hohieu

Thanks grossgary, I just checked under the engine after a bit of driving and all IS well. I only lost a little over a quart so there was still over 3 quarts in the sump. Your other points are well taken, and I would not hesitate to use Purolator filters on any of my vehicles. I posted this thread only because I had never seen a filter fail in this manner. Word It does depend on the application, but I feel that the displacement to sump volume ratio for these cars is pretty decent; hence, I have no problem running these longer intervals. This car has consumed 1 qt./6500 miles for the past 100K miles with this maintenance schedule. Here are some photos I took when I adjusted the valves at 137K miles -- certainly no sludge problems: http://s759.photobucket.com/albums/xx234/Subieho/Forester%20Valve%20Adjustment/ And Nipper, I know you've mentioned possible bottom end issues with these maintenance practices-- rod knock -- but unless I have an undetected blown head gasket dumping coolant into the oil sump, I don't anticipate this problem with this car. I suppose only time will tell. It's okay that we disagree. I have no experience with these Chryslers nor do I know much about their issues. I will say, however, that the real benefit of more frequent oil changes is that someone looks at the underside of your car more frequently, thereby maximizing the probability of discovering a small problem (like my leaky oil filter) before it becomes a bigger more catastrophic one. Also, my experience has been that my car "feels" no differently to me after an oil change. Uh...I haven't managed to remove the inverted oil filter from the car w/o getting oil on my hands.

That's the theory in order to discourage overtightening, but when you have oil on a metal can and your hands, you need the wrench.

I'm just relieved that the cause of the oil leak was not something more serious. Normally, I change the oil in this car every 12K miles/12 months; hence, I was very surprised that this filter rusted through after only 6 months/3K miles of service, tough winter with heavy snowfall notwithstanding. I've never had a problem with Purolator filters before this one. The benefit of this new "grip" paint is that you can hand tighten the filter-- no fiilter wrench needed for the installation -- but this benefit seems outweighed by this paint's poorer corrosion resistance. Fairtax4me: I had the same misgivings about this filter with the "grip" paint, but they were included in oil package deals offered by a local retailer. When possible, I purchased the older PureOne filters, which were painted blue.

My 99 Subaru recently lost over 1 full quart of oil in approximately 500 miles. Until this point, it had consumed a quart per 6,500 miles. The cause turned out to be a leaky oil fillter but one like I've never seen. The can was badly corroded on the side facing the front of the car allowing oil to seep out and drip down the side of the can. The fiilter in question is a Purolator PureOne PL14460 and was in service for 6 months/3K mles in Ann Arbor, MI. For those familiar with these filters, it was one of the new ones with textured coating -- good for easy gripping during installation but evidently not as effective at slowing corrosion as the painted cans. Here are a couple of photos: http://s759.photobucket.com/albums/xx234/Subieho/Purolator/ I had been using mostly Purolator Premium Plus filters on this car, which now has 151K miles on the odometer.

Well, I think you need a multivariate analysis to really understand the fiscal trends of Fuji Motors. For example, the recent success of Subaru in spite of an industry wide lull may be explained by the larger trend toward downsizing by American consumers as a result of the recession. Many are trading in their gas guzzling gigantic 4x4s for a more reasonable Subaru. Subarus are a functional alternative for those who may actually need AWD. In any case, I can empathize with the nostalgia for the old gen Subarus. If we hold quality and innovation constant, Subaru has made huge investments toward marketing their products, and this may help explain their recent success. Unfortunately for the old gen adherents, their new products are marketed to a different demographic. While there have been improvements, particularly in the realm of safety, I would agree that there has been a general trend toward cost cutting across the industry. A (non-Subaru) victim of this trend was the Jeep Cherokee, which remained relatively unchanged during its 17-year run and was axed shortly after the Daimler-Benz merger. Even though I think it's a great car (even one of the best cars ever made), I'm not the kind of buyer that stimulates growth in the industry. It would seem, however, that it's the Soccer moms that do.

SOA introduced a revised low force install procedure that uses hub tamer type tools that decreases the risk of deforming the bearing and/or the knuckle during assembly. In almost all cases, a properly installed bearing fails when one of the grease seals is compromised. How do the polished sliding surfaces of your rear half shafts look? If they're pitted and rough, they'll chew through the inner seals and cause repeat failures.

Great info., Scoobywagon. However, the wiring diagram for my '99 Forester shows no such switch. I do see an evaporation thermoswitch. On my 2.5 SOHC, the AC belt in isolated and runs no other accessories. There's another belt that runs the alternator and power steering pump, while the timing belt runs the water pump. On the H6, does the AC belt also run the water pump?

There's really no such thing as a revolution sensor -- only a wire that provides power to the magnetic compressor clutch. The pressure sensor closes the circuit to the clutch when the pressure falls within a certain range. Diagnosis of AC issues takes some time, but actual replacement of the pressure sensor takes 5 minutes plus the time it takes to capture, evacuate, and recharge the system.

