crazyhorse001

The Dragon is NOT a race. If you treat it like one you WILL end up burned by it's fire! I live 80mi from the dragon & regularly make the "day trip" over. I've seen LOTS of ugly things there. Both on the road & off On an average weekend, there's a bit much traffic to go fast. Go on a wednesay tho.... Coming "down" the dragon from TN to NC a good 80% of the trip is bordered by bluffs above on the left, and cliffs below on the right. Blow a right turn & you end up a greasy spot on a rock face. Blow a left & you wreck for days till you end up in the river. Guardrails? We don't need no stinking guardrails! I'm not out to scare anyone away, but this AIN'T no racetrack. Oh & just for fun, ClubHonda.com is holding it's meet the SAME weekend!!!!!

With the WHOLE engine in front of the front wheel centerline Subies aren't the best for a demo. I agree, find a transverse engined car, or a Volvo... those are some SERIOUSLY tough lil cars bodywise. My money would be on a 'Yota Cressida, or later Corona in a demo too.

Yeah she's 100% the way she rolled off the line in LaFayette Ind. From what I gather, she's a bit rare, being a '97 LSI. She's got 120k on her, but runs like 20k.

This past weekend I took a little road trip over to US HWY129 through Deal's Gap. Anyone who knows this road, knows it's called "The Dragon". Anyone who's been there knows why! All I can say is 318 turns in 11 miles. The road is world famous in motorcycle circles. The trip was great, we had a blast. We followed a 350Z down most of it, going at a respectable pace. We pulled over to let a road hogging Ford get a lead & I met the Z's driver, Dave. I didn't get any digi pics, I forgot the camera. We did grab a "fun saver" so when I get them developed, I'll post scans. That is if there's any interest. Saturday's Dragon food consisted of one Hayabusa bike, one Harley,and one F-250 killboy.com got a great shot of Kat accelerating out of a turn... http://www.photoreflect.com/pr3/OrderPage.aspx?pi=04RK009M000593&po=593&c= Moonshine Photography caught Dave & I braking into a corner. http://www.photoreflect.com/pr3/OrderPage.aspx?pi=0CVY008M000554&po=554&c=

The diff dipstick is missing according to your descriptions. There is an empty round hole where it oughtta be. The stuff on the engine/cat is in that general area. I checked the fluid on the bellhousing by dipping a rag into it. Gear oil has a di-STINK-tive smell to it If you've ever been to the dragon you'll understand that even at low speeds, you're making some violent manouvers. I was hustling along on it, so i was pushing Kat for all she was worth at times. I managed to engage the AWD several times & the ABS once or twice. This would fling fluid everwhere if not contained. Anybody got a diff stick layin around? Oh yeah, & I never approached the speed I usually get to in my other car...a modded Ford Pinto

OK so I'm in Kat, my '97 leg wagon, with an EJ25/4EAT. I'm on "The Dragon", I pull over to let a group of sportbikes pass, only to be greeted by a huge cloud of acrid smoke. I almost s**t myself! I open the hood & try to blow away the smoke to see it's source. I see black greasy fluid on the side of my bellhousing, and burning off my cat/con. I grabbed a rag & checked, sure enough it's gear oil. This is on the passenger side. Can anyone tell me where the dipstick for the front diff is & what it looks like so I can determine for sure mine is missing? Bet ya thought I was gonna ask about torque bind huh?

I had one of those lighted keys, from my XT. They are coolness! If I never see another GM PassKey again, it'll be too soon!

OHHHH what a wierd tangent this thread has taken:lol:

Hey, I just like to leave just enough doubt as what I may or may not be talking about:cool: But I culdn't help myself.. the smarts** in me just rose to the surface.

It's NEVER a good Idea to whip nuts... there are serious side effects to it. The choking & sputtering indicate just a moderate whipping, whereas swelling & a REALLY strange walk would indicate a severe whipping. Either way, you'd be reaching the upper rev ranges for a sustained period of time. This can produce high pitched squeaks. I'm not sure what effect gas would have on whipping nuts, but I'd guess that it would allow it to be expelled very rapidly.

Even most forged pistons are aluminum. Now forged, ceramic coated pistons mmmmmmm hi tech!!

On the Caddy you changed the coolant in...If it's the northstar v8 & you put prestone green coolant in it, you can look forward to waterpump, & possibly even head gasket issues shortly. Caddy reccommends the dexcool for a reason, it has added lubricants.

