markjw

Yes. Pretty much anything that can be towed down the road in this state has to have a license plate on it. Washington is Much more strict than Oregon about that. I believe there is an exception for a two wheeled car dolly, but even that is iffy.

I think there are a few bolts up by the windshield. Maybe in/around the defrost vents. Also, take pics of your dash as you disassemble it. Close-ups of everything. Especially of where and how the plug harness's exit the dash. It will make a handy reference when you are re-installing.

I bought an nice Outback last year with a "rod knock". Turned out to be a failing timing cog. Initially diagnosed by a local repair shop with supposedly seasoned mechanics. Maybe they were seasoned. Just dis-honest hoping to make a killing off the guy I bought it from. Either way, chk that your timing components are Ok.

"Resistance between B(ground) and D(+V) changes with throttle opening between 3.5 to 6.5K Ohms" Is this correct? This part of the test procedure that says there should be variable resistance between B and D? I am having a off-idle hesitation and getting a TPS code. I have 4 TPS and all of them show about 4.5 ohms resistance between B and D and that value is unchanged with opening and closing of the throttle. The unlikely odds that I have 4, similarly failed TPS makes me want to confirm. Aside from that, all 4 of my TPS test Ok In all other parts of the procedure. 1992 SPFI Loyale. 170k miles.

A lenght of chain to swoosh around in the gas tank works well to knock loose rust. I use soapy water instead of gas. Once you get the tank out, you can usually clean the inside very well with a power washer. Either your own or the one at the car wash place.

I recently did a tranny swap on a Forester. All done on my garage floor the same way I've always done it. Except this time I got this tranny jack from Harbor Fright. I can't stress enough how easy this tool makes the job. The actual pulling and installing of the tranny Was the easiest part of the job. Removing the exhaust, linkage and other stuff was suddenly the difficult part. I won't do another tranny swap without it. I also used it to install a rear diff. It's the best $80 I've spent on a tool in years.

Also, it could be a brake pad moving around in the caliper. A quick test would be to go over a bump that would normally cause the noise, but have some moderate brake pressure applied. If you dont hear the clunk, install new brake pad anti-rattle hardware. And grease the back of the pads.

I installed a 3.9 tranny and the rear diff out of a '97 legacy. Everything went together perfect except the VSS. The Forester harness requires a 3 prong sensor instead of the 2 prong that came with the new tranny. Also, the new tranny was set up for a cable style clutch, the Forester is a hydraulic clutch. I had to relocate the pivot within the bell housing to accommodate the hyd style clutch fork. The bolt holes were there for the slave cyl. I was glad to see that. In the end I got it all done for $300. Except for the VSS. I still have to get the correct one. Unless somebody knows how to convert a 2 prong style to a three? I'm going to give up on the idea of trying to repair the bad 5th gearset. As mentioned above, good 5mt's are cheap and abundant. With what I would spend to get set up to remove and install gears and bearings on a tranny shaft, I could buy two or three good trannys. It just doesn't make sense. Atleast not right now. Thanks for all the help.

Thanks for the link, nipper. I am picking up a good 5MT tomorrow. Not giving up on this one thou. When I fix it, ill re-install it and see how long it lasts. And when it's still working five yrs from now, ill update this thread.

Another pdf I downloaded calls it a "Synchro cone stopper". Mostly I'm just wondering what it does exactly. Thanks.

Can someone tell me the function of this piece that is attached to the end of the 5MT input shaft? This is a Phase 2 tranny and the phase 1 doesn't have this. Apparently it is called a "insert stopper plate".

Thanks for the insight, Gloyale. I believe this '99 tranny to be a second phase 5speed. If anybody knows if the gears from a earlier 5speed will swap over to this one, please let me know.

Wait a minute. Im understanding you now. Both of the damaged gears are the "5th gear set".

Thanks for the reply. What about the gear next to 5th gearset? It was damaged some also. Not horrible but chips on the leading edge of the teeth? Can I swap that one?

I bought this 1999 Forester with a known bad tranny. I currently am looking to simply replace the tranny with a good one, and be done with it. But now im thinking I might just try to fix this broken one. I split the case today, and although its different than earlier Legacy 5 speeds ive messed with, once you get forward of the tail section, it seems very similar to the older ones. If somebody could tell me if I could use parts from a earlier tranny to repair this one, that would be handy. Mostly, I would like to know about the 5th gear and the associated synchros. And whatever gear that is below the 5th gear (maybe somebody can tell me what the correct name for it is). That one needs to be replaced as well. The rest of the gears and bearings look great. I would most likely take the whole mess to the machine shop and have them hot tank, plus I would change the big input shaft bearing and reseal. What do you guys think? Am I wasting my time and money here? Do you suppose all the other bearings are damaged because 5th gear ate itself? 214k on this Forester and I dont think the dipstick was ever pulled let alone the tranny serviced. I dumped the gear oil and got about two quarts of what looked like old motor oil. No chunks inside, just micro glitter.

Every time Ive had backfire thru the intake its been timing related. I would make certain the timing, both valve and ignition are Ok. That really doesn't follow with 'no starts' after filling up the gas tank, but maybe worth a look anyway. Maybe the rotor under the distibutor cap lost its screw and is flopping around trying to fall off.

Dont forget to make sure your engine mounts are tight. And especially chk out your transmission mounts.

I've done hg's in the past where I've let a lot of coolant drain into the Y pipe while removing the heads. Enough where I had to race up and down the road for 10min to burn it all out. You didn't say if you let it sit and idle for 30min or actually drove the car around. But make sure your white smoke isn't just residual coolant laying in the exhaust, before you start undoing all your hard work.

Next time your car won't start because the fuel pump won't come on, have an assistant crank the engine over while you pound the bottom of the fuel pump tray with a mallet. That will most likely "fix" your fuel pump and buy you some time before you have to replace the pump. Its worth a try. That has worked for me several times.

On the Enkei center caps. Are they specific to the Subaru Compe-8 wheel? Or, was the same center cap used on other Enkei wheels of that era that were made for other brands of cars. Also, does anybody know the dia. of the Compe-8 center cap?

The backs of the brake pads occasionally need a little grease. Without it, they will sometimes clunk.

I went by the yard today and had an opportunity to remove a couple of these back window trim pieces. And it is true that you need to slide the trim piece upwards to unlock and remove. But, first you must pop the lowest fastener loose the same way you pop a door panel fastener loose. Then the whole trim piece can easily be slid upwards and removed.