NOMAD327

Have heard some noise from people that got one of the high end Odyssey's with the run flat tires. (Michelin PAX System) They say you are forced to buy run flat's again, or replace the wheels, either choice being very expensive. Don't think you could go wrong with an Odyssey otherwise.

I've been in an air bag deployment wreck and can tell you they can only be experience in the form of a memory. They are up and back down so fast, It seems instantaneous, actually everything at that moment was happening in very slow motion, and they still were up and down in an instant. I sit back pretty far and was belted, and they did not even seem to touch me. You will stink of the propellent and be covered in white dust for the whole day afterwards. Airbags going off seem to almost always end up in the car being totaled, because of the high cost, especially for the passenger side one. ($4000 in my case) I understand it's very bad for people who drive reaching across the wheel, to have it go off with their arm in the way.

Was there any more resolution to this problem? my 99 2.5 automatic did this for the first time this morning (for the wife). Turn key three times with a relay click but no crank, each time (not starter solenoid clicking, small relay clicking). Start normally on the fourth try, and run perfect for the rest of the day.

Bringing back the two year old thread: My 99 Outback is doing this same thing now. There's no clicking involved, but if I auto down the drivers window all the way down, it will move up and down maybe an 1/8 of an inch repeatedly until I can get it to go up a bit with the switch, which usually takes about three tries. Did anybody involved in this thread earlier correct the problem by replacing the master control module? Another question, has anyone just defeated the auto down feature? My wife hates it, and if there was ever a time to defeat it, this would seem like the time.

I've had cars less than a full year old where the air bags went off, and really not much damage at all otherwise, and they totalled the car. That particular car, the two airbags were over $3000 dollars which was certainly part of it. I don't think insurance companies like replacing air bags even on brand new cars, because they may in some part be liable should they not work at some future time? You can buy the car back from the insurance company after they settle and fix it on your own, but they will almost certainly not repair a 95.

I am not sure what the idle speed should be. What's odd on this car, is it started to shake at traffic lights after I replaced the driver side front drive axle due to a torn boot. I can't imagine how that could affect anything, but the shake came all of a sudden, and it's very noticable. It feels like the car could stall as a result of it.

My 99 2.5 automatic runs great and has had all tuneup stuff done with factory parts. I cleaned the IAC valve per the service manual procedure and before and after it reacts to putting the air conditioning on and off, so I believe it is working at least partially. Problem is idle speed looks to be about 600 RPM by dashboard tach when stopped in gear. There is quite a bit of shudder, which a slightly higher idle speed would correct. Is there some other input to the computer which may be in error which could cause this?

who was the good subaru dealer you dealt with?

I’ll make a non relevant comment here about Loctite for people subscribing to the thread. All Loctite products break down at 200 degrees, even the super strength red stuff. This is useful in that when it is used, the threads are shielded from corrosion, and loosening from vibration. When the time comes to disassemble, heat is frequently useful, and will also break down the Loctite bond. I would try one more simple thing on this job, and since we are planning to weld to the broken face of the bolt, I don’t see any harm in this, but you all can correct me. I would obtain a very small cape type cold chisel, (slanted diamond shape tip), and try tapping the bolt out. The failure described in this thread should have caused no thread deformation, and I can’t believe the bolt is stuck that thoroughly. I would heat to about 200 degrees, then quench the threads with oil, this is not hot enough to harden the metal, but should wick the oil into the threads. Then pick two opposite points on the face of the broken off bolt face. You don’t want to do anything that would mushroom the end or make it fit tighter into the bore, but slight impacts at say 3 o’clock, and 9 o’clock directed at an angle like pushing a broom, and in counter clockwise direction may spin the thing right out. Not too close to the OD for fear of distorting the bolt diameter, but not too close to center, or there’s no leverage. It’s easy to try, not expensive to set up, and if it doesn’t work, you just have to flush away the oil with a spray solvent and you can then do the welding fix. The one thing that would mess this technique up, is if the shank diameter of the bolt is less than the thread diameter. In that case, the bolt will tend to rock left and right in the unsupported diameter, instead of rotate. I think it would still be worth a try in any case.

If the question is how to remove a woodruff key from it’s groove with the crank pulley removed, this is how I loosen one up: First put on a little oil, and then use a pin punch or long bolt about the same size as the key’s width, and tap down a bit on the top of one end of the key. Just a little movement is enough, you are trying to rotate the round bottom key in the round bottom keyslot. Next, tap down on top of the opposite end of the key to try and rotate it back. If it’s moving a bit, it should come out of the groove OK. With the key turned so the outer end is angled up a bit, either grab it with pliers, or using a cold chisel, gently tap under the tipped up end of the key to lift it up out of the groove. If you can’t get it to move like this, heat may be required. Lightly file or sand both faces of the key once it’s out to remove any buildup, and clean the groove before going back together.

