Subaru Crew Problems & Solutions

ateixeira

Could be a million things, often it's just a loose gas cap or a misfire that OBDII has to register. A solid light is a warning, a blinking light means you should pull over and call a tow truck. So it's probably minor.

-juice

bhoover3

I've done a lot of repairs myself. Just nothing with brakes. Im just wondering what to expect with disconnecting the old MC and connecting the new one. Any tips/advice? Also, I said that I 'bled' the brakes the other day. Everything is rusty on my car so I took my time with the bleeder bolts by soaking them, heating, cooling, tapping, etc. I was able to loosen them all without problems, but I snapped one off by overtightening when I was closing it up. Im guessing this is going to be a problem. Am I right? Do I need to bleed after replacing the MC. Thanks Colin for your response!

ebony5

It is unusual(the service manager had only seen it a couple of times) but I had to replace the ABS pump on my '96 OBW. the loss of brake fluid steadily increased.

jfl

A master cylinder is basically a manifold to send brake fluid to the calipers/wheel cylinders (depending on whether it's a disc or drum brake).

You remove the resevior, disconnect the steel brake lines from the old mc, remove the old mc, install the new mc, reconnect the brake lines, re-attach the resevior, fill with brake fluid, bleed all the wheels (usually from farthest to nearest, i.e. RR, LR, RF, LF.). After EACH wheel, refill the resevior. It may take a while to get all the old fluid & air out of the lines.

Check for leaks, test the brakes and check for leaks again.

I've never rebuilt calipers or wheel cylinders, so you'll have to use juice's pix for help there.

HTH,

Jim

fibber2

Juice - think you are confusing your clutch with your brakes? But yes, similar in concept for the rear drum brakes, a bit different for the front disk calipers.

ateixeira

Humbling error on my part. All I heard was "master cylinder" and I went on a long rant... :sick:

My bad.

-juice

fibber2

One is pushed with your left foot, the other typically with your right!!! But we love you anyhow...

Steve

xwesx

Ridiculous. I agree. I have 197K on my '96 OBW and still on the original bearings. I'd have probably shot either the car or the dealer by now if it was mine eating bearings like that. :sick:

bhoover3

I now have brakes! As soon as I started to bleed after installing the new Master Cylinder, One of my rear brake lines sprung a leak! I figured this to be due to the new higher pressure from the MC. The brake line was easy to just bypass, now everything works great. Thank you all for your help.

-Bryan

bhoover3

LONG LIVE MY SUBIE!

drivelikejehu

Hey all. First time subaru owner. just bought my obs 3 days ago, and have been posting on the tr-rs forums. I notice a noise coming from the engine area at around 2000 to 3500 rpm that is like a rumbling/almost tapping noise. sounds like my eclipse did when it was getting low on oil. This noise doesnt happen as badly in 4th gear, and almost nonexistant in 5th gear. it's mainly first, second and third. I know Juice mentioned it was just the sound of the boxer, but i have a sinking feeling it's something different.

Also, my idle is not smooth. It seems to shudder a bit at stoplights, the tach dropping the slightest amount. Is this typical? I'm still in my break in period. 200 miles so far.

And lastly, when i engage the clutch and shift i've got another faint almost whining noise. This is all alarming because honestly, my mitsubishi eclipse shifted smoothly, had a very smooth clutch throw, and only made noises like these when it was on its last legs.

Is this just paranoia talking? First new car and all. I apologize for the long-winded post.

ateixeira

The boxer shake a bit at idle, what I would do it test drive another one, similar model, same trans (auto or manual), and see if it's noticeably different.

It does feel different, but I'm used to it and I like it. My Miata is soul-less in comparison.

Mitsu was the first to come out with counter-rotating balance shafts, in fact they own the patent. It makes an in-line four smooth, but you also have a lot of excess rotating mass.

A boxer has inherent second-order balance so no balance shafts are used.

-juice

drivelikejehu

thanks for the info! yeah, i thought about test driving another at the other dealership closer to me. i couldnt remember if the 05 obs made the same noise(s) when i test drove it... i'll do that monday.

rob_m

Cool!

It was great to talk to you at the chat last Thursday. My first Subaru was a 92 Loyale 5 speed 4wd wagon. Good luck! Rob M.

c_hunter

These all sound like normal characteristics of a boxer engine. I wouldn't worry about it. And it's probably not productive to make parallels to an Eclipse since almost everything about the drivetrain is different!

Also, 200 miles is peanuts -- take more time to get used to the car.

Craig

drivelikejehu

i apologize then for polluting the forum with my nonsense. i have a long history of new purchases having large problems right off the bat, it's made me a bit paranoid. call it my karma. in the future i'll refrain

cheers.

suvshopper4

"A boxer has inherent second-order balance..."

