Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!

Subaru Crew - Modifications II

1…5657596162…106

Comments

  • bsvollerbsvoller Member Posts: 528
    Great link, thanks !

    I wish we had performance-oriented dealers on the Front Range with competitive pricing.

    Looks like shipping is extra, and I'm about as far away as can be. I could certainly blow through some $'s on their site !

    Pricing on cabin air filters is about where Darlene used to be, which is great too.
  • kenskens Member Posts: 5,869
    That's great -- those cabin air filters are pretty expensive, too!

    Ken
  • lilbluewgn02lilbluewgn02 Member Posts: 1,089
    Does anyone have instructions on removing and cleaning or replacing it? The manual just has one paragraph saying "Bring it to the Dealer". I'd like to check it out .
  • lucien2lucien2 Member Posts: 2,984
    Wife wants better handling from the Outback after driving the GT. To me, the 1st problem is those tires: 205/70/r15. Lots of sidewall roll and no decent performance tires available in that size. (She already has a STB and an uprated swaybar).

    There is a set of WRX rims for sale here in MD for $400. That would take the OB to 215/60/16, or maybe even 215/55/16 if that will fit on a 6.5" rim. Whatever, anyways, the car needs tires anyway, should I go for it?

    Juice, you plussed your Forester, as I recall...
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I would (did) get WRX rims at one point. The 6.5 rim can support a 215 tire.

    -mike
  • philwang66philwang66 Member Posts: 61
    lilbluewgn02,


    Subaruparts.com has the cabin air filter install instructions.


    http://subaruparts.com/install/2002iairfilt.pdf

  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Serge: I'm not sure if yours is similar, but mine is under the glove box. I remove two screws, and it slides out. There's just one filter.

    For Outbacks, you have to remove the glove box IIRC, and there are two filters, so it's sort of a pain.

    Loosh: the only thing you lose is ground clearance. Visually, they won't fill up the fenders as much, either, but if you're after performance and not looks, it'll make your gearing a little shorter so it'll be quicker, plus it'll handle better.

    -juice
  • idahodougidahodoug Member Posts: 537
    Anyone have a source for Subaru parts online? I need '97 Legacy rotors and looked at Subaruparts.com only to find "accessory" type stuff - bras, lights, mufflers.

    IdahoDoug
  • lilbluewgn02lilbluewgn02 Member Posts: 1,089
    Thanks guys...
    Serge
  • lucien2lucien2 Member Posts: 2,984
    a 215/60/16 is a direct plus one, so it shouldn't use any less space. Now 215/55 is another story.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Duh, I was forgetting that yours came with 15" rims. Sorry, I'm too used to looking at my dad's Outback.

    The 215/60R16 is a no-brainer upgrade. You will lose nothing. Ride quality actually improved for me because it's less bouncy, more controlled. I went to 225/60 just to get more ground clearance, but don't do that in your case since that's not what you're after.

    So go for it. More controlled ride, much less sidewall defection, better steering feel, you name it.

    What about this? Order some of the AVS Intermediates from Tire Rack, since they are being discontinued and basically given away. It's a summer tire, so keep your other rims and use them in the winter.

    Do you have room to store the spare rims and do the rotations, is the next question.

    -juice
  • lucien2lucien2 Member Posts: 2,984
    That's the plan!
  • jfljfl Member Posts: 1,396
    WRX rims for $400? Is that rims only or w/tires? I got mine w/tires (<3000 miles) for around $425 from someone on i-club.

    When these tires wear out, I'd consider doing it this way again. Granted that the tires are RE92s, but V rated and, according to my tire shop, over $120 each!

    Jim
  • bsvollerbsvoller Member Posts: 528
    Thanks again for all the helpful swaybar info. I have just one more question:

    Does it make more sense to upgrade the rear sway bar on a Forester only after you've added a rear strut tower bar ?

    As I understand it, the sway bar basically pushes against the bottom of the strut. If the top of the strut tower is free to flex, doesn't that kind of defeat the purpose of the bigger sway bar ? And don't you risk introducing substantially more flex and eventual metal fatigue in the rear strut tower by going to a stiffer bar without reinforcing the tower top ?

    I guess that was three questions... :-)

    Thanks in advance.

    -brianV
  • lucien2lucien2 Member Posts: 2,984
    $400 for rims and tires new, but the tires are the wrong size for an outback, so I will prolly ditch those.

    Brian- a swaybar will still act on the dynamics of the vehicle, and will do so at lower speeds than an STB. You'll only notice the STB at the efge of the car's performance envelope.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Brian: by "feel", not theory, I can say yes. Mine understeers a little less. Heck, if you're not careful (or you try hard enough, depending on your perspective) and you drop the throttle in a snowy turn, it'll even wag the tail.

    So yeah, it's more fun. Do the tower brace too, go to town, they're cheap upgrades. For me it affects cargo space too much, a big reason I chose the Forester.

