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Patti from Subaru Team, and Rob M., thanks for answering my post from a couple of weeks ago. Hubby was and is fine. Was just irate. I'm 5'2", he's 6'4", so better it happened to him than me. Mechanic who replaced bags and sensors said location crazy, and the most sensitive he's ever seen.
I can't fault Subaru as being any worse than Ford. My 99 Sable was involved in a very low speed crash. Since it was evenly spread across the front end (according to the dealer) is the reason the airbags deployed. Couldn't have been going more than 5-8 mph at the time of impact. Larry
I really should be selling them hard as they are an Australian icon (I'll also be outragously pushy on Australian wines, if you ask nicely).
Genuinely, The Wiggles are straight up professionals. Three of them were studying kindergarten teaching together (fairly unusual for guys) and two of them played with the fourth guy in a moderately successful Aussie band (The Cockroaches). He's the one who pretends to be asleep as he was never too sure what to say to kids.
The shows are built very heavily around basic kids' education with a strong musical emphasis. Loosh would probably pick the emphasis and breadth of musical education if he listened. It's pretty full on music ed, presented very low key and targeted very specifically at pre-schoolers. The contrast with the overpackaged Barney could not be greater.
Now if you'd like a sales pitch on why you should visit Australia (and spend your tourist dollars here) let me give you a small pitch....
They're OK, it's just overexposure to anything is the pits.
To bring this back on topic, I bought one of those generators that plug in to the cigarette lighter and then give you power. I'll use it to charge my laptop on my next road trip, so the kids can watch movies in the back of the Subie!
We do not recommend anyone to buy a Subaru vehicle and we are currently looking into State of Wisconsin’s Lemon law to file a formal complain with our State’s Consumer protection agency. Below is the service history of our 2000 Subaru Outback Ltd wagon.
10/29/99, 3,171 miles – took the car in to fix driver side extremely loud wind noise problem. Dealer changed weather strip.
11/8/99, 3,592 miles – took the car in to fix door latch problem (don’t remember if that was a recall or just broken.)
11/99/99, 3,911 miles – driver side wind noise persists, took the car in again. Dealer installed new weather strip. (still not fixed, very disappointed. we just gave up and decided to live with it.)
6/9/00, 10,043 miles – check engine light kept going off. Took in for Oxygen Sensor/ Air Fuel Ratio Sensor recall.
2/12/01, 18,352 miles – Fuel injector failed while we were 300 miles away from home.
9/29/01, 24,447 miles – Fog light bulb burned out (not a big deal on this one, but we still think it should have lasted a little longer than 24,447 miles.)
2/7/02, 27,560 miles – security system / keyless entry transmitter failed.
9/27/02, 34,469 miles – another fuel injector failed. This time we were 50 miles away from home. We are beginning to get very unhappy with this $28,000 car.
3/26/04, 45,000 miles – recall service for the cooling system
AND THE NEXT ONE REALLY SET US OFF.
3/26/04, 45,000 miles – while on the way to the dealer ship for recall service. ANOTHER fuel injector failed. This time we had to pay for it because it is out of warranty. We are extremely upset with this piece of lemon we bought and called Subaru customer service to complain about fuel injector failure every 15,000 miles and asked for a refund for the repair. They said they could only offer half refund as a courtesy. We want 100% refund or nothing because this car has been a pain in the neck for us. They said no and that’s the end of conversation.
We believe Subaru makes very poor quality cars. Stick with Toyota, Honda.
car is 5 years old with 45k miles, and you want a full refund? regardless of the problems you encountered, you USED the vehicle. expecting a full refund is absurd.
The other car which might have a fuel injector failure every 15,000 miles is called Yugo. If you want to paint yourself a rugged car immage and asking a $28,000 price tag, then your fuel injector should not break down every 15,000 miles. How many people out there has a car that fuel injector fails every 15,000 miles? No question about it, Subaru is a Lemon! If ONE fuel injetor fails after 45,000 miles, maybe you have a point. BUT NOT THREE!! Never buy another Subaru again.
