howards11

I been using Lubegard products for years; mostly their oil additive. Here's the link for their oil additive: Lubgard. Comments guys? ~Howard

2000 Forester, 72K miles; the mileage is mostly city driving here in Philadelphia, PA. My mechanic said my struts are weak but not leaking or exhibiting other signs of failure. I don't when I'm going to replace this car because of financial reasons. I might turn it over to my daughter once she learns how to drive. Questions: Should I replace the struts now ? The ride does seem a bit bumpier now than before. If I should replace them what brand should I ask my mechanic to use; OEM, Monroe, NAPA, KYB ? As a rule my mechanic uses mostly NAPA stuff. Thanks in advance for your suggestions. ~Howard

Thanks for the info. I'm only going to use this for top-off oil. Costco is far from where I'm located. ~Howard

Anyone ever hear of MILEMASTER OIL? Here's their link Milemaster. The local $5.00 and under store has quarts of their 5W30 for $2.50. I bought a quart to use as a top off oil. Their label says it meets spec SM. ~Howard

COUGAR: I don't understand why the problem with the O2 sensor did not generate a code. I can't figure out how 2 plugs were loose. But the car runs like new so I'm glad everything has been resolved. ~Howard

I took the Forester back to a local dealer. It seems I had 2 loose plugs and 4 fouled with oil. Plus one of the O2 sensors was bad (out of range error). The plugs were replaced and the O2 sensor was replaced under warranty. The O2 sensors were replaced along with the cat back in Nov 2008. The parts warranty for Subaru is 1 year. All is now OK and the Forester is running like new. ~Howard

Coil pack and plug wires were replaced last July. ~Howard

My 2000 Forester hesitates and then backfires periodically. The problem seems to worsen as the gas level declines. THERE ARE NO CODES being generated. I have an appointment with local dealer as my regular mechanic has given up. There is 71K on the car. The fuel cap, fuel filter and air filter have been replaced but have had no effect on the problem. I tried various "fuel system cleaners" and that hasn't helped either. I suggested to the service adviser about updating the ECU but he poo pooed that idea. The service adviser is already talking about 2 hrs of diagnostic time which he said would be about $200. Does anyone have any suggestions? Thanks in advance for your help. ~Howard

COUGAR: I do hear a relief of vacuum when I open the gas tank cap when it's half full. But isn't that normal ? Tonight on the way to dinner with the tank almost to the half full point, the engine hesitated and then backfired. On the way back from dinner the engine ran fine. What I'm trying to avoid is taking this to a dealer and spending a lot of $$ with no answers. Should I just wait until the damm thing throws a code ? I am really confused at this point. ~Howard

Here's the latest development. I think I've pinpointed the problem to something in my gas tank. The problems start again when the gas drops to 1/2 tank and below. A friend suggested letting the tank almost run to almost empty which would burn up any crud left in it. Then add some fuel system cleaner and refill. Other than that I think I'm going to wait for the engine to throw a code before I go to the dealer. Otherwise I think I'm just throwing out my money. Comments please. ~Howard

The car did not misbehave for my mechanic. He does not just want to throw parts at it which I understand. He suggested a local dealer and I am going there once the problems start up again. ~Howard

QMAN: Thanks for the info. I've passed it along to my mechanic. When he calls me I am going to ask him to clean the MAF and we'll go from there. I priced the part on-line and we're looking at around $60.00. I might just have him replace it. ~Howard

I turned the radio off today and it addition to the other problems mentioned before I now think I hear pinging. This seems to happen when the engine is under stress like with the AC on and going up a hill. WHAT A MESS !! I'm leaving the car at my mechanic on Monday for one last shot from him on the problems. ~Howard

My problems with the Forester still have not stopped. It still hesitates and backfires. Both problems are intermittent. It seems however after the backfire the problems go away for a while. It like it has to (please excuse this) pass gas and then it "feels better". Still no CEL ! ~Howard

