1 Lucky Texan

if you're ditching the old struts, put a vice grip on the shaft to keep it from spinning. But, to 'properly' torque the new struts on, you're gonna need to rig a system like bheinen described. you might take a look here for some ideas; http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/81-wheels-tires-brakes-suspension/36263-2003-w-h6-baja-springs-kyb-struts-done.html

yeah, the weird thing also with vin numbers, you have to use the vin number system from the year of the car. Even then, it isn't perfect. My wife's car is sometimes shown as an LL Bean and it is not.

pardon me for ducking in but, during a recent garage clean-out, I found my old sealed beam headlights from a '78 Honda Civic. I'm gonna check them with an ohmmeter but they were working when I replaced them with brighter Cibie units. They say Stanley on them, I'll look for other info if anyone thinks they could use them. I just dunno if they would be important for someone doing restorations w'ever. not looking for any profit, local pickup would be easiest (DFW area). I might find a safe way to ship them if you pay.

what year did the 4EAT get that steel 'sleeve' the clutches ride in, in place of aluminum? maybe after 97 or 98 or so but ????, could be you need to replace some parts with the upgraded steel type. someone will know

awesome by ASSOCIATION!

+1 on not buying any used high-performance engine. Especially from a 'relatively' inexpensive sporty car - easy to imagine they were abused by a youngster before they were wrecked. He should try to get the car or engine to you - that's a very kind offer.

I can't help with your specific questions, but just offering that a rebuilt shortblock from CCR engines in Colorado might be a way to go if the heads/valves seem OK. Especially if he and you can DIY it. good luck

As for the camber, just scribe across the cam bolt flange and the strut at the 12 O clock position. It'll be close when you reinstall if you realign them. Also, you can find DIY instructions for 'home' alignments. Haven't done it, but looks promising.

almost certainly a bad alternator.

I almost posted this same thought. It would be interesting in terms of diagnosis. And, if the boots are in good shape, the majority of pressure/wear should be opposite on all the races. The axle has the potential to last a long time. When they rebuild axles, even if they use the $100,000 machine to cut down through the pits/wear properly, there's no case hardening after treatment. You could consider EMPI or maybe Raxles.com - if available to you. But the consensus on most of the forums is to stick with your own axles if possible. (no problems with EMPI on my wife's 03 H6 OBW - so far)

******Coolant bubbles in rad while engine heats ups, water vapor in exhaust.****** likely HGs. There is a chemical test to confirm combustion gasses in coolant, from the auto parts store. Also, one of the 4 plugs MAY look different from the other 3 if you have coolant out the tailpipe. I think coolant is bad for O2 sensors and cats so, try to get this fixed soon.

(I'm guessing you mean legacy 2.2 ?) Make sure to torque the axle with the wheel OFF the ground. I used a giant screwdriver in the rotor vents - rotated around to the caliper to 'buck-up' the axle while torquing. probably work OK with someone standing on the brake pedal. I suppose there's no reason to suspect you're getting the wrong part? (wrong length?)

Dealerships are pretty good about getting money from you so, if they didn't list it, I doubt they installed it. Sure, could have been an oversight and it was left off the receipt. And, is there a dealership somewhere that does install it across all years? certainly possible. But, info about 'all soobs get it' or 'Subaru's new OEM coolant already has it mixed in' are all speculative in my opinion. maybe someone else knows more about this.

based on the info - probably never know. Did the work order/receipt show use of conditioner or just coolant? Any work/maintenance/wrecks just before the smell happened? Was the smell present only the one time or ongoing? Was there dripping under the car? where? Was there any wet areas in the engine compartment? Any unusual temperature readings or conditions when the smell occured?

might be an opportunity here for a lightweight flywheel along with a new clutch. But I suppose you could have a leak or bad cylinder in the clutch system.

while we did have 'class time', for me, it was 95% fun 5% stuff i didn't already know. I think they just have the class time so they can 'say' it's a class(I THINK, if it's considered a 'class' most insurance policies are OK with it, but I'm not sure....). I did get the feeling 2-3 people in each class (I've gone twice) actually learned stuff they weren't remotely familiar with so, probably good for them. My right foot ached at the end of the day from pressing the accelerator - I rolled in with a full tank - burned 3/4 of it. It was a LOT of fun. Can't afford to go regularly, burns up tires and brakes pretty fast. I've also done an AutoX event (http://www.subaruchallenge.com/ cost $35 and got a t-shirt and other goodies, but probably only 4 minutes of track time) - but the HPDE was more fun for the money.

Hmmm...maybe try squirting some EtherStart type stuff in the intake and see if it fires at all. If not, then it could be a timing belt or igniter or crank angle sensor or......... CEL on? what codes are stored?

dunno if this can happen on a '99; http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/110-gen-2-2000-2004/41182-symptoms-fuel-pump-o-ring-problem.html

one time clunk? repetitive sound? does it follow with the speed of the car or the rpms of the engine? Change with the gears?

lol! the road course CLASS cost $210 - duh!

you might like this thread; http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/104-gen-4-2010-present/36967-3-carseats-ob.html

seems very thorough. unrelated but, if the brake and PS fluids are old, maybe flush/change them. particularly brake fluid - it absorbs moisture. Is the oil pan dented? If so, double check the oil pick-up tubed for cracks/bends.

most fun $210 I ever spent that was car-related, HPDE;

color sounds good, and most important - the same across them so, as you say, time to look for an issue common to all cylinders - the intake. Triple check the PCV valve/hoses and other breather hoses. But it's not looking good for the turbo.