porcupine73

Anyone fitted a horn at the rear of the vehicle? Sometimes it seems it would nice to give a tap when you are stopped and see somone fast approaching behind you looking down at the radio or something while on the cell phone eating a cheeseburger.

AFIAK '96 2.2L is non-interference. All 2.5L's are interference. I think the AT is the same basic design but various parts had been upgraded to hardened versions etc over the years. If you search for 4eat in the archives on endwrench.com there are lots of detailed articles. The starters for MT and AT have different part #'s I believe. They might be different speeds/torque outputs/drive gears?

MAF = mass air flow. They should last a good long time, though in the wire the wire can oxide over time I think. For 2000 Outback you don't have to worry about it since it uses the speed density method with a MAP to determine the amount of air coming in rather than using a MAF.

Some Subaru years/models can have a rough idle and CEL/MIL I think if the battery is not left disconnected long enough. I forget the details; something about erroneous data being in the memory. There's an article on EndWrench about it.

There might be some homebrew tests over at bitog for these filters. There are probably also some uoa's with this filter with higher than normal silicon level which someone might be saying is the filter letting through dirt.

The oil separator sometimes called rear main seal retainer. From the factory this part was often plastic and prone to leaks. The upgrade is a metal one available from Subaru dealers.

Replace oil separator with a metal one if it currently has a plastic one. Check the geared/toothed idler while the timing belt is off since that seems to be the one that goes bad first most often.

True. http://www.cars101.com has the specs on all the trim levels and options available and what came standard that year. That was the 30th anniversary year IIRC.

my.subaru.com is a handy site. It will show you all dealer service history. It won't show you work done at non-dealer facilities, unless the owner entered the info into the system. It wil show you any open recalls and any recall work already performed. If you just bought the vehicle, be prepared to fax Subaru a copy of the transferred title or registration or some proof that you now own the vehicle as they will probably tell you they couldn't verify your ownership.

Subaru started rolling out ODBII in '95. See if it has the ODBII connector. Not familiar with how to use the green and black connectors. There are articles on EndWrench about it though.

Ok, maybe brake cleaner isn't the best for the rubber parts. I cleaned some of those rubber boots out with chlorinated brake cleaner and a nylon brush before and it didn't seem to do any damage to them, but I ended up using new ones from a reseal kit anyway. The label does say to protect all rubber parts from the overspray. Any grease for the rubber should not be petroleum based as it could make them swell.

If it's an auto, when the vehicle is cold sitting overnight, start it up and put it right into drive and make sure it engages within a say 2 seconds. Some AT's from this year and '00 had some slow to engage into drive issue. Also check for torque bind. Definitely check the overflow tank for oily milky nasty residue (though if the coolant was just changed to cover it up you won't know). Can check for those little nibs on the HG's to see if maybe they were already replaced with the new MLS style. Of course if the timing belt hasn't been done it's overdue. It can be tough to tell by looking at the belt how old it is. If everything checks out, the price doesn't seem too bad.

Yes you can lubricate those sliders. You just need to get the pins out of there, then clean out the rubber boots and everything with brake cleaner (or use new rubber boots from a reseal kit). The Subaru specified grease is the red niglube that comes with the caliper reseal kits. Other greases often used include syl-glyde, permatex makes a couple varieties, a hi-temp silicone based formula and some other one, Neo HP800 (my favorite).

Plus you may be able to get that mileage up somewhat with a tune-up, seafoaming, maybe new front o2 sensor, verifying tire circumferences, brakes aren't hanging up, wheel bearings are good, etc. If you want better mileage, a 1.8L earlier Impreza FWD gets pretty high mileage and is still reliable.

20-22mpg seems low but there are so many variables involved it could be driving style etc; there could be a number of reasons for poor economy. If it's outside your spending limit, you could look around for other Subaru's then, like craigslist etc. An earlier 90's 2.2L Legacy could be easily had for that much and they are very reliable too. Just make sure it's AWD if you want AWD. Or if you get an FWD or maybe an earlier 1.8L Impreza FWD those are pretty economical. But you live in a snow area so maybe you want AWD, but on other vehicles such as the T*yot@ you wouldn't have AWD anyway...

