air suspension to gas strut swap

[Chef]

I have the damnable air suspension on my 92 legacy AWD wagon. I intend to replace the suspension with a gas strut one instead. I've read all the info I can on the topic here, but would like to clarify a few details.

 

First, will the top mounts from the 95-99 legacy and the 1993-2001 impreza fit my car? Or do I need to get the ones from a 92 - 94 legacy?

 

Is the suspension from the impreza wagon too soft in the rear for my AWD wagon?

 

If the suspension from later model legacies will work (i.e. top mount fits), can I use it from the outback model? If anything, I wouldn't mind raising the car an inch since i'll be losing that option when removing the air suspension.

 

Thanks for any/all advice.

 

P.S. - I'm working on a very limited budget, but since my front right strut is currently intermittently deflating I need to do somehting soon.

[Legacy777]

Yeah the model year legacies & imprezas you listed have compatible strut top mounts.

 

As for the outback, if you get the whole strut, spring & top, you should be good to swap it on.

[totech]

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you...

 

I have 1991 wagon suspension parts cluttering up my garage. I am sure we can figure out a good price.

 

 

They are of course used, if you want better condition, I have better struts I just pulled off my Impreza.

 

I am in Ajax, and pretty close to you!

[Legacy777]

Remember the 90-91 rear strut top mounts are different from the 92-94 MY's. Same goes for the rear springs.

[totech]

Yup, I know.

[Chef]

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you...

 

I have 1991 wagon suspension parts cluttering up my garage. I am sure we can figure out a good price.

 

 

They are of course used, if you want better condition, I have better struts I just pulled off my Impreza.

 

I am in Ajax, and pretty close to you!

 

Was that an AWD legacy wagon? Also, what year, model, and trim level was the impreza?

 

Basically I'd probably like to use the impreza struts if they're still reasonably good, and the springs/topmounts from the legacy if possible to maintain the height.

 

Does anyone know if the WRX struts can be used with the 1991 legacy upper spring perches and top mounts? Or will this only work for the front and not the rear? Damn this is confusing.

 

I'm cautious about using the WRX stuff because I don't want to lower the vehicle if I can avoid it. Also, the spring rates for the rear in the impreza (117-144 depending on model) are much softer than those for the legacy wagon (179 fwd 190 awd)

 

Remember the 90-91 rear strut top mounts are different from the 92-94 MY's. Same goes for the rear springs.

 

What does this mean in terms of installing them? Were the rear springs for the 90-91 tapered? Or if not, is this the reason for a different top mount?

 

From my understanding the main difference in the 90-91 and 92-94 struts are the lower spring perches on the strut itself, which are about 3/4" higher than on the 92-94 models (meaning it would raise the rear?).

[Chef]

Okay, after a bit more reading, I've come to these conclusions:

 

The front and rear springs for the 90-91 are shorter than the 92-94

Using the whole strut assemblies including the top mount and upper perch the struts should sit at the same height as a 92-94.

 

Using struts for the impreza (assuming they are the same as the 92-94 legacy) and the upper spring perches and springs from the 90-91 would lower the car slightly (the rear will drop about 0.5" but be stiffer than the impreza, not sure about the front).

 

Does this sound about right? Or am I totally off here.

 

Anyone know any wreckers carrying used subarus in TO or area?

[Chef]

Well okay. Called a wrecker in Peterborough, they have a 95 legacy wagon in the yard. They're going to yank all four strut assemblies for me, $50 (cdn) a pop. Claims they should probably be functional. They do refunds on defective items, but we'll see. Should have them for pick-up tomorrow.

 

So these should literally bolt right in to replace the air struts. I will remove the compressor/drier and air tank when I do the struts to shave the weight.

 

If I remove the relay for the compressor system, should this prevent the height light from flashing?

 

BTW, sorry totech, but this is a good deal on struts with components designed to fit my vehicle. Unless your impreza struts are in good shape, and the ones i purchase not, I don't think I'll need them.

