JT95

Yes--these were cut off to comply with a factory recall. Yes, Subaru refers to them as tow hooks. My 95 Legacy wagon has them missing. I had it towed a couple months ago after a botched wheel bearing job and the wrecker dude said flat hauling Subarus of that make are a bit of pain because they all have the tow hooks cut off. He didn't know why, so I did some research and found out it was a recall on them. Apparently, there was a danger of hitting a shap dip in which the tow hooks would hit the ground and could deploy the airbags. Whether or not this happened to actual drivers, I was unable to find out. It made sense to cut them off, but, come on, the factory could have offered a solution for the now-missing tow hooks. They do come in handy occasionally... I wouldn't get too ticked off at the dealership. Well, I probably would, but don't take it to heart. I'm sure they are required by Subaru to do such things whenever they run a VIN through the system and an alert pops up. What year is your car? I bought my Subie used, so it's not a big deal. However, if I forked out $24,000 for a car and it got cut on, I'd be very pissed because I didn't pay that much for a car without tow hooks. I wanna tinker with fitting mine w/ some replacement hooks--if I ever get around to it I'll let ya know what I did...

I'm not too sure on the older cars. I'd say the overdrive auto would get close to the same as a stick. Same ratio at the top gear, isn't it? They actually list the new automatic as getting better mileage than the manual on the '05 Subarus. My 95 still has the original window sticker in the glove box--it listed a top highway mileage at 28mpg, which it may have done new on the open road at 55mph. I've got 152,000 miles on it, drive 70mph, and have AWD, so 25mph doesn't excite me, but doesn't really disappoint me that much either. I'm curious if folks have noticed any difference between roof rack and non roof rack gas mileage? Mine has the factory rack, and I'm planning on putting a couple of roof mounted bicycle racks on it, so that may hurt me 1 or 2 mpg...

I just found out that my recently purchased 95 Legacy wagon had its timing belt changed at 91,000 miles in 1999. That's good, because now I know it has been done and know for sue it doesn't need taken care of. Are we supposed to wait another 100,000 miles to change the belt a second time, or is it different after the initial swap?

Does Subaru offer a factory radio that does play MP3 files? (I didn't take the time to check their web site...) If so, I'd go back to the dealership and talk to the salesperson who sold you the car and explain the error on his part--very friendly like of course. Ask him if he would go ahead and order you a factory radio w/ MP3 capabilities. (If you can do the swap yourself, emphasize that--it might help.) When he says no, ask to speak with the manager. When he says no, ask to speak with the dealership owner himself. Stress how much time you've spent and different people you've had to go through to get this minor problem resolved that was a result of a salesman who was either misinformed or deceptive with your brand new vehicle purchase. If that gets you nowhere, type Subaru of America a polite, educated letter asking them to resolve the issue. In the meantime, drive around the dealership lot in your spare time whith a big banner hanging on the side of your car that reads "Blah Blah Subaru Dealership Ripped Me Off". After drawing the attention of potential customers, you should have a new radio ordered for you in no time. Okay, I was being a bit cynical there. Seriously, though, go to the dealership and politely let them know you were told the car had a feature it doesn't really have and that you need them to fix the problem. A good dealership will get you a radio--assuming Subaru actually has a factory one that plays MP3s. You pay over $20,000 for a car and I think they can foot a couple hundred to fix a misundrstanding on their part. As far as the gas saver gizmo--save your money. I've not heard anyone say they bought any of those things and they actually worked. Consumer Reports recently did a study on several different brands/types of those devices and found that none did anything.

Been driving my 95 LSi AWD auto wagon for a little over a month now. I average 24-25 mpg. Best I have gotten so far is 26mpg. I do 70% interstate driving at about 70mph...sometimes 75-80mph. Mine has 155,000 miles on the 2.2. I wouldn't expect much beyond 26mpg. I was hoping for 28, but, oh well....

Thule does make great stuff. I just said Yakima because their stuff seems to be more popular and thus cheaper to find.

Check with local salvage yards for a complete roof rack if you want to go factory--tons cheaper. However, I have no experience with putting a factory roof rack on a Subie that did not come with one from the factory, so some other folks here might be able to shed some light on that... (In fact, I might be able to get you one of a '94 Legacy wagon--if yours is a wagon.) If aftermarket, I'd go with a Yakima system. (That's what my wife has on her Volvo) They have a few of the baskets to choose from: http://www.yakima.com/home.html Check your local bicycle shop--they should be able to rig you with the whole setup.

Thanks--I'll give that a try. It'd be great to know what all has been done--especially if that means me avoiding doing something unnecessary as maintenance.

