Fairtax4me

There are plenty of these cars running around with after market plugs and wires on them. Some people just get the bad apple and have problems with the after market parts. Generally, your better quality parts will work better and last longer. Bosch wires should be fine. I use Autolites in my truck, they seem to work fine for the old dog. There's not much that can go wrong with your run of the mill copper plug. You do want to at least match the type of plug with the manufacturers OE plug type though. If your owners manual specifies platinum plugs, get platinums.

Just edit the title and text to "double post" or something like that and the mods will delete it later. Did you try bleeding it first?

DOHC 2.5 Overheating, rough running, sounds like blown head gasket. I won't condemn it to that right away, the cooling system might have air in it, the timing belt could have jumped due to a faulty tensioner creating the poor running/no power problems. Maybe the shop didn't purge the air from the cooling system properly, that would lead to the overheating, but overheating that engine leads to other bad things very quickly. Take it back to the shop that did the work and give them the chance to make it right. (Don't drive it, make them pay to tow it in) If they can't you start asking for some money back. Then go to a Subaru shop that can fix it right. How many miles are on this engine?

I got a few from the hardware store to replace the rusty ones on my wagon. Anything grade 5 or better should work fine as long as you get something with an anti-corrosion coating such as zinc. Stainless steel is not as good of an idea as it sounds, so stay away from that.

If the threads in the WP housing are crossed or stripped out you can drill it out and run a longer bolt through with a nut on the top side of the housing.

Wut he sed. ^ 100% Normal operation. Forgetaboudit!

Probably tie rod end. Those are easy to check. YOu can grab it with a large pair of channel lock pliers and try to compress the joint, or jam a pry bar/large screw driver in there and try to expand it. If it moves any (like above) it's bad. Inner tie rod end. http://www.youtube.com/watchv=fUb6LcVcP4g&feature=related Harder to check, but if you pay close attention to the movement of the tie rod in-relation to the rack you can see movement without removing the boot. Lower ball joint. Same applies as the tie rod end. Pliers to compress, prybar to expand, any movement, it's probably bad. Wheel bearing. (these are really bad) If you look at the outer axle housing and it also moves with the wheel, it's the wheel bearing.

How did they get the brake lines connected? Just left them hanging? All the soobs I've seen the struts are oriented the same way.

How many miles on this car? Has the water pump ever been replaced? Timing belt?

Clutch cylinder failure, or air in the line. Try bleeding it first with Dot 4 brake fluid. How old is the fluid in the trans? 75w-90 synthetic will help with the cold shifts.

You do have a service manual right? You should remove the pistons before splitting the block. The block halves are sealed together with some type of Three Bond sealer (I don't recall the exact number), and it's tough stuff, so it may take some elbow grease to get it apart. There are also a handful of alignment dowels that often make this type of thing more difficult to separate.

I do. Or at least I used to. I had to wipe my hard drive, now I don't have Photoshop anymore, thus don't have anywhere to save pics that I would copy from the manual. Just too lazy to reload photoshop. If you have some post away.

That small amount I really wouldn't worry about. But if you want to be a stickler, call your local machine shop and ask about getting it straightened.

Is there enough bolt sticking out (with the thermostat housing removed) to get a pair of vice grips around to turn it out? I'd try that first. But you need to check those threads, if they are damaged a new bolt may go in and strip the threads out, then you'll be right back in the same boat. If you have a tap kit this is a good time to use it.

Not so. It may be the most powerful point in the engine rpm range, but it is almost never the most fuel efficient. With light throttle driving I get the best fuel economy shifting around 2,000 - 2500 rpm. Sometimes going up the hills here I don't have any choice and have to shift at a higher rpm, or the engine will not make enough power to get up the hill in the next higher gear.

That's average for a place that doesn't let you in the yard. Give http://www.car-part.com a look. You may find a better deal on a trans that will work for certain.

This is typical of Michelin tires and is in no way indicative of a tire problem. I would suspect a bad strut or two. I've never found either to fail sooner or more frequently than the other. I would expect tie rod ends to fail more often since they tend to be smaller. But they do carry less load than a lower ball joint, so it can go either way.

What kind of price are you looking at for this thing? I'd want a warranty even if it was just 30 days so you have time to install it and make sure it's in good shape.

That last one looks like the hose that loops over to the evap purge control solenoid under the passenger intake runners. The vacuum hose routing diagram on the bottom of the hood should at least give you a general idea. The first 3 are for the PCV system. I can't find a good pic of the whole setup. Mike (mdjdc) will hook you up though.

Look on the block. Examples: http://s23.photobucket.com/albums/b372/dunebuggyarchives/Engine%20Id%20Photos/

Ignition timing is entirely controlled by the ECU and there is no way to manually change it. There are some performance "tuners" out there who can play around with ECU programming and probably change ignition timing, but I doubt there are any that support a vehicle that new. The dealer might be able to, but they won't unless Subaru tells them they need to. That does seem a bit low. But it's spot on the EPA estimated 24 highway. http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/findacar.htm

Well there are several different contraptions that are all called "dollies". I was just speaking of one type in particular and wanted to be clear so others who may stumble across this in a search won't get conflicting information. Any tow, of any distance more than a few feet, with 2 wheels on the ground = bad news for an AWD car.

Let me straighten out what I meant by "Dolly". I get the idea you guys are thinking the thing you tow behind your pickup or motor home that you drive the front wheels onto so you can drag your car around. http://www.truckntow.com/pc-10126-147375-aluminum-steel-axle-wheel-dollies.aspx You often see these on the side of tow trucks, but most people have no clue what they are there for. Sometimes the tow operator doesn't even know. http://www.coolsprings.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/tow-truck.jpg

The simple answer is ABSOLUTELY NOT! AWD of any kind should always be towed on a flatbed or with dollies.

The clutch switch prevents power from reaching the starter solenoid when the clutch pedal is not depressed. This means the starter will not turn if you don't push the pedal down. The car is 5 years old at this point, even if it hasn't driven far there are still some things that could use attention. Spark plugs could be worn. Fuel and air filter could need to be changed if they haven't been. Run a tank or two of premium gas or a bottle of strong fuel system cleaner such as BG 44K to clean fuel injectors. A can of Seafoam in the gas tank works for that also. Cars with such low mileage often can have mouse nests under the hood. Tight spaces and good shelter form the elements make perfect hiding places for rodents. Check for wires or vacuum hoses that might be chewed on.