I have my pickings off a 96' outback  for parts and my body on my 1990 legacy LS wagon is a little rough in some spots and just curious if anyone has ever done this or could give me advice or anything will help.

 

List of parts I want to swap off the outback :

hood(with scoop)

Grill

front bumper

rear bumper

 

             thanks

None of them will work. Totally different body style.

If you like the newer body style better than yours, you can pick one up for next to nothing. I paid $850 for mine. It needed a rear cross member (not too hard, but takes a day if everything is rusted) which is VERY common failure point. Only cost $18 at Pull-A-Part. Exterior has some typical rot, interior was very good, and everything worked from AC to power locks, windows, etc. I think I have about $300 into it total (upgraded to 130 amp alternator retrofitted from a Tribecca, better headlight bulbs, timing belt, battery, rear OB sway bar, and 4 new valve stems). If I really wanted, I could do a full Outback treatment i.e. front & rear bumper, hood, heated seats, rims, etc. for a couple hundred and still have the simpler car with the ej22 but with upgraded exterior. Or just get an Outback and call it a day, then sell yours to offset the price.

Edited April 11, 201411 yr by Bushwick

ok thanks for the advice i was just curious cause it would be completely free and sorry if this sounds repetitive but what about of front seats without having to mess with the mounting bracets? 

No idea about the seats. I'd suggest getting a measuring tape and measuring the floor pan bolt holes while noting the contour of the bracket ends, AND also measure the bolt hole locations on the actual seats where they mount to the actual track. You might get lucky and might be able to swap just the seat itself i.e. keeping your seat tracks and getting the newer seats to mount to your tracks. If you have a drill or small welder, you can definitely make just about anything work.

Front seats should swap. You may have to swap the seat belt buckle on the seats though.

 

The rear seats may also swap if its wagon > wagon, or sedan > sedan.

While the body stuff wont swap over to your car, MANY of the mechanical components - struts, engine stuff, CVs, braking etc. will. If you have free access to parts, might be a good time to stash some spare parts for the "just in case"

 

Depending on the nature of your access to the car, you may want to keep some good parts to pass on to other members/subaru owners to help them keep their cars going. The less that ends up going to scrap the better.

 

If the 96 has the taller outback struts, you can bolt them on your car for a small suspension lift.

i was thinking the same thing for suspension

seats should be a go as long as you swap the buckle end of the seatbelt - I plan on doing kind of the opposite - pulling the nicer seats out of my rusty 90 LS wagon and putting them into my 95 L wagon...was told to swap out the buckle end so that everything works properly - there are minor differences in the buckles that could cause problems if they dont match.

 

if the outback struts/springs are in good condition, grab them (the whole assemblies) - cheap lift! just remember what year/model they came from when it comes time to replace the actual struts. I did it with Forester struts on my 95 & am loving it!

I've seen a 90 Lego front clip (hood,fenders,bumper) on a 95+ body before.........Bit of a weird gab at the door edge, but otherwise it looked pretty good......I really had to double take on it.

 

So......Yeah.....anythings possible.

seats should be a go as long as you swap the buckle end of the seatbelt - I plan on doing kind of the opposite - pulling the nicer seats out of my rusty 90 LS wagon and putting them into my 95 L wagon...was told to swap out the buckle end so that everything works properly - there are minor differences in the buckles that could cause problems if they dont match.

 

You'll need to get rid of the the 90s' Auto Seatbelt lap belt setup on the rails......and install the 95 buckle onto them.

You'll need to get rid of the the 90s' Auto Seatbelt lap belt setup on the rails......and install the 95 buckle onto them.

 

yup. just waiting for better weather (got cold & damp up here again) to do the swap. Looking forward to a more comfortable seat again - the 95 L seats are pretty much shot - leg bolsters all broken down, cushion all flattened out - its like sitting on a piece of plywood.