Setright

I think the rattle is peculiar is to US bulit Legacies. In case anyone cares? Why do you'all wanna shorten the shift? Is the US shift longer than the Euro? My Legacy has nicely judged gear shift length. Whenever I drive anyone else's car (none Subes) I always feel like the stick has to swing from bumper to bumper, kinda like pole-vaulting. The I get back into "Scoobes", and find a quick wrist movement is all that's needed. Ahhhh! DONT FORGET: Leverage will be lost on the short-throw kit, and Sube synchros being as weak as they are, I think the shift will become unbearably heavy.

I know Hawk, what's with that knock sensor error? Up til now, it's the only fault I've found in that manual, and I have read most of it - bedtime story, honey? - and know my car very well.

Surely Keith. I understand that the autobox would be the weak link. But the rest of the car is strong and dependable. Subyluvr, I do thrash seven shades out of mine sometimes. Of course only when it's fully warmed up! That last stretch of revs from 6000 to 6500, WOW! What a sound....it's like the old EJ is saying, "Aha, give me more of that!" Impressive for 188k miles. M1 at 6k intervals, coolant every 20k, trans oil every 30k, and I have only hit the rev limiter three times in nearly two and a half years and over 60k miles. So I DO look after it too! By the way, the limiter kicks in at 6800rpm

Brass rings in my 5MT.

Ta-dahhh: http://auto.howstuffworks.com/transmission4.htm

Well Cookie, thanks for the confidence, but it's a fact of gearbox theory, not something peculiar to Subaru. All the gears are in constant mesh, expect reverse, which is straight cut for strength - and that lovely whine - and has a tendency to clunk cog teeth as you select it. Synchro rings lock the chosen cog to the input shaft, while the rest rotate freely.

Bit harsh there Keith. The EJ22 is the most respected Sube engine, and the auto trans failures aren't that common. Especially not with the 136bhp of the EJ22 (Euro spec HP).

Redline NS is a tiny bit better than Mobil 1. I think going to MTL/MT90/Shockproof should be left until you have tried one of these first.

Cookie, the cog teeth are in constant mesh. The synchro teeth make the grinding noise.

The donut spare thing is NOT a problem. The side-to-diff might have been running a little warmer than normal, since it had to accomodate a speed difference. The center diff would only come into play if BOTH wheels on one axle were too small. That would mean different speeds front to rear.

I don't like lugging my Sube away from a crawl in second gear, so I always drop into first. It's just a question of giving it enough revs

Sounds right, those idler pulleys last about 120 k miles. Happy New Year!

It WAS the heatshields. Tiny cracks in the mounting holes. Apparently these have allowed enough movement, once hot, to make the noise. I agreed with the dealer's suggestion of simply cutting them off. Not really satisfactory, but the noise is gone and I can concentrate on hearing that lovely deep broooomm!! Happy New Year

Texan! Sounds to me like you should look to Germany for your new suspension. "H&R" makes springs that lower slighty and stiffen progressively, without being so hard that it makes daily driving a pain in the back. Sure, they also have a range of super stiff springs, but save that for track only. They also make spring/damper kits. http://www.hrsprings.com/ They are very popular over here, and are held in high esteem. Especially since many European roads are in quite a bad state, we need compliance to allow for all those potholes! On an unrelated note: I would recommend Bridgstone Potenza 720'ies. They grip well, wet or dry, and handle very predictably. Somehow they combine this with a tendency to last long and wear evenly. Trust me, I have thrashed the heebee-jeebees out of mine and they have avoided the worn shoulders that so many other tyres give in to. True, they are not the absolute last word in outright grip, but the feel/handling/predictability allow a lot of smiles per mile

Sorry Mike, just trying to keep things simple. There is more inertia, because flywheel, clutch, and cogwheels are stronger/heavier since the transmission is the only place to soak up excess power - wheelspin is rarely an option. I agree - since it's true - that the propshaft, drive axles, and all that are disconnected when the clutch pedal is down. The synchro ring WILL allow mismatched gears to be engaged - accompanied by a horrible noise. VERY few gearboxes have synchros that block mismatched gears. It requires an extra ring to do this. The actual synchronising is performed by the conical part of the synchro ring that contacts BEFORE the selector teeth. There is no rubber involved.

Cret, I would like to start by offering my deepest sympathies. I wish I could make it all go away With respect to interference: The valves can collide with the pistions, but valves can also collide with other valves. Valve/pistion depends on the compression ratio and valve seat angle. Valve/valve is only possible with DOHC engines - for obvious reasons. I would recommend replacing the belt tensioner along with the cambelt, since this probably failed in the first place.

Well, most likely there is break in the heating element. To fix it will require stripping the seat, and soldering the element back together. My cloth seat trim was easy enough to get off and back on. It's stretched tight and held on by re-useable copper clips. Oh, I found 100 Danish "Crowns" under my seat runner, that's roughly 12 dollars!

DOH! Applegump, you should've asked like day earlier and I would still have had the reciept for mine....surely the dealer can look it up? Even thought the PCV valve looks OK, the spring may be weakened, and the barrel worn, and therefore not seal well. After a drive, open the hood and try to pull the dipstick out. It should require a firm tug the first time. The stick should get pulled in by vacuum in the crankcase if the PCV system is working.

What? It sounds like a perfectly normal CV joint failure. Torque bind issues on a 5MT??? Sounds very suspicious to me. Has someone been "performing" hand brake turns with the car?

There is more inertia in the transmission compared to most other cars, because of the four-wheel-drive. The cold weather will make it harder, but if you have been forcing the stick into first at speed for three months, then the synchroniser rings may have been scarred and hence make the gearbox even more recalcitrant. However, I doubt it's damaged to any serious extent - it IS a Sube after all. You might want to try "double de-clutching" as you move down through the gears. As the stick passes throught the neutral position, keep it there, lift the clutch, tap the accelerator, press the clutch and move the stick to the desired gear. The Legacy pedals are actually perfectly spaced for this. You can rest the left side of your right foot on the brake as you slow down and rolling your foot around the ankle tap the gas without releasing the brake. It takes practice, but it is VERY satisfying once you learn to match engine revs to gears and the stick just glides around the gates Happy New Year!

There is no adjustment feature, but you can snap off the mirror and jam a pice of paper or similar in the ball joint, to keep the mirror still. Good luck And Happy New Year!

Too true, Frag! Let it be known that I torque my lug nuts progressively. Criss-cross off course. 20Nm, 40, 60, 80, 98. Up to 40 the tyre is off the ground, I lower enough it to keep it still, before it supports the car fully. This method is garaunteed to get the wheels centered right, and believe you me, it can make a difference over 100mph...

Not sure. Off hand I'd day it ramps the voltage up, and down again. Fades the light in and out, instead of flipping it on and off.

For sure you should replace the nuts, the threads will have been stressed by the excess torque. The actual bolts should be okay, as long as the threads look normal. I do mine to 98Nm like the handbook says. How many pounds is that again??

The auto trannies apparently give up sending power to the rear wheels are very high mileages, like over 200k. In a tight-ish bend, try to come off and on the throttle and listen for a "clonk".