Commuter

At that price, you are close to justifying a CCR engine. I think the rebuilt engine from them (with warranty!) runs just a tad more. Yes, you'll have the installation expense on top of that. Do you want to put your money into the installation expense, or into other bits and pieces on your (questionable?) engine? Note - I'm talking of the 2.5L engine. If you want to put in a 2.2L engine, I think they go for close to a grand less. Just a thought. Commuter

Do a search for "Climate Control Backlight" thread topic. Tons of info. Commuter

On my 97 OB, the MAP sensor that Walker speaks of had actually failed. It "checks" the EGR by looking for a pressure (vacuum) change when the EGR is triggered. Hence, I was getting the P0400 code, even though nothing was actually wrong with the EGR circuit. My only other symptom was a slight delay in shifting (automatic). The sensor feeds data to the TCU as part of its shift algorithms I was told. Once the sensor was replaced (darn expensive thing too), both problems went away. About 1.5 year later, I got the EGR code again. They changed the BPT since the diaphram was torn. No luck. Changed the solenoid and now everything is fine. Note - that little filter was changed somewhere along the line... with the sensor I think. Commuter

Yes. I saw the dealer do it with my 97 OB. Commuter

Common complaint with this generation. The lenses yellow. You can buff them to improve that. A search will lead to some threads. Also, the light just doesn't seem to be that good 'period' from these cars. Try some of the "extra bright" bulbs. Eg, Silvania SilverStar for one. They can make a noticable improvement. A search will reveal threads on this topic as well. Commuter

Another strong posibility. Carbon build up in the engine. This happened twice with my 97 OB. I got "exactly" the symptoms you describe. A stumble as you feathered into the throttle from a stop. It gradually got worse and affected higher rpms (up to 1500). Over the counter stuff won't (likely) do if this is your problem. A MotorVac fixed me up. The second time it happened a few years later, I ended up changing the O2 sensor. (This was about 1.5 yr ago.) It was not throwing any codes, but the mechanic said it was 'slow'. My problem gradually went away after several weeks. I tried to help it along with some carbon cleaner and premium gas. As I understand it, the knock sensor issue affects things around the 2000 / 2500 rpm range. One shouldn't be getting any knock if you are just feathering into the gas from idle. These cars are known for running rich. The fuel maps are that way I guess. Commuter

You might want to check if you still have warranty on this item. Some emission items have a warranty even longer than the 5/60 powertrain warranty. Just a thought. Commuter

At the age of the car, it could definitely be wires as mentioned. They have probably never been changed. What do you mean by "miss"? My 97 OB developed a low rpm hesitation. Just a slight delay in throttle response, or a bit of stumbling at times when starting off. Anything more than a 'touch' of throttle was fine. It gradually got worse, climbing into higher rpms (1000 to 1500) to the point where it felt like it was "missing" if I was driving thru town and the engine was loafing along at about 1400 rpm. The problem turned out to be carbon build up. These cars run rich. I'm not saying this is your issue if you truly have a "miss". Just something else to be aware of. A MotorVac treatment fixed me up for a couple of years. The second time it happened, I ended up changing the O2 sensor and that aleviated things. Commuter

Not sure how to help you, but you are going to get this code. Assuming that the 2.2 is configured the same as the 2.5, you have a small pressure sensor mounted on the passenger strut tower. It tracks manifold pressure and atmospheric pressure and is one of the signals used by the auto tranny shift algorithm. As a secondary function, it "checks" the EGR operation. It looks for a change in the manifold pressure (vacuum) when the EGR is triggered. Since it doesn't see this change, it throws the code. Hooking all the 'stuff' back up won't help you. You'll still get the CEL. (I think it has to see a few consecutive failures, hence you may go a few days between CEL's.) This sensor failed a couple years ago on my 97 OB. I got the EGR code as a result, but the EGR was actually fine. I did notice at the time that my shifting was a little delayed, almost like a bit of 'slip'. Once the sensor was changed, the shifting returned to normal. I did not have any other symptom really. No smell. If gas milaged suffered, it was extremely slight. Good luck. Commuter

Tire pressure is usaully biased a bit in the same manner as the weight distribution of the car. That is, if the weight distribution is 54% front, 46% rear, then they will spec 30 psi front, 28 psi rear (or something like that). The reason is so the tires have the same contact patch size and effective rolling diameter, especially important with AWD cars. Commuter

Double check. I have a 97 OB and I was told by the dealer that they are NOT prewired for keyless entry. It was going to cost a pretty penny to do it. I believe the prewiring started in 98. I've heard conficting info on this, but I've never heard anyone come back and tell me that my info is wrong... so... I ended up adding a Viper Remote Start / Alarm / Keyless entry for what the dealer told me keyless entry alone would be. Commuter

