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I see. THen the belt covers are not a luxury and one has better maintain the covers' seals. Always thought of them as a protection for the timing belt, but indeed bad covers could have a catastrophic effect on the crank. Always learning...

Just curious guys. How can a seal's soft lip wear down crankshaft metal? I must be missing something.

Could you send me some samples of your print work?

Has every chances of being an Outback only problem cause i drive in all kind of winter conditions here in Montreal and have never had such a problem with my Legacy. Sometimes (rarely) the wheel wells get packed with wet snow but that's about all.

Thanks to you both. I was not aware they went into such details.

If things have'nt changed since the Loyale the resistors pack is distinct from the motor and is right in the intake duct behind the glove box. Easy to find. Again, if things have not changed, the resistors are made of naked wires (each one in a loop) becoming very hot and often failing because they come in contact with debris (dry leaves,e tc.) coming thru the intake vents. If things are still like I say, then it's imperative that you clean the intake tube before replacing the pack.

If possible guys (99obw and Wawaker) could you give the board a detailed report on how you did. Would be useful for me cause i will have to do this probably sooner than later. For one, what's the advantage of a «hub tamer» over a press? Does'nt either one have to exert a pressure on the bearing to push it in? why would one damage the bearing or races and not the other? Just want to do this myself if possible and not ruin anything. Thanks for the info already given.

Just one thing to add (or correct). On a 96 Subaru, the temp sensor and the sending unit for the gauge are one and the same thing. Only one sensor.

I think he means he replaced the temp sensor cause on that MY car the temp gauge sending unit and the temp sensor are one and the same sensor. IT's like that on my 96 so it should be the same on the 97 model.

I'm not sure about this,but I doubt a water radiator is made to witstand oil pressure. On startup the pump generates close to 85 psi on my car. What's the max pressure a water radiator has to witstand? 30 psi?

I've been uneasy at times tinking about the very thin (in my opinion) Subaru AWD tolerance of 1/4 inch in tire circumference from front to back. Found it difficult to directly measure the tires circumference using a tape. You have to measure exactly at the same place on the tire, and be sure the tape goes straight around the tire, etc. This morning I went at a college parking lot, measured that 13 parking spaces were equivalent of about 20 tire revolutions. I put a chalk mark on front and rear tires at the point of road contact and proceeded to give them the 20 revs going in a straight line. If the tires circumferences had a difference of 1/4 inch or more I would find the marks 5 or more inches apart at the end of the experiment. They were nor more than 1 inch from each other relative to the tire's contact patch. My mind is now at ease: my viscous coupling is not in danger. I might try something else next time and measure what effect a difference in pressure does to the rolling radius of a tire. T'was to cold to add that to the experiment this morning. My contribution to car science :santa: Please, no Nobel prize necessary.

Makes sense. Thanks!

Are these tests detailed or do you receive only a pass do not pass report? And if they are, is there a part where they give the metal shaving count (weight, etc.) of the oil? Are they giving you precise measure of the viscosity, the contaminant content, dirt content, metal content, etc. explicitely?

Thanks Skip. There's a yellow paint mark on the pressure plate I received from 1stSubaruparts. So this must be it. Am I looking for a similar paint spot on the flywheel? And since we are talking about paint spots, there is a green paint spot on one side of the casing of each strut I also got from them, and a blue paint spot on one side of the piston also. What am I to do with those paint spots?

What is the «unbalance point» and what's its function?

Since the problem triggers a CEL according to your daughter, the fault code is now stored in the computer's memory. Might be the time to have someoche check what it is...

Stop it right now! Already very difficult to pinpoint a mechanical or electrical problem, too many variables! And now you want us to put our subconscious in the equation! Haaaaaghhhh!

Same thing happened to me after replacing the drive belt. I learned that you have to check them shortly after because the belt sets and elongates durint the first few thousands kilos. So everything is normal.

AVK, I admit I did'nt think about thar aspect of using a chain wrench on the crank pulley, but my opinion is that the pressure needed to hold the pulley still while one loosens the nut is not suficient to harm anything. The pressure would have to be strong enoug to deform the metal outer part of the pulley to do any harm. But that's only my opinion not a certitude by any means. At least there are at this moment no apparent damage done to the pulley that I can see or hear.

Using special tools must be the easier way if not the cheapest. Not so long ago I replaced the cam belt on my car and successfully used a chain Visegrip to remove the crank pulley nut and to loosened the cam pulleys nuts. You only have to put a piece of old drive belt on the crank pulley and a piece of old cam belt on the cam pulleys to protect them. An added advantage of the chain Visegrip is that the relatively short handle (about 8 inches) always catches on something (on the alt housing I think when removing the crank bolt and on another pulley when loonsening the cam pulleys' nuts) letting you work with both hands. The tool is cheap and can be used for a number of other tasks. Just my 2 cents. Congrats on a successful repair Oscar. Though I tink you should have replaced the cam seals (cheap) just for peace of mind. What if they begin leaking in 20K ? But I might be the worrying kind for those things. Cheers!

99OBW, in your opinion, is the new prodedure only for the rear bearings or also for the front ones. Seems End Wrench is only referring to the rear bearings. Am I missing something?

Thanks a lot 990bw. Regarding the bearings, my intention was to remove the knuckles and bring them to a mchine shop or to a dealer to have the old bearings removed and the new on pressed in. But the idea of buying a «hub tamer» and doing it myself appeals to me. Could you give me some more info on that tool. What brand you bought, etc.? And thanks again.

Since my car is entering its ninth year and its ninth long and corrosive Montreal winter, I took profit of the relatively strong canadian dollar (not sure it will last) to order from 1stSubaruparts a load of parts I will likely have to replace in the not so far future. Amongst them, four struts. 1) First thing I would like to know from those with older cars and having replaced some struts, is what are the chances I will have also to relplace the strut support (the part on top of the strut) and maybe other suspension parts as well. If so this will give me the chance to order in advance. 2) Also, if the gods permit, I will replace at the same time, the complete clutch assembly, crank and cam seals, struts, front bearings and frond drive axles. Anyone done this and have some advice to share with me ?

I did this not so long ago on a Brighton the same age as your car. If you replace the front one (it's on the front part of the first cat just at the junction of the exhaust manifold Y pipes) you dont need a special socket nor to jack up the car. You can reach it easily bending over the right fender (the sensor is then just under the right inner front axle boot) and you can remove and replace it with an open wrench of the correct size (dont remember exactly what it was but easy for you to measure). Good idea also to buy a universal one and splice it in to the original connector. Good luck!

Is the engine turning over and not starting or is the engine not cranking at all? If the engine is turning over and not starting it could be a million things. People here would need more infos. If tne engine is not cranking then the next question is «are the dash lights illuminating when the car is not starting ?». if not then it's probably the ignition switch. If the dash lights are on, the question is «do you hear a click ?». if so it's probalby the starter's solenoid contacts, if not then it could be the clutch pedal switch or the starter relay (under the dash on the left side).