LOL - I think they mean full refund for the repair, not the car (at least I hope so...)!
EBAHE: Failure of 3 fuel injectors? Very odd, indeed. Electrical solenoid failure, or severe clogging? Sounds to me like you may have picked up some very contaminated gas somewhere along the line. Has anybody suggested that you change the fuel filter or flush the tank? Just curious - how much money are we talking about to change an injector?
On the wind noise, I think Craig posted procedure for changing the front gusset. Possibly the source of your sound. He also, IIRC, changed the angle of the glass so that it better mated against the rubber seals all around.
And the cooling system service is a preventive measure on the part of SoA. Recalls and service campaigns happen, even to Toyota & Honda. (Reminds me, I have to make an appt to have my Honda Odyssey timing belt tensioner recall attended to.....)
Put it all into perspective. Venting is heathy, but... It is not like SoA told you to pound salt.
Yers, I did mean refund for the repair, certainly not the whole darn car! However, maybe I should have asked for that ,too. Cost to repair fuel injector is $276.00. Dealership mention asked about the gas issue ,too. We even asked them for suggestions about preventing this from happening again, but they could not give us any. But All of our friends in Wisconsin use the same type of gas, our other car, Toyota, included and no one's cars' fuel injector keeps breaking down like our Subaru's.
What is the point of your post? Most people come here for help or discussion. I can't help but notice that your post is quite one-sided. Are you asking something?
You're certainly entitled to your closing opinion, but statistically you're wrong.
Your repeat problems are very rare. To consider that Subaru only builds lemons is, well, silly. Many people on this board have very few problems or even no reliability problems with their Subaru. Juice, any comment?
Okay, let's look at this situation a little more closely.
1) You had a door seal fail that caused significant wind noise. This was replaced with another seal that failed. It looks that Subaru was more than happy to help *you* out with this matter, however you are the one who gave up. Can't possibly blame Subaru for that.
2)Injectors: to have 3 go out is very rare. Did you use any fuel system addatives? It is possible that the gas itself is to blame. Chrysler had many (new) vehicles that had fuel pump failures with one brand of gas around here. It is possible that Subaru received a bad batch of injectors from the supplier. Again, this is a very rare situation (read back through these boards looking for injector failures), and I think it is unfair to jump down Subaru's throat, especially when they repaired them. (again, helping you out)
3)A couple of recalls: This is not uncommon for a first model year of ANY vehicle. Again, another case of Subaru taking care of the customer.
4)Light bulb. I'd be rich if I invented a bulb that never burns out. I see many new cars with a burned out headlamp. They are mass produced by the thousands, and it is a $10 part.
Moving right along...
If you traded your Outback in on a Honda or Toyota, and you had the same number of problems, would you say that Honda or Toyota only build lemons?
Again, please note that 2000 was the first year of that body style. Problems are bound to come up, even in an Honda or a Toyota.
Then again, maybe a Focus would have been a better investment.... .. . Maybe not.
To birghten things up, I have had no problems with my Outback. I'd be ashamed to drive a non-Subaru auto, unless the bumper sticker "My other car is a Subaru" was true.
As for never buying another subaru again, I remind you all that the donation bin for my Outback XT is still open. And empty.. Ciao!
WHICH injector went bad? Is it the same injector at the same location? Or is it 3 random ones?
Did the dealer actually replace it? Or perhaps they only "cleaned" it or "reseated" it.
Did you switch gas stations after the problem? A station with poor fuel tanks can cause that injector to keep building up debris and causing a failure.
Were they all replaced by the same dealer? If it was replaced by the same dealer, were the injectors all from the same lot? Perhaps the dealer had a case of BAD injectors and they just kept putting in bad ones from that case of injectors.
The other problems you listed are a bit out of line and I will dismiss... A fog light bulb??? C'mon get real folks.
