Bishop

Give coilsprings.com a call and they should be able to make whatever you need for a very reasonable price. I've bought probably a half dozen sets of springs from them over the years and they are always flawless, plus they'll tune them to whatever spring rate you need for your application.

I can't believe people are still posting to this thread. I ended up tearing the shortblock all the way down. I had to get a couple specialty seals from some enthusiasts (board members) and the block, rocker arms, pushrods, and other irreplaceable parts went to the local engine shop for a good cleaning. I had them hone out the bore, and I bought bearings and rings from them as well. I think I spent under $200 for all that work, then I just put it all back together. The engine ran fine, but I always had problems with the carb. The stupid electronic choke on those old Hitachi's were a joke. However, it was my reliable daily driver for another two years or so. I finally sold it to a local kid who took it up to Washington I think. EA81's were great motors if they only would have made a EFI kit for them . . .

I contacted the seller again, pressing him about the interior and reason for the salvage title. He admited to swapping the interior out with another Outback, so that at least explaind the color combo mismatch, but he wouldn't elaborate on why the vehicle was given the "reconstructed" title. BUYER BEWARE!

I contacted the seller, he wrote back that white is the original color, and the car has not been repainted. I have my doubts. The whole thing smells fishy to me. I'm betting that this is a flood car that had the interior replaced with one from a salvaged / totaled vehicle.

It's tough to tell on this one. The strut towers and firewall look to be white, but a slightly different shade. I'm thinking this was a two tone car, but even then, I didn't think they offered up Black Leather with any of the lighter colored paint jobs. It could be something else, but I'm still suspicious. I was hoping to find someone to confirm or deny the availability of Black Leather with the White paint in '06. If it was available, this is the only specimen I've ever seen.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2006-Subaru-Legacy-Outback-NO-RESERVE_W0QQitemZ320160951688QQihZ011QQcategoryZ31869QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem The auction description states "black two tone leather" but that doesn't really mean anything. It's just that I was looking for a white outback with a dark interior, but they never offered that color combo (that I know of). All of the all white (not two tone) exterior cars came with either a tan leather or a "taupe" cloth interior. Makes me suspicious of this car, exactly how extensive was the damage that it required a complete repaint?

http://ebay.carad.com/viewItem/viewAllPhotos.cfm?listing=9141327&template=48 When did Subaru make a White Outback with a Black Leather option? Was this an actual option for 2006, or is this a repaint? It does state that this vehicle has a "reconstructed" title.

http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductDetail.aspx?mfrcode=MCQ&mfrpartnumber=ES2187R&parttype=81&ptset=A is what you need. They are the same for either side, and they are fairly easy to change.

Thanks for all the reply's. All good stuff to look for. Fluids are a no brainer, the head gasket issue and water pump are good too. Out here in CA the cars dont usually have problems with the rust many people experience in the East, so that makes body work a little less likely problem. I agree that the price is to high, but for a running / driving car that can pass smog and has electronics that work you're looking at around 2500 - 3000 range out here, even if it has high miles. I didn't make it out to test drive it today (got a sick baby at home ) but I should be able to go look tomorrow. I'll keep you posted.

Im going out tomorrow to look at this car: http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.jsp?car_id=203668046&dealer_id=909739&car_year=1998&model=&num_records=100&make2=&start_year=1981&keywordsfyc=&engine=&keywordsrep=&certified=&body_code=0&fuel=&search_type=both&distance=50&make=SUB&color=&min_price=&drive=&default_sort=priceDESC&max_mileage=&style_flag=1&sort_type=yearASC&address=92346&advanced=&end_year=2007&doors=&transmission=&max_price=&cardist=25 I've had about 8 suburaru's over the years, but the newest one was an '86 GL-10 (still have it, hehe). I really don't have a whole lot of experience with the newer vehicles, so I'm looking for a little advice here. What problems should I look for in a '98 Outback with 200,000 + miles on it? TIA! Bish

Well, I haven't messed with it for a while, but I need to drive it tomorrow so I went out to start it up today and when I turned the key. . . nothing. Not even a click. Turns out the inside light got left on and the battery was totaly dead. Anyway, I got a new battery in it (got to love that free Wal-Mart replacement policy) and I squirted some starter fluid in the carb and she fired right up and ran perfect. Well, maybe not perfect, but just as good as normal. I went down to the gas station and filled her up and she started normally afterwards. Back to GD's question, I did open the choke housing and checked the thermostat spring thing with the hook on the end and it looked brand new. So that's not the problem with the cold start. I'll have to check and see how it runs tomorrow in the morning when its really cold outside. That will be the test to see if whatever was causing the choke to be stuck open is randomly fixed or not. Now. . . did I remember to screw the choke housing all the way closed or not??? I guess I'll find out in the morning

I recently swaped out a half shaft from Kragen myself. It clicks pretty bad and I'll probably end up replacing it soon. It's just the cheap crap that they sell from Kragen, but hey, you can't beat $59.00 for a half shaft!

Allright, I've looked around the site quite a bit, but I can't find any info that pertains specifically to this carb: Here some pics of the carb in it's current state: http://www.iehardcore.com/pics/100_2273.jpg http://www.iehardcore.com/pics/100_2274.jpg http://www.iehardcore.com/pics/100_2275.jpg These are High Res pics so dial up users beware! Also, please note that in these pics the thermostat cover is loose because I was checking to make sure the choke wasn't hung up on something in there. It looks like brand new inside. Now for the story, sorry if it's long. This carb is probably off of a 1980, but it's really anybody's guess at this point. This car has parts from just about every type of ea-81 around. Anyway, I had this carb rebuilt about 2 years ago and it ran fine for a little while (about 3 months), and then it had a problem where the choke would not open up. So. . . it would start right up and drive for about 5 minutes and then die. You would have to get out and stick a rock or something in the choke to hold it open to continue (I'm sure everyone has had that problem before, pretty common really). It turns out that for whatever reason I wasn't getting any voltage to the choke and if you look at the pictures you can see the patchwork I did on the heater lead line. Anyway, that worked for a long time, but the other day my wife went out to move the car and she calls me and says it wont start. Sure enough, when I got home the car would start fine, but as soon as you take your foot off the gas it would immediatly stall. Vacuume leak right? Wrong. I couldn't find a single leak so I took the air cleaner off and the choke is right there, stuck wide open, and it couldn't even be forced closed. I fooled around with it for a while and I found that by opening the throttle ALL THE WAY the choke could be moved by hand and it could be closed. The car would then start and run, but as soon as I depressed the accelerator it opened the choke 100% and the car would die. So, I can run the car by basically cramming my foot all the way on the gas to get it started, and keep it running by playing a game of pumping the pedal to keep the RPM's up until its hot, but even then it's running like crap. I've checked all the springs and they are all in good shape, looks like they replaced most of them during the rebuild. The linkage all looks correct to me and like I said the car runs and idles fine if I manually open the throttle all the way and then manually close the choke before starting it. . . but as soon as I hit the gas it dies! This is a totaly new problem for me and any help would be much appreciated!

Excellent, Thanks GD You always come through when I'm in a pinch. I'll check it out this weekend and I've got plenty of carb cleaner so I should be good I'll let you know how it goes.