Setright

If you were to drive a bunch of new cars without logos on them, how would you know which were the Subaru? What is it about a Subaru that sets it apart from the others? Distinctive, understated design that remains elegant. You would only catch a WRX Impreza first glance. The rest would appear to blend in, but once you understand the solid design language, the Subes would shine. If you can hear their engines, the Subes would be making the slightly off-beat rumble that indicates a boxer engine. That's a point, if you want four-wheel-drive and a boxer engine there's only Subaru and Porsche left to choose from. Oh, the question says you are actually driving them! The Sube would be the one that communicates with you. The controls all feel connected to the oily bits underneath. Not like Audi/Volvo which have totally anesthetised steering and over-servoed brakes. If you got a little ambitious in a bend and the car started to skid/slide it would do so progressively and allow you plenty of chances to catch things without embarassing you. (Most cars would understeer into the nearest stationary object.) - Subaru seems to have worked on changing their image over the past few years - how would describe their new direction? What are they about now, compared to the past? They are trying to alert people to the fact that only does AWD allow off-roading, but it gives the car a superb balance on tarmac too. The entire drivetrain is low set and symmetrical around the longitudinal axis, to the advangtage of handling. The low center of gravity allows softer suspension, to cope with bad surfaces, without producing roll in corners. Best of both worlds. - Stereotype for me - what type of person is a "Subaru person"? Friendly, loyal, critically-minded <- That's why they chose a better car!

Is your air-filter box on top of the engine or down the inside of the fender? The second type already draws cool air from the fender cavity. However, you can remove the silencer that lives inside the fender cavity to gain a small amount of high-end HP due to less restriction, and if you use a proper velocity stack to replace it, you get a lovely race-car intake noise when you mash the throttle! That's real cheap and easy. Next up comes the K&N panel filter dropped into the stock air-filter box. New spark plugs, maybe plug leads too. Injector cleaner, as already mentioned. Then change your engine and transmission oil. Helps to squeeze those last few percent of power out of the driveline. Make sure you use synthetics. I have a thing for Mobil and Castrol myself. A free-flow exhaust silencer will add a few HP, again mainly at high revs, like above 4000, but will increase noise levels at all engine speeds and throttle positions, which may not suit you. Personally, I think the first suggestion of running you EJ18 without oil was a waste of a post. Yes, sure, to really increase HP requires more cubes or a turbo, but engine swaps are time consuming and hardly "bolt-on" mods.

EJ is a designation for a whole series of open-deck engines. EJ22 is an EJ series, 2.2 Litre. EJ18, EJ20, EJ22, EJ25 - are the ones I know of in this series. EG22 and EG33 are closed-deck, but otherwise similar. (As far as I know, I might have misunderstood something along the way..)

Living here in over-taxed Denmark, I'd like to start by saying that I am very jealous. Your car probably costs less to own/run/insure than my regular Impreza. The glovebox needs to come out, to begin with. (Two screws in the hinge at the bottom) Only if you are lucky will you be able to work from there without taking out a whole bunch of other stuff. The heat exchanger is connected to engine coolant system inside the engine bay, on the "firewall". I would strongly recommend finding a Subaru manual before you start this project. It will save you a lot of trouble if you know exactly what you are doing.

Duh! People who love Subes would never dis eachother :-)

1991 to 1994. The later generation had a crummy interior, and the 1990 Legacies have weak main bearings in the manual transmission. Cant beat an EJ22 for smooth running that goes on forever and sounds superb!

Impreza, please only one zed! "Outback" is like an equipment level, it is not a model name. They could make a Justy Outback if they wanted to, and not break the logic.

Is the thread in the same place? usually one has the thread near the head of the bolt, and that one goes on top.

I have tried all the oils mentioned, and whilst M1 and Redline are good. I have found something better: Castrol TAF-X ! Best shift yet in a Subaru box, and let's face it, they are stubborn!

