aircraft engineer

ask at a welding shop - they can tell who does what gas

The CROSSBARS on the roof rack - 2 screws each side - loosen one and it just turns...and turns...and turns. try to tighten it and it just turns...and turns... (get the picture?):-\ I THINK the screws are attached to the long lengthwise bars with nuts, but I can't figure out HOW to get at the NUTS Need to "move" one or both of the crossbars to fit a different rack configuration Any ideas? Insight? Suggestions? (No, "X-ray" is not an option)

Your nanny government at work? They seem to forget that the MAIN problem isn't GO - it's STOP

remember - use it to drive a RELAY or you will overload the wires.

Don't worry about the lack of flanges - the cam pulley (both of them) has the flanges and that's all that's needed. A timing belt is a timing belt - no matter what anybody thinks - they are identical - CA and "other" - IDENTICAL for the 2000 (based on engine type, of course). I keep saying that CA mandated a 100k mile life so Sub just said OK - it's 100k (the belt didn't PHYSICALLY change, just the "factor of safety" - with the engine being "interference" a belt breaking is sort of "disastrous" on the engine - valves if nothing else. Actual run life will depend on a lot of other factors - like abrasive or oil contamination - that merely running around a track won't pick up. Analyze the data and predict the 99.9% success rate about +2 standard deviations - and set it as "expected life - MTBF". IF a trend starts showing "in service", fix it - or suffer the warranty consequences) There is MAYBE a difference between belt manufacturers - I wouldn't put much "faith" in some of the "generic" belt manufacturers, but using a name brand (non-Sub) belt and a rigorous change at say, 75k is enough of a "warm fuzzy". Sorry, I don't buy into "the OEM is the only way to go" club - but I do all of my own work, too. "Bad" parts have a way of making their presence know throughout the community (and is why a local parts store stopped carrying PCI parts - PCI won't accept a "bad manufacture" claim. According to them there is no such thing as a manufacturing defect - ROFLMAO!!)

A blast from the past - Years ago I did a school mechanical engineering project on effects of humidity on fuel consumption. We used a Ford with a progressive 2 bbl carb with a separate fuel bowl, bypassed the gas inlet and isolated the secondary "fuel" bowl. Hooked up a small 12v water pump and supplied the bowl with ordinary "water". F-100 pickup truck - no "space problems", don't remember the exact engine - Ford V-8 of some kind or other about 1962 or so (it's been almost 40 years) The effect was "striking" - we could see about a 10% efficiency increase. What we did was to use the carb jet in the secondary to atomize water and introduce it into the air inlet flow pretty much directly. That moisture laden air then lowered the incoming air temperature and effectively raised the octane rating. Since the whole charge was "denser" ("moisture filled air" - essentially saturated) being denser than "plain air" the whole efficiency increased accordingly. There were a few caveats, though - like "what would you do in freezing conditions" (add alcohol, maybe) and when we tore down the motor we found there was absolutely no carbon WHATEVER on the cylinder, head, valves (that water just cleaned everything as well as any detergent.) Now, today, I would probably opt for an electronic atomizer (like the ones they use for "sick rooms") and just bleed the water mist into the intake manifold right behind the throttle body. It DOES work, but not for the same snake oil reasons. There's the same freezing issues (pure water still freezes at 0C) and there's the problem of the extra tank of water that would need to go "somewhere" (I suppose it COULD use windshield washer fluid, maybe, and the supply tank for it, too - just that it would need to be "bigger")

Harbor Freight has gauges on sale right now for under $40 Great way to check both hi and lo sides at the same time - the only "problem" is that adding refrig is a "can at a time" thing (you can stop the fill if you need to stop it, but you will lose the rest of the can)

beats me - I have a 97

of course, it's also why Sub extended the timing belt interval to 105k miles. 60k was VERY conservative and California just required 100k minimum - so they just changed the interval - no change to the belt whatever

Somebody might just want to suggest to Subaru that they might want to consider 2 things - relocate the clutch pack disconnect to the spare wheel well and put in a rotary switch with 2 positions that say "USE FRONT WHEEL DRIVE WHEN USING THE SPARE" "FRONT WHEEL DRIVE --- ALL WHEEL DRIVE" That would eliminate the "where's the FWD fuse go anyway?"

It's sure not THAILAND - just got back and there don't appear to be ANY in the country. NO DEALERS WHATEVER - Toyos, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Mazda, Diahatsu, Isuzu, Hino, Honda but nary a Sub - they didn't even know what it was except the key said "Subaru" on it and it looked like a car key. Turns out that the key (for a 97 IMP) is identical to Nissan and Honda (no idea what YEAR though) so churned out a couple of copies for 60 cents each for emergency spares.

wipe it down on the bottom and maybe the sides and see if there is fresh oil. If it's not fresh it's not leaking. The bolt grommets are PROBABLY NOT leaking after only 11k - those might compress a bit but not quite that fast. From what I see of the grommets, I think they could be sealed with the permatex anaerobic sealant before installation and prevent any leakage.