Thanks to everyone for their comments. Looks like I will save a few $$ by not getting the grounding kit. ~Howard

Does anyone have additional comments ? ~Howard

COUGAR: I ran the Forester last evening on one of our expressways. It performed OK and there were no problems driving through the city streets after leaving the expressway. Coming back from dinner, I think I heard another backfire ("pre-ignition" ?) but the radio was on so I could not really tell. After I got off on the city streets again there was no problems. I'm keeping a check on things this weekend and if the problems still exist Tuesday I will be contacting a local dealer. There is a PM waiting for you. ~Howard

Saturday.........................the Forester hesitated several times and it backfired once. It also started something new. It shakes sometimes waiting for a light. Still no CEL. My podiatrist did mention to me that this problem could be a valve hanging up. I don't even want to think about that. ~Howard

I took the Forester to my mechanic the other day. He tried to see if there were any codes and there were none. He could not make the car hesitate. He did tell me to stop using 93 octane gas and go back to regular. :-\ He did tell me it could be the MAF sensor but he really was not sure. I had him change the air filter and the fuel filter just to be on the safe side. Today is the Friday before Memorial Day and I was off from work. I drove the car around more than usual. It still hesitates at times. This evening even my wife who was sitting up front felt it. I was stopped for a light with the AC on when it happened. I went to my podiatrist today. He used to have a 2000 Forester. We talk cars and PC's as he works on my feet. He told me that he remembered having the ECU refreshed when he had the Forester. I am contacting the dealer my podiatrist uses and set up an appointment with them to look at my Forester. ~Howard

I've been thinking about getting a grounding kit for my 2000 Forester. Anyone have comments about grounding kits? Are they snake oil or do they work as advertised? ~Howard

COUGAR: I appreciate your suggestions. Could you please tell me what is a CAS sensor and what is a CAM sensor. ~Howard

For the last several weeks since this problem developed I've been using 94 octane Sunoco or 93 octane Shell. The last tank was Shell plus a bottle of Chevron Fuel System cleaner. I think it's time my mechanic and I had a talk about how to handle this problem. You are correct about backfiring being a timing problem but here is an oddity. There are no CEL codes being generated. The backfiring seems really muffled and does not happen all the time. The hesitation does not happen all the time either. Someone said it could be (check the thread) the throttle position sensor which has developed "blind spot" or perhaps the ECU needs to be updated. Maybe I should bring this to a Subaru dealer? Anyone have a good dealer in the Philadelphia, PA area? I'm not that far from Glansmann Subaru. My mechanic has contacts at Colonial Subaru. Plus there is Reedman-Toll Subaru not too far from where I'm located. SOA was no help on this matter. Sorry for being long winded on this issue. ~Howard

Problem is back again. I think I heard it backfire today. I'm not sure. There was too much talking coming from the backseat. I am sure it hesitated a few times. Plus my wide felt it hesitate too. I'm going to call my mechanic Monday and see what he says. He has connections at the nearby Subaru dealership so maybe they can help him diagnose this strange problem. This problem has been going on since the switchover to summer gas. ~Howard

Now the problem has gone away. Go figure. I'm just going to keep a check on it and see what happens. Maybe the fuel system cleaner had some effect. With my next batch of gas I'm going to add some Seafoam and my at next oil change I'm going to have the gas filter and the air filter changed. ~Howard

Received from Subaru of America (SOA): "Thank you for contacting Subaru of America, Inc. I'm sorry to hear of your vehicle concern with your 2000 Subaru Forester. According to our record for the VIN that you provided, your vehicle is not affected by any open recalls or campaigns at this time. Unfortunately, we are not equipped to diagnose your vehicle vie email or the phone. Instead we rely on the factory-trained technicians at authorized Subaru dealers in order to diagnose and repair Subaru vehicles. We suggest that you have your vehicle looked at by an authorized Subaru dealer in your area. Best Wishes." Now what ? ~Howard