CaptEditor

I'd love to but I'm taking a summer course! :-\

hahahaha

pics! I want to do this on my Outback but I don't think my wife is thriled about it

You can also test your ignition coil with a multimeter. I don't have the specs near me right now.

After installing the lift you will need to get a suspension alignment. After installing King Springs and 1/2 inch spacers, I was able to align the suspension with no problems. I have run 215/65R16 General Grabbers which are 27.5 inch diameter new and they didn't hurt my gearing enough to not be worth it. 28's might cause some rubbing issues. -Kevin

If you are sure the suspension is safe to drive on, put the new rims and tires on and inspect them weekly for odd wear. Also if that steering wheel shake goes away it's a sure sign that the old wheels/tires were definitely faulty. I'd still get an alignment asap, though.

Definitely inspect the suspension, but how old is the tire? The last 4 on the DOT number will state the week and year that the tire was manufactured. If the tire is older than 2000 it will only have 3 digits at the end of the DOT. If the tire is over 6 years old I would not use it! DOT should be XXXX XXXX XXXX or XXXX XXXX XXX if there are only 8 digits on the side of the tire then look at the other side of the tire. It should have the full 11 or 12 digits on the other side. Also, Is the rim bent? -Kevin

Snow, freezing rain, snow, now heavy rain to make it a big mess! had to dig out the turn around spot: Our landlords car (which we dug out): The road out is down there... Car all iced up from driving in freezing rain between snow storms: No action shots since my wife didn't want to get out and tramp through the snow to get shots going town the driveway and I can't blame her! The roads were terrible the last two days. 25 miles of thick snowpacked and rutted roads with ice potholes everywhere! -Kevin

I think the issue is time, money, and distance for most of us... :-/

I have some good pics from BEFORE I lifted my outback but no wheeling shots from after I lifted it! It must be because I only took pics when I got stuck but with the lift I haven't gotten stuck. I'd wheel it harder but it's my daily driver and my only vehicle at that. haha, I'm glad NASIOC is recognizing some lifted vehicles for a change!

Moscow, ID!

I caught the front tire on the edge of the road and it just sucked me in.... I was determined that I could get out on my own, but a neighbor stopped so we used my towstrap. I had to get to work anyways!

I put mine in the ditch yesterday morning after 15 inches of snow... everyone's fine as is the car. I'll have my wife email the embarrassing pics off her phone so I can share. :-p More snow is on the way! it's going to be a snowy winter!

Harold is our 2004 Legacy Outback: -Kevin

Harold, my wagon. Pearl, my teardrop trailer. Me, my Wife, Blue, and Cowgirl!

haha, that would look so sily with the lift and wouldn't help me down the forest roads!

I was using this calculator: http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalcold.html Plus the estimation of my observed speed verses my recorded speed on a speed monitor sign to get my 7% figure. Smaller tires should spin faster, recording more revolutions (or miles) over a set distance and a higher speed on the speedometer. This should require a reduction in the recorded odometer trip meter to match the actual miles driven. Larger tires should spin slower, recording fewer revolutions (or miles) over a set distance and a lower speed on the speedometer. This should require an increase in the recorded odometer trip meter to match the actual miles driven. So I think you are right, hankosolder2. So the stock 2004 Legacy tire size is 205/55R16 and the stock 2004 Outback itire size is 225/60R16 This is a speedometer difference of 7% My tires are 215/65R16, giving me a difference from the stock Legacy tires of 8.5% My calculations show that this is approximately the difference I am noticing on my speedometer. 38mph * 0.915 = 34.77 mph This is really bad new for me. My mileage is far worse than I thought. 266 miles / 14 gallons = 19 mpg Adjusted to my 8.5% reduction in the odometer reading: (266*0.915)/14 = 17.39 mpg!! I will have to record my mileage over the next few weeks/months to get a new estimate. :banghead:

