SevenSisters

Hey Subie Gal, Please explain this fix in a little more detail. Is this the factory fix after the 10 year inspection? Will the srs still work? Thanks

Just replaced the muffler/tailpipe one piece unit on the '91. Two bolts and 3 rubber hangers. Took a while to grind of the rusted bolts but only had to raise the rear wheels up about 8" to get good access. Advance auto had a Walker for $102. Another $4.00 for the gasket and a couple new nuts and bolts. Wear safety glasses. I don't see a year on yours but assume it's similiar. 1stsubaruparts had the OE muffler for about a $100, but I figured it would cost too much to ship.

Gas here is about $1.30 per gallon. Gas in the UK is about $1.30 per gallon. Gas in Denmark is about $1.30 per gallon. Gas everywhere is about $1.30 per gallon. What you pay at the pump includes all the taxes levied to build roads, pay for social causes, and the like. Prices will continue to rise as China improves it's standard of living and the Middle East puts the squeeze on the world economy. Sadly, these will be remembered as the good old days.

A little rise is probably normal. As the coolant expands it gets forced into the coolant expansion tank. When the endine cools, it should get sucked back into the engine. Because air expands more than coolant, it would make the change more visable until all the air gets eliminated. I've had the same thing happen at coolant changes, but it never overflowed that I was aware of. The coolant level in the tank would actually drop when cooling and I topped it off for a few days untill all the air was out. There is a full or normal line on the tank don't overfill when the engine is hot or it will have no where to go except out the overflow tube. If it keeps on occuring, it could mean something more severe.

You're going to have to explain what a real Goodyear tire is. All tire companies, toaster companies, oil filter companies, etc make the same product and sell them to retailers with different names to satisfy marketing requirements. The beauty with tires is that the goverment requires a DOT code that includes the manufacturer's identity, plant location, and week of production. More meaninful to consumers are the UTQG quality ratings. A tire from Sears or WalMart with the same manufacturer, plant code and UTQG rating is going to perform the same as the manufacturers flagship line. It may just have a different name on it, a different warranty, etc.

Kind of like saying GM is Chevy, Buick, and Subaru.

The government does mandate and oversees the treadwear testing at a certified independent test facility. A manufacturer can not claim better performance than the tire yields against the control (100 level) tire, but can rate a particular tire line lower to satisfy a good, better, best, marketing scheme. In the majority of cases, you can go by the UTQG ratings for treadwear and have a reasonable expectation of how the tire will wear vs another.

The Check Engine Light, MIL, or what ever you want to call it is not there to save you money, help you diagnose problems, or anything for your direct benefit. It’s there because the government mandated it in an effort to keep the environment clean. All the system sensors ‘report” the health of the engine to the ECU and if there is something wrong with engine performance that would add pollution, the CEL illuminates. Like you say, a lot of the time it is a sensor that fails and the CEL lets you know to fix it so the engine will run at peak efficiency/minimal emissions. Other times, the sensors are just doing their job and the MIL lets you know a fuel injector or ignition component, for example, isn’t working and there is an increase in pollution. If you’re young enough to play Rugby, you probably don’t remember points, condensers, and constant tune-ups to keep engines running good. Today’s cars have tons of extra crap but at least they're largely trouble free compared to the olden days.

You have to go with the right 16" tire. The diameters have to be real close. You'll need the smaller (50) aspect ratio to accomplish this. If you're tires are off too much (and I can't answer how much is too much), the ABS algorithim will not give the braking performance it was intended to. The engine and automatic transmission sensors may also get confused and cause drivability issues. Check with a tire dealer to get the right set up and enjoy.

You can Plus 1 with a P215/50R16 and be close. You need the shorter sidewall to keep the diameters about the same. Run a Google search on plus sizing and you should find one of the calculators that are out there. I'm sure a lot of the members here have done this and can speak about the wheel well clearances. Confirm everything with your tire dealer.

Any cop can run it through DMV records. The Oregon DMV may also do it for a fee. These are public records.

Subaru already has a 6 year 60K drive train warranty. So what does the $850 cover in addition to the standard warranty? Extended warranties are strickly insurance. Subaru figures the average cost of extended warranty work and then adds some profit. The dealer also gets a cut. The salesman or person gets a cut too. Everybody makes money. Download the service manual and buy a set of tools. Put the rest of the money in the bank. PS: 2.5 Head gaskets go out at 60,001 miles.

