Suzam

Yep, the door ajar light isn't as helpful as the newer ones that indicate the exact location as on our '01. I do like the folding mirrors though...

The only indication of what gear you're in on the MY95 Legacy L is on the console by the shifter. It should be backlit. Our MY95 has the door adjar indicator on the dashboard-dead center towards the top.

Yeah, I had that happen when I parked next to a telephone substation building. The electrical field generated by the equipment was stronger than the remote transmitter and created a dead zone. I tried it a couple of weeks later and had the same results.

To stop the "honk" on our MY01 I just hold BOTH remote buttons down at the same time until it gives a signal then it's quiet until I do it again. I keep mine off until it goes to the dealer for service. The techs walk around pushing the button until they hear the horn and find the car. If I forget and I am waiting for a quick service stop, they sometimes come back in and ask where the car is parked.

Somebody needs to confirm this but... My guess is that it could be a by-pass switch for an aftermarket alarm system. If your remote stops working or you set it off by mistake you can hold in the button while starting the car with your key.

Do a search for "rear differential" you'll see some discussions on changing the oil. Seems as if your drive extention of your socket wrench should work fine for the rear, not sure about the front though. Also a good recommendation for the rear is to lossen and remove the top plug first...wouldn't want to drain the oil out from the bottom, only to find the top stuck tight and no way to replace the empty differential.:boohoo:

Hitting a deer at 35 MPH is dangerous. You hit them at a height that they come over the hood right into the windshield. They are of a weight that can cause a lot of damage. I would try to avoid one by at least not hitting it straight on. A glancing hit off a fender it time allows would be preferable. I have always used the rule that if you are heading for an animal give it a chance by braking hard but never swerve. A dog, cat, squirrel, chipmunk or whatever isn't worth hitting a tree, car or other harder objects and risking injury to yourself or passengers. If the animal makes it by you braking it's lucky. If not you’re lucky. At least somebody wins in that situation. Your 16 year old is very lucky it wasn't worse than it turned out. Hope your car gets fixed right when it's all said and done.

A more detailed description of the symptoms you are having might help out here. Have you tried inserting a 20amp fuse in the FWD plug located in the engine compartment near the firewall on the passenger side? If so does the problem go away?

this test. Open your hood while the engine is running and stand on the brakes while slowly revving up the engine in drive and then try it in reverse. A bad mount would let the engine torque up off the seated position. I've done this with a V-8 and watched it look as if it would jump out of the engine compartment because the mount was totally broken in half!

do a search in the forum for the symtoms you have or use these different keywords: binding differential tire circumference torque bind There have been things done to the cars to solve issues that could be diagnosed as a major repair.

How about a bad engine mount on the [right side???] non-torque drive side? Deceleration torque could cause the engine to vibrate, would be more apparent at highway speeds. Can you reproduce it by revving up in a lower gear and releasing the gas at a slower speed?

I have found that 2-3 lbs over recommended pressure works well for me. I put 90 miles per day at mostly 65-70+MPH on the highway with the same setup as you have. Over 10k on the tires and wear is very even.

Hi and welcome. If you are looking at a 2.2L and NOT a 2.5L, I'd say it's a reasonably good purchase. The oil leak should be minor if it originates in the front of the engine. Possibly a cam seal, oil pump seal or oil pump screw retightening. Not overly expensive to fix but you need to find out about the past maintenance if possible. If the timing belt was changed at every 60 miles as it should have been, your looking at a replacement in the next 15K, but if the mechanic is already in the front end you might as well have them replace the timing belt and install a new water pump. If it's an automatic make sure it doesn’t have torque bind in the AWD system, test drive it by turning in as tight a circle as the car can going both left and right. There should be no resistance or an alternating tight/loose feeling while the wheels are rolling. Do a search of the board for more info on this problem because it can also be caused by low tire pressure or mismatched diameter tires. Get your mechanic to give it a good going over, there are plenty of board members with well over 200k and still going strong!

