.2L engine, not the Outback or GT with the 2.5L. I'd go for either the CD-ROM or AllData.com's DIY section: http://www.alldatadiy.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike_N_Austin Posted April 16, 2004 Author Share Posted April 16, 2004 Thanks for the insight. My wife just locked down the CD. Paid the Buy it now price. So I will need 4 CAM seals and not 2.....correct ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legacy777 Posted April 16, 2004 Share Posted April 16, 2004 I'm glad to hear that these are easy to work on from someone who obviously has extensive first hand experience. I need to replace the Left and right Cam seals as they are leaking. How hard are these to get to. Can you tell me what major components I have to remove to get to them. I also need to adjust the valves and replace the valve cover gaskets....but these two items are not as urgent. The CAM seal leaks are not currently contaminating the Timing Belt....but I don't want to take any chances :- ) To get at the cam seals, you'll need to basically take the timing belt off and do what I did in the second set of pictures. The seals can be a pain to get out. There is a trick to doing it. You have to sort of stick a small flathead screwdriver into the seal and then use the head(or whatever) as a pivot point so you can press towards the head and it pops the seal out. It's rather difficult to explain, but once you figure it out....it'll take less then five minutes to get the actual seal out.....it's just figuring it out.....took me a while banging my head against the wall to figure it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike_N_Austin Posted April 19, 2004 Author Share Posted April 19, 2004 To get at the cam seals, you'll need to basically take the timing belt off and do what I did in the second set of pictures. The seals can be a pain to get out. There is a trick to doing it. You have to sort of stick a small flathead screwdriver into the seal and then use the head(or whatever) as a pivot point so you can press towards the head and it pops the seal out. It's rather difficult to explain, but once you figure it out....it'll take less then five minutes to get the actual seal out.....it's just figuring it out.....took me a while banging my head against the wall to figure it out. Josh Based on your pictures....it looks like the timing belt is very accessible in these vehicles. I noticed what looked like 2 radiotor fans in the photo's that showed the removed pulley's on the table. Did you have to remove any of the radiator accessories to get to the belt ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legacy777 Posted April 21, 2004 Share Posted April 21, 2004 Mike, You need to remove the radiator fans.....but that's about it. they're pretty easy to get out. some people remove the radiator.....however I didn't. If you're goin to replace water pump.....you might as well pull it and give yourself some more room. If you leave it in....put a piece of wood or cardboard on the back of the radiator, so if you have a less likely chance of bending the fins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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