craigmcd

My daughter has a 2013 Outback with a 2017 four-cyl engine, which runs good and is reliable. Her mechanic, who is newish to her, has recommended a "fuel line flush". I can understand a brake line flush, or a radiator flush - but I have never heard of a fuel line flush. It seems to me that is happening every time you drive. It sounds bogus to me, and fairly expensive. She did not say anything about a fuel filter, which should be changed periodically or as indicated by poor engine performance. Is this guy trying to make a boat payment or what? He is also recommending a oxygen sensor replacement in order to solve an engine code problem - which kind of points to the catalytic converter, but he thought he would start with the sensor. He quoted $600 for both services. What does the hive mind think ? Thanks, Craig

We are looking at using a U-Haul U-Box, which is a large container which we would load, and U-Haul would transport across the country. I am also looking at a 6x10 trailer, which is a bit smaller than most. I agree with you all, and have communicated to my daughter that any problems are magnified by having the trailer along. To be fair to my daughter, she has already gotten rid of a lot of her belongings, and is only bringing what is really important to her. She has sold several large family heirlooms already, including a whole dining room set. Thanks for the ideas and help.

A true comment: The UHaul trailer is 900-1000 lbs heavier than a similar Wells Cargo trailer. The trailer purchase would be about $4200 for a 5x8, or $5800 for a 6x10. The bigger one is 1220 lbs.

Thanks Ido, good considerations. I hadn’t really considered buying a trailer mostly due to logistical considerations, but it is possible. I will go look at some locally tomorrow and get an idea. My son, who is a Navel officer gets moved a lot, and he purchased an enclosed utility trailer to pull behind his Subaru Ascent Touring. Works great for him. (We are an all Subaru family). Lots to think about. I am not wild about the combination. Anyone have any thoughts on calculating the weight? Do I need to figure the people and cats in the cabin? Or just the load behind the car? Thanks much. C

Yikes - that sounds bad. Out of curiosity, when you replace an old CVT, what do you replace it with ? Are there newer models that bolt right in and work ?

Thanks - good point that the trailer weight is five times the payload weight. Hadn’t thought of that. Any other opinions out there ?

Hi everyone. My daughter will be moving from Colorado to Virginia at the end of August, and needs to pull a trailer with her home goods with a 2013 Outback, 4 cylinders. At the end of July the car will be fitted with a new engine block, but all the original external components (oil consumption problem in a different thread). It is three days of driving for sure. The transmission, etc have about 114,000 miles. Tires are good. The car towing capacity is 2,700 lbs, and the tongue weight is 200 lb. The class ll hitch well exceeds those requirements. The UHaul trailer is 6 x 12, and has dual axles. The trailer empty is 1920 lb. That gives her a trailer cargo weight of 780. (2700 - 1920 = 780). She is not moving that much stuff, the problem is a queen size bed is large and doesn’t fit in the smaller trailers. She has other large bulky things as well. She figures the load at around 600-650lbs. Her estimate is pretty good because much of her stuff was bought online and she can go back and look at the shipping weight. Let’s assume the trailer and cargo are right at 2700 lbs. The trailer has onboard hydraulic brakes. Question 1) Is this long trip advisable ? Question 2) In calculating the weight, do we also have to include the two people, travel bags, cooler and two cats? All of that would be about 370 to 430 lbs ? If so, then the trailer cargo weight goes way down to about 380 lb. My big concern, besides safety, is overtaxing the Subaru, particularly this new engine block and old transmission. Overheating could be an issue as well. What do you think ? PS: renting a UHaul truck with a trailer to pull the Subaru behind is crazy expensive. Thanks much, Craig

Thanks for the reply. Quick follow up. I believe this engine calls for 5W-30. When you say thicker oil, what would you suggest? Second: Can you expand on the "engine is being damaged" light? I have always understood that when the oil light comes on it means low oil pressure or that the oil pump has failed. I believe in our manual it says to pull over immediately and tow it to the nearest dealer (which almost no one does). Audrey tops off the oil and the light goes out. I appreciate the response. C

Hi All, My daughter’s 2013 Outback 4 cyl is using oil, and I would like to explain the symptoms and ask for advice. First, this is her third Subaru, so she is very familiar with the car. The mileage is 108,000. She bought it used 7 months ago, and it has a 12 month warranty. There is no smoke, no overheating, no hot warning light, no low water, no obvious oil leaking, but she sometimes faintly smells oil when getting out of the car. The oil light comes on, and she checks the oil, which is always low, but not all the way to the low dot. The first few times she did not bother to track it, but after awhile she noticed it happened more frequently. She drove 2000 miles and added about 620ml. The next time the light came on she had driven 1700 miles, and added 470ml. The next time she had driven 637 miles, the level was not to the dot, and she added 470ml. The last time she went 848 miles and had to add 400ml to top it off. Each of these times the low oil light had come on. The last two times, as noted, she added about 1/2 quart or so. She now carries a 5 qt jug and is trying to keep better records. The car has normal decent power. She can pass quickly at 65 on a level road, and with a bit more effort can pass on a steeper mountain road. When she leaves work she immediately enters the local highway, and has to get up to 60 quickly. The car is cold (Colorado winter) and it does take some time to get up to speed, but improves when it warms up. The guys where she bought the car have looked at it twice, and asked her to keep the records. The have done a couple little things, like exchanging the PVC. They offer the warranty, and I think want to avoid addressing bigger problems. Any thoughts or direction I can give her. I have my suspicions, but would really like your input. Thanks, Craig

Ok thanks, I’ll let her know this info. I appreciate it. C

Hi, I did not understand your sentence, “Annoying in her situation but they change the oil, make it tamper proof then you bring it back later and they check level. You get a new Subaru short block.” Is that related to the oil control rings? When you say oil control rings, is that the classic ‘ring job’, replacing the rings on the pistons? Isn’t that a top of engine overhaul? Thanks much, Craig

My daughter, who is on her third Outback, has one that is using oil. The 2013 Outback Limited - 4 cyl - has used 2 qt of oil in 2,400 miles. She purchased the car fairly recently from a mechanic shop / independent dealer who offered a one year warranty on their ‘certified’ car, which has 103,000 total miles. She lives in rural Colorado, where the nearest decent sized town is 60 miles - so lots of highway driving. She has checked for oil leaks and spots on the ground, and does not see anything to account for that much oil (no visible leaks). I have some suspicions, but wanted to ask all you drivers what might be causing this kind of oil lose. Any ideas ?? Thanks, Craig

Thanks again for the replies. I will look into getting an analysis. I got a soil analysis for my yard last year, might as well get one for the car. My main motivation in the original question is simply to have the engine last as long as possible. We tend to keep cars many years (I have owned my Chevy van for 21 years), and want to keep big expensive repairs to a minimum. Have a great week. C

GD, perhaps you can tell me where one would get an oil lab report? Keep in mind too that this is a family car, not a high performance race car. While I appreciate your sincere suggestion, it seems a little extreme, particularly if such an analysis is expensive or not commonly available. Thanks C

Hi All, Our Outback 3.6R Limited, which has 167,800 miles on it, gets Mobile 1 High Mileage full synthetic oil and a Subaru filter - and I do the oil changes myself. I was wondering how many miles to go between oil changes? Thoughts? Thank you, Craig