idosubaru

Are there any high strength sealants for use on rubber bushings that can handle 150 psi air pressure? Any experience with something like this? GD? The bushings on top of the rear XT6 air struts seal the system on the top due to the rod coming through the top of the strut. They are being strained and leaking due to the lift I put on it. I guess the top mount is being "torqued" or twisted - compressing one side and lifting the other enough to cause a leak. It's a bushing seated against metal.

Yeah this job is so simple it's hardly worth wasting time on. All I ever do is remove the hoses and install the new filter. Wrap it good in a towel as you're removing the hoses, they will initially have some kick but goes away instantly.

if i have a set of 90's Legacy heated mirrors and a non-heated set, can i "convert" the non-heated one by swapping out the guts? i didn't see a simple way of disassembling the things so thought I'd ask. the heated ones are cracked a bit and the wrong color, but obviously i could paint them.

Definitely low numbers on that side. The timing belt isn't off is it? Have you run it a bit, they like to run poorly and loud for a bit after they've been opened up. Burning off coolant is normal as it runs down into the exhaust when you're disassembling the engine unless you remove the exhaust first. let us know when you're sure you're loosing it.

A 2" lift on my XT6 looks like it's putting strain on the rear air struts in such a way that it's causing them to leak. I'm looking for ideas to seal them up. The rear struts are interesting in that the rear bushings on top actually seal the system. With the bushings removed air freely passes from inside the strut through the hole that the strut rod comes out of on the top of the strut. The bushings then get bolted on top of the strut and seal it off. With the 2" lift it appears like it's "torquing" that bushing enough to let the air pressure escape sometimes. I cleaned everything up and reinstalled the best bushings I had on hand which were in great shape. I guess my first attempt should be just to tighten those bolts holding the bushings on and see if that does it. But they are tight, doubt that will help. I don't think sealants are the ticket. I will try and get a feel for whether or not the strut is "straight" maybe some spacers will help with the angle, but frankly I don't think that will help either. Anyway to isolate those bushings so they don't "torque"?

welcome aboard. no need to remove a/c to replace water pump. but if you wanted you can unbolt it and swing it out of the way without disconnecting any refrigerant lines.

Bad strut top bearing possibly too. First thing to do is to look for obvious stuff like Nipper mentioned - look at the tie rod and ball joint boots - check them well and clean them off if they're dirty to see if they're busted or not. If it's creaking while sitting still this is REALLY easy. Have someone keep turning it while you try and narrow it down. Get on the left side and listen, find out if it's by the wheel (all the stuff Nip mentioned) or up high in the engine bay (pop the hood) - that would be strut mount. Luckily none of this is expensive, all are easy to fix, and aren't a safety hazzard typically. Of course I dont' know the history so all disclaimers on the comment apply.

The one quart low on oil did not cause this. If that caused engine failure then nearly every Subaru prior to 1998 would be dead by now since most leak oil at some point in their life. :lol: The first thing is to make absolutely sure it is rod knock, that's a huge diagnosis to just assume is right. But by your brief description, occurring at higher RPM's, that does sound like rod knock which EJ25's are "known" for. It's not "common" but more so than any other Subaru engine. But want to make sure it's not piston slap, oil pump, bad timing tensioner (which could possibly fail only under load or higher RPM's), or valves. That being said, I have heard of folks getting work done just beyond limits, but seems like a crap shoot rather than special strings to pull. Good luck, hope you figure something out. Sometimes they may even "split the cost", etc. Can you talk to the managers, etc? I would try and meet with them more than once. I would explore all possible options and try to maintain a relationship with that dealer before proceeding to folks you have no connection to at all. Your history has a lot to do here. If you bought the car and had it maintained at the same dealer and have a good relationship with them you're much more likely to get help than if you just bought the car 2 months ago and have never talked to these guys before.

Is there a baja board, I bet there is one like the XT, SVX, Outback, etc boards? If you find out answers to your quesiton from anywhere else, post it here, be a good thread for future Baja owners. Matt, Subeman90, owns one he'll probably chime in. Baja is a 4 letter word so the search function should be friendly to you unlike all the SVX, XT6, WRX, etc owners!! I haven't heard of any significant issues. You won't see many major complaints now, head gasket or otherwise. Not many baja owners and many are still under warranty or they're so highly valued repair costs are benign.

Retrofits are easy - i've done a bunch with 100% success so far. Buy the auto parts store $10 "kit" - just adapters that attach to your existing hose fittings and have a R134a fitting on the end. After that, just empty it and charge it with R134a. I go ahead and replace all the orings I can get to while I'm converting - particularly those where the one bolt attaches the hose at the compressor. Those are the most likely to leak in my experience. Makes sense they're the ones that get most of the heat and vibration from the engine/moving parts. I also replace the valve cores too sometimes while the system is "open". Few dollars for the kit, a can of R134a and a couple 50 cent orings you got a/c for under $40.

XT6 with 2" lift and air suspension properly working now. Took some playing around and there's less freedom with the air suspension, but I got it to work and kept the air which is cool as I like it. Got another 1.25" from 05 Forester XT Turbo wheels. So far rides great, we'll see how it all holds up. Camera phone pics attached.