In some ways, I'd recommend it. I installed the seal with the pump off the block and had a heck of a time working the seal over the front snout of the crank shaft without twisting the lip of the new viton seal under itself. Maybe because the new stuff is more pliable than the old nitrile seals.

As your problem is intermittent, did they check to see that the AC relay was working? Could try swapping in one of the other relays in the box.

How many miles on your car? The newer alternators ('99-) hold up very well. My bet is that it's your 8-year-old battery. All the rain in the midst of the recent heat wave is enough to send it over the edge. You can take both the battery and the alternator off and have them tested.

Just a quick update. The new JRA valves I purchased are brass whereas the OEM ones are steel. In any case, I hope they hold up. I considered replacing all the o-rings but stopped after doing the two at the compressor. After just having finished flushing and replacing all the o-rings for the A/C retrofit on my '91 Cherokee, I didn't feel like busting out the torch again for the discharge hose connection at the condenser. Thanks for all your help.

Specs are given in metric and standard units, which may have led to the confusion. According to the factory service manual: Intake: .20 mm (+/- .02); .00790" (+/- .0008") Exhaust: .25 mm (+/- .02); .0098" (+/- .0008") So yes, around .008"/.010", intake/exhaust.

Log1call is absolutely correct. It's the outer race the holds everything stationary inside the housing (knuckle). There's a step on inboard side of the housing for the rear and the outboard side for the front as well as a retaining clip on the opposing side. Preload is set when tightening the axle nut, which presses the inner races against one another and the rollers against the tapered rolling surfaces of the outer race. Now if you have play in the entire knuckle assembly, then there's a problem with either the lateral or trailing link bushings.

The parts counter guy at my local Napa said he didn't have them. They list a whole seal & cap kit with all the o-rings, but I already have the o-rings. I wound getting 4 of them on ebay for around $11 shipped. When they arrive, I'll have the old stuff captured and then reseal, evacuate, and recharge the system. I'll check back after I'm finished.

Yes, you'll have abs of steel by the time your'e finished. If you have difficulty finding TDC, stick a long ratchet extension inside the corresponding spark plug hole to verify piston position.

Thanks, fellas. From the topside view, the high side and low side valve cores appear to be the same on my car. After I have the original fill recovered, I'll also replace all the o-rings while I have the system open. I'll check back in after it's all finished.

Alright, thanks Gary. I'll check out the local Napa.

Update: I tried loosening and tightening the valve core and also clearing out the valve several times, but I still have a leaky hiss. I guess this means I'll have to replace the valve core. Now the question is: what kind of valve cores do I need? The ones that will work on my jeep are the same as tire valve cores, except with teflon seals. I haven't yet removed it, but the ones on my 99 Forester are different. They seem to have a smaller body and a longer top part (the part that's used to tighten the valve core). Do I need to get different ones for the Subaru and where might be a good source?

Hmm.. what's a Legacy GT without the turbo? 2nd engine on this thing? In any case, they're screw adjusting type with 105K-mile intervals. I did mine at around 135K miles and they were all pretty close to specifications, which can be found on a sticker on the underside of the hood. I would wait until you need to replace the valve cover gaskets and spark plug well seals and do everything at one time.

Thanks for the good advice guys. I had just purchased the vacuum pump and manifold gauge set to do a conversion on my old Jeep and was perhaps too anxious use them on the Subaru as well. At least I can use the gauge set to recharge the system That's brilliant. I was thinking about fashioning a tool but didn't think I had anything that would work. Thanks to you, I just made my own with an old ball point pen. My wife is out of town with the Subaru at the moment, but I'll tighten up the valve core this weekend. I'll let you know how things turn out.

I have only a tool for tire valve cores. I need to get one with longer reach for AC systems to see if I can tighten it. I had already tried clearing the valve as you suggested but still heard the hissing. At this point, the cap is the only thing slowing down the leak.

'99 Forester, 145K miles I just discovered that I have a leaky low side valve -- could hear it hissing when I unscrewed the cap. Rather than investing in one of those nifty tool kits that allows you to replace the valve core without losing any refrigerant, I plan to have the system evacuated and then doing the remainder of the job myself. I have a vacuum pump and a manifold gauge set. I'll replace the high side valve core, too, while I'm at it. My only question is whether I should go ahead and replace all the o-rings (I counted 8 total) or only those that tend to fail. If the latter, then which ones should I replace?

Yep, the method outlined in that link is the way to go. However, I found there to be enough play to pull the half shaft off the stub shaft by removing just the front bushing bolt for the transverse link ("through bolt" in link).

Hope I'm not stating the obvious, but the outer race slides out of the rear knuckle through the outboard side -- opposite from the front wheel bearing. Instructions included with the Hubtamer are intended for front wheel bearing service. http://endwrench.com/images/pdfs/BearingTheLoad.pdf PM me your email, and I can send you a couple other helpful PDFs. One of the puller screws and the two-jaw puller in the Hub Tamer kit can be used to tap the hub out of the knuckle (if you don't have a slide hammer and attachment) and to remove the inner race from the hub, respectively.