99obw

The car has had a weird vibration from the front under acceleration for a long time. I am wondering if it is due to the loose diff bearings. I am not going to tear into it any time soon, I am simply on a fact finding mission.

I have never been a huge bills fan, but Doug was the coolest bill ever! He used to have great discussions with brother wease on WCMF. He is a down to earth person. Two words, Flutie Flakes, yummy! I go to Canada many times each year and I have always been treated nicely by Canadians. They do seem to view Americans with skepticism, and I can't blame them. If we do something stupid on a large scale because of our leadership they might just be along for the ride. I travel to Mazinaw Lake a couple of times a year to the cottage that has been in my stepdad's family since the '30s. I went to Algonquin PP for the first time last summer, and I hope to return next year. What an amazing place. The guy at the outfitters did say that American cars were the only ones getting broken into. We didn't have any trouble. My wife and I love Toronto for a long weekend. I am very surprised at the reports of vandalism, but I guess hateful people are everywhere. As for the wipers, I would think the spring would be the best long term solution that would leave you to use whatever wipers worked best.

Just my opinions of course... 1. Fuel economy. Generally fuel economy improves, but some have said the gains are not significant in subes, I really don't know. A manual generally dissapates less power therefore offering better efficiency. 2. Control. I find a manual transmission to give far more control under most driving conditions. The simple availability of more gear ratios offers more flexibility for both acceleration and engine braking. You can work the power band or lug it in the snow, so many possibilites. It won't shift by itself at the wrong time. I feel like the best automatic is a liability in slippery conditions. 3. Braking. The engine doesn't fight the brakes when stopping, so the car may stop a little easier. Brakes should last longer. Many will say the clutch is an achilles heel of the manual, but a properly driven clutch can last 200k miles easily. One thing I tell new manual drivers is to let the clutch out first, until the engine bogs, then give it throttle. Once you are used to the feel of this it will get easier, and the clutch will last much longer. Try to match speeds. The rpms of the engine should never abruptly change when letting out the clutch, nor should the engine and tranny speed differ by much without the clutch in. I was tought proper manual transmission technique from a very young age, and it still took me about 100k miles to perfect. Once it is perfected an automatic is a distant second. Don't give up.

Can the bearings and seals be replaced easily with the diff in the car? If they can I may do them at some point in the future.

False alarm, and I learned something. Thanks!

I just wiggled the CV joints on a coworkers 2004 impreza with a manual tranny. They do wiggle a bit, buy mine wiggle much more.

Sideways movement.

When I ran the car this morning the light was still on. I then shut the car off after running it for about 15 minutes and left for work. I just called my wife at work and she said the light never came on during her 45 minute drive. I am confused. Do they always act this way? Is something actually wrong?

Last night I changed the front O2 sensor on the 99 outback. I had a little trouble getting it loose so I ran the car to warm up the pipe without bothering to reconnect the wires. I expected a MIL and got one. I left the battery disconnected overnight but still had a MIL this morning. Do I need to clear the code with a OBDII scanner, or do I have a problem with the new sensor?

99 outback, auto trans, 146k miles. How much is too much? The CV joints seem to wiggle quite a bit in the front diff. The seals are leaking a little, but the lube level is good. The amount I can move the joints around in the diff is quite disturbing to me. I can't find much info on the bearings. Is it an easy job?

I saw a huge increase in oil consumption when I switched from Pennzoil 5w-30 to Mobil 1 5w-30 in our 99. Mobil 1 is a great oil, but it is thin for it's viscosity grade. If I were you I would run a different synthetic or a thicker grade, for example Mobil 1 10w-30 or Amsoil 5w-30. In Virginia I doubt I would even use a 5w-30 considering the improved cold temp performance of a synthetic. Keep in mind that I say this without the knowledge of Subaru's specific recommendations. Keep in mind most manufacturer's oil viscosity reccomendations are skewed by government fuel economy regulations, and may not reflect what is actually best for your engine. In Europe much thicker oils are common, where here in the US we seem to be moving closer to water. I would probably keep drain intervals fairly conservative with that turbo, 5k maybe. My $0.02.

How much water is on the road? What is the tread pattern? What is the tread depth? What is the weight of the car? All of these unknowns make me think that the calculation is far more complex than the one you posted. BTW: I have found that tires start to hydroplane far before the tires reach the end of their life, usually about half way.

Why didn't I think of that!

