Chip

I'm sure I read somewhere that the O/B automatic always took off in 2nd gear unless under mid to heavy acceleration.Can anybody confirm this ?? I know that for a while now mine has been taking off in 1st,(no matter how I accelerate), and when it shifts into 2nd it really jerks hard. I never really noticed before if it started in 1st or 2nd.

Up here, a can is somewhere around 7 or $8 Cdn. I looked around and found this stuff here..http://www.boeshield.com/index.htm It looks to be the same kind of oily-waxy mixture...you might want to check it out.

I live in eastern Canada...Road Salt capital of the world. Here in Quebec, a lot of people have their cars sprayed with oil,(it's actually a mixture of hot oil and wax). It gets sprayed in all the places where humidty could form,(and not just salt), such as inside the tailgate and doors. I bought several cans of this stuff here..http://www.rustcheck.com/products.asp It comes in a spray can. I sprayed the underneath of my 98 O/B along with the entire engine compartment,(not the engine of course), inside the doors, rockerpanels, tailgate and everywhere else I could get to. The stuff is liquidy enough to run into all the nooks and crannies but not enough to drip all over the ground. It doesn't attack the existing undercoating or the paint. You don't need to drill holes in order to get it between the panels because there are already access holes you can use,(for wiring etc). It's a good idea to re-apply every 2nd year or so. Cheap insurance indeed. I also sprayed my Jeep TJ,(Jeeps start rusting before they leave the factory).

Have you ever done the math to see how many miles you would have to do to get a return on your investment ?..(the added cost of Synth vs 2-3 mpg).

I sprayed the underneath of my O/B with a mixture of oil and wax. I also sprayed in between all the body panels,(inside the tailgate, the doors, rockerpanels and everywhere inside the engine compartement). It's a bit messy but it's the best way to prevent rust, (especially here in the northeast).

If you want to go fast, don't buy the normally aspirated Subaru...especially automatic. The 165HP 2.5L is a torquey motor but the weight of the vehicle pretty well removes the excitement factor. I don't know what the towing capacity is for the new ones but for my 98 O/B, I can only pull 1500 lbs. Depends on what you wanna do.

I've got a big scratch on the driver's ,(side), window. It goes from top to bottom and is about an inch wide. I was in Vermont on the week-end,(the land of Subarus),and noticed 2 other Outbacks with the same scratch. It looks like the window rubbed on something inside the door on the way up or down. Anyone else seen this ?

I'm sure the automakers have done more research than anyone on air intakes and other "cheap and easy" modifications. Don't you think that if Subaru could get an extra 5-10 "free" HP out of a motor they'd do it ?

All this talk about how the engine might destroy itself because of water entering an aftermarket intake makes one wonder why they'd want an aftermarket intake in the first place ! A cold air intake will NOT give you the power gains they advertise...Not even close. You will NOT save enough gas to get a return on your investment. If cold air intakes were such a great modification, the car companies would design/install their own. Don't be suckered in by the "10-15HP increase" claims. Save your money and get something more useful....like fuzzy dice.

I can maintain 60 mph on a flat road or on a slight hill in 5th. I've got the H.O. 190HP 4.0L but I still wish it was geared a bit higher...3.73 or 4.10. Downshifting into 4th only brings the revs up about 500 rpms but helps alot. If you look at almost any vehicle, you'll notice that it's designed to cruise at or near it's maximum torque figure. It's at that speed that it's most efficient. You could re-gear a Subaru to cruise way outside of it's torque curve but your mpg's would suck,(literally).

No flaw.... @ 60mph in 5th gear my '00 TJ turns at around 1600-1800 rpms. It's geared 3.07,(stock). I just took a picture at 100kph,(62mph)...rpms = 1600. Tell me how to post it and you'll see for yourself.

I haven't found anything out yet and I'm trying to stay away from the dealer. Unless it gets really bad I'm not going to worry about it.

[Here is my guess. The Subaru H-4 engine generates full HP and torque at VERY, VERY low rpms. So, the car is producing full power (and using more fuel) earlier in the power band. Just because a motor is turning at it's maximum torque or HP doesn't mean it's using more fuel, (often, the exact opposite is true).For the sake of argument, let's assume that a motor develops it's maximum power at 1500 rpms,(a L6 Jeep motor for example). On the highway at 60mph in 5th you'd be turning around 1500 rpms. According to your theory, if you were to go faster, or at a higher RPM, you'd use LESS fuel ?....highly unlikely.

Let me guess...you're growin' pot ??

Maybe some of you have already seen this but for those who haven't... http://www.endwrench.com/archive/sysdrive.html There's some great tech info in there.

I'm confused. I know that Subaruparts.com and 1stsubaruparts.com aren't the same place but it seems that when I received my order from 1stsubaruparts.com , it arrived in a box marked LIBERTY SUBARU...is that possible ?

[ "Oh boy, do you have problems..." To make a long story short, every oil seal was bad and needed to be replaced and to replace any Subaru oil seal you must drop to engine. So the dealer said it would be cheaper to replace all the seals at once to save on the cost of dropping the motor. The total cost $4,000. I'd go back with a big stick and beat the living snot out of him.

The fact that it does it while stopped leads me to believe it's the transmission,(and also that it's OK when in neutral). I haven't tried bringing up the revs while stopped however. Maybe revving 100 rpm's or so more might help. Tell me more about your engine change. Why...who..and how much $$.

[ I can see why it had what were probably the same plugs that were in it when she bought the thing with 30,000 miles on it. . That would be quite normal. The OEM plugs are platinum and changing them before 30,000 would be nothing but a waste of money anyway. They're good for over 60K.

My 98 O/B WGN does the same thing....(it's got 205,000kms). When I'm stopped at a light in Drive with the brake on, it shudders. If I pop it into neutral it runs smooth. I tried something the other day...I parked on a hill which was steep enough to stop the car from moving forward OR backward while in drive with my foot OFF the brake...it still shuddered. Around the same time it started shuddering, it also started shifting with a thunk from 1st to 2nd,(mostly while accelerating slowly. I drained the tranny oil and replaced it,(it hadn't been drained for over a year...60K+), and it didn't make any difference.

OK...so now I feel stupid..(again). Someone please explain..what's a PM ? :-\

I've got 200,000 kms on my 98 OBW and for a while now it's been shifting from 1st to 2nd with a clunk,(and a jerk), mostly when accelerating slowly. I changed the tranny fluid last week and it made no difference at all. It also shudders when stopped in Drive with the brakes on. Any ideas ?

"I don't know much about rotory motors but they seem to work well" The Miatas don't have rotary motors..The only Mazda which still uses a rotary motor is the RX-8. "I have a 2k OBS 2.2l. I have taken canyon runs w/some WRX's and I had no problem keeping up w/them." Older, non-turbo'd WRXs I assume...?

I agree 100% with gbhrps. 300ZX...Still one of the best looking cars on the road. Miata..Road and Track magazine rated it as one of the most reliable used cars out there. A very low risk investment. You can get a supercharger kit for a Miata for between $3500-$4500 that will turn it into a pocket rocket.

My 98 O/B has the worst case of piston slap you've ever heard !! It's also got 200,000+ kms on it...so far so good. It leaks oil from a bunch of different places but that's a good sign. When it stops leakin' I'll be worried.