 

Thanks anyways through.

 

P.S. Anyone interested in some used air struts? 3 are for certain functioning okay (LF, LR, RR), the RF may or may not be leaking (doubtful). I believe it may be the solenoid valve malfunctioning, but the piece itself is over $100 (american) new and may or may not be the problem.

[Legacy777]

The rear springs on the 90-91 were tapered.

 

The ride height issues between the 90-91's and the 92-94's are mainly an issue when going to kyb struts. I'm not sure why, but it's usually when people go from the stock struts to kyb, the front raises.

 

But that's a mute point since you picked up the 95's.

 

You should remove the a/s computer. That will disable everything.

 

It's under the seat. Look at figure 67-3

http://www.surrealmirage.com/subaru/files/swap/elect_unit_loc/6-3_electrical_unit_location06.jpg

[Chef]

Excellent - thanks for the info.

 

 

 

The rear springs on the 90-91 were tapered.

 

The ride height issues between the 90-91's and the 92-94's are mainly an issue when going to kyb struts. I'm not sure why, but it's usually when people go from the stock struts to kyb, the front raises.

 

But that's a mute point since you picked up the 95's.

 

You should remove the a/s computer. That will disable everything.

 

It's under the seat. Look at figure 67-3

http://www.surrealmirage.com/subaru/files/swap/elect_unit_loc/6-3_electrical_unit_location06.jpg

[firstwagon]

Well okay. Called a wrecker in Peterborough, they have a 95 legacy wagon in the yard. They're going to yank all four strut assemblies for me, $50 (cdn) a pop. Claims they should probably be functional. They do refunds on defective items, but we'll see. Should have them for pick-up tomorrow.

 

So these should literally bolt right in to replace the air struts. I will remove the compressor/drier and air tank when I do the struts to shave the weight.

 

If I remove the relay for the compressor system, should this prevent the height light from flashing?

 

BTW, sorry totech, but this is a good deal on struts with components designed to fit my vehicle. Unless your impreza struts are in good shape, and the ones i purchase not, I don't think I'll need them.

 

Thanks anyways through.

 

P.S. Anyone interested in some used air struts? 3 are for certain functioning okay (LF, LR, RR), the RF may or may not be leaking (doubtful). I believe it may be the solenoid valve malfunctioning, but the piece itself is over $100 (american) new and may or may not be the problem.

 

So you're getting all four strut assemblies for $200? Excellent deal. Can you grab the mounts for the same price?

 

I was at our local Subaru junkyard and they first quoted me $1000 Cdn (with my old air suspension as exchange) for a "kit". It supposed to consist of the struts, mounts and any hardware that you need to do the conversion. I asked what year they would come off and was told it would be a 90 to 94 wagon. Those suspension are getting older and rarer and this is why they charge so much for a good used one. (or so they told me). I thought of asking about a newer model wagon but I had only bought the car two weeks earlier and was assuming they knew more then me on the topic. When I declined the offer he came down to $600 but it was still more then I wanted to spend. I ended up buying a used air strut for $150 which solved my problems for now.

 

Keep us posted on how the install goes. They had a lot more 1995 to 2000 Subarus on the lot then the first gen and newer is normally better in this case.

[Chef]

These come with the mounts too - the guys at this place are the best I've ever seen at the wreckers before, and seem pretty happy to have someone take the parts of this car off their hands. It was a flood damaged car that was in good shape beforehand, so the struts may very wel be in good shape.

 

The guy there though was fairly adamant that the struts won't match my car. I told him numerous people here agree that as long as the mounts are changed, there should be no problem. This is because my car was made oct 91, and apparently has the setup used for the 91 models. But, since it's the air suspension anyways, and I'm putting in the new mounts, I don't see why it should be a problem. he said I could return them if they won't fit.

 

He also said that the front rotors for the 95 were in good shape - I need new front rotors, so I may pick these up if they're cheap and not really rusted.

