afterbang

hmm... i would get a body shop's suggestion on the safety and drivability of the vehicle. you can find clean doors that match if you creep around on craigslist or for a few hundred dollars, you can find some now from a recycler. either there's a surprise hiding behind those doors or whoever assessed the vehicle's damage wanted to put 4 grand in your pocket. i have had my 1998 for almost 9 years and i'm driving it until it's of no worth to even be sold. if you had the same plans for this, then who cares about a title branding? a salvage title is arbitrary in so many situations, anyways.

sorry if I'm late on giving my two cents... do you ever get a fuel smell in the cabin of the car? I have an intermittent (every 6 months of so) p0440 and it's the purge solenoid valve under the intake manifold. it sometimes gets stuck and vents exhaust gas into the engine bay. it actually came on for the first time in like almost a year yesterday after replacing all four fuel injectors. turned off like 25 miles later. not replacing it until it totally poops out.

I recently was handed down a 2006 Tribeca with almost 140,000 miles but the car has been in the family since new and and it's been trouble free with the EZ30 so far *knocks on wood* I've put over 100k personally on my 1998 EJ25 Legacy and I definitely cannot say it has anywhere close to the same track record, that's for sure Like GD said, AC tensioner belt bearings need to be replaced when they start to squeal but it took him like 15 minutes to do both of them for me. The dealer will only sell you the two entire assemblies for close to $250 dollars but the two bearings from NAPA are like $20 bucks.

I'm not sure that you are correct on that part number. I searched the part number you listed and it came up as the Duty Solenoid Valve for a newer turbo Impreza. I had to replace the purge solenoid valve on my 98 ej25 legacy and the part number I used was 14774AA271. The part number for the "solenoid for canister purge valve" is 14774AA341 You may want to double check for your application but I believe the 2.2l uses the same part number. Here's the subarupartsforyou.com look up for both of those parts and explicitly lists the placement for each valve. not sure which one you're hunting down. http://subarupartsforyou.com/cp_partlistbymod.php?model=Legacy&subcat=Emissions%2C+Valves&year=1998

when i was gathering information to fix this code on my 98 outback, i read that the solenoid can be the problem, the egr pipe along with all the rubber lines can become clogged with carbon, the egr valve itself can be clogged up with carbon, or the BPT valve needs to be replaced. I had the same exact symptoms as you were where if you manually opened the EGR valve the engine would want to cut out. this made me think that exhaust gas is getting to the valve itself since it dies as if there is a vacuum leak. this lead me to believe that it was either the solenoid or the BPT valve. A board member here was nice enough gave me a used BPT valve and some silicone hoses to replace the three hoses that connect to the BPT. We reset the code for the 25th time and it hasn't come on in over 3,000 miles and I was able to pass the emissions test. Before, the light would come on in under 50 miles. I would try a new or used BPT valve and replace the lines if you can confirm that the solenoid is functioning correctly.

When I looked under the hood of my brother's Impreza I thought the same thing. However, I read that they help engine performance since they don't conduct heat like metal and can be more easily manufactured for better air flow. Don't know if that's just justification to cut costs or not.

just a note from experience, JDM engines aren't equipped for an EGR valve. You would need to drill and tap threads in the driver's side head for the EGR valve pipe if went this route.

137000 miles on my 06 tribeca and she seems to be running like a champ still. just regular maintenance and belt tensioners needed their bearings replaced. I hope to do as you've done and take it well past 200k.

Today, installation of 4 new GR-2s on my 98 outback was completed. my old struts were stamped KYB and Subaru so yes, they are OEM. I put regular Legacy struts instead of Outback struts and they feel awesome. I think any new strut will feel stiff when your old ones are on the way out. If you replace the strut mounts, go with OEM ones. They are as much or cheaper than KYB ones. One of the KYB mounts I received was defective too and had to be replaced.

you wouldn't see any oil leaking onto the ground because the underside of the engine is completely covered by a plastic guard. the mechanic who performed the oil change saw the leak because there are ports to open to get to the drain plug and filter. if you're loosing a substantial amount of oil, most of it would pool in the cover. my wife drives this same car.

I've been in a situation like this from swapping in a JDM N/A EJ20 engine in. It sucked. To pass DEQ, I had a shop take an EGR pipe, braze an extension on and have it connect from the valve all the way down and weld it into the exhaust manifold. This cost me like $250.00 and it ended up breaking. It did hold up for a good few years though before the engine spun a rod bearing and I had a good USDM motor installed and I passed DEQ twice with it this way. You live and you learn.

