idosubaru

XT6 Dash gauges for oil pressure and voltage aren’t very accurate. I wouldn’t even look at those. How old is the battery? It may have 13 volts for 2 milliseconds and bad cells brings it too low almost instantaneously. Charge the battery then try to start the car once or twice if it’s below 12 after that then it’s fried Use quality jumper cables or power pack - does it turn over then? Give power directly tk starter post - what happens? huge issue with jumper cables is cheap cables with anything short of exceptional connectivity won’t flow enough amps. people all the time misdiagnosis a car because jumper cables didn’t start the car but the issue was cheap cables or not good enoug connection

Yep, JDM isn't as attractive now as it used to be - they're pricey and old which does headgaskets no favor.

10V isn't usable, it should be ~12.7 volt, 10 isn't even close to good enough. This means one of the following: 1. The battery is bad. If it never gets above 10V with jumper cables or an external charger then it's bad. Sometimes they can test good and still be bad. That's rare but when it happens they'll show 12.5 volts and then *very quickly* drop to well below that the first time the battery is used for anything electrical, like the first time you bump that key to start the engine. 2. The alternator isn't charging the battery, which means one of the following: a. The harmonic balancer is separating and the alternator isn't spinning fast enough to charge. Post a photo of the face of it or paint/grease mark a line across the entire face and see if the line is separated after getting the engine to turn over with a jumper cable/jump starter. b. Test the alternator - jump start the vehicle and test output voltage at the alternator Okay, I didn't think so but I wanted to be comprehensive - that list is everything it could possibly be if what you have currently described it accurate.

Cut back the battery cable wiring 6” and see if it’s corroded. Tons of white stuff will be caked into abs between all the wires of the cable. Voltage drop or resistance testing will likely confirm without cutting if that scares you Measure voltage at battery. Measure voltage at starter. Tell us those numbers. It’s either: 1. battery (is it new?) 2. terminals (are they 100% clean and tight?) 3. corrosion inside the battery cables 4. starter 5. the engine is seized

Replacing them is nice just to avoid cleaning them up, that's annoying. Subaru headbolts aren't TTY so there's no need to replace them unless they're rusted/damaged. Another option is to chase them with a 11x1.25 die. That will clean them and confirm the threads. https://www.ebay.com/itm/325066150971 I've seen repeat failures of new Fel Pro headbolts on engines I didn't work on. I'd guess it's more of an issue with the type of person replacing the bolts than the bolts themselves. For instance someone who ignores well known Subaru approaches to HG and just does it like they're grand daddy did it, which happens to include replacing the bolts. Although it is a stretch to assume Fel pro uses the same quality grade raw materials, machining and quality cotrol as Subaru OEM. I'd install used Subaru bolts before any aftermarket. I doubt the bolts are an issue but just providing additional options in case it's helpful as you dig in.

Resurface heads, clean and lubricate the bolts and holes/threads and use Subaru head gaskets. I rarely get kits, I use Subaru MLS OEM or Fel Pro gaskets except when I need a custom thickness for a custom EJ then it’s cometic if necessary If you want to just get the parts needed: head gasket, intake and exhaust manifold, valve cover, spark plug tube, crank seal, cam seals, oil pump oring, thermostats gasket and water pump gasket. And engine coolant crossover orings I’ve never used anything but Subaru OEM and fel pro sometimes. I wouldn’t install anything else except cometic when I need a custom thickness for a custom EJ. Mahle, Beck Arnley, etc doesn’t have to always use the same supplier. Prior post says you’re good to go now. it just may not always be that way, I’ve seen suppliers change for the same brand and part number.

Front pinion seal. Or just swap in a used rear diff. They almost never fail and have zero demand. On parts cars I never sold one and routinely scrapped them.

scan for check engine codes. You could have a pending code that hasn’t tripped the check engine light yet. unlikely but it’s free and takes 2 minutes and is a good starting point. Do you notice any difference when warm verse cold? How about when driving slow or letting off throttle completely or at a stop sign? are there conditions when it’s more apparent? Test, clean, or replace idle control. Check for vacuum leak like Loose intake or vacuum hoses. It’s not the fuel filter.as the prior post said they’re cheap and easy so doesn’t hurt to replace. But Subaru fuel filters routinely last the life of the vehicle, the pumps have a huge sock/screen on them, and you’ve taken good care of this vehicle. If it sat for a long time and had rust issues galore and needed lots of work then yeah maybe a rusty tank clogged the filter and your pump is trashed too. By your description that’s not you. Otherwise it’s a terrible first guess. Too many anecdotal “successes” get reported as fuel filters when it was something else and they just didn’t know it. Its such a standard low grade answer that doesn’t make any sense in the face of reality. I assume fuel filters or gas used to be trashy clog prone garbage of some bygone decade or fail all the time on other equipment for as often as I still hear them talked about even though diagnostically confirmed demonstrable *Subaru* issues are basically unheard of.

