SevenSisters

The badge on mine says 4WD too. 4WD=AWD in 1991 Subaru or at least my lingo. Glad you found the problem. I didn't think about coolant freezing although I should have. $9.00 for antifreeze vs $1500 for a head gasket. Tell your spouse you just saved $1491 and celebrate.

1. Get rid of any air in the system. Jack up the side of the car that the bleed screw is on. Use your MityVac adapted to the bleed hole and suck out air. Reducing pressure will expand and burp out more trapped air than you will normaly get by other methods. There may be air in the heater core too which would help explain no heat or it could be no circulation. 2. Check circulatiion. At these cold temps, I wouldn't expect to see continous circulation, but you need to determine if the pump is bad or if the thermostat is not opening. If you don't see circulation, take out the t'stat and check circulation again. REPLACE with a new Subaru part. Burp like above or some other proven way. Replace pump if no circulation. 3. Check for leaks Find the leak you mentioned and fix it. Replace hoses or radiator until it's leak free. A leak will not allow coolant in the resivoir to be drawn back into a cooling engine. You'll never get rid or trapped air. 4. Head gasket With no oil or crap in the overflow tank you may be OK. There are test kits to try before you take the engine apart. 2.2's are not known for gasket issues, but if you over heated the engine, you may be in trouble. Keep it running as long as you can.

I've never had to troubleshoot the transmission, so I'm not sure. There must be somebody on the board that has done (fixed) this and can help more. If you clear the codes and start over, I'd guess you'll get the right codes. Most people with tranny problems seem to flush and change the fluid first and see what happens. Some codes are dependent on other parts functioning properly so you usually start with the lowest numeric code and work up. Remember a code doesn't always mean the part is bad. It could be a bad connection or bad input from something else.

The recall was only on Legacy and Outback models. You're probably OK.

If I recall correctly, there were some Subarus with bad springs (could rust and break), but I didn't catch what you have or how many miles. Subaru fixed the problem with a guard so when they do break, they don't puncture the tires. Check the ride height and condition (corrosion) of the springs. I would doubt if you need them.

Welcome and congrats, but enjoy it while you can. Pecking order is: Wife- newest car Daughter- next newest so it looks good in the high school lot You- you guessed it '93 Loyale You want them to have air bags don't you?

Ah yes payments. Haven't made one on my 'ru for 12 years. Sweet. Good luck and have fun with your car.

Read what's required in the owners or shop manual. I'm with Frag. Never heard of ATF in a differential. Don't wait to change it.

Once it's apart for the $275 timing belt, the cam and crank seals should basically be at parts cost. Add the water pump and reseal of the oil pump. Try to find a dealer/mechanic that doesn't own or want a boat.

Fix the brakes and see if the noise goes away. If the bearings are making noise just replace them (not easy). They're not simple like the old days.

The shift solenoids are on the valve body. You need to take off the pan and remove the valve body. Never did it but it looks like an on the car repair. Check to see if Josh has the transmission section scanned in. You can check components before you take anything apart. May be as simple as a bad ground or as bad as a new TCU.

As much as I despise Sears, I do like Craftsman tools. One sugesstion, if you can afford it, start off with one of the larger, more complete sets when they're on sale. Otherwise, you'll pay throught the nose for the 19mm and 10mm wrenches, sockets, whatever, that weren't included in the original set.Home Depot and Lowes also have decent tools. It won't take long for a good set of tools to pay for themselves.

I think a lot of Subarus come with Champions from the factory. I use the inexpensive V Power plugs. Nothing wrong with the, runs good, and you should look at your plugs every 30K anyway for signs of engine wear.

Acceleration problem may indicate a fuel delivery issue. Change the fuel filter again and check fuel pressure. May also be a restricted exhaust/Cat. Dittos on the V Power plugs. BTW, platinum plugs may well wear out enough to give drivability problems in as little as 45K. You're close to that. Look for corrosion on the plug or wire connector.

