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I wanted to send a big thank-you to the folks on this site that offer their knowledge and experience. I gave me the confidence to do this.

It was my first time working on a Subaru and it took about 4 hours all together. I started by taking the complete exhaust system off in one piece, removed the half-shalf, reinstalled the half-shaft, taking the exhaust heat shield off belowe the shifter linkage, removing the shifter linkage and replacing with new piece, then finally getting the thing put back together. Not too bad. I'm glad I went to sears and bought the long punch set. Also, getting 3 of the header studs out of the heads were HARD! I had to use visegrips and clamp them down with all I had in order to get it to grab and turn the stud. When I reasembled the exhaust, I put anti-seize on the header studs and nuts so if I ever have to take it off again, it shouldn't be too bad. All in all, it wasn't that bad. Sorry, had to brag. Just wondering, how much would it have cost to do that at a Subaru garage with parts and labor?

Hmmm, have you ever seen one that caused a slight miss? It's not bad, but I notice it. Also, anyone have any advice on the shifter bushing replacement? I found these instructions: http://http://www.cobbforums.com/forums/showthread.php?32891-5-speed-Shifter-Bushings-Installation-Instructions

I guess the only way to test coil/ignitor (because they can have problems when hot, but not cold) would be to swap with another one. Ignitor? Where is that located? Or, is it all part of the coil pack?

Thank you for the info so far. The car drives great, except going uphill is where you really notice the miss/slight power loss. It idles smooth and if you slow down to a low RPM in 3rd (for instance) it pulls on all cyl's so does not seem like an ignition problem. It's a really random miss under part throttle. I'll still need to see if it's only warmed up, or closed-loop too. I don't recall... Could it be fuel filter? If so, where are they located on my car?

No check engine light. I'm pretty sure since this is a "Brighton" that it's a 1.8 liter. I don't even have a tach and lucky to have carpet. It has red "bosch" wires and Denso plugs. I could change those quite easily. The car runs great, but that drivability issue is enough to bother me and wonder what it might be. Do you have a place (or places) online that you prefer to buy Subaru parts from?

Hello all, For the most part, the car is in great shape for having 250,000 miles on it. However, there are 3 things that bug me. Maybe some of the experts on here can steer me in the right direction (no pun intended)... 1. Shifter is loose enough for me to pretend I have 135 gears to choose from. Actually, I believe the shifter linkage bushings are shot. I'm an average home mechanic that feels comfortable changing them. After looking at the job from underneath the car, it looks like dropping the exhaust would make the job alot easier. Is that necesary? Also, where can you recommend purchasing the bushings? Is there a kit that I should buy to replace the spring and other parts too? 2. CV boot (inner-passenger side) is torn and the grease has planted itself on the underside of the car. I packed some more grease in it for now, but should I just wait till it dies then replace the whole axle? I've been reading some threads on the board here and the job does not look too hard. It seems as if getting the roll pin out might be the toughest part. If I mark the suspension parts and place them back in the same spots, do I still need to have it aligned? 3. It has a slight miss under part throttle. While I have not changed any plugs, wires, or anything else, what are common issues with this engine that I should cause this type of drivability issue? Head gasket failure does not seem to be an issue because no oil in water and no water in oil after driving this car for over 1000 miles. Checking compression and changing plugs/wires would be my first step, but this thing has not burned/leaked a drop since I bought it. The miss almost feels like it could be a lean condition. Any way to pull codes without a CIL? Does this sound like an injector issue? any way to clean one? OK, neough questions. I look forward to any tips/advice you have. Thank you!