 

 

So you're getting all four strut assemblies for $200? Excellent deal. Can you grab the mounts for the same price?

 

I was at our local Subaru junkyard and they first quoted me $1000 Cdn (with my old air suspension as exchange) for a "kit". It supposed to consist of the struts, mounts and any hardware that you need to do the conversion. I asked what year they would come off and was told it would be a 90 to 94 wagon. Those suspension are getting older and rarer and this is why they charge so much for a good used one. (or so they told me). I thought of asking about a newer model wagon but I had only bought the car two weeks earlier and was assuming they knew more then me on the topic. When I declined the offer he came down to $600 but it was still more then I wanted to spend. I ended up buying a used air strut for $150 which solved my problems for now.

 

Keep us posted on how the install goes. They had a lot more 1995 to 2000 Subarus on the lot then the first gen and newer is normally better in this case.

[Chef]

Well, two of the struts are kablooey. I'm still picking up all the components I'll need though. Unfortunately it means I'll need to use a spring compressor now to put different struts in. I'm scared stupid of compressing springs I must confess.

 

The rotors look fairly rusty, but should ok with machining.

 

These come with the mounts too - the guys at this place are the best I've ever seen at the wreckers before, and seem pretty happy to have someone take the parts of this car off their hands. It was a flood damaged car that was in good shape beforehand, so the struts may very wel be in good shape.

 

The guy there though was fairly adamant that the struts won't match my car. I told him numerous people here agree that as long as the mounts are changed, there should be no problem. This is because my car was made oct 91, and apparently has the setup used for the 91 models. But, since it's the air suspension anyways, and I'm putting in the new mounts, I don't see why it should be a problem. he said I could return them if they won't fit.

 

He also said that the front rotors for the 95 were in good shape - I need new front rotors, so I may pick these up if they're cheap and not really rusted.

[Chef]

Should I be concerned that the KYB GR-2 strut part numbers for 95/96 legacy is different from the 92-94 strut? Fine, it work at the top, but will it attach to the steering knuckle alright?

 

Also should I be concerned that the struts for the awd differ from the 2wd? The donor car is a 2wd I believe, mine is awd.

 

 

Well, two of the struts are kablooey. I'm still picking up all the components I'll need though. Unfortunately it means I'll need to use a spring compressor now to put different struts in. I'm scared stupid of compressing springs I must confess.

 

The rotors look fairly rusty, but should ok with machining.

[Legacy777]

Rear struts on a FWD car are different then the rear struts on an AWD car, and are not compatible.

 

There's a possibility that the strut top mounts and possibly the springs are different as well. I don't know for sure. I'd really try and find struts, springs, & top hats from an AWD car.

 

The struts you picked up will connect to the knuckle in the front....that's not a problem. If you pick up KYB struts....get the ones for the 92-94 legacy. I would highly recommend getting 4 struts rather then just 2. You can severely alter the handling characteristics of the vehicle. I speak from experience, and it can cause the rear end of the car to spin out a lot easier, etc.

[Chef]

KYB lists the top mounts as the same all the way to 2001 for the legacy. The front springs are the same according to the whiteline/PDM racing website for 90-99 legacy. They don't distinguish between 2wd and awd models.

 

http://www.pdm-racing.com/products/subaru_corner.html

However, the rears list different springs for the rear on a 95-99 than the 90-94. I don't know if this is just a different spring rate or a different sized spring. These are for lowering springs though, not sure if that makes a difference.

 

I guess what it comes down to is if all the top mounts are the same, it doesn't matter which spring/perch I have in there provided the perch fits the spring, right?

 

Then, I need to ensure I have struts that fit the knuckle. The fronts will not be a problem - all numbers are the same for that. But the rear strut part #s differ for the springs and struts from a 90-94 and 95-99, both for 4wd and 2wd. So this indicates to me that even if I get awd struts, they may not fit the rear steering knuckle (or maybe the lower spring seat is at a different height).

