Seand

Unfortunately the aerosol can of belt dressing I bought did not have the warning about serpentine belts I only found out not to use it by looking on the Internet well AFTER I had sprayed the junk on my belts!! Live and learn, I always say!

I don't think I have a bearing problem as eveything goes nice and quiet and smooth when the belts are wet. This belt dressing was very sticky and I'm guessing the extra friction is cauing the very "dry" noise I'm getting - that is, unitl I wet it down. I am a bit concerned about the crank pully runout, though. I think that's where the original chirping was coming from. I should just put a wrench on it to see if it's loose at all. If it's tight, are there any other reasons for runout?

UPDATE It's been seven months since my last post on the speedo issue. Ever since the moment I topped up the tranny oil, the speedo has not acted up! Not sure if it's a coincidence but I'm happy!! Sean

2004 Outback, 100,000 km. I've had a "chirpy" belt for the past number of weeks. It would be there on startup but would disappear after running for a short while. In the past, I'd used belt dressing with great success on my older vehicles that had v belts. After putting this sticky cr@p on my belts, I read that it should not be used on serpentine belts - I know now why!!! This AM on our way to work, my wife called me to say that the car is making a lot of noise. I pulled over and waited for her to catch up to me. She came alongside and the darn thing sounded like it was dying. What a racket!! Squeaking, ticking, whining - you name it!!! My first thought was that a bearing was gone in either the AC, the alternator or tensioner. :eek: I asked her for her water bottle and proceeded to pour it down over the belts. Instant silence and smooth running - phew!! (I was getting worried about chewed bearings and such) My questions are "Is there a way to clean the belts and pulleys without having to pull them off? If so, what should I use to clean them - are there any "belt safe" cleaners/lubricants? There also seems to be a bit of runout on the main pulley. Should there be any here at all or should it run dead on? Thanks in advance, Sean

Thanks Grossgary: I'm certainly not one who takes comfort in shelling out large sums of money for little work and there certainly are a lot of very simple things in this list. This is my fourth Subaru (all three previous were pre '93) and I used to tinker with them as required. This were much simpler and cheaper back then!! I'm guessing I will embark upon my own "discount 96000km check" and replace the fluids myself, swap out the plugs, check the PVC etc. Might bring the vehicle in for a free brake check at a local garage just to get an assessment. For starters - what are the best replacement plugs - OEM or otherwise? 2004 Outback, 2.5l, standard trans. Cheers, Sean

I bought a 2004 Outback last year with just over 84,000km on the clock. It;s now due for its 96,000km check and I'm wondering what people's opinions are on this service. A lot of it's pretty basic stuff. Here's the message I received from the dealer: This is a major check which takes 5.5 hours and is $549.95.It is basically an overall check of your vehicle and includes: -replace engine oil and filter -inspect and adjust all fluid levels -inspect and adjust tire pressures -inspect all operations of all lights, wipers and washers -inspect and adjust drive belt tension -inspect axle boot condition -lubricate all latches, hinges, and locks -rotate tires and inspect for wear -ROAD TEST VEHICLE -inspect air filter and cabin filter and replace both if necessary -service and lub front and rear brakes -inspect all steering and suspension components -inspect and service battery cables and terminals -lub weather stripping -reset management system -service front and rear brakes and parking brake -replace engine coolant -replace spark plugs -inspect and replace PCV valve if necessary -inspect all hydraulic brake and clutch lines -replace brake fluid -inspect accessory drive belt -inspect all emissions related hoses and connections -replace auto transmissions fluids

There are no visible leaks but the dealer did tear the tranny apart a while back - I wonder if they never fully topped it up when they finished the job??? It'll be interesting to see if there is any change in the shifting now that the oil is at the right level?? I'll keep a close eye to odo and speedo now to see if they jive with one another. In the meantime, I've got lots of warranty left so there's no big rush to bring it in!! Cheers and thanks, Sean

So is there any rationale for how low tranny oil (on a 2004 OBW with a 5 spd) may affect the speedo? Any at all?

Checking the tranny oil certainly wasn't a waste of time for me - seeing it was low!!! I'm guessing a bad VSS would blow a code - would it not? I'll drive it for another while to see if the speedo problem comes back. If/when it does, I'll pack it off to the dealer

Just checked my tranny and the level was just below the low mark. I topped it up and took the car for a drive. Hit the highway and after a few minutes the speed dropped to 0, waited, bounced back to 100, dropped to 0, waited and bounced back 100. etc etc. THEN the "wait" period became shorter and shorter until the bouncing stopped altogether. Drove for another while on the highway and the speedometer read properly. Dropped down to lower speed, no problem, came back up to highway speed, no problem. I'm going to give the level another look before I head back home on the highway after work. Do you think I may have found the problem? Or is it just a co-inkydink that topping up the oil appears to make the problem go away? We shall see but I'll cancel my appointment for now. I always manage to bring vehicles in with problems only to not have them show up for the mechanics. Go figure!!! Sean

Speedo was fine today and last night - UNTIL driven at highway speed. At which point it stopped working again!!! Suggestions? Could it be low transmission fluid? its a 5 spd.

Mine's a 5sp. Same deal?

No CEL but now the damn thing is working again. Guess I'll hold off on the dealer until it becomes more "consistently" dead!!!! Sean

I have a 2004 Outback (85,000 KMs) with 5sp. My speedo starting going wonky on the way home (bouncing about) and then died. No indication of any problem prior to this I do have a full coverage plan so I'll be going back to the dealer. In the meantime, I'm just wondering what might've happened. I like having some clue about things before I head out to see the garage. Cheers and thanks, Sean

The rims came off a 2000 Forester. According to the website (that I failed to provide the link to above - http://www.cars101.com/subaru/tiresandwheels.html) the 2004 Outback and the 2000 Forester both have 48mm offsets. They are both 6.5 as well. I did a quick check in some online parts catalgues and it appears that the 2004 Outack has a 11.6" front disc while the 2000 Forester has a 10.9". Guess I'll have to do an on-car test!!

Thanks for the welcome. Actually, I used to frequent this forum quite a bit several years ago (when I still had my 93 Loyale) but couldn't find my username/password so I had to start all over again - hence no previous posts I was wondering about the 15's fitting over the brakes and such - unless someone can confirm I may just drop by the guy's house and do a test!! Here's the page I'm using to help determine offsets and so on. I know it's often not safe to assume things on the WWW are accurate but this site looks pretty good. Cheers, Sean

I have a 2004 Outback with 225/60/R16 tires. I am looking at set of rims and tires for sale that are 205/70/R15. According to an online tire size calculator ( http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html) the tire size is identical. I am wondering if a 15 rim would fit on a 2004 Outback that normally has 16s. I'm waiting on confirmation but I think that offset may be the same on both rims. Assistance ASAP would be greatly appreciated as these rims/tires appear to be a great deal and I don't want to miss out. Sean