Try folding and unfolding the mirror a few times. I found I had minor wind noise which proved to be something to do with the seal between the mirror and the body.
If you continue to have wind noise problems, tape each seam with masking tape, climb into the car through the passenger side, drive for a bit and progressivesly remove tape. When the wind noise re-appears you have found the seam that whistles.
Whinging is unproductive. Using intellect to identify a problem suggests you are rational.
Subarus are certainly not lemons. I currently own two.
My 99 GT sedan crossed 100k this week. Repairs to date include tires at 40k and brakes at 80k. And regular scheduled maintenance. I commute 90 miles a day. No problems, no complaints.
My fog light bulbs have burnt out. Twice. $3.99 at PEP Boys, and 4 minutes to replace.
I believe that the offer to cover half the repair was extremely generous.
This is something of a recurrent theme. Maybe we should figure out how to post these fixes to a single locked page where all the answers to the regular questions to the Subaru Crew can be posted.
The cause of wind noise in the Subaru, as with most vehicles, is imperfections in the surface over which the moving air passes. I had a Mercedes that sang impressively when I drove through moist air (fog or mist). Pitch varied with speed. It took ages to figure out that the mobile phone aerial was vibrating in the airflow and resonating across the roof.
The most obvious airflow problems for the Subaru are the roof racks, window areas and mirrors.
The general technique for detecting all of them is to search for imperfections, remove or mask them all and then progressively reintroduce the imperfections.
Put simply, take the roof bars off first and then put masking tape over each imperfection area. Drive the car at 60-75 mph and listen for noise. If it has disappeared, you are on the right track. Remove one piece of masking tape at a time until you find the problem. When localised, search for the solution.
The most common problem is around the mirrors. There appears to be some sort of gasket or seal between the fixed base and the movable mirror surround. If this is rotated backwards and forwards a few times, it seems to seat better.
Door/window seals are also a potential problem, particularly if, like me, you have assistance from a small helper (if he reaches 21 without killing himself, he will be an engineer). These fit into a channel in the frame and can be easily pulled out or twisted slightly out of alignment. If you run your fingers up each side of the seal where it fits in the channel, easing the rubber as you go, they should seat properly. If actually out of the channel, work them back in from the point where they are secure by slightly stretching the bead (that makes it thin enough to pop in) and then repeat until all reseated.
Door seals also can deform slightly over time from the continued pressure on them. Ideally, you should leave all windows and doors (and sunroof) wide open on a hot sunny day to allow the rubber to return to its natural shape. Finally, the roof rack rails are frequently installed the wrong way around. If they are asymetric, the fatter part of the bar should face forward. Think of how an aeroplane wing is rounded at the front but tapers at the rear.
If you have localised the problem but cant find fix, strategically applied furry tape can alter the air flow dramatically.
As a rule, there are actually fewer problems with frameless windows than framed ones. There is one fewer area for problems at each window join, halving the protential problem areas. In addition, the rubbers are actually thicker and squishier than for framed windows.
Again, I have to ask if you have ever changed the fuel filter. It is a sub $20 part, and is located right in easy reach near the brake booster. You might even consider having it cut open to see what is trapped inside, or if the cellulose media is intact and possibly letting stuff pass thru. It only takes one bad gas stop to cause you years of trouble.
Being a member of the OCD club, and having a wife who thinks the low fuel light on for a couple of days is a sign she might want to get some gas, I changed the filter at 15k vs 30k. OEM part was relatively inexpensive and took all of 5 minutes to change.
BTW - I can't remember who said that instead of messing with the fuel relay and running the car dry, just wait overnight and change it after the pressure's bled off during the night, but thanks - It worked like a charm.
Honda - 1% failure rates on several auto trannies.
Noone's perfect.
There are 4 reliable Subies in my family. My Forester is on its 3rd fuel filter, all my injectors are fine. In fact do a search here and you'll find that problem is rare.