 

Well, guess I'll find out soon.

 

Rear struts on a FWD car are different then the rear struts on an AWD car, and are not compatible.

 

There's a possibility that the strut top mounts and possibly the springs are different as well. I don't know for sure. I'd really try and find struts, springs, & top hats from an AWD car.

 

The struts you picked up will connect to the knuckle in the front....that's not a problem. If you pick up KYB struts....get the ones for the 92-94 legacy. I would highly recommend getting 4 struts rather then just 2. You can severely alter the handling characteristics of the vehicle. I speak from experience, and it can cause the rear end of the car to spin out a lot easier, etc.

[Chef]

Yes I know I keep answering myself, but what can you do?

 

So I called KYB in Illinois, and the guy there told me the 95 struts probably do not fit into the 92 rear knuckle. But he said it was because the the newer ones bolts "onto" the knuckle while the older ones bolted "into" the knuckle. My haynes manual does not distinguish between them. Maybe I misunderstood.

 

He also said the perch on the 92-94 strut sits an inch higher than the 95-99 strut (or wait - was that the other way around?). He also said the lower spring seat "appears" the same, but could be slightly different. He was careful not to commit to any answer without properly checking things out, which I thought to be very professional of him.

 

So the struts for the 95-99 probably won't fit into the knuckle for a 90-94, and a 92-94 strut seat MAY accomodate the 95 spring. So a combination of 95 spring/upper seats MAY work with a 92-94 legacy/93-01 impreza rear strut.

 

You know, considering my damn suspension seems to be wokring fine for some reason now I'm tempted to say screw it for now. This is fun, but becoming a pain.

 

 

KYB lists the top mounts as the same all the way to 2001 for the legacy. The front springs are the same according to the whiteline/PDM racing website for 90-99 legacy. They don't distinguish between 2wd and awd models.

 

http://www.pdm-racing.com/products/subaru_corner.html

However, the rears list different springs for the rear on a 95-99 than the 90-94. I don't know if this is just a different spring rate or a different sized spring. These are for lowering springs though, not sure if that makes a difference.

 

I guess what it comes down to is if all the top mounts are the same, it doesn't matter which spring/perch I have in there provided the perch fits the spring, right?

 

Then, I need to ensure I have struts that fit the knuckle. The fronts will not be a problem - all numbers are the same for that. But the rear strut part #s differ for the springs and struts from a 90-94 and 95-99, both for 4wd and 2wd. So this indicates to me that even if I get awd struts, they may not fit the rear steering knuckle (or maybe the lower spring seat is at a different height).

 

Well, guess I'll find out soon.

[Legacy777]

Remember there is a difference in the rear springs & top mounts between the 90-91 & 92-94 legacies. However that's not really an issue.

 

All the 90-94 AWD rear struts are interchangeable, and will bolt up to your rear knuckle. However, like the KYB guy said, there are some height differences between the model years.

 

The 95-99 rear struts will mount up to the knuckle, I don't care what the KYB guy said. I can't however comment on the perch height/ride height.......so that you'll have to deal with.

 

Bottom line....get rear AWD struts and the springs to go with them, and bolt them up. If it sits sort of weird afterwards, you then know you may need to play around with the different struts to get your ride height correct.

[Chef]

Okay dokay - thanks for that!

 

Chef

 

Remember there is a difference in the rear springs & top mounts between the 90-91 & 92-94 legacies. However that's not really an issue.

 

All the 90-94 AWD rear struts are interchangeable, and will bolt up to your rear knuckle. However, like the KYB guy said, there are some height differences between the model years.

 

The 95-99 rear struts will mount up to the knuckle, I don't care what the KYB guy said. I can't however comment on the perch height/ride height.......so that you'll have to deal with.

 

Bottom line....get rear AWD struts and the springs to go with them, and bolt them up. If it sits sort of weird afterwards, you then know you may need to play around with the different struts to get your ride height correct.