Don't just look at them. Check them with a meter. Then, if they check OK, check for power at the bulbs and a ground. Then start working back to see where you loose the juice. Good luck.

When you guys buy 4 new tires, save the 3 good old ones and post them for sale on the board. Just a thought so the tire companies don't get too rich.

I've used a floor jack to lift the Legacy at the center of the rear differential and the center of what I call the engine cradle. I've also lifted one side by putting a 2x4 under the sill and jacking it up in the middle. Jacking points should be listed in the service manual. Check to see if this is applicable for the Forester and be careful. I thought the Forester had a real spare. If so, just jack up one corner, install the spare, move to the next corner and put on the tire you just removed, etc. That’s part of the beauty of a full size spare.

Looking at the link: http://endwrench.com/pdf/drivetrain/FtAdditionalTipsF99.pdf, I'm guessing that it was from the Fall of 1999 (F99). At least I hope so because it would have been issued before they said not to add lube. I didn't lube my replacement Subaru bearing and, knock on wood, after about 10K, all is well except the Chinese rotors I put on are wearing pretty fast. What are the dealers doing?

This may not answer your question, but it has to do with the use of gas line antifreeze. A long time ago, with a carburated vehicle, I added a bottle of gas line antifreeze in August to "get it off my garage shelf". Well, I fought fuel line vapor lock and misfires until the tank of gas was used up. Even in the summer, Michigan (except for the UP) isn't cold enough to run ipr-oh in your gas. With the pressurized FI we have now, vapor lock may not be a problem, but I would hold off on adding anthing except FI cleaner and see if it helps. Good Luck.

Setright is on to something here. There are too many manufactuers and maybe more impotantly, suppliers that are pretty fast and loose in the way they describe thier parts. Just because some outfit in India or China makes parts that may go into their domestic crap, it dosen't mean they ever made parts for Subaru. They may be an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) but they don't sell Genuine Subaru parts. In fact, the supplier may just be saying there're OEM. How do you know? I don't even trust the OE label unless it says "Genuine Subaru". Even then, there are tons of counterffits out there so shop at a reputable supplier. When you pay way less that you should, you're probably getting screwed in the long run. Don't get me wrong, I've got a lot of stuff from the "Advance Boy Zones", but I knew it wasn't genuine. When it came to something I felt was important, like wheel bearings, I bought from the on line Subaru dealer guy.

Thanks for making sure badjer had the right facts. I should have read the post better (5 speed) and checked on the fuse being in or out. Too lazy to check my manual. It's got to be a bitch to have to buy all new tires because of one lousy flat.

You can search the archives for the Subaru spec, but I believe it is 1/4" in circumference. My advice to all Subaru owners is to buy an extra wheel and tire and do a five tire rotation. You'll get the same tire cost per mile, but will be out the cost of the wheel. Try a previously used wheel store (junkyard). If you have an unrepairable tire, try to find a used tire of the same brand, size, and tread depth at a tire shop or ask them where you can get a new tire buffed down to the same diameter as the others. Did you pull the AWD fuse? Check your manual, but you want it out of AWD until you get fixed up.

E gads! Running without dust boots will get you about a week in the heavily salted Snow Belt. Texas must be nice with respect to rust. The Bendix rebuilds are probably OE factory calipers someone else turned in with new rubber and lube installed. I haven’t needed to replace them on the ‘ru, but had good luck with rebuilds on an ’85 Toyota truck. Might want to clean ’em up and paint them before installation. Loaded calipers are another option worth looking at, depending on the pads they put in.

Almost everybody uses the initials GT. Is this a Grand Tour tire or just a name "GT Radial"? Post the manufacturer if you know it or the first 2 letters of the DOT code found on the sidewall of the tire.

"The trick with any car, new or used, is how long it can be kept running after the loan has been paid off and when the owner doesn't have a car payment. That's where the savings come in." Tell me about it. Haven't made a car payment in 10 years on the old 'ru. "Run it into the ground theory" works well and it justs keeps ticking.