danz75

I recommend the brembo blanks. I put them on a few cars already and have been really happy with them. if you're concerned about the grooves, why not just change the rotors when you're changing the pads? that way, you'll know that everything will wear nicely.

I've sheared bolts and cracked them but have never cracked a regular craftsman socket yet. Anyway, like what everyone said, you don't have to take off the calliper bracket to change the pads. Usually when I'm trying to remove stucks nuts, I usually use a wire brush to clean the rust off the threads(get the round ones where you can attach to your cordless drill), soak with PB Blaster and a flame torch to heat it up to loosen the rust. Then work the nut slowly out and back in many times and spraying PB Blaster each time. Seems to have worked for me many times and i don't own any air tools. When I used to live in Ohio, I would get issues with stuck/rusted bolts because of the salt used during the winters. I've also used anti seize on most bolts that I remove so that it'll be easy to remove them again in the future. You might try using a flame torch to heat the bolt to see if it'll break away the rust and do spray it with PB Blaster or your favorite rust remover. Once you get the bolt to move a little, I always make sure to loosen, then tighten, then loosen and spray rust remover , then tighten....over and over again each time working it out further a little at a time. This is time consuming but you shouldn't break a bolt this way which will cause you more headache. I'm sure others would have their own ways to remove stuck/rusted bolts/nuts.

My wife got into a collision with our 03 OBW. The OBW IMHO suffered very minimal damage...front pass light cracked, front bumper on pass cracked, hood crumpled, front pass moved back slightly leaving no gap between fender(no dents) and front pass door, bug shield cracked. The amazing thing is that the engine compartment was not even touched. the ABS which sits the closest to the impact area was not even touched. No tubes were bent. very little frame work. I think it was only >2hrs for body work. On the other hand, the other vehicle was a 97 dodge caravan was completely totaled. whole front had caved in. It would not even run after that. it was a very low speed impact which neither vehicle's front airbags blew. the 03 OBW repair cost? $5600. 97 Dodge Caravan = Totaled. When I saw the estimate, i was holding my breath that the OBW would not get totaled because it only has >40k on the clock so far. The estimator asked about the mileage and I suspected that he would have totaled the car if it had higher mileage.

I contacted Jamie and she sent me some very helpful diagrams to help me find the missing part. I tried to find the rubber plugs but after looking at the diagram carefully and re-examining the door, I think what I'm missing is a screw instead of the rubber plugs that you mentioned. I took a look at the other doors and all the doors have a screw in that position. Will just take the screw out of the other side and go to the hardware store to find a similar replacement.

My 03 Outback came with the All Weather Package as standard...so there is a defroster element in the windshield around where the wiperblades rest. Might be worth checking if the car has the AWP. I believe you can replace it with a windshield without the defroster in if you don't need the function. I have no idea how much more it costs for a windshield with the defroster element.

When I bought my 03 Outback, it was a $150 option which I declined. So when I took delivery of my car, I went out and bought the cabin filters $35, thick rubber mats, cargo netting and installed all these myself. I figured I saved quite a bit since the options were priced pretty high...like rubber mats option was $160+, cargo netting --$98+ or something like that and you can buy these for about half the option price. Ever since then, if and when I buy a brand new car, I never pick any of the options and buy these parts online and put it in myself. I like the cabin filter because i get really bad allergies in the summer and usually drive with A/C on and windows up.

Ok, thanks for the heads up. Do you have to take off the interior door liner to get it installed?

