ScoobySchmitty

So my buddy Matt recently bought an 08 OBS w/ a 5 speed and has so far loved it. He took it in for an oil change at a place he's always gone to (local place) for a full synthetic oil change. While changing it, the service tech managed to drip oil onto the exhaust header shield. They cleaned it up, but ever since the change (1 week) he's had a burning oil smell percolating into the car once it heats up. He's taken it back and had them check for leaks and found none. The only other thing I can think of is that there is oil collected in the bottom of the heat shield and while it gets hot from the exhaust pipe, on the other side of the shield is constantly circulating winter air that keeps it just cool enough. So that it's taking an excessively long time for it to burn away. Thoughts/comments/jeers?

Type of Wrenching: "Shadetree" but I've never had a tree double as an engine hoist. :-P What: Any of my cars, self-diagnose and fix. Got into vintage mopeds a while ago and like playing with those and they turned out to be a gateway into bigger bikes. These hands-on skills come in real handy for field service work on industrial filters too. How long doing it: Ever since I was old enough to hand Dad a wrench Other skills: Welding, electrical, computer tech...

I still loved mine, even after three tranny pulls. When they're good, they are REALLY good.

Yup, the two half shafts and the shaft to the rear. The trans in my 90-94 Legos had short splined shafts coming out of the sides of the transmission, with a hole through it for a roll pin that would go through the entire CV assembly. Get a long, thin punch and they should knock right out. The wheel side is standard CV stuff, big nut retaining a splined shaft. IIRC I got good enough to where I could just pull the assembly out of the wheel without having to detach the bottom of the hub from the ball joint to get enough clearance, saved some time. For the rear shaft, I dropped the middle support bearing ( couple of bolts) and it should just pull right out of the back of the tranny. Have a pan ready as the shaft provides the oil seal and the tranny will leak. After all that it's pretty much just like any other trans job. If you can get your hands on a tranny lift it might make it easier for you too.

I've done it the tranny-way three times on my old 1st gens. It's not BAD, but it probably is a lot easier to just pull the engine instead with an engine hoist. Otherwise you have three shafts to remove and the tranny is a real pig to manuver. I'm not sure, but I bet the motor is lighter too!

Also check out the coolant temp sensor....IIRC they normally fail reading as cold? Can't remember. But definitely worth a look. Good luck!

This has been a minor annoyance I have just dealt with, I don't cart people around often. But I figure the fall is coming and it's prime sunroof weather, both open and closed. The sunshade on the rear sunroof is locked to the sunroof. It moves when the sunroof moves. I'd like to have it back to normal, light for rear passengers without the wind tunnel experience. I just am not certain about what it will take to repair. Will this require removal of the headliner or is it a fairly simple procedure? Thanks for any input!

When I was visiting home recently my Dad was cleaning his Jimmy's headlights with Meguiar's Plastic X. My Legacy's headlights had a slight haze, so I used some and got to rubbing. Nice and clear now, makes a heck of a difference in brightness. Changing my oil at night not long after, when cleaning up I left her running outside the garage. I made the mistake of looking back and was immediately blinded by two suns! I did notice when using the Plastic X that I had a bunch of little pits and dings in the plastic. Would the Permatex kit fill these in?

I've been driving my 250 Nighthawk around the area and it's great for bopping around town, but really stinks for highway. Not only is it just barely faster than the speed limit, but it tends to be a rough ride for its very light weight (about 1/2 that of your average Harley at 300 lbs). So I've been looking around for something bigger for longer trips. I've recently noticed that a 80's BMW K100 can be had for about the same price as a nice same-era Honda CB and about what I would be willing to spend. So if I go looking at these, are there specific items I should ask about on these, outside normal service? I've heard these things are damn near bullet proof, but everything has it's "must do's". Thanks for any input!

I did! Much luck buddy, try not to enjoy that people wagen TOO much

ATF flush? Just got my 04 Legwag with 82k miles on it and am planning a gear oil change in the near future. I'd be all for doing this, just really worried about the kind of lubrication I would get with ATF, even for a short distance.

OH YES, definitely get a new fork and remember to grease the hell out of the pivot point. I've had to do this before and its no fun pulling the whole tranny out just for piece of stamped metal. I replaced the clutch while I was at it so it was more worth my time, but still very frustrating.

I agree. If you are getting it at a dealer, they might do it for you cheap or free to sweeten the deal. Just make sure they replace the water pump and idler pulleys while they are at it. If it is private party, use it as a bargaining chip to see if they will drop the price some.

Wow, that photo by the tank is amazing! Where were you at when you took the picture?

I just bought a 2004 Legacy wagon, non-Outback 5MT, 81k miles for $8800 total (taxes, fees, etc). So you could definitely find something in the mid 2000's range for that price. I used Autotrader, it worked well. Also, dealers seem fairly willing to haggle on price right now so you could get yourself a decent deal. Good luck, I hope you find a good one!

I use an Amsoil product in my vintage 2-stroke mopeds called Amsoil Saber. It's advertised as being able to run as lean as 100:1. Most 2-stroke moped engines require a mix of 50:1. I've run Saber at 100:1 mix in one of my bikes before, through a whole tank, about 70 miles. Not a single problem. I did notice a slight decrease in performance, but running that lean on oil usually means a seize within a few miles. Bottom line, I trust Amsoil's product line to be all it says it is.

Once the riding season starts up again in say, February, I should have my 93 Nighthawk 250 on the pavement. I figure it is a good start for the next year or so. Not sure which direction go to from there, though those BMW's had me salivating!

How are your shift linkage bushings? If they are really worn it would be really hard to tell what gear you are in. But the fact it dropped into gear is really strange, never heard of that.

I've thought about it and I have decided to restore it as-is rather than mod it. Thanks for the offer though! THAT is a beautiful 360!

It is very beautiful, but it makes me a little sad. I know this won't be driven to its full potential, beyond the builder's tests. It will sit quietly under a cover, revealed only to impress friends or to make appearances at auto shows. :-\ Cars like that should be driven!

Hondas? Aren't those the cars parked where the tarmac ends and the road begins? Sorry, couldn't help myself. WELCOME! Rivalry aside, I have much respect for Honda motorbikes. I've had several in the past couple years and the design and ride quality is always top notch.

yeah, it's the wrong ratio for the transmission. Someone laid out the whole line of which configuration got what rear differential for most of the generations, can't remember all of it. I believe the non-turbo 1st gens received a 3.9 rear for autos and 4.11 for manuals. Managed to kill 2 transmissions in my first Subaru and found out after the fact someone replaced the rear diff with one from an auto!

The Legacies here in the States have always been AWD insead of 4WD; a viscous coupling between front and rear axles as opposed to hard mechanical linkage. I know that in some places in the world they sold Legacies with a dual-range transmission which to me implies it was true 4WD. I might be wrong, but I think some of the 1st gen Legacy Turbos had LSD. Also, there is this article in the repair forum about using an LSD from a specific model of Impreza to convert a 5 speed 1st gen Legacy. Good luck, I hope that helps!