I have said it before, and I will say it again: Why doesn't Mobil sell the 5W-50 stuff in the states? This rating doesn't evapourate off cylinder walls like the watery xW-30'ies, and consumpion is barely detectable. Do you guys have the 0W-40 that I use here for winter?

TAF-X isnt thick by the way, but there is plenty of film-strength, which is likely to quieten things down a bit.

Sube boxes are just noisy, and of course the noise will get louder with age. I say run it until it MUST be repaired. The tell-tale sign is lots of metal shavings in the gear oil...like a mound of it on top the drain plug magnet. ANy less than 120k miles means a production defect. (Or too much racing!)

Synth. Have been most of the time. Funny thing was that I intended to go with a semi-synth from Castrol, but a friend of mine bought the "wrong" stuff for me. Before returning the TAF-X I decided to read around the 'net, including Castrol's own line. Seems the Ford Sierra Cosworth guys like this oil too - and their 4wd is similar to ours...

Ladies and gentlemen, I have found a new way of life: Castrol TAF-X Read around the board, and you will find many opinions, on many different gear oils - including mine! - and this, oil of oils, has never been mentioned. What a shame! It's a fully synth, GL4/5 75W-90, designed for gearboxes that also comprise a diff, just like our Subes! Whilst it's not quite new-gearbox-in-a-bottle, the baulky shift action into third that has dogged Subes for decades has improved vastly after doing 600 miles with this oil. I can just glide the stick forward from 4th and it will slide into 3rd, no crunch, no baulk, just pure sensory delight! Apparently, it's hard to come by in the states, but if you can get a hold of some, go for it!

Absolutely, Tiny. However, I would only do so if I was stuck in the middle of nowhere. Would rather wait for a tow, and not stress my starter and synchro-rings.

Second gear is locked 100% on a cyclic auto 'box, so there would less loss inthat gear. This is not a simple concept.

It happens, seemingly at random.

The seal is pressed into a rail that surrounds the windows. It sounds like it has jumped out the rail. The best way to get it back in, and stay there, is to undo it from one end, like the leading edge of the driver's door, two/three plastic plugs and then start tugging it gently from the rail until you pass the point it's lose at. Then, start squeezing it back in. Good luck!

Fiamm AM100, which deliver 132dB, should do the trick. I used to run AM80, but you get so used to 114dB that it starts to sound puny. I have been using AM100 for over two years, and I am still impressed with the way they COMMAND attention. In city driving, windows open, they still surprise me. There is plenty of space to mount them between the radiator and front bumper, and blast straight out! I advise serious care if used on pedestrians, they will shock - possibly anger ;-)

The hood has a bump-stop at each front corner to align it with the fender leading edge. They are basically rubber screws, that move down when you turn them clockwise and up if turned counter-clockwise. Not sure if there is enough play to solve your problem, but give it a shot! No shock absorbing foam in European models.

Where's the old thread, I need to ask some questions that are probably already answered there.

O2 sensor is in the cat section. I have made a make-shift cold air intake. It's 3in PVC tubing right now, but that is too large a diameter and PVC is too flexible, making the sound a bit too rough and rumble. 2.5in aluminium piping is plan. I have taken some photos, but they are on old fashioned film, and will scan them soon. Perhaps my system can inspire you to do great things :-)

As ever, I am sceptical. The ECU "reset" only clears the fault memory. The fuel and ignition settings are revised hundreds of times per second. I don't know what frequency we're up to yet, but Bosch was quoting 300Hz in the late eighties. Clearing the fault memory after replacing a knock sensor is a good idea, because the presence of the fault makes the ECU retard the timing. So the manouvre isn't pointless in all cases, but if no faults are registered, then it won't help.

I would be suspicious, the previous owner obviously didn't know how to treat the AWD. Maybe the same person has performed handbrake turns. Which is a surefire way to destroy the central diff.

If you can't tell if the car lights are on or off maybe, just maybe, you shouldn't be driving at all! PLEASE don't start getting angry with me, just jokes man!