So I recently noticed that on my rear passenger door, the black exterior strip between the door and the window can be easily pulled off. Upon closer inspection, I see that there are some screw holes(maybe) and the screws must have fallen off. On the rest of the doors, it does not pull off. does anyone know what screws they are and how do I get access to screw them in? This is on a 2003 Outback wagon. Thanks

I have the same problem on my 03 OBW and am also interested in this thread. My warping problem got pretty bad so I finally decided to replace the fronts with brembo blanks and axxis XBGs. I decided to try to XBGs because i had the ultimates on my honda and they performed very well but were a little too dusty. I also made sure that I bedded the pads and rotors according to the manufacturers recommendations. Anyway, the replacement seems to work because I haven't had any major shimmying issues for awhile. When I asked the question back a couple years ago, I was told that if installed and torqued correctly, rotors should not warp. One suggestion was to do the bedding process every now and then. Bring the car to about 40-50mi and then brake suddenly until it almosts comes to a complete stop but don't let it stop.(Do this in a safe place) Let the car roll and the do this again. Repeat this about 6 - 8 times and it should remove most of the deposits on the rotors. I tried it it seemed to work quite well so I've been doing it whenever I feel a slight shimmy when braking. Also, something else that was pointed out is not to stand on the brakes at an intersection especially when they're hot because it makes the pad material stick to the rotor.

both rear bearings on my 03 outback wagon went out at 24k mi. THe noise became really loud and since it was still under warranty at that time, i had both replaced.

I just put on a set of BFG Traction T/As @$85/pc at discount tire before christmas on my 03OBW. Handling has been great esp with the weather we've been getting.

Second that. I just got a set installed and so far, I love the way it handles.

Thanks for the information. I called up discount Tire and they're ordering another set of replacement tires for me. They will replace the defective ones and i will keep in mind to ask them about the balancing. I didn't think that shimmying and vibration were normal especially for a new tire.

To those who run BFG Traction T/A H I had a set installed yesterday from discount tire and on the way home, I noticed shimmying at 40mph+ in the steering wheel as well as a pronounced vibration through the car and I could see the passenger seatback shaking. I took the car back to discount tire and told them that i think the tires were not balanced correctly. they put it back on the machine and he said that all tires with the exception on one was perfectly balanced. the one that was out was very marginal. he checked for roundness and play but found it to be good. Anyway, they put it back on the car but rotated the tires(he mentioned something about the heavier one in the back this time) Told me to drive around more and if there's any problems, to come back monday. Well, I drove all around town yesterday(freeway and local streets). The shimmying on the steering wheel was less but still evident at freeway speeds but the vibration on the passenger seat seems to be stronger. Coming off from OEM RE92s, there was no vibration or shimmying whatsoever with the OEMs but they were due for a change(not worn out but hydroplaning bad). for some reason, discount tire shops around my area do not carry BFG traction T/A and it came from S.C. i don't want to wait for 2 more weeks for them to bring in another set so these are my options now. 1. Put the RE92s back on for now. 2. choose something different like GY TT or Michelin Hydroedge 3. go to a different store and pay more for BFGs The reason why i chose the BFGs was it was priced reasonably. The GY and Michelins are going to be $30-$40 more/tire. I have to say that besides the vibration (which does bother me), it really grips very well to the road. ???

It was an option offered on my 03 OBW but I did not have the dealer install them. I was told that my car would have the housing in place and all I had to do was to buy the filters(2 pieces for mine) and pop it in. Sure enough when I removed the glove box, there was a plastic cover for the filter housing held by screws. removed the screws, took the cover out, slid the new filters in, and re-installed everything else. Saved myself about $100 there. I have since changed the filter and I was surprised at how dirty it was. Not sure how much of a difference it makes especially if you drive with the windows down. has someone measured air quality in a car before?

My 03 OBW has it when you start the engine but goes away when it warms up. More pronounced in colder weather and takes awhile longer for it to go away. No other issues that i know of. Had the 3 yrs/36k mi service done by smart service in seattle and they told me that engine is in good shape.

That's what I did for my 03 OBW. Just bought the filters and popped them in. Check out https://www.subarugenuineparts.com/product_info.php?cPath=22_27&products_id=347

Discount tires tried to sell me the Goodyear TT at $135/pc but I had them order the BFG Traction TA H instead for $85/pc. Only downside is that Discount did not have any instock anywhere near here and had to order them from S. Carolina. it should be here early this week and i'll let you know how they turn out. Sears($100) and Costco($107) had them in stock but they refused to price match.

Is this on all model years? I thought putting the A/T into low still runs it at 90/10 unless the front wheels slip.