I recently got a used 95 Legacy wagon. I did not buy the car from the original owners, but I did get to speak with the guy's wife on the phone. They had bought the car brand new and drove it until someone hit him--I bought the car wrecked. Anyway, she said that they took the car back to the dealership for all of its scheduled maintenance. (She commented that the Subaru's scheduled maintenance cost them more than their Mercedes.) However, she wasn't for sure what all had been done at those times and they had since thrown away their reseipts. I'm mainly trying to find out if the timing belt had been replaced. They owned the car up to 150,000 miles. I have the dealership information. If I call them, will they still have the service records for the car on file, and if so, would they fax them to me? Should I say I bought the car from the original owners, or would that keep them from giving me the records; or, should I just pretend I'm the owner and ask them to fax me my records? Thanks so much.

Yep--you'll be needing to replace the axle. Call around town and see what kind of prices you can get if you don't want to try this yourself--it's a pretty common job, so mom&pop garage with a good reputation can usually do a fine job and not charge you anywhere near what a dealer would. O'Reileys or Auto Zone or Advance should give you a decent price. I figure $75 for a remanufactured one, plus a core charge until you swap your old one. Go ahead and crawl under the car and look at your other boots.

I've used a short spark plug wire and hand threaded the plugs in using it. I usually use this little widget my parents stuck in my Christmas stocking ten years ago that I keep in my toolbox. I know these things must have a name, but anyway, it's just a bendable segmented plastic "stick" that holds your spark plug like a boot would on one end and the other end has a knob that you turn that twists the plug for you. It's great for tight spots. Then tighten a bit more with a ratchet/plug socket. If anybody knows what those things are called, I'd love to buy a couple of others--my wife wants one to put with her Volvo tools. I've always had a problem with my spark plug socket not wanting to let go of the new plugs--and thus coming off the ratchet extension--so I usually remove the rubber from the socket after I remove the plugs so they don't give me that problem during the install. I've only changed the plugs on my Legacy once since I bought the car, and it was smoother than expected. I used to own a little 4WD Honda wagon, and I hated doing anything mechanical on that car--most non-user friendly design ever...Still, there's nothing like popping the hood of some old Detroit iron where you have enough room to sit inside the engine bay with three buddies while you tinker on the engine...

I've been driving my 95 Legacy just a couple of months and I average 24-25 mpg, with a lot of highway miles. I tuned up the engine when I bought the car, but didn't track any mileage before the tuneup, so I can't compare what it may have been getting before new plugs, filter, etc. I find myself speeding more in the Subie--75-80 mph just doesn't feel like it's going that fast (damn that engine is quiet) so that probably hurts my mpg. I'll have to say this little 4 is one of the coolest engine designs I've been around.

The ABS control brain-box should be on the front, right side of your engine bay--against the inner fender. (It'd be on your left if you are standing in front of the car looking under the hood.) Or, get on the ground and look at your hub assembly--is there a thick black wire going to a plug. Here's a pic of it off the car: Here's another pic of the tone wheel and ABS sensor:

I'm getting ready to paint my 95 Legacy wagon. It's white, but I'm wanting to add a little more to it for this re-paint. Nothing over the edge, but something to set it apart a bit--a different type of two tone that's normally done on the Outbacks of that era. Anyway, I'm looking for a good side illustration/picture of a 95-99 Legacy wagon that's blank or at least white so I can practice with some different paint schemes. I wanna get my markers out and practice on a blank Subie picture. Anybody know of any that might be online? I found a couple of photos of white wagons, but I'd prefer a nice, big black and white illustration. If not, a big, clear, uncluttered pic might work too.

Okay--Subie Gal is the winner...and I'm a dork. The plastic inner fender was bent into the wheel. It was 11:00 at night and raining a monsoon and I'm an idiot for not getting wet and checking it. Didn't sound like anything rubbing a tire like I'd heard before, though. Anyway, that was a nice, cheap fix. Don't get too many of those...

Thanks--I'll check that out. I carpooled to work this morning w/ my wife, so I left the Subie in the driveway. At first I thought it was the inner CV joint, but the sound felt like it was coming from the wheel and it changed when the brakes were applied. I'll get down and inspect it this afternoon.

95 Legacy AWD Wagon. Tonight I was driving home through a monsoon--hardest rain ever driven through. Anyway, before I could see it, I hit a spot where water covered the road. Drove through I guess 10" of water...maybe a foot. Car didn't stall or anything, but afterward I had this whirring-chirring noise coming from the right front wheel--the brakes I assume. Kind of a light scraping sound that was constant as long as the car was moving--nothing sitting still. The only time it would go away was if I turned the wheel a bit. Never driven through water before and am also a new Subie owner. Is it just from wet, swollen brake pads? What all needs to be checked after driving through water? Thanks.

