idosubaru

Might want to just talk years right now. Talking generations is confusing.... 89-94 is the first generation of Legacy 96-99 is the first generation of Outback..or at least it's talked like that sometimes. And then it gets muddier than that too.... I think it's easier to talk years/engines sometimes...like to a guy in the middle of a hurricane. LOL

My 2003 doesn't have fold down seats either I don't think. I just went and looked and didn't appear to. Convert one? LOL The wagons seem easier to find, maybe just circumstantial though, don't see a lot of H6's in general. Distance might shoot it down - but member on subaruoutback recently posted his for sale in Texas for a fantastic price. Not sure if it's sedan or wagon though.

i hate to repeat but make sure you didn't miss one bolt, it's so common to think you got them all then find out you didn't. if i can't get a block to separate on easier terms i use a 2x4 against some part of the block and wail on it with a hammer. that's worked every time so far. tie one end down securely then use a come along or winch on the other side, that should do it. LOL

I'd lean towards the 2013 model due to the timing chain (no replacement interval). The H6 timing chain engines from 2001+ have been amazing in reliability. Still young but i'd hope for the same with the new engine in the 2013's. The 07-09 Impreza's aren't bad motors but the EJ25 has been one of Subaru's lesser offerings. Headgasket and lower end bearing failures are far more common than in any other Subaru engines ever made. They can easily make 200,000+ miles though, don't get me wrong they can be decent motors, they just have slightly higher maintenance costs and higher percentage risk (which is still low-ish). Most folks don't really make practical decisions on that low of a risk though...%2 risk instead of %1 risk...I do, but most don't. Most rather pick price points, color, interiors, performance, etc. Everyone has a different fit. I chose the H6 engines in both of my daily drivers (and cars for two friends just this year) just to avoid the EJ25. Not a bad motor but I prefer the higher statistics of the H6. If the impreza can be equally as reliable and low maintenance that would be a great engine as it can also pull off better gas mileage.

Shawn listed this which may be easier to find: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=136521 I have one for Subaru's but doubt it's worth enough for me to mess with boxing and selling it, but you could make an offer. I've used it for two removals and zero installs.

Post a picture of one and someone on here may have some. I have a few sets of 00-04 calipers...might have pins, dunno for sure. But i'd be wary of just sending you one, they do seem to vary.

it happens. twice is odd. over here in the states new radiators are really cheap. last EJ radiator i bought from radiatorbarn.com was $89 shipped to my door, brand new.

I use Permatex anaerobic on my own stuff, will use ultra grey too. EJ water pump gaskets and thermostats gaskets get no sealant, they are of a different design. But the EJ aftermarket water pump gaskets are poor quality thin cardboard like material that should have sealant if they're used, but most folks stick with the OEM metal gasket which has proved quite robust. that is a nice hit, what I would do to turn back time and avoid all the gasket scraping i've done on those!

what is internal to the transmission? the neutral safety switch which also controls back up lights simply bolts to the outside of the transmission. it's like 2 bolts and off it comes.

i had these issues after installing new struts. so maybe the springs were shot too...or the bushings as just mentioned?

how sure are you of this? just trying to clarify as there's so many responses and thoughts on this. ***To clarify the tire rubbing...700 pounds of people and drum set, amps, guitar, speaker - 1,000+ pounds total. With new struts (original springs) the rear sagged bad, no room between wheel and vehicle. There was a really light rubbing sound. I would have driven the 200 miles home like that but switching heavier stuff to the other side made it go away. Could it have been just something like cladding, mud guard, trim, or something benign that was out of position enough to rub under those extreme conditions? Or you think bushings more likely? I find it odd I haven't read any other threads like this. It was very clearly an issue, not like "maybe something" is happening...it was unnerving bad, so something was clearly way wrong. stock wheels and tires. how do i figure this out? should it be visually obvious? thanks.

i saw that same one, he didn't use NPT fittings though or post sizes. for $30 i think i just need to buy one.

i had it aligned before, but i'm not opposed to having it aligned again and i'll probably try a different place next time.

this is one of those dinky party store helium tanks, not the industrial ones.

really, just the tires would do that? in college i would run tires on the rear until they popped or leaked...wire would be showing, watch your hands! had full size used spare, real tools/jack so i could change it out quick. never had any drivability issues even running those used slicks. had a really warn tire that's getting replaced as i type, i can't picture a tire doing that but that would certainly be an easy fix. bowling ball is a fair enough description of this too...

lugs should be good i can yank on bearings. the rears are all original. i'll check, i was yanking on end links. Fairtax said he's disconnected his rear sways and said it's barely noticeable in the way the car drives so I assumed that suggests it couldn't do what mine is doing, making the whole car slide/oscillate like that. very. i'm hoping maybe I'm overly sensitized since it was really freaky when it first happened. But - There is no noticeable problem with the old spring, maybe it was just weak but i don't feel 100% confident i pegged the issue either.

