Rooster2

I have both a 98 and 99 OBWs, so my car knowledge is somewhat limited to the car that you drive the 97. They are all the same. In 2000, the Legacy and Outbacks, went to a slightly different motor. It is more reliable in regard to head gaskets. If and when they go bad, they simply weep coolant out of the motor, and not cause over heating problems as seen in the 96-99 Leggie models. If there is a slight leakange, it is just a matter of making sure the motor doesn't run low on coolant to the point of over heating. The vehicles are virtually the same, except for ground clearance. The GT wagon is built lower to the ground, so it will handle and corner better then an Outback, but not have the ground clearance of an Outback. However, it will be at a disadvantage in really deep snow. Gas millage will be the same between GT and Outback. Being built lower, it will be a little harder to get in and out of the driver seat. Don't know if a GT or Outback is more expensive as a used car. The car price books can tell you that. Happy car shopping, that is always fun!

I have both a 98 and 99 Outbacks. Both drip some oil. Like you, more of a nuisance then a problem. I use 10W-40W oil in the winter, 20W-50W in the summer. It is a little thicker, so drips less. There are also additives that can be added to the oil to slow down leaks, which help. The result, is prolly cut my oil drips in half. Sure, you could spend a ton of money fixing the leaks with new gaskets, but with cars this old, it hardly seems like a good way to spend money. Just IMHO.

Like others have posted, the price is way too high. Sounds like what a car dealer would charge. So happens that I own a 99 OBW. I have had it for the past 5 years. Major concern is always head gaskets. Some HGs last a long time, others don't, but eventually all will go bad. My motor lasted to 190K miles, before blowing it's original head gaskets. Problem always presents itself as an over heating engine problem. It can leave you stranded on the side of the road, and cost around $2,000 to have the HGs replaced. Continued driving when motor is over heating will ruin the motor. Other issue is a transmission problem. Tranny doesn't break, but develops "delayed forward engagement," when shifted from R to D, tranny is lazy about shifting into D. It is fixable with an additive to the tranny fluid. Other then those two issues, it is a fine car.

Glad your brother is okay. You can replace a Subie, but not your brother. Wonder why the motor quit while driving? Still without power steering, the car can still be steered. Just takes more arm muscle.

Last year I had a used '95, 2.2 installed in my 98 OBW, after wife cooked the original 2.5 that came with the car. The shop installed the 2.2 with no knock sensor issue, so I guess it is a simple plug and play. Suggest you replace the knock sensor, be careful not to tighten the bolt very tight, or you will crack the plastic casing around the knock sensor.

Do you have a CEL (check engine light on)? If so, pull the engine codes to learn the problem. Once fixed, your mpg should improve.

As Cal Look Zero, take the old cable off, take to an after market parts store, and have the counter guy match it up with one that will work. Price should be reasonable. A battery cable is not high tech, so no need to pay $79 for a perfect match from Subaru.

I would start by knowing your basics are good.......... How good are the spark plugs, plug wires? Has the EGR valve been cleaned/changed? Does motor warm up normally? If not, the water temp sensor or thermostat may be bad. Any of these things can cause poor mpg.

In what country are you stationed? Ordering car parts on line from ebay motors, or from other car parts companies may be an option, providing shipping costs and delivery time delay are not outrageous.

From how you described the car, it sounds like it has some good life left in it. A '93 would have the very dependable 2.2 motor in it. Yes, there is prolly a good chance that it needs the timing belt replaced, but not to worry a lot, because that 2.2 motor is non interference. Breaking the timing belt just stops the motor without causing valve damage. Just replace the TB, and your good to go again. Good to have you on this forum. Good luck with your "new" 93........Rooster2

Wix oil filters are of high quality, so I think their fuel filters would be high quality as well. IMO, I am not picky about what brand of fuel filter to use. I have never had any trouble with any brand that I have used.

If it were me, I too would opt for a new radiator. I put a new one in my wife's 98 OBW for less then $100. It is an ez swap out.

Worn tires??

