Setright

Ermm, Nipper those forces are "absorbed" in the bearings, crankshaft, and crankcase, not cancelled out. The boxer/flat design only means that the engine vibrates very little - pulls smoothly past 6000rpm.

Wait a minute! What size brakes do you have? The "two-pot" with the 277mm discs will just fit inside the stock 15 inch alloy rims. Any bigger brakes and they won't go. Plus, be wary of the clearance on some 15inchers.

Yes, start with the PCV valve. Again. White smoke is almost certainly water, and MAYBE the PVC is pulling condensation from the crankcase and causing the engine to steam. A leaking head gasket - God forbid - would produce a lot of smoke for a very little amount of coolant, so it would take a while to notice a drop.

Your ABS pump can make buzzing noises too. Normal test procedure.

No, it's an EJ 18 :-)

RON 90 or above.

Blizzak LM18. Works for me ;-)

The coolant has probably left the system "backwards". Compression and cumbustion pressure finds its way into the coolant channels and forces the fluid out via the expansion tank. It'll drip out the vent vent hole and some of it will blow off as steam. Just a little at a time....until the temp rises.

The often misjudged "halo effect". I like it.

Inspired by this post, I opened and cleaned all my grounding points. Used a glass fiber brush to clean the contact surfaces. Must say, they were all pretty clean already, but it still feels like a good thing to do. Only corroded one was behind the headlight. Lawson? Do you apply any form of electrical grease/sealant to the contacts? I am tempted to run some proper wire directly from the alternator. How could the factory leave this out?

40ftlbs sounds good.

Dang it! Well, 267k on a set of HG's aint bad. Flushing the coolant system is probably done best by filling it with a weak "Coolant flush" additive solution. Holts makes some good stuff, but there are a bunch out there. Use only half the amount recommend on the bottle - no need to chew your engine up. Rinse at least twice with tap water. Demineralised water won't take as much detergent out as tap water. Of course, you need to replace the HG's first, or the flush will be futile. Please search the board for "coolant replacement without bubbles" if you feel like reading my essay on that topic. The big secret is to fill the engine via the top radiator hose.

Nice :-)

At least once a year, maybe end of fall/autumn or perhaps end of winter, get under the car with an inch wide paint brush and scrub off all the dirt/sand/salt and stuff that's caked on. Use goggles (maybe a mask too) and a good light. The amount of crud in the top of the suspension towers is astounding! Then, rinse with water, let dry, and apply underbody sealant.

Rally, that sounds more like wear inside the bearing. The shaft I mentioned is only for sliding, no rotation on it.

Sounds about right. Do keep in mind that the HG issue is a weakness, not a certain-to-happen fault.

Has anyone offered the idea of a leaking intake manifold gasket? That would hit one side only. Same for exhaust manifold - but that would usually be audible.

The shaft that the clutch throw out bearing slides on needs lubrication. If you remove the intake/air filter box, then detach the clutch cable - or slave cylinder, and remove the rubber boot around the clutch fork you will gain access. It's tight, but a long brush with a bit of high temp grease on it (copper or lithium) should cure the creaking.

If you tighten it, clockwise, then the "bite point" will move further up the pedal travel. Loosening it will bring the "bite point" closer to the floor. Overdo this and shifting will become difficult. I assume you know that there are two nuts. A12mm that is the adjustment, and 10mm to lock it with. I would recommend loosening it 360 degrees. OR, taking you foot off the clutch pedal when you press the accelerator to the floor ;-)

My EJ22 did exactly as you describe when it blew a head gasket. Don't waste too mcu money on replacing radiators and thermostats and water pumps. FIx the HG. Or, if you don't intend to spend that much on the car and are willing to run it into the ground: Fit a higher pressure radiator cap. 1990 Legacy will probably be 0.9 bar. Get one for a newer model at a dealer, and it'll be 1.1 bar. It'll slow the bubble process while you look for a new car :-)

It's what you might call a "trunk". Smart alec!

Okay: Boot lid external 120cm Internal, ca. 110cm at the widest point, only 60cm wide at the bottom near the bumper.

I prefer NGK, and most people here do too. Some Subaru engines work "less well" with Bosch - like my EJ20 - and others don't seem to mind - like my EJ22. You're not at risk of doing any harm, but you might get a smoother and more responsive engine if you go back to NGK. Don't sweat this one, though :-)

Sorry to hear that! Make sure you have the car looked over, plastic bumpers have a tendency to pop back into shape and conceal the damage to the car frame.

30mm canon? So much better than a horn when you need to get ahead in traffic