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I saw this in the RockAuto magazine. They actually carry new blower resister assemblies in their catalog. Generally under $40 and a bit easier to find than at your local junk yard. Blowing Air at Only One Speed If the blower motor for the heat and A/C system starts blowing air at only one speed or stops blowing altogether, then there is a good chance that the blower motor resistor has failed. On most cars the blower motor is a simple electrical motor with only two wires coming out of it. The speed of the blower motor and its attached fan is determined by how much electrical current comes through the wire. The resistor(s) in the blower motor resistor act like a valve to control the flow of current to the motor. When the fan switch on the dash is at its lowest setting, then the current is routed through the highest ohm resistance in the blower motor resistor. The resistor uses up most of the current before it gets to the blower motor and the fan turns relatively slowly. Move the switch on the dash to the highest fan speed and typically the current is not routed through the resistor, but goes 100% to the blower motor so the motor and fan operate at maximum speed. This is why blower motors will often operate at top speed even if the blower motor resistor has burned up. The blower motor resistor is usually mounted to the plastic heater case in the dash or under the hood. The blower motor resistor turns the current flowing through it to heat and the air flowing through the heat & A/C system case helps cool it down. The photo is of the very simple blower motor resistor found in my wife’s ’87 Mazda. The maximum resistance and lowest blower motor speed occur when the current is routed to run the full length of the coiled wire resistor before getting sent out to the blower motor. The resistor wire looks like the filament from an incandescent light bulb and it can burn out similar to a filament. Where the resistor wire breaks determines what if any speeds the blower motor will still operate at. Find blower motor resistors for your vehicle by ACDelco, Airtex/Wells, Dorman, Four Seasons, Motorcraft, and Standard Motor Products under "Heat & Air Conditioning" in the RockAuto.com catalog.

Nothing wrong with the chart; go by the number on the transmission. No telling when SOA decided to use a different transmission on the production line.

Compare the tranny number on the bell housing to the # on the VIN plate (in the engine compartment). It could be that someone has already changed the tranny and rear diff. Center differentials are the same up to '97; in '98 SOA went to an updated version. I believe there was a good link and photos in nasioc; you might search there after you search here (I might have copied the link here when I ran into this issue on our Forester).

A manual can also have torque bind when the center differential starts to fail. I had the problem in our '99 Forester. I couldn't find a used, good center diff and ultimately wound up buying a new one (around $575 plus installation).

He looked extraordinately fast to me, especially for such an underpowered car running on stock tires.

I saw an immaculate '84 GL wagon (in blue) running in SA in the afternoon. Very respectable times considering what he was running against. Look for his scores at http://www.oregonrally.com/files/RX_5_30_2010_PM.pdf ; his is the one with a DNF on his second run (he blew a tire in the middle of the run). Bad luck but he fixed it and finished the day.

ORG put on another great event this past weekend. A great course layout with lots of speed in spots and enough technical stuff to make you think and slow down where needed. I don't know how many entrants were there, but it looked like the largest field this year and yet finished at a reasonable time with four runs where the fastest time of day was pretty close to 1:40. The instant posting of scoring is just great. I'm looking forward to the National event in June.

Sorry I won't be able to meet with you guys. Jeanne and I will be heading south to Hillsboro this weekend for the rally school and rallyX.

So far it looks like the rain will have stopped by Saturday; both weekend days are listed as partly cloudy with no rain in the forecast.

Just a note to the OP, the BR-3 unit that I purchased a long time ago has worked on every '96 and later Subaru I've tried it on (including my '97 Impreza). The BR-3 doesn't seem to require the special setup to make it work correctly on my '97. Maybe you can find someone who has one to sell for cheap; once you have the hardware interface, the software is free. I like mine so I won't be selling it soon. Sorry.

'95 to '99 Subarus have a "funky" communications protocol that prevents the scanner from updating the reading in real-time. See my comments on the scangauge II that I have on my '97 Impreza. Until I set up the scanner properly, it wouldn't work with my car.

