hankosolder2

Sorry to hear about your bad luck... if it's a straight, rust free, sound car it is probably worth repairing. Hey, a halfway decent new car is $25K+, so even if you get more money into this car than the book says it's worth, you're still way ahead (if you get some decent use out of it once it's fixed.) I think that used Subaru prices vary WIDELY depending on your location. Nathan

Aah, Zee frisky Peugeot. The gas turbo 505 was quick-ish. Reminds me of a friend who used to say "Yeah, I'll pick you up in my 'vette." Of course, it was of the "chev' not 'cor' type. Nathan

So, it really holds firm after you pump it up and does not slowly sink to the floor? I say it's either air, pad kickback or a faulty master cylinder. It's definitely not the brake booster; it can't cause that symptom. If you pump up the brakes while stationary and then let the car sit for a while (running, in Park/Neutral with your foot off the brake pedal) will the brake pedal be normal the next time you press it? Or does this only happen when you move the car, in which case it could be pad kickback? I'm surprised that the second mechanic who bled the brakes for you did not offer a diagnosis and was willing to release the car with a brake problem! Nathan

--- I think that a '96 2.2 OBW should have a cable type clutch. If so, yes, it does need periodic readjustment. They tend to need a lot of readjustment shortly after a clutch was replaced, then less frequent adjustment later. Does the clutch only begin to engage near the top of the pedal's travel? If so, the cable needs to be loosened. When the car will not climb hills from a stop, is the engine revving up while you're trying to climb? (i.e. is the clutch slipping?) If so, that's a sure giveaway that the clutch is either misadjusted or shot again! Very bad to continue to drive it this way; you'll ruin your new clutch in no time. If the engine is not revving up, then you're probably just down on power due to an engine problem of some sort- a whole different kettle of fish. Nathan

Plus, you'll have a spare for when your first iron goes out. Nathan

If your wife needs convincing, drag out an old Consumer Reports reliabilty chart. It's almost hard to do worse than VW, whereas Subarus always are well rated. There's a reason VWs depreciate so severely! Just because people have presented you with a list of 'things to check' does not mean that the cars or the AWD systems (especially on the manual trans models) are inherently problematic. They can easily go 200K miles assuming no long term abuse, and a willingness to make normal repairs and perform maintanence. Good luck. Nathan

Rear drums absolutely do last longer, and one of the reasons is that drum brakes do not constantly lightly drag like discs do. (I.e. the return springs pull the shoes out of contact with the drums.) I think there MAY also be more surface area on the shoes VS. pads, but I could be wrong about that. Of course, discs offer better pedal feel & fade resistance. Nathan

I'm just pulling things out of my rump here (no schematic at hand) but here are a few thoughts: Do you have a trailer wiring connector spliced in anywhere which could be shorting out? Have you inspected the front side marker lights and such? (All on the same circuit) Nathan

Some tire suppliers which cater to racers offer "tire shaving" services. (I.e. they grind down tires to reduce the tread depth for better handling. You might be able to find a tire shaving service which can shave down your "new" tire to match the circumference of your old tires. I think "The Tire Rack" online might offer this service- dunno. I really think Subaru should come up with torque bind warning/prevention software for the automatics. It would be a relatively simple matter to have the TCU watch for a constant speed differential between the front and rear speed sensors. If it sees this for an extended period of time (like an hour's drive) it should respond by either locking the car in FWD and illuminating a trans warning light to warn of this condition. Nathan

You want to go to legacy central. There's a detailed write up there. Nathan

Fair enough. I'm pretty sure the reason Subaru stuck with the cable clutch is the hill-holder mechanism. I'm sure the clutch cable can take the strain of a stronger pressure plate, but could it do so for 150K miles? I'm sure there are engineering reasons (cost/durability/ ease of manufacturing) for the clutch actuation design choices that neither of us are privvy to. Nathan

Gary, My understanding is that the 2.5 clutch is "beefier" with higher clamping force on the pressure plate. As far as I know, the 2.5 was never sold with a cable clutch (hydraulic only) and I supect there's a reason for that... the cable can't take the strain? Or perhaps there's a physical interference issue? The clutch cable loops way over the cylinder head and makes a slow arc back to the trans...perhaps the larger DOHC heads or the intake manifold interferes with the route of the cable? (Just guessing here.) Nathan

Steve, Well, I did say a '95 _might_ be nearing the end of its life! If it's not rusty, the sky is the limit.... seriously, if you are committed to keeping it another ten years, perhaps changing all the pulleys is the way to go. I just pulled apart a '95 legacy engine with 155K on it (rod knock due to someone running it low on oil due to leaks) and the factory crosshatch pattern was still clearly visable on the bores and no wear ridge whatsoever. That's impressive! Nathan

