porcupine73

The word I heard about those is they do go on pretty easy but they just aren't durable enough to hold up for a long period of time.

Other threads have stated that yes some Subaru OEM struts are made by KYB, but they are not KYB GR-2's, and that the GR-2's are a little stiffer valving than stock. If the GR-2's received did not have the tab for the ABS wire, they were probably the wrong part #. The KYB Web site has their 'passenger car catalog' and will tell you the part #'s for abs, no abs, etc, so you can double check that it is correct vs. what the seller says.

If you want a set of four struts, ebay vendor jdmwerks13 has pretty good prices. Don't expect any e-mails or shipping confirmations but I got mine in good shape in about a week I think it was. Also ordered from performancepeddler on eBay but got one wrong strut; they did take it back though. http://www.SummitRacing.com and http://www.TireRack.com also have the KYB's, ship fast, and have excellent customer service. I didn't order from them because they were out of stock on at least one of the struts I needed each time. I am very happy with the GR-2's on my '00obw. People also like Bilstein's but they don't make struts for many Subaru's. The only other struts I ever replaced though were with Monroe's on my '91 Escort years ago, then it felt like I was riding in a boat.

Sorry here's a bigger pic of the label. I was just freaked out because I assumed I had an oem alternator, then spotted this label out of site on the bottom......I was just in a little bit of shock. I ordered an oem reman because the bearings seem loose and squeaky on this one. This napa alternator must've been put in shortly before I got the vehicle, since I did get it summer of '04...

Oh when you recharge your battery with a charger, you should SLOW charge it, like 2 amps or less rate; it may take a day or two to recharge it. Fast charging on a dead starter battery is not good for it and it may not even recover. You would find that alternator as an OEM reman (or possibly even new but you're talking $$$$$ then) from any Subaru dealer. Subaru dealers who sell parts online are generally a lot less price than the walk-in price at a local dealer. Some examples include http://www.subarupartsforyou.com and http://www.subarugenuineparts.com and there are dozens of others.

8-10V idling no accessories on is an alternator or wiring issue. You can remove the alternator to get it tested; the parts stores normally have this motor/pulley thing to drive the alt off the vehicle to test it. If/when you install a new alternator, you should FIRST recharge your battery with a battery charger before starting so as to not put excessive load on the new (hopefully OEM ream) alt with a dead battery.

Doing a bunch of work on my '96 2.2L Legacy brighton wagon....and I noticed a squeaky noise when I accidentally bumped/rotated the alternator pulley. So I checked it out some more....rotating it often results in a squeak sound...and the pulley does not turn evenly, it vibrates in the axial direction. Then I checked the bearings.....a small but noticeable amount of freeplay. So I figure why would a soob alternator do this? I think this vehicle had the recall for the brush at high rpm or whatever that was. Then I spot the label in the pic below on the bottom this alternator, so I peel it off to read it. What should I do about this issue?!

Ok yes that is a low voltage. Assuming the meter is good, could either be a bad cell in the battery or something like that, or a bad alternator, or one or more bad connections. How about engine running, all accessories turned off, idling, check voltage at terminals? I wouldn't drive the vehicle like that because it may die in traffic and/or leave you stranded.

Wow! Do those make turns without rubbing?

When you say the battery wouldn't go past 10 volts, is that reading right at the battery terminals, or is that a reading in the gauge cluster? Some number of '99s seem to have had clusters that went south.

http://www.wixfilters.com 4eat phase II ATF filter is Wix 51365 also Napa Gold, carquest and some others are rebadged Wix That's only for the phase II's. If you have a phase I without the spin on filter on the side of the trans (or in the LH fender for H6's) then it does not use this filter. Both the phase I and phase II have the suction strainer screen in the pan but those are almost never dirty.

The original question asked was "what would you pay for..." Different people are willing to pay different amounts for different things at different points in time. It doesn't mean there is anyone willing to sell the item at the price the person is willing to pay.