As another owner of a 2000 Outback Wagon, who has had a fuel injector replaced, along with other "mishaps" I can honestly say there is nothing wrong with these vehicles! It is just the luck of the draw, especially when you consider how many vehicles are manufactured. I do agree that there has to be something wrong if you have had 3 fuel injectors fail, but I would not be talking about a lemon, especailly over a 3 year period. I can say my next vehicle will definitely be another Subaru.
I think they need to drive it more! With the notes above, in one year they drove 9,000 miles with their Subie. My second car is a 1993 VW Cabrio with 48,000 that sits in my garage, mint condition, but needs attention to detail as it sits too long.
I, too, have vented on these boards. I purchased my 01 Outback Ltd last year with 19,000 and now up to 47,000 miles. That is 28,000 miles in 9 months. Wow, I must really like my job...or my car
OK, this past Saturday I drove to Randall's Island (off Manhattan) for a soccer tourney. I have concluded that my rotors are now warped enough to warrant replacement. Looking for recommendations of rotor brands (Brembo, EBC, Hawk, etc) and where to get them for a reasonable price.
Please forgive as I am new here but I cannot figure out how to view a message and the subsequent replies. All I manage to view is a linear order of messages based on the order the message was posted. This makes it very hard to find answers to questions folks are posing in this board.
Some people, not all however, will do a copy & paste of the question. and maybe even make the question italic, as per:
Please forgive as I am new here but I cannot figure out how to view a message and the subsequent replies. All I manage to view is a linear order of messages based on the order the message was posted. This makes it very hard to find answers to questions folks are posing in this board.
That way it's easy to follow. Otherwise, you're right, it can be hard to follow.
I will need that rotor info too. My brake pads are due for replacement within the next few months, and I want to replace the front rotors with something more resistant to warping.
Welcome to Town Hall. Think of our discussions as a conversation. If you want to see if people have discussed an issue, try a Discussion Search in the gray bar at the bottom of the messages.
If you want to follow the talk, I recommend Subscribing to the discussion and then it's easy just to skim the new posts periodically. See the Town Hall Help link on the left for details.
Has anyone had or heard of any defects on the auto-dimming mirrors or their coatings? Last week, the auto-dimming rearview mirror on my '01 OB (56k miles) developed an enormous bubble-type blotch on the inside of it over the course of about 4 hours one afternoon in the parking lot of my office. When you looked into the mirror, you couldn't see anything where the blotch was and the vision on the rest of the unblotched mirror surface was quadruple vision. (It made for an action-packed rush hour home that day, to say the least.)
I've parked the car in this same parking space for 2 1/2 years and did absolutely nothing different when closing/locking the car for the day after lunch than I've done since owning it. The weather was typically bright/sunny late March northern Florida weather (about 74deg.) with low humidity. (no fog, rain, extreme temp., etc.) The windows are all tinted and the sun angle in relation to my parking space is such that it does not shine directly on the mirror at all.
I've ended up having to pay to replace this mirror ($185 out of pocket, part/inst.) and have contacted Subaru of America to see if there's anything they can do financially to help me out. (I realize that I'm well past the 36K mi. warranty point, but the car is barely 3 yrs old and this is not typically a wear/tear type of part.) The dealership here in Jacksonville says they've not seen this very often and have no idea what to make of it and suggested that I make the call to SOA.
Any thoughts from you all would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for your expertise.
you are not happy with the Rep. or the decision. I'd suggest that you check into the maintenance of the fuel systems/filter. I'm sorry we cannot do more than what was offered to you. The case appears to have everything in order that supported the decision that was made. It surely isn't a Lemon Law situation.
The one in my 03 Forester had the coating melt. The one in the wife's 03 OBW "slowed" as in lost its responsiveness - it became very slow when responding to changing light conditions. The Forester's went with about 5k. The one on the OBW went with about 10k. They haven't been a high point of reliability.
Although, the newer series (the ones with the compass in the upper right part of the glass)appear to be more robust, and perform better as well.
