Numbchux

If you have worn springs and no bump stops, you are ruining your struts. You are correct, you probably won't need them with stiffer springs, but it's a good idea to prevent strut failure.

Also, I think I remember from my research several years ago that all the leather cars have side airbags (built into the seat), and all the cloth ones don't....I might be wrong on that, but something to look into. I looked up the OEM assembly, MSRP is like $400.....surprise surprise. Try car-part.com. They may even ship it to you. I know I've purchased seat parts (for work) from junkyards that needed to be shipped.

The low fluid switch is definitely normally open. Unplugging it will disable it. I know on one of the Subarus I had, low fluid disabled the DRLs. Don't remember which one. Although a quick look at my '04 diagrams, it's definitely the same wire from the parking brake switch, both just switched-to-ground and there's no diode, so I'm not sure how the DRL module would have any way of knowing which switch was activated.

bump stops? I'm assuming they're bottoming out, and don't have bump stops. That's about the only thing that I can think of that would wreck them so quickly.

I'm not super familiar with the differences between the EA81 and EA82 clutch kits.... BUT, I know that '85-'88 is a very difficult year range, as the EA81s and EA82s overlap, and don't have different model names, so it has to be done with body style descriptions. A hatch is fairly clearly a hatch and is an EA81, but a "coupe" also has a large hatchback, was made at the same time, but was an EA82.... When I have needed EA81 parts, I look them up for an '84 Brat. And usually when I need EA82 parts, I look up for an '89 GL or '90-'94 Loyale.

Yes, the sender *should* give a very linear resistance range through the temperature range. It is the gauge that tries to compensate for minor fluctuations and only read major problems. If you want more resolution, it'll need to be an aftermarket gauge of some sort.

That light is connected to a switch on the ebrake lever, and a level switch in the reservoir. Usually it just means slightly low fluid level. But the switch can be faulty. If the fluid is definitely full, unplug the switch on the reservoir. If the light no longer comes on, it's that switch.... Switch alone is part #26456AC000, It is discontinued from Subaru, and no dealer in the US shows inventory. However, it looks like you can get one straight from Japan through Amayama: https://www.amayama.com/en/search?q=26456AC000

From what I understand, yes, they do. The company I went with (Auto Owners) does not deal straight with customers, so it'd have to be an agent anyway....might as well be one that can shop around for you. When I met with our broker, he had quotes through several companies, and while Auto Owners wasn't the out right cheapest, it was competitive with the cheapest, and they had several reasons to go with them based on our personal situation. Information I NEVER would have known about when I was shopping around.

Brokers are way better than agents. They do not represent any one insurance company, and can shop around for you. Up until last August (when we bought our house), I had had Geico for 7 years. I switched from the stereotypical big, cold, corporation (I never had a claim, but I can't imagine what it would have been like, just getting my billing information updated was a nightmare), to a local brokerage. I went from having just 2 cars covered, to 3 cars (with considerably higher limits), a house, and a couple riders for specific items, and am paying HALF what I was paying. And, now I have a local agent, who knows me by name, knows where I live, etc. I cannot speak to insurance rates from one car to another. My cars are pretty much all old enough that they all cost the same, and I only carry liability coverage. And it's definitely very different based on local trends and laws But, my work in the parts department of a Subaru dealership, I'm dealing with body shops a dozen times a day, and more than occasionally ordering parts to repair other makes for our customers. They are not any more expensive to repair than any other Japanese import. Yes, the common domestic sedans are cheaper, but that's about it. Subaru does like to use pearl paints, and especially Satin White Pearl is apparently a pain, but I can't imagine that really effects the cost of repair that much. I don't believe that they're any more prone to theft than the aforementioned BMW or Mercedes, and replacement cost is definitely cheaper. That said, the only real way to know if that's a good price, is to shop around with the immediate competitors. Talk to some local agents/brokers and see what's what.

Yep, SJR lift, plus ~29" tall A/T or M/T tires. You'd be surprised. If it's an auto trans, there's a relatively simple wiring mod to get the AWD (which is normally very front wheel biased) to work a little better offroad. Search for the Duty C mod, and be careful, as most of the documentation is on the older generation transmissions which work a little different.

This, +1

I'm not sure you're going to find that one at a hardware store...it's pretty thin to fit under the cap, and therefore under the wiper arm. 86514AC000 and MSRP of $2.32. Looks like no dealerships in the region have any on hand, but the Indiana supply warehouse has them, so I bet a dealer near you could have one in a day or 2. Or, look in a Junkyard. It looks like all Legacies, Imprezas, and SVXs used that same retaining nut through 1999 (-2001 for Impreza)

Fair enough, I still think for $50 a pair, I'll go with the Centric PowerStop ones.

