Buying 1995 Outback, 188K, what to look for

[lostinthe202]

Right on, hope it works out. I agree with Olnick about the tires, all four is a must especially with the automatics. The reason is that torque bind we were telling you to look out for. The AWD system is very picky about the four tires being within 1/4" or so in circumference with each other. Did you check for that by the way? Torque bind is the loss of power transmission to the rear wheels meaning no AWD. Check for it by turning the car all the way to the left or right and see if the idle will pull the car along a flat surface such as a parking lot. If you feel a stuttering or jerking, those are the signs of torque bind. It can sometimes be cured with a fluid flush but it could also mean the replacement of some pricey parts. If you do some searching on this board you'll come up with all kinds of info.

 

If you are even kind of wrench savvy, can read English, and have access to basic automotive tools, you're totally capable of doing the timing belt job yourself. In fact you could buy the necessary tools and still come out way ahead of any shop labor rate. The timing belt is responsible for rotating the cam shaft which opens and closes the valves at the proper time. If the timing belt breaks the cams stop rotating and the valves stop where there are in their cycle. But the crankshaft, which is connected to the wheels of the car, keeps spinning and the pistons keep moving up and down. Most, if not all, newer engines are called "interference" engines meaning that if the T-belt breaks the pistons will make contact with the valves (that have stopped moving) and likely break something. The motor in this car however is a non-interference engine meaning that the pistons and the valves can move independent of each other through a full cycle and not contact.

 

The point of this little digression is to illustrate that you could totally screw up this T-belt job and it won't damage anything, you'd just need to go back and reread the instructions and you'd be on the road.

 

Good luck!

 

Will-

Edited February 12, 2010 by lostinthe202
booboo

[bobaru]

I'm going to add a little to the torque bind. Like Lostinthe202 said tight circles left and right............Do it in reverse also ..in forward motion you might not feel it as you would in reverse

 

Good luck

[nathan.chase]

I got it today!

$1600 and she drives like a dream! 188K exactly, passed smog famously, now I am going to order a TB and Water pump kit from ebay and be on my merry way. She looks great and by the looks of the engine bay, mechanical, and interior, she has been well looked after.

 

 

thank you all for your help.

-nate

[lostinthe202]

Congrats!

 

Will-