This sort of failure on a rear-view mirror is unusual, but, obviously, can happen. I have a Lincoln Mark VIII, and am active in a Mark VIII club and on a couple of Mark VIII message boards, and this sort of failure is very common with those cars (but only on the driver side view mirror). The Mark VIII has the electrochromatic auto-dimming mirrors on the driver side view and on the rear view mirror.
A great many of the side view mirrors have failed -- the seal breaks after 3 - 7 years of exposure to the elements, and the fluid leaks out or evaporates, leaving the mirror splotchy and reddish gold-toned and opaque. It is a fairly expensive fix for a mirror - $200 - 250 for just the mirror component (and over $600 if the dealership is able to sucker you into thinking you have to replace the entire housing and have it painted). While it is extremely common with the side view mirrors, I cannot recall anyone posting that it had happened to the rear-view mirror.
Sounds as though you just got one with a defective seal. You should pursue this with SOA (Patti) as you are right that this is not a part that should fail in this manner after only three years. Being out of warranty, they don't have to do anything, but it never hurts to ask . . .
I had the same thing happen to my OBW about a year ago. At that time i was still within the 36K B2B, so it was covered. SOA just ordered and installed a new one which is working just fine.
I took my car (00 OB LTD 5sp) in for its 60k service. Turned out is cost me a little over $800... I know I live in Northern California, but that's a lot of money for something that's not broken.
It's too late now, I already had the service done and paid for it. But I would like to solicit other people's experience/price paid for this service. According to the dealer, the timing belt was the expensive part. But according to the Subaru schedule they're only supposed to inspect it (which might still take some serious time, but still).
Most dealers charge around $350 around here (Salt Lake City) for the 30K/60K/90K service last time I priced it. The timing belt would definitely add some $ if it needed to be replaced, but 60K is WAY early. The recommended replacement interval is 105K if I remember right.
Did you authorize them to replace the timing belt?
Thanks for the response. Yeah, I thought it was really expensive but I have had such a great experience with this dealer, I simply did not expect them to charge me for something I did not need. I honestly think they only inspected the timing belt, but I'll have to check and follow up. The car is in great shape. Now I feel like I've been taken for a ride... Any other SF Bay Area owners out there who've had a 60k service done recently?
Comments
Mechanic who replaced bags and sensors said location crazy, and the most sensitive he's ever seen.
Larry
-juice
Patti
Now I will feel more comfortable if I need to fix this by replacing/etc. I'll probably try a lens cleaner first.
I'll post one more cry for help: Has anyone had an issue with the OB in-dash 6 CD changer and found resolution with a CD lens cleaner?
Thanks for the help!! This is a great board.
You get tired of The Wiggles pretty quick!
-juice
-juice
Look on the bright side - it isn't Barney.
Cheers
Graham
-Brian
I really should be selling them hard as they are an Australian icon (I'll also be outragously pushy on Australian wines, if you ask nicely).
Genuinely, The Wiggles are straight up professionals. Three of them were studying kindergarten teaching together (fairly unusual for guys) and two of them played with the fourth guy in a moderately successful Aussie band (The Cockroaches). He's the one who pretends to be asleep as he was never too sure what to say to kids.
The shows are built very heavily around basic kids' education with a strong musical emphasis. Loosh would probably pick the emphasis and breadth of musical education if he listened. It's pretty full on music ed, presented very low key and targeted very specifically at pre-schoolers. The contrast with the overpackaged Barney could not be greater.
Now if you'd like a sales pitch on why you should visit Australia (and spend your tourist dollars here) let me give you a small pitch....
Cheers
Graham
No comment on the Wiggles or Australian wine other than our household consumes a little too much of both.
To bring this back on topic, I bought one of those generators that plug in to the cigarette lighter and then give you power. I'll use it to charge my laptop on my next road trip, so the kids can watch movies in the back of the Subie!
And we can listen to our own radio stations...
