johnceggleston

i don't want to stael the thread or start a debate that can't be resolved without listening to the car in person, but ..... i'd be interested in how they determined it was a rod bering. as i understand it, you have a 96 2.5L outback a/t. apparently you went to more than 1 shgop, and they all said the same thing. i assume they know what they're talking about, but any chance it's piston slap?? i bought a 97 obw which was diagnosed as a bad wrist pin when it was / is piston slap. i got it cheap cause the seller's mechanic didn't know subarus. bad things do happen, b ut it seems to me that with subarus, it happens less often. even if it is a bearing, i think i'd drive it a while (unless you are absolutely sure). if it breaks down on you the price only goes up the amount of the tow, inconvenience, and desperate engine purchase.

i did a right rear door on a 95 leg. it was pretty easy, it helps to roll down the window first, and have a stool/box to prop the door on while mounting. measure the needed height before you remove the existing door. i think i left hte hinges on the door, work from the bottom to the top when removing and top to bottom whne installing. good luck.

i guess you have to pull the starter to check it out. but you could always use the opening to the flywheel (and a mirror) on the other side of the car, (where you lock down the fly wheel when tightening the crank puley bolt) to check the flywheel teeth. if no damage , it has to be the starter. then when you do remove the starter, you'll have the needed parts on hand to complete the job. if damaged, drive to michigan, wait for snow, slush is better, and do the work on the side of the road, in a puddle, at night, alone, where they don't sell beer...

and while you're at it ... you can remove the keyway from the ignition switch, (2 plastic housings, 3 or 4 screws and a push pin to release the keyway while the key is in it) and have the lock smith replace the pins in the keyway to match the existing. then your new key will work perfectly. you can also make it match any other subaru key you might carry. i love having one key operate 2 cars.

i think all the doors are the same. the rear quarter panels on the sedans and wagons are different heights, and lok different, but the doors should match. but is sounds like you may be looking for a front door since you need fenders and grill.

it's a good thing i didn't claim to be an expert.

i think the manuals have a 3.90 the 2.5 a/t's have a 4.44 and the 2.2 a/t's have 4.11 but i'm not an expert, just done some research at car-parts.com. you need to research the part number on the top rear driver side of the tranny, and compare it to the id tag on the driver side strut post under the hood. if both are tz102zxxxx then maybe you're ok..... . basicially you need an outback (2.5) tranny for an outback. 2.5's are different than 2.2's. however , 96 was a transisition year, not all outbacks had 2.5 engines. good luck. john

as some one pointed out previouysly, an older car will save you cash up front, but you may well have to address a few maintenance / repair items that were neglected. but the god news is that you have a good running car to drive. so keep the 84, and buy the new one. get the new one running right and then sell the 84. (if you want) insuring 2 cars will cost more , but it won't break you if only for a couple of months. this will give you time to fine tune the new car. do some repairs and give you an idea of how reliable it is. then, invest at least half of what the car payment would have been. you will thank yourself in the long run.

the speedo operates off of the front, VSS#2. passenger side front of the trans. near the top. the wire connector is below the air, intake right side, near the fire wall. should be a 3 wire connector.

FIRST, BE GENTLE WITH OLDER PLASTIC PARTS, THEY MAY ALREADY BE CRACKED AND COULD BREAK. remove the cup holder remove the 2 screws that hold in the cup holder receiver & remove remove the ashtray remove the screws, 2 (?) inside top of the ashtray reciever/holder & remove there may be 2 more screws where the cup holder mounts that i can't remember remove the radio bezel (that's the plastic trim surrounding the radio) now the 4 screws holding the radio in, 2 each side , should be accessable remove the 4 screws holding in the radio pull the radio forward, reach behind it and disconnect the wiring plug connector, there should be a press down tab to release. and yes you may have to shift into 1ST to make room for the extraction. good luck.

or you can find out what the insurance deadline is and tell the other guy, he has till then to pay up or else....

how do you know / find a good used back half? that is the gamble. like buying a good used tranny, not all of them are good. but at least with the clutch pack you get to look at them before you install.

don't forget to fill us in upon your return.

there are 4 bolts on the rear u=joint. disconnect all 4 use wire to hang the shaft out of the way. the heat sheild is the biggest problem, it covers half of thre work area. but it will come out with 6 or 8 bolts as well, no need to pull the exhaust. 8 bolts will remove the rear section of the shaft. the 2 i've done weren't too bad. the snow belt may be worse. are you going to ohio??

someone posted a what appeared to be an official soa report stating that if the owner / driver complained long enough, they should replace the bad pistons to elimnate piston slap. (they have an improved pistons.) this was probably for an older year, but give it a shot. they have to go into the engine any way, what's a few pistons? keep on them. new cars should not have piston slap. good luck.

i'm afraid that's a relationship problem, not a fuel light problem!! :-\

if you register your car / vin at https://my.subaru.com/, you should be able to view a copy of your owners manual online. the manual is bound to address the low fuel light.

just keep your eyes closed!! it'll be ok!!

there was a post last year talking about a dash problem. somethjing about it not being in the perfect position when installed and then the bolts being loose or the holes not lining up. i think the repair involved redrilling mountin / bolt holes and reinstalling. they even had pictures, i think. it's been a long time since i read it, try searching for dash rattle or the like. atart with those listed below the blue bar bottom of page.

i'm thinking roofing tar, some rubber hose and then some kind of plastic shield. but spray on "Undercoating" like said above sound like a good idea.

i don't think the hatch sensor is a button like the doors, but i'm not sure. whatever it is, find it and jump/short it out. then the light won't even come on when it is open.

look for leaks!!

i've heard it's as low as 11$ a month, but i'd very surprised if it is. more like 15$ i think.

unless you know more than most of the people here, follow this rule when swapping trannys: get the exact same year and model as the one you have!!! OR get the rear diff that goes with the new trans. AND MAYBE get the TCU, especially if the model, year and engine are different. you can't make a mistake if you do. you can get a rear diff for 50$ to 75$, i don't know how much TCU's cost.

define older car, 90 - 94 ? or what? 90 to 99?