forester2002s

Mine get uncomfortably hot if I leave them on (2002 Forester). I have the 2002 FSM electrical circuit diagrams; and from memory. I don't think that there are any thermostats or timers in the circuit. Just ON or OFF.

It's actually finding where the rattle comes from, that is the hardest. I've had some luck with hose-clamps. But I usually resort to stuffing St.St. 'pot-scourers' in between the heat-shield and the exhaust-pipe. I tear the pot-scourer into clumps, and use a flat-bladed screwdriver to stuff the clumps in behind the heat-shield. It works quite well.

Sticky clutch pedal is probably due to a sticky slave-cylinder. Replace the slave, bleed the system, and that should fix it.

Clutch pedal slow to come up? This may be a symptom of a bad slave cylinder. Replace the slave, bleed the system, and that should do it.

I do the same thing each time I do a timing-belt: - I use a yellow wax-type marker; - I mark all of the drive and driven toothed-pulleys; - I make yellow marks on the belt, on the pulleys, and on the engine block, all in line; - then BEFORE disassembling, I take a photo of the front of the engine, showing all of these marks; - finally, I remove the old belt, and I transfer the marks from the old belt to the new belt, then reassemble.

Wheel bearings?

What happens to the noise when you: - accelerate? - travel at constant-speed? - decelerate?

Could be rattling heat-shields (on the exhaust). The rattle sometimes goes away when the exhaust heats up.

Nice clean drawings! If I see it correctly, this is how you fastened the new spacers to the top of the struts: - drill out the 3 old studs from the top of the struts; - screw-in 3 M8 screws (threaded on their full length) from the underside of the strut, into the bottom of the new spacer, and tighten-up; - then insert the exposed ends of the 3 new M8 screws into the car, as normal. Is that what you did?

What size fuse? My 2002 Forester has a 20A fuse. It supplies the two seats, and the 'rear accessory power supply relay'.

2002 Forester 'Sport' Heated cloth seats

I love the AWD + snow-tire combination. Fantastic in the snow! And I love the ease of maintenance (of most items). But I don't like these design features on my 2002 Forester: - Power-windows only work with ignition-key switched to ON (I rewired this so that windows work in ACC & ON). - Seat-heaters stay energized FOR EVER until switched off (I rewired this his with a pushbutton & relay, so that the circuit drops-out when the ignition is switched to OFF). - Wheel-bearing design: premature failure + complicated replacement procedure. - Head-gasket design: Subaru should have fixed this long ago. - Oil-dipstick design: Cannot get a clear reading of oil-level. Surely a first-year engineering student could redesign this!

Glad you're OK! And the Subaru too. I too live in deer country; they are truly unpredictable.

This is a shot in the dark, but: - try taking the batteries out of both remotes, or take them both well out of range; - then try a key in one of the doors.

It could be that an electrical gremlin is instantly re-locking all doors as soon as you unlock. Try unlocking a door with the key, and hold the key in the unlocked position while you try to open the door.

MilesFox: I agree with what you say about Subaru AWD. But just a couple of caveats: - Ground clearance isn't great for off-road driving, compared to a pick-up truck; - 1st gear in the 5MT manual isn't very low. That means slipping the clutch a lot on very rough and rocky trails. All in all though, I love my Subaru.

Just another reason why I'm trying to keep my 2002 running for as long as possible. I hate these 'bell & whistles' on newer cars.

Thanks for that suggestion, Heartless. I see that Harbor Freight have a set of pass-through sockets on sale for $19.99, including the driver. Wow! http://www.harborfreight.com/combo-go-thru-socket-set-sae-metric-21-pc-67974.html

"The old strut is going to the scrap yard anyway most of the time, just grab the strut rod with a pair of vice grips." Yes, I tried that. But the piston-rod is so hard and so smooth, that my vice-grips wouldn't hold on it. Maybe I need some better vice-grips! But, in any case, that wouldn't work when reassembling the new strut. I wouldn't want to damage the new piston-rod with vice-grips.

Thanks for the responses. Very helpful. I've just finished replacing the rear-left strut. I'm doing the right side tomorrow. I chose not to have to re-bleed the brakes, and so left the brake-hose attached to the caliper Having removed the holding-clip, I then cut the hose-bracket (on the old strut) with a single hacksaw cut to the side of the bracket. And then I twisted the bracket open to release the brake-hose. Then I modified the new strut, by hacksawing two cuts 15-mm apart, on the top of the hose-bracket. That way I could slide the hose-fitting in place, and reinsert the clip. Worked like a charm. I was going to also to zip-tie the hose in place, but I didn't need to, as the clip appeared to hold the hose in place securely. For others attempting a strut replacement, the other tricky procedure is to get the nut off the top of the piston-rod. Since I don't have Subaru's 'special tool', I did it this way: - 17-mm socket placed over the nut, and held on its O/D using a pipe-wrench; - then insert a 6-mm hex-wrench through the 1/2" sq. hole in the socket, and into the hex hole in the top of the piston-rod; - and turn as required. It's a bit tricky, but it works. Thanks again for your helpful comments.

2002 Forester 5MT 210,000-km I am ready to replace my rear suspension struts. The FSM says to disconnect the rear brake-hose from the caliper, and to tape the hose out of the way. Is this necessary? I would prefer not to have to re-bleed the brakes after I've finished. So can I leave the brake-hose connected to the caliper, and just support the rear-axle and brake hub/rotor assembly? Will this give me enough room to remove and reinstall the strut? I haven't done Subaru struts before, so any help would be appreciated.

I find it easier to remove the radiator, when doing the timing belt. It gives you a bit more room to play with. But most of all, it is an ideal opportunity to refill with fresh coolant (for which it may well be overdue anyway). Unless the hoses are really in bad shape, the existing ones can be reused without problem. Taking the radiator out is real easy, and doesn't take much time.

From the FSM for 2002 Foresters - Final Drive Ratios: - 5MT 4.111 - 4AT 4.444

I agree that it is difficult to get a good reading on a Subaru dipstick. This is a long-standing problem that Subaru should have fixed years ago. I always check my oil at home in the morning, after the car has been standing cold all night. Even then it is difficult to get a consistent reading. One consolation is that, when the oil level gets to about 1-litre below full, it is very obvious, because the dipstick is virtually dry.

Tighten the wheel nuts (very gently at first) using a 1-3-5-2-4-1 pattern. That will help centre the wheel correctly. The (horizontal) offset should also be checked, and compared to the existing Subaru wheels. Offset is unlikely to be a problem, but in extreme cases could cause the tire to rub against the suspension.