My initial post stated unadjusted MPG. Would it be correct to adjust my MPG this way: speedo is 7% fast so multiply my odometer trip reading by 1.07 then divide it by the gallons consumed

Does anyone else have an innacurate speedometer? My speedometer seems to be about 7% faster than the sign I drive by every day which posts your speed. If I drive appx. 37.5 mph, the sign says I am going 35 mph. I have driven past other identical signs on other roads in my county and the signs seem to be accurate with each other. I am assuming that they are in fact accurate in recording speed. I do understand that my tires are an oversize from stock, however they should only affect my speedo by 1.4%, and my speedo was innacurate with my original Bridgestone Potenzas. This would make sense if Subaru used the same speedometer as the Legacy and never adjusted it for the increased tire size. I have heard that this may be true for the 2000-2004 Outbacks Please let me know if there are any flaws in my thinking or math! I did use a tire calculator to help me find some numbers: http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html My calculated mpg: 267/14 = 19 Adjusted odo reading by 1.4% (267*1.014)/14 = 19.34 Adjusted odo reading by 7% (267*1.07)/14 = 20.41 This could be a fairly significant factor in my calculated mpg being so low. I would love to get a GPS and compare my odometer reading on a tank to the GPS recorded distance. Anyone have experience with the accuracy of the GPS units? Am I digging too deep into this? -Kevin

You mean to hold the box in one place? Have you considered velcro?

I'll start us off! 1. City: 16-19 Highway: 19-23 Towing 90% Highway: 19-20 2. 2004 Outback Wagon 3. SOHC coming up on 60k miles 4. Automatic (4EAT) 5. Castrol Syntec 5w30, Redline 75W90 Synthetic Diff Oils, Mobile 1 Synthetic ATF 6. No modifications under the hood 7. 215/65R16 General Grabber AT2's 8. Newly Installed King Springs (hae not recorded MPG with them yet) 9. I have a stock LSD in the rear. I get gas at several different stations all of which contain up to 10% ethanol. I also have NGK single electrode iridium spark plugs, properly gapped, with original plug wires. My towing mpg is barely effected because the trailer is aerodynamic and only 750lbs dry. I am very curious what difference slimmer mirrors would make on my mileage. I love the large viewing area especially for towing, but they certainly drag a lot in the wind! -Kevin

I have been a bit dissapointed with my mpg and I am curious as to what other 2.5 owners are getting. Please specify as much as you can: mpg averages for City, Highway, and/or a general mix of the two Model and year SOHC or DOHC, mileage of engine, turbo or non Automatic or Manual Transmission Fluids in engine, diffs, tranny, etc. any Intake, Engine, or Exhaust Modifications Tire size and type Suspension lifts/lowering and/or aerodynamic changes (such as mirrors, roof racks, light bars, bumpers, valences, etc.) Any other factors you feel are relevant Let's avoid pictures unless it is to show aerodynamic modifications or hard items to describe. Keep it on topic for other discussions use PM or a new thread!

I am looking forward to the new webpage! I am curious if you have considered making 1/2 inch or 3/4 inch leveling spacers for the rear struts for those of us who tow with our 2000+ Outbacks (or other models) I recently installed King Springs for the increased stiffness and higher ride height. The springs provided a 1.5 inch lift. A small strut spacer would be great for King Spring owners that want a little more with or without a body lift as well.

I have no idea on the technical differences between the filters, however, the larger filter should cross reference with Fram's PH3593 Subaru seems to have switched to the smaller filters starting around 2005 and the listings for older models in the filter guides now show the smaller filter as well. Before trying other filters that aren't recommended in a filter guide, make sure that they have the same diameter O-ring to ensure a proper seal. Also be sure that the filter threads properly.

I have no experience with the vri's, but I had the hri's on my VW. They were an ok tire in dry and wet, but don't last very well. That shop doesn't know what they are doing. The hri's are not a directional tire. They are assymetric. There is a reason why the manufacturere labeled one as 'outside' and that tire shop clearly does not know how to follow instructions.