The upgrade gets you the Anti-Theft Deterent package which sounds the horn, flashes the lights and "kills" the ignition due to unauthorized entry. It also adds a shock sensor to the car and a vallet mode so you can turn the car and keys over to someone without giving them the alarm remote.

Thanks for the info, our MY01 OBW has been in 3 times for new door gaskets. They are fine for 6 months or so but slowly get the noise back. The last time it was at the dealer they did a "gusset adjustment", I wonder if it is what you decribed. I'm going the check it out tomorrow.

It's good the see these positive posts, some people have remaked on the negative messages and how many there are. We have 110k on our 95 Legacy, 90k on my mother-in-laws 98 OBW and only 30k on our MY01 OBW. Plan on getting well into 100k and over on all 3. :banana: :banana:

Go to the link in my last message, search through the site for the harness, you can buy it separately. It plugs into an adapter plug on the passenger side under the floor insert towards the rear, near the gas filler tube. No splicing required. As far as the bolts, yeah they are a little tough, they supply a wire that threads onto the bolt, You fish the wire through a hole big enough to fit the whole blot and an oblong washer into and carefully pull it into position in the bolt hole. You'll need to do this for both sides.

Hey monk50, if you plan on buying from ebay or privately try to get the stock lugs in the deal. If you don't it's $45 for a full set at the dealer.

Bolts, lock washers, et al. were included -the best thing is the OB is high enough that you can get it on without lifting the car. You need some support while treading the bolt through the hitch underneath, once you get it loose bolted on it stays fine until you tighten it the rest of the way.

Hey Carl, I put a Hidden Hitch and wire harness on our MY01 OBW. Never a problem with the electrical hookup. Took me less than 1 hour to do the job. The tricky part is fishing the bolts through the frame. Check it out here, http://www.hitchesonline.com/subaru_cl2_outback01.htm I looked at the link again and that isn't the hitch pictured on that page. It's a bracket that gets bolted underneath on the frame.

I put a set on our MY95 Legacy L. They are great--improved handling and they feel tighter than stock size when driving. Absolutely NO rub or any other problems. The diameter is marginally bigger but width added only 1/4 overall (1/8 inch on each side). Speedometer is now closer to accurate than with the stock tires!

If it's the 2.2 (not sure since it's an LSI) check for evidence of oil around the timing belt cover. The 2.2 in particular needs new cam seals and the oil pump screws tightened by around this much mileage. If the timing belt was done, the seals and oil pump should have been at least checked. If not, this could be something to consider and have done with the timing belt. Also I believe the recommended timing belt change is 60k. I’m really not sure if all this applies to the 2.5 motors, so maybe someone else can confirm this info. Our 95 Legacy L just rolled over 110k and is running great. Only 1 front drive axel and 1 alternator repair have been needed and of course, all other regular maintenance

There is a way to disable the auto arming. Don't know how or if the Forester is the same but the dealer asked if we wanted it enabled on our OBW when we first bought it (for a "small" fee). We declined the offer, sounded like more hassle than it's worth to have it do it on its own.

The XW-4, I believe, is the OEM tire on the Outbacks. My mother-in-law insisted that she wanted the same tire when she replaced hers at 66k. I figured I could convince her otherwise, but alas, nope couldn't do it. So I went over and swapped cars with her and went to NTB and ordered a set. Those tires handle well dry and are good in rain and OK in snow. Being in Jersey they'd be fine and the tread does last for at least the 60k they are rated for. I'm sure you could find a better handling/traction tire for about the same cost. Check out http://www.tirerack.com for alternate choices. If you're near Delaware stop on down for tax-free purchase and the warranty is good in NJ. You can save a few not paying that NJ sales tax!

I know that in Pennsylvania there is an exemption for AWD vehicles with a setup like Subies. Delaware doesn't use a dyno type setup. Besides without the AWD engaged wouldn't your emissions reading be different than normal anyhow? I would think any state wouldn't check them on a dyno...imagine the tech who forgets about a FWD fuse and tries running and AWD on a single drum setup!