idosubaru

awesome - those instructions helped then? i need to tackle one of these some day, i still haven't dug into one yet, i've always just swapped entire hubs, except three times i've taken the hub/bearings to a shop for them to do it.

compression isn't causing that. bad sound and plugs makes it sound like it could be an easy fix:banana: cap/rotor is probably warn or hosed. i even had a brand new XT6 rotor fail on me in less than a year once. pulled the cap and there it was, all shredded up for no reason. perfectly running car, distributor, no cross threaded bolt or anything - just blew up one day while driving and ran great with once fixed.

you don't mention what year but if the system starts having issues it's fairly common to replace the hose and slave cylinder. that's easy, the bleeding is hard. so it was a success for you then, some improvement!

looks decent, you're almost within 10% which is o.k.. i'd do it a second time, maybe in reverse order or with a different gauge and see what you get due to the variation. full current available (battery fully charged)? throttle propped open to allow unrestricted air flow? were all plugs removed when doing it for each cylinder or did you remove them as you went? usually doesn't make much difference but that generally keeps things efficient and comparable.

if you currently own it - how do you not know how it performs? or are you wondering how a standard suspension compares? i've never driven a stock legacy that i didn't like how it performs except the lower end models like L and brightons, but that's probably due to lack of or small sway bar. i drive lots of snow, mountains, and gravel/rough roads every day, and really like how all of my legacy's perform - i have 2 current daily drivers - a 99 SUS and 96 LSi - both handle really well for me on stock suspension. my OBW tends to roll a good bit and i like it less than the legacy sedans for the twisty mountain roads i drive everyday. but at 180,000 i haven't decided if it's the original struts or wagon causing it.

i think that's the same thing/idea as the Hub Tamer, which is talked about here often, like earlier in this thread: if so, they have the same issue i believe - rather expensive for someone just doing one wheel bearing job.

some subaru hydraulic clutches are fairly prone to hose and slave cylinder failures, so replacing the fluid would be a good idea to keep internals as best as possible. like GD said - bleeding these things can be one of the more annoying processes known to man. if you can bleed it without introducing air, do it. GD i believe knows a good way to do it - i've had to drive them with bad clutches or let them set overnight to get all the bubbles to coagulate in one spot - either up top or bleeder, not sure what cracks the system up but they're hard to bleed sometimes.

right on mike. particularly the Phase II headgaskets are so easy to do, i wasn't thinking about that, they're about the easiest Subaru headgasket. if it was like the Phase I's it might be more tempting! and i was only wondering like certain situations, like 30,000 or something. was talking to someone today in that situation so the thought popped in my head but i didn't say anything like this, just curious.

I'm wondering if someone has a new and very low mileage EJ25 - would it be reasonable to only replace one headgasket? This is not a current issue I'm facing at all. The only one I have now has 300,000 mile with both headgaskets pouring. I can't imagine doing one, just curious. Most say that newer EJ25's are good cars and nothing to worry about. So if only one headgasket is leaking that same logic should apply to the "other" headgasket so to speak if you used the commutative laws of poor reasoning. I might be tempted to do it on my own car, just to save time, not that I currently drive any Phase II EJ25's. But if the other started leaking i'd just wait until the next timing belt change to do it, so not much loss in time really.

that's fine if that's how you like to do it. it's obvious you're ready to argue the point and have zero discussion on it, but it's not very good advice for the masses. high mileage water pumps are the norm. you're looking at anecdotal experiences - there are far more timing belts failing before they're intervals than there are even water pumps failing. you can do a search here or on any car/truck forum and see more timing belt issues than water pump issues - so the proof is out there if you want to see it. also - timing belt replacement is just as much about replacing the pulleys as it is the belts. there's a ton of threads on here, and other car forums, of the pulleys failing and taking the belt with them. a belt change allows you to replace them or check them. water pumps are also much more likely to give you signs before they fail than a timing belt. seeping, leaking, noises.

awesome good stuff to know.

read jamals brake caliper thread in the USRM section of this website. subaru is way crazy with brake changes and it's very difficult to commit them all to memory. but yes - a late 90's OBW will be very close, if not the same as a forester. the rotor size is the same dual piston variety that most late 90's EJ25's got...or my memory is telling me it is at least. they could be the same, sometimes the calipers are interchangeable but different, sometimes you swap brackets too, sometimes not. just read jamals thread and you'll see what i mean.

