sifu Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 After a little advice and inspiration from the board, I decided to go ahead with my project. Here are the details: Working with a guy named Terry F. out of PHX. AZ We took to the yards Saturday AM. Here is what we found: 98 Forester L. Unknown miles. Turns out that the backs are OEM and fairly shot, fronts were replaced, seem ok. 4 struts and springs x $ 40+tax = $175. It was a gamble... I didn't take before photos. Here is a good idea of what I'm starting with: THE BUILD We worked through some of the details already mentioned on the board. For clarity here are the issues with the swap we had to address: 1. Top hats were not compatible. Had to swap back my OBS top hats. The swap back was a nightmare. These are OBS vs. Forester Top hats. Wonder how much height opportunity I'm losing by keeping the OBS hats? Anyone know about top hat spacers? the top hat work required one of many additional trips to Autozone to pick up some spring compressor clamps. Required a $60 deposit. No biggie. 2. Front struts brake line bracket had to be cut to remove old struts, and cut again to fit new struts on. Rear brake lines were bled. 5 bucks in brake fluid. No biggie. 3. added 2x 1,27 cm washers on top of each rear top hat to fix rattle bump. Took about 1/2 hour to get all four filed with dremel. More info http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=109375&page=3 We went through here to pop the spacers on. Because of course, discovered the rattling after everything was already done. Anyway, prevented a good amount disassembling and saved some time. Here is the final product. Still need to pick up a trailing arm bracket to recenter the rear wheels. I'm a little disappointed with the swap, because looking at it next day, I just didn't get the lift I expected. I'm thinking that now that I've got the springs I might just buy some new struts. Any other ideas on how to perk up the ride? Keep in mind that the subaru I really want to emulate is here: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=109375&page=8 Anyone have some ideas on what kind of A/T tires I can still get away with? If I don't need to do anything more, I won't. Finally, big credit goes out to my man Terry F. So far the job has been a nightmare, but nothing involving him. The guy gave me 12 hours (yes, this took ALL DAY) of his time and only took $160. Price recap: Dremel tool-$22 Wrench (replacement tool)-$15 Washers-$2 Brake fluid-$5 Struts + springs- $175 Terry (Mechanic)-$160 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
987687 Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 It looks pretty good to me! Those tires look a little silly though, with a bigger tire it'll look better and get you a bit more lift. You need longer trailing arms, not just brackets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bratman18 Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 It looks pretty good to me! Those tires look a little silly though, with a bigger tire it'll look better and get you a bit more lift.You need longer trailing arms, not just brackets. No Chris, just the brackets are different. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
987687 Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 No Chris, just the brackets are different. For some reason I had it in my mind that the trailing arms were different, because when I bent one in my legacy someone told me one out of an outback wouldn't work.... hrmmm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
97preza Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 this is the swap i am looking to do on my 97 OBS. i have been researching quite a bit just so dont run into any problems during the swap. but i am wondering if i should do the outback or the forester swap. i see you did the forester swap, how does it drive/handle?? this is my daily driver so i need it to handle half way decent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloyale Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 It looks pretty good to me! Those tires look a little silly though, with a bigger tire it'll look better and get you a bit more lift.You need longer trailing arms, not just brackets. this isn't correct. Only difference is in the brackets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
987687 Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 this isn't correct. Only difference is in the brackets. Yea, sorry. Read above, I got incorrect information at one point (which ended up costing me), and now I've gone and spread it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impoutback 97 Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 (edited) a 98 legacy outback limited has the brackets/trailing arms your looking for (not sure on the other models) allong with the body lift and beefier sway bars if its your daily driver. You can go with a strut/tophat spacer to give it more wheelwell/lift. then go with a 205/75R15 if you want it to allign straight again (im running 215/75R15 and its really close to the strut) with the body lift and tophat spacers. Edited October 25, 2011 by impoutback 97 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sifu Posted October 25, 2011 Author Share Posted October 25, 2011 so far so good. I've driven it about 50 miles and it rides and handles just as well as stock. The true test will be with the new tires. Speaking of which: I could really use some advice on these tires: http://www.discountedwheelwarehouse.com/Discount_Tires.cfm?pID=2862&pn=DLP-290110241 $88 a tire and a $40 discount with all four. Good deal? based off the pictures, think my car can handle 205 75 15? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sifu Posted October 25, 2011 Author Share Posted October 25, 2011 (edited) Thanks impoutback, that's the advice I was looking for. Top hat spacers I saw around here were fairly expensive ($300?) And that's a bit more than I want to spend in addition to my lift. Any ideas on cheaper alternatives? And besides, while the forester struts may not be the ultra lift I was expecting, I'm still happy with it if I can fit the tires. Speaking of which- Yes, Car rides and handles well with the lift, the true test will be with the new tires. Will absolutely keep you updated. Here are the tires I'm thinking of putting on. http://www.discountedwheelwarehouse.com/Discount_Tires.cfm?pID=2862&pn=DLP-290110241 I'm a noob, and would hate to order tires that don't work, so just want to double check the ones I mentioned above. Edited October 25, 2011 by sifu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impoutback 97 Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 (edited) I would go with the 205/70R15 unless your willing to trim your fenders and lose the front stock mudflaps. General grabber makes a nice tire also, you can get them at sears. How much more lift are you thinking of going with the spacers? Ive got 2 half inch spacers stacked on all 4 corners in my OBS, plus the 3.5 inches from the strut swap/body lift. I could make you a set of spacers for less than $300, PM me and we'll talk Edited October 25, 2011 by impoutback 97 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sifu Posted November 9, 2011 Author Share Posted November 9, 2011 The Update: Trailing arm brackets My guy Terry and I spent an afternoon replacing the rear arm trailing brackets. More info here- http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=126884&page=2 Even with an air compressor we had to take it down to Midas to get the bolts loose. Talk about frustrating. But.. It would have been more frustrating to walk away for the day with nothing done. When finished I thought it would push the rear tire back. Not so. Not at all. But it did seem to give the subaru a bit more lift in the back, so I guess the work was worth it. (50 labor, 20 for the parts). In retrospect, I probably wouldn't have opted to do this independently. It just didn't seem to do much. If you're planning on your lift, it would be worthwhile to plan this into the same day strut swap to save time and money. Tires Much more recently I ordered up some 215 70 15 Yokohama Geolanders from Fletchers Auto. Did a ton of searching for the best price on an A/T that will fit this lift, and settled on a price of around $470 out the door with 2 oil changes, an alignment and the road hazard protection. The Pictures: I had discount tire test fit (for free) the 205 & 215 75 15s. It was not even close to fitting. As it was I had to spend $30 for the guys at Fletchers to trim the back fenders. The result: Drives well. The front tires rub when making a sharper U-turn...I think this is manageable. (I wonder how some of the other guys got the 215 75 15s??!) The future: I'd still like more lift.. It looks a little too domestic for my hopes. Fabricated Spacer advice, anyone? And since I purchased unknown forester struts at the junk yard, I bet I can get a bit more lift with new struts. Sadly, the cost keeps adding up....Why should I even act suprised? And, I'd also like to do some body work. As you can see, I slopped on a new fender for $60 shipped in a couple hours. It's all a learning experience. The Summary: Cost of lift Struts + springs- $175 Terry (Mechanic)-$235 Tires-$470 Total: $880 ----- Wished the money would have gone further. There is still a lot of work to be done. My advice would be to plan carefully, and do more research (it seems). A lot of guys have posted what I had to learn the hard way. Anyway, will update with any major improvements! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ioku Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 The way guys fit bigger tires is you gotta cut more, go to harbor freight pick up one of there $20 grinders and cut up your fenders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdventureSubaru Posted November 11, 2011 Share Posted November 11, 2011 Going a very similar direction with my impreza soon. Could you post up a picture of the spring/tire clearance? As in how much space there is before the tire would rub the bottom of the spring? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sifu Posted November 20, 2011 Author Share Posted November 20, 2011 yeah, I can. I've got to say that I haven't had any problems with rubbing on strut, but like I mentioned, sharper turns are an issue. So far I'm about 1000 miles in. No issues. I'm planning on swapping the mentioned body components found on this link: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=104193&highlight=legacy+lift (REALLY WISH I HAD READ THIS POST FIRST INSTEAD OF LAST, and recommend anyone planning the lift to refer to this post) and putting on fresh outback struts plus top hat spacers to boot...it will be interesting to see how much more lift I can get. For the time/money invested so far, I might as well finish the job. I demand satisfaction! (Would really appreciate some insight on possible geometry problems or other unforeseen issues) Can anyone verify that I can put on outback struts on forester springs? (Just want to double check) Also- will there be any major issues with keeping used forester struts in front and new outback struts on back? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloyale Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 Here is what we found: 98 Forester L. Unknown miles. Turns out that the backs are OEM and fairly shot, fronts were replaced, seem ok. It's the 04+ forrester struts that are taller. Up til then, they are barely longer than IMP struts, and SHORTER than 96-99 Leg. Outback struts. Get a new set of rears for a 99 Outback. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sifu Posted November 22, 2011 Author Share Posted November 22, 2011 When you say rears, do you mean spring and strut? If possible, I'd rather just buy the strut to save money. I see some gabriel struts on ebay. Are they any good? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smackvt Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 Seams that dealer struts are now cheeper by far than my fave kyb gr2 so I would go there and I have forester springs on my 90 leg they will push it up a bit taller. Notshure what year strut / spring they r .....l👀king good Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sifu Posted November 26, 2011 Author Share Posted November 26, 2011 I've seen some great deals on ebay for new struts, just not for my make. I'd suggest anyone looking to check out there, and have a little patience. As for an update on the quality of the ride- Took my 2 brothers across town for thanksgiving. Back tires seemed to be making a dull creak noise on just about any bump. Can't be sure if it's the tires hitting the sruts tops or just that the back struts and/or silencing cork needs to be replaced. Painting car this weekend. Will have updated pictures with new paint soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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