Tribeca Care & Maintenance

ateixeira

True - gotta consider the miles as well. I do 9k/year on the Forester, 6k/year on the Miata.

So in 2 years the Miata only sees 12k miles, and wipers last about that long.

occking

I live in New England & travel to Montreal every month. Have had no problems at all with standard equip blades. I did need to replace them at 30k as they were not cleaning well, but, otherwise, no problem.

xwesx

9k/year. Man, that is nice. I dropped off my '07 Outback on Saturday to try and sell it on consignment; it had 8527 miles on it. I purchased it 1/7/07...

mecantsee

ateixeira

Well, I'm dividing the mileage between 2 cars, 15k total. My wife has her own car, 3 total in the fleet.

texan5

I've allready posted it in the engine thread, but I think this deserves to be a separate topic.

Below are the pictures of the AC compressor on my Tribeca. As you can see the assembly bolts on the AC unit have rust on them. I think this would lead to the eventual failure of the unit.

http://picasaweb.google.com/palpatov/ACRust?authkey=3etmLST3cKo

From talking to the dealer all of the B9s in stock had rusted AC accembly bolts.

I am interested in hearing from other tribeca owners about the status of their AC compressor units. Please chime in with the year of your vehicle.

Phillip

paisan

I doubt they would cause a problem. How would they cause the unit to fail? Almost every single bolt on a car is rusted from exposure to the elements. It's just surface rust on there.

-mike

texan5

---It's just surface rust on there.

Time for a chemistry lesson: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rust

Quote: "... rust is permeable to air and water, allowing the metal to continue to corrode - internally - even after a surface layer of rust has formed. Given sufficient hydration, the iron mass can eventually convert entirely to rust and disintegrate."

----Almost every single bolt on a car is rusted from exposure to the elements----

Again not true. You better have something to back this up, cause this has not being a case with allmost every new car manufactured in the last 10 years. IMHO, there is no place for rust in an engine bay, unless you drive a Ford Pinto. Look up stainless steel sometimes, Mike. Google it.

BTW, the dealership agrees that this is not right. The bolts on the power steering unit and alternator are new looking and shiny.

Would Tribeca owners chime it, please. The bolts are easy to inspect, all you need to do to see them is lift the plastic engine cover -- the AC compressor is the rightmost of the accessory units on top of the engine.

texan

paisan

Stainless steel is not used on cars in general. I've worked on 100s and 100s of cars and guess what? Most of the bolts have surface rust.

I'll agree it's odd to see them rusty like that but would they lead to failure? Highly doubtful. As I said almost every bolt on most of the subies I've worked on have surface rust on the bolts.

Go ahead whine to your dealer, guess what? When you come in with a REAL problem then they'll brush you off as the one who cries wolf...

-mike

texan5

Mikey, baby. I'd have to ask for a proof of ID in order to continue. You see, I don't serve alcohol to minors, neither do I debate with them. Besides, you lost your credibility with your first post.

So, anyone else besides our 15 year old "expert" here? Hard to believe I am the only Tribeca owner out here that looks under the hood.

paisan

Hmm, I run a subaru modification shop for years and I'm a Host on here, so obviously I'm not 15, nor am I new to the Subaru community. I do however live in the Northeast and it appears that you are from Texas, which may be the reason for our different POV. Here in the Northeast any exposed bolts in or out of the engine bay get rusted, generally because we drive through salt-water baths for 4 months a years with our cars.

Please don't belittle me by calling me a 15 year old, without first doing a little research on the other poster's POV...

-mike

caliberchic

Please keep to the topic and refrain from negativity towards fellow posters. It's fine to have a differing opinion and to debate it in a mature manner.

ateixeira

mike's mechcanical knowledge of all things Subaru is well documented here on Edmunds, if you read up on all the problems threads.

I've met him in person and can vouch for his Subie knowledge. Plus he's owned several old school Subies, including an XT6 and an SVX.

He's uniquely qualified to comment on the longevity of a tad of rust on those bolts.

In another thread I called it the same thing, surface rust, though I agree it just plain look ugly.

