DerFahrer

I couldn't agree with this more. I've worked on a few other makes, and no matter what, my Scoobs are SOOO much easier to work on! Plus, neither one has ever left me anywhere, for any reason. Not even a dead battery or flat tire. They've done some weird things while I have been driving them, but they always got me there! Then the fact that they are saturated with personality to an extent that I've never seen in any other type of car before. I named both my cars for a reason! To steal Infiniti's old catch-22, "own one and you'll understand"

I agree, I don't like it. I hope Subarus look just the same way they always have. The 04 Impreza looks A-OK, the new 05 Legacy is gorgeous, the new Foresters look fine, etc. etc. Just leave everything alone!!

Removing the nut shouldn't be hard. But getting that damn balljoint out of the control arm is a BIATCH!!! For my XT, I took a tie-rod fork and wedged (no pun intended) it in betweenthe joint and arm and hammered on that beast for over an HOUR!!! You really need to get your hands on some PB Blaster to do that job!

Woohoo! Yes Mick, please post that! I've always wanted that font!

Woohoo! Yes Mick, please post that! I've always wanted that font!

I haven't done rear struts on a Legacy before, but I have a friend who put new rear struts on his 91 Legacy Turbo, and he said you might as well get someone to help you by pulling the hub down so you can align the holes. The swaybar pushes the hub up when you remove the strut, he said.

Why would you go to a JDM supplier when you get to choose from the myriad of WRX's that 16-year-old's are wrecking every day

Duh, it's an old Subaru. That's a given How good would a set of exhaust gaskets (manifolds, flange, etc.) and some exhaust repair putty be for this particular car? Or is it too far gone?

Assuming they are a 5X100 lug pattern, they will fit. But I would stay away from them. The standard offset is +52mm I believe. The smaller you get, the more stress you put on the wheel bearings, and +35mm offset would be murder. If you get all 4 bearings replaced, then you can start with new ones. But if your car has higher miles, they might not last much longer with these wheels... Sorry

Any Subaru that wore an XT badge (4cyl, n/a or turbo, or 6cyl) had a 97 inch wheelbase... Excuse me if this is wrong, but I believe wheelbase is measured from the center of the front wheel to the center of the rear wheel.

Very nice Junkie! I personally would make a restoration project out of it, while it's a daily. Yes it can be done, that's precisely what I'm doing with my Legacy right now Keep the wagon as your mods car/off-road beast/beater...

I hope it has a name less ridiculous than "Surveyor"... :brolleye:

I would DEFINITELY pay what the current bid of $610 is!!! Too bad I don't have any room for it

After driving it a few days, I realized it did smell like flesh burning... I checked it, it's not burning off, but it sure smells like it... Great, my wedge smells like burning flesh now :brolleye: I did order new gaskets though, and I'm gonna put some Loctite on the things when I replace them. Thanks guys!

Trogdor was telling me how he drove his 88 XT DL 500 miles with the header disconnected without any problems, so I will sleep a little better tonight. I know that EA82's are tough engines, but I still freak when stuff like that happens... It is MUCH quieter now, and I didn't realize how much torque I lost with that big leak. Feels a lot better to drive everyday again :cool:

I have been tracing down an exhaust leak for the past couple days on my 88 XT GL, I thought it was at the flange, so I put a new gasket in it. The flange itself was pretty rusted, so (this is very unusual for me ) I JB Welded the flange in hopes of sealing it up. I heard no improvement. About 15 minutes ago, I was driving around and all of a sudden the car no longer like a VW Bug but a WRX with exhaust! It was friggen loud! But I started to smell something I didn't like the smell of, and when I got home, I found a nut off the passenger side manifold missing. Thank goodness for the can full of misc. nuts and bolts my grandfather found! But I'm still concerned about that smell and what damage could have already taken place. Is it possible I might have burned my exhaust valves on that side? How tough are these engines when it comes to that? Maybe I should do a comp test to see if everything's alright...

To the best of my knowledge, any EJ-series engine will bolt up to any EJ-series tranny. Whether it is a perfect fit, I'm not sure. But it can be done.

The Forester XT, Baja Turbo, the STi and the new 2005 Legacy 2.5GT modeals all share the same block and heads, the STi and Legacy 2.5GT will have more horsepower because of different exhaust and IC setups. If these engine's heads are similar to the current Phase II EJ25 engines in all other Subarus, they will have solid lifters, unsure of the adjustment procedures though. All DOHC Subaru engines are valve-valve interference. To the best of my knowledge, no piston will ever strike a valve, but the valves will strike each other in the event of a timing belt failure. I doubt that the headgaskets will be too problematic on the new turbo engines. Since the indestructible Legacy Turbo engine came out, Subaru has not half-assed their turbo engines. With proper maintenance and a knowledgeable driver, these engines should be in it for the long haul.

I no get winning email... I thought I got everything right! :boohoo:

Woohoo! Another person who has a reason to post in both sections

Here's the answer: Take a bright light and shine it on the rim of the cam gear, and you will find a small line. That's your mark. Do NOT use the arrows on the spokes of the gears, those are for something else (don't remember what at this moment)...

You are right in that there are no books for 99-up Subarus, at least not yet. I'd say the only option you have is an FSM, which is going to be very expensive. But keep in mind that a repair manual is intended to be a supplement, not a substitute, for basic car knowledge. If you're not really sure how to do something, do NOT rely on a repair manual as your only source of information. Ask a mechanically-inclined friend for advice, ask here, or even get other manuals. Just the gathering of many different ideas will at least increase your understanding of the procedure you're about to perform. Sorry to give you a speech, but I've been disappointed by manuals in the past, and it has cost me quite a bit of money and time to fix something I screwed up because the manual didn't explain it accurately. And welcome to the board BTW! :wave:

You both are right. Modern 4EAT's are very good transmissions, better than average IMO, if they're maintained. I don't care what car it is though, Subaru, Ford, Yugo, if it's not maintained properly, it's not going to be reliable... I as well prefer a manual, but only for the driver involvement that an auto could NEVER offer... I am biased as is Setright, but I feel that the EJ22 is Subaru's best engine ever. Mine still runs better than many new cars I've driven at 127,000 miles. And while I don't beat it senseless, I do drive a tad "spiritedly"

I like to say that you're on one of the best Subaru repair manuals right now I rarely look at my maunals anymore, because I mostly know what I'm doing now anyway, and this place has one thing that a Haynes does not: one-on-one conversations with knowledgeable people. Ask away, someone can probably help :cool:

I just bought a rebuilt HH valve from them, excellent products and customer service. Tell them you're on the USMB and they'll cut ya a 10% discount