subaruplatt

Your car probably weighs more than less safe vehicles remember that. If your not going more than 40 miles per hour you can leave it in third. Mine hunts, at speeds past city but not yet highway sometimes.This transmission has a problem with this in-between range. Sounds like it's the uphill trek that really does you. It's not like a hybrid when you have gained something going down. Sometimes when the car is warm I can drive up hill and it will not down shift into third and sometimes it does. As an aside I learned that one can shift the auto without disengaging the cruise. I have done so into third to add extra engine breaking downhill on logging roads. I believe that the car will never lock the torque converter if the temp sensor thinks it's cold. With mine the torque converter is loose until the car is warmed up, to encourage revving and rapid warming of the engine. The only other things are tires i.e. low mpg tires, break drag. Not sure if fresh bearings do much, hell maybe old cv joints eat up energy. Hell maybe there is a brand or form of cv which is more efficient than the other?

I can do the rotors myself, although I haven't yet. And have drove about 4 thousand miles on the warped rotors. When you do the rotors, also do a quick check that the hub is not warped. Who knows the previous owner may have curbed the car. Bent hubs will vastly decrease rotor life. http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/shop_parts/wheel_hub_assembly/subaru.html

Your right the Stock 2000 outback shocks were likely already gas pressurized shocks.

I am ready to put in the saab struts into my 06 impreza, they are a direct fit and have KONI inserts! Anyway because people have commented on shocks I would say that KONI and Biltstien have shared the number 1 spot forever, especially their stainless models. FYI I have read that the Tokico HP series are the next higher in regard to the KYBs. I put in my gulf a brand called boge turbo gas and they were a lower midlevel price but much cheaper than bilstien. Anyhow because they were nitrogen pressurized it meant that the were really good. Any kind of "Nitrogen" upgrade will be vastly better than non Nitrogen stock.

I got Yokohama advan envigor tires and I love them. They corner spectacularly! Great in the hot dry and in the wet. They are not a winter tire at all! I have been hearing good things about good year triple treads and I know the Nokian WR is highly rated should you desire a decent 4 season tire. Cheers

http://forum.parrot.com/usa/viewtopic.php?pid=25307#p25307

I did this last year. http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=122216

I recently discovered that 35/32 at +3˚ c = 33/30 at -3˚ c with a 93 load index tire. I have found that the higher you exceed the stock load index, and mine was 89 stock vrs 93 replacement . The higher the load index the less likely you will ever need to over inflate past stock. It is possible that your stock tire/load index was plenty capable with 30 psi. If you want more psi then you will need different shocks. I wouldn't be comfortable with nitrogen unless I carried it with me in the car, maybe it's better I just don't know. What's heavier a pound of nitrogen or a pound of air?

No big deal it's just something I always wanted to know. My VR6 Gulf I used to have had 67% of the weight on the front wheels. Now I have only 57 % AWD is suposed to be 60/40, makes sense.

Forgot to mention Saftey! These things hold up well in a crash, at least mine did.

http://eng.kaps-transmissions.com/products-si-full-sequential-gearbox.html

In a ideal world we would drive around with a deicer and a sprayer for the wheels in the winter. Once in montreal I had to waste two bottles of wiper fluid to get the ice of my rims. The wheel wobble would have hurt my wheel bearings with the long drive back to TO 6-7 hrs. But back on the topic of ABS the best advice about ABS that I ever heard I read in a VW owners manual. It read " If you detect the activation of ABS, adjust your driving habits accordingly. ". You freaked out your abs:drunk:

I am digging up one of my old threads. But I found the answer. My 06 Wagon has 57% of the cars weight on the front wheels.

Someone can check the valve clearance for you. Do you need to do it? As the valve seats wear in the valves may stop closing. Unless they are shortened and moved away from the cam. Shocks and bushings, maybe whole struts. Try new upper strut bearings too. Sterring rack ? what else is there? Maybe throw in a fresh rad an hoses. I think that if you like the car 2-3000 $ isn't a lot to bring it to mint. Even Are you being ripped off? New dampers would be a treat, a couple of bushings new tie rods might be good .