You could probably clean it up with a wire brush and spray some primer/sealer on it but it's not worth the trouble, unless the looks bother you.

cptplt

30K on our Tribeca in the midwest and no problems with the wipers

kmartin

I live in the hot AZ desert which is very hard on rubber and plastic items in the summer. My wipers were starting to warp in one direction (the "at-rest" position) and streak badly in the rare rains we have had in the northwest Phoenix area this summer. After shopping around on the web I realized that no one was making wipers refills for the exact fit of the Tribeca -- I would have to replace the entire blade with an expensive Subaru brand blade. So all I did was remove each refill (rubber strip and metal support piece only) and reverse them into the same blade. They work just great for now, even though I realize this is a temporary solution. Saved me a lots of $$ for now :-)

-Karen in AZ-

ateixeira

You can buy refills in some places, i.e. only the thin rubber part.

There is regular width and narrow, the latter usually has an N in the size (example: 18N is 18 inches, narrow).

IIRC the Forester took N refills the first time. After that I changed the whole unit.

snowbelter

I have an Outback, but I assume the Subaru "3/36 Wear Warranty" is the same. That warranty covers wiper blades (and brake pads) for "3/36". Aren't you still under warranty?

P.S. I see from the weather reports in the newspaper that it has "cooled off" in Phoenix. Haven't seen a report above 100 degrees for a few days.

Martin

xwesx

Hmmm. There are several "wear" items that are only covered under a 12-month warranty - I believe the wiper blades fall into this category. I could easily be wrong, though - I have not looked at the warranty coverages in detail since January, and wiper blades were hardly high on my list!

snowbelter

This is from SOA's website: Wear Item Limited Warranty
Wear item coverage is 3 year or 36,000 miles, whichever comes first. Items covered are brake pad/shoe linings, clutch linings, and wiper blades.

I believe repairs and replaced parts are only warranted for 12/12000.

In my experience the dealer will only replace wipers blades that are torn, bent, and clearly non-functional.

Martin

mikejl

Subaruparts.com and other places sell refills for the Tribeca wipers. The cost is $4-$7. I think that is per pair. New complete blade assemblies are very pricey at 12-30 bucks each.

paisan

I just replaced the rear wiper on my 05 LGT Wagon, $15 at the dealer but hey, it's been reliable for 40k miles so who am I to complain.

-mike

flgirlaol

Please give me an update as to what I need to do as far as maintenence. I'm at 25,000 miles now.

Do you think it's necessary that I take it to Subaru? The dealer is so far away.

Thanks.

ateixeira

The next major service is due at 30,000 miles. I would just change the oil and then wait until you hit that mileage.

While under warranty, you may want to stick with the dealer, but you don't really have to.

flgirlaol

Thanks so much....I've been doing that but there is nothing I need to do for the tires? I'm taking a major roadtrip soon and hope they will be fine. There is definitely no rotations needed on these?

ateixeira

Well, I would rotate every 7500 miles, but if you're at 25k miles you're well past the due date for a tire rotation.

Check the tread. The fronts are probably more worn. If so, then yes, I'd rotate them ASAP.

theroyalmike

Hi I have just purchased a B9 TRIBECA 2007 the air conditioning is not working Turned on lowest setting no cold air at all ac light comes on fuse is ok. Any ideas thanks for any help.

caliberchic

It may just need re-charged, although it's a newer vehicle...hmm. The re-charge kits are very inexpensive. You could start with that and then try the internal compartments if that doesn't work. It could be the fan too, I had to replace that twice on a previous vehicle!

paisan

It's still under warranty, I'd just bring it to the dealer and let them deal with it. If you mess with it, you may wind up voiding your warranty on the AC system.

-mike

flgirlaol

I know this has been asked before....

How do I get a new update CD and how much does it cost? My salesperson told me that updates are via satallite and instant. I don't believe this at all!

ttentelh

click here for the updated DVD http://store.kenwoodusa.com/subaru

ttentelh

since you are in AZ and dont use them a lot you can put vaseline on the blades to keep the soft. Also they will last many years.

ttentelh

just let them dry, dont use them when they are still wet from the vaseline.

x5killer

I did the mod to the back of the nav unit to ebable input while driving which my wife is very happy about as it was very annoying that the passenger couldn't.