Steve, You could always cut some corners...there are plenty of 200K Subarus with orginal idler pulleys. The '95 is a non interference engine, so worst case, if an idler wipes out, you're walking but there shouldn't be any actual engine damage. Why not evaluate the condition of the idlers and just change the ones with noise/ play? The tensioner is probably fine. Grossgary has some way of regreasing the idler pulleys...search for info. You can also carefully listen to the engine periodically. I suspect that a failing idler will give you fair warning by being noisy before failing. Supposedly, the geared idler wears the fastest. It's one of the smaller diameter idler wheels (hence it spins at the highest RPM.) Of course, there's also a lot to be said for replacing everything at once and doing a tip-top quality job. On the other hand, a '95 might be nearing the end of its service life..... Nathan

Should be solid (shim type "lifters".) Hence, no tick of death. Just piston slap when cold and the occasional head gasket failure. Dunno about oil pump replacement. They usually last a long time. Nathan

Nope. The turbo block is closed deck, the NA block is open deck. Sorry to hear of your misfortune. Nathan

I think the 2CV is a 2 cyl aircooled boxer engine, so give the guy a break! Nathan

Is that "flame surfacing" I'm seeing on the sides of the new Impreza? Is Chris Bangle moonlighting at Subaru? Kidding aside, I think Subaru has always been the "quirky" choice in Japanese cars. As they mainstream the brand values, they're alienating their brand loyalists (think Saab, another "quirky" car which has gone more mainstream) The thing is, I don't think Subaru is going to be able to steal many of the Honda / Toyota shoppers; it'll never be mainstream enough for those folks, so why alienate your traditonal fan base? People who buy one of the "Big Two" Japanese cars aren't really doing all that much cross shopping IMHO...it's sort of the default choice. As for those folks who are freaked out by the lack of auto-off headlights, it's a simple matter of splicing in a relay...granted, you might not want to be jacking with the wiring on a vehicle that's brand new and under warranty. I see a great cottage industry in plug-and-play auto off headlight kits for new Subarus! Nathan

The lower bolts holding the trans to the engine are in fact studs with nuts on them. Sometimes the studs like to back out as you're loosening the nuts. You can back the stud out as far as you can, then see if you can grip the stud with a vice grip and seperate the nut from the stud, screw the stud back in and just remove the nut. The studs help guide the engine and trans back together when you're mating everything back up. There are locating pins on the flywheel for the pressure plate. It will only go on one way, and since it's new, it wouldn't matter anyway. Have the machine shop check the head for flatness when they're doing the valve, clean the block surface thouroughly and you're probably good to go. Nathan

Thanks for the article. Interesting and proves my point! Nathan

Greetings! I hang out in new gen, so that's why I'm posting this here. I'm having a debate in another forum about the inherent balance of various engine configurations. My understanding is that the inline six, flat six and V-12 are the best balanced engine configurations and that the flat four is superior to an inline four. Is it so or not? You never see an inline four of 2.5 liters without a balance shaft, but Subarus seem to manage just fine without- which I think supports my case for the inherent balance of flat four being better than inline fours. Engineers? (That always makes Nipper perk up his ears!) Nathan

OK, Here are some ideas. If the fuel pressure regulator is kaput or the hose going to it is not receiving proper engine vacuum, it'll run way too rich, especially @ idle. You did correctly reconnect the fuel supply and return lines to the tanks and the return is not obstructed, right? It wouldn't hurt to check fuel pressure. How about a dud MAP/Barometric pressure sensor or solenoid? That could throw the mixture off. Dunno if the OBDIs had them though. When you replaced the engine, did you swap over the manifold/injectors from the old engine, or just "Plug in" an engine assembly complete with intake, wiring harness, injectors, etc? It's also quite possible you have damaged the catalytic converter(s) by driving the car with the various issues you described (cam sensor, valve timing off, possible bad coolant temp sensor.) I think the numbers you are citing are still a bit high even for a car without a properly functioning cat, though, and if your plugs are fouling, that's not due to the cat... Good luck, Nathan

I know the '96 2.5 still had hydraulic lifters(HLAs to be techical), and the later 2.5s had solid shim type valve adjusters, so there must be significant differences in the heads. Compression ratio, I do not know. Nathan

It has been my experience that bent CV axles (halfshafts) can be sensitive to accelleration/deceleration. If the wobble doesn't change on throttle/ coasting/ engine braking then I would suspect something else. I'm not saying that it's impossible it's a CVJ/Axle issue, just less likely. Does the shimmy worsen or clear up under braking? If so, then you could have a rotor issue. Overtorque the lugnuts and warp the hub and rotor during reinstallation? Finally, did the car sit a long time while you were doing the work? Could be a flat spot on a tire or rust on the brake rotors. Good luck, Nathan

Gary, as I stated before, if memory serves, I think there's a light spring inside the slave cylinder which helps push the piston out. Also, if your master cylinder was screwed up or misadjusted, it could pull a vaccum as the pedal returns to the up position, backing off the slave cylinder slightly. There should be some slight free play in the pedal before it engages the pushrod for the master cylinder. In the "long shot" category, if you have any strange mechanical issues with the engine or clutch release mechanism (here's a real long shot- bad thrust bearings in the motor, crankshaft shifts forward and back as the engine runs and keeps screwing with the release fork.) Good luck, Nathan