What does this mean?

njswamplands

"A boxer has inherent second-order balance..."

Sounds like something that kicks in after a boxer takes a straight rite to the head

c_hunter

No sweat, don't worry about it and no apologies needed. Most of us here suffer from car OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder), so much that it's an inside joke on the forum. I also tend to obsess over a new car. Thankfully I have learned to relax in recent years and start enjoying the vehicle! Usually the first dent/ding is enough to break my mental problems and then I learn to live with the car!

Craig

toboggan

Now that I've moved to the Minnesota northland, I need some new winter wiper blades. Tried a set bought at Sam's Club - blades are too stiff and excess rubber material dragged on the windshield at speed. Tried 1stsubaruparts and Liberty online. But no wiper blades on their web sites. Almost afraid to check with the local Subaru dealer because of cost (just dropped $580 for seal replacement last week).

Any thoughts who would have good winter wiper blades at a reasonable cost.

Thanks.

gmginsfo

With the recent "decline" in gas prices, I decided to see if filling up my '03 Forester XS with 89 instead of the usual 87 octane might eliminate the knock I get when driving up a hill near my home, and on some long freeway grades. Now I know the manual says 87 is recommended, but I was always a bit suspiciuous of that claim. Anyway, I filled up with 89 octane - at $2.31 a gallon, cash - and now there's no knock at all, anywhere! I've just passed 34K and have had no problems with the car, but I'm wondering if that 33K miles of driving on 87 did any damage?

kdshapiro

"$2.31 a gallon"

For premium I just paid $2.09.

rob_m

I have always used Anco Winter blades on my Subarus. In NE, I deal with a lot of storms that are a combination of snow/rain/ice. Under $10 each at Auto Zone. Rob M.

fibber2

Mike,

Highly doubt any damage, but it does seem to indicate some deposit formation on either the valve stems or within the chamber. These can impact proper injection charge mixing (on valves), a slight change in compression ratio or the creation of 'hot spots' (within the combustion chamber). You might try a bottle or two of a concentrated solvent cleaner like Techron.

The knock sensor (timing retard) can help to mask some of these issues, but eventually the situation gets beyond the limits of the electronics to cope.

An AG, eh? So if I give the wrong answer, do you prosecute? Or am I covered under 'Good Sam' statutes?

Steve

damish003

Sounds like my 04 OBS and 05 RS wagon, actually. More noticable in real cold weather. I've never had the slightest engine problems with either Impreza, so I'm confident that yours is no different. The boxer engine is unique, so I wouldn't stress about the car at all. Once you get used to the difference with Mitsu's, and as you get more accostumed to it, you'll be able to really enjoy the car.

Have fun!

-Dan-

ateixeira

I got some from Costco, the type that is encased in rubber to prevent snow build up.

Problem is, the whole thing is too stiff, so it does not go around the curves near the edges well. So I don't recommend them. Normal ones I've used in the past were better.

-juice

ateixeira

Every action has an equal and opposite reaction, so they cancel each other out.

Thing is, the horizontally opposed cylinders are slightly offset, obviously, so it's not vibration-free, but it's a whole lot better than an in-line 4 banger of the same size would be without balance shafts!

-juice

bat1161

I ust picked up a set at Pep Boys last Saturday, just in time for the snow we had yesterday in the NYC area. They worked fine. I know I had a set of the Costco blades on my 2000 that were well worth the $$. Only problem is Costco doesn't carry the sizes I needed.

Pep Boys px: $10.99 for the 24" blade; $7.99 for the 18" blade.

Mark

hondafriek

Canadian Tire Corporation here in Canada now has a wiper blade called Reflex. Absolutely top notch I am surprised it took so long to come out with something like this.

There is no mechanical hinge device on the blade so it is unaffected ny snow and ice.

Cheers Pat.

demonscooby

Hey, my car was having problems heating up to dangerous levels during the summer. the only reason it didn't actually overheat is because i would pull over and turn the car off if it got too close. So I took it to a dealership to have them check it out. They said it was the head gaskets using that liquid that absorbs fumes from the reservior tank and changes yellow. it turned green and only when the engine was pushed really hard. So, they say 2400 for it, and i didn't do it right away, still havn't done it. The weird thing is, if I turn on my A/C, the engine temp will return to normal. If I keep the A/C on, my car won't overheat at all. Anyone know anything about this? Can it maybe be a sensor or something instead??

jcpress

Thanks everyone for the info. Being hundreds of miles away from home, and unable to seek a second opinion, I just had all of the work done. Replaced the timing belt, water pump, etc. Mechanic told me the o-ring(s) around the oil pump failed and were leaking. Not sure if I got taken for a $700+ ride. But it's all done.

Now, I've got another issue. The digital clock takes a few minutes to actually come on when I start the car. Then today, it went on and then less than 3 minutes later went off. Is this an early sign of battery trouble?