I just prefer the "low profile" aspect of the LSI. I'm definately NOT into "bling", but I like comfy cars! My mail carrier agrees, she drives one that looks identical, except RHD.

TCS isn't necessary with awd, in fact it'd be redundant. I also can't comment on wether it might actually damage the awd system or not. That said, however, what you'd end up with is the fancy schmancy AWD most SUV's pass off as "Command Trac" ETC using TCS to make up for REAL 4wd. If you've seen the video of the OB beating up on the Volvo offroad, you can see what TCS does to an otherwise decent AWD system. I like Subie's system because it's SIMPLE.

There are several early OB's around here, They do look rather odd at standard height, & even with the same 5spoke wheels as my LSI. Given the choice I prefer my LSI. OB's are nice, but I just don't need the extra ground clearance, or flashiness (is that a word?)

+1 It's not just Subies either...ANY auto trans can be cooked by towing with the drive wheels on the ground.

Wouldn't any 95-99 Legacy wagon seats work? My '97LSI wagon has both leather & rear headrests. Tho DRAT! no seat heaters. If you're concerned about all th seats matching, you'll need to get them all from the same car, or year. Remember though, the leather package has hide inserts on the doors as well, front and rear.

For your stone chips they make a "touch up" paint in a bottle like fingernail polish. you dab this on thick enough to make the chipped parts higher than the surrounding paint. Then you use 2000grit, or higher sandpaper wet to blend it back in. To keep it wet you can lay the water hose on the hood & allow the water to flow down. Once you get everything level, you can use your favorite wax to shine it up.

+1 tho I don't believe an unbalanced tire would vibrate @ 20ish MPH. An out of round tire may cause a "thump". My bet would be a driveline part, driveshaft, cv, maybe even a diff bushing.

In the Subie, I carry an el cheapo boxed "tool kit" with 1/4 drive ratchet & metric sockets from 6mm-17mm, pliers, adjustable wrench, continuity tester, multibit scewdriver (with torx). A box of extra fuses, jumper cables, fix-a-flat, 10" channel locks, a small ball peen hammer, and a jump start pack. The pliers & hammer have proven in the past to be handy in minor fender benders to get the car mobile again. I've only once used them on my own car, but I've gotten others moving again, as long as I don't deem the chassis as bent. The jump start pack has been the best $50 I've ever spent. It's saved my rear, as well as many of my co-workers. In my daily driver I've got a 12" plastic tool box, with all the tools neccessary to field strip my Pinto. Unless it breaks a part, there's nothing I can't fix aling side the road in my Pinto tho. Carrying tools makes me the "go to" guy at work for people who have car trouble in the parking lot. I've never taken a dime for my work, but I've gotten many a free lunch out of it:headbang:

Simple Green, Castrol Super Clean, or if it's REALLY dirty Easy Off Oven Cleaner. Spray these on straight, let them soak for an hour or so, then hose off with your garden hose. You can cover your alt, or WD-40 it ahead of time. My personal daily driver is a 32 year old Ford Pinto, It leaks EVERYWHERE. I prefer to keep it clean, or at least keep the "big chunks" off.

UPDATE: The CEL comes & goes now, once it's on, it stays on till a restart. I can confirm it only comes on @WOT. I'm not sure about what codes it's throwing... is there a "cheater's way" to pull them with OBDII?

I doubt it's your starter. Most likely the clutch safety switch. When you say that it starts after a few tries, it acts just like my Olds when the neutral safety switch was going out. Next time it won't start, try pumping the clutch a time or two. I'm betting it'll fire right up.

they make a "CD lens cleaner". You can get these at your local Wal-Mart, or any discount store. It's basically a CD with little brushes. If this doesn't fix it, you may have some luck removing the player , opening the case & blowing it out. Use a can of compressed air, as it won't have any oil, or dirt in it. After all, if it's already broken, how much damage can you actually do? As for replacing it, I'd definately get one from a salvage yard. that'd be your most cost,and labor effective move. Remember, eject your discs BEFORE unhooking the player. I've done this!

Yes, I believe it would be safe to get narrower snow tires. As long as you don't go TOO narrow. As long as the wheels fit the car, and don't rub the brakes, you should be in good shape. I'm thinking a like year set of steelies with hubcaps would be a good choice. 185/75-14 or 185/65-15's would keep your speedo in a reasonable range of error. REMEMBER all four tires have to be equal, but that goes without saying.