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rcoaster

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Posts posted by rcoaster

  1. on the older Sub's you had to rotate the caliper piston in order to push them back in

     

    my niece has a 96 Legacy---I'm doing the rears...it's obvious that they do not need to be "screwed in"....but, do people generally just push them in with a clamp or break the bleeder screw open , then push them in?

     

    BTW--what do the fronts look like (screw in type still?)

     

    thanks

     

    You don't have to open a bleeder screw, just unscrew the master cylinder resivoir. Just keep an eye on the resivoir so it doesn't overflow when you press the piston back in. Use a C-clamp and one of the pads to press the piston back in. I use a special tool you can get at any auto parts store to press it back in. The rears are single piston while the fronts are double piston. They're basically the same. A c-clamp and the old pad would work fine pressing in the double pistons.

  2. I am really glad your friend is okay...especially since he wasn't wearing his seatbelt.

     

    There are a lot of factors that need to be met in a split second before the side airbags deploy. Things such as vehicle speed, g-force of impact, rotation speed of rollover...etc. They are typically designed to go off when t-boned, but not always in a rollover. If the occupant isn't wearing their seatbelt, the bags may or may not have protected them. Or worse, the bags could have hurt him. I think there are weight sensors in the seat that might determine whether or not the bag deploys. So if the car's computer thought that no-one was in that seat during the rollover (since your friend may have been thrown up away from the seat), the bags may not of deployed.

     

    I think you have to have a sudden lateral force, such as a side collision for the airbags to go off. The airbag module also has a gravitational sensor that detects sudden changes in motion. In a collision, there's a rapid deceleration that produces very high G's, and that's what sets the airbags off. In a roll-over, there's some G's, but the rapid deceleration is not there to keep the airbags deploying. If you rolled over, then slammed the side of the car into a tree, the airbag would have deployed the moment the car hit the tree because there is a rapid deceleration involved there.

     

    Next time, take it easy.

  3. Saw one "in the flesh" when I took my OBW in for its 90k service a couple of weeks ago.

     

    For those of you who haven't seen one yet and who say "it can't possibly be as ugly in person as it looks in those pictures", I have to say: Yes, it can and it is. I didn't test drive one because I forgot to bring a ski mask and was afraid someone I knew would see me in it and I would die of embarrasment.

     

     

    I stopped by the dealer while it was closed to take a closer look. Yes, the exterior didn't do it for me. However, it was the interior that really did it for me. Now if they would take the interior design and put it in the Outback instead... :-p

  4. The wiper switch can be removed as a separate part. If there's no obvious easy fix, it has to be replaced (get one with adjustable delay).

     

    Either that, or you didn't hold it long enough so that the wiper cam deactivates the "park" switch. Try this, pull on the stalk, and hold it until the wipers are 1/4 of the way up and let go. Does it continue on for one sweep and stop? If it does, then just pull and hold for a second before letting go instead of just tapping it.

     

    The same thing happens on my 96 Outback, so the pull and hold for a second sequence always works. :)

     

    RCoaster

  5. I'm not sure if this will work for your model or not. You could try turning the ignition on and off three times with the drivers door open. I think that is what I needed to do on my '01 Outback.

     

    Nope. That won't work. The 96 uses a Code Alarm system, while your 01 uses an Apline, I beleive. Just look under the dash for a button, near the fuse panel. Hold in this button while turning the ingition key to ON. That should disable the alarm.

     

    RCoaster.

  6. Also, can I remove the driveshaft to the rear to improve my gas mileage without any side effects on the diff or transfer case? I really don't need AWD in South Texas!

     

    No you cannot remove the drive shaft. The AWD system always sends power to the rear wheels. Besides, if you really don't need AWD in South Texas, why did you get a Subaru in the first place? Get a front wheel drive car. :banghead:

  7. here's the scenario. I fill up the car, but it doesnt take nearly as much in either gas or money to fill it up. It only takes roughly 8 gallons to fill it up now, where it use to take 12gal or so. After its filled up, start driving and the gauge shows full for a few miles, then drops down to 7/8 of a tank. The guage seems to drop faster than the actual gas amount. And when it gets almost to empty on the guage, we fill it up and it only takes 8 or so gallons and the trip meter only shows 150-170 miles total??? not sure if the problem is the guage in the dash, a sending unit, or :confused:

     

    Any body have this issue or know how to narrow down the issue?

     

    Thanks for any help you may be able to provide.

     

    That's normal. My 96 Outback does exactly the same. I usually drive until the low fuel light comes on and then fill up. I get about 13-14 gallons at fill up. It's the "oops factor" that Subaru put in the fuel gauge as well as the speedo. 150-170 miles out of 8 gallons sounds about right. I usually go about 230-240 miles on a tankful before the low gas light comes on. The gauge seems to linger in "E" for a while before the light comes on.

  8. Hi,

    I need advise on the deal for 05 Legacy GT Limited with automatic transmission. Just came from the dealer here in NJ and there's a demo car with 4900 miles. The car is in show room; very clean the original sticker price was $31,695.00.The reduced price is $26,495.00. I asked him to come down to $25,495.00 and he’s agreed. The car has all Limited GT specs plus spoiler. It also has roadside assistance program included. Can you tell if this is a good deal?

