Tinkerers

FYI..... We have a 2000 Outback wagon and recently couldn't open the rear hatch. It was as if the door was locked. When we pulled on the latch, there was nothing catching there. It turned out to be; the factory rubber mat was stuck in the door. The dealer found it and of course, I looked bad ! They say this happens all the time. So, if your hatch won't open, check the floor mat, to make sure it's not stuck in there. Paul

Looks like I need to replace some or all of those leaky oil seals. Is there a web site that might offer instructions on how to replace this stuff? Thanks, Paul

Ok, what could be causing oil leaks in a 2000 Outback with 113,000 miles ? The car has always been a little leaky, but seems worse lately. Underneath, everything is covered with oil, can't tell where leak is. Thanks, Paul

We had a similar noise on our 2000 Outback and it would only make noise when turning to the right. It turned out to be a rubber/plastic guard inside the wheel well. We just broke it off and the sound is gone. The guard was actually rubbing against the tire. We found it by having someone drive slow & turn and the other person sticking their head in the wheel well to see what was going on. Paul

Hi, We have a 2000 Outback, purchased brand new. Currently have 110,000 miles on it and is still running strong. My wife drives mostly highway with it. Haven't had any trouble at all. We've replaced usual stuff like brake pads once and tires once. Just had the timing belt done. We change oil/filter every 4,000 miles. Is there anything else I should expect to replace soon. I want to make sure my wife doesn't break down on the side of the road. How many miles will this car go, before having problems ? Thanks for any help ! Paul

Hi, Our dealer did a level 3 service and recommended we replace the radiator in the near future. It doesn't leak at all. Apparently, there is lots of bugs and crud that flew into the front and is stuck in there. I never heard of replacing a radiator because of this. Does someone make some type of chemical that would dissolve this and save me the $150 for the new radiator. BTW, temp runs fine in the car (gauge centered) except when idling with A/C on in heavy traffic, it runs about 3/4 way on gauge. It didn't use to do this, but it is still not in the red yet. Thanks for any help, Paul

Hi, The dealer just replaced our timing belt and the car has been pinging ever since. Seems to only happen under heavy load. Any ideas ? Thanks, Paul

We also have a 2000 Outback and for the most part it is a very good car. It now has 100,000 miles and we bought it new. I did the front & rear brake pads around 75,000. I've changed the fuel filter once, put on 4 new tires and change the oil every 4,000 miles. The only complaint I have is this, it leaks a little oil. We're due to have the timing belt replaced, so maybe they can fix the oil leak then. Hope this helps ! Paul

Thanks for the advice folks. We'll bring it in to get a 2nd opinion !

Hi, I brought our 2000 Outback in for an oil change and the mechanic noticed alot of play in the front end (drivers side). He said we need to have the entire rack and pinion replaced. The car has 95,000 miles and is driven mostly highway. Is the something I should consider replacing myself ? The dealer wants $650 (parts & labor) to do the job . They have to get the rack and pinion assembly from the Subaru dealer. I found the rack & pinion from Rock Auto for about $400, after returning the core (god knows how much shipping costs). Is there a cheaper place to get this part and is it really hard to change ? Thanks for any help ! Paul