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Still have the random power loss. Seems to be more frequent. Still no CEL lights. I've found if I just select N, the engine revs just fine and I drop it back to D and keep on going. Crazy

Smart Kid. Values passed down, well done Parents

Get new cam cover seals

There seems to be some piston slap or rocker arm noise. So I am planning on doing the adjustments on the valves and reseal the covers. Probably will do the timing belt at that time also. Changed out one of the axles and did an inner tie rod end and new boots on the rack. Thanks Hush

Yeah the sundials are different- the stubby shafts on a manual trans don't pull out of the front diff from the outside like the auto's.

They're a solid platform. Interference engine so I'd immediately be installing all new Subaru or Aisin timing belt, tensionser, pulleys, and water pump if it's in good enough condition to warrant that. You don't really want a 25 year old lower cogged idler - they are by far the most failure prone item on there. If minimalist is preferred: replace the timing belt and lower cogged idler - those are the two parts most likely to fail. The others don't fail often anyway and often times give you warnings the others don't. After market belts and pulleys aren't as good, I've seen the pulleys fail and the included tensioner bolts shear. While you're in there it's not a bad idea to reseal the oil pump (anaerobic sealant, one o-ring, and the crank seal) and tighten the backing plate screws - more than one are always loose.

Thanks for the suggestions. I've passed them on to my daughter. She has a big savings account and could easily buy a very young car if she valued having a decent looking car, but this one is generally super reliable, which is good enough for her. She'd rather buy a piece of land.

Next time it happens ask her to try starting it with the throttle flat to the floor. This cuts the injectors when cranking to remove a flooded situation. You might find the engine is full of fuel from stalling and just cranking it puts more fuel into the system so it won’t start.

That may be the style I need to find.

Forgive any errors here, because I'm working from memory. So I'm now unbolting the caliper in order to take the rotor off in order to get at those dust shield screws. And I think that there's an opening in the shield that will then allow me to slide it off (and not unstake the hub nut and pull the hub) - but that's the part I can't remember for sure. Regardless, that's a lot of stuff that's working just fine and doesn't need to be disturbed in the interest of simply getting a puller around that tie rod end. Not a lot of work by any means, but completely unnecessary. I just got the two pullers that Princess has, and neither fits.

I rented (for free) this tool from autozone last summer and it worked well. I replaced both the ball joints and tie rod ends, and I'm pretty sure it was the tie rod ends I was having trouble with (hammer not big enough?), so I went out and rented this as well as a pickle fork that I didn't end up using. https://www.autozone.com/p/oemtools-ball-joint-separator-57308/787834

Doesn't make much sense. If possible, the next time it happens, disconnect the negativity battery cable, step on the brake pedal for a few seconds. Reconnect the battery cable and see if that helps.

The dust shield is only held on by 3 bolts, so it's easy to remove if it's in the way. I just did mine, but I stripped off the shield before I used the puller.

My favorite way to re-grease them is to remove the drive flange, push the axle shaft in a half inch (so the cv cup is no longer in the inner wheel seal), pack the area around the shaft with grease, and slide the drive flange back on, using the drive flange inside the wheel seal like a piston to force the grease through the bearings. Repeat until grease comes out the back.

How are you guys still arguing over whether an engine is interferential or not? EVERY SUBARU ENGINE AFTER 1997 is interferential. EVERY.ONE. Geez, I've been gone a few years and you guys are still arguing this point? 🙄 We lost non-interferential in return for a lousy 5Mph power gain. Crap trade if you ask me.

I never repacked my wheel bearings when doing CVs or at the 60,000 mile interval (100,000km I’m guessing). I run sealed bearings with the inner seal removed as mentioned above. Before installing I always pack each bearing with fresh grease to remove the packing grease - do not just run on the packaged grease as the bearing will fail in a short distance! And I always run the outer seals with a little bit of grease behind them. I figure more seals the better for an offroader. Always use a quality Japanese made bearing too

Unless you have a run-in with a drunk driver, it'll run forever...

My daughter reported today that her 1996 Legacy (180,000 miles) this infrequent problem. If she accidentally stalls the car by letting out the clutch too fast the car doesn't want to start for a while. She says it's happened about five times in the last year or two. Typically she comes back after 30 minutes and then it starts. It cranks just fine but doesn't start. This morning it happened again and she only had time to wait 15 minutes but no success. So she borrowed my car. About seven hours later I went out and it started fine. Any ideas what causes this?

Well the mystery got solved and the solution is rather embarrassing! I had no idea this car has an immobilizer and that the fancy Subaru key is necessary to start the engine. Shortly before the starter motor issue arose I had a simple copy of the key made at the grocery store for about $1.98. l was using that key exclusively to try and start the engine. Finally on another Subaru Outback forum somebody asked about my key. As soon as I tried the fancy Subaru key the problem disappeared! Thanks everyone for the suggestions. Maybe this thread will help someone else in the future with the same issue.

This is the smaller one, with jaw gap 1.125". That appears to correspond to the size of the tie rod end. They have a larger one with a 1.625" gap. But I'm really uncertain about that leg fitting between the knuckle and the brake shield. I just bought an old Bridgeport J-head I can use to cut it down to fit if necessary, but I'd also be concerned about making it too thin and fragile. Also, the mill is going to need work, starting with figuring out how to spin a 600V 3-phase motor when all we have on-site is 220 single-phase. (Note: I know what all the options are, so no suggestions needed, thanks.) Point is I need to get this car back on the road long before I expect the mill to be up and running.

That style works very well, but there are 2 sizes: large (for Pitman arm) and small (for tie rod end). Be sure to get the right one for the job at hand (or have both in your toolbox).

Yes I put new seals in. And I added grease to the hub but did not repack bearings when I replaced the axles a few years ago. I keep thinking the end is near for this car so I cut corners sometimes.

I've tried a lot of 'em, but none don't suck. Pickle forks (whether bang-with-a-hammer or air hammer) never quite fit and always tear up the ball joint boot. I've got a hydraulic spreader, but there are rarely parallel surfaces across from each other to use it in. I'm always happy to go with brute force and ignorance (i.e. just beat on it), but that's not good either. Does someone have the right answer? Is there a screw-type puller that fits in there and just works perfectly? [edit] I'm looking at this one, but just don't know whether the arms are too thick to fit between the knuckle and the brake dust shield. https://www.princessauto.com/en/tie-rod-end-pitman-arm-puller/product/PA0009065079 Could just go get one to try, of course, but that's an hour or two wasted if it doesn't fit.

Yeah, that's a lot of crap (including the engine) to move - when I get to that point. At the moment I'm just pissed at the bait+switch that DHL is pulling on me - again - over my shipment from Rock. UPS said it'll be here next Tuesday for a reasonable price. DHL said that for five bucks more they'd have it here tomorrow (Thursday). Tracking now says next Tuesday, and I strongly doubt they won't screw that up, because we're rural and just past the edge of their delivery area (by, like, a mile) so I have no idea how or where (let alone when) I'll get it. I'm an idiot, because I knew better. I'm Charlie Brown running to kick the ball - again.

Airbox and washer reservoir out, pitchstopper loose, remove motor mount nut on one side, lift the engine and it will tilt up. Easy access to spark plugs/compression test.