plugs seem likely. looks like they may be well past due. subaru says 60,000 miles: http://www.cars101.com/subaru/subaru_maintenance.html well over mileage and cylinder misfire makes this a good guess. keep track of them all (which cylinders they came from). once they're all out, compare them to see if they have the same wear and discoloration of the ceramic. let us know what you come up with.

didn't find much about popping out of gear on here - only about 3 threads out of 285 in a search for "gear". friends 97 legacy pops out of a gear (3rd or 4th) at specific times - i think like when loading or unloading it (accel or hills). bushings and stuff are probably a long shot? more likely something internal? will this quickly escalate to something worse? fluid change isn't likely to help?

buddy has outback struts on his 96 Legacy L and it blows axle boots. he's put like 100,000 miles on the car in just a few years so it's got a lot of experience with the set up. it would only be worse with more lift, but those are only boots right? crawler dan - are you saying you use the spacers with the OB struts on a stock legacy with no lift blocks?

no check engine lights at all? vacuum leak - spray starting fluid/carb cleaner all over the engine bay while cranking, only takes a few seconds to check that. have you checked for spark? have the spark plugs ever been changed? yes this is coil on plug and while it *should* give a cylinder misfire if those aren't working, i've seen things not throw a code.

wow.

welcome aboard, nice brat. i've been to santiago, visited one of the Subaru dealers there, not sure how many there are in santiago but maybe we've both been to the same place? my wife lived there for 2 years (santiago, not the subaru dealer )

subaru's don't typically mix oil and coolant when the headgaskets blow so that doesn't mean much. NO, the EJ22 does not have headgasket issues - that's the EJ25. are there any coolant leaks? has the thermostat ever been replaced? is it a subaru thermostat? maybe the thermostat is bad (one board member has a new Subaru thermostat fail last year - themoneypit is his username). if you have to pay a mechanic to do the work then it's probably not worth it. with new headgaskets and a timing component kit (pulleys and tensioner) the car could be good for another 50,000-100,000 miles of inexpensive maintenance - that's a pretty good deal if it's a good fit for you. if you're paying someone to replace the headgasktes then it might not be worth it.

yep, cracked flex plate sounds like where you're headed. check into and verify it first, that's a ton of work for a guess.

you didn't say what year/model? ia 96 or 97 legacy? i believe there was a recall or something about broken front springs on 1996 legacy's that Subaru will replace free of charge? too late now but might still be worth a look if the labor is free or you can return your parts? my front right broke on my 1996 LSi when I ran into this and i recall it being a free repair. i had two brand new front strut assemblies though so it was actually simpler since i hate dropping a car off/waiting/getting rides, it's out of the way, and i got a new strut out of the deal as well. in any event at only $33, i'd just replace the spring and call it a day. if there's some kind of imbalance - one side is high, then you can always entertain doing the other side later. i noticed no difference in mine. the bearings/mounts don't fail that often to warrant replacing. you'll be able to feel the bearing when you pull the strut off and can inject grease down there once it's off the car. either a $2 needle fitting on a grease gun or some of that spray in grease that coagulates will fill the bearings nicely. they don't really "turn", they just allow a little articulation of the strut, so they don't fail that much. the only bad ones i've seen (twice), both quited right up with some fresh grease. when my spring broke i just replaced the one strut/coil assembly with new and never bothered installing the other side yet though i have another brand new one of those as well. not worth my time, it's working fine and no difference in ride quality, etc. like you, this is a basic daily driver for me, doesn't need intense attention.

yes - as well as hair that ended up in my clear coat too. hat and shirt will be warn next time. luckily this was just my daily driver beater car and i don't care much about it. nice that it finally matches now though.

GD just said he uses a 1/2" impact, same thing right? electrica/pneumatic doesn't mean much, they're all different ratings?

compression test it. borrow one or buy one, they're not that expensive. what is the build date of your car? this will be very interesting to see how this turns out.

actually it wasn't a grid, it was potenza's. but either way, one you mentioned. i have two other sets of old wheels/tires sitting that i think are scalloped too - i'll check thsoe when i get home and see if that's true/what brand they are.