Timberwolf530

I have an annoying rattle in my 03 Legacy wagon that started a couple months ago. It is definitely coming from the front half of the car. It was small at first, and wasn't constant. Now, it has grown to a constant loud rattle at idle. When I accelerate, it rattles louder and faster upon initial accel, then goes away once underway. I have checked all the shields, and none seem to be loose. The only thing I can think of is the cat. Agree, or other ideas of what it could be?

Thanks guys. It's -10 now, so I'm not doing anything to it unless it's an emergency. I did tighten the clamps the other day as much as I could, but this morning the smell, although not as bad, was still there. The hose clamps suck. I'm thinking of replacing them with the ones you can tighten with a nut driver to get them tighter.

Your title says vibration, but your description says uneven tire wear. One or the other or both? Worn tires can definitely cause a side to side wobble in the steering wheel. Is that what you mean by vibration? How many miles do you have on it? Unless you off road a lot or have a buttload of miles, your springs should not be shot. Strut wear doesn't affect the geometry of the suspension (unless they're physically damaged). The bottom bolt in your strut mount is a camber adjustment bolt. Get new tires, and have them do an alignment.

Actually, the Subie reman axles are supposed to be the most reliable. This guy is good too. I have both of mine from him. Great customer service and half the price of the Subies. FYI, it's the heat from the exhaust manifold that causes the rubber to break down, so you need to keep an eye on them. I check them every time I change oil & rotate the tires. http://www.ccrengines.com/mwe/

So, a couple of weeks ago, it got really cold, and I smelled gas coming through the heater/defroster. Checked under the hood & the car, and could not see any leaks. The next day it went away, so I assumed it was because I had spilled some gas filling up or something. Then today, it dipped below zero, and all the way to work I had the smell every time I stopped at a light. When I got to work, I could still smell it, so I popped the hood and traced the lines all the way to the tank with a flashlight - nothing. I can definitely smell gasoline vapor with the hood up though. It warmed up to about 20 when I went to lunch, and the smell is gone again. Is it possible that the fittings between the metal lines and the rubber hoses are leaking vapor but not liquid? I've never heard of anything like that, but when I get home tonight, I'm going to tighten all the fittings as much as I can to see. Beyond that, I'm lost. Anyone else had this happen?

If body & interior are OK, you're getting a steal even if, worst case scenario, you have to replace the engine. If you have the $$ to do an engine swap, I'd jump on it.

I had a similar issue with an aftermarket coolant temp sensor. I do not remember what brand it was. I installed it, and the needle pegged in the red. I swapped it out for a genuine part, & it worked fine. Not sure why. They looked exactly the same????????????

On low speed right turns, I'm getting a clicking noise out of the left front end. My intuition (and 30 years fixing my own cars) tells me it sounds like a bad CV joint. I just noticed it this morning pulling into the parking garage, so I haven't checked it out yet. If anyone has any other ideas, I'm open to suggestions. Anyway, if it is the CV, where is the best place to buy a replacement axle. I've heard in the past that these cars are finicky about axles, and that aftermarket brands may not be in spec causing vibrations. I would rather find someone on line rather than pay 4 times as much from the dealer. If you've done this job, please let me know your parts source. Thanks.

53,000 mi on the car, mileage: ave 22 mpg combo hwy/city which is right at where it's always been, I do not have a vacuum guage, but I did check all the vacuum hoses and didn't find any leaks. I also removed the throttle body and cleaned it last weekend. Still same issues.

I have a Schumaker battery tester, so I tested the battery and the alternator. Both tested in the green, but just barely, being about a hair away from the edge. What I have done to try to fix it over the past 2 weeks: The plug tube seals were leaking, so I replaced them along with the valve cover gaskets, replaced plug wires (I'm now wondering if I should have replaced plugs too, but they only have 7,000 miles on them & weren't coverd with oil), cleaned IAC EGR PCV, induced Sea Foam into intake via vacuum nipple on manifold (it smoked really bad the first time, so I did a repeat application). I visually inspected vacuum lines but haven't broken out the soapy water yet. I also have not cleaned the throttle body. I am planning to do both this weekend. I hate not being able to fix problems myself, but it's starting to drive me crazy. I'm about to take it in to the shop.

In the past week, my headlights dim, and my blower motor slows at idle. When I accelerate, both go away. It also started to idle a bit rough at the same time the other two problems started. I'm pretty sure it's the voltage regulator. I have found conflicting information: I have heard that the voltage regulator is built in to the alternator, and I have also seen in some part stores a separate one not built in. Which is correct?

Update: After a month of trying to figure out what the heck was going on & cleaning carbon out of every sensor I could find, I decided to try the old turn it off and back on trick. I disconnected the battery for a couple hours, hooked it back up and it's been fine ever since. I'm glad I got it taken care of, but feel kind of dumb that I didn't try that to begin with. That's always the first thing I do to my PC, and cars today are just PCs with wheels. Anyway, I thought I would update just in case anyone in the future comes across the same problem.