This last winter, here in the northeast at least, the snow mix we saw was very slippery compared to most years, and the tires on mine were slipping plenty trying to stop. You could feel the system try to react, but engineering cannot manufacture traction where there isn't any. The wheels will appear to be sliding when braking, the true advantage of the system, is that you should still be able to steer while braking hard, as the system will let the wheels rotate a little bit. Your system may be acting normally, it cannot perform miracles.

If you just want a paint dabber, they are probably dealer only, and are gotten per the paint code. On outbacks, the lower grey or gold color has it's own code, and is also available. I have never seen subaru paint dabbers except at the dealer, (or blank keys for that matter)!

The suggestion to degrease and inspect in a day or two is sound. It's very common to have a front crank seal leak on this engine, and also common to have cam seals leak. On my 99 2.5, it was one miserable $3 crankshaft seal, at about 80,000 miles. The rubber was baked rock hard and not sealing at all. The one seal leaking allowed the entire undercarriage to be wetted down with oil. Right next to the oil filter looking underneath, there are two short, round, vertical metal rods. These are actually the bottom part of the oil pump body, and they will be very oily if the front seal is leaking. After a degrease, you may also see that it is valve covers that are leaking. The oil separator plate on the rear of the engine can be a huge oil leak, but it does not seem to be a problem on every car the way the front end seals eventually seem to be. The reason to look at this systematically, is that you can do the front end work first, without doing any work that will automatically need to be redone later if another problem is found. The valve covers obviously can be done separately without removing the engine, but are usually not a source of big oil leaks. Generally. If the front and underside of the motor is oily, it’s the front seal. This is because air flow under the car carries drips to the rear. An oil leak on the back of the engine will normally not cause oil to be all over the front half of the engine. The front end service is easy to do with the motor in the car, but it requires timing belt removal to access the seal. There is a lot of info here about sealing the oil pump, and replacing the timing belt and tensioner. The crank seal is actually pressed into the front of the oil pump body behind the crank timing gear.

If it's not completely mangled, most body shops have a patch process which will do a pretty good job of making it reuseable for a lot less than a new piece from Subaru. If will have to be painted to look right anyway, so I would talk to a body shop. The alternative is to fine a boneyard one, and the trick there is to just call around till somebody has one.

The 1" line mentioned above has gotten a lot of people over the years, so it's what everyone suspects first. I don't think your engine is built quite that way in any case, but if that line is disconnected on a 2.5 engine, the engine can breathe through the idle control valve without the flow being counted by the air flow meter, this throws off the fuel mixture, and will prevent idle, but the car will normally run fair at about 2500 rpm or higher. The symptoms you describe are essentially the same, so I'm guessing you have a big vacuum leak after the throttle plate, or a disconnected hose that connects to the intake manifold. The hoses between the air flow sensor and the throttle body must be leak tight as well

When I needed heater hoses for my 99, the Subaru dealer could not get them, out of stock for months. I got a full set perfect for the car at my NAPA parts store in one day, and for less. If you don't have NAPA, call every store in your area, somebody may stock correct aftermarket parts. As I recall, there was a short 90 degree bend hose at the water pump, two heater hoses which went from metal tubes on the driver side rear of engine to firewall, and two hot water hoses to throttle body, one from each metal tube. The throttle body hoses were nearly impossible to access without removing the intake manifold.

It could be the master cylinder, and if it is, here is what can happen. After brake maintenance, when pumping the hydraulics back up, you can stroke the brake pedal down to the floor, as the new pads need to be pumped out to contact the rotors. This can force the master cylinder rubber cups through all the junk and corrosion at the bottom of the bore where there is normally no travel. This is much more likely to happen on cars that have aluminum master cylinders and no brake fluid change outs over the years. I have had master cylinders that were working fine destroyed by one excessive stroke. It’s better to set new pads using a bunch of short strokes rather than one deep stroke.

Most people here think the 00 is better than the 99 for engines, they are slightly easier to work on, but over the life of the car, each type will probably have only one head gasket replacement, assuming it's done correctly. They all need at least one timing belt in the life of the car, and it will be due sooon on the 00, both years get it done at 105,000 miles. The automatic transmissions in Subarus are more reliable than most, but I have personally seen and there is more talk here of problems specifically with 00 model year automatics. I like the 99 exterior and the 00 interior better, and have a 99 myself which has been wonderful. It's close to a toss up, all things considered, and would fall to price vs. condition

It's in Hazleton, Pa. very close to where I-81 and I-80 cross. They are not specialized in any brand to my knowledge, but the prices are ridiculously low, especially for big items. All less than $100, I believe engines are $65, transmissions are $35, doors and fenders are $22. You pay a token admission price, and remove what you want on your own. Problem is anything that can be removed easily is always picked off immediately. Big stuff like motors, they help you. I believe all parts are sold as-is. The cars tend to be picked clean quickly with an awful lot of stuff going to New York City. As cars are cleaned off, they are crushed and new ones are moved in as replacements. They claim to be the biggest auto yard in the world, and arrange all cars of one brand in a single area. All foreign used to be batched in together, but that may have changed.

