idosubaru

they are always quirky when they have problems. don't ever think air suspensions make sense, read my list of all possibilities! although yours sounds totally normal: the more technical answer is that the system shuts down after 10 minutes to protect the compressor from overheating. it's leaking and therefore the compressor is running way over time - the system shuts down after 10 minutes of trying to pump it up. it's basically destroying the compressor too, they're a very weak design and can't withstand constant use like that. like i said - you have a leak. strut air bag, solenoid oring, fitting oring, compressor oring, compressor fitting, pressure tank, condenser. find the leak and fix it.

yeah check the linkage and the inhibitor switch on the front passengers side of the trans, could be broken/seized.

ball joints are easy, just get a pickle fork, they come out every time in less than a minute. can't believe how much time i wasted before finally getting one of those.

air suspensions are really convoluted, age does not help them, low mileage probably hurts from sitting and dry rotting rubber orings and fittings. i would convert it to coil over, that's your best bet. you can convert the rear and leave the fronts as air, it'll work fine. if you want to track the leak down - common leakage points are the air strut bags, the orings (2 of different size on the rears), the orings at the front on the compressor/drier. the fittings at the compressor are also prone to cracking and leaking, check them at the base of the compressor where you see 5 fittings - 4 in the circle, and one in the center. check each base for cracks. there are many, many leakage points. soapy water should help find them. solenoids can also fail and stick. you can replace them or try and disassemble and "stretch" the internal spring out to improve sealing. the controllers can fail as well and are located under the drivers seat on the XT6. we have LOTS of air suspension information on subaruxt.com since all 4WD XT6's came with air suspension.

great thanks for the feedback, good to know.,

you just need to turn the axle for access? then yeah, just turn the wheel to turn the axle how ever you need it.

sounds like Duty C. lots of threads on here and pictures of it and such. i'd play with that search feature above it's extremely helpful and will prove valuable. never heard of one so consistently doing that cold/warm thing before but i'm not terribly surprised either. maybe someone else will chime in?

what prompted the MAF sensor cleaning? there's a big difference between "it had issues before is started this" and "it ran perfectly before i did this". check for vacuum leak? any check engine lights?

how recent on the head gaskets? i would suspect a vacuum leak somewhere - think it might be worth it to shoot some starter/carb spray all around the hoses/top of the engine? i doubt it's the fuel pressure here unless you see a notable dip at part throttle to match the symptoms? no check engine light?

gotcha, just curious. yeah man right, i've never done the ebrake junk, never seen those fail. i always just rebuild the caliper bore only, not the ebrake mechanism.

these are classic symptoms of torque bind, very common. torque bind that doesn't go away with the FWD fuse is 99% of the time the Duty C needs replaced. one good thing is that it's not terribly horrendous of a job and can be done yourself without removing the transmission, lots of information about it on here. if you're not convinced or want more diagnosis your next step is to read the code(s). search for info here on doing it yourself or have a dealer/shop do it. the Lucas treatment is not helping anything. additives like that are short term band aids for symptoms that cause long term issues. there's one trans additive often recommended for subaru's, but that's for an entirely different issue and product and is limited to 99 and 2000 model years. a Subaru trans that doesn't operate properly on ATF has something wrong with it. it is a filter and it's 13 years old, i'd replace it but i doubt that will fix your issues. the hard shifting would make me wonder too, but if it's shifting fine during warm up while the AWD is working i wouldnt' worry about it. is that the case?

right you remove the piston to rebuild the caliper, you got it. clean up the insides. install new seal around piston, boot and clips, and install piston, it's very simple. been a little while, you might install the piston with new seal/oring around it first, then install the boot/clip once it's partially threaded in. takes a bit to get the piston started rotating and threading but not a big deal, lug nuts can do that!!! LOL i would imagine you can get a used one off of here or from a yard for a few dollars, rebuild a good used one first for practice is what i would recommend. they're probably so cheap...if you needed XT6 stuff i'd hardly want much for it...it would be worth it in case the seized one is hosed anyway to have on hand. caliper replacement is the norm and the best fit for many folks, but i'm surprised on GD's recommendation given your propensity to deem engine removing head gasket replacement no big deal?

indeed the flaring process is a bit goofy and not immediately comfortable. practice, i wish i would have! if i had to do this on my car i'm fairly certain i would consider having someone make a long length of stainless cable with the proper fittings on each end so I can install it however I want and make some brackets or use 2 dozen zip ties to hold it where i want it. that's what i wanted to do when i was helping a friend but i was in new orleans and had no clue where things were, etc so i just went with what the local yocal parts stores had on hand and made my own pipe.