I would like to read that whole article to understand what they're talking about, because what I see there doesn't make any sense to me. If you hold the can upright, you get vapor, upside down, you get liquid. I personally have never added anything to the high side, although, as long as the compressor is not running, it's not dangerous if you can get a connector that fits. I can't remember the exact sizes, but the high side connector is 3-4 mm larger. That's why I'm having a hard time understanding what they mean. The only time the two pressures should be the same high and low, is when it's not operating. Anyway, my main point is, with the compressor running, if your low side pressure is within limits, but the high side is not, you have a compressor problem.

I took the original post to say that he was adding refrigerant to the low side, while monitoring the high side with a high side guage. It's impossible to add to the high side anyway. The quick connect on the high side is larger than the low side connector. Even if you could attach it, nothing would come out of the can because the pressure in the system is higher than the pressure in the can, and it could possible explode the can. Pressure to activate the compressor depends on ambient temperature. Use a jumper sparingly, if at all. Normally it will kick in by itself after the pressure comes up enough. It may take awhile, but it usually goes by itself. if you jump it and run the compressor with low pressure too long, it will damage it. The higher the temp, the more pressure you need. 40 psi on the low side should be enough to trigger it unless it's really hot out. Your high side pressure should be somewhere over 200 psi, not sure exactly on Subies yet, but 100 seems really low. I never had to work on A/C for the other two I owned. Anyway, if pressure on the low side is within limits, but is that low on the high side with the compressor running, it suggests there is something wrong with the compressor.

OK, that makes sense. I have been too busy this week to get to it, but I will definitely take it off an clean it this weekend. Thanks for the explanation.

The manual says the tranny holds 9.8 qts, so I drained the pan, replaced the filter, and put 4 qts back in. I disconnected the return line from the tranny cooler and ran a short length of hose from the output nipple into a milk jug. Pumped out 4 more qts and added 4 more through the fill tube. By the time I got one more quart out, fluid was looking clean, so I re-connected the return line and topped it off. I drove it about 10 miles to get it hot and filled to the full mark. Recechecked the next day just to be sure, and it was right where it is supposed to be. It was right at 9.5 qts that I replaced. That's the way I have been changing tranny fluid for years. I've always figured it really doesn't make sense to change only half the fluid.

If it has play in it, the bushings are definitely bad. I would go ahead and do both sides while I was under there. Can't help you on brand, or prices, but if you can find them, Urethane are the best (but expensive).

Well I'm not going to flame you, I'm going to thank you. I just started a post the other day titled "'03 Legacy Idle/OD problem when A/C is on" about the very same thing because I did a search and couldn't find anything. The only thing I forgot to put in was that it doesn't do it before it warms up. At first I thought it was tranny related: old fluid, dirty filter, maybe a stuck valve body. I replaced all 10 qts with synthetic and used Lucas transmission fix, and it didn't help. Hey, at least I have all new fluid though. I'm not convinced it is the compressor kicking & out though because no matter how many times I let up and reapply, it still does it. Unless the compressor is somehow activated by my gas pedal, I don't see how it could be related. My freon was low, but I added 1 can of Subzero and brought it up to 45 lbs, which is within the proper range for the air temp when I measured it. I also don't believe it's normal because not everyone complains about it, and trust me if your car was doing what we are describing, you would complain about it. I have owned a '98 Legacy (MT) & a '99 Outback (AT) and neither of them did it. It won't do it if I leave it in third (no OD), & it won't do it in OD with the air off, but if I combine the two it does it every time after the car warms up. I can understand how the idle issue may be related to cycling, but not the lurch when underway.

I will try that tonight, but shouldn't that affect idle regardless of the A/C? When the A/C is off it idles as smooth as butter.

This is the 3rd Subaru I've owned: 1st was a '98 Legacy GT sedan, MT & the second was a '99 Outback Wagon. After my Volvo wagon motor blew, I decided it was time to jump back into a boxer. Anyway, I love the car, but it has 1 flaw that I described in the Tech section. See you all around.

I just bought a 2003 Legacy Wagon, and it has a few annoying things happening with the A/C on. First, the idle is erratic. It idles at around 800 -900 rpm at a stop in gear, but sometimes it will jump up to around 1200 – 1300 rpm. It eventually drops back down, but it’s enough to make the car jump forward if I don’t have enough pressure on the brake. The second problem is a jerk in the transmission if the car is in overdrive at speeds of approximately 35 – 45 mph. It happens when I let up on the gas pedal at these speeds and then reapply the gas. The jerk happens when I reapply. Neither one of these things occurs if the A/C is off. It idles perfect, and there is no hitch when in OD. The trans fluid was dirty (didn’t smell burnt), so I changed the spin on filter and all 10 qts of fluid with Dextron VI. I also changed plugs. Other than this and a small spark plug seal leak, which will be fixed soon, the car is perfect. Any help would be appreciated.