rweddy

I got these for my car and love them. They are wearing great and since it is no name brand I was able to talk them down in price. http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/findTireDetail.do?rcz=80104&rc=CODINT&mk=SUBARU&yr=1996&cs=205&dVeh=dVeh&pc=15673&rd=15&vid=006485&ar=70

I totally agree, 2000 is way to much and if they do not know about this issue they are not a shop that specializes in Subarus. If you fix the car with updated HG you will be fine for another 100k.

That is a great call, there is a 2wd Toyota truck at a dealership in Colorado with over 300,000 miles. About the AWD cut off, the difference in gas mileage between an AWD legacy and a 2wd legacy is nominal, 1 or 2 mpg at best. I would not think it to be worth a cut off switch or fuse.

They might be bigger, but I would go with a accord or camry if you need size. I have never seen any American sedan even with a 3.8 go 200k or over, esp. with orginal motor. American cars tend to fall apart at 100k.

I would say Subaru, Honda and Toyota are the best. SAAB?? Funny you should say that everyone I know who has had one loves them but say they are in the shop a lot. My sister in law was going to buy one but everyone shop she talked to said to stay away unless she wanted a Saab-story.

I agree on the synthetic, I get better mpg since I switched.

That is the truth!! My brother has 220k on his loyale, and instead of changing the oil, he just keeps adding it in!

I agree, I run mobil one and change both oil and filter every 5k.

There will be a plug on the front of the car, usually right around the license plate area, under the front of the car.

The HG issue is a shoot in the bucket, my buddies 97 has 160k no issues, my father in laws 03 with 36k just blew the HG. HG failure is over publicized here on this list, somewhere in the 10-20% failure range.

The only year of a legacy outback is the 96 5sp, the auto got the 2.5. I have had both and like the outback best, ride, looks, options, etc. But since you are set on the 2.2, you might have a hard time finding one since you can only get a 96. This being said you might want to go drive both. 96 are getting hard to find, especially without tons of mileage. If you do fall in love with the outback, the 2.5 is not such a terrible motor.

You say you have the cold weather package, so do you plug in the car at night? The cold weather package by itself does not help the car warm up faster, it give you heated seats, mirrors, windshield, and block heater. But if you do not plug it in it will not help the car.

This is because of the suction of the system, when the fluid gets low, most is draw into the brake lines and the rubber will be sucked down when it is low, fyi. But like everyone has said, check you fluid and bulbs first.

http://www.superrupair.com/index.htm

There are several Great shops in colorado. S-Wings http://www.s-wingsstuff.com/ Roos only http://www.roosonly.com/ Stricly http://www.strictlyauto.com/ I would say from my experience S-Wings is one of the best, but all of these are great shops.

I would go with a CCR if you plan on keeping the car. And the ccr 2.5 they use updated HG so this should not be an issue either. Converting to a 2.2 would add costs to the project.

Yep MT-90 will trash your front gears if you run it. This is what Redline tech support told me. In your Subaru transaxle where the GL-5 gear lube is called for I would recommend the 75W90NS, I would expect the shiftability to be close to the MT-90. The NS fluids have no friction modifier so are not to slippery for the synchros the problem with most GL-5 gear oils. The 75W90 would be suitable for the rear differential.

If you are looking at the front it is on the right side.

Only models with the cold weather package have the switches. This also gives you heated side mirrors, and block heater. In 97 subaru also added heated windshield. Like others have said, I would check the fuse first.

It is not the epidemic that you see from this board. I have several friends and family who have lots of miles, one with over 200k, on their original headgaskets. There are issues but it has lots to do with climate, maintance, luck :rolleyes:etc. But it is not just from Phase I btw, my father-in-laws 03 just had them replaced at 35k.

Have you ever owned one? I have owned 5 and they are not as indestructible as legend holds. Landcruisers yes, the trucks no. Not taking anything away from them, they are great trucks but a Subaru is just as reliable and parts are way cheaper. I would much rather change out a timing belt than a timing chain on a 22r or 22re.

Are there no independent shops in the area that specialize in Subaru? Are you mechanically inclined? Timing belt change is pretty easy on Subaru's.

This is preventive maintance, wait until you need to change the timing chain in your Toyota truck. The timing chain needs to be replaced at 100-120k and if you have the dealership do it, you will shell out $2500. Unless your timing guides (plastic) has worn through then your block is toast. Toyotas are great vehicles but they also have their quirks just like Subaru and I do not consider a $15 dollar seal to be a major issue imo.

You consider a front camkshaft seal to be a major problem?