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I just got a 5 speed 2002 Outback in from a customer that's for sale. We put in a JDM short block and did the 642 gasket upgrade less than 3 years ago. New radiator and hoses, clutch, clutch hydraulics, and PS hoses. Older lady owned it and her husband took out the AC compressor, couldn't finish the job, battery died, and then it appears he tried to jump it with the cables reversed and blew the main fusible link. We fixed all that and put in a good AC compressor, new battery, and new terminals. Anyway she sold me the car after they got a divorce and it was "broken" so she bought a new Camry. Nothing wrong with it, not a stitch of rust on it anywhere (west coast - we don't get that). She invested $5000 in it over the last 3 years and it runs and drives perfectly. Usual wear for this age - needs new floor mats. The driver's side carpeting is a little torn up. Eventually might want a new drivers seat but it's pretty minor. It's dark blue. $3000 It's about $1500 to ship it to the east coast. Edit - SOLD. I never have them more than about a week. GD

Checked and adjusted the front toe. IT was in a bit close to the max. Picture is of checking the rear toe, it's out past the max, so I adjusted it in. Surprising how little it moved to get close. Big pain is having to remove the tire to get at the bolts.... I made 4 small plumb bobs to get pointers near the tape measures. Want ridged "rulers". Want something less fussy than dangling weights, but for now, it works.

The 2000-2004 are great tanks for a kid to learn in. In the rust belt, you should make sure rear sub frame is not rusty. Wheel bearings, Head gaskets, timing belt replacement are all good stuff to look for. I sometimes find a cheap outback with a broken timing belt for cheap. Then fix the heads, do the head gasket and timing belt, idlers, cam o rings etc rear main......you get the idea and while it is up drain and fill the tans with a new spin on trans filter. That way, you pay $250-500 for the car, but can afford to do all the rest of the things that will make it reliable.

Figuring out a DIY alignment rig. Next to figure out is how to get accurate measurements side to side. Car body and exhaust is in the way of simply using a tape measure. The bars are light weight aluminum attached to Neodymium magnets salvaged from old hard drives. I shimmed them so the height of the magnet face to the outer edge of the bar is within .001" of parallel.

Sounds like an intermittent electrical connection. Being in Alaska I would put my money on corrosion somewhere. Start wiggling wiring connections and harnesses with the engine running and see if you can replicate the issue. Sounds like it's related to the drivetrain shifting when driving at lower speeds and accelerating from a stop, etc since you say it rarely, if ever, does it on the highway. Another potential is a dead spot in the TPS. Check it with a scope if you can. Don't troubleshoot with the parts cannon. GD

the muffler thing is a total red herring. it is a "single" exhaust system made to look like a dual. forget about that aspect. you could eliminate one of those mufflers completely and still have a fully functional exhaust system. the problem is elsewhere.

Thanks for the Subaru love Skip. I remember him citing people for run on sentences on the forum that were hard to follow and had too many details to keep track as it is a bit more difficult to follow on the internet on half moon cloudy days during the spring. Similarly I also remember him asking people. To use more spacing between thoughts. Use more breaks to space things out and make it simpler to follow. Ive taken a lot of his grammatical advice and think of him when I hit “enter”, but mostly I appreciate his Subaru help and early adopter of the community attitude. Very cool. Cheers Skip

So the shift mount on my 87 GL broke and I would like some input on my fix I Found this online, I don't have a welder so bolt on is great I scarped the old rubber and sent both side through the drill press. This is how it fits. I plan on painting it at some point but is seems to be working What do you guys think?

The failure of a turbo would not cause the engine to lock up. It would simply cause the turbo to stop spinning. A turbo is not a positive displacement pump so air will still flow and the engine will still run. Albeit with a slight performance loss. The failure of the cat in and of itself is NOT safety concern. If the vehicle continues to be driven under these conditions it may result in futher collateral damage but the driver should heed the warnings of noises and power loss long before this becomes an engine stall situation. Just because it's inconvenient and expensive to tow the vehicle if you're on a "long road trip"?!? LOL. That should be budget for in your trip. Duh. $hit happens. It's not Subaru's responsibility to fix your budgetary oversights. You ever heard "save for a rainy day". Downpour is here yo! Furthermore I am not aware of any safety related recalls for converter disintegration unless it's very early in the cars life. Converters fail and sometimes they create collateral damage. It's a fact of car ownership. Seriously this is ridiculous. Go call the whhhaaambulance. Sorry you had to pay for a converter and collateral damages on your decade old Subaru turbo? LoL. Welcome to the club - buyer beware. GD

GD, I work over the cube wall from our warranty department (OEM manufacturer). I write recalls, interact with our legal counsel as well as with NHTSA reps. "Sudden loss of control" is only one of the criteria used by NHTSA to determine if something needs to happen. A cat disintegrating, locking up the turbo or taking out the engine is absolutely something that could be covered under a safety recall because guess what, if you engine munches your turbo, you lose the ability to accelerate, brake with power assistance, steer with power assistance, all things NHTSA generally frowns upon. Is it likely to happen? Maybe not, but it could, and that's all that matters really. NHTSA isn't only interested in safety, that's why they have a customer portal on their website, the link says "Report A Problem," and there is no criteria given for what they consider acceptable types of complaints. Manufacturers generally don't initiate recalls on their own, unless people are dying or the company stands to lose millions in dissatisfied fleet buyers, so it's really on us as consumers to report anything and everything. You may disagree, but take it from someone working in the belly of the beast...

@carfreak85 I'll call and see what I can do. I think, I can buy it back as a salvage title, but then we can tow it to where ever it needs to go. You could always just give me the amount I spent to buy it back. I've also got a spare ea82 that was going to go in it eventually.

Not that much left after rust removal. Quite complicated area to fabricate metal for, but very satisfying to see the result. Had some minor fires, but nothing serious.

My apologies if this has been previously submitted. We would often ask about Skip up to just what seems like right up to his passing. Yes , it looks like our dear friend and great member of our community passed away last August. Something made me look up Skip today. First I looked up Rolling Rock Beer , because that was Skip’s brand. Yes , the did bring it back and it’s still on the market. Skip , Godspeed brother ! Green number 33 I will surely raise to you next chance I get. The obituary: Skip” Gary Dankmyer, 66 of Bradenton, FL passed away August 13, 2018. Born in Pittsburgh, PA and became a snow bird from 2004 to 2011 when he permanently moved to Bradenton from New Alexandria, PA. Skip was a member of the Triumph Club of Western Pennsylvania, Attended Thiel College in Greenville, PA and earned a Masters at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA. He was an avid car collector, Harley Davidson Enthusiast, a loving master to his black lab Watson and best friend of Tom and Alice Proffer. Predeceased by his Parents, William Frederick Dankmyer and Mary Louise Dankmyer; wife, Georgean F. Dankmyer. Survived by his sister, Sheila Louise Mangeno. There will be no Services. Brown & Sons Funeral homes & Crematory 43rd Street Chapel 604 43rd Street West Bradenton, Florida 34209 in charge of arrangements. Condolences to: www.brownandsonsfuneral.com