jeryst

1998 Legacy Outback. 2.5 Car started missing and overheating last week. Did it a couple of times, then stopped. Drove it all week with no issues. Needed to go someplace on Saturday that us 30 miles away. Made it about 20 miles, and it started overheating again. Let it sit until it cooled down, then drove it home with no issues. Thinking that the thermostat was bad, I took it to my mechanic about 5 miles away. Overheated twice and I had to stop each time. Sometimes it misses badly, other times it runs fine. Mechanic said head gasket is blown because its pushing water and bubbles into the overflow. Drove it home with no issues. Can anyone explain to me why it is having intermittent issues? If the head gasket is bad, why wouldnt it act the same all of the time?

1998 Legacy Outback wagon. 2.5 AT There is a hose on the driver's side of the engine that goes to the heater core on the firewall. The beginning portion is metal and then a rubber piece is attached. On my car, the metal part is leaking and I need to find a replacement. Does anyone know the official name for the metal part of this hose so that I can try to find one online?

Thanks for the info, however, because of some additional research, I feel there are other issues that are causing this. 1. It looks like indicator lights in the seat switches get their power from a different source than the power for the heaters themselves. Since none of the four seat heating indicator lights illuminate, I am assuming some type of power/ground issue, but I am not sure of where the power comes from. 2. The passenger seat heater functions correctly, so there is power and ground there. 3. The drivers seat heater functions erratically, so this could be caused by a break in the heating element, or also could be a power/ground issue. What I have not been able to determine, is if there is some type of major connection plug for the seat heating system, and where its location would be. I have had corrosion issues with some of the other connection plugs in the vehicle, and am wondering if that is what is happening here.

1998 Legacy Outback Wagon. 2.5. AT. Bought the car when if had 124k miles. Has160k now. Anyways, the switches for the heated seats have never illuminated in low or high settings (maybe they are not supposed to?). The passenger seat seems to heat consistently when the switch is on, but the driver seat only works occasionally. I leave it on all of the time in the winter, but just feel it warm up every once in a while for seemingly no reason. Does anyone know if there is a common point of failure for the heated seats? Would new switches help?

Thanks everyone for all of the great information.

Thanks for the diagram. So, if I install a switch in the White wire with Black stripe, that will allow me to turn off the Duty C (or AWD) selenoid, correct? Just out of curiosity, what is the function of the "Lock-Up Selenoid" right above the AWD selenoid in the diagram?

Do you have a link? I have downloaded an FSM that has an engine electrical section and a body electrical section, but I cant find the wire in either one.

1998 Legacy Outback wagon. 2.5. AT. There is supposed to be a wire that goes from the TCU (above gas pedal) to the Duty C Selenoid. I have downloaded manuals, searched the internet, etc, and have not been able to absolutely identify this wire, but I have to admit I'm not the best at this. Could someone please post a picture that clearly identifies this wire and shows its exact location, color, etc?

I already changed the PCV valve. I will have to check out the Y and tubing.

I just use regular oil, not synthetic. The car does not leak a drop, not even valve cover gaskets. Does not smoke. No film on the back windowor tailgate. I need to add a quart after every two days of driving to work, like clockwork. It does have 161k miles on it.

A while back, I started a post about oil usage in my 1998 Legacy Outback wagon with the 2.5. my issue was that it was using a quart of oil every 300 miles, but it was not leaking it, or visibly burning it. Recently, I started to check it daily, and noticed something that seems weird to me. I travel 160 miles every weekday, round trip I add oil until the level is at the full mark before I go to work on Monday morning. Tuesday morning I check the oil, and the level is down just a little bit. Wednesday morning the level has dropped a significant amount to the Fill mark. Why does it only seem to use a little bit of oil on the first day, and then a lot of oil on the second day? Is it the shape of the oil pan or something like that?

Thanks for all if the info. I think I'm going to pass on this one.

Dont know if trans pan is dented. Tires are all the same size. Seller bought car at an auction, so have no idea if motor/trans are original. Battery was dead from sitting. I had the mechanic jump it so that I could hear it run. Found out that it has 220k miles not 120k. I dont know how reliable these engines are, so I'm having second thoughts now, because I put over 30k miles on every year and I need something dependable. The behavior is baffling to me as well. Maybe something broken in the tranny and its floating around in there and jamming thing up erratically?

