SevenSisters

It's amazing how the State can take $75 from some one (about $150 in earned money) and leave them smiling. Recent reports in the Cleveland area have exposed emission test as pretty bogus.

GY Triple Tread or Regatta II.

Dose anyone have experience with Shock Warehouse out of Margate Florida?? Any other source for struts?

Hopefully it was prepared and stored properly. If not, consider the following items I performed on a Caravan that had sat for about 6 months with no precautions: Check the battery and charge or replace as necessary. Add fresh gas and a FI cleaner. Check all fluids and do an oil change and filter. Get the mouse nests out of the air delivery, exhaust, and heater blower systems. MOST IMPORTANT: Remove the plugs and give each cylinder a brief shot of PT blaster followed by a teaspoon or so of oil from a turkey baster. Crank the engine to distribute the lubricant and re-supply engine oil to all internal parts before starting it up. After a year there will be no oil left on anything. Starting it will score about every moving part. The tires may exhibit stress cracking at the bulge. If they do and are the least bit worn or old, you might consider replacing them soon. Let it warm up gradually and cycle through all auto trans gears to warm up the tyranny before driving. Check for leaks and the ATF level. Drive slow for the first few miles while the differential and misc. seals get relubricated. Happy motoring.

People a lot smarter than I recommend removing them while the manifold is hot (real hot) based on the theory that the manifold expands a little. A cold engine (more fun to work on) and a propane torch applied to the manifold area around the sensor seems to work too. Dittos on the specialized socket for this job.

Let me get this right. Everything is fine with your electrical system and a pully messes up your car. You have it "fixed" and now you have an electrical problem. Ask the guy who put on the timing belt to check for proper timing and to see if anything got unpluged, damaged, or otherwise screwed up during the process.

This intrigues me. Please tell us more

QUOTE: "Basically, the price we have to pay for AWD and going anywhere in any kind of weather is to do 4 tires at a time." Any car with properly rotated tires will require that all be replaced at the same time. Our Subarus are no different. A 5 tire rotation yields the same tire cost per mile as a 4 tire rotation but gives the added safety of having a proper sized replacement in the event of a non-repairable tire anomaly. Tires are relatively cheap. People used to pay about the same as we pay now for a 60K radial for a 15K bias tire. Replace 'em all and get a full size spare.

In '91 there was no competition to Subaru. It was a no brainer to get a high quality AWD and ABS equiped vehicle at a reasonable price when only high end cars offered ABS and very few, AWD. Times have changed and with the poor quality and reliability ratings from Consumer's Reports, JD Powers and the like, as well as this board's experiences, competition will no doubt get more intense. I love my 'ru but am glad there are alternatives that may yield better reliability and value. I don't need a headgasket or other expensive repair in a new car. Subaru needs to redesign thier line and return to the days of high quality and cuttting edge inovation. I don't think all the blame can go to GM.

You did your home work and know the going price. Don't settle for less. Good luck.

That made my day.

Please let us know who the dealer is.

Better overinflated than underinflated (ask a Ford Explorer owner) but: Faster outside tire wear. Poorer braking performance (dry, wet, don't go out in the snow). Less resistance to impact damage. Less steering control. Less suspension control. Less comfortable ride. The list could continue. Inflate to the Subaru recommendation or slightly higher. Never MAX unless you have the load to justify it and in a pascar, I doubt if you ever will. The reason they say MAX is because it's maximum (WARNING WILL ROBINSON). Not the recommended like on the door jam. Tire manufacturers don't set recommended pressures. The vehicle manufacturers do.

From the good information and what I’ve been able to learn on this Subaru board, I just changed the ATF in my new car (93 Mazda) by draining the pan, adding what drained out, pulling off the ATF line to the radiator, running the car to pump out the old crap while adding new ATF to the filler tube. Awesome. I didn’t spend more than 15 minutes and results were great. Sure is a great way to do a total ATF replacement. Almost looking forward to doing the same on the ’91 ‘ru. Thanks to all for the good hints.

On my '91, there was no filter. Subaru issued a recall and added one down low on the left fender area. It looks almost like the fuel filter. About the same size, black, with two hoses attached. When I went to change mine (filter), the dealer wanted an exhorbitant amount of money for the filter, but the filter, hoses, mounting bracket, etc as a kit was cheap. I assume the later 1st. generation cars had the filter installed at the factory.

Hand torquing with a torque wrench is good advice but only seems to go so far with these cars. Too much weight to stop with limited brake hardware. Rust or other build up on the rotors can also cause vibration. I finally started to buy Chinese rotors and Advanced Pep Zone etc. pads. More frequent changes but no more rust problems and less loss of performance between changes. Lower over all cost too.

Wouldn't be the first time the jack was not fastened tightly.

I've never had this type of problem so this is a wild rump roast guess, but I'd look at the throttle position sensor.

Opening the bleeder screws is a good practice for ABS equipped vehicles. The idea is not to force debris back into the $1000 ABS pump. I don't think that's your problem because you haven't mentioned ABS related codes or problems. I believe if the pump were damaged, the brakes would still work fine. There's something else going on to give you a soft pedal. If it's not air in the system, it's fluid getting past something or displacing one of the wheel pistons.

Folks, Thanks for your comments. Subaruparts.com just got deleted from my Favorites file. When they (Trish) saved a couple of bucks buy screwing a customer, they (she) probably didn't figure what they're going to lose from me, and hopefully others, in the future. Sounds like her boss and the rest of the operation are a bunch of (fill in your own words) too. In a similar vein, there's something about the arrogance of some dealers that drives me crazy. I always go to the local dealer and get a price first. I ask if they can help me out a little. In most cases, they say no. I then order from the internet. Everyone's comments on this board will help ferret out the weasels on the web. Thanks Trish. Hope you get a big bonus this year.

Hey folks, How do you know what's good? Published specs? Sound of tranny? I try to stick with a brand name when buying lubricants but I have no clue how to gauge how something like this performs. Do you have an oil analysis done?

I believe there is a blower motor relay you should check first. If that's not the culprit, you'll have to start checking for power at the blower motor and back through the system. Could be the blower motor brushes.

Try this if you're ever out on the road without any real tools: Loosen the lug nuts a little, just enough to separate the taper on the nut from the wheel and give a little play. Drive the car ahead slowly, 3 or 4 feet, and hit the brakes HARD. Do it in reverse, then forward, etc. The torque change should slip the wheel on the hub and free it. If that doesen't work, you'll need penetrating oil and heat. Rotating the tires every 5-6K miles helps reduce the build up of rust from forming.

If there is excessive pad travel due to warped rotors for example, the brakes might feel like you are describing. A soft rubber line might also swell under pressure and give you that feeling. Can you pump up the brakes hard with the engine off? Leaking master cylinder seals may also be to blame. I’ve read about putting a block of wood under the pedal to limit travel when bleeding brakes the two person way so the seals don’t contact a region in the cylinder that isn’t normally used and may be rough and corroded which will chew up the seals. Good Luck.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2003-07-30-premiumgas_x.htm