FlyFlicker

I did it the easy way. Remove the fuse to keep the engine from starting. Take a long breaker bar and position it so that the socket is on the the nut and the end of the handle is on the drive way on the drivers side. Then bump the starter.

Lift up the cover either in the trunk or in back if you have a wagon. You will see a domed cover held on by 4 screws. Remove this cover to expose the fuel pump. Undo the electrical connection to the pump and crank the engine. This will relieve the pressure in the fuel line. After you change the filter reconnect the pump and replace cover.

I like your handle!

The "yeild" on a bolt means that you are stretching it beyond the point of elasticity. Once it has done this, it will never return to its original length. This presents to problems for re-using these bolts. The first is necking down of the bolt where stretching results in a narrowing of the bolt stem which results in weakness. Think of a piece of pulled taffy to picture this. The second issue is work hardening. Think of how you pull a tab off of a beer can or pop can - you repeatedly bend it back and forth until it snaps off. The repeated bending has hardened the stressed metal and made it brittle which resulted in it breaking off. The same thing happens to the bolt when you re-use it, it becomes harder and more brittle and is more prone to suffer catistrophic failure. If you are so inclined, here is an excellent article on engine fasteners; http://www.babcox.com/editorial/ar/ar20134.htm

In all of the stduies I have read, Fram tests out very poorly. I use Purolator as these test out consistently very near the top.

McQuire's and a couple of others make a plastic cleaner/polisher that works fairly well. I've found that rubbing compound works like a charm at removing oxidation and polishing the plastic. I use 3M's fine grit and apply it twice. The first is dry, just like you would on paint. The second is with a water soaked towel. Then apply a clearcoat prep to the lenses and buff. Do this two or three times a year to keep your lenses clear and prevent oxidative damage to the plastic.

As SX pointed out, it could be brake dust causing this. But it is also a symptom of glazing. Repeated, light braking can gloss the rotors and pads, and this results in brake squeal. Remove the rotors and pads and "rough" them up with sand paper. If the squeal goes away - that's your problem.

A friend of mine recently bought a '98 OBW with the 2.5. I'm doing some work on it to make sure that she has a reliable vehicle. But I have not been able to track down the this hesitation and stumble on acceleration from a stop. What its doing is that if you get on the gas fairly quickly it acts like it loads up, stumbles and chugs, and then catches after a second or two. I've cleaned the throtle body and the TPS, replaced the fuel filter, which was nearly clogged, and the air filter. I've checked for vacuum leaks and bad hoses and plan on running some injector cleaner through it tonight. Oh, and it isn't throwing any codes so I'm hoping that someone here can give me some ideas of what else I might want to check out to correct this. I'd prefer not to have to take it to a sub mechanic because she is a single mom and money is a little tight for her, so any help that can be offered will be greatly appreciated.

Craftsman bolt extractor set!

What oil are you running on? Chances are that you are right in thinking it's in the valve train. I would suggest that you start running Mobil 1 as I have seen it clear up this exact problem. Be patient though as it may take a couple of oil changes depending on how much gunk is built up!

You may have air trapped in the block. Do a search on how to burp the cooling system and make sure that you get all the air out.

I came out of church the other day and parked next to me was this "SUV". I wouldn't have paid any attention had I not noticed the Subaru badge. I don't know if I like it or not, but I suspect it might grow on me. But I didn't even know they were out yet, or maybe the "owner" works for Sube or something. Anybody here know if they're actually available yet?

Lets start with the simple stuff first. Are your terminals clean? I've seen subs act this way when there was a poor connection to the battery. Then the next step is to have the battery tested. If these two check out OK, then you can start messin' round with wiring/hardware.

Yup! http://www.cars.com/go/search/fs_search_results.jsp?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=21&sort=true&pageNumber=0&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=ascending&sortfield=YEAR+descending%2CPRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7CE-%7CM-_45_%7CD-_410_%7CN-N%7CR-100%7CI-1%7CP-YEAR+descending%2CPRICE+descending%7CQ-descending%7CZ-80214&aff=national

Did they get all of the air out of the system?