I have o6 impreza without sport shift. I can down shift/ upshift very smoothly. The 4-eat in my opinion isn't for power shifting, however. In the city I generally prefer third. Down steep hills from a stop sign i use second. Did you try a tany drain and fill with genuine subaru fluid.? Also one thing to consider is that the torque converter lock is only after full transmission warm-up. Gets a bit bounced around until then. Sometimes I don't go past 3rd if I feel it's warming up.

As many of you are aware Sunoco bought Petro Canada. Some of the Petro Canada stations now carry 94 octane. I have been fueling at south Kingsway near the Queensway for toronto people. I have run 3 tankfulls of the stuff through my subaru and I have good things to say! I have achieved a 10 percent improvment in fuel economy and I am regularly going 11 KM for every litre I put in. I realize that with this extremely warm weather cars tend to produce less power but get improved fuel economy in return. So I will have to see how it pans out in the colder months. I can definitely see that the engine runs quieter and smoother, better torque. I know it isn't necessary or even recommended but why not do it? After all improved fuel economy smoother performance seem to at least partially justify the extra cost.

Just one other alternative that I thought I might mention. Although you have expressed interest in a forester and also want to stay at 20 grand. One thing I would consider. The new impreza launches this fall. The auto is said to get 37 mpg us gallons ! This car will cost between 25 and 30. There might be a 23 ish model one would hope. Subaru bills this car as the most fuel efficient AWD car on the market. The impreza doesn't sit SUV high like the forester but rather makes even more of the cars already low centre of gravity. Just a thought ?

I agree with the vacuum leak theory because it sounds like the feeling I get when stopped at a light with the car idled down. The idle is such that with AC and what not the normal power reserves decrease. Back on the throttle and sleepy time is over!

http://ken-gilbert.com/impreza-manuals They have a service manual pdf for your car. It's huge! The lifters are screw type adjustable roller rockers. Make sure that they aren't too tight when you do them. One does them with the engine cold, on a hoist. With a foil gauge spark plug thing screw driver and wrench. Some play is an essential part of this design as it allows for valve seating, engine expansion, and wear.

I used to just pour gas-line antifreeze into the pickup tube for the idle air control valve and wash away the gunk. VW VR6 It would burn it through system. After a couple of coughs and puffs good to go for another season. Run some gas-line anti freeze through it to the point of choking it for a start!

My experience with a VW was that when I curbed the car I put a warp in the hub. The Consequence of this was that the warp would eventually radiate outwards and seed warpage of the rotors. I had several expensive brake jobs done before someone finally figured it out why. Also if hit hard enough wheel bearing might be pooched as well.

At about 60 K KM I had both rear pads replaced as they were wearing on an angle. Apparently without cleaning and anti-seaze compound they bed that way. The front pads had about 50% left still but I replaced them anyway. PS I didn't machine the rotors just changed pads and every thing was fine. This is the first time with a car I have neither had to have the rotors turned or replaced.

I like the magna flow idea tooo!

http://www.boschautoparts.com/VehiclePartFinder/Pages/VehiclePartFinder.aspx 15730 Oxygen Sensor - OE SmartLink - Universal Fit - Downstream Sensor 4 Wire; Heated; Check / Replace Interval: 100,000 Miles H4-2458cc 2.5L FI EngDesg EJ253 GAS 15170 Oxygen Sensor - OE Type - Exact Fit - Downstream Sensor 4 Wire; Heated; Check / Replace Interval: 100,000 Miles H4-2458cc 2.5L FI EngDesg EJ253 GAS 15169 Wideband A/F Sensor - OE Type - Exact Fit - Upstream Sensor 4 Wire; Wideband A/F; Check / Replace Interval: 100,000 Miles H4-2458cc 2.5L FI EngDesg EJ253 GAS

I found this and I got a 135 MB folder for my 06 impreza. http://ken-gilbert.com/impreza-manuals