Setright

Just a heads-up on the crank bolt: Dip the entire bolt (thread and shoulder) into fresh motor oil and torque it down to 140Nm in one full swing. The oil on the thread ensures that torque comes from the tension in the length of the bolt and not friction in the bolt thread. The bolt must clamp the crank pulley hard onto the crankshaft end.

I concur with fitting a genuine Subaru item I also suggest that when you do, you remove the old one, then start the engine with the cap OFF. Let it idle, with the heater on full, the fan on 1. The fluid will expand, and some will spill out, so put a tray under the car, and have a cloth handy. Don't let the coolant run into a drain. Anyway, as the engine heats, the thermostat will open up, and air bubbles will be pumped out. The fluid in the radiator filling-neck will rise...burp a bubble..sink...rise..burp..... If you are patient, and the ambient temperature isn't freezing, the engine will eventually warm so much that the ECU switches ON the radiator fan. This is your cue to top up and install the new rad cap. This is my tried and tested (and tested again) surefire way to purge all the air out. I think your hose is collapsing because there is a big air pocket inside your engine, and it contracts a lot as it cools. Please take note that a weak coolant solution will produce boil-bubbles forever. Make sure the coolant has a boling point over 100 degrees C.

I am with Josh on the causation. Isn't it possible to press the throttle down in a more progressive manner? When you snap the throttle open, the flow in the intake must be stifled..almost stopped. A smoother motion will allow the air in the intake to accelerate.

afterbang, thanks for reporting back. And Lucid for seconding Valvoline are really on a roll. I hope they keep making that gear oil!!

Beautiful Right model year, right engine...right on !!

Getting back on track: I have used a smidgen of copper grease on the threads, and 80Nm on the caliper support brackets. This is near the top of the range according to the Subaru service manual. Using these values, on many Subarus, including friends, and my own - which get a good thrashing on trackdays - I have not had problem. Nothing loose, nothing not able to be opened come the next brake service. I register close to 300,000 miles of happy driving behind the wheels of my own cars. Add in the extra mileage on the car's I have helped with, and I think my method has stood the test of time.

Depends very much on the way you use the car. Best case would be 60K miles/5 years, in my own humble and unsubstantiated opinion I run Valvoline Synpower for 25-30K miles, but the car sees plenty of action on tracks. Redline is also a very good oil, but Valvoline has an uncanny ability to cure the gear crunch in even 20 year old Subarus. Never had a Sube reject Synpower

When the dampers go out, the handling gets very wayard. I vote dampers. Are they old? Like more than 60 k miles? Or 8 years?

Yes, the cracking is something I have heard about. That is why I have bought the manifold from a local dealer, and not via the internet. I will have somewhere to go, IF something goes wrong. I have also kept my original manifold, so the car won't have to stand still during a warranty claim. Still, reading around the net, it seems like the cracking has been solved. Most complaints are many years old. My manifold was built in December 2009 according to the paperwork, so I would expect that Borla has solved the problem. Surely, some cases of cracking could be due to worn engine mounts? Which would not even be Borla's fault?

3 pipes...thats because the headers from each port are quite long. So the left most pipe of the 3 side by side in the picture is the collected pipe from the left head, running parallel to the 2 header pipes from the right So it merges 4-2-1. With the Borla and the rotting old cat-pipe on, the sound was very relaxed, kinda five-cylinder like. After fitting the free flowing Random Tech, the sound is a bit louder, but also more agressive. But only really on acceleration, and expecially at WOT. Cruising is surprisingly quiet. Most the noise now flows out the back, so overall the cabin is more sedate than with the stock manifold/cat setup and my open rear muffler. The Borla cat-back system is on it's way to me, will be here Tuesday, I expect this will be quieter than my "Jama" muffler. G-Tech road measurements show an average 2% increase in peak horsepower, but 4% mid-range. A surpise for me, since I thought this system would make the power delivery peaky, but it has actually lifted the torque curve in the 3000-5500 rev band (I quote percentages since my weight is estimated. Multiple runs were done in both directions on the same stretch of road, in the same weather conditions before and after fitting the Random Tech. Fuel tank was brimmed at a nearby gas station, for both set of runs.)

It should be hydraulic, and the reservoir should be nestling on the "firewall". Serious air in the system will cause this. Or a leak in either end...master or slave cylinder. OR, unlikely, but also more costly to repair..the link arm inside the bell housing is broken or unhinged.