Where is it hitting? You may have to get on your knees and watch the hood close to try to see where the contact points are. I put one on '00obw; it was a little tricky because the directions were pictures only with weird arrows and stuff that were kind of ambigious...I didn't remove the nuts it showed for the grill because they were siezed.

Wow great pics. That is carnage! People think some wierd things, like maybe the owner heard other makes saying 'lifetime fill' on this and that fluid, and just assumed newer cars don't need engine oil changes? Here's a nice smilie to go with it:

Definitely check the coolant overflow tank for any oily milkyness. That would have been the 2.5L dohc phase I which could get the blow exhaust into coolant issue. It's possible the HG's were already replaced, hopefully with the new MLS type. And any AWD Subaru you want to check for torque bind before buying.

Not trying to scare you off, just mention some of the more common problems seen so you can check before you buy, not necessarily that you will experience them. Many other makes wouldn't even make it to 150k much less still be reliable. The Subaru's are pretty easy to work on, esp since the engine isn't transverse mounted. One the 2.5L dohc the spark plugs can be a little bit of challenge but all the accessories ps pump, etc are all right there on top of the engine. For a daily driver if you live where there's snow you'll love the Subaru.

Well I don't know. I've seen little particulates build up under the rubber parts in less than a year.

If you need a new drier/receiver you might just want to get the proper conversion kit from Subaru which includes a new drier/receiver. The whole proper conversion procedure is available on endwrench.com My favorite in the EndWrench article on conversion is "Paint the receiver/drier sight glass with touch-up paint. The sight glass cannot be utilized in testing R-134a performance." Do you think black electrical tape would work?

Faulty/dirty/poor radiator cap could cause this. The cap must be in brand new condition with no particulate under any of the rubber seals. There is an article on EndWrench about it.

Hm...that sounds good. Has anyone else tried this test on a 2.5L sohc to see if it behaves this way? The 2.2L did not. I guess I am nervous since I adjusted the valve lash about 10k miles ago... I'm not sure. I thought I remembered seeing this test in another post. It said something about if the paper gets sucked onto/into the exhaust it could mean an exhaust valve is not closing all the way or is sticking or something...can't remember for sure...

Hi suberdoberman and The recent timing belt and water pump replacement is good. There are some other things that should have ideally been done at that time that would be nice to know if they were done, such as geared/toothed idler near the water pump. It can, esp if the car was run with tires not all matching within 1/4" circumference as measured with a narrow tape, towed improperly, run on a soft tire long enough. Get it in a dry parking lot and make tight turns forward and reverse. It should make the turns with little or no throttle. If it feels like the brakes are on or there is popping/binding then you know it has TB. If possible, ideally do this test after driving it for a while, say 15 miles at least, since the TB on MT's may show up better right after it's been driven. It could last another 100k, there are Subaru's of this era with with 250k on them. There are things that it could end up needing along the way; HG's often don't last 250k, wheel bearings, cv joint boots, maybe some sensors, that kind of stuff may well be needed. If it has the 2.2L that is a bonus. Check it out. If it is the 2.5L dohc, that can potentially develop the internal hg exhaust blowing into coolant leak which can be pricey to fix. If it does have the 2.5L, look for little tabs sticking out of the HG's - IIRC this is how you tell if they were replaced with the new MLS style. It could, especially if you are not in a salt laden area such as near the ocean or a place that uses salt on the winter roads, and if it wasn't owned in such an area previously. There can be rust forming inside the body panels that you can't yet see. The AWD setup on the MT's is pretty straightforward with the viscous coupling. The main killer is tires not within 1/4" circumference, improper towing, running on soft tire, etc. Check for torn cv joint boots. Sometimes the axles will start clicking in turns even if the boots are good. The OEM Subaru axles are pretty robust and as long as the boots stay intact they'll probably last. As mentioned earlier it can become an issue if it's run that way long enough. Hm...maybe a nice dinner, some flowers, things like that.... What year did VW's quality really start dipping? I know early on they were good vehicles but then in later years they kind of went downhill?

Hm...that sounds like a cool tool you've built. Maybe a dum question, but did you loosen/remove that lock clip thing with the bolt on it at the edge of the retainer?