I'm assuming you have a Paypal account. Goto http://www.paypal.com/shipnow and check the rates for USPS Parcel Post. For me to ship a "very large" 50 pound package from my Portland, OR address to Baltimore, MD (just to get an idea of worse case scenario), was $100 dollars. A "large package" was $54.00. You cannot go through usps.com to ship Parcel Post, you'd have to use Paypal shipping or physically buy postage at the post office. Hope that helps. I ship all the time and yes, domestic shipping rates are getting atrocious. Definitions of package sizes: Large Package - A Large Package is a parcel where the length + girth is over 84" and less than or equal to 108". Length is the longest side of a package. Girth is the distance if you wrapped a string around the 2 smaller sides of a package. Very Large Package - A Very Large Package is a parcel where the length + girth is over 108" and less than or equal to 130". Length is the longest side of a package. Girth is the distance if you wrapped a string around the 2 smaller sides of a package.

I had GD do mine and he used a PVC coupler or end cap against the seal and used a block of wood to hammer on over the coupler. he used redline assembly lube to lightly coat the seal too. hasn't leaked and it's been a year now. I'd ask him what diameter to use but he was very slow and meticulous, lightly tapping it into place.

a buddy of mine had one of those first legacy wagons with ride height adjustment and the air suspension. he just ended up putting in some regular struts in there place.

I just wedge a butter knife between the glass and black plastic around the door and then slide a coat hanger in with the hooked part first and unlock the door not by the button but the manual switch. I've done it like five times and it's actually pretty scary how easy our cars are to break into.

thank you for the information!

I will be buying a new 2012 impreza probably within the next 6 months. the sport limited model. the wife said she was fine with me wanting a wrx wagon but I can't digest passing on 36mpg hwy for 25. it will be my first automatic and I'm kind of excited about it.

so this morning, I went to begin my 40 mile commute to school with my car completely frozen over and the air flow zone buttons would not switch it from dash vents to any other position. I turned my car on to let it warm up for 10 minutes and although I had pressed the defrost/leg heat, the button pushed back out and wouldn't not change modes for the rest of my drive. I get into the parking garage at school with the bottom of my windshield still foggy, turn my car off, let it sit for a minute, turn it back on and I could hear whatever mechanically switches to change zones and finally got it to change. I'm just going to leave it on leg/defrost for now but any insight on my issue?

So, doing oil changes on our new to us Tribeca is a huge pain with the bottom plastic cover. There are openings for the filter and drain plug but you still end up with a mess. I also want to be able to keep an eye out for oil leaks as well. None of my other Subarus have this so can I just remove it? I wanted to know if there was any reason to keep it on there. I was just going to go for it but I figured I should ask. This year has the EZ30. Thanks guys.

you can actually see if they are one of the MLS HGs by looking at where the head meets the engine block. It's easier to see on the drivers side. The HG sticks out and you can actually see the separate layers of the gasket. The old ones are not layered.

there is a station along my commute route that has 92 grade ethanol free gas. if it's worth the extra cost, I'm totally for it. Any more insight on the subject from EJ drivers? found some stuff on the old gen forum. if I can improve the gas mileage on my outback and is easier on certain parts (per what ive read is claimed), id go try it out.

I haven't had a loyale for almost 7 years but I remember when mine started ticking out of nowhere, I removed the valve cover and a bolt had backed out that holds this thin metal rod that sits above the cam. I have no idea what it's called but it's clearly shown in the picture in this thread if you scroll down a bit: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=97700 So that bolt head that you see above the cam, that backed out enough to let that rod tap. I've always wondered what that is called but like I said, I've only had EJ engines for most of my time as Subaru owner. Maybe someone can chime in and tell me what that was after all these years

thank you everybody for your input. this may just be temporary but since we aren't driving the 93 legacy anymore, i think i may just put the driver's seat out of it into my outback. it's funny how a car that is 5 years older and have 50,000 more miles has seats that are more comfortable...

hey everyone. so after driving the 2006 tribeca that we picked up for my wife, i've realized that i cannot stand the seats in my 98 outback. i have lower back problems as it is and i've now realized that my seats are not helping my cause. i'm in the market for a new set of front seats and was interested if anyone is exceptionally happy with how theirs feel. there are a few subaru dismantlers in the area and at this point, im not opposed with dropping a bit of coin on a set if it can make the ride a bit more enjoyable. thanks to anyone that can chime in on my unusual request.

your eyes do not deceive you ive had the car for 7 years and when someone changed lanes into me, i asked the body shop to install the LGT bumper instead to change the look up a bit. i put on the LGT snowflake wheels and JDM clear and red tail lights and I sure dig it. changes things enough to make it not like like every green outback here in the PNW.