porcupine73

There's a jumper on some connector you can hook up and get it to flash out the code(s) if you want to try to find out why the light is on.

Yes, often that means your alternator is faulty. Don't let your battery go dead too many times or it will ruin the battery too. On older starter batteries even going dead once is usually enough to do them in.

I've ordered the genuine pads. I have some new unused rotors for the front. The '96 and '94 seem OK during normal driving and light braking, but if you have to stop fast you have to absolutely stand on the pedal, then they will smoke a little bit from the front when you do get stopped. In other cars I've had stepping on the brakes that hard will either lock the wheels or activate the ABS usually, but not in these two. They do stop but take longer than I want. If I could get the wheels to lock or ABS to activate I would at least then know it wasn't my brakes that were the limiting factor anymore. So I'll start with front pads and rotors and see how that works. The existing rotors are pretty rusty from sitting, and the pads I know are not the best on there. Of course the '96 has rear drums which probably doesn't help, plus they both have the single piston front calipers. I'm just worried someone is going to pull out in front of me and these weak brakes are going to be a major problem suddenly.

Oh ok I missed that in the product description. That would be a little easier if you don't have to loosen the jam nut and take the outer end off and count the turns.

Thanks for the input. Hm yes the genuine Subaru pads.....price is on par with 'premium' offerings from other sources. I have used those successfully in the past.

I haven't tried that product. Those boots will run you about $25 each for the genuine part, so I guess there is a possible small savings in using the Rakboot. There's always a downside in 'universal fit' products, because for many applications that means 'almost fits' or can be made to fit but maybe not quite right. The secret to getting the boot over the rack end is silicone spray.

I'm guessing this has been covered...but what's everyone's favorite brake pads for the Subaru? I need to do the fronts on my '96 and '94. Want something with excellent bite and fade resistant. Not as concerned with how long they last, noise, or how much rotor they eat. Could care less how much dust they make. Looking around, some people seem to say the EBC 'Ultimax' OEM replacement pads have these characteristics? I have some Autozone silver pads on the '96 now, and unknown type on the '94. Both of them will stop reasonably well if you step on the pedal hard enough, but they will often smoke. Neither of them can I step hard enough to lock the wheels ('96 has no ABS), or make the ABS kick in ('94).

The axle nut is (supposed to be anyway) staked so that it cannot loosen on its own. And if it did loosen up it seems it would likely damage the wheel bearing if driven like that. They tell you not to even loosen the axle nut with the weight on the wheel because it could damage the bearing.

Thanks I will double check the backing plate. I didn't see it touching the rotor anywhere. It's also weird how it seems to make this noise only at certain times and I can't get any noise doing it by hand or with no load on the wheels. I THINK I FOUND IT!!!!!! The heat shield above the rear cat was touching the driveshaft it looks like. I can see rub marks on the driveshaft. So I bent it down some. I think I must've bent it up while replacing the rear o2 sensor: http://ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=127661 I think I did the rear o2 on Friday night, then did the axle Saturday and hadn't driven it in between. Going to take a quick test drive to make sure sound is gone, then put the new axle back in....I hope!!!!!!!!!!!

Hm now I don't know. I put the old axle back in but it is still making this noise. It seems to be coming from the front differential area though it's hard to tell for sure while inside the vehicle. I did mess around a little bit with some of the heat shields above the rear driveshaft now that I think about it, hopefully it is one of those rubbing but it doesn't sound like it's coming from back that far.

Oh sorry I might have my generations mixed up. So I will have a possible axle I can try it sounds like if I knock the tone ring off if I can't figure out what is causing that metal on metal vibrating/grinding sound I got after replacing the first one. I thought about putting the old axle back in as a test but if that makes it go away I really don't want to have to R&R the thing a third time.

Thanks, I'm going to look at it some more right now. I was listening to it more while driving today and it sounds like it is coming from the diff end more than the wheel end. It sounds like metal on metal but when not accelerating or coasting a bit it will get intermittent. Doesn't make any noise at low speeds just when you get above 10-15mph. I hope I didn't screw up the differential somehow. I don't think the stub shaft pulled out at all when I took the old one off but I will have to take a closer look.

Yes, that works for me every time. You don't even need to bother 'unstaking' the indent. I use a 32mm 6pt socket, 3/4 drive on a breaker bar, then put a 4 foot long pipe over that and slowly put my weight onto it. I haven't found one yet that can resist that. I put a small pry bar into the vent on the brake rotor to keep it from rotating. Now since yours is not mounted to a vehicle you might have some work to try to secure it down somehow to apply the required force.

