georgefgd

I'll weigh in on the diesel discussion. I recently bought a VW Jetta wagon TDI. I know, I know... it's not a subaru. The new subarus just weren't doing it for me. So I went this route. So far it's been amazing to drive. The low RPM torque feels great to drive. And the mileage is amazing. I averaged 45mpgs from Portland to Vancouver, BC and back. It regularly is 30mpg for city driving. It's a 6spd manual which is also really fun to drive. VW makes an Auto Trans but I haven't driven it. The longevity of the engine is supposed to be great. 10,000 mile oil changes seem like a good thing. I would really like to drive a subaru diesel!

I was standing right next to it and snapped a cell phone shot. So it wasn't too much effort. haha.

I was there for about an hour with no sign of the owner. I kind of figured it would be someone from the board. I've never seen it around town before but it did have Oregon plates. Considering it was parked at the skatepark I'm sure I'll come across it again sometime.

Saw this rig at the Burnside skatepark today. EA82 Coupe with lift and pugs, custom paint. Looked real sweet.

Just going off what I've seen of other cars that get towed off the street and to that yard. Usually abandoned and very neglected. I'm sure someone from the USMB could make either of those cars into a beauty. Just going to take some work.

With the way those cars get picked up around Portland I doubt they're in good shape. To get picked up they have to be abandoned or visibly disabled. There is a warning sticker that goes on them so there is time to move, or fight it. Here's the info: http://www.portlandonline.com/TRANSPORTATION/index.cfm?c=34790

Thanks again for all the input. Tom, don't worry about the thread hijack. That's some pretty interesting stuff. It looks like I'm going to have to drive a few cars to see what I like best. I'm in no hurry. A few things that concern me about the EA81 cars is that they seem to be very common in 4 speed manuals (I'm sure there's a thread out there about upgrading to 5spd) and just general interior condition of a car that old. I looked at one a while back that was in good shape and cheap. Probably should have picked it up then. GD, I see you're in Portland too. Do you have any good spots to look for Subarus outside of craigslist?

Thanks for the thoughts guys. I only had to look at a few threads to know that the EA82T would be a bad idea. -grossgary- In my mind I've got in narrowed down between a GL wagon and a Loyale. Just wanted to tap into the collective knowledge of the message board on the thoughts of one over the other. No matter what I get, lurking around here has made me want to do all kinds of mods. haha.

I'm in the market for what will be my 3rd Subaru. In the past I had a 92 Legacy wagon and an 02 Outback wagon. I've always like the body style of the EA82 wagons and I've been looking at GLs and Loyales in the area trying to decide what it will be. I wouldn't mind getting some opinions from you guys on which way I should go. The only glaring difference to me is the D/R 4WD on the GLs vs. the push button 4WD on the Loyales. And to top it off someone has posted up in the classified section a sweet lifted GL in Southern Oregon that looks amazing and is very tempting. Thanks for the input in advance!

gbhrps, thanks for the help. The rear panel is actually broken where some of the clips should be holding it so I'll be looking for a new one of those. The door panel was easy. The broken clip was easy to get to and now I'm off to the parts store today. cheers george

I have a 2001 Outback Rocky Mountain Edition with 46,000 miles on it. The interior panel on the rear hatch was the first to go. A couple clips broke and it hung in there for a while but eventually turned out to be a lost cause. Now, the driver side door panel is loose at the bottom outside corner. I noticed that one today when I closed the door. Does anyone else have this problem? Is there an easier solution than going to the dealer and having them over-charge me for it? thanks for the help!