I know of three methods to remove the hub: 1. Use a slide hammer with an end piece that bolts to the hub using lug nuts. 2. Use a hub tamer. 3. Remove the knuckle and press the hub out using a hydraulic press. I know of two methods to remove the old bearings, press the new ones in, and install the hub. 1. Use a hub tamer. 2. Use a hydraulic press. Check around and see if anyone loans or rents bearing press sets, hub tamer, etc. If they do that is the easiest way. Removing the knuckle and using a hydraulic press will be necessary otherwise. I would stay away from the hammer and chisel.

I like to use Lexor blades (cheap, $7 IIRC at walmart) with Rain-X. I recently tried a triple edge blade on the rear of our outback and it wasn't nearly as good as Bosch or Lexor.

I use a chain wrench, but you have to be careful, the chain wrench can do a number on the pulley. Take some old belts and cut them to length and electrical tape them on the pulley first. Pipes for the breaker bar and chain wrench make things much easier.

We have a 99 outback and the 98 manual covers it pretty well AFAIK. I find it is easier to disconnect the big hose connected to the hose that connects to the MAF. Then unlatch the clips and push the top of the airbox towards the engine. I think the high mileage oils have additives to swell the seals. I would stick to dino at that mileage. If your car leaks oil replace the seals.

I don't know if it will work on a AWD suby, but I will tell you one of my experiences anyway. My brother and I were either putting a clutch or a transmission in his FWD dodge, I lost track on that car. I took a long 2x4 and set it on the car right at the top of the firewall. The car was jacked up in the front. My brother slid the tranny under the car. We tied a rope from the tranny to the board and I used the board's leverage to lift the tranny up so he could bolt it to the engine. Worked like a charm. We had another board running across the car from one inner fender to the other with a rope going down to support the engine.

Thanks Josh. I ordered them from oxygensensors.com. I am dissapointed that I recieved 3-wire sensors for both my 99 outback with a 2.5l and my friends '97 legacy wagon with a 2.2l. They sent me the correct 4-wire sensor for my POS '92 dodge though. I am going to send them back.

I would say the sagging is primarily worn springs. If you are at 160k with original struts they are most likely ready for replacement. Tonight I am going to install OEM springs, struts and strut mounts. I have found the OEM parts to be expensive, but your subaru will be happiest with them. Every single time I try and put a non-OEM part on our car I end up regretting it. Jason at Auburn Subaru does a great job, and their prices are better than the local dealer.

How many miles on the car? At 145k miles our 99 outback sags noticably with groceries or camping gear in it. Oncoming traffic flashes their lights at us because the car is tilted so much. I am putting on new springs with the struts and strut mounts tomorrow. Hopefully the springs will straighten things out.

Thanks Dave. I think that was for the spring. I will look into that. Regardless, the car has 145k miles and they were in need of replacement, and I have the parts, so I am going to do it tomorrow. I don't have the time nor the patience for dealing with a dealer. It really makes me question the safety of the front struts.

I put the O2 sensor back for now. I will wait until I hear some advice on that before I do anything. I think I finally have the rattle fixed (3rd try) on the pipe in front of the front cat. I fed 2 hose clamps between the shield and the pipe and around the other side of the shield and tightened them up. I was mounting the nice blizzaks I bought from gbhrps when I noticed the left rear strut had collapsed!!! The spring had pushed the cone shaped spring support into the tire. Salt is my automotive nemesis. Luckily I have the parts to do the rear struts sitting in the shop. I hate to think of what could have happened had the spring punctured the tire. I feel like this was a disaster narrowly averted. The new struts, springs, and strut mounts go on tomorrow.

I just pulled the 145k mile old oxygen sensor off of the 99 outback. A little difficult but easier for me from underneath. I had to get the exhaust really hot to get it out. Once the sensor was out I noticed that the universal replacement they sent me is a 3-wire and the OEM Bosch is a 4-wire. DOH! The missing wire is a ground. Will the 3-wire work reliably over the next couple of years, taking into account salt and lots of driving? I know a lot of other makes did or still do ground their sensors through the exhaust. The paperwork with the sensor shows three different connector types for subaru 3-wire sensors but no 4-wire. Maybe the diagrams for the subaru 4-wire sensors are in the paperwork for the 4-wire universal replacement. .:madder: Off to finish the oil change, snow tire mounting, headlights, and fluids. Eagerly waiting for the voice of experience. PS: I need to fix that !@#$ noisy exhaust shield too

The external filter was new on the '99 Phase II 4EAT. Is the behaviour you describe actually slipping or the normal operation of the torque converter?