It sound like you may be over tightening the worms screw clamps, if you find them cutting into the rubber. I have never had trouble with this style clamp. I have just tightened up the clamp snugly. I could always tighten more, but then the clamp starts cutting into the rubber. No need to tighten that much.

I suspect a bad seat heater switch. Suggest you swap wiring from driver seat to passenger side switch. If the driver seat warms up when you turn on passenger switch, then it is a bad switch for sure.

Not long ago, I took a fried 2.5 motor to a wrecking yard to scrap. Was amazed that a young skinny wrecking yard worker picked up the motor from the tail gate of my OBW, and moved it over to the bucket on a front end loader all by himself. I don't know the weight of a 2.5, but something that I am unwilling to try or do.

I am sure that you will not have any problem. On my 99 OBW, I went from 205/70/15 to 215/70/15 with no problem. Your Forester will sit prolly just a tad taller then before. It is important to know that all four of your tires HAVE to be the same size, so no mixing with your current tires. Otherwise, you would be causing trouble with your AWD.

I have replaced the blower motor before on a 91 Leggie. Yes, it is pretty much an upside down on your back kind of job. No easier way to do it. I hope you moved back the passenger seat as far back as possible to give you some extra room at the firewall.

I have the same thought as you, that snow & slush got packed into the shift linkage causing binding. I bet once things warmed up, and the slush melted, the problem went away.

I found some nice leather seats from a 97 OBW, that were in a wrecking yard. Only 5 bolts secure the seats to the floor, so it is easy to swap seats in. From my experience in removing the seats from the car, I would recommend either wrapping the bolt hole tabs with duct tape, or wrapping with a rag, when removing through the door opening. Otherwise, it is very easy for the tabs to scratch the paint on the door openings, as the seat passes through. I learned this the hard way by needlessly scraping my door openings. As mentioned by others, lots of seats will fit your car from other Subarus, but the seat buckle from new seat may not latch the tongue from your existing seat belt system. The solution is to swap out the buckle from your old seat to the new seat. They very easily bolt on. This is what I encountered when installing 97 OBW seats into my 99 OBW. If you can find them, Subaru leather seats are much more comfortable then the standard cloth seats. Many of the leathers are heated seats, so that feature can be added to your car. I paid $75 for a pair of front leather seats in good condition to give you an idea of cost, though I may have gotten a good deal.

Many wrecking yards use United Parcel Service (UPS) to ship parts. Ask a wrecking yard if a tranny can be shipped via UPS. One strong delivery guy should be able to carry the tranny to your front door. Often the yards will use super heavy duty commercial grade cling film to wrap parts for shipping. A used tranny is the way to go, not any sort of a rebuild, which would be too expensive.

I have not seen a deflector like this before. Am guessing it is an after market product designed to deflect air flow across the glass to blow rain off of it.

What a mess and ugly situation. I hate to hear this happening to anyone. The substance must have been in liquid form to get through the fuel filter. Then, once the gasoline vaporized, the substance turns into a solid. There is just so much of it, I have to think this is sabotage, pure and simple. I am thinking the gas tank and fuel lines are also full of this stuff.

I wrote the original thread years back. Trans-X works great for 99 & OO models Subies that develop the trany delayed forward engagement. With clean ATF, Trans-X will fix the delay within 10 minutes of driving. For me the product lasts a year, then the delay starts to creep back into play. Simply drain the ATF, add a can of Trans-X, and you are good to go for another year. I have done the drain and fill 3 times now, with great results each time. After the second go around, I drained and filled the ATF two times before adding Trans-X, as only about half the ATF can be drained from the tranny at a time. I did not want to leave much old Trans-X in the system.

I, and a friend, did the press out/press in bearing replacement using a Harbor Freight hub tamer. We got the job done with a lot of hard work and cussing, only to have the new bearing go bad in 6 months. Turned out the hub was damaged to begin with, but didn't know that. Suggest having someone press the bearing in to save yourself time and aggravation. I won't press in a bearing again. Hope all goes well.