rmarshall234

8.7 inches is the correct answer. (since I understand how the term "Moderator" could go to some peoples head I decided to check back) Over and OUT.

I saw all that. It's the same sales promotional crap I saw before we bought the Crosstrek. And I'm here to tell you now (and anybody else interested) that having owned 4 Subarus prior, "Compared to the old Subarus" this thing is a POS. And you're wrong about one other thing - I did contribute quite a bit. With very little effort and certainly with no intention on my part, I got the Moderator to reveal he has the maturity and professionalism of a twelve year old. And that on this particular site, only like-minded viewpoints are welcomed. Good riddance.

> what the crap does the oil filter have to do with off road capabilities? Or storage? wtf Wow. I thought the subject was "Compared to the old Subarus" And, since this is our 5th Subaru it seemed like a relevant comment to make. Clearly you disagree. But do you have to be so harsh and unprofessional. And you're the Moderator?? Well I clearly stumbled into the wrong venue. I'll take my comments and opinions elsewhere thank you.

+1 regarding the steering and the cubbies. The inability of the steering to "center" itself I tend to adjust to and forget after a bit, but the lack of storage space is a constant reminder. I'm really bummed about the new location of the oil filter though. Because it is mounted "upside down" it empties after shut down and the first start in the morning the engine is momentarily starved for oil.

Does the 2.2 have hydraulic lifters? I know the 2.5 does not. If it doesn't have hydraulic lifters maybe they just need adjustment. Even our local dealer had no idea the valve lash on the 2.5 was adjustable.

All good comments - thanks. To address a few of them... Yes, the Class Action letter states that if the engine uses more than one third a quart of oil in 1200 miles than it is considered to be "High Oil Consumption" and qualifies for the suit. I'm not sure I would call that high oil consumption myself, but that's what the letter states. There is no special check valve in the oil filter - it is the same as every other filter I've ever seen. The biggest indication that the filter is emptying, is the delay in obtaining oil pressure on start up and the resulting valve clatter. (there is a pressure relief valve - as there is on all filters - to allow passage of oil if the filter plugs). I couldn't agree more about the need to break-in an engine properly to allow the rings to seat. And, that is done by operating at or near maximum power. However, the car manufacturers have been telling us for years that we should just drive as we normally do. What has changed?

It is very interesting you mention the spun main bearings, I had not heard about that. I think the comment about lower viscosity oils may be spot-on as well. All of this and the fact that they have moved the oil filter to a "customer pleasing" location on top of the engine suggests that the marketing and finance departments may be winning the battle against engineering. The term "designed obsolescence" comes to mind. I would really like to hear what the engine rebuilders are saying about these new motors. I'm an aircraft mechanic and I know this.....proper oil pressure and viscosity on start-up are critical. So much so, that "pre oiling" an engine after overhaul is standard procedure. So is filing an oil filter with oil prior to installing it after an oil change. The whole idea is to get oil pressure (particularly to the main and rod bearings) as soon as possible on start up. Bearings and cylinder walls don't like being run "dry" even for fractions of a second at a time. Particularly, when the programmed start up RPM is >2000 rpm as is the case on my Crosstrek.

I use the Dealer supplied filters - P/N 15208AA15A Are you waiting until the next day to change the oil or doing when it's hot?

So I conducted my test this am. The car had not been run for about 12 hours and I removed the oil filter. It was completely empty. Oil didn't even spilled out into the cupped area around the filter. Oil *clearly drains out of the filter under gravity as one would expect it to. As a result, each and every start in the am is a "dry" start with no oil pressure until that filters fills with oil again. The result will be accelerated engine wear. I'm surprised Subaru made such a bone-headed engineering choice. This is enough of a concern for me that I'm going to start looking for a solution. I remotely mounted oil filter possibly..? One that's not mounted upside down.

Awesome. Thanks so much for the information regarding the ring problem - that makes total sense. I think we will be one of the one's needing warranty work, since we are experiencing unusual oil consumption for a brand new vehicle. The check oil light has already come one once even though I regularly check and top it off. I'm still a little suspicious of the oil filter design however. Simply because of the empirical evidence. This is our 5th Subaru and it takes longer for the oil pressure light to extinguish (with the resulting valve clatter on start up) than it did for any of the others we've own. Including, a 2006 Outback that had 250K miles on the engine. I'm going to test my theory: I'll shut down the engine and remove the oil filter about a half hour later and see how much oil is in it. I'll repeat the same test the next morning after a ~ 12 hour shut down and compare the results. My suspicion is that the check valves aren't working as designed - at least on this motor. I'll post my results here.

Have any of you received this notice yet? We just got ours since we own a 2014 Crosstrek. It applies to several different models, from 2011 to 2015. The problem is high oil consumption ( > 1/3 qt in 1200 miles ) The notice came from Subaru of America. The reason I'm posting is to try and find out what the particular problem is that is causing the high oil consumption. I suspect it may be the vertically mounted oil filter on top of the engine. It empties from the force of gravity and each start in the morning the engine is momentarily starved for oil until the filter fills again. No oil pressure = accelerated wear on the rings and cylinder walls. Anyone have any information or ideas?

Just to follow up....the clutch got replaced by a local garage (ClutchWorks in Vista, CA and the service and price were great!) and as in past the T.O. bearing was toast. The rest of the components showed normal wear and tear. Friction material that had been thrown off from the disc seemed to collect at all the lubrication points and everything looked very "dry". The only provision to return the T.O. Fork (and therefore bearing) to nuetral is the Pressure Plate and the slave clylinder. Installed an aftermarket assembly (LUK) this time, so we'll see how it lasts.

Thanks. All have been hydraulic clutches w/o the Hill Holder feature. I don't specifically recall if it has a return spring on the fork or not, but will be checking that when this clutch comes out next week. Maybe it needs a stronger spring.? If the TOB is allowed to spin at all times, that would certainly explain the early failures. Resting a foot on the pedal has been ruled out.

New guy here..... Does anyone have a suggestion for a more robust clutch assembly for the Outback? This is our 3rd Outback and 5th clutch replacement in the past 15 years. It's always the Throw Out Bearing that goes first, and so the entire clutch assbly gets replaced and always with genuine subaru parts. It seems to me that the T.O. bearing just can't take the heat, which leads to early failure. The rubber boot for the release fork tends to get cooked and fails prematurely as well. My wife and I are lifetime clutch/stick shift drivers and I'm a mechanic, so poor driving habits (such as riding the clutch) are possible but unlikely. I replaced one of the clutches in the past and all the components showed signs of heat stress. My theory, is that everything is just a tad underbuilt, and can't handle that high heat environment. Ideas or suggestions? Thanks.