Any oily looking sludge in the coolant expansion bottle? Any bubbles coming up thru the coolant expansion bottle? Note that you may only get the bubbles after a hard run. Replace the thermostat with an OEM one. Make sure you put it in in the correct orientation if doing it yourself. Do try the simple stuff first (t-stat, cap, etc) but keep a close eye on it. You are at prime age and milage for the dreaded headgasket issue. Commuter

I had a new block (but a Phase I block) put in 2.5 years ago (97 OB). I noticed this fall, after approx. 90k miles, that it is exhibiting some cold piston slap. It had a little right from day one, but very minor. Way way better than the original engine ever was. I'm not sure just when it started, but presumably it has been a slow, gradual progression. Given the time and miles it has taken, I'm not too worried about it. I still worry more about the head gaskets to be honest. Commuter

See the links I posted in this thread (assuming they are still good). http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=21034&highlight=series Commuter

It is a bit brighter without the green sleeves... and also less "green". I didn't put them on the climate control bulbs the last time since the 7219 bulb is quite a bit smaller than the Subaru bulb I had in there. It would have just fell off. Commuter

Generally speaking, the newer the better. As the years went along, they (tried) to address such things as piston slap, front end clunk, a weakness in the auto clutch pack area, etc. The head gaskets are an issue in all years, but maybe less in the newer ones. I've never heard of any tranny problems to speak of. Keyless entry became more common too. Some things like that. Be prepared to give up a few things with these models. No folding mirrors. Single speed intermittent wipers. No delay on rear wiper. Rear fog does not time out and shut off, stuff like that. The Limited model has some of these things. I would agree... I like the styling of the 96-99 OB's a bit more than the 00-04's. They got a bit too bloated looking. Commuter (97 OB)

These cars don't have LSD. If it is an automatic, it is probably torque bind. With this year of Outback, the center differential clutch pack usually goes somewhere around 120k miles or so. Expect about $1000. Put the FWD fuse in and see if it goes away. If it does, it is most likely the clutch pack. I just recently did mine, but I'm around 250k miles now. Commuter

In general, one does not want to replace just one (or 2) tires on an AWD vehicle. Now, let's be practical. At 8k miles, the tires are less than 1 yo I'm guessing. As pointed out, the wear would most likely be minimal. This depends on the tire and driving though. Eg - is it a 700 wear rating tire, or a 200? Given that the tire is probably very new, it is also probably current. That is, you can go out and buy another exactly the same. Now the question is whether the 8k miles has made more than a 1/4" difference in the circumference. You can get an idea of this by measuring tread depth and comparing to new. Note that this is difficult though, because 0.040" (1 mm) tread depth variation equals the 1/4" circumference variation. Still, you have a starting point. I had to replace a tire after 6 months and 25k kms (15k miles) due to a sidewall puncture. I was using a 700 wear rated tire. I jacked the car up and measured the circumference with a tape as previously mentioned. I was just under the 1/4" allowance. If the variance is too great, you still don't have to buy 4 new tires. You should be able to find someone to shave the new tire down a bit (again, as previously mentioned). One thing I would personally be wary of though is to put a different brand, or even different 'model' of tire on the car. Even if the circumferences measure the same, the "rolling circumference" might be different (different sidewall stiffness, etc.). (Do the charts actually give this? That is, a tire under load? Perhaps they do.) Also, there is the issue of different tread patterns and compounds etc resulting in different grip. Not the best for staying out of trouble. My 2 cents. Commuter

I second the comment about pulling the nozzle back about an inch. If the tip of the nozzle is pushed in such that it rests on the 'bottom' of the filler pipe, it will often cause the pump to cut out. That's been my experience anyway, and not just with Subarus. Commuter

Lots of good info in this thread. http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=2498&highlight=climate+control+backlight Commuter

I use the 303 Protectant. I haven't had any problem with doors freezing, but then my car is usually in a garage overnight. Commuter

Really? I guess we don't complain loud enough. Commuter

I don't know about doing it yourself. That depends on your skill. I have a 97 OB as well. What I found out was that these cars were not prewired for keyless entry. (That started in 98 I believe.) It was going to cost a bundle from the dealer. I ended up adding a Viper Alarm / Remote Start / Keyless entry for about the same price. I've been quite happy with mine. After seeing what had to be done for this, I'm glad I didn't tackle it myself. It was worth paying them for 3 hours of labour to hook everything up. Commuter

The gasket (o-ring, grommet) that seals between the head and the valve cover around the spark plug well is leaking. Not uncommon. Commuter

Frag, Even if they are just regular screws, they'll last several years. Someone had wedged a couple of screws into my heat shields to stop rattles. I'm not sure when they disappeared, as I just replaced them. They must have been in there for at least 4 or 5 years. Commuter