Thanks,
Joel

snowbelter

I've been using Anco Winter Blades for several years. Bought them this year at Walmart. The Subaru dealer usually stocks them, but at a higher price. Once bought Subaru-branded blades and they were not very sturdy and barely lasted the winter.

rob_m

I was amazed at the blade sizes for my LGT, 24 and 18 inches. I purchased winter blades for the 2003 Outback at the same time, which uses 22 and 20 inch blades.

The cashier at Auto Zone gave me a funny look when I went to the register with an 18, 20, 22 and 24 inch blade!

locke2c

whoa! any pics / pricing on those from Crappy Tire's website maybe?

~Colin

ateixeira

Not at all, the mechanic was very smart to replace the O-ring while he was in there, that'll save you from an oil leak down the road. It should be mandatory to change it.

-juice

hondafriek

Here you go Colin.

www.canadiantire.ca
Copy and paste this URL on your browser, type in Reflex for a keyword and scroll down to reflex wiper blades.

Cheers Pat.

ateixeira

Looks too narrow to get a lot of snow off the windshield. You'd have to clear it first.

That low-profile is probably better for light rain.

-juice

hondafriek

juice it works I have them on both cars.

Cheers Pat.

xwesx

Regarding the digital clock.... It is difficult for me to say. I do not recall seing this as a problem when I was having an issue with my alternator. When the voltage began dropping, the first thing to go was the dash guages (tach, speedo, temp). I shut off the radio at that point recognizing that there was a problem and it required my full attention. I never looked back at the clock to see if it was off, but at that point engine shutdown was only about 90 seconds away, so if your car still runs fine other than the clock issue, I'd be looking somewhere other than the battery. For peace of mind in that department, have it tested by Napa or similar parts store to see if it holds a load properly.

hondafriek

Hey Colin, you surprised me knowing the irreverent name we use for Canadian Tire up here.

Cheers Pat.

locke2c

hehe, I was travelling to Calgary for business like every 6 weeks for a while earlier this year.

done with that for now as I'm in a different division at the company. I'm 'centralized IT' again instead of being attached specifically to our oil company. I might work on the Georgia-Pacific acquisition and early next year I'll be going to London to do some things for our trading office there.

~Colin

ateixeira

You'd really leave that big oil pension behind?

-juice

locke2c

it's all the same parent company Juice. same benefits, same buildings. although I did have to take a pee test and submit an application and resume to take this new job.

but no, I don't plan to stick around to retire out of this place anyhow. I think I'll leave Kansas at some point.

~Colin

ateixeira

We're not in Kansas any more....

I hear ya. When my status changed from Consultant to Regular Staff I was actually able to cash in my leave, got 22 days' worth of extra pay. That was nice, like an extra paycheck or two. Only gave up my accumulated sick leave (which I rarely use anyway).

Haven't had a car loan since.

-juice

ozman62

Joel,
The digital clock failing is a common Gen1 Forester problem. Mine went kaput a few years ago, I replaced it with a salvage yard special. I believe the problem has been isolated to a poor solder joint on some resistor, which apparently can be fixed pretty easily if you're handy with a soldering iron. I wouldn't think that it is indicative of a battery problem. Hope this helps.
Owen

ozman62

You should have said something about your trips to Calgary, we could have met up for a bite and a pint..
Owen

hondafriek

How long are you goin to be in London Colin?

Cheers Pat.

kenm6

Lately there was not enough heat in the car unless I turned the temperature control passed the mid-point on my 2002S. Then I realized that the fan was running all the time except when the engine was cold.What is controlling the fan? My temperature gauge always stayed at normal position, about 30% of the gauge range. Thanks in advance.

tremere

Since the temperatures started dropping, I keep smelling gas in the cabin of my 03 WRX. Usually upon start-up and at stand still at a traffic light. Today I kept smelling it while in motion as well. I had to turn off the heat to reduce the intensity. I was quite nauseous. Anyway, I came across some previous posts where this problem is common due to a hose and pipe below the intake during below freezing temperatures. I have 55k miles on my car, so would this be covered by my warranty?

locke2c

My London trip is planned to be one week but might end up being two. I should have time to do a little sight seeing but I'd depend on my London-based co-workers to guide me... I am not too adventurous by myself.

When I was in Calgary I never had a rental car because we stayed in the Hyatt and worked in the Petro Canada towers which were 2 blocks away. I know downtown Calgary and Banker's Mall reasonably well because I just walked everywhere. Unfortunately even with the frequency of my trips, I missed Stampede by a week. I couldn't help that one; I wasn't going to go during Independence Day holiday here in the States and the following week my Calgary IT contact was on honeymoon so I waited for him to return before making a trip.

~Colin