I honestly DON'T KNOW. If 2 front 3 rear it's a bit cheaper (about $5 for the dust seal on the rear IIRC) I've only done rears but I'm about to get into a front axle replacement on my IMP. Maybe a rear bearing or 2 as well - getting a bit of whine Generally I don't change seals unless they show leakage though unless I have to pull them (like for a bearing replacement) Looks like the subyparts breakouts show 2 front, 3 rear (Legacy and IMP use the same housing, bearings, seals and hubs)

the "outers" are inside the hub and outside the hub. There's one more seal at the axle on the inside of the hub for a total of 3 seals per housing. 2 the same, 1 different now to confuse you - the outer seal in the inside of the hub is a dust seal but it's really the innermost seal. The seal on the outside of the hub is the same as the inner seal in the inside of the housing There's GOT to be a Dr Seuss rhyme in here somewhere... !>____< --------------------------------- <-- cross section looking thru the housing - this would be the axle centerline. !>____< ! dust seal < or > grease seal ___ the bearing Who's on first? Ida Know - THIRD BASE!!

Nips said it all - remember to check the flywheel thru the access hole on top of the bell housing in the back as well for excessive tooth grinding. Just pull it out, check it and replace it if it looks bad. One key inspection will be at the brushes - if there's a lot of copper ground off, it's time to replace the starter. If you need another drive, it's probably cheaper to replace the starter Time for a trip to the local JY

most people don't make the distinction - AWD means it's always there. 4WD means that you can "choose" They just say 4WD and let it go - you need to know the difference between them

Dedicated snows only make a big difference IF you are in the snow enough to warrant it. Otherwise you might just as well have good multipurpose tires. Snows here twice a year if we're unlucky. Lately been more of an ICE problem - and only studs will help in that. Trouble is that near Seattle drivers think that they can GO in anything - forgetting that it isn't the GO - it's the STOP that's the problem, usually, on paved roads. Running the snows has 2 main issues - the rubber is softer usually and the tire wear goes WAY up for the time on the car; they are L O U D!! generally (but if you LIKE that buzz siren, that's your call)

I can't tell you what years they are in but I DID see an impressive video report on the effects of having it "on" or "off" a couple of years ago. What it does is calculate how fast each wheel is turning in a turn and then adjust brakes as necessary wheel by wheel to maintain a steady track. They didn't say if there were accelerometers in the system so other than wheel speed I don't know how it works - but the video was impressive - pound into curves and no oversteer. if it understeers, just turn the wheel a bit more - the computer will take care of it. Remember, though - just another piece of electronics to have to fix sometime

it was a problem in my caravan a few years ago - they replaced the contacts inside the solenoid. Click but no turn Then there was the "other" problem with a Tempo - the starter turned but wouldn't engage. The bendix unit had come apart inside and wouldn't move forward enough No turn - contacts. Turns but won't turn engine - bendix (starter drive) Contrary to what some say - an autozone or the like starter is good enough

Drove 1 in the late 60's - had just enough power to get out of its own way 0-60 in...never. add oil to the tank and gas to the other tank. (2 stroke) I'm no small guy - it was "tiny" inside - had to get out to change my mind. It could be out accelerated by a 10 speed up to about 20mph - then the biker ran out of legs - but it WAS wheels - even IF the hampsters kept singing the back or was that the beehive or hornets nest 2 weeks and traded it off. my triumph mc had a bigger engine the isetta 300 had more power..well, maybe not I wish i had one now

not really - torques are developed with lubricated bolts/nuts. (At least that's the way WE do it) Actually, torque is a sideways indicator of "bolt stretch" which is based on the "turn of the nut" (and the ramp angle of the thread calculated to provide the stress on the bolt.) Wheel lugs won't have that overstress problem as long as you use a torque wrench

just the rubber bushings? Take out the 4 bolts and slide off/on the bushings. Reinstall the bolts. No need to disconnect anything else - the rack will be loose enough to get at the bushings 35-52 ft-lbs or 48-66 Nm depending on which wrench you have

remember - insurance companies sell them to the JY for 10% of the claim

eat beans - America needs the gas

The stuff you feel is thin. When the wheel goes onto the hub, the shearing will make the surface mate quite well. IF you clean your wheel lugs, the nuts will spin right on if lubed a bit (if acorn nuts the studs shouldn't corrode anyway since they are behind a "cap") I spray the studs and the insides of the nuts with WD-40 anyway and then use a torque wrench to get the final tightness (75 IIRC). IF you have crud on the studs, take a wire brush to them. Clean the hub flange if you want and the inside of the wheel flange, too with the brush if you wish (but taking off the paint tends to make them rust a bit) There was a discussion about "hub centric (where the hub carries the wheel load) versus "lug centric" (where the lugs carry the wheel load) From a practical standpoint, it doesn't make that much difference except for mounting the wheels - easier to mount hub centric because the nuts can be spun down without needing to re-position the wheel to seat all of the cones. If you have that much crud, I'd wonder what ELSE had a lot of rust, too. It sounds like you don't have the same wheels for summer/winter tires. Like mine - a mix of alloy and steel (1 set of each)