At 50+mph, the back end of my 2002 OBW H6 VDC seems to slide, when it hits a bump, a few inches from one side to the other and back again, I don't know how else to explain it, it is strange. Without hitting a bump it drives and feels perfectly normal. Had some sagging issues if I had like 500 pounds in the car (like 3 people in the back seat or gear in the back), the rear drivers side would sit so low the tire would rub. I put more weight on the passengers side to make it home without rubbing on a long trip. Without weight in the car it drove perfectly normal. I installed new struts and springs and i assume that issue is corrected, though I haven't loaded the car since then either. And i haven't driven at highway speeds since the spring replacement but it still seems a bit off in terms of the sliding issue. I yanked on sway bars and links underneath, nothing obvious. Really isn't much rust to speak of, just standard for here rust, no rotting. 200,000 miles New rear struts and springs Front struts are original (hands head in shame LOL). Anything else to look out for?

one of those helium tanks. for $30 i should just buy one, it seemed like it might be simple since i have an empty one sitting here and i'll only use it like once a year.

have a tank I want to make into an air tank. 1. need a fitting to fill it with air? 2. need a connector/fitting that acts as a valve but i can plug a hose onto is there something that does 1 & 2? I guess I can get a T-fitting and screw in a valve to fill in one and a valve/coupler/fitting to the other side? Never really messed with plumbing so unsure about matching threads and sizes and such.

use a 1997 EJ22 intake manifold with front canister so it's identical to the EJ25? The law is meaningless - how do they enforce it? How do they inspect? They're not going to disassemble the motor...so what do they do? Make it look right and be done with it, I'd do it. Most automotive laws regarding emissions, fluid, exhaust, and more - are violated by the thousands ever day. Find out how they inspect, not what is written, and fly in under that.

Oh I don't know, I would assume just call Subaru and ask them.

simplest way to proceed is to read the air bag code. there's going to be a connector somewhere and you ground one of the pins in the connector to get it to flash the code. you can usually find where online or someone here may know. older Subaru's are above the gas pedal. once you ground the appropriate pin then the air bag light starts flashing a sequence. read the number of flashes and that's your code. while it's tricky to figure out the pin that's better than guessing.

yes. it's a driven gear that's intergrated into the front diff - and it's plastic. they do fail occasionally, symptom is your speedo gets jumpy and then quits working.

The H6's are awesome. Plan on resealing the valve covers, they need it at some point anyway. The spark plugs are way easier with the valve covers off. It takes a while but it's at least not the pain of doing spark plugs with the covers in place. The H6's make up for it by being almost no maintenance. No timing belt, resealing oil pump, cam seals, etc. The only item they have is that serpentine belt idler/tensioner bearing issue. I'm sure you've seen that and can read about it. One of mine just hit 200,000 miles and I've only done plugs, V/C gaskets, oil cooler gasket, and those bearings. That's it. My other is at 160,000 and while embarrassing i haven't done anything to it yet. mileage isn't that great - i would expect about the same at best, maybe 1 mpg or so less than the EJ25. we get 21-22 mpg for daily commuting which is 15 miles of back mountain roads and no stop and go traffic, no red lights...it's WV. it's been awhile since i've driven an EJ22 or EJ25 for the commute but i think they'd do like 22-24 doing the same. if i cruise at 55mph i can hit 27 and sometimes 28 mpg...but that only happens on one drive that i do - 3 hours one way and back sustained at those speed due to back roads with no mountains. the H6 mileage drops really quick as soon as you start using the pedal more or hitting mountains, etc. drops quickly on the interstate for instance.

my only concern would be the drive gear for the speedo is only plastic, i'm not sure if there's any change of them coming together but you wouldn't want anything getting pushed/chewed into those plastic gears on the passengers side of the diff.