zstalker

Seems to be a consensus that it's not worth anything extra, but here's the kicker: for my application on rockauto.com, it's only $0.01 more each for the V-Power plugs. With that in mind (basically no cost difference at all), are the V-Power a worthless gimmick? They seem like they'd be good plugs and all, I just don't want to end up with a Bosch Platinum scenario (Bosch, a really powerful and advanced company coming out with a product that they say is the next evolutionary step and will outperform all other plugs, but turns out to be a pile of dog crap in nearly every application, causing more problems than they cured)...does that make sense? anyways, I'm probably going to get the V-Power (being as they're basically the same price), unless someone happens to have knowledge that they're no good... ...thanks for your input everyone ~Erik~

ok, I'm looking at spark plugs, and I'm going with NGK's. I've always felt that the base, standard plug is good enough, since that's what the dealer gets and puts in cars, and they're a fine plug, but I see NGK V-Power plugs, and they're not much more expensive. anyone use them? are they worth the slight increase, are they any better at all? I could see the benifits being eliminated after a couple thousand miles, but I don't know for certain...never used them. so my question: good plug? better than the "normal" plugs? ~Erik~

that ripsaw is pretty bad rump roast for sure...but... bigger and better? not really. there's no way to compete with one of those big transport trucks. look around on youtube and see some of the videos of the BIG trucks doing the Dakar Rally and the 8-wheel ones are even more capable in bad terrain, plus having a weight of more than 30,000lb...geez, these things are sweet~Erik~

those both have to do with the fuel tank pressure sensor. unless there is damage to the wiring going to it, or the pressure/vacuum lines going to it, the sensor itself has likely failed. not terribly hard to replace, but you've got to remove the gas tank (easier empty), and also access the wiring inside the quarter panel. good luck! ~Erik~

little tip I picked up at work (I'm a beginning Subaru dealer technician): unbolt the pitching stopper dog-bone shaped thingy from behind the motor (14mm, if I remember correctly), remove the nuts from the two motor mounts (also 14mm, I think), then position a jack and block of wood or something similar under the front of the motor (not the oil pan, but the block itself) and lift the motor a couple inches. you can go like 3, maybe even 4 inches up, just don't start actually pulling any hoses or anything. just that little bit of lift will give you all sorts of extra access to the plugs. a little variation for pulling a cylinder head: undo the pitching stopper and only one motor mount (on the side that you're working on). lift the motor a couple inches, it will start to cock over to one side, and slip a large socket that you won't be using between the motor mount and the cradle. Now you've got that side of the motor propped up a little, and pulled a little away from the frame rail...pretty sweet. ~Erik~

where is the car located? Virginia, as the tags would suggest? ~Erik~

+1 that's pretty much the bottom line... ~Erik~

among other possible culpirts, swaybar end links can indeed cause a knocking noise when going over bumps, particularly with just one wheel, or one after the other, so the swaybar is actuallyt put into action. another thing to check for those is the swaybar bushings themselves (where the swaybar is held to the body of the car. stick your head and amr under the car (on the ground) and have someone rock the car side to side by pushing/pulling on the roof, and check the end links and the swaybar bushings for any movement or jumping. ~Erik~

the dealer should warranty that. I know our dealer has. they're known for being kind of weak. if they don't warranty it, maybe ask another dealer, or make a stink about it being a brand new car and parts falling off of it or something. anyways, if they still won't replaced it for free, I can imagine it would be very expensive, and it's really easy to replace. ~Erik~

ok, here you go. the new facelift for the 2008 Outback. Different hood, different grille and bumper. ~Erik~

sorry to dig up an old thread, but I've got the same issue (fan not coming on, coolant getting very hot). I've ben searching the forum, top to bottom, and still have a question. My 1984 Brat does not have air conditioning, so only one fan. I looked in Alldata, the facoty service manual, and a Haynes manual, and they all agree that the main cooling fan is controlled by a relay that is situated by the ignition coil...but by my ignition coil, I've got a fusible link box, and a bundle of connectors all tied off and not used (A/C connectors, I'm guessing), but NO RELAYS. Looked under the dash with the fuses, no relays. So from what I'm reading here, am I to believe that on certain cars the thermoswitch in the radiator takes the full brunt of the cooling fan power when it switches closed, with no relays involved? if so, I'm going to put in a new thermoswitch (already ordered), and hook it through a relay to protect it from here on out. I manually grounded the wire going to the switch, and sure enough, the fan came on, so I'm just finding any more weak points in the system. oh, also I'm going to very well ground the radiator body as well, since it needs that path. thanks for your responces in advance ~Erik~