The factory clock was incorporated into the radio. The 6 disc changer you have is not the original radio for a 98, so there may be no clock.

I will repost a response I made at some time in the past to this question. I used PFR5B-11 NGK which I found at advanced auto for $10, best price I found, and yes those are the original equipment plugs for the car. List on those plugs most places is $15 each and a lot of the internet sources wanted $12 or more with shipping extra. My kid who is on a budget bought Autolite APP3924 for about $4 apiece. They are double platinum and made in America. Very high quality appearance and seemed to match the NGK's for dimensions very well. The car has been running like it should on them for more than 20,000 miles, so they may be OK to use. The plugs on this engine are real difficult to change, so I bought the NGK not wanting to have to redo the job if there were any problems Once you remove the windshield washer bottle and battery (can probably just slide it forward on it’s tray a bit) on the left and the air inlet tube and mass air sensor and air cleaner box on the passenger side, access is fair doing a 2.5 in a 96 to 99 Legacy. I would do the front plug first on each side, as they are slightly easier to do. What makes it the most hard is that the plugs are really far down inside the wells in the heads. The rear plugs on each side are harder because the frame rails are closer in the back. My problem was that an extension was needed, but there isn’t room to get one in with the socket attached. You have to slide the socket into the hole first, then slide in and assemble the extension, and finally attach the ratchet to the end of the extension. I immediately removed the sponge rubber plug protector from my socket, the reason being it will be extremely difficult to get the socket off the end of the plug and out of the hole if the rubber is gripping the spark plug. I didn’t want it on for plug removal either, because there is a lot of trial and error with your socket set as to what gives just the right length for getting the socket stack down into the hole. As I recall, what worked best for me was to use a plug socket in the rear, and then use a ratchet with a standard socket on it to turn the hex on top of the plug socket instead of using an extension. On the front plugs, a 3" extension worked pretty well with the regular spark plug socket and a ratchet. There was at least one plug which worked slightly better with a standard deepwell socket instead of the spark plug socket, but that was not a critical must have item! I would recommend having a small hand mirror on a stick or a ladies compact to be able to glance down into the well to see what’s happening. I’ve done a few of these cars, and on each one, at one time or another, the spark plug socket became slightly jammed on some aluminum protrusions of the head that were down deep in the well. The impression is that the threads are pulling rather than the socket is cocked and dragging. If you experience this, Use the mirror to reconnoiter. If in doubt, reverse direction, and the condition should go away if it’s not the threads. This usually happens when it’s just starting to go real good to scare the heck out of you. Going back in with new spark plugs, make sure you check the gap first, then lube the threads with an anti-seize compound. Make sure there is a washer on the plug or you will wonder later on if it was in fact there. The big trick for installation, is to have a piece of rubber hose that’s about three or four inches long and a snug fit on the top of the spark plug. Stick it down over the top of the plug and use it to guide the plug into place. Twirl the hose between your fingers and you can probably get the new plug in half to three quarters of the way which ensures the threads are started straight. It's also much quicker and easier than a socket wrench as far as it will go. Putting all the stuff back on after the plugs are in, make sure the three quarter inch hose that connects to the bottom of the intake tract after the air flow sensor is reconnected, The car will not run without the hose connected, and sometimes it slips off unseen during disassembly, and you don’t even realize it needs reconnected.

Just to finish the topic out, Valet mode did all I need. The system works exactly as before, but if you must use the key to get in, the alarm doesn't go off. There's a lot of red flashing going on now with the LED, but it turns off when the car is running. For some completely mysterious reason, it also now always seems to see the signal from the remote. Thanks guys.

The bit where you hold the transmitter against yourself to improve range really works on a lot of cars. On my car, I have to hold the button down steady while passing the remote an inch or so over the surface of the car for maybe ten seconds or so, until the car chooses to notice me. After it does unlock, I can lock and unlock with no problems. It's like it falls asleep after it's been locked for a few minutes.

I've looked and there are a few similar threads here, but none that came to a successful conclusion. I have a 99 OBW with Alpine system and three fobs that all function normally and have fresh batteries and cleaned internal contacts. They will all unlock the car from a distance of 2" after about six tries give or take. Once the unit does recognize a signal, it will work easily for a short while. Since you must unlock the car using the fob, this is pretty annoying. The red LEDs on the fobs light every time, but the car just doesn't receive or react to the signal. Did any of the others that had this problem ever find anything. Is it possible to deactivate the alarm half of the system, I know there is a valet mode, but can you just leave it in valet mode all the time.

I just did my 99 at about 100 thousand. The factory wires are very high quality and seem to go that far no problem. If you replace at or about that interval, they will probably last the balance of the life of the car for most people. I had a slight hesitation problem which was helped to an extent by replacing the wires.