I waited to install my nav 3.0 update until after I did it as it was easier too see when the wire as grounded through the menu available in that version.

good thing to because when I tried to go into that menu by holding the top middle of the menu screen until the screen that asks you for the passsword or whatever pops up, the code I had didn't work.

I believe it was cluelesspa on the main tribeca thread that shared this mod including the code to access that menu on suba nav v 2.0 or 3. and ill have to tell him it didn't work or hopefully he sees this post and id like to get the right code.

also wondering where I could sell the old nav dvd though maybe I should make a copy of it as if ever needed to access that menu again id need to put the old dvd back in unless I get the right accesscode.

it comes with a west coast version and I've heard of ppl on the forums from opposite coasts splitting the coast or sselling to someone on the other side the other dvd for half.

I have no need for the est coast dvd so I should def sell that.

anyone need the subaru nav newest ver. 3 for the west coast?

flgirlaol

Hi there,

I'll split the cost with someone too....I need the EAST Coast version of Version 3 Please!

I'm so mad at my salesperson. What a dufus. He has worked for Subaru for ages and told me that I don't even need to buy updates, they appear automatically. What a fool I was! $238 for the update DVD!!!!! JEEZ! I'm going to tell him how I feel!

X5killer....I am intrigued by your mod on your car. We use this car on long road trips to the mountains and I hate that I can't use the nav while it's in motion when I'm the passenger or vice versa. Please give me more information. Would I need to find an expert do do this?

flgirlaol

When I replace Navigation CD can anyone tell me where the CD player is on the Tribeca for the Nav system?

ttentelh

under the drivers seat, make sure you remove the security door first and then open the cover

flgirlaol

Wow, thanks...I had no idea!

cptplt

so my low beam bulb burns out and I figure I'll change it and show my 16 year old who just started driving how easy it is to do these things - bad idea, he now thinks dad is an idiot. anyway whoever designed the Tribeca should commit hari kiri. I had to move the battery over a bit, then as I was doing everything pretty much by feel as you can't really see what you need to do I somehow managed to remove the retaining pin and couldn't get it back in. I called the dealer who said there was no trick to doing it and no the headlight assembly didn't need to come out and if it did it was a drop the bumper job. Dealer is 21 miles away and my subaru mechanic who was one of the few senior master tech certified ones in the US before he started his own shop is 4 miles away so off I go to my local guy. after about 45 mintues they decide the only way to fix the problem I created is to remove the headlight assembly so we can actually see what we are doing. the book says changing the headlight is 0.4 hours labor.an hour and half later everything is fixed (and you can access a little connector with 3 screws and a nut by removing the splash panel to get the headlight assembly out as long as you have a million bucks worth of tools or a 18 in screwdriver) ! whoever designed this car should be shot!
these guys used to have a sign up behind the counter- labor rate $80/hour, rate if you watch, 100; rate if you had worked on it first 120. they charged me the regular rate!!:-)

kmartin

I am due for my 60,000-mile service on my '06 Tribeca soon. It's at 58k+ now, and the car is doing GREAT!

I have already received a quote from a local Subaru dealer for $920+tax (ridiculous, I assume). I know about the special coolant and cooling conditioner needs Subaru requires. I also read about the .030 spark plug gap confusion on the part of some manufacturers/web sites.

Any comments, price estimates, other advice, etc., would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

-Karen in AZ-

yoyodk

I just dropped my car off today at the dealer in Bellevue, WA for the 60K service. Original quote was $895, but I changed the oil, air filter, and cabin air filter myself and that dropped the price down to $735. I also have a 10% off 30K-60K-90K service coupon which will drop it down further. I found other (non-Subaru) places that were cheaper or seemed to offer more services for a similar price, but my sister's recent experience with a non-Subaru mechanic scared me off.

john345

I just had the 60,000 mile service for my 2006 Tribeca done at the Subaru dealer here in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. Total cost $565.90, tax included. They did everything Subaru called for. The only thing I didn't go for was the special conditioners, which the service adviser said was optional. I didn't use them at the 30,000 mile service either. My Tribeca is running great - absolutely no trouble in over 61,000 miles!

ateixeira

Definitely on the high side. Ask them for a price on only the required work, nothing optional. Should be closer to $6-700.

Do you have a Chase Subaru card? If so use your Subaru Bucks to pay for it, and it could end up being free.