    Thanks in advance,

    Len

     

    GO FOR IT!!! 250 hp of turbo fun!!!!! :headbang::grin:

  9. I'm sure somebody out there knows what I'm talking about.

    In my '98 OBW there is a plastic dish-type piece in the middle of the backseat in the backrest (upright) part of the seat. It looks like something may fit in there like an armrest or something. My son uses it to put his pencils and french fries in, but I don't think that's what Subaru had in mind for it.

     

    thanks

     

    That's where you shove the seat belt buckles when flipping the seat bottom up before flipping the backrests down. My 96 has it as well. It functions as a holder when you flip the seat bottom down and you don't have to fish around for the buckles and pull them out. :-\

  10.  

    I have a '97 Legacy OB and my left front turn signal bulb just stopped working. In my Haynes manual it shows the turn signal assembly separate from the headlight assembly, and that you just pull the turn signal assembly and replace the bulb. Wrong. It's all one piece on my car.

     

     

    Ah yes. The Haynes manual used a 1998 Outback to take the pictures. If you look at the back cover, there's a picture of the mechanic and one of the photographers working on the car and the blurb mentioned that it was a 1998 Outback. Looks like Subaru made some revisions to the Outback every year between 95-99.

     

    In regard to the headlights, if the lens is clear and smooth and you can see the diamond reflector, it is 2 peice; the 1 peice headlight/turnsignal combo has stripes in it to focus the beam.

  11. My '03 Legacy wagon makes a clunk when I first move forward after starting the engine. It sounds like a relay closing, perhaps located behind the glovebox. What is this? Just curious.

     

    JDW

     

    A relay makes a "click". It's like the clicking noise you hear when your turn signal is flashing. Have you tried removing everything from your glove compartment to see if the noise goes away?

  12. I have a Pioneer head unit in my 96 Outback (model DEH-7600MP). What I did was buy a adaptor kit that plugs directly into the factory harness and has bare ends on the other end. I wired it up to the harness that came with the radio. Now the radio is simple plug and play. If I decide to get another car and want to put the factory radio back in, I simply disconnect the harness and plug the factory radio back in. It's quite simple. I got the adaptor from Best Buy for 12 bucks and the wires are color coded the same way the aftermarket radio harness is, so it's just a matter of matching up the colors.

     

    RC!

  13. I was afraid of cracking my "wood" shifter bezel :) It was about 10 degrees when I did it...but you are correct, technically you don't have to do steps 1 and 2.

     

     

    Any idea what the cost is to replace an inhibitor switch?

     

    I'm not sure of the cost but I do know it's easy to replace. The inhibitor switch is actually a tranny selector switch that tells the computer what position the lever is in. Looking over my Haynes manual, it appears there's a section on about adjusting the switch. It could be just as simple as the switch being out of adjustment. You just have to check for continuity between some terminals for Park and Reverse then tighten it down.

     

    For Park, Check continuity between pins 3 (Y) and 4 (B), and pins 11 (BW) and 12 (BY). For Reverse, check pins 2 (Br) and 4, as well as pins 9 (RW) and 10 (BW). Here's the layout of the pins:

     

    __________=====_________| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |-------------------------| 7 | 8 | 9 | 10| 11| 12|-------------------------

     

    This is for later models, the earlier models had this layout:

     

    4 3 2 1

    8 7 6 5

    12 11 10 9

     

    RC!

  14. To disengage the shift lock, there are 2 screws just under the center console bin, take them out, remove the E-brake cover, then pop off the plastic piece that surrounds the shifter, underneath is a small hole that you insert a philips screwdrive and push, it allows the shifter to come out of park.

     

    Takes 2 minutes to do...easy as pie.

     

    that's 2 steps too many. You can just pop off the shifter bezel (the black plastic trim around the shifter indicator to access the hole on 95-99 Legacies and Outbacks. I had posted some pictures on the board a while back showing how. On 2000 and newer, there's a little door that you flip open to access the interlock release. To disengage, just insert a phillips screwdriver down the hole and press it down.

     

    [edit-found the pictures, here they are:]

    shifter1.jpg

    Pry out the trim with your screwdriver...

     

    shifter2.jpg

    Then insert the screwdriver into the hole to disengage the shifter.

     

    Besides, you don't even have to have the car running to disengage the shifter. Just turn the key to "ON", and press the brake, and then shift it out of park. Just be sure to set the parking brake so the car won't go anywhere while trying to start the car in neutral.

  15. The cooling fans on the radiator might be the culprit. Since the car is moving, air is moving through the radiator and keeping the temp under control. Since you were stopped, there wasn't any air moving through the radiator, and therefore, the engine heated up. Check everything associated with the cooling fans. Another thing to check is to turn on the air conditioner. Does the temp fall once you turn on the A/C? That means the fans are working, and you should check the temp sensor or relay that kicks them on when the temp rises.

  16. Thanks folks. I'm pretty sure they'll fit...the fact that it's an H4 bulb is the entire point ;-) I'm planning on some lighting upgrades.

     

    Actually, there were two different revisions. the early revision had the headlamp assembly and the turn signal assembly as one unit. The second revision has the headlamp assembly and the turn signal assembly as two separate units. My 96 Outback has the first revision. I'm not sure about the 97, but you might want to check to see if the headlamp and the turnsignal are a separate unit or combined as a single unit.

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