    Loosh: try those tires for a little while. Your effective gearing will be much shorter, so it'll feel a lot quicker. That might work for autocross, but then you'll accumulate extra miles on the odometer, and revs at highway speeds will be a lot higher.

    -juice
  • bsvollerbsvoller Member Posts: 528
    You mention the exact point I've been contemplating...

    ...until we spring for a bigger vehicle, the Forester is our cargo carrier, which means the rear STB will be in the way.

    I've been considering holding off on the rear sway until I can do both (i.e. buy a mini-van to replace my wife's car).

    I don't generally push the car to its limits (need to improve the driver first, lol), but I am intrigued by chassis stiffening since we go camping with it a lot.

    -brianV
  • locke2clocke2c Member Posts: 5,038
    it's not going to help in that way. to help when you're camping, you'd need a chassis brace under the car.

    get a swaybar now, they make a real difference. the chassis brace doesn't act on the suspension directly and is of small consequence.

    -Colin
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Put in the Hella dual trumpet horns last night. Overall not a bad install about 45 min for 3 of us in the dark. Now it sound much more exotic car-like :)

    -mike
  • lucien2lucien2 Member Posts: 2,984
    heh heh I don't think the OB will be the car that goes auto-xing. We'll see how Q likes the car with the 205/55s and then mebbe go shopping.
  • qbrozenqbrozen Member Posts: 32,944
    GET IT! That's about the only thing I can say. I found it made a tremendous difference on my wife's Forester. I used to REALLY notice the understeer and the lean in the turns. Now it feels more like the ads claim (car-like handling). By the way, I got a slightly different one than Juice. I wanted the 20mm, but it was out of stock so I got the 20-24mm adjustable one instead. I have it set at 20 and have had no desire to set it higher.

    '11 GMC Sierra 1500; '08 Charger R/T Daytona; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '08 Maser QP; '11 Mini Cooper S

  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    mike: are those as loud as I remember? Is there a way to politely "beep" at someone without scaring the life out of them?

    -juice
  • jfljfl Member Posts: 1,396
    High pitched air horns are great! Just wish I could find a place to mount them in my Legacy. It's hard to find room for both the trumpets and the compressor!

    Had them in a prior car. Two teens were doing the basketball thing with a trash can (at least they weren't litter bugs). One of them was standing on the asphalt, one toot on the horn and he practically jumped out of his shoes!
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    What legacy do you have? I fit these buggers in the engine compartment of the SVX which is pretty cramped.

    juice: these are dual trumpets which are slightly quieter than the triples in the Trooper, also the stock horns have been disabled so it's not a combo of the stockers + Trumpets that I have in the Trooper. If I gently tap the horn it isn't so bad :)

    -mike
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    I can imagine the combination of mike's average speed (Mach 2.5) and those horns creating somewhat of a sonic boom! ;-)

    -juice
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I think I'm gonna get another set for the Trooper to add in addition to the triples in there already :)

    -mike
  • jfljfl Member Posts: 1,396
    Mike, I have a 2000 Legacy L sedan.
    Jim
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I'll check one out either tonight or at the latest on saturday and let you know where to mount em, maybe even take a pic for yah.

    -mike
  • jfljfl Member Posts: 1,396
    Thanks Mike. I'm doing an oil change this weekend so I'll look again, but I just don't remember a reasonable location.
    Jim
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Hint - BubBomb put one on his. He made a home-made U-shaped bracket out of aluminum, and bolted it to the ABS controller behind the passenger side headlight.

    Check it out, he found space there.

    -juice
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    You'll find space in front of the batter on the driver's side, but I'll be seeing a few legacies @ our installfest in NJ on sat so I'll snap a few shots and see what we can do.


    -mike

    http://iace.com/azp

  • lucien2lucien2 Member Posts: 2,984
    bugbomb, not budbomb. :)) email me if you want to contact him.
  • bsvollerbsvoller Member Posts: 528
    Thanks for the info on the chassis brace.

    You mentioned a "chassis brace under the car" for camping.

    Is that an animal that can be found in these parts ? How would it be mounted ?

    Thanks in advance, and sorry to keep pestering you about this,

    -brianV
  • locke2clocke2c Member Posts: 5,038
    brian--

    not I doubt such a thing exists for the impreza, but an under-floorpan crossbrace would be exactly what you'd need to keep the center of the chassis from flexing with added weight and going offroad.

    -Colin
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Had the SVX tinted to 35% on saturda&sunday. My poor tint guy from http://iace.com/leetint took forever with the complex curves of the SVX windows. He did an outstanding job on it though. Pics at http://isuzu-suvs.com/svx/ Lee is a great installer up in the NY/NJ area. The price on the SVX was double that of the WRX Wagon!


