Kwhistle

I'm very nitpicky and looked into these issues. Purolator filters are the closest to the OE for bypass valve pressures. Subaru blue filter does have an ADB valve. I used Purolator before, but went with OE filter last oil change, and the oil does seem cleaner some 4 months later. My guess, it could be the filter or could be because I ran Seafoam in crankcase for a few days before the oil change. Or could be because I used Valvoline synthetic blend this time around instead of Mobil1. And the car seems to be running a bit smoother when cold with Valvoline+Subaru filter. I'll definitely will be sticking with this combination for the next oil change.

It pulls all the time, brake or no brake. I had alignment done at Midas, so will go back there tomorrow, and hopefully this will fix this issue for good. Just wanted to check with the pros here if there is anything else I should keep in mind, aside from alignment. I have about zero faith in Midas (or other similar chains) but figured that computerized alignment would be pretty much impossible to screw up...

That's what I've been suspecting all along, but could it also be something else, like the rear caliper?

I had both balancing and alignment done. Seems that vibration issue is with one of the wheels. I moved one from front driver's side to the back, and I feel a lot less vibration. So I suspect it's either the tire or the wheel. Somebody here suggested that the tire may have a defective steel belt. I'm yet to find the time to move the suspect wheel from rear driver side to rear passenger side and see what, if anything, changes. As to the car pulling to the left, moving that wheel to the back didn't affect that any--still pulls to the left with steering wheel turning 1/4 turn to the left.

So I have this problem with the steering wheel on 98 OBW. Been trying to figure out a vibration that comes on at ~60mph, got the wheels reballanced. This didn't fix the problem, so took the car for a second round of reballancing. The guy's been pushing hard for me to get new tires (which I didn't need and can't afford at the moment), and after I drove off, not only did the vibration not go away, but now the car tilts to the left with the steering wheel turning about 1/4 turn to the left if I don't hold it straight. Alignment didn't fix this. I replaced front caliper, but that did nothing. Any suggestions?

Thank you, sir!

So if I got it right, the hub is essentially jammed into the wheel bearing, while the axle will come out once the axle nut is off? Or is there a trick to getting the axle out? Would I need to mess with the CV joint? So far, I figure that if I can just move the axle out of the way without any disassemble or special tricks, I can press the hub+bearing out of the knuckle with the HF tool (still have to figure out exactly how that works), then just press in the new bearing, then press in the hub, again with the HF tool? I sounds a bit too easy, almost like there is more to it than just that. Also, saw a youtube video that I can't find at the moment of a guy propping the hub against a heavy spot on the frame with some wrench sockets and turning the steering wheel one way or the other to get the hub off. What's the opinion of pros here about this method? Is there a good spot on the Subaru frame to prop it against?

Thanks for the advice, all! Another question though. How hard would it be to replace hub with knuckle for a junk yard one? I don't have access to too many tools or equipment. Would that be doable in a house garage with some minimal hand tools, e.g. breaker bars, torque wrench, various wrenches sockets, but not much else? Would I need to remove the axle? How long would that take, given that the car is rather old most any bolt and part is stuck where it is. I'm really on a budget, and trying to get it done properly, but as cheaply as possible.

I'm pretty sure it's the tone wheel, not sensor. I did flash the codes, and breaks were grinding and pulsing for a minute, and then ABS light came on. So pretty sure it's the tone wheel.

I posted a couple threads about the tone wheel troubles I've been having... I tried repairing it, and it seems like it's holding, but the ABS isn't working. Here are some pictures of what I done: Uploaded with ImageShack.us Uploaded with ImageShack.us Uploaded with ImageShack.us Basically, bolted the broken pieces together with a metal plate and ground the nuts on the other side to the same shape as the original teeth with a Dremel. Still no luck, so would appreciate any ideas. I really would rather not have to pull the hub to replace this, as I understand it's a major hussle. Could it be that the heads of the bolts are touching the inner part of the rotor and offsetting whatever magnetic field is measured by the sensor? Would grinding these down a bit fix this, or is this completely hopeless?

Is this the one? http://www.harborfreight.com/fwd-front-wheel-bearing-adapters-66829.html How would that work? Also, what about passing some bolts through wheel stud holes and pressing it off the knuckle? Could something like this work? My other idea was to get a tone wheel off a junk yard car, break it carefully into two halves and bolt it onto mine. Is there a relatively easy way to get the hub off a junk yard car? There is a 97 Leg at the local yard, and I'd wanna try getting it off of it.

I broke the ABS tone ring on my 98 OBW, tried to fix it on the car, but (10 hours later) that didn't work :mad: So seems like I'll have to pull the hub. Was looking things up online for various tips and tricks for an easy way to do, and haven't found much. I see that Autozone has a wheel hub puller as a loaner tool, but I can't figure out how that would work. I understand the body of the puller is bolted to the hub with lug nuts, but I can't see any place to anchor the center bolt. Or am I missing something here? Anyway, would much welcome any suggestions here.

Or maybe not so big... been trying to fix one thing, broke another -- my 200000K+ 98OBW had old crappy rotors withiout bolt holes in them. So as I was trying to get the old rotor off, the ABC sensor ring broke. :mad: Still need to replace a broken wheel stud that seems firmly seized in place. Guess I'll need a bigger hammer, or a double-c-clamp? In the meantime, I'm thinking of how to handle the damn ABC ring. I understand that by the book I'm supposed to take out the hub, which will be a huge hussle. Read elsewhere that you could try and JB Weld it, but I can't imagine it holding up in cold wheather. Has anybody ever tried carefully sawing it into two halves and then just bolting both halves on in the way that would keep the teeth pattern inline? Seems way easier than taking out the hub. Also, where can I buy the damn thing?

