nixon

My '00 outback had probably the worst lights on any car I've owned, even with Osram Nightbreaker +90% bulbs in. My '00 Forester, with similar bulbs, and proper glass lenses, can start fires with it's lights! Plastic Subaru lenses suck!

Mine's an '00 with the multi-link sus. http://www.kingsprings.com/kings_master_catalogue.pdf is your friend! KSRS 25 is what you need for a '97, I believe.

I fitted Stock height,25% stiffer King springs to the back of my outback, along with KYB excel-G's allround. BINGO! "Almost" neutral handling, and non of the grandad style wallowing of the stock suspension. It could do with a slightly stiffer swaybar setup, but given it's height, it ain't bad. Kings prices compare well with Rallitek, but their shipping charges, outside the US at least, are half what Rallitek charge. Oh, and with 53,000 miles on them, those shocks are a long way from optimum. Cheers, Nick

Sounds like a goog idea!

Sorted! One outer tie rod end has a split, but not wobbly yet. I'll order one tomorrow. Inners all OK!

I found a pair for £11 at my locaparts store. That's better, it's a sunny day, and I'm waiting for some glue to dry, so, where's me trolly jack...

Blimey! Just had a bit of a shock! Phoned dealer to get a price on gaiters, and theyre £54 ($108) EACH, but that does include the clips! Grease is extra.

Thanks Chaps! I'll have to give it a jiggle tomorrow, if I get time. If I can get away with just the boot, I will, but we'll see. What grade of lube should I squirt in there? Cheers, Nick

Evenin all. I was under the car today, Changing the auto fluid, and having a general poke around, and check. I noticed that one of the steering rack gaiters was split, so it needs replacing. What lube should I chuck in there to keep it sweet? Also, theres a bit of a clonk coming from that general area. Are the inner track rod ends adjustable/checkable? I've done a search here, and the consensus seems to be that if the rack ain't leaking, it's probably OK. However, I've found a low mileage one on Ebay, cheap, and was wondering if it might be good preventative maintenance? I don't want to change it un-necessarily though. The car's an'00 Outback, 142,000 miles Any advice? Cheers, Nick

If I may add my tuppence worth... I presently have a MY2000 Forester S-turbo, a '98 Foz 2.0 GLS, and an '00 Outback. The Forester is the better car, hands-down! The only drawback is that it is brick shaped, so on the highway you will get worse gas mileage. The outback is bigger, but only in the boot (trunk). However, in the OB , I can fit a 3.02 meter length of timber, between the passenger footwell and the top of the bootlid. In the Foz, I can fit a 3.05 m length! Legroom is "slightly " better in the rear of the OB, but I have problems squeezing past the steering wheel in the OB. I'm 6'1" and real skinny! For this age of vehicle, the Foz is a newer design, and it shows. There are storage trays and cubbies everywhere. They're sadly missing in the OB. The seats in the Foz are THE most comfy I've ever sat in on long journeys, and the single giant sunroof beats the two tiddlers in the OB. The Forester cabin is just a nicer place to be. Also, if you want to mod the Forester, you'll be in heaven. Generally, if it will fit an Impreza, it will fit the Foz. OB stuff is harder to find. Oh , and the XT, at least in the UK , has the same ground clearance as the non turbo. Either are great cars, though. Cheers, Nick

Sorted! It turned out to be a combination of poor valve gaps (LPG doesn't lubricate the valves like petrol, and they tend to recess more quickly), and oil in the plug tubes. Runs like new now! Cheers, Nick

Now you've gone and done it!

Quick Question. The coolant temperature sensor- is that the one just behind/below/to the left of the alternator, or one somewhere else? Also, disconnecting the MAP sensor seems to have no effect on how the engine runs. Should it? Disconnecting the Lambda sensor seems to have quite an effect, giving a little less power throughout the rev range. Cheers,Nick

Just been fiddlin... I disconnected the MAP sensor and took a drive around the block. Check engine light came on , and "POWER" lashed, but the car drove exactly the same!? Should it do that? I also took some coil primary resistance readings :confused: , Hopefully someone can make some sense of them. Coil. 1-earth , Infinite resistance 2-E , Infinite 3-E , Infinite 4-E , Infinite 1-2 , 3.5k ohms 2-3 , 140k ohms (!) 3-4 , Infinite 1-4 , Infinite 2-4 , 117.8k ohms 1-3 , 21.4k ohms Harness. 1-E , Inf 2-E , 0 ohms 3-E , 0 ohms 4-E , Inf 1-2 , 26,2k ohms 2-3 ' 0 ohms 3-4 , 26.4k ohms 1-4 , inf 2-4 , 26.4k ohms 1-3 , 31.8k ohms There are a lot of irrelevant readings here, but hopefully someone might know whether the relevant ones are OK! The harness readings look OK, but the coil readings look suspect. The manual gives an OK reading of less than 5 ohms for connector 3- earth, but is this coil or harness connection? If I can't make it work by hitting it with a hammer, I'm stuffed! Cheers, Nick

Update. PCV valve is fine. Plug lead resistance is between 7 and 8k ohms (should be between 6 and 10).The dealer has new leads on order... Coil secodary resistance is 12k ohms, 1-2 and 3-4. Primary resistance , mmm? Spark at the plug is a nice strong orange spark (in daylight) , and will easily ump a couple of inches to earth. I'm jus going to clean a few sensor terminals. I've tried running it on autogas, and the symptoms are exactly the same, so I don't think it's fuelling. Also, the changeover from petrol to lpg when the engine warms up is seamless, so that points away from temperature sensor. We'll get the bugger yet! Cheers, Nick