August 21, 20169 yr Interesting story on the car... it was bought new on the last day of 1996 by my parents back when I was in high school. I got my drivers license in this car in 1997. I took it on a camping trip for spring break my first year of college. 20 years later... it needs some transmission work, the power steering is leaking but the car is overall solid. Two best parts. I paid $1 for the car, and its a 1 owner car since my parents bought it new so it only has 097084 miles on it!! Yes 5 digit mileage! It has the super rare high rise center console too... the lid is cracked, but I can glue it. Job 1... make the car reliable. So it gets new accessory belts first as they are cracked and making noise. Job 2... figure out if the existing 4EAT can be salvaged or if its better off just changing it.... also look at rear hatch harness as it has issues with 3rd brake light and power hatch lock. Job 3... oil seals and timing kit as its leaks everywhere after 20 years. Job 4... mods!! LIFT KIT!!! Edited August 21, 20169 yr by Flowmastered87GL
August 21, 20169 yr That's a great story. Next year will be your 20th anniversary owning it "in the family". You should definitely try to get it ready for WCSS as a sort of celebration.
August 21, 20169 yr Author That's a great story. Next year will be your 20th anniversary owning it "in the family". You should definitely try to get it ready for WCSS as a sort of celebration. I bring the Baja to WCSS though... and I can't convince my wife to come to the show.
September 7, 20169 yr Author Bought most of my lift kit... I sourced the struts, rear trailing arm brackets, and rear sway bar and brackets from a 1997 Outback (along with 2 full size spares for my future tire size) for $200 (and that included a bunch of other parts that friends harvested such as the carpet, HVAC, control arms, knuckles, etc...) I still need to get the rear camber bolts and strut top spacers front and rear. Pics once its lifted... or when we reseal the engine / swap the tranny... whichever happens first.
September 27, 20169 yr Author Woo hoo, got my rear camber bolts (Whiteline) and my new front sway bar end links (Kartboy) Both look really good. Especially the end links... they are super beefy! Pics of the car once its lifted... which will be after I get the strut top spacers as that is the last piece of the puzzle.
October 30, 20169 yr Author Passed emissions, took it to get the transmission fluid changed and additive added. Torque bind is already decreasing. Hopefully it goes away entirely. Here is how it looks today. Baja turbo wheels and NASIOC plate frames are the only mods on it right now . Edited October 30, 20169 yr by Flowmastered87GL
November 5, 20169 yr Author Emergency oil change today. I had been talking to my parents on the phone and I asked them about the oil change sticker that said NEXT change due at 92356 miles on 4/7/14. Soooo the oil in the car was two months shy of being three years old! The car currently has 97,800ish miles on it... so it means its around 8444 miles. Needless to say I bought oil immediately and did a change today. Hopefully this helps the MPG a bit... my last tank was 23.1 MPG. I plan to do fuel filter and injector cleaner once I get over to a dealer. The good news is I never saw an oil light, the oil was still within the normal range on the dipstick and I have not had any funny noises. So hopefully I got it changed quick enough. I plan to change this current oil right at 100K so that I can hopefully clean some of the junk out with a shorter change interval. Edited November 5, 20169 yr by Flowmastered87GL
November 27, 20169 yr Author Lifted! It is running 1997 Legacy Outback struts, rear trailing arm mounts, rear sway bar and mounts, 3/8" Anderson Design and Fabrication strut top spacers front and rear, and Kartboy STi rear end links up front (which we had to mod a bit to fit) Edited November 27, 20169 yr by Flowmastered87GL
December 3, 20169 yr Author Winter mode picture. Running studded 205/70R15 Hankook I-Pikes. 10.5 inches of clearance at the rear diff now! Edited December 3, 20169 yr by Flowmastered87GL
January 22, 20179 yr Author Got some toys for the car for Christmas. Pictures coming after they are installed. Car will be getting new Kenwood speakers to replace the 21 year old paper units. A roof rack basket A trailer hitch with shackle recovery point
March 7, 20179 yr Author Pretty sure the car is going to get a Primitive Racing skid plate thrown on and I am going to run this event with "Hondasucks"
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