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Comments
I wonder what would happen if you stop adding coolant, i.e. let it go a little below the MIN mark. I think what's leaking is what keeps getting added.
Engines siezed? Wow, was it under warranty I hope?
The '99 Outback still used the Phase I DOHC engine. The only issue with those was the front seals would leak once in a while, usually at pretty high mileage, like 90k or so.
What is generally recommended is to have the seals replaced when you do the timing belt, since it's just a couple of extra bucks, and they are working in the same area anyway.
Besides that, no major issues. That engine had been out in roughly the same form since 1997, so that was the 3rd model year and those are generally reliable.
-juice
I got new set of tires 205/55/16 G-Force kdws on my 00 Legacy (replaced the 225/50/16 Avid V4). The Big O tire shop recommended 40psi on the tires (that's the max rating). Which one should I follow Big O's 40psi or the manual's 32/30 psi?
Thanks in advance.
I use 33 psi. On my Miata, though, that's too rough (the CD skips), it's only got 28 psi in those tires.
-juice
Also, as it started getting colder each night, I started to notice more and more a piston slap when I start the car in the morning. I hope that this is normal.
Car just turned 60K, getting ready for the 60K service. If anybody can let me know how much I can expect to pay, I'd appreciate it. (I'm in Colorado, so if anybody knows fairly inexpensive place, let me know.)
Oh, almost forgot, on of the bulbs on the A/C control panel burned out all of the sudden, never happend on any other cars I've owned. I wonder if it cost a lot to replace it.
Thanks...
Remind us about the roof, how was it damaged again?
I've heard of 60k service costing $400-600, depending on how much they do. Generally getting the gear oils changed and all that gets it up to the higher price point.
The bulbs are cheap, it's the labor that is costly. Unfortunately, I just installed a 6CD radio in our Legacy and it's not exactly easy to access. The Forester and Impreza are much easier.
-juice
As far as bulbs, the one that burned up is where I switch from different levels, i.e face, legs, windshield....I wonder if it's covered by warranty, I hope so, even though it doesn't really bother me all that much.
Jim
Ask the dealer for an itemized list of things they do for the 60K. A good number of them are recommended and go above and beyond the minimum in your owner's manual. Doing some of the easy stuff (ie. oil change, inspect tire pressures) you can reduce the list.
Ken
-mike
That's actually the first Subaru moonroof I've known to fail.
-juice
My wife had those same bulbs replace on her OB. I think labor was 45 minutes, bulbs about $12. The 4,5 and 6 lights are out on the radio as well. They said they would have to "send it out" for repair. She declined. :-)
-Dennis
Wouldn't it be better for folks in New England and NY/NJ if we didn't have to deal with SDC and SNE?
I have a good mind to call the District Service Operations Manager of SDC. I'm sure Patti would tell me not to though. :-) Hope she's recovering well.
Anyway, I ordered parts from a Subaru Dealer in the UK after I ordered parts from my dealer. Guess which ones arrived first?
Hello? Is this thing on?
-Dennis
-Dennis
My guess is if you can get access to the bulb, it's cake to swap it out. The trick is taking the center console apart to gain access. I swapped radios on our Legacy and it took a couple of hours or so of work (slow paced, very careful). You could do a Forester in minutes, though.
-juice
-juice
Ken
I am new to the board. I bought a used 96 Ouback w/ 62K in Feb 01. I now have approx. 92K. For the most part, I have been satisfied w/ the vehicle. However, I have had a few problems and would be interested in some of your thoughts.
- Noisy Brakes - ALWAYS squeal - have never had them looked at - so who knows what the problem/solution may be.
- Oil leak @ 70K - leak around oil pump was spewing oil all over exhaust manifold. Smelly and expensive to fix
- Starter motor - died at 91K. Never lost a starter motor on any of my other vehicles
- HVAC lights - all the light bulbs (3, I think) in HVAC control panel have burned out - kinda weird.
- Gas mileage - average 20-22 mpg in town and 25-28 on the highway (using 93 octane per owners manual recommendations). A little disappointed in the city mileage.
Other than that - been a great vehicle. Perfect size for my life style and activities and completely unstoppable when the weather goes bad.
Any thoughts y'all would share concerning my problems would be appreicated . . .
Thanks,
Outbike
Cheers!
Paul
i posted several days ago w/ links to a picture of a control arm bushing that i thought was causing a front end noise, and i was going to get it replaced. the shop says the bushing was fine so they just replaced the bumpers on either side of the bracket. still have the noise with two new struts and the bushing bumpers. no idea what is causing it; it's only on washboard roads and also bumps while cornering. oh well.
Again, thanks for all your help.
I bought a 2001 Forester new and the rear wiper only makes one sweep every 6 seconds. I adjusted the ring on the stalk and it didn't make much difference. My dealer says this is normal speed, but I have been driving behind other Foresters in the rain and their rear wipers seem to go as fast as the front wipers.
Is my situation normal? Is there anything I can check myself?
Thanks,
Bob Studley
r.e.studley@att.net
paisan mentioned the HVAC bulbs burned out on some of his Subies, so that's not uncommon. It's a $1 part, but getting access can be tough, unless you've done it before.
That mileage is actually pretty good. Great, if you compare to whatever SUV alternatives were available at the time.
