Rooster2

After reading your post, and thinking about the coolant not flowing, I am suspicious that your head gaskets may still be the problem, even though you replaced them last summer. If a bad HG, lets enough hot exhaust gas to enter the cooling system, it will form a hot bubble. The water pump is designed to pump coolant, but can't pump much coolant, when a bubble of exhaust gas is present. A good test is to let the motor cool down, add coolant to the radiator, then start the motor, then look for air bubbles in the filled rad over flow tank, as the motor starts to warms up. If you see bubbles, then it is for certain that your HG has failed. I have both a 98 and 99 OB Wagons. They have both blown head gaskets, so I have seen the HG over heating problem first hand.

After thinking of how to fix this problem, I have come to the conclusion, that it is much easier to just splice into a hot wire, use an in-line fuse on the new wire, then wire that directly to the socket. I will use the existing green colored wire, which is a ground. The heck with trying to trace down relays, thermal fuses, searching for a wiring diagram, and what ever.

It is a two wire connection to the cig lighter. I used a circuit tester light, but could not get the tester to light. I even grounded to a bolt head, but still no light. I connected the two wires to old socket and new socket, and got no power, when I plugged in either the cig lighter or tire air pump, that is when I started looking to see if I had power.

I replaced the fuse in the fuse box. Is there an in line fuse as well?

I plugged my GPS into the cig lighter socket, only to have the socket short out and produce smoke. I replaced the burnt socket and blown fuse, and later realized that the plug unit on the GPS cord shorted out causing the problem. With the socket and fuse replaced, my circuit tester light tells me that I am now still not getting power to the socket. Replacing the fuse with another good fuse still did not solve the problem. Any thoughts on what to do next to solve this problem??

I have a similar situation with my 99 OBW. I jacked up the right rear, where the rotating noise was coming from. With the parking brake off, and trans in neutral, I could spin rotate the road wheel. I figured out the noise was coming from the parking brake. I have just ignored the noise, as it is not very noticeable. When rotating the road wheel, you can see if the dust shield is rubbing the rotor. If so, just pry the shield back a bit with a large screw driver to stop the rubbing.

Chiming in...........from what I have heard and read, it is not likely that your coolant will mix with the oil, if the HG is leaking. Using the Subaru additive, which is some sort of a "stop leak" product will stem the HG leak. In my experience with non Subaru cars, when their HG leaks, it becomes very obvious when checking the oil level on the dip stick. The oil starts looking like a frothy chocolate milk shake. You can't miss seeing that mess on a dip stick. If you are not seeing this, then you are safe. Your coolant is not leaking into the oil.

Hope the new O rings fixes the problem. Let us know.

Well now when I spot a nice bumper in a yard, I will have a pretty good idea of where, and how much to unbolt. Thanks guys!!

I like the duct tape approach.........sounds much easier then all that unbolting of the entire bumper unit, just to access the cover. Thanks for the info.

I have a 98 OBW that needs a new rear bumper cover. My wife is a great lady, just don't have her back up your car, or any car. She can't back up without scraping or denting the bumper cover. The cover looks pretty bad after the last scrape against a wall last week. I feel I may score a better looking cover at a wrecking yard to swap on. I couldn't find any description on a "how to" to remove the bumper cover, so I seek advise. Thanks for any help.

Well the squeal could be from a loose belt. I would check that first. I agree with porcupine that Lucas was the wrong product to add to the P/S system. Suggest you drain out all fluid, and put in ATF to get back to what is suppose to be in the system. If it continues to act up, I would replace with a unit from a wrecking yard. It is an easy swap, and cost less then $50. I did the swap years back on my 91 Subie, so I know how easy it is to replace.

Sometimes the plunger switch can bind up, and not work because of dirt build up. You may want to check for that before replacing. Also, check the switch position at the dome light to see if it is at the proper setting.

I agree with GD, I have never had a problem with the green antifreeze, no matter who the manufacturer is. If there ever was a problem, the class action lawyers would try to make it an issue for a class action law suit against the manufacturers. As far as I know, that has never happened. When I was on Audi and VW forums, I heard the same talk about buying only Audi/VW antifreeze, now on USMB, I am hearing this "buy only" from the dealer advise. All say there is supposed danger in using after market antifreeze. I am not convinced. Makes me wonder if the posters are simply working for the manufacturer, or dealership, and trying to generate some customer traffic and revenue.

At this point, if it were me, I would have used JB Weld, and a new spark plug. Yea, it would have pretty much welded the new plug into the head, never to come out again. But what the heck, a new plug would last maybe 50K miles plus. It is just a thought......................!

I had this happen on an Audi I owned years back. I removed the bulb, then used a hair dryer to blow heat in the hole where the bulb resides. Once I got it good and dry, I used aquarium sealer/glue to seal any surface that looked like it could allow moisture to get inside the headlight unit. Also, check for, and glue any rock chip on the face of the headlight, that may have put a pin hole in the facing, allowing moisture to enter the headlight. Gluing/sealing should fix your problem.

The plastic end caps on all radiators that have them all have a tendency to split and leak over time. It is a common complaint of all car owners, no matter which make of car that has the plastic end caps.

IMO, a slightly narrower tire will not help fuel mileage to any noticeable degree. If it were me, I would run tire pressure at 35 psi. The car will ride a little rougher, however, the higher psi does reduce rolling resistance a little bit. You 14" wheels will prolly not fit your Impreza is my guess. The smaller wheels will not fit over the brake caliper on what is designed for the 16" wheel.

Maybe needs tune up with spark plugs, and maybe spark plug wires.

When I'm buying a car, I say I have cash in hand. When I'm selling, I say I have title in hand. It's a good motivator. You are absolutely right. In both cases, you are telling the world that you are ready to do business NOW.

Maybe a bent road wheel??

In buying a car from a private owner, I carry cash with me, but am very leery about flashing cash for anyone to see. Only when it is settle up time, do I meet someone discretely, (and with confidence that the situation is on the up and up), that I present cash for the transaction. Otherwise, you can be leaving yourself open to get robbed.

This may be two separate issues: 1. Make sure the charging system is good. It may still have a problem. If it were me, I would charge the battery, or jump start the motor, so you can drive the car. Then, I would take it to an auto parts store that tests the car's charging system at no cost. They will tell you if there is any issue with the battery or alternator. Be aware that even a new battery can be bad. It doesn't happen often, but it does happen. 2. If the charging system checks out good, then you know for sure that it is an electrical problem. If there is a bad short, then a fuse will blow. If you are not blowing fuses, then like you say check for broken wires or bad grounds. These to me are always a pain in the butt to find, but if you wiggle enough wires, or play with enough switches, the problem can usually be located.

Thanks for the nice write-up on fuel pump replacement. I have both a 98 and 99 OBWs, so would have the same fuel pump as your 96. I have not had trouble with either, but it is nice to learn about Subie fuel pumps. Actually, the fuel pump set up looks just like what I replaced on my VWs back in the 80's. It was not a bad job, just a lot easier to do with little gas left in the gas tank. Also, be sure to take frequent work breaks........breathing the gas fumes will make you sick after a while.

Once the buyer had your offer, he undoubtedly used it as a negotiating point with the next interested buyer to get a higher offer. In my opinion, I wouldn't buy anything from this seller. He has little integrity. After you had "closed" your deal, the seller should have been telling every potential buyer that the car was "sold." End of conversation to anyone else wanting to buy his car. He wasn't doing that. His "word" is no good. Even if he comes back to you saying your original deal is still acceptable, I would not buy his car. The guy is not to be trusted, and is likely to jerk you around some more should you continue dealing with him.