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Hi all. I am a 29y old Subaru enthusiast and live in Belgium. I work at Subaru for 5years now, but was virtually born in a Subaru. My dad and granddad had a Subaru workshop for 30yrs where i did grow up in. I own a few Subaru's but together with my dad and grandad we have quite a collection. -1x Impreza P1 -2x Legacy S1(Rallycar build and spare shell) 3x Hatch: - 1300 DL with 1600SRX swap (1985) - 1800 4x4 in need or restoration (1981) - 1800 4x4 rolling shell modified to take a EJ20 DOHC turbo. And amongst the family - 2x XT in great shape 1.8T, and a 8ish in different states - Leone II Sedan, Hardtop, Break and coupe 4x4 - 2x SVX - Minivan - Impreza rallycar 1995 Gr. N lastest addition is a 1400 '74 GSR Here to look for some info on maintaining/retrofitting/upgrading my cars.

Why waste all that money and time when it needs head gaskets? You don't make any sense. Pull the engine and do the HG's or swap it. Don't waste time and money doing a bunch of sh1t you will just have to redo to replace the HG's. That's just stupidity. Koyo or CSF for the radiator will be fine. Get the hoses from Subaru. 99 was the first year for the phase-II automatic. They are known to have delayed engagement issues. Some people have luck with Trans-X additive. As far as how smooth it is - it's a Subaru not a Cadillac and you don't really want an auto to just lazily mush into gears - that causes friction and heat and wear. A positive, crisp shift that doesn't snap your neck is what you want. GD

Inexpensive converters usually last 1-2 years tops. Factory Subaru converters often last 150k+ miles and several decades. So yes there's a qualitative difference. 3x-5x the price for 10x to 20x the lifespan. Regarding if they have more precious metals - we can conclude based on the recycle value of OEM vs aftermarket that they most certainly do. GD

What a collection. Would love to see photos of your Subarus some time if you decide to post them

The general reason told was that the 1400 was punched out and left less material to dissipate heat and increased dramatically the unsettling of the sleeves and therefore movement , warpage , frustrations. Less troubles with the 1100 and 1300 but still open to the same issues. Managing one of these going forward will be a challenge but a few guys like myself out there will raise your flag forever if you succeed. Just to see and hear it running like the old sewing machine sound they made. Splitting cases , taking this serious , it’s enjoyable to witness being an almost 59 year old who started his Subaru life around 12 - 13 when my brother said “you grab that side , pull forward and then lift”. We had 1100’s , 1300’s and then onward often on his workbench. Certainly brings back memories. If my storage weren’t a bit overwhelming at the entrance right now , and dead of winter , I’d snag whatever I can for you. But I think you’re already fairly buffed out for what you’re doing LESS the shims. But those will show up or can also be turned out for you easily. Maybe even a better material. Winter sucks but reach out to me if you need something and I’ll do my best.

about the only thing I think the shop is way off base on is the labor hours.. I also realize that most shops have a "shop time" listing that is used to estimate pricing.. but i still think the 20hrs is excessive. and yeah, go look up prices for the parts, even at the Subaru discount places, and the prices are not that far off when looking at individual parts - thus the reason for the Aisin kits.. a third of the cost, and quality parts. I am lucky enough to have a decent shop near me that is reputable, and i trust enough, to take my car to when I am unable to do things for various reasons.. stuff like wheel bearings (dont have the equipment), alignments, etc.. And they have no issue with me bringing in parts that I have sourced myself.

Oh right on. I know you get it. I was thinking about the op, didn’t want op to think the shop is completely off base or dishonest.

Wiseco and JE both have options for requesting custom pistons. I'm quite sure Manley does also. Shouldn't be difficult to have some new pistons made. Not surprising it's been gone through before - the wet sleeve engines were a NIGHTMARE for the dealerships - my old parts guy that had started in the 70's at the same Subaru dealership I still buy all my parts from to this day had nothing nice to say about them. He absolutely loved the dry sleeve engines - EA71 and EA81. Had an EA81 wagon that he daily drove and passed to his son when he got a first gen Legacy. GD

yeah, i get it... and this is probably one of the biggest reasons I learned to do stuff myself.. despite the fact that "women dont work on cars" lol buying the components individually is ALWAYS going to cost more, always. And buying direct from a dealer.. yeah..

The door window motor transmissions rust to the point of seizing. It's a known issue and lubricating the tracks won't fix the transmission. GD