    -mike

  • bsvollerbsvoller Member Posts: 528
    Teague's and others sell the Cusco lower arm brace for the Impreza, Legacy and Forester. It apparently mounts directly forward of the existing cross member/rear subframe, and ties the left and right sides of the chassis together at that point. Since it runs under the exhaust system, it looks like it costs you an inch of ground clearance or so.


    After looking at the cross member on my Forester over the weekend, I have my doubts as to lower arm brace. The stock subframe looks pretty beefy to me.


    There's a B4 site that has pic's as to the mount location. I'm assuming that the mount point is the same on all models.


    http://www.lumine.net/subaru/legacyb4/tuning/cusco_lowerarm.html


    Thanks for the info.


    -brianV

  • jresjres Member Posts: 69
    Hi crew, I just recently bought a digital compasss/thermometer/altimeter/barometer from costco which has been great so far but now I want to mount the external temp sensor.
    It fits very nicely into the area by the ashtray/power outlet on my 2000 legacy wagon
    I know this has been covered before but couldn't find it, Where does subaru mount the oem temp sensor for the mirror with the compass/temp functions? Also where on the firewall can I put the sensor wire through?

    As always all help is appreciated.

    John
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    budbomb sounds like the guy who always taps the keg...

    Tint looks good mike. That's a 35%? Looks darker from some angles. The cool thing is you can barely tell where the sheet metal ends and where the windows begin.

    Didn't someone just mention a place in the firewall that could be used for stuff like that? A triangular grommet near the steering column, IIRC?

    -juice
  • jresjres Member Posts: 69
    Thanks Juice, that'll give me someplace to start looking. Now I just have to find a mounting spot for the sensor that doesn't get engine heat, and that won't be easy with as much heat as that engine bay gives off.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Maybe in front of the radiator.

    I hope I'm not leading you down the wrong path - if anyone remembers more specifics please chime in.

    -juice
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I think the tint looks awsome with the black top of the SVX. 35% can be pretty dark with a dark interior. It just went in for the exhaust pipe leak tonight and will be done tomorrow. My buddy is gonna do the ATF cooler and filter on Tues. :) Then it'll be done for a while, maybe rear rotors at some point soon. I need to touch up the rear wiper arm, and put in some silica packs from electronics or vitamins in the rear tail lights to absorb some moisture also.

    -mike
  • hondafriekhondafriek Member Posts: 2,984
    Well just got my first look in the flesh at the new grill and bumper cover, I had thought I may change mine as I am not completely sold on the 2001-2002 grill and front bumper.

    I had liked the photos of the 2003 but now that I have seen it for real I think mine looks at least as good, so I may just leave well enough alone, besides I would have change fog lights as well and that can get expensive.

    Any other opinions on the 2003 front end as opposed to the 2001-2002.

    Cheers Pat.
  • barresa62barresa62 Member Posts: 1,379
    I like the look of the 2003 Legacy grille and front bumper, it looks a bit more aggressive. Having said that though, I don't think it's that much of a difference...kind of subtle. Unless you have a burning desire or are bored (gee...am I talking about myself, LOL!), I would leave yours well enough alone. :-)

    Stephen
  • subearusubearu Member Posts: 3,613
    changes ('hot' or not) to the '05 Legacy to be introduced in late '04.

    -Brian
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Pat: I like the new grille a little better, but I wouldn't swap it out.

    To me, the less chrome the better. Our L doesn't have much chrome, though, so it's fine to me.

    -juice
  • ccampbell4ccampbell4 Member Posts: 60
    Do you guys recommend the K&N replacement filter? K&N claims up to 4% hp gain. It seems like even that small amount might be noticeable at times. I'm just looking for a little better response, low end torque and gas mileage - which they claim can happen.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I have em in both my subie and my trooper. Only HP/pull gains are in the >3000RPM range Milage is down about .5mpg overall. I like it cause I can clean em at will and they don't get tossed in the garbage.

    -mike
  • lucien2lucien2 Member Posts: 2,984
    Some folks swear by K&N. May improve throttle response. Rallispec dynoed a car before and after, found no gain. *shrug* I had one, but ruined it at a rallycross...it was so choked with large debris I couldn't get it clean. I now run OEM and can't really tell the dif. Especially since I run without a snorkus, I am a little nervous about debris from the fender well and have gone back to the paper filters. YMMV.
  • lucien2lucien2 Member Posts: 2,984
    OK got the WRX rims for the Outback. An orthodox upgrade would be from 205/70/15 to 215/60/16 but this eliminates summer tires totally, leaving V rated all-seasons like the Pirelli 6000 and such. Should I just roll with this or futz with the sizing? I am not even sure what would fit on a 16x6.5 if I got too jiggy with it.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I'm not sure wider would go on the 6.5" rim. Why do you need snow tires? Heck we haven't gotten any snow all the way up here in NY the past 2 years.

    -mike
Sign In or Register to comment.

Helpful Tools

Most popular vehicles