I'm looking to replace my 98 OBW rotors, and need to do it cheap, but decent. Just enough to last another 3-4 years. Saw "Replacement" brand rotors on Parts Bin web site that come out to under $40 for a pair including shipping. Saw same on other web sites for about twice that price, and it looks better than the $30 NAPA premiums. http://www.thepartsbin.com/catalog/index.php?sid=131DE75B8FC3&rid=131DE75B8FC3&N=1719+11736+4294961022+2253+776 Anyone has any experience with this brand. (I understand it's some cheapo Chinese, but then so is pretty much everything on the low end nowadays.)

Thanks! Any tips? Would it help to turn the wheels so that the stud that needs replacement will be all the way down? BTW, how bad is missing one lug nut? Can I safely drive the car for about a week? My rotors are due for a replacement some time soon, so I might as well do it all at the same time, and it would take a few days to get the parts.

Was troubleshooting another problem on my 98 OBW ( http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=125561 ), and as I was tightening one of the lug nuts, the bolt just snapped in half. How difficult is it to replace it? Can I just take the wheel off, and tap it out with a hammer, and just snap a new bolt in place, or is there more to it? Any replacement brand I can get at Advance or Autozone better than the other? Also, anyway to do it without removing the rotor/caliper?

Thanks for the replies, all! To answer the questions, apparently not the caliper. Replaced it yesterday, and no change in symptoms. The vibration doesn't seem to be related to acceleration, only to speed, but I'll double-check on that just in case. I replaced the tie rod ends not long ago, and also I'd think the alignment shop, it being one of the "$45 air filter replacement special" Midas, would've been rather happy to notice any tie rod issues. Not much happens when I apply brakes. The moment I get to below 55, the vibration completely goes away. The car does pull to the left when I apply the brakes though, which is why I thought it was the front caliper. One of the slider pins was seized, too, but the new caliper hasn't really fixed it. I will take Rooster2's advice and ask the Discount tire to rotate the tires around, see if it will change anything. Any other suggestions from the forum pros would be most welcome. I've spent loads of money trying to fix this problem, and really can't spend much more, so any help would be most appreciated.

Hello All, Love this forum and most grateful for the advice I got from people here in the past. Have a new problem now with my 98OBW. Has had this aweful vibration for some time now. Starts at about 55mph, gets noticeable at 60, and gets really awful at 65. I had all wheels rebalanced and had alignment done, but that hasn't helped. Also noticed that the car started pulling to the left (even before the alignment this morning), and the alignment didn't help with that. Any ideas as to what it might be? The people at Discount Tire told me that the rims are fine, not bent. Could it be the left front caliper? Anything else? I'll have to go on a bit of a road trip soon, about 5 hours each way, and really want to get this fixed beforehand.

It's a 98 OBW. I did pretty much what you described above... drove it around till warm, put it in P, checked the the dipstick with the engine running. The problem is, I'm not sure how to read the dipstick, since it seems like the fluid splashes onto the stick above the level in the pan. If this is the case, then I'm low, and if it's not, then I have too much. Edit: Figured I'd add an illustration: Uploaded with ImageShack.us This is the picture of the dipstick from the manual. I marked holes in the dipstick with the arrows. Of the three, only the lower one has the ATF in it when I pull the dipstick out. The fluid doesn't really have a level, but more like a gradient where it's very thin and spotty towards the F mark, and thicker at and below the lower hole. (I did clean the dipstick before reinserting it to check the fluid level)

Not trying to ask stupid/obvious questions here, but I'm just not sure about a couple things. So I drove around the block for some 5 minutes, pulled the dipstick out, cleaned it, dipped it again with the engine running. What I see just doesn't look like a clear level, so I'm not sure what the level of the fluid is. There are three holes in the dipstick, the first (lowest) one was filled with the ATF, the other two weren't--is that how you know what the actual level is vs. whatever splashes onto the dipstick above the level in the pan? Or do we just assume that the highest part with some drops on it is the actual level? Or is it somewhere in the middle?

I'm by no means a pro, totally a treeshader... did try it, didn't work. Lucas did refund me the money. I ended up taking the thing apart, and ran some of the instant liquid gasket on both sides of the metal gasket, torqued to whatever specs the manual listed for it. Also put the same instant black liq gasket in place of the o-ring at the base. 1+years later no leaks. The instant liquid gasket, don't remember exactly what it's called, but it's the one that comes in a pressurized can type of dispenser.

thanks for the advice and the links! The subarugenuineparts site only lists crank seal for the 2.2L engine, mine is 2.5. Are they the same? BTW, are those "genuine parts" and "OEM parts" sites really genuine parts? I noticed they are powered by trademotion.com and not Subaru itself.

Do any of the pros here have any recommendations for a decent aftermarket brand for these? I checked with the dealer and they want $15.40 for each of the four cam seals, and 16.50 for the crankshaft seal. All of this kinda adds up, and the aftermarket stuff seems way cheaper. I checked a few of the "genuine Subaru parts" sites, but they don't seem to have the crankshaft seal and the shipping charges are rather high.

Thanks for the input all! I think I should add a few things to what I posted above. I don't have a particular brand loyalty on this, but I do like to have my things work right. So I looked through a few oil filter threads, and checked the specs and it seems that many filters have bypass valve settings far lower than what Subaru specifies. Many don't list theirs. Wix does have an ADB valve, but lists theirs bypass valve pressure at far less than Subaru. Purolator PureOne is the only one that's similar to the OEM specs, but no ADB . I couldn't find any info on STP/WalMart brand, Mann, or Bosch. But if the Subaru brand is not that pricey, I think I'd just give the local dealer a call on Tue.. $6-7/filter is alright with me when it's the right thing, and not the "meet of exceed OEM specs" BS when it really doesn't.