outdoor

Thanks everyone for their comments. I found out the cause of the sticking. The "bumper" has a top plastic piece that is a tad too high in the middle. Occasionally that piece would pop up slightly behind the closed hatch, preventing the hatch from opening. Driving a little settles it, and the hatch loosens up. I could prove this by simply pushing down on the piece when the hatch wouldn't open. Then it opened. It has not been a problem lately. Maybe it all settled back. I still have occasional difficulty having it fully latch when closing it, but it may be related to the air cushion comments I have seen in other threads. Outdoor

The loop has no access for bolts underneath. The only bolts I see may allow adjustment of the latch on the hatch itself. I'll see how it goes, and if it sticks again, I might try it. I agree about the 5 minutes vs 3 hours, even under warranty. Thanks

It's been getting harder to latch, requiring an extra push at the bottom. This morning it would not open. The push button was working; you could hear the mechanism moving. But the hatch door remained closed, no matter how much I yanked on it. I tried moving the mechanism manually, from the inside (as per instructions in the book). It moved but the hatch still stayed shut. My wife then went to get groceries, and the hatch popped loose on the way. She shut it at the grocery store, but then couldn't open it when she came out with the groceries. I tried it at home an hour later. Now everything is working. Suggestions?

I just reread the email - $4500 for parts and labor.

Thanks for everyone's comments. I will take this up with the management of the dealer and if not satifsifed, SOA. I was on a long planned vacation, and just got back, thus the delay in my answer. The only word I had on my car while I was gone was a short email - no used or rebuilt manual transmissions avaiable, and a new part costs $4500.

Thanks for the advice. I'll stay positive.

2001 Legacy Outback AWD manual transmission 145,000 miles 2.5 engine. Four weeks ago, the oil change people noticed oil had dripped over the exhaust parts under the engine, and blown back along the chassis. We had just returned from a 600 mile trip on the interstate. My wife then told me she thought she had smelled something. Took to dealer to fix oil leak. They replaced all gaskets - head, valve cover, intake, exhaust. Very expensive, but I thought an investment becouse it was working fine except for that, and took advangtage to replace water pump and timing belt. Seemed to work fine for a couple of weeks with short trips around town, then went on another 600 mile trip. At first rest stop found dripping oil amd smoke coming from the exhaust parts under the engine. Checked engine oil. It was fine, so decided to keep going. Stayed at destination, with little problem for short trips, then drove back, still with plenty of oil in engine, maybe down 1/2 quart if any. Problem again on way back, dripping oil and smokey exhaust parts under rear of engine. Got home OK, but tried to drive it to the dealer today. Had some trouble shifting, then all four wheels siezed up. AAA did a nice job getting it on and off the flatbed. The dealer hasn't put it up on the rack yet, but did check the tranmission fluid. None. So they are saying I probably had a transmission leak. I'm thinking that that was the problem in the first place, but they didn't catch it. They have started to suggest it was a new problem. Comments, suggestions? I am obviously someone who likes to keep nice cars running, but I'm thinking that this is the end of the line.

I'm not sure of anything, just the symptoms. It happened only when I was engaging the clutch to use my manual transmission, so I would assume it had something to do with the drive train. The dealer said it may have been a loose pressure plate. If it starts up again, I will take it back so they can diagnose.

2001 legacy outback with manual transmission, 2.5 engine, 130K miles. Clutch slipped at 80K miles, and had replaced. No problems (except occasional shudder) until last week. For two days, a loud screeching sound happened while I was engaging the clutch. No noise when the pedal was fully in, and no noise when it was fully out. Worse when starting up. Very little in shifting to higher gears. Happened for all gears, even reverse. Felt like it only happened when the clutch was engaged enough to touch, but was still slipping. Then it went away, with rare re-appearance. Took to the dealer, but it didn't happen for them, so they have not done anything. Will pick it up, and wait until it gets bad again.Comments?

I did the same thing on our steep driveway 3 years ago on our 2001 MT Outback, and got the same smoke and smell. This spring at around 75K miles the clutch started to slip in normal acceleration on the flat, so I replaced it. They said the clutch facing was almost gone. Just 2 weeks ago I got the same smell, no smoke, when backing up on the flat. I have owned stick shift cars for the last 40 years (VW ford volvo honda peugeot jeep), and never had to replace a worn out clutch facing before, even over 100k miles. Maybe the self adjusting feature on the hydraulic system makes this system trickier to drive than most. I guess I have to learn the subaru way. Outdoor

Yes. I confirmed by jacking up one tire and trying to turn it. If I did first thing in the morning, all turned fine. After driving for 1/2 hour or so, I couldn't turn any of them by hand. When I first noticed the problem it was by the binding sound when trying to make tight turns at low speed. Other boards have talked about the problem in the manual subarus. The viscous coupling is not immune to damage from tires out more than 1/4 inch! I'm having it changed now, for $1300. outdoors

You also should be aware that the AWD system in a manual OBW uses a Viscous Coupling in the center differential, a completey different system than in the automatic. The service people have less experience with this, as I am finding out as I try to get a "torque-bind" problem fixed in my 2001 OBW with 80K miles. Good luck Outdoor

Thanks for all the replies. Color-blind: I have no idea if the CV's were dead, or even looked at the boots. The dealer said they were worn, and that should take care of the problem. Its possible that the VC didn't do them any good, but I'm hoping for some kind of deal when I have the VC replaced. And I won't waste my money on a fluid change. I think that the problem lies with Subaru. They need to provide more information to the dealers and to the customers. For example, the 1/4 inch spec on the tire circumference is not in my manual. I had to track it down in the subaru web page after I found out about the issue elsewhere. And the dealer didn't check it either.

Hi, I'm a newcomer, with a 2001 Outback with manual transmission with 80k miles. It looks like I may have to replace the viscous coupling. Any idea how much this may cost? For the past few months, I noticed a shudder in the front wheels when making slow speed sharp turns, like when pulling into a parking lot. It only happened after driving for 1/2 hour or more. No problem when cold. It got really bad on a recent trip after all day of driving, so I took it to the dealer. They replaced the front CV axles ($$). Still had the problem. I then went on the internet, and found out about the visous coupling. Sure enough, I jacked up one of the front tires, and tried to turn it. When cold, it turned with no problem. After driving for 1/2 hour, I could barley turn it, and I could hear noises when it turned. Same thing for the other three tires. My first step was to check the tire circumferences. One was 1/2 inch more than the others, bigger than Subaru's 1/4 inch spec. (I had replaced it earlier this year after an unrepairable flat). So I had it shaved to match the others. Still no better. My next step will be to change the center differential/transmission oil, in a last gasp hope that it will help, before I make the big step of replacing the viscous coupling. How much ($$) will that VC replacement cost? Any commnets will be appreciated. This time I want to go in informed. Thanks from outdoor