CoupedUpSubie

If your exhaust has been hacked up a bit then I'm guessing things are in the wrong place. On my 95 impreza the spring loaded connection is the cat to midpipe for the doughnut gasket. The midpipe to axleback or extension pipe is a solid connection. When you assemble everything I recommend lathering the bolts with antisieze. Won't do much for the spring connection but the others it should help a lot, the spring connection is easily cut while the others are not. I replaced everything from the cat back with new parts for about $200 using a thrush turbo muffler which sounds decent.

You need the metal ring, that is the doughnut gasket. The flange that normally goes is the one on the cat although the one on the midpipe might be junk as well. I ground the old flange off the cat and went and got a new one from the local NAPA. They don't have the exact flange last I knew but they should have one that you can slightly modify and use.

Blue book is $2200 in fair condition. If the only things needing to be addressed are the oil leak, tune up and possibly struts then offer $1200. The oil leak could be as simple as valve cover seals or it could be the separator plate. Also you want to be sure to do some tight circles and what not to check the operation of the transmission, if it feels like your driving a 4wd truck with locked diffs then the trans could be junk or it just needs a flush.

I believe subaru got rid of the hydraulic lifters in the late 90's. Do you hear the noise while driving or just sitting?

The vibration could very well be the tires. If they are replacing the tires then the car MUST have an alignment. That is why your tires are wearing weird if they really are. The RFB would have shown a bent wheel.

There is still the factor that the engine will run at different RPMs for your speeds which is what mostly causes excess fuel usage from one car to another. Your getting more performance out of your 2.2 with the auto trans then say someone with the 4.11 or 3.9 FD manual trans.

I would say that 24-25mpg for a 2.2 with an auto sounds about right. The GT auto trans has a 4.11 final drive. The 96 outback 5MT is a 3.9. With different gear ratios and such your fuel mileage will change. My 1.8 fwd is having a hard time hitting 30 mpg lately. Fuels are getting more ethanol which as many have said is not good. From the good trusty 5hp brigs and stratton lawn mower engines to trucks I have seen ethanol mess systems up and drop power and fuel mileage.

OP, which engine do you have? The older 1.8s have a different IACV then the 2.2s and 2.5s.

If not the ignition switch then I'm guessing the neutral safety switch is junk and not recognizing the position of the shifter. You need to swap it already and get rid of that clunky auto .

Control arm bushings are said to make a clunk noise but I got rid of some vibration when I replaced mine as they were getting quite worn. I got mine for $140 both sides. They are an absolute pain to change. Torch, hacksaw and air chisel to remove the old ones. Large washers/socket and hammer to drive the new ones in, helps to have a good solid surface to drive against. Front bushings: Burn old rubber out, cut a groove in the outer sleeve taking care to not cut into the control arm, I cut the groove in the area connected to the control arm so I could hit the metal a tad. Using a center punch roll the edge of the sleeve down so you can put the air chisel on it. I had a drift punch attachment for the air chisel. Hammer on it until it comes out. Works well if you have all the tools. Can also get them pressed out if a local shop won't take you to the cleaners. To make install easier throw them in the freezer for a few hours. They will slide most of the way in but will require some extra force. Just make sure whatever you use contacts the outside edge of the bushing. Rear bushings: They just bolt on. Put them on the control arm before install and line them up to where the old ones were. You will see where there is no coating on the frame.

Well I just went back through my pictures and believe I found the washer your referring to which helps me. I was thinking of a different spot. Those are a quite thin washer with a crease that runs across it. As to the purpose, I can only guess they don't allow the rocker arms to be slammed against the mounts. I circled it in red.

I have not seen these washers myself but based on the placement and your buddy thinking they are spring washers. If this is true then you really should have them in there. Find out how many and the proper installation of them. The technical name for that type of washer is a Bellville spring(sets of them are stacked to make a spring). They allow for slight changes due to expansion and contraction. Cliff notes: Put good ones back in.

If you can't get the pins free then replacement calipers are your best bet. Some people say to buy new subaru calipers or rebuild your old ones. I recently bought all Centric parts to do the front brakes on my car. I've put about 800-1000 miles on them and the gain in braking power is impressive, you wouldn't believe the condition of the rotors that were on my car. Full setup with Centric C-tek pads and rotors with base rebuilt calipers was $125. If you fill the calipers with fluid and don't let your reservoir go empty switching the calipers a quick easy gravity bleed is all it takes.

Did you clean the throttle body? That will effect idle. Make sure you buy throttle body cleaner and read the instructions. My car ran a lot better after cleaning the MAF and throttle body.

A 97 will bolt up if it has the correct final drive.

I don't see where the change in the amount of force put on the wheel bearing would be great enough. As it is now the relation between the center of the wheel(where I would calculate the amount of torque placed on the edge of the bearing due to greatest stresses at that point) is actually more towards the inboard edge then the center. Looking from the front of the car the bearing is being forced in a clockwise direction. Moving the wheel out 1 cm will place the center of the wheel closer to the center of the bearing which I see as a good thing. This will reduce the bearings tendency to want to "rotate."

I wouldn't worry about it too much. You shouldn't rub anything either. In the end your car will have a slightly wider stance but only by 2 cm. Could cause wheel bearings to wear out quicker but that isnt that much wider.

I believe all 4 cylinder legacys are ej series engines. If you want confirmation for yourself look at the block in the area between the power steering pump and alternator. It will say EJ22 on it, its cast in so it will be there.

I have been told the SVX wheels have a different bolt pattern so you would not want to use SVX brakes. Easier to buy a whole knuckle and brake setup with ebrake cables to do the swap. Or you can piece them together.

99 OBS should be phase 2. At least the one I did brakes on was.

I remove my airbox, battery and windshield washer tank anytime I dig into anything in that area. Makes things 10x easier.

There is no other way to get it out. I guess you could have it pressed out but that is 10x the work. I removed the caliper and positioned the stud so it would pop out the backside and drove the new one in. To make sure it is completely seated flip your lug nut over so the flat surface hits the rotor and tighten until its out as far as the rest. Double check after 50 miles or so.

Did nobody see this? If the coolant is brownish then it either had the orange antifreeze added to it or something is leaking into it.

I am not sure about the ABS tone ring problem(as I do not have ABS) but a good 16 oz ball peen hammer drives them right out.

Thanks, couldn't find a picture myself.