I think a couple of folks had asked about taking a WRX engine and swapping into an older Legacy. Ran across this dude's project and thought some of you might like to see it. http://www.cardomain.com/memberpage/218237/1

You'll need a hydrolic press to get out the old bearings and replace the new. Personally, I'd take the hub assembly apart myself, take that to a mechanic and watch him do the swap so you learn how he does it. Well, first I'd get a quote for just the bearing replacement only and the full job and compare. If you do the whole thing yourself, be careful when you press out the old bearings so you don't damage the tone wheel.

32 to 38 mpg???!!! Whatr ya doin--sprinklin the engine bay with magic pixie dust every morning in the driveway?????

I'd have to agree. If this is a car that you need to depend on for travel or anything beyond running errands about town, I probably wouldn't fool with paying someone to swap in an engine, as the costs you rack up would probably be better applied to a replacement vehicle. If you were doing the work yourself, then I'd probably say go for it, but paying someone to do an engine swap--especially a dealer--is going to add up to some serious cash. Unless you just have this deep personal attachment to the car, I'd say it's time to move on.How good is the body/paint on the car? Interior? This sounds like a great project car for a home mechanic, so I'd say you won't have any trouble finding anyone to want it--as far as a fair price, I'm not so sure what that might be. You figure an $8,000 car that needs over $4,000 worth of work, and that brings it down quite a bit, especially when you figure someone who fixes it is still going to have a car with 200,000 on the odometer and it's book value isn't going to be a bunch. If you want to sell it locally, check with a few car lots who specialize in doing rebuilt wrecks, as they are in the habit of buying fixable cars to sell. There definitely might be a few folks here who'd be interested. Personally, I'd stick it on eBay for a 10 day auction. If you had the time and resources, parting out the car would probably give you the best bang dollar-wise, if everything else is in good shape. As far as holding some liability over the dealer who last serviced it, you'd have to have some written documentation that they were asked to check the overheating issue. Just your memory wouldn't do much in court. You'd have to proove that they were negligent in not addressing the issue, which might not be easy. The thing you have going against you is that the car is pushing 200,000 miles. The average Joe expects cars to start going kaput after 150,000 anyway...Still, it may be worth discussing with the dealer. Explain to the manager that this was an issue they failed to address despite your voiced concerns. If it's any type of dealership--I'm assuming you originally bought the car from them--they will cut you a very nice deal on the repair (labor free or 50%) or else give you full trade in value for the car on the purchase of a new Subaru. If they don't offer you something fair, I'd flip 'em the bird and never go back.

Is the Baja made is the US, or are the Legacy cars the only US made Subaru? I haven't test driven one yet. I drove an El Camino for years when I was in college and always like the truck-car drive. I'd always wishe there was a way to keep my truck-car and still haul a wife and 2 kids around. While the truck bed isn't a truck-ish as I'd like, the Baja is the a neat design. Anything the talk of cutting out the Baja line? Are the sales not that good? I was disappointed with the lack of color options for '05...

Anyone had any experience with the Bajas? This is one of the few new cars I drool over--they seem like such a fun car to own/drive. Haven't heard much discussion about them, though. Consumer Reports, who usually gives Subaru high ratings, had marked the Baja lower on its dependability ranking but gave no reasons. Any word on the Baja? Any Baja owners here?

Well, I'm not that worried about this current engine going bad. It feels smooth and strong and I make sure to keep up with my maintenance schedule. I just thought it might be fun to buy the older 2.2 and rebuild it gradually and have it on hand for that day in the future when my current 2.2 dictates a replacement. Or, you never know when some freaky engine mishap can take place you never expected... I'll inspect the engine a little closer. It's still in the car, so I can get the exhaust manifold, etc. What's the story on boring out a Subaru block? Are there oversized pistons out there for a bigger bore cylinder, or are the cylinder walls too thin for a bore? This whole Subaru 4 cylinder design fascinates me and it'd be fun to rip one apart. :cool: I really don't know why the car got to the salvage yard in the first place--the body is straight w/ only some Wal-Mart parking lot type damage to it and it was a 4WD Legacy wagon, 5-speed. Course now the rear end has been stripped, wheels all gone, dash ripped apart to snag the radio, and the interior goes to crap once a car hits the salvage yard. If I had the garage space, though, I'd consider buying it as a restoration...

I found a wrecked 91 4WD Legacy wagon with a 2.2 in it. The guy doesn't want much for the engine, and I thought about buying it just to keep on hand and maybe slowly build up for down the road when mine eventually croaks. I have a 95 Legacy. Are the 2.2s from these different generations interchangable? I'm brand new to the Subaru world--I assume at least the short blocks would be the same, but you never know...