Greg: I've actually heard it was the front seals. The rule-of-thumb is to change the timing belt at 60k and then change the seals at the same time, since they're in the same location and all the labor is already paid for.
Another thought - at one of our chats, a couple of Subaru techs (with LOTS of experience) discussed the issue of synthetic oil. They said if you switch, to do it early. Dino oil forms a coating around the seals which help protect them, but switching to synthetic can break down that coating, and since it flows better, it's much more likely to leak.
Bob: I think they added the intermittent feature for 2001. My '98 has a single, fixed speed, so I can't help, sorry.
-juice
-juice
change climate control panel bulb in 95-99 Legacy .
HTH.
..Mike
..Mike
The rear sweeping once every 6 seconds sounds about right to me.
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
Even though I have not had any problems they suggest that I have the ECU. reprogrammed so I made an appointment for next week. I hope they do not screw anything up as this car runs real sweet.
Cheers Pat.
Ross
I was able to replace them in my identical '97 without removing the heater cable or the center console - saved at least an hour. Look for my post somewhere or get it from Paul (thanks, Paul!). Russ' pictures are good once you're looking at the heater w/ dash apart, tho...
IdahoDoug
Any ideas? would being cold exacerbate something that would not repeat later?
Thanks
I tried to gently lift out off the plastic cover that mates with the headliner to get a peek at the situation. The plastic did not budge and thought I might ask those who know before I break something.
Other than dripping and the accumulation of water in the switch assy the headliner got locally damp when it rained.
Thanks for the help!
I am glad you like your Passat; I also thought it was a nice car, drove it extensively, but liked the VDC better. Still do.
Mike
The rear drains on my Accords were accessable fron the trunk, after removing the side trim panel, in the case of the Accord the rear drain came out behind the rear bumper cover
I have not had my Gt wagon long enough for the problem to occur but I will do preventive maintenance to insure that it does not.
Cheers Pat.
Go to post #5970 (above maybe 8 posts) and ask Paul for the directions. I don't know when the post was - I post a bit here.
On the hesitation, this sounds a bit like a failing catalytic converter. The internal plates start failing and physically blocking the exhaust flow - leading to an immediate drop in power at higher speed/RPM. When you drop the throttle (ie to downshift), the plates can either fall away or spring back out of the airflow.
IdahoDoug
Cheers!
Paul
Edit: Had access to it here after all - and now, you should too. P.
Cheers!
Dave.
The manual transmission holds about 3.7 US quarts (the OWNER'S Manual is correct). I also have the SERVICE manual which is incorrect (at 4.2 US qts). The 9L requirement is ATF fluid for automatic transmissions.
Both my service and owner's manual state 75w90 for the diff oil. I did these changes a few weeks ago with Redline 75W90 Gear Oil in the rear diffy. Those fill/drain plugs are tight. See post #5906 et al.
Also, if you have a manual tranny, it shares oil with the front diffy (I used Redline 75W90NS in the tranny/front diffy.)
Jim
An automatic transmission has a total. capacity, and a drain/fill service fluid capacity. The smaller drain/fill service figure is because an automatic transmission has places within itself that hold fluid which doesn't drain to the pan upon shutdown (torque converter, oil galleries, etc). So, the pan is all that is required to be drained for service/refill.
The reason for this is quite simple. The fluid doesn't generally "wear out", but its additive package (detergents, anti-foaming, etc) do. When you refresh the 1/3 of the fluid, you also provide fresh additives which are deemed adequate by the manufacturer to continue maintaining the tranny's internals.
There are complete flushes available from Jiffy Lube and the like, which do change nearly 100% of the fluid. While this is nice, I personally think it's overkill unless the tranny's been horribly mistreated/overheated, or there's been some contamination (such as submersion in water). Hope this helps.
On the diffs, go ahead and use the 75/90, which is available from Mobil 1 widely as well as the Redline mentioned above.
IdahoDoug
I don't believe when you say the VW SLOmotion is so superior, if that were the case you wouldn't have bought the Subie in the first place. You chose the Subaru H6, noone forced you.
What "meltdown", your Subie never broke down in the first place, you admitted as much.
Dear Edmunds Hosts: can we delete that post? It's just bashing Subaru, bashing the members here that try to help folks out. The criticism is neither constructive nor polite, nor is it even truthful (I just pointed out 2 examples).
Enough is enough.
-juice
bedsond: first of all, 186k miles? Sweet!
OK, what I would do next is a throttle body cleaning service. Our 626's fuel injection got clogged up and it started hesitating. It felt like new after the service, worth every penny.
-juice
Sprayed some lithium grease on the sway bar bushings, too. Visual inspection of the suspension confirmed everything looks good.
Brakes look great. Still on my original pads with 48k miles, and they barely seem used. Top it off, they are quiet as always, maybe I'm lucky but they look like they'll outlast the Subie.
Well, maybe not if I get to 186k!
-juice
If you are able to drain 4L from a 9L system then after two changes you will have put in 8L of ATF and 30% of the old fluid will remain in the system.
After three changes you will have put in 12L of ATF and 17% of the old fluid will remain.
After four changes you will have put in 16L of ATF and 9.5% of the old fluid will remain.
The cost of wasted ATF will be a lot less than the cost of a flush at a shop (unless you're using synthetic, perhaps).
-mike