I assume that is the 20251AA040, as $5.88 is Subaru MSRP for that. That part number is only the rear lateral link bushing on non-STi GDs (fronts and rears are that number on an STi). The front lateral link is a 20251AA000, which is $30.45! I've driven a few cars with heims in the rear, and while they handle abuse well, they clunk. We had them in our Rally car (TSSFab, although I don't think they offer them anymore), if you're worried about noise, I wouldn't recommend them. I've got all poly bushings in my Celica, have for several years. Love it, a little white lithium on them at install, and they're quiet as the proverbial church mouse.

It would theoretically be possible, but would require considerable wiring changes, as well as much of the heater boxes/actuators. As the manual controlled ones are all cable-operated, and the automatic one has electric actuators in there that move the blend doors....

Am I missing something? The only braided hoses I see on there are Universal fit.....

Now, when you say "lines", I assume you actually mean "hoses", right? Stainless is not a good material for making hard lines with. I looked up Centric braided stainless hoses for a '02-'07 Impreza (non-STi) on RockAuto, and then punched the part number into Amazon and ordered them up. They come with crush washers, banjo bolts, and retainer clip for the strut bracket. If you have rear discs, you can use the rear hoses for the same application. The included banjo bolt threads right into the caliper, since the hose now comes off the caliper at an angle, you'll have to route it around behind the shock, but you can still clip it into the second mount on the trailing arm. This replaces 2 separate hoses with a short section of hard line in between them. 2017-07-25_02-22-30 by Numbchux, on Flickr If you have drums, swap to discs. IMO, there's no point in upgrading the hoses....

So this is a Loyale? Manual transmission?

It does happen, but with several hoses, and thin-walled steel pipes (one that goes back on the driver's side to the heater hose, and one that goes across in front of the oil pan to the oil cooler) physically near the water pump that are notorious for rusting out. It is more likely a mis-diagnosis. A shop here in town did a water pump on one because they thought the gasket was leaking. Aftermarket pump/gasket leaked worse than the one they took off, so they got to do the job twice to put an OE one in, and the problem all along was the pipe that Gary is talking about that goes back to the heater hose. I don't think I've heard of a head gasket failure on one of these that yielded external coolant leakage (although, an internal failure can push all the coolant out of the overflow...). That said, if they're completely sure of the cause of the problem, just gaskets is likely all it will need. Talk to your local dealer, if they're OK with ordering up chain guides just in case you need them, do that (Subaru, like most manufacturers, is not very forgiving when it comes to returns from the dealership, so depending on the volume that they do, they may not get a full refund if you don't use them). That way you can inspect them when it's apart and not have a ton of down time. If they're not comfortable with that, you'll have to weigh the cost of replacing them preventatively against potential downtime once it's apart (sounds like you might be having a shop fix it, so talk to them).

Yep, the majority of the wiring for the body runs through the LH fender, that will have nothing but loom and tape to protect it now. And the fuse box isn't far away either. I bet you have some nasty corrosion issues in that area...

Yikes. http://jdmfsm.info/Auto/Japan/Subaru/Legacy%20Outback/1998/ There are good OE wiring diagrams under "Service Manual" there, and some aftermarket ones under "Wiring diagrams" that are laid out a bit differently. both a good source. Get yourself a good multimeter so you can test for voltage, continuity, ground, and resistance. Then pick a symptom, and start tracing it back. I'd probably start with the fan, and start by testing things at the relay. It shouldn't take long to tell if the relay is sticking on, or if it's in the signal side that something is telling the relay to stay on... A friend of mine had a '93 Legacy that had been run for years without a driver's fender liner, and the fuse box (which is in the engine bay, but right above the LF tire) was horribly corroded, and caused a myriad of gremlins like that that didn't seem to have any pattern or connection.

This is the section for questions on a '91 Legacy. But, a '91 Legacy in the US wouldn't have any sort of AWD/4WD selector. The only controls would be the gear shifter (whether it's a manual or automatic, obviously, is different), and the emergency brake lever. A '91 Loyale is an old-gen car, and would have a button to switch between FWD and 4WD.

^Agreed FYI, for future reference. We consider the Loyale to be an Old-Gen car here even though it overlaps with the Legacy and such. If you have future questions, you'll probably get more traffic on the Old-gen section.

They're definitely discontinued from Subaru. When my friend bought his (now my) Brat probably 10 years ago, it came with what was supposed to be the last new OE tank in the country....it's from a hatch. We had to make a plate to span the 6 inches or so between the mounts as the hatch tank is much smaller.

The rear bumper cover on the baja does not wrap around all the way to the wheel well, where it does on the outback. Also, the bumper cover extends further up on the baja under the tail lights than an outback. Maybe it could be made to work, but it would not be pretty. I attached the parts diagrams of both.