-juice
10/29/99, 3,171 miles – took the car in to fix driver side extremely loud wind noise problem. Dealer changed weather strip.
11/8/99, 3,592 miles – took the car in to fix door latch problem (don’t remember if that was a recall or just broken.)
11/99/99, 3,911 miles – driver side wind noise persists, took the car in again. Dealer installed new weather strip. (still not fixed, very disappointed. we just gave up and decided to live with it.)
6/9/00, 10,043 miles – check engine light kept going off. Took in for Oxygen Sensor/ Air Fuel Ratio Sensor recall.
2/12/01, 18,352 miles – Fuel injector failed while we were 300 miles away from home.
9/29/01, 24,447 miles – Fog light bulb burned out (not a big deal on this one, but we still think it should have lasted a little longer than 24,447 miles.)
2/7/02, 27,560 miles – security system / keyless entry transmitter failed.
9/27/02, 34,469 miles – another fuel injector failed. This time we were 50 miles away from home. We are beginning to get very unhappy with this $28,000 car.
3/26/04, 45,000 miles – recall service for the cooling system
AND THE NEXT ONE REALLY SET US OFF.
3/26/04, 45,000 miles – while on the way to the dealer ship for recall service. ANOTHER fuel injector failed. This time we had to pay for it because it is out of warranty. We are extremely upset with this piece of lemon we bought and called Subaru customer service to complain about fuel injector failure every 15,000 miles and asked for a refund for the repair. They said they could only offer half refund as a courtesy. We want 100% refund or nothing because this car has been a pain in the neck for us. They said no and that’s the end of conversation.
We believe Subaru makes very poor quality cars. Stick with Toyota, Honda.
-Brian
EBAHE: Failure of 3 fuel injectors? Very odd, indeed. Electrical solenoid failure, or severe clogging? Sounds to me like you may have picked up some very contaminated gas somewhere along the line. Has anybody suggested that you change the fuel filter or flush the tank? Just curious - how much money are we talking about to change an injector?
On the wind noise, I think Craig posted procedure for changing the front gusset. Possibly the source of your sound. He also, IIRC, changed the angle of the glass so that it better mated against the rubber seals all around.
And the cooling system service is a preventive measure on the part of SoA. Recalls and service campaigns happen, even to Toyota & Honda. (Reminds me, I have to make an appt to have my Honda Odyssey timing belt tensioner recall attended to.....)
Put it all into perspective. Venting is heathy, but... It is not like SoA told you to pound salt.
Steve
Have you tried another dealer, have you called Subaru?
-Brian
You're certainly entitled to your closing opinion, but statistically you're wrong.
Craig
Okay, let's look at this situation a little more closely.
1) You had a door seal fail that caused significant wind noise. This was replaced with another seal that failed. It looks that Subaru was more than happy to help *you* out with this matter, however you are the one who gave up. Can't possibly blame Subaru for that.
2)Injectors: to have 3 go out is very rare. Did you use any fuel system addatives? It is possible that the gas itself is to blame. Chrysler had many (new) vehicles that had fuel pump failures with one brand of gas around here. It is possible that Subaru received a bad batch of injectors from the supplier. Again, this is a very rare situation (read back through these boards looking for injector failures), and I think it is unfair to jump down Subaru's throat, especially when they repaired them. (again, helping you out)
3)A couple of recalls: This is not uncommon for a first model year of ANY vehicle. Again, another case of Subaru taking care of the customer.
4)Light bulb. I'd be rich if I invented a bulb that never burns out. I see many new cars with a burned out headlamp. They are mass produced by the thousands, and it is a $10 part.
Moving right along...
If you traded your Outback in on a Honda or Toyota, and you had the same number of problems, would you say that Honda or Toyota only build lemons?
Again, please note that 2000 was the first year of that body style. Problems are bound to come up, even in an Honda or a Toyota.
Then again, maybe a Focus would have been a better investment.... .. . Maybe not.
