nipper

Ignition coils fail in the way you describe. Once they heat up they fail. The internal insulation is breaking down, It is hard to find when cold if not impossible. nipper

Ah he edited it.

I am a little confused. 1997 legacies came with the 2.2L engine (unless a GT or LSI). As a rule they do not have a HG issue, but any engine at high mileage can blow a head gasket. All bets are off over 120K, so it is not the 2.2L fault in this case, it is just one of those things. Or do you want a newer 2.2L, or a 2.5 swap? nipper

Thats still to many miles on oil. SUbaru says 7500 no matter what the oil is. I have yet to see the gas mileage increas on synthetic, but it does give me peace of mind on lots of short trips in winter. If you are going that many miles, you need to do a filter change at leats at 7500 miles. I dont care what the filter people say, as they try to make one filter fit as many cars as possible, so no two engines are alike in thier needs. Replceing a PCV valve will help brunfing oil, but his oil consumption is not excessive.

Thats what I was going to suggest next. nipper

NO, zGod i hate these old wives tales. Detuned means less effecient, and thats just BS. They have a higher effeciency cat, a faster cat warm up. What is PZEV, a brief, simple summary The EPA says a PZEV is the cleanest running gas car on today's market based on emissions testing for carbon-containing compounds, oxides of nitrogen, particulate matter, and other tailpipe nastiness. It is required in CA, CT, NJ, NY, MA, ME, RI, VT, PA, OR, and WA 1. A charcoal cannister catches unburned gas left in the engine when it's turned off so it doesn't just evaporate. 2. Fuel injectors that close tighter when they're not in use. 3. A finer mesh in the catalytic converter, as well as optimized placement of its precious metal. 4. The engine's electronic brain is tuned to run the hot at start up to help the catalytic converter heat up so it can start doing its job faster.

yup thats why i said try to push it, It will tell you right away with the drive shaft disconnected if the rear is locked up. nipper

When was the last oil change? I have never ever have an issue with purolator filters in 20 years. If i saw that in my shop i would think the filter hadnt been changed in a year. Are you in a salt belt?

they have been around for a couple of years. http://www.drive.subaru.com/Fall08/Fall08_whatmakes.htm nipper

I am not too familiar with this, but ill give it a shot. Usually rear diffs dont just seize. They die a long noisy death. They will develop a whine that get slouder with speed, then one day the gears will just strip. Now if it is a mechanical LSD, then yes it is possible it threw something. mechanical LSDs can seize, but it is very rare. The first thing I would try is to disconnect the driveshaft and see if the car will move (by pushing since this is manual). There aretwo possible scenarios here, and one is ugly. A wheel bearing wont seize, but would really develop alot of play and alot of noise and poor tracking. Also another weirdness (very long shot) check to make sure the brakes didnt lock up for some wierd reason. nipper

Nothing good ever comes of getting German and Japanese parts together.

Read the recomendations on the Bondo, but i think 50 may be too cold.

Yes there is. You need one from a manual. nipper

This part aftermarket is fine. nipper

Torque bind. Do a search on it, as subaru racks dont fail this way. If the pump failed it would be equally hard in either direction at the slightest turn of steering wheel. nipper

Once my Legacy got hit while parked. To the untrained eye it looked like just a cracked grill. 1800 dollars later it was fixed. So dont hink you just have a scratched bumper skin. Also get yourself checked out.

That actually means something. Its a fault code for something, I just can't find what it is trying to say. I have seen this on another list someplace http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=20103&highlight=flashing+ignition+light

This sounds more like torque bind to me. "the car cant turn on a dime", thats Torque bind. What makes you think it is a VSS sensor. If a VSS fails you get a CEL, loose AWD, but still have a working spedo. Do you have a flashing ATF temp light on startup? nipper

Ok then i vote for checking the Alt, laso how old are your iginiton wires?

Factory or aftermarket radio

Look on the bright side, if he keeps doing clutch dumps, someone here can sell him a transmission (even new subaru manual transmissions do not like this). nipper

Yes calipers are safe to buy from anywhere. nipper

Closest wheel first to the.... Hrmmmm Good question. Passenger side front is the closest wheel because it has the shortest brake lines. http://endwrench.com/images/pdfs/BrakeSystemWin01.pdf Surprisingly (learn something new every day) it is right Frt, Left Rr, Left Fr, Right Rr.

Just start at the closest wheel first. Go to www.endwrench.com for specifics. nipper

AN analog multimeter can test the crank sensor. Its an ac signal it puts out, a simple hall effect sensor. ANother is the coils, or the ignitor. And igniotr can drive you batty. nipper