September 7, 200619 yr How bad is it to drive around with a rusted ball joint...? My car feels very slow..... For example, the RPM's in 4th gear go past 3k alot earlier than they do in my wrx.....Like 4th gear feels like 3rd gear in most other stick cars.... Is this just because of the awd and because the 2.2 L is not a powerful motor, or is it because there is something wrong with my gearing on the car? Thanks a lot guys....it just seems wierd to me that the car hits like 3500 rpms in 5th gear when it's only doing like 70-75MPH ...Timing maybe?
September 7, 200619 yr The RPM sound normal for the 2.2 Legacy. How bad is the rust, you just have to think about the results of a total failure and that should guide your maintenance.
September 7, 200619 yr How bad is it to drive around with a rusted ball joint...? My car feels very slow..... For example, the RPM's in 4th gear go past 3k alot earlier than they do in my wrx.....Like 4th gear feels like 3rd gear in most other stick cars.... Is this just because of the awd and because the 2.2 L is not a powerful motor, or is it because there is something wrong with my gearing on the car? Thanks a lot guys....it just seems wierd to me that the car hits like 3500 rpms in 5th gear when it's only doing like 70-75MPH ...Timing maybe? very very bad. The ball joint pops all sorts of unwanted excitment can happen, not forgetting that entire death thing. BJ give lots of hints they are going bad. you have your hint. If the ball joint snaps, there is no upper control arm. At the very least the car sits funny and scrapes the road. At the very worst you loose control of the car and hit somone and or something. There is also all the other damage that can happen to the car body, chassis, and other assorted parts. nipper
September 7, 200619 yr I've wondered about the revs too. My very basic Brighton has no tach but it does seem pull a lot of revs at 100 km/hr in 5th gear. My Loyale 5 spd. pulled about 3100 at 100 km/hr which seems high to me. I don't think taller gearing is available for either of them. The power loss might be due to a partially clogged fuel filter. My '95 Legacy was pretty gutless until I changed it out. I runs much better now that it's not half starved. HTH.
September 7, 200619 yr Beofre you change gears, look at the torque band and see what rpm it comes in. If you go too far out of that range, the car may have problems with throttle response, hills, and passing at highway speeds. Everything in engineering is a tradeoff, keep that in mind. nipper
September 7, 200619 yr how do you know that the ball joints are rusted? they are hard to visually inspect. most of what you see is a castle nut and rubber boot right? but yeah, replace any ball joint if any bad signs. nipper forgot to mention "roll over" as more failed ball joint fun.
September 7, 200619 yr Hmm. At ~80 mph on my car with 4.11 final drive, the RPM's are about 3300. As I recall, most of the 95 and up base Legacy's have 4.11 final drive.
September 7, 200619 yr Author OKay I figured the RPM's were normal, but I am used to my WRX so this car obviously feels ungodly slow compared to that. Might do new plugs/plugwires/fuel filter/air filter for a bit better power.... As for the ball joint, It's pretty badly rusted and has some play....BUT i am getting it replaced on Saturday, and then getting an aligment promptly following. I have been highway driving the car to work every day, and will do the same tomorrow, but after that it is going straight in for the BJ and alignment as well as a tire swap because the tires I have on now are shot...It came with an extra set though so thank God I dont have to spend money on that too! As always the help is much appreciated. I have learned so much about this car in the six weeks I have had it! If anyone ever needs WRX advice, I know a ton so don't hesitate to ask.- Dan
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