I put grease on the oil seal lip, all over it, to help prevent it from folding over on installation and give it some lubrication. Usually I put a little engine oil on the outside of the seal to help it drive in otherwise it can be a little tight. Sometimes I use RTV if I gouged up the hole the seal will sit in. Permatex grey gasket sealant (not ultra grey, though that would be good too) seems to work well. It is liquidy but when it dries a little it is kind of tacky, so it helps the seal go in then holds it in while sealing. If too much lube is on the outside of the seal, it seems to make it more likely to 'tip' on installation, like the bottom will suddenly go in way deep and the top will pop out.

Much gasoline does now contain 10% ethanol whether there is a label on the pump or not, as many states outlawed MTBE, the stuff that was previously used that someone mentioned that contaminates ground water. There are some areas left where you can get gas that doesn't contain ethanol.

Hi. Here's a pic of some fastcam bolts I got from summitracing.com I still don't know why they would say the camber is not adjustable (for the front) - the rear I think is non-adjustable on that style suspension (provided it's not multilink) without using at least one of these camber bolts per side. The soobs I believe are generally 14mm. You can certainly install the fastcam bolt yourself. Adjusting the camber can be more tricky, unless you want zero camber. I have done zero camber myself with a level and just iterative adjustments. If you try to adjust the camber yourself, you need a level surface like a concrete garage floor that is not sloped too much, and you have to pull the vehicle in and out between liftings and adjustments. The camber bolt (on the front) is the top bolt:

I think often vehicles are capable of running this fuel even if it's not a 'flex fuel vehicle' (FFV) or whatever they're calling them, maybe that's just what Ford was calling them. Some of the issue may come down to materials compatibility, such as the fuel tank, fuel lines, injectors, etc, as to if they can handle that much ethanol long term. Some boat owners have had issues with fiberglass fuel tanks with gasoline containing ethanol; not that your typical vehicle would have such a problem these days. Fuel economy on a vehicle not intended to run more than 10% ethanol (most soobs) might not be as good as an FFV vehicle whose ECU may be better able to use the energy.

'99 auto trans especially thoroughly check out. Some of the autos got the delayed shift into drive syndrome as well. I think also some number of the speedo heads went south. Then also the potential HG issue. Not at all saying it's not a good vehicle; just things to be aware of going in.

Was it the sensor for the temp gauge? Or was it the engine coolant temp sensor for the ECU?

It could just be a coincidence. The only truly oil level related code I've seen is on the newer variable valve timing engines. Can you get to an autozone or someplace that reads codes for free? Not sure if you're in the U.S.....

Go for it! But yes the drain plug only gets about half the fluid out. You can use an OEM ATF filter, they are like $25; you can get a Wix equivalent from Napa (Gold) or Carquest or others if desired.

Hi. Yes RH (passenger) inner boot is a common one to go at that mileage. I just had it happen on '00obw. The OEM axles are very durable. I'd either have the existing axle rebooted (if it hasn't been torn long enough to get grit in there), or go with a Subaru OEM reman or an MWE axles reman, or many people like GCK axles from the auto parts store. I wouldn't put an auto parts store reman in there at least no if it is an auto trans; too many complaints about some strange vibration when stopped in drive afterwards. If you are talking about the axle seal on the differential, then the retainer has to come off and there is an o-ring behind there too. This is the part: If you are talking about the inner axle seal on the bearing housing, that takes only a few minutes to pull the old one and drive a new one:

Looks like someone is selling five on eBay right now for about $12 ea. plus $4.55 shipping. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Lisle-Tools-58430-Shaft-Type-Seal-Puller_W0QQitemZ260155485195QQcmdZViewItem Correction...four left!

Nice find OB99W. That does look interesting and just crazy enough to work! Looks like they go for $15-$20.

I got the craftsman seal puller; some people say it works great. I couldn't get mine to budge with it but did manage to scratch the cam with it.

Sometimes the dealer can be the issue. Only if the dealer is willing/comfortable/able to submit a warranty claim will they actually do it. Usually they have to confirm the customer's issue, diagnose (see the issue happen), determine the cause, correct the issue, and confirm the issue is corrected to get warranty reimbursement.