Are the AWD axles for the front compatible for say a '96 n/a Legacy and an '00 Outback? The only difference I could see by looking at them side by side was that the '00 Outback axle has a tone ring, which I think I read could simply be driven off if not needed. I didn't count the splines but they looked the same. Appeared to be the same length. I put a reman axle in my '96 Legacy and now it's making this [thread=127722]metal on metal rubbing sound now[/thread]. I have an unused reman axle for an '00 Outback. If i can drive the tone ring off and run it in the '96 that would tell me whether it is the axle making this noise or not.

Hm that's neat that it came with the bracket. I'll have to try their big 30 code. I have been getting calipers at Carquest, those also come with the brackets.

If you have some ramps or a ditch you can pull over that would make it fast to examine all the boots. Some of the aftermarket axles cause weird vibrations but it probably doesn't happen all the time to everyone.

The grease in the genuine Subaru axles does make a very acrid stank when it gets on the exhaust. I remember when my first one went I wondered who's car was making that horrible smell. Then when I parked at home depot I realized it was mine! People were walking in front of it and wrinkling their noses and wafting at the stank.

If you simply shoved the piston back into the bore, it will probably sieze up on you. Usually they sieze because there is a little bit of rust around the piston at the end where it is not in the bore.

Transmission shops usually screw up Subaru transmission rebuilds. When it's cold, it either won't go into fourth or lock up the torque converter (I forget which), until the ATF warms up. So maybe something is weird with your ATF temp sensor if it seems to be doing it longer than it used to? The transmission has only four gears; there is no fifth gear. When the torque converter locks in fourth that can feel like another shift sometimes.

I replaced the front left axle and the seal where it slides into the hub on my '96 Legacy with a genuine Subaru reman. But now, at certain times, it makes this kind of metal rubbing on metal sound. It almost sounds like a heat shield rattle. It only does it above maybe 10-15 mph, while accelerating or maintaining speed. When coasting, it does not make any sound. It does not make any sound below 10-15 mph. I put the FWD fuse in, lifted the front wheels, and ran it up to around 30 mph, and it made no sound. Rotating the tires by hand I hear nothing. I feel nothing strange when rotating the tires by hand. It was quiet before I replaced the axle. The sound goes with the wheel speed. It doesn't shimmy or shake or anything or feel strange at all; it just makes that sound. It's loud enough to be irritating. I checked it over, I see nothing rubbing, the brake backing plate is not rubbing. I don't know what else to do/check? Could the axle be faulty?

I don't think it will be 'plug and play'. I believe at the minimum you'll need to change the wiring harness and ECU, since 2003 Forester is going to be MAP/speed density based and the '95 is going to be MAF based. I don't know how well the '95 ECU will interface to the 2003's phase II 4EAT TCU. (Assuming it's an auto trans) Also the '03 Forester probably has the evap cansiter in the rear, and the '95 has it under the hood near the radiator, so you might have to play around there. Not sure if the exhaust's match up? Some engines had single port and others dual port exhausts.

If a piston is stuck, usually you need to remove the piston from the bore and inspect it and the bore. If they're not corroded, you can use a reseal kit and it should be OK. If there is excessive corrosion might as well put on a rebuilt. Or mess around with it to try to remove the rust yourself, and use a cylinder hone in the bore possibly. Loaded calipers usually include the caliper and bracket with pads already mounted, ready to mount. You would not want this unless you were using it in pairs, because you want the pads to be the same type on both sides. Semi loaded can mean different things, it might include new brake hardware and possibly the bracket.

Let's see, I have an older Subaru brake troubleshooting chart, let me find it. Yes, subarupartsforyou.com accepts them. I just burned $400 Subaru bucks with them. If you mail your Subaru bucks to anyone, I highly suggest making copies beforehand, and sending it with signature required. Mailing the bucks is almost like sending cash in the mail, and I have had trouble with the other party saying they never received them in the past.

Hm, yes I would try the FWD test then. If that works, it doesn't really make sense that the valve body would be causing the problem. Is that a 5EAT? I believe when they say valve body, they are referring to it and any solenoids on it, probably they want to swap it out as a unit, possibly with a re-manufactured.

In your first posts, I thought you were in Buffalo, NY. But after seeing that statement I know you are definitely not in Buffalo, NY!