Hello fellow Subaru-lovers My 10 year, and two month, 185,000 mile old Impreza was getting ready for a new exhaust, so I decided it was time for a little upgrade and ordered a Borla manifold and a Random Technology catalyst. Good thing too, just in the nick of time....the stock cat pipe c-r-a-c-k-e-d the very day before my new piping arrrived Anyway, it's all in place now, fitted neatly, no fiddling about...I have had some VERY BAD experience with a Hayward & Scott system, that didn't fit. I have to say, I am very impressed with the quality of these American products Beats "English Craftmanship" any day. In fact, I am so pleased, I have ordered the full cat-back system too (Don't forget...I am a Dane, living in Denmark.) Oh yeah, a few pictures for your viewing pleasure:

Good advice in this thread. I LOVE this website

Good advice

The shock "dust cover" and bump stops. And strut tops.

Sweet ride! You'll want to get a complete rear subframe to make mounting a rear sway bar and disc brakes a simple task: Old fram out, new frame in.

I would suggest a (to me) more common failure: The throwout bearing has collapsed. It's thinner than normal now and needs more pedal travel to disengage.

90K miles? You shoud consider fitting new dampers (shock absorbers), they will be worn, and you will feel a very big difference. Tyres? More than 4 years old? Time for new tyres. Tyre pressure? "Correct" pressure depends on many things, including your own personal taste. Make sure they are the same, side-to-side. Also, a four-wheel alignment might be a good idea.

Negative. WRX's of that age had the fixed, 4-piston, calipers that were fitted since 1998.

I got hit recently, again. Lazy Danish police force didnt' want to come and help me. Anyway, yes I concur with the consensus. Get it checked out and documented. There will be damage. I bet your bumper doesn't sit right anymore, maybe just half an inch too far forward. The aluminium "crush box" behind the bumper has taken the biggest part of the collision force, but the metal frame and brackets that hold the bumper and crush box are probably also damaged. These parts are not cheap. What about yourself? I got a concussion and a whiplash injury. But it does depend on the exact circumstances, like how you were sat, the weight of the two cars and so on. You might want to have an authorised Subaru dealer look at your seats. The headrests should be of the the "anti-whiplash" type, meaning they jump forward to catch your head. This system will also need replacing.

The FT-86 should be coming with boxer engines only. RWD Toyota, 4WD Subaru

I should of course add that I use my car for A LOT of Trackdays / Advanced Driving course, so it does get a beating. Of course, my 1992 Legacy had the same vertical play in the rack, and that wasn't beaten around race tracks for a living. The amount of play was minimal, and I never replaced it...car made it well past 200,000 miles without any problems.

Rver..same conditions here in Denmark. I was in Sweden - for work- on Friday. They don't bother so much with all the salt. Most main roads are just treated with a layer of sand/fine gravel and this gives quite remarkable grip. I will still maintain that with the Conti TS810 (205/55R16) that my 1999 Impreza is wearing, my braking distance is shorter with ABS activated. The trick is to trust it, and mash the pedal. If you let off the pressure, you'll coast too far.

Now, I have to admit, that I don't like all the false confidence that all these electronic gadgets instill. No doubt, ABS can and will cause some people to take more chances. I find this effect is increased VASTLY with the influx of ESP. Joe-Smoe now thinks his "modern" ESP equipped car is incapible of having an accident. THIS IS A DANGEROUS EFFECT. ESP can, in some cases rescue Joe when he makes a big mistake with his inputs in a tricky situation, but it cannot allow him to take corners above the speeds dictated by physics. HOWEVER, having said that, there is one important thing to mention about ABS. The difference between static and dynamic friction. Once two objects have "released" eachother and allow slip, the grip available is reduced. Depending on surfaces, anywhere between 10 and 25%. Therefore, the locked wheels that some people are favouring here, have LESS GRIP. Yes, they do. (Of course, studs on ice don't count) The reason ABS, especially early types can lose out in theoretical optimal braking distance is the pulsing. The brakes have to be released a bit to get the wheels moving again. The shorter pulses of newer systems allow much better stopping distances. Dynamic vs. static friction. Grab a book, place a small object on it, like a die. Tilt the book slowly to one side. Once the die starts to slide, tilt the book back toward horizontal...but only slightly. You will find that the die will STILL KEEP SLIDING, since it is only held by dynamic friction. It will now keep moving where it would have stood still had it not released the book already.

On compacted snow, I find that if I enter a corner off the gas, then step on it, only to lift abruptly, and then floor it comprehensively again...the side windows take on the role of windshield....is this normal The abrupt lift is what really sets the tail out...good fun. To catch the slide, just ease off the gas or apply a little more counter-steer. To look like a pro, depress the clutch pedal before the car lines up, this will prevent the tail from overstepping to the opposite side. Once pointing straight, let the clutch in again. This could be used for automatics too, just nudge the selector into N. The lock isn't active from D to N. Is it locked from N to D on American models? I got to do some training a frozen lake a few weeks ago. Here I also learned that when a slide seems to be going too far...just mash the gas to the carpet. The wheelspin resulting on all four, will stop the car rotating about the vertical axis, it will keep sliding in the same direction. Same effect is possible with a good stab on the brake pedal.