Fairtax4me

Gary covered it well. The one part Gary left out of the list is the Water Pump. I believe he meant to say water pump instead of sprocket. Just keep an eye on the oil level, and it should be fine until the first timing belt interval.

Yep, it'll fit and work the same. Just leave the plastic dust plugs in the cooler fittings to keep crud out of there.

Only time will tell, but its generally never a good idea to use copper sealant on head gaskets.

Automagic, 250k+. Only real problem is torque bind and that's pretty easily repairable. Manual 175-225k depending on fluid changes and who drove it. Some go longer with good maintenance and fluid changes. Most will have worn synchros due to poor shifting habits, and many will have the mainshaft ball bearing start making noise by 200k. Usually last 15-25k miles after that and will start popping out of gear.

My dad lives in Great Falls. He used to take all of his cars to the station on the corner of rt 7 and Baron Cameron ave, but the mechanic there just opened his own place somewhere down near Stafford. I'm not sure of any Subaru specific repair shops in that area. I did see a shop over in Sterling that did Imports, but I don't remember the name off hand. IIRC it was on Sterling Blvd.

The cap is a common failure. They fail over time and once cracked/bent it will not hold for long. There are aftermarket replacements available. They changed the design later to include a small filter so the replacement cap is different, but it fits the earlier pumps. If you search here you can find a link. Did you get a sample of fuel from the tank to see what color it was?

Search for starter contact replacement or something like that. There is a set of copper contacts in the solenoid that wear out and cause this problem. Easy to replace and only cost about $15-$20 for a whole kit.

That's the cooling system pressure tank on the turbos. The coolant coming from the turbo is too hot to run straight into the radiator, it would degrade the plastic end tank on the radiator. So they run it to a separate tank to mix with other coolant first. Two ways to fix that. 1. Replace it. 2. Remove and disassemble the tank. Use a wire brush on a bench grinder to clean off all of the rust. Prep it with etching primer, and paint with high temp engine paint.

Got shop air? 100 psi? You can rent a leakdown tester and find out for sure. Only sure fire way to test bad head gaskets. Many pass the HC fluid test even with bubbles gushing coolant out of the overflow. Bottom radiator hose cold isn't a huge deal since that's the return from the radiator, but it should warm up with the engine at normal operating temp while idling. Some coolant will push out of the radiator when the engine is running. That's normal since there is a pressure difference as the water pump pushes fluid through the system. Also as the engine warms coolant will push out into the overflow. If the overflow is too full it will spill out. Any air in the system will prevent that coolant from being drawn back in as the system cools. Top off the radiator before starting the engine in the morning, put the cap on and let it warm to normal operating temp (should only take 10-15 minutesnor so) Keep the hood closed to help it warm up faster. Then shut it off and let it cool. An hour or so with the hood up is fine. Make note of the fluid level in the overflow. Open the radiator and top off coolant as necessary. Then start it again and let it run to normal operating temp. This should help work any air bubbles out of the system.

Got my box of brake stuff today. Also got an email the front stainless hoses were back in stock so I ordered a set after checking out the rear hoses. Plain rubber brake hoses for an Outback are about 2" longer than the regular L Legacy brake hoses. The ones I got are made by Centric and were only about $10 each! Compare that to $28 each for Wearever/ Tru-Torque from Advance, and they look like the same part! So if you need new hoses for a lifted rig, Rockauto has a good economical option if you can plan ahead and wait a few days for parts. The stainless hoses: The Outback stainless hoses appear to be the same length (or pretty close) as the Outback rubber hoses. They should work very well in my case. These seem to be fairly well built, they're DOT compliant, and the price is very good compared to other sets I've seen. Less than $90 from rockauto to do all 4 corners. I just slapped the pads on the front today because they were getting close to the squeal tabs. Gonna try to put the stainless hoses on next week after the front set comes in. I will update on whether they actually improve pedal feel, or just look flashy. One thing I do like is they have a clear vinyl covering over the braiding which should keep dirt out and keep them looking pretty for a while.

Broken PCV hoses means other broken hoses as well. Did you replace the PCV valve? Codes make me think vacuum leak, or the throttle body is caked up with carbon sludge and really needs a cleaning. Seafoam it! If nothing else, its fun!

Not many cars have a drain plug on the fuel tank. How many pumps have been put in over what length of time? Where do they normally get fuel? Autozone pumps don't have the best reliability but cruddy fuel will kill even a good quality pump in no time. Dark grey crud might be a collapsed fuel hose. 01 has the fuel pump cap problem, but you should still get SOME fuel at the engine. Maybe it fell off completely?

Heat damage to the center differential definitely warrants replacing the unit. The transfer gears maybe didnt NEED to be replaced but with the proximity to a failed bearing there is a good chance of accelerated wear on the gear teeth, and the transfer shaft bearings could fail soon after as well.

DOHC 2.5 engine? TPS should have: Red : ECU ground White : Signal voltage Black : Reference, 5V The only one you need to really be concerned with is the white wire. Check for 0.5v with key On, engine Off, throttle closed. 4.5v at wide open. Ground the meter to engine ground or battery -. You're checking voltage difference between the pins. That doesn't directly tell you what you need to know, though if those numbers are correct, it means the TPS is out of adjustment.

Doesn't matter for a brushless wash. Only need to remove it if the wash has brushes. They can get tangled up and rip the whole thing (mount and all) off the roof. This can also damage the roof.

Many aftermarket water pumps are supplied with cheap junk paper gaskets. The Aisin water pump comes with a quality rubber coated gasket that is equivalent to OE Subaru. Replace the cam cap o-rings. One on the front drivers side behind the cam support, and one on the rear passenger side. They are the same o-ring. Also get the o-ring for the oil filler tube. When you remove the oil pump, check the screws on the backing plate.

Outback is big and heavy with a high COG. Put a lift kit on it, and have some off-road fun instead. Find a cheap Legacy sedan. It'll be easier to lower, and less weight to haul around the track.

Ah! I see. Id just well it with the trans. Pretty unlikely you'll ever need it and they take up a LOT of space on the shelf.

Bad connection somewhere. Often a drained battery (that's still good) can rebound after sitting. It will still need a thorough charge, but that fact that it started the car says the battery is in decent shape. Check the ground cable at each end. Check the alternator output lead where it meets the fuse box. Check the lead that runs from the battery positive to bottom of the fuse box. Those may attach to the same lug under the box, I don't remember exactly.

Have seen a whole ONE reported Subaru torque converter failure here. Haven't ever heard of one otherwise. What symptoms do you have that make you suspect the TC is bad?

Yeah that's lookin kinda toasty. Are those single side friction plates or double side?

Pull it apart and measure the clutches. Maybe you can match them up to a stronger set. With the higher line pressure would you need to re-calibrate one of the spool valves to prevent early engagement of the high clutch? (Maybe that's part of the shift kit?)

There's always the "RTV all around the roof and pull the fuse" method.

The tires may need to be balanced. Sometimes the balance weights fling off. Its also possible the tire shop used the wrong kind of weights, which would cause them to fall off. Another thing to check if the car ever goes on dirt or gravel roads is check the inside of the wheel for dried on mud.

Is the seal on the glass? There are online sources for many cut-to-fit style seals. If you can get a piece of it removed and compare the cross-section to other seals you may be able to find a match.