I really feel like Subaru needs to stick with good design ideas that they already have, and maybe expand the line a little bit. I've been thinking up new cars that they should do....like a larger 4-door sedan, along the lines of an Acura RL type car, maybe a sports car (no idea where the design would be on that), and I really would like to see a Legacy Coupe. I whipped up a 'Chop of about what I think it would like. Legacy Coupe 'Chop ~Erik~

well, our dealership just got our first 2008 Legacy Outback wagon in today. pretty good looking car. the rear and body are pretty much the same, but the front has been redesigned. I'll get a pic hopefully tomorrow. ~Erik~

agreed...alternator is a prime suspect. try what was said above and turn everything on all at once (as all-at-once as possible), high beams are good, but a huge power draw is the rear defroster...sound change? then turn it all off and listen again. ~Erik~

it looks like there is indeed a gasket for the oil pan for that year (subyrally is right, some years don't use one), and alldata says it's a 2.0 hour job...so it's not going to be *terribly* hard, but it's going to take a while. I would imagine you should pull out the pitching stopper and nuts from the motor mounts (as mentioned above), jack up the motor a couple inches and you can put something under the mounts like blocks of wood or something. something else to think about: these motors are not terribly hard to remove entirely, and if there's anything else to work on, just pull the motor and do it all at once. ~Erik~

that wagon is part of a special group of cars for promotion. they give these cars to people in some sort of group/club/something for free, Subaru corperate still owns the car, but the people get to use it for free, and Subaru gets free advertizing...something like that. one of those burned out part of its main body wiring harness and had to be at our dealership for about a month, and I know that Subaru (not the dealer, not normal warranty) was footing the bill. this isn't to be taken as gospel, but that's the way I understand them. ~Erik~ Subaru dealership technician ( and yes, it's a wrap)

something not really mentioned yet (sorry to add yet more to your list), but the sway bar can do odd things as well. one way to check, lie down so you can reach under the car into the suspension (probably with a light as well), and have someone rock the car back and forth pushing and pulling on the roof of the car to get a lot of body roll. touch each point the sway-bar touches (sway bar links - right and left, and sway bar bushings - right and left), and see if you can fel any shifting that shouldn't be there...really any at all. the sway bar is meant to twist, but nothing should have any real play in it. The reason I thought of this is because someone just came in with an '06 Tribeca that made a horrible clunk when going over bumps...we rocked the car, and the sway bar bushings had been crushed so the swaybar jumped about a 1/4 inch each time the car rocked...not good. Good luck anyways, suspension noise hunting can be incredibly frustrating... ~Erik~

yeah, I'm not terribly concerrned about the wellbeing of the motor (I'm fanatic about things like oil levels, etc), but I would just rather not have any oil coming out of the engine in the first place. You say that you never did get the block to stop leaking? alas...looks like a rebuild sooner than expected...probably just a re-ring and gasket, really. Any other input anybody? BTW, anybody know of a good supplier of rebuild kits? ~Erik~

ok, so I bought an '84 Brat for the enormous sum of $300. the guy told me that it's got problems, but I figured that for $300, I can't go wrong. after quite a qhile cleaning the motor, I've gotten most of the grime off the motor itself, I can start tracking down oil leaks. the valve covers were leaking really badly, so I carefully removed, cleaned and re-gasketed them, with a little film of silicone to seal it up right. so now, I fire up the motor and start looking for more leaks. I know I'm going to have to do the head gaskets (also leaking), but that's another job. suddenly I see a drip coming dorn the back of the motor, on the passenger side. it's coming from one of the bolts that holds the block halves together! I pulled it out partially, cleaned around it and re-tightened it to to spec, but another block bolt is leaking too (at least one more). anybody ever seen these bolts leaking oil? I can only assume that the sealant between the halves has given out and is allowing oil out the holes. a rebuild would be best, but would just re-tightening the bolts untill I can get around to rebuilding be alright? I'm not disheartened by this, as I bought the car knowing it would be a project, but I can't exactly tear the motor apart right away... thanks in advance... ~Erik~ (fairly new) Subaru dealership technician

I can't tell you anyting about whether the dealership will warranty the head gasket or not, but as for the actual procedure, I can. We get actually a decent number of cars in that year range coming in with leaking head gaskets on the driver side. nearly never does the passenger head gasket go out (except regular ol' old age failure, etc). failing to get the head gasket replaced could cause really bad results: overheating. if you overheat a subaru motor like that, you can score the cylinder walls, then you'll need a new motor or will start to burn oil really badly. my advice? get the head gasket replaced, and I'd go for a Subaru gasket, regardless of where you get it done. since the timing belt is coming off to do the job, replace that and any idlers/tensioner that are suspect..just good prevention. ~Erik~ Subaru dealer technician