Subaru offered a 10 year 100,000 mile extended head gasket warranty on your vehicle, but you're probably past that? there are tons of head gasket threads, do some reading and ask what you need to clarify. bar up above has a "search" function, get used to using it and you'll find out nearly anything you need. for this motor, use Subaru only headgaskets and Subaru requires the coolant conditioner to be added to this model as well. no special tools required.

you don't even need to remove the caliper, i've left them on the vehicle before but it's easier to remove particularly for a first time job. there's a square tool for turnign the caliper piston, it attaches to your socket. any auto parts store has it - sounds like you might already have it if you're faimliar with a brake job? it's like a $3 tool. you just turn the piston back in place, it's threaded. really simple. clean everything up, install new oring around the piston, screw it in place and install the boots/clips and you're done. easy job.

lots of advice and info already on here. you'll notice right now on the bottom left of this screen 5 other threads with nearly the same topic title. all of your questions have already been answered. key points: if you have no clue on the condition of the engine - how badly and often was it overheated....then you might consider an EJ22 engine swap. more reliable engine but will cost you 20 hp. if you do the headgaskets, only use Subaru headgaskets on this particular motor. not true of all Subaru engines, but of this one. it's an interference engine so it's in your best interest to replace all the timing belt, water pump, and pulleys as well to prevent the timing belt from breaking.

no need to touch exhaust, converters....or really much of anything other than remove the wheel. i suppose Denver won't have any rust but since i have issues with that lower pinch bolt and ripping the boot on the ball joint i do it another way, which i find easier as strut mount bolts always come right out and ball joints don't. remove the top strut mount bolt (mark the head first so you can install it exactly the same way it was to maintain alignment - a quick touch with a chisel marking it and the strut bracket will do) and loosen the lower strut mount bolt (no need to remove). pull and swings out with plenty of room to remove the axle. you're only removing one bolt and loosening another.

you'll see "T" in a lot of equations because conductivity is related to temperature. electromagnetism discussions aside, electrical problems are often heat related, that's well known in any electro-mechanical biz. doesn't have to be "overheating", it's just probably sensitive to temp's now that it's on the verge of failing. my guess is you need a Duty C solenoid replaced. it would be nice to pull the actual code, which is a convoluted process detailed in other threads on this site. has the fluid ever been changed? has the trans filter ever been changed (trans filters started in 98 or 99)? do the tires all match? how many miles? binding does bad things to other components, but you probably know that.

i'd avoid the carbs but some folks don't mind them a bit. VW's i'm in GD's camp and haven't ever seen a compelling functional reason to own one over other options, but i'm admittedly too functional with vehicles and maybe my friends limited experiences are anomaly's (high costs, failed trans). plenty of VW owners out there so they obviously have endearing qualities too. being such old vehicles it's a tough call here but i'd get which ever one poses the least potential maintenance and issues. which ones appears in the best running condition, maintained, etc? i'd rather get something that's going to last me awhile than something i'll want to ditch soon. but i drive a lot of miles, if you don't then that might not matter.

can you get a pressure reading? either a set of real manifold gauges or the generic cheap-o throw away things from the parts store even?

the line is probably all rusted? i had to deal with one like this but not on a subaru. i ended up finding a line up front to tap into, renting a tube cutter, tube bender, and hardware to make my own brake line. was kind of crazy since i had never done it but it wasn't nearly as hard as i thought it would be. cut out old line, then bend the new to match and install or splice it into place. follow the lines back from the master cylinder or forward from the rear (sounds like you tried already?). figure out as much as you can as far as layout. subaru has their opposedforces website which has lots of good diagrams and exploded views, might try to find brake line routings there. think you could do that?

dude, wow that's pretty awesome you caught it like that, crazy.

if the headgaskets are blown that could be causing the no spark. if it's been sitting forever - then battery, bad gas, bad plugs, bad cap/rotor, mouse nest in the intake - sometimes they crank right up but any car that's sat for awhile needs cleaned up.

you trying to figure this out to buy or after the fact? dual port = 95 old style timing belt tensioner went to 02/97 - so if it's the new style it's an interference engine. if it's the old style, chances are high it's non-interference but might be a couple month overlap depending when it changed from interference to non-interference, hard for me to imagine there's actually one day it went from non to not. that's probably been discussed before?

since you probably paid top dollar then i'd expect something from the dealer. a baja with a blown headgasket? what year?