1 Lucky Texan

if that car has a 7mm oil pump, consider installing a 9mm.

maybe swap the a/c relay with another?

2003 has a cable from the pedal to the throttle body, not 'drive by wire'.

electric impact would be a great addition to your 'kit' even if you only used it for buzzing off wheels. I regret waiting 30 years to own an impact. That said, it's no good for assembling anything - use a torque wrench when appropriate. Best approach for struts, gather your new parts, take the assemblies and new parts to a shop, pay them them do the swap. If you want to do the whole process, the impact will help a LOT with the spring compressors. Doing struts is what prompted me to buy mine. Yes, doable with hand tools, especially so if you aren't fighting rust. It just takes more effort and patience. I had to kinda 'rig' a 6mm wrench to fit through a socket held by vice grips to torque the top of the strut. Also, consider new strut mounts - at least remove them and spin on your finger - the bearings in the mounts on my WRX were bad at only 65K miles or so - but 10 years old. Be careful with the little studs on the mounts, very low torque.

hmmmm....a low miles viscous LSD rear diff from an Outback with the weather package, mated to a 5spd with the same final drive could be a good combo.

found this at wiki;

maybe an injector is leaking? just seems like it's behavior is pointing to rich idle. or, IACV is closed too much ?

pull the vacuum line on the fuel pressure regulator - see if it's wet

Tom, ever done an Intergem show or a G&M show hosted by Arlington or FT.Worth G&M clubs? just wondering if I may have seen you at a show.

have you scanned for pending codes? it may be necessary to get live data - ELM327 BT adapters are cheap, and a smartphone with the Torque free app can go a long way towards getting sensor data that 'might' point to a problem. check your brake lights in case there's something weird with the bulbs or corrosion in the sockets - the lights put a drain on the alternator when you hit the brake pedal.....? there a lot of possibles sources for intermittent problems. You might examine ground connections, battery terminals, monitor voltage from the alt. and compare when it's running good vs bad.... youm ight try a battery disconnect reset - if the car has the same symptoms after that, I doubt a:f -related sensors are bad. The ECU is forced to start and run the car using the factory initial settings until data is gathered from the sensors. Could be something more physical; dropped valve, vacuum leak, ...?.

maybe the big hose going from the idla air control valve to under the intake tubing is loose? maybe crank position sensor is getting intermittent?

pd likely means 'pending' - some DTCs won't set a CEL unless they have occurred more than once in some period of time. you may have a bad front sensor or bad wiring to it.

There are used Subarus that are as reliable as other used cars - ANY used car can have major problems. Maybe if you mention your budget, and ask about a Subaru-friendly repair shop near West Hamlin , in a new thread, someone could point you to a good mechanic. Then, go have a coupla conversations; 1. How much and what is the procedure for a pre-purchase inspection if I find an OB for sale? and 2. Do you have any customers that might be looking to sell their OB soon? The older a car is, the less important that brand's reputation is, and the more important the car's prior care and present condition become.

TB in car would be a 'holding back' or bucking/jerking feeling in the 'seat-of-the-pants'. if that Cardan/w'ever joint between the rack and the steering wheel is rusty, it can make 1 or 2 tight spots in the same place in the steering arc in both directions. I do also think many folks have had CV axles present similar issues. maybe especially if the problem seems to be side dependent? (the inside of a turn always stresses CV joints more due to ackerman angle geometry in the linkage)

It isn't clear if you feel binding in the 'car', or in the steering wheel. the little u-joint on the steering column can have a narrow arc of tightness. Spray it with some lube and try it.

+1 one on finding a soob-friendly shop - try to have a pre-purchase inspection done. interference engine. when was the last timing belt SYSTEM serviced and was it done properly? are all 4 tires identical? if not, RUN AWAY.

Throttle Position Sensors can have 'dead spots' in their range of travel - that can cause shifting problems. can you manually shift the trans smoothly?

seems like it would be a good idea to be as clean as possible, or install an aftermarket filter 'downstream'?

^^^^ good point see if spraying starting fluid will keep it running - then you'd know it's fuel starved

maybe the tube from the idle air control valve fell off the underside of the intake?

pretty sure there's a special tool - but maybe there's a work-around?

well, that quote is 2 things I guess. Inner front CV joint (DOJ or tripod joint) boots often split open and the joint can lose it's lubrication. Known for clunking or popping or other issues on it's way to failure. The front differential has it's own dipstick on the other side from the auto trans' stick. It also needs to be properly filled of course, but, it's drain plug is equipped with a magnet. If there is a reasonable fear the front diff is failing, that magnet may have excessively large particles or an excessive amount of metallic 'sludge' on it.

a steady stream of bubbles might indicate a leaky o-ring on the hose adapter atop the pump or a leak past a suction hose clamp. maybe observe as a helper turns the steering wheel. Very common failure, sometimes causes a whining noise and/or a 'notchy' or 'vibrating' feeling in the steering wheel. A rare bubble or 2 from the splash of the return line is OK. A different type of problem can be caused by a corroded Cardan/u-joint on the steering shaft. It connects the rack to the wheel's part of the column. IT can cause a 'hard' or 'stiff' position when turning the wheel - almost always at the same 'clock' positions in the wheel's perimeter.

It does seem like you could have 2-3 different problems. clunking could be bushings, definitely check the rear bushings on the front lower control arms. steering could be air in the power steering fluid, or maybe slipping belt or even separated craank pulley slipping? I don't think we have that power light but I'm not sure. You are checking trans fluid while idling right? some folks forget as it's the only fluid check like that.

maybe exmaine the diff's drain plug magnet for chunks or excessive 'sludge' ?