To birghten things up, I have had no problems with my Outback. I'd be ashamed to drive a non-Subaru auto, unless the bumper sticker "My other car is a Subaru" was true.
As for never buying another subaru again, I remind you all that the donation bin for my Outback XT is still open. And empty..
Ciao!
WHICH injector went bad? Is it the same injector at the same location? Or is it 3 random ones?
Did the dealer actually replace it? Or perhaps they only "cleaned" it or "reseated" it.
Did you switch gas stations after the problem? A station with poor fuel tanks can cause that injector to keep building up debris and causing a failure.
Were they all replaced by the same dealer? If it was replaced by the same dealer, were the injectors all from the same lot? Perhaps the dealer had a case of BAD injectors and they just kept putting in bad ones from that case of injectors.
The other problems you listed are a bit out of line and I will dismiss... A fog light bulb??? C'mon get real folks.
-mike
Try folding and unfolding the mirror a few times. I found I had minor wind noise which proved to be something to do with the seal between the mirror and the body.
If you continue to have wind noise problems, tape each seam with masking tape, climb into the car through the passenger side, drive for a bit and progressivesly remove tape. When the wind noise re-appears you have found the seam that whistles.
Whinging is unproductive. Using intellect to identify a problem suggests you are rational.
Cheers
Graham
My 99 GT sedan crossed 100k this week. Repairs to date include tires at 40k and brakes at 80k. And regular scheduled maintenance. I commute 90 miles a day. No problems, no complaints.
My fog light bulbs have burnt out. Twice. $3.99 at PEP Boys, and 4 minutes to replace.
I believe that the offer to cover half the repair was extremely generous.
This is something of a recurrent theme. Maybe we should figure out how to post these fixes to a single locked page where all the answers to the regular questions to the Subaru Crew can be posted.
The cause of wind noise in the Subaru, as with most vehicles, is imperfections in the surface over which the moving air passes. I had a Mercedes that sang impressively when I drove through moist air (fog or mist). Pitch varied with speed. It took ages to figure out that the mobile phone aerial was vibrating in the airflow and resonating across the roof.
The most obvious airflow problems for the Subaru are the roof racks, window areas and mirrors.
The general technique for detecting all of them is to search for imperfections, remove or mask them all and then progressively reintroduce the imperfections.
Put simply, take the roof bars off first and then put masking tape over each imperfection area. Drive the car at 60-75 mph and listen for noise. If it has disappeared, you are on the right track. Remove one piece of masking tape at a time until you find the problem. When localised, search for the solution.
The most common problem is around the mirrors. There appears to be some sort of gasket or seal between the fixed base and the movable mirror surround. If this is rotated backwards and forwards a few times, it seems to seat better.
Door/window seals are also a potential problem, particularly if, like me, you have assistance from a small helper (if he reaches 21 without killing himself, he will be an engineer). These fit into a channel in the frame and can be easily pulled out or twisted slightly out of alignment. If you run your fingers up each side of the seal where it fits in the channel, easing the rubber as you go, they should seat properly. If actually out of the channel, work them back in from the point where they are secure by slightly stretching the bead (that makes it thin enough to pop in) and then repeat until all reseated.
Door seals also can deform slightly over time from the continued pressure on them. Ideally, you should leave all windows and doors (and sunroof) wide open on a hot sunny day to allow the rubber to return to its natural shape.
Finally, the roof rack rails are frequently installed the wrong way around. If they are asymetric, the fatter part of the bar should face forward. Think of how an aeroplane wing is rounded at the front but tapers at the rear.
If you have localised the problem but cant find fix, strategically applied furry tape can alter the air flow dramatically.
As a rule, there are actually fewer problems with frameless windows than framed ones. There is one fewer area for problems at each window join, halving the protential problem areas. In addition, the rubbers are actually thicker and squishier than for framed windows.