Hey Nipper, How many miles do you have on the tires so far? Do you have the H or V?How is the performance in wet/dry weather? Not comparing to dedicated snow tires, how do these fair in occasional snow? Would you recommend these for wet/dry weather? Thanks danz

How are the traction T/A's now that your sister has them for awhile? Tirerack user reviews say that it can be noisy after awhile but I haven't heard that on this forum.

The Michelin Hydroedge does not seem to show on the website for me. I'll have to call the costco near me to find out about it. The comparable tire that he quoted me was the Michelin Pilot XGT H4 @ $132. Tirerack does show this tire available in 225/60TR16 @$102 Survey results seem good and but reviews are mixed. This tire is directional and rated T speed. Is this ideal for the outback? Granted I will never reach the T speeds but i always thought that you buy tires that are rated more for safety reasons like H and V.

I am looking to replace the stock tires on my 03 OBW A/T 4cyl and spent many hours reading through most of the tire discussions that came out on the search. The stock has performed decently since i don't drive hard but they're wearing down fast and i would like to get new ones before the winter. So far, I have narrowed my choices to the following: (prices from Tirerack) 1.BFGoodrich Traction T/A V($94)- Reviews have been positive and I've not heard anything negative. Price seems decent. 2. Continental ContiProContact($90) - Mostly positive. The negatives are that it has a potential to develop a flat spot. 3. Goodyear TT ($109) - It seemed to have mixed reviews with some liking it and some don't. Tirerack survey results rate this tire superior in the wet and dry scenarios though. 4. Yokohama Avids H4S($83) / V4S($79) seem to be rated superior in the wet/dry but not so in the snow. I considered the Michelins as well but they are priced higher and does not seem to be much different from the BFGs. I drive mainly in rainy seattle weather...occasional (once a month)trips to the mountains for skiing. Dedicated winter tires are ideal but since my driving time in snow conditions are probably 10% or less, it seems difficult to justify the need. My preferences are in the following order: 1. Rain, wet condition. 2. Decent performance in the summer. 3. Noise 4. Reasonable in snow 5. Wear What do you all suggest?

I called up my claims adjuster today because progressive(that guys insurance company) called me up. my adjuster told me it was ok to talk to them to give them an official statement. So when progressive called again, I gave an account of what happened. To my surprise, progressive accepted liability for the whole accident. He told me that he had already spoken with his client and since they opened the door and hit me, they're at fault. I called my insurance company and they noted down the adjuster's name and number and told me to let them know when the car is repaired so that they can close my claim. Progressive scheduled for me to bring my car into their service center to get an estimate. I asked for a list of body shops that they are contracted with and 2/3 of the estimates that I got was on the list. So I am bringing my car in for them to do their estimation but I am insisting on using the body shop of my choice. I will be given a rental car for the entire period and progressive gurantees the repair for as long as i own the vehicle and so will the body shop. So i think this is ending well.

So this is the latest situation. I gave him the amounts and asked him what he wanted to do about it. He told me that he talked to 'people who know situations like that' and said that it would be a case where both parties are at fault. So i asked him how would it be my fault since I had taken all precautions...waiting for them to get out and making sure that doors are closed before proceeding into the parking spot. And not to mention that his passenger was the one that flung the door out wide suddenly. On top of that, the damage was on the middle of my front passenger door which would have put my car halfway into the lot and had she taken the time to look out before opening the door, she would have seen my car. He didn't have much to say about that except that he didn't think he could take full responsibility for this accident. So we agreed to let the insurance take care of the matter. I just had a couple of questions. Should the insurance find that he is at fault, would my insurance go after him for my co-pay? Besides witnesses statements, how would the insurance investigate this since there was no official police report? I did call the cops but they told me that since there was no injuries and both vehicles were mechanically sound and that it happened in a parking lot, there was no need for a police report. I sure hope to get my car repaired soon with the rain that we've been having. I'm tempted to put tape over it for now but don't really want to mess up the situation any more if the tape takes off more paint or leaves marks.