Good wires and plugs shouldn't cost more than about $60. Because of the misfire code, follow what people have suggested, but if you get a gas cap code, look at and tighten every hose and gasket in the fuel/evap. system. Even the ones you can't easily reach. Buy a new gas cap too. What's the fuel sensor? If you replaced the sending unit, it should have had a new gasket too.

Some people have reported cracked side radiator plastic panels on first gens.. When they heat up,they leak a little. Try a search.

http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=26117&highlight=guysk This post sounds similar, but there was no resolution. Could ice plug a vacuum line temporarily?

Snowman, and everyone else, I wasn’t kidding about wanting Subaru quality and reliability to improve, but I was being sarcastic with the GM comment. My ‘ru has served me well for the last 14 years and I’m not unhappy with it. It’s troublesome to see that CR rated several GM products higher for “expected” reliability than Subaru. When I purchased mine, the CR reliability circles were all solid red (good)for Subaru while the GM car’s circles were solid black (bad). It’s not like that anymore. All brands have improved in reliability, but I worry Subaru is more interested in leather seast, cup holders, moon roofs and GPS than the rock solid reliability of the 80’s and early ‘90’s. Some people may not have any confidence in CR’s evaluations, but I do. Part of the reason I bought a Subaru in the first place. My post doesn’t mean I wouldn’t buy another Subaru, but CR’s opinion, plus all the posts here dealing with head gaskets, wheel bearing, transmissions, and the like do give me some pause regarding Subaru. I was responding to the original post dealing strictly with reliability, not how well they go through the snow, how they ride, performance, safety or the like. Frankly, I wish Subaru was doing better. If you’re happy with Subaru reliability, OK. From what I see, Subaru hasn’t kept up with some other manufacturers in this area. My post was trying to be provocative, and the responses are not unexpected. I’ll be a little bit more provocative now: Consumer’s Reports 2005 Buying Guide, page 192: Used cars to avoid: Subaru Baja (’03) and Subaru Outback (6-cylinder ’03). Come on, CR never would have had the cause to say this back in the 80’s or 90’s. I think we deserve better from Subaru and I know they can do it if they want to.

Different Subarus have different ground clearances so some will probably do better than others. I doubt if I ever had to drive through anything more than about 8 inches. Two things to consider if you go out: At some point the depth of the snow will float the car and the tires won't develope any traction. A wet heavy snow will be worse than a light, fluffy snow. At some point, deep snow will start to pack into the radiator and push into the engine compartment, possibly distorting the fan and pushing it into the radiator. Let us know what happens.

OK. I'll make it simple. Consumer's Reports April 2004 page 77: '04 expected reliability: Small Cars 1 Honda Civic 2 Toyota Corolla 3 Toyota Echo 4 Saturn Ion 5 Hundai Elantra 6 Chevy Cavalier 7 Subaru Impreza That's right, beat bu a Hundai and a Cavalier Family Cars 1 Buick Regal 2 Toyota Camery 3 Nissa Maxima 4 Mazda 6 5 Buick Century 6 Honda Accord 7 Nissan Altima 8 Saturn L300 9 Chevy Impala 10 Subaru Legacy That's right. Beat by an Impala. WRX come in behind Accura and Toyota. Forester comes in behinf Honda and Toyota. Do I like these results? NO Does Subaru need to do a better job? YES Maybe quality will improve now that GM owns a piece.

On a '91 it was just about 5 quarts. Did some jacking up and rocking to get that much. Measure what you drain out and replace, then check the dipstick to make sure.

Go to Consumer's Reports and look at the independent data. Make up your own mind.

Too late now, but it's a good idea to always monitor your gas mileage so you have an idea when something is not right. 21 sounds low. People get that with thier Hummers.

Turn up the radio. I would have sworn it was tire noise until I replaced them and the noise continued. Rear bearing was the problem. Your description sounds like it could be brakes (rusty rotors) rubbing to me, but I can't hear it unless you drive past.

Just go to the local police supply and get the kind that mounts the gun vertically at the dash. No concealed issues to worry about and people won't cut you off very often.