Oh great, thanks for bumping this thread chux - I figured out partly why I had bad vibrations. Most of it was due to the improper installation of the lift. Then it got REALLY bad, like I thought a wheel was falling off. Looked and neither front axle had pins in it:confused::mad: Installed pins and wouldn't you know - smooth as teflon. This car saw one interesting maintenance period, must have been a concentration camp for subarus. Both front sway bars complete gone. One rear sway bar bracket disconnected, front strut bolts completely loose, turned by hand, head lights stuck open, CV pins both missing, rear struts were hit with a grinding wheel and painted and the air bags were all scuffed up from the wheel, center console loose and probably broke, lid broken, steering column and dash surrounded shattered to bits, drivers window doesn't align, windshield wiper was attached with one screw loosely and rotated all over the place, front fog lights removed and wires dangling such that the connectors are ripped off, hood release broken...and more I won't bother you with, it's amazing how many things were wrong or done wrong on this car.

oh neat chux, do you know where that difference occurs? is it the control arms themselves up front? the body isn't different right?

i'll let someone more versed pipe up, but i don't think that's an "adapter plate" kind of application.

not if you make them pay for it like my parents did. good luck with the forester, hope it turns out to be nice. those one owner vehicles tend to have a far better track record than "low miles" or just about anything else.

Yeah I wouldn't do that. Ratchet may also break and you'll need new glass somewhere. Brute force would require a lot of it. When you work it loose you do a little at a time and one small part at a time...applying all the force necessary to separate all at once sounds awfully risky. It is totally normal for the engine/trans to be VERY tight. Hammer and chisel are standard fare for an operation like this.

You have a puller, if there's something to attach the arms to?

Oh WOW, carpeted storage unit, that's awesome!:lol: Why didn't you say so! Once again I learn there are extenuating circumstances I couldn't imagine that need some flexibility. Good luck getting those replies and info. Subaru really created a debacle with their final drive ratio ambiguity.

Legacy, forester, impreza hubs should interchange. I didn't get whether it was front or rear you're after but shouldn't much matter except I don't know much about the H6 stuff so you might want to avoid those. 2001 was when the change occured where ABS tone ring set up was different - being pressed onto the axle instead of in the hub like earlier stuff. So avoid 2001 and up for sure unless you want to "convert" which I doubt it. I've swapped a few front and rear EJ hubs, pretty sure they're just about all interchangeable as long as you have ABS like JCE said.

Doesn't require "opening it up", just removing the drain plug. Mark one tooth and spin it around via the stub shaft. Takes a few minutes and zero disassembly, that's it. that makes this really simple since a transmission you can't use isn't really worth anything? it just seems you're really worked up over something easier than an oil change, that's all. 30 minutes (or however long invested by the time you're done) is more than the 5 minutes it would take to remove the drain plug and count teeth and put the drain plug back.

i posted in your other thread about this, i too would suspect overcharging. is that whitehall, WV - i'm 30 minutes from you if so.

Not much to look for other than typical car stuff - maintenance records are nice. Torque bind is the main issue you want to look for (more common in automatics). And for that reason, matching tires are a big plus. Timing belt is due in 16,000 miles. I'd probably consider doing it sooner given it's approaching 10 years old, almost certainly it hasn't been done. EJ25's have head gasket issues. These leak externally on the rear of the engine, be sure to inspect that area. Or ask if they've already been replaced, many have already been replaced, I've bought a few like that. This car actually is part of the 100,000 mile extended head gasket warranty campaign by Subaru. There's also a year component to that equation though, not sure if it's 8 or 10 years, but you might have some warranty left.

When you're asking about interchangeability, Subaru part numbers don't mean anything. They change part numbers all the time for very minor differences, when in reality tons of stuff is interchangeable. If part numbers alone meant something wouldn't work then I bet %75 of the frequent members here wouldn't have running cars! People swap engines and trans all the time with no problem. I've done it with 4EAT's and never had a problem. I've even dropped FWD into AWD vehicles without swapping the TCU, no problem.

Ah, wheel bearings, sorry to hear that. One option is to just buy a used knuckle assembly and swap it out to avoid the bearing job or a possible bad hub which leads to your new bearings failing shortly afterward. my new bearings last year, for instance, lasted less than a year - i think about 6 months. I posted on here asking if there's a way to test the hub and I don't think anyone gave a definitive answer, but next time I'd like to know the hub is good rather than doing the job twice and ending up with a used assembly in the end. like he said, if you go the machine shop route take the parts with you and have them pressed in. $40 sounds about right, maybe $60-$75 if you're in a higher priced urban market. where i used to live would have been the later, now it's dirt cheap. The top strut mount bolt on the hub is a cambered bolt and sets the alignment. You will want to try and duplicate installing it exactly as it is to retain alignment and save yourself that hassle and expense. Mark the bolt head and hub housing with a chisel or something else definitive that won't get rubbed off so you can reinstall it where it was. It's not an exact science, don't fret over a degree.

i guess a VOM is a Voltage Meter - Multimeter tool for measuring electrical properties? it's likely the switch. let's see - this impreza should be the style where you're just pulling or pushing the lever to make the highs come on? if that's the case try "pulling out" - meaning away from the steering column, towards the door, while at the same time flipping the switch back and forth. sometimes that will get them to work (or not work!) and shows you the switch is bad.