oldgray1

Where is the fuse for the cargo light. My light doesn't work. Replaced bulb, even though the old one looked O.K. Is there a switch somewhere that is activated by the door? I didn't spot one. I confess that I haven't done any voltage checks. I was hoping someone could point me towards some obvious places to check. Thanks in advance.

Might also try alldatadiy.com. You can get a service manual to view on-line for about $16.95 a year. Great thing about them is you can print out drawings for whatever repair job you're doing. They also offer a five year subscription for a little more. It's a great thing to use if you are a multiple car family. Additional subscriptions are discounted. Worth a look. A lot of independent service shops use the professional version to access any brand and model of automobile.

Also echo what samneric said. The Haynes A/C book is good. Gauges are a definite plus, too.

Do you have a Firestone store or Pep Boys store in your area? For basic A/C service like charging, they aren't that expensive. Also, if you have an auto parts store near you, buy a copy of Haynes service manual Subaru Legacy '90-'98(I think). You can also order the book from amazon.com, too.There is a section in there that deals with charging the A/C. You really need to open the hood of your car and get your hands in there on some of that Subaru goodness! These early Legacy models are great cars to learn on. The parts to upgrade your refrigerant to R134A are not that expensive.

Seems like a good compromise on this issue would be to learn all you can about your automobile. Try to do what you can, within your ability. Buy a reader/ scanner. Like another poster said about working for free......Do you work for free?

Removing and cleaning the oil pan shouldn't be necessary. I've seen it mentioned several times on this site that removing the oil pan often leads to oil leaks. Someone with first hand knowledge chime in on this.

Sounds like he is describing charging into a vacuum or evacuated system using a gauge set. With the engine not running, sounds reasonable. I would echo the above statement about not getting into the habit of charging into the high side. I would imagine that over the years many DIY A/C charges have ended in disaster for that reason. Probably the reason the home kits for 134A have only a low side connector.

Also, make sure your A/C evaporator drain is not clogged. Should see steady drip of water underneath the car when using the A/C on hot steamy days. If not dripping freely, the evaporator can hold a bit of water that can get nasty and harbor mold and funky odors.

Same thing happened with my '01 LLBean Outback with the O2 sensor. I found the exact replacement through amazon.com. The listing was under the Bosch brand (I figured 'What the heck, I have 140k miles, probably won't hurt"). When I removed the sensors (probably original) I saw that they were ND (Nippon Denso) brand. When I opened the Bosch #15926 packages, I saw that they were identical to the ND brand that I removed!! Seems like the price was around $50 each. If yours are original, use some PB Blaster or other loosening agent on the sensor threads so you don't strip them out. Amazon lists the price for Bosch #15926 at about $83 now, but it's still worth considering.

I know you don't mention this, but once you get all the oil questions sorted out, be sure to pull a vacuum on the system and charge the R134(or R12) into a vacuum. I did a R134 upgrade on a '90 Legacy four years ago and the system is still blowing cold. I didn't replace the compressor, so I did a "guesstimate" on oil amount. Be sure the oil you add is compatible with whatever be left in the system. Thanks for reading.

Thanks. I'll probably go ahead with KYB struts as well. Should I use the KYB mounts, or will other brands work as well? Thanks in advance.

I thought I'd chime in on this one. A few years ago I had a VW Passat that needed attention to "check engine" lights a little too much. I bought the OBD-II dongle from Ross-Tech. They had a great system for all VW / Audi- does everything a dealer scanner would do. In looking back, it probably was overkill, but in those days the scanners at parts stores weren't that cheap. Nowadays the scanners are everywhere-auto parts stores, Walmart, Black & Decker outlets, Ebay, Craigslist, pawn shops, etc. They all pretty much do everything and they're not expensive. Sometimes the laptop route might leave you with software that may not work on every car (the Ross-tsch software worked on VW/ Audi only). When i moved to a better automobile (Subaru!!), I needed a scanner eventually and bought an Actron brand at Advance auto parts. It's help me repair Subarus, Dodge trucks, Chevy trucks, and others. You can't go wrong with these scanners. Advance Auto Parts had some killer deals on th Actron brand recently-maybe it's still going on. Thanks for reading my lengthy rant.

Can strut mounts be replaced without removing the bottom strut bolts? Probably a crazy question, but I think my strut mounts are creaking and clunking. The struts don't seem to have any issues- ride is still firm and handling is good. Car is 2001 H6 LL Bean with 144k miles. Thanks in advance.

I have a 2001 H6 LLBean and the FWD fuse slot is in the under hood fuse box. The fuse box is on the left in these models.

Make sure it's the same for the H6 engine.