What else info do I need to provide? Right now, I just know that it is a 2002 Outback station wagon with a 6 cyl engine. It has an emblem in the grill that says H6.30, I believe. The mechanic said he located a replacement tranny that cost $700, and he would do the swap for $300. Unfortunately, I cant do the swap myself because of a combination of time, age, health, and pretty much total lack of mechanical ability. Can anyone answer my other questions about the problem seeming to be intermittent, and if these transmissions are generally unreliable?

I can pick up a really nice 2002 Outback for pretty cheap. It has the 6 cylinder engine and has about 120k miles on it. Automatic with full time AWD. First of all, I would like to know if there are any issues with the 6 cylinder motors, and if they are reliable as I travel 150 miles round trip to work every day. The main issue with the car, is they say it needs a transmission, however, that is also where I need some opinions/advice. The car is sitting at a garage where it was taken for inspection. The mechanic said he drove it into the garage fine. He checked it over, then when he went to pull it out, it went a few feet then slammed to a stop. He tried to move it forward and again it went a few feet then halted. Motor was running all the time. The mechanic shut it off and tried to push it, but it did the same thing again. The mechanic had to go do something else, so he let it alone for an hour or so, then came back to it. He said that he then got in, started it up, and it drove out fine. The mechanic says he thinks the transmission or differential is bad. Does that sound like the transmission or differential? Why would it exhibit problems only sometimes? Apparently the transmissions for the 6 cylinders are pretty rare and used ones are costly. Did these trannys have known issues? I know that the trannys in the SVX's were troublesome, so is that the same tranny? Should I trust a used tranny of this type? Any help that anyone can provide would be greatly appreciated.

They work. I'd just like to make them work better.

Anybody ever use that "Whipe-New" stuff they advertise on TV that is supposed to last a year? They show it clearing up lights. I know enough not to believe that stuff, but even if it would work for a month, I wouldnt mind giving the lights a quick wipe once a month. As for the adjustment, I was just thinking about loosening up the lights and see if I could put a washer on the bottom bolt to shift the beams up a little. I dont want to invest in a new set of lights. The car has the 2.5 with 150k miles on it so I'm expecting a head gasket to fail at any time. Plus its starting to get rust that needs fixed, etc. so I just dont want to put money into it.

I'm running Silver Star bulbs right now. One or the other burns out after a year or so, so I replace the pair. Headlight adjustment should be better, but the adjusters are so rusted they wont move and I havent been able to find replacement adjuster screws. The lenses are somewhat cloudy, so a friend of mine that has a body shop polished them, with polishing compound and a buffer. They were nice and clear for a couple months, but then got cloudy again.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I havent had a chance to do anything yet. The fog lights in the lower bumper are pretty much worthless for my needs. Does anyone know of super bright driving lights that would be a direct swap for the fog lights?

PA has very strict laws about extra lighting. They have to be covered unless offroad (been fined for that before). Also, they must all work and be wired properly or your car wont pass state inspection. Driving lights can only work when hgh beams are on, floods can only work when low beams are on. Big hassle all the way around

1998 Legacy Outback Limited I commute a log distance to work every day, and a good portion of the drive is on secondary roads. I am looking for a recommendation of the brightest headlight bulbs available. I normally use Silver Star bulbs, but would like to have the brightest high beams possible, that are still reliable and dont cost a fortune. Some type of offroad bulbs would not be out of the question. I dont want auxiliary lighting because PA has some stringent rules on such lighting, including keeping covers on them unless off road.

Final update: Mechanic tested injector and didnt find any issues. Cleaned throttlebody. Replaced plugs and wires. Noticed that plug wire #3 had several burn marks on side facing motor. Car is running perfectly now, so must have been wire #3 arcing that caused the issue. Thanks again for everyones input.

He said he is going to clean the throttle bidy and look at the injectors. How do you check the TPS?

Update: I noticed that it does not stumble if the car is cold, or if I pull out very slowly. I just grabbed some plugs and wires and headed out to my mechanic, and on the way there, the check engine light began to blink again, then stayed on solid. Code came back misfire on cyl 3 again. He is looking at it now.

Thanks for the suggestions. I travel 65 miles to work, sometimes up to 80mph on the expressways, and it runs and accelerates fine at those speeds. It's just at that one particular point that it misses, so I didnt think plugs or wires would act that way.