Hope that helps
Cheers
Graham
Steve
BTW - I can't remember who said that instead of messing with the fuel relay and running the car dry, just wait overnight and change it after the pressure's bled off during the night, but thanks - It worked like a charm.
Larry
Toyota - can you say "sludge"?
Honda - 1% failure rates on several auto trannies.
Noone's perfect.
There are 4 reliable Subies in my family. My Forester is on its 3rd fuel filter, all my injectors are fine. In fact do a search here and you'll find that problem is rare.
-juice
Mark
I, too, have vented on these boards. I purchased my 01 Outback Ltd last year with 19,000 and now up to 47,000 miles. That is 28,000 miles in 9 months. Wow, I must really like my job...or my car
4 repair attempts - 30 days out of service.
Express warranty period or 1 year, whichever occurs first.
Note that's 4 attempts for the same problem all within the first year to qualify as a lemon in Wisconsin. That one isn't.
-juice
Greg
Greg
-mike
Thanks
Please forgive as I am new here but I cannot figure out how to view a message and the subsequent replies. All I manage to view is a linear order of messages based on the order the message was posted. This makes it very hard to find answers to questions folks are posing in this board.
That way it's easy to follow. Otherwise, you're right, it can be hard to follow.
Bob
Craig
If you want to follow the talk, I recommend Subscribing to the discussion and then it's easy just to skim the new posts periodically. See the Town Hall Help link on the left for details.
Steve, Host
I've parked the car in this same parking space for 2 1/2 years and did absolutely nothing different when closing/locking the car for the day after lunch than I've done since owning it. The weather was typically bright/sunny late March northern Florida weather (about 74deg.) with low humidity. (no fog, rain, extreme temp., etc.) The windows are all tinted and the sun angle in relation to my parking space is such that it does not shine directly on the mirror at all.
I've ended up having to pay to replace this mirror ($185 out of pocket, part/inst.) and have contacted Subaru of America to see if there's anything they can do financially to help me out. (I realize that I'm well past the 36K mi. warranty point, but the car is barely 3 yrs old and this is not typically a wear/tear type of part.) The dealership here in Jacksonville says they've not seen this very often and have no idea what to make of it and suggested that I make the call to SOA.
Any thoughts from you all would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for your expertise.
Patti
Patti
Although, the newer series (the ones with the compass in the upper right part of the glass)appear to be more robust, and perform better as well.
Larry
A great many of the side view mirrors have failed -- the seal breaks after 3 - 7 years of exposure to the elements, and the fluid leaks out or evaporates, leaving the mirror splotchy and reddish gold-toned and opaque. It is a fairly expensive fix for a mirror - $200 - 250 for just the mirror component (and over $600 if the dealership is able to sucker you into thinking you have to replace the entire housing and have it painted). While it is extremely common with the side view mirrors, I cannot recall anyone posting that it had happened to the rear-view mirror.
Sounds as though you just got one with a defective seal. You should pursue this with SOA (Patti) as you are right that this is not a part that should fail in this manner after only three years. Being out of warranty, they don't have to do anything, but it never hurts to ask . . .
Good luck!
--K9Leader
I had the same thing happen to my OBW about a year ago. At that time i was still within the 36K B2B, so it was covered. SOA just ordered and installed a new one which is working just fine.
Mark
I took my car (00 OB LTD 5sp) in for its 60k service. Turned out is cost me a little over $800... I know I live in Northern California, but that's a lot of money for something that's not broken.
It's too late now, I already had the service done and paid for it. But I would like to solicit other people's experience/price paid for this service. According to the dealer, the timing belt was the expensive part. But according to the Subaru schedule they're only supposed to inspect it (which might still take some serious time, but still).
Any comments please?
Did you authorize them to replace the timing belt?
-Ty
Steve, Host
I honestly think they only inspected the timing belt, but I'll have to check and follow up. The car is in great shape. Now I feel like I've been taken for a ride... Any other SF Bay Area owners out there who've had a 60k service done recently?