powderhound

Personally I would avoid the 2.5l engines like the plague. If you want an outback the only one I would consider is a 96 5sp. For absolute dead pan reliablity you cannot beat first gen legacys (90-94). As for clutches that may be true but its still cheaper to fix than an auto. Plus I like the control in the snow and hills affored by a manual. Personally I have 124K on my original clutch and many people on this board have run their's even farther. I know Mattocs got 190K out of his. Side note: Do you consider albany up-state? I would think that's more mid-state. My sister use to live in Norwich and that was mid-state. Now she lives in Potsdam...now that's UP-state.

The car has a timing belt but is non-interference. As for the clutch...who knows...if that's 160K on the highway it could well have another 100K left. 1300 seems fair for one of the most indestructible cars ever built.

I fixed the whistling by putting a thin strip of duct tape several layers thick along the top of the window. Works well...might not be the most cosmetically appealing fix but for quick, easy, cheap, and effective it can't be beat.

85Sub4WD Fuel injectors were replaced by the dealer...one of them twice on seperate occassions. AS for clutch judder the car has 75K on it...do you think its had a clutch replaced...NO! Clearly you have not owned a newer subaru. Judder is a "FEATURE" direct from the factory. Maybe you stopped learning to read in fifth grade. The fact that they used sub par materials and would require a recall is reason enough to doubt any future endeavors. Also you live in NC...what do they use salt maybe twice a year there...get real. Also I like how you've owned the same soob for longer than you've been alive...neat trick.

You should post it on www.subaruhighmileageclub.com. At last look they still needed and entry for 400K+. Way to go. I can only hope my 98 makes it half that far.

IMO GM's "garbage culture" has already infiltrated FHI and Subaru. This weekend my parents traded their 01 OBW w/ 75K for an 05 CR-V. Hopefully this Honda won't go through three fuel injectors, experience severe clutch judder (God Honda makes a SMOOTH linkage), have a recall for the rear subframe rusting out, leak fuel, oil, or coolant. Sorry SOA you just don't cut it anymore and have lost another long time faithful customer. It is indeed a sad day. BTW they did test drive the 05 OBW and were not impressed at all.

Our 2001 OBW developed these same symptoms during the last cold snap. We've had it with this POS and are trading it in this weekend. Rav4 or CRV...NOT another Subaru. Sorry SOA but we've really lost all confidence in your ability to build a quality product and back it up when it's worthless like this one. First Gen Legacys only from now on.

Intresting story. The coldest air temp I have ever experienced was in Big Sky, MT during the first week of Jan 1997. It snowed four feet in four days and on the fith day the front came through and it was -50F. Not a single car in the parking lot started. All the Subarus had cracks and missing chunks on the belts. We took the battery inside and we're eventually able to get it jump started late in the afternoon. I remember driving to Bozeman and my dad changing the belts outside in the NAPA parking lot. That was cold. Northern Minnesota hit -54F during this last blast.

I find it hard to believe a clutch could go bad in 27K. Unless it was defective from the factory. Even so if you're not experiencing drivability issues I would think scam. Take it to an independent shop and get a second opinion. Then call the better business bureau.

Mobil 1 and puralator filters. I recently switched to those filters and have been VERY impressed. For winter around the cities in a new car I would use 0W-30. If you don't mind me asking...from which dealer did you purchase and how much? We usually go to White Bear Acura Subaru but I personally hate them.

If the engine is knocking I would try a higher octane fuel. It is after all an anti-knock rating.

The only problem is the stupid ethanol. Minnesota is talking about mandating 20%. No thanks. How many farm subsidies do we need? If your concerned add some seafoam...it is the ultimate fuel stabilizer.

Yes negative 25 Fahrenheit! I was watching the morning news show from new york and they we're going on and on about how cold it was and it was like +8F. I guess like most things cold is relative. It's not as bad as you think esp. if there's no wind and the sun is out. The hardest thing is riding my bike to class causes me to breathe hard and that can hurt. You cough up some nice things from the depths of your lungs though. Bundle up.

I think Setright was right as it has warmed to +10F today and the slipping is gone. I'll be going to the UP this weekend for some lake effect pow pow and will take note of the clutch performance in colder weather. Thanks for all your input.

I still have the original battery in my 98. It has been around -15F to -20F the last couple mornings and it strained to start. It was about +10F today and it started just fine. I refuse to buy a new batt until it dies. I'm guessing your oil is too thick. I have a custom blend of mobil 1 that is about 2.5W-30 and it is too thick at -20F.

I haven't looked at an 05 dipstick but I assume it is the same as they have always been. If you check the oil when it is hot it should be above the notch. There is a hole to indicate the proper level when hot. I like 5W-30 Mobil 1. Tire pressure?--whatever you like.

Yes it is a mechanical cable acctuated clutch. It does need to be adjusted. After the trip to Utah the clutch is disengaging too near the top of the pedal stroke for my liking. Guess I'll wait for it to warm up next week as it is -6F right now. Once again I think Setright has nailed it though. I guess with my harsh driving style I can't believe the clutch has lasted this long. Why do I ever doubt you Suby? What say we...another 50K? I think so. Setright, Why does the slipping occur in the highest gears first? It seems to me the clutch is under more stress in lower gears.

Thanks. Yes it is the original clutch. Along with the original battery that has been cranking hard at -15 the last couple days. I don't have that problem in fifth...yet. Last night I observed the problem again. It is VERY weird. In fourth gear around 2700 or 2800 if I give it gas the tach jumps to 3100 and stalls there while I wait for the mph to catch up...just like a clutch slipping. BUT this only happens the first time I'm in fourth! When it happened I slowed down and tried to repeat it but the the tach and mph both increased in a linear fashion and I couldn't get it to happenn again. WTF I thought. Could this just be a phenomenon of the cold weather? The clutch seems good as it still hooks up strong under load in 1st and 2nd. Any ideas?

Recently I've noticed that my clutch is slipping in fourth gear. It only happens around 2800 rpm and only when cold. I'm still not convinced this is what is happening as I've only observed it twice. Q: Is it likely to only slip at specific rpms? And only when cold. It appears the problem goes away after 10 mins of driving. I realize at 122K I'm on borrowed time but I drive this car 14 hours round trip to Michigan every weekend and don't need to be stranded. How long do I have if this is indeed the start of failure? PS. Just drove her 3000+ miles to salt lake and back including 8 trips up Big Cottonwood with no problem. I will agree with Setright though as it feels like my redline NS is already shot. TIA.

Tail out under power is what winter driving is all about. Now if we only had some snow. It was 50 here on Dec 30 while the had enough snow for snowmen in Mexico. WTF!

That much oil is probably one or more of the infamous cam seals. Have the t-belt replaced and all the seals. Approx $700?

Thanks setright. So the tranny would have more of a low rumble at idle? And really not a problem until it starts falling out of gear? I've always wanted to have a bungee cord attatched to the glove box to hold fifth gear. BTW, I finally put some Redline NS in last night and now it goes into 2nd smooth as silk.

How can you tell the rumbling/rattling of the tranny from that of the heat shields? I've always assumed it was my heat shields making noise.

My OEM battery is six years old and my dad has a bet with me that I won't make it through the winter. Thanks for reaffiming my belief that it will.

Check the power steering fluid level.