If you get one with less than 36,000 miles see if you can get the extended 120k warranty? It can be added until the original warranty runs out but not sure if it has to be the original owner to add it?

Hahahhaa. Lmao Great point !

It's common across the entire automotive sector. I'd imagine it varies somewhat by years/models and maybe some are worse than other but there are issues across the board.

If the same generation I’d be surprised if it didn’t swap. That’s unfortunate you have to disassemble a new seat. I’ve swapped 2014-2017 forester lower seats. never dealt with the upholstery or a nonheated seat so I don’t know for sure but the wiring, electronics, and hardware are all swappable between various trims and options. Seems impossible the heated hardware isn’t the same like Larry said of the 90s stuff. I needed a 2017 steering wheel airbag and they weren’t available this summer, also with no timeline.

Don’t know for sure but 235/60 should do it. Try those on the tire size calculators. Subarus can almost always go up one tire size so 225 to 235 and play with the ratio. Those 235s will fit your stock rims just fine. If other foresters of the same generation, different trim or turbo, have different wheels/tires that may give a clue as well. Taller sidewalls are more forgiving of punctures too.

EJ swap sounds like the way to go. When bolting an EJ engine to an EA trans you make or buy an adapter plate, I forget what happens when you do it the other way around. Get one 3.9 final drive and keep your rear LSD. EA rear diffs are a cake walk to swap to 3.9 so you can swap your 3.7 LSD to a 3.9 final drive really easy. I’ve done it.

Not just failed transmissions but zero symptoms from not following those instructions. There would be noise, shifting, codes, or other symptoms…if it was an issue. But quite literally none - not one person in 10 years has done just a drain and fill and had issues. And I guarantee it’s been done tons of times. I mean look at how many CVTs fail. It’s not definitive but highly suspicious. In 10 more years we will probably find out it didn’t matter.

I got Amsoil for mine. What I’m unsure of is can the first Amsoil fill be a partial drain fill or does it need to be a full evacuation? I want to know what happens if you just drain and fill and drive without following those specific directions? What symptoms result? For all the specificity I’ve never heard one person say they had issues. Anything that requires something slecofic like that always has people posting online or calling me when they do it mistakenly. But not this time. After 10 years of silence on that this suggests it’s a nonissue or overkill for very rare conditions or CYA for not having a dipstick?

Yes look at the bolts - are they rusty? Because there’s a good chance they strip even if they aren’t rusty. Impact screw drivers are great but can’t use those insitu. Come up with a stellar method of removing them. EZ Outs are not the way. There’s like 60 of them so 3 minutes per rusty bolt is 3 hours just to remove bolts. I would not replace the chains. On a 300k H6 the exhaust valves may be tight, carbon build up in the heads, head gaskets may go soon, water pump may leak, and I’m sure it’s using at least some oil? The timing chains are far enough down the priority list they’re not a big deal. I know it happens but ive never seen a broken H6 Subaru chain. I’d consider the water pump more than the chains. At which point maybe you do chains and pump since they have to come off to replace it and you’ll have nice clean visible timing marker colored links on a new chain to work with rather than trying to eyeball which one it is on a 300k chain.

The units themselves are prone to fail. A 99 Outback is going to be like 95-98 legacy outback’s and there’s a metal rod connecting the control unit to the blend door. I’ve seen them simply get disconnected down above the passengers side feet. It’s been a few years since I did one so I don’t recall specifics but look up there and it should be obvious if it’s connecting and working properly. I’d look there first then assume the control unit is bad. Not sure what the vacuum contraption would be on a 1999, was that 99 Outback info you saw on rhay?

If you’re handy reseal the cover in the car and call it a day. You don’t have to pull the engine.

Friends have bought used Land Rovers for pocket change, had numerous maintenance issues and joked that it's cheaper to buy another used one for parts than constantly order parts. But on the other hand they have somewhat of an air of reliability because 'what else would you drive across Africa in?" Is it excessive parts and familiarity in Africa? Is it just South Africa? Maybe there was a particularly older model that was more reliable than modern mass produced models? Or maybe they're more reliable than I think?

Only other thing id check is timing tensioner but you have fairly classic piston slap by the current description.

Which one? I saw a “European” and Diesel formulation, and maybe theres others?

* edit my bad I didn’t see that he had replied. I’m almost positives he said he uses it. I bought Amsoil cvt for my 2013 and nearly positive I saw him talking about it. I’ll be doing a 2016 i just picked up shortly and will use it again. You could search his user name and Amsoil or maybe CVT to find his comments here.

It wasn’t resolved. Maybe less common than older models, but it still happens on newer ones. Yes there’s lot of piston slap diversity - some have piston slap, some don’t, some worse than others, some were repaired under warranty, some have had engines or pistons replaced since new, some shops install updated pistons, coated pistons or knurl the pistons when doing a headgasket job, at least two shop owners on here do it and others do as well…etc.

It’s piston slap. It’s benign and unfortunately no easy solution. headgaskets or major work, is a good time to consider having the pistons knurled or new Subaru block installed to address it