Watch your local craigslist; also the ebay/craigslist forum here on the USMB; I post every Impreza I see under $1000 as well as some really nice ones in the under $1800 price range (of course that's only Seattle area and sometimes Portland).

jI'm with the person who suggested keeping the GL as a daily driver. But....in addition look for an early Impreza which already has an EJ18 or EJ22 which will run circles around a modded GL. Plus any future upgrades will be so much easier if you already start with an Impreza chassis. Watch craigslist and save your money and wait until you find what you're looking for; early Imprezas can be found in the $500 to $1500 range pretty easily. Also, the person who suggested the Primitive Rally School had the right idea. It happens 4 or 5 times per year and will be happening this Memorial Day weekend. If you can get to Hillsboro, it'll give you the opportunity to see other cars, talk to drivers, talk to rallyists and help out with the event if you feel like it. I believe there is camping available at the fairgrounds so staying overnight might not be too expensive.

Mods might move this to the rally/racing forum.

A while back I bought the BR-3 OBD II reader. A bit past your price range, but I found it useful. Only downside I felt was that it's hard to read a laptop screen on a sunny day; works great at night. Once you have the interface (and I think you can save some money building your own), the software is free. http://www.obddiagnostics.com/ It actually was more information than I needed and I ultimately bought a scangauge II. It's small, it reads codes and clears them and can display most things that are availble through the ECU. I use mine to display real-time alternator voltage, water temp, corrected speeds (for when I change tire sizes), and---just for laughs---engine rpm. Of course I use it to check codes that pop up now and then and clear them when needed.

Not your Bad; we all learned this one way or another. That's why I like this Board.

Sorry I missed that. Learned something new with this one. Thanks.

The scanguage II will work with your subaru. Check the manual and set the PIDs to SUPPORTED (page 21 of the user manual). Subarus from '95 to '99 require this setting to work properly. If it still doesn't work, take it to the place you bought it and get a replacement or request your money back. Other cars (and Subaru 2000 and newer) use the PID setting in ALL which is the default setting with the scangauge II.

I remember an old post from here on the USMB: Cut a fresh apple or two into segments and leave it in the car for a week on a couple of plates. Somehow the apple soaks up odors.

My wife and I will be there for the Primitive Rally School as well as the rallycross on Sunday.

From the rally pre-check crew: Got back late last night from the pre-run for the 2010 No Alibi rally. Many of the old favorites, and some new roads in store. Is "epic" too strong a word? You'll need to decide for yourself. Over the route we observed wildlife (snakes transported by hawks, coyotes trying to blend in, indecisive marmots), vistas (lava outcrops, columnar basalt, ginormous concrete structures), and of course the usual mayhem, natural and man-made (twisted power line pylons and a building on fire in Moses Lake). We can't guarantee you'll be able to observe all of those, but if you stay at home, you certainly won't get the chance. Some photos from our pre-run fun: http://www.flickr.com/photos/teamdrally/ If you haven't yet signed up, now is the time. Car numbers are going briskly, just like some of your favorite TSD sections. More event info at: http://www.rainierautosports.com/events/2010/noalibi/

So whatever happened with this? What fixed the vibration?

I don't care what they tell you the alternator or a faulty wire is the issue. Even if the battery won't hold a charge, the alternator should still put out 13 to 14 volts at about 2000 rpm.

I haven't bought back any that I've sold, but our family has. Our first family Subaru purchase was an '82 gold DL Brat bought by my middle son, Paul. When Paul had an "incident" with it, he sold it to my oldest son, Eric. Eric restored the '82 to usable condition and drove it for many years. It almost was lost to an insurance company last year after suffering a minor accident. It stayed in the family when we sued in small claims court for a fair settlement and did not have to turn it over to the insurance company; it even avoided a salvage title designation. I bought the '82 Brat from Eric last month to replace the blue '84 Brat that I bought from Zap 9 years ago and sold back to him yesterday.

I'm heading for Hillsboro tomorrow (quickie business trip); I'll be in Richie's shop while I'm in the area since I need some work done on my wife's Forester. I should be headed home on Friday at the latest.