SevenSisters

Take a digital picture and post it or go to your Subaru used car lot and take a look under the hood of a '97. Good luck.

There are a lot of sensors in your car. Some can be checked to see if they are putting out a specified voltage at some operating condition and some, a reference resistance. The car can be jacked up and the wheels rotated to see if the ABS sensors are providing an output for example. Most of the checks for proper operation are spelled out in my '91 FSM. I would guess the same would hold true for later model years. Checking the sensors generally goes hand in hand with obtaining a trouble code. This points to the problem area and it is checked by verifying the operation of the specific sensor in question.

I think you're right. That's why a lot of rescue workers get hurt trying to extricate crash victims. No way to shut them down fast.

I think it has to do with the trim level. The ’91 has an interior release. Easiest and cheapest way to get gas is to punch a hole in the tank and collect 5 gallons of it and run.

Unfortunately, this guy’s got a lot more experience than you do with the repair laws in Texas. If you take your ten dumbest friends and steal it when he has a legal right to hold on to it, you’re in trouble. Let the courts work it out and good luck.

Get a new thermostat gasket while you're at it. I popped the two bolts to drain my coolant. Put it back together, added new anti-freeze and had a leak that force me to do it all over again. Like everyone said, get a Subaru theromostat. It has the air bleed hole in it.

I don't know if the brushes are user replaceable, but a local motor repair place could tell you and sell you the brushes if they are. If is not an easy job, they could probably repair if for a lot less than a new unit. Give 'em a call. I know a former co-worker whose chevy van burned in the parking lot because of a faulty blower motor. Good luck.

I think that was his way of saying Subaru saved $0.27 per block by reducing the amount of material by casting the material between the water passage and the cylinder wall as thin (weak) as possible. Because it's thin, the gasket has to be thin too, and hence weaker. As long as it lasts past the warranty period it's no big deal.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. After 13 years I still have the original wires. If you don't have a misfire code, I doubt if there is anything wrong at your car's low mileage and age. As far as the fuel injectors go, I'd say the same thing. As I recall, all I needed to change one of mine that threw a code was a phillips screw driver. $100 and 15 minutes later I was done. Do the math for 4 of 'em. Do you know if your VOM is reading correctly and set at a senstive range?

I’m not positive, but I think jacking it up may be analogous to the one tire spinning when stuck in snow scenario. Even though the speedometer would read 70, the spinning tire speed would be 140. Not sure, just want you to be safe. At 140, the tire could come apart.

Plastic radiator ends open up (crack) under heat and pressure. Leaks while driving, closes up when you stop. Do a board search. Someone had a post as I recall. Could be hoses too, but you should be able to see that easily.

Nice buy. 1st. Generation rules. What did it cost in Washington, if you don't mind me asking? Fill the tank to the top, run it down to about a quarter, fill it up again and do the math. Good luck with it.

Hey it's me again. Maybe we could use a vendor section on this board where we could post good and bad experiences with dealers, parts sellers, etc. What do you all think?

Thanks for taking the time to post your experience with the lying bastards. United we stand, divided we fall. I hope you ultimatly get a refund and then some for your trouble. I won't buy anything from them. I'll tell 10 friends too.

Slip a piece of tubing over the bleeder screws and force the fluid out the bleeders rather than push it back through the system. Then change your fluid. When your done changing pads, suck out most of the fluid from the reservoir and pump at least a pint of new fluid out of the calipers.

Somebody tell me what's wrong with 204F?

Dittos on the gas cap. You didn't say if you were driving to Seven Springs or California, but remember, the check engine light comes on for emmisions related issues. You might get the code read if you are concerned. Otherwise, if the car is running fine with no strange noises, smells, or drop in fuel economy, you're probably good to go.

You didn't mention the sweet smell of ethylene Glycol or scum on the inside of your windows. That's good. Blot up the moisture with a white paper towel and see if it clear or green. You may just have a plugged condensation drain which can be reamed out from under the car. Maybe someone can provide an exact description and location. I haven't had that problem yet.

You can conclude that opening the gas cap doesn't relieve the pressure in the fuel supply line, filter, fuel rail, etc. Disconnect the power to the pump and run it dry before disconnecting anything like the directions say to do.

Fuel filters take out particulate debris from the gas so the injectors don't wear out too fast. Kind of like keeping the oil filter clean in an oil burning boiler or furnace so the nozzel doesn't get a goofy wear pattern and spray the oil unevenly. FWIW, Steel fabricators use high pressure water with a little abrasive in it to cut armor steel like butter. Fuel injectors get "dirty" because they live in a hot environment and soluble gum components of the gasoline build up inside the precise metering orifice. Other components of the fuel, like anti-knock additives, build up on the outside tip of the injector like that brown fluffy stuff that builds up on your spark plugs. You'll never filter that stuff out of the gas.

No offense but S, H, V, or any other speed rating has nothing to do with the tire's load rating, the little number next to the speed rating on the sidewall. As far as the poor fuel economy goes, if you were burning all that gas I think you would get a code to warn you that you're screwing up our air. So think leak some more. Low tire pressure, dragging brakes, check'em out too. I had a bad fuel injector that must have sprayed a ton of gas. Even then, the fuel economy didn't drop that much. It didn't set a code 'till it got real bad. Exhaust smelled like burning vegitation. Thought I had a mouse nest in the tail pipe that wouldn't burn out. Kept getting worse and then a code for the number 3 injector came on. Good luck and keep us posted.

Setright's got a good point. If you have poor brake performance at two or three of your wheel positions, the good working brake has to do most of the work and can lock up getting you stopped. The fact you have a ABS warning light on says to me you may have a sensor anomaly.

OK. Compare the UTQG numbers to the other tires you're looking at along with the price. MasterCraft is a Cooper private brand. Most Mastercraft dealers won't also sell the Cooper branded line. That tire was'nt made just for your dealer. Treadwear, as you related, is 420 or 4.2 times better than the control tire used by the government to evaluate all tires. Other tires may get higher ratings (longer wear) but not the traction of a softer tread compound. Look for a snowflake emblem or a M/S symbol to see if the tire is a mud//snow traction approved if you need winter traction. Note if it is, it's still not a snow tire, just an All Season trad design. Traction (dry) is A. AA is the only rating better, and temperature, or the ability to resist heat build up, is rated at the highest level, A. There are better tires out there, but you're going to pay a lot. If you had a Porsche, I'd say spend more, but hell, were driving Subarus and you've got a station wagon to boot. I've run Cooper Corbra H rated tires as well as tires made by them under other brand names. I was happy based on the price I paid. I've also been happy with my Goodyear Regatta II's, but there are not a performance tire. Check out the prices of the new Goodyear Triple Tread. Based on the very positive reviews I've gotten, these are what I'll be gettting when the current ones wear out. Good luck. There's nothing wrong with an H rated Cooper tire.

Is the ABS light comming on? I had a problem with dragging brakes, that heated up the tone ring and screwed up the magnetic field that provides the pulses to the ABS computer. The ABS would cycle like you describe and then the ABS problem light would illuminate. The ABS trouble code display under the passenger seat (it's a '91) said I had a faulty left rear sensor. Repairing the brakes (rotor and new pads) solved the problem without needing a new wheel speed sensor.

Cooper makes a good tire for the price. What are the LSR's UTQG ratings and how do they compare to the other suggestions you've been getting?