el_freddo

If this outback has the H6 engine in it, the overheating may have damaged the cam chain tensioners, which I'm 90% sure are some sort of plastic sliders. Melt the plastic and you could have metal on metal cam chain operation, which I'd imagine would be noisier than usual. Blown head gasket should've been something the dealer tested for before handing the car back to you. Hopefully there's no long lasting damage from being overheated. Cheers Bennie

Series 1 single range PT4wd L's is where you'll find this push button gear selector in Oz. But it'll probably be the wrong colour that you're after. What I was actually dropping in here for was to share those centre diff slop pics: I'm not even sure it's got that spacer ring in there. If it did it'd probably need a 4mm one! Cheers Bennie

Your factory shocks must be different to ours... My L series: Front and rear sturts/shocks swapped at ~380k km. Rear shocks replaced with KYB aftermarkets (gas) at ~470k km. Now at 520k km and the fronts probably need replacing, but am yet to check for leakage. This unit is my offroader. My Brumby: rear shocks replaced at ~200k km Sister's liberty: front struts replaced. 350k km at the time. The brumby sat for a very long time (outside I assume) so constant use seems to be good for shocks. Dust and dirt is also a killer. Those plastic boots on the shaft are good for the shocks Cheers Bennie

Three wire O2 sensor will really only help on initial warm up and maybe around town driving in winter (I guess). When pushing hard I highly doubt it'll need the heater element to keep the O2 at optimal temp under these conditions. Front springs I can't help with I'm sorry. But might have to check it out myself Cheers Bennie

Drop the setting on your rear axle to allow some of the tension on the torsion bars to be reduced. This will lower the rear end and hopefully stop the shocks from topping out. New shocks will never ride the same as worn shocks - that's the whole point of replacing them in the first place! Cheers Bennie

Yeah thanks, it does put some perspective on how long your gearbox oil has done it's job. Really if it doesn't get water in it or it doesn't all leak out it should last the life of the vehicle in theory. Cheers Bennie

Is that rust or dirt in the seam behind the spare tyre? If it's rust (doubtful looking at the rest of the vehicle), get on to it as it'll work it's way right through that whole seam from left to right. Once it really gets a hold it's super difficult to sort out. Cheers Bennie

Makes sense now, you're talking about the diff cradle... Glad you got it sorted and hope you find a good unit for your needs. Cheers Bennie

Both of these sound like the old L series auto box failures - the diff loses oil, pinion bearing runs dry and dies. The pinion shaft then walks itself into the diff centre. Can be a very nasty way to stop your car! I'd be keen to see some autopsy pics to see what was causing the clunk. Cheers Bennie

How many miles on your 32 year old subi? My dad's 29 chev hasn't had a gearbox oil change in 40 years so it must be good stuff right?? Maybe, maybe not - it's only done 11,000 miles in that time. So without the miles travelled, what you're saying doesn't really hold much weight. And I bet if you opened up your gearbox the internals would be covered in a grey layer of crud. Most boxes do... Cheers Bennie

I've done several rear wheel bearings, no press used for the stub axle or bearing running surfaces. Stub axle removal = a hard wood block and a mallet Bearing running surfaces = 50mm towball and a mallet Works a treat. Cheers Bennie

^ I had that issue with my EJ22 - but it'd only do it in certain temps once the drivetrain was nice and hot :/ Cheers Bennie

Thanks mate, this is the first I've ever heard anything about the Subaru gear oil being specially formulated for the synchros and hypoid diff gearset. I've been running Penrite 80w-90 (from memory) without issues. Interestingly, the phase two box doesn't have that second gear cold shifting issue... Cheers Bennie

I'd love a 4wd button gear knob. For now I've got the rocker switch mounted on the console to lock the centre diff. And as Goyle said, the vacuum diaphragm setup on the single range PT4wd L's is the same unit as the AWD ones. Grab the solenoids and vacuum lines too Cheers Bennie

If you're sucking cabin air for radiator cooling you'll also be sucking in dust and other rubbish you really don't want in your cab. Fresh air would be best and also much more freeflowing than that of sucking cabin air. As for pipes to the radiator(s), some sort of solid pipe like steam pipe would do the job. It could take some serious knocks and not split or pinch. Cheers Bennie

You could use an EJ dual range cable setup for the diff lock... Cheers Bennie

From what I understand the 1994 legacy doesn't have a subframe as such. The gen3 liberty/outback has one but the gen1/2 does not. I'd be identifying what parts you need then go from there. Stick with the same gen legacy and you'll be sweet with replacement parts. Cheers Bennie

Got a pic as to how this is stuck in there? I can't picture it myself having being lucky enough not to experience this (touch wood). Cheers Bennie

GD, what's so special about the Subaru oil?? Cheers Bennie

Also check/replace the main power relay (brown unit). The can do funny things to the ECU. Other thing that comes to mind is ensuring your cam and crank angle sensors are bolted in properly. I once had my cam angle sensor wiggle out and it cut all running ability of the engine. A bit different to your problem but worth crossing off the list Cheers Bennie

Easy: side mount the radiator on the side wall in the panel behind the seats/under the rear window with air ducting out the back of the vehicle, create an opening to the outside world with a grille/fins/air scoop. Could run a radiator each side of the vehicle and use an oil cooler in one for the engine oil (if the auto cooler is up for that sort if pressure - cold starting oil pressure could be an issue with that distance to travel come to think of it...). Dad did the same in a mk3 fastback that he dropped a rotary into. Looked mint and worked well. Cheers Bennie

If you're concerned with the centre diff check it for backlash. It shouldn't be much but really I don't know the exact specs. I've got one that came in my original box that has a quarter inch play in the input shaft. Not good. I've been told this is the worst anyone has seen before they grenade. I'm yet to work out how to reduce this - I'm not in any rush as it's not needed atm. If I'm on the computer I'll upload some pics detailing this. As for the locking lever being left to float, there's a descent stopper built into it do it's unlikely it'd engage randomly. With the rear case removed you should've been able to check the dog clutch for damage - it's a pretty chunky dog clutch so I doubt there will be any... Cheers Bennie

Not unless it's got water in it... Cheers Bennie

LED and HID conversions are my pet hate - especially the blue hid lights (factory lights included). The driver might like them, but as their oncoming road user coping their lights I can tell you they're all blinding, especially since many of our roads have small bumps etc in them changing the pitch of the vehicle so the lights look like they're actually flashing you. Something you don't get with halogen lights. Anyway, arguement aside, this is how we do better lights in Australia - leave the low beam alone if it's aimed right etc: ^ Holden VT with the driving lights. Two 100mm and two 150mm units with 130w halogen globes. Liberty got an upgrade, see below... The goal is to throw as much light down the road as possible. The earlier you can see the roos the better off you are. Plus many ppl think it's ok to drive down our country freeways with their highbeams on. These ensure you're the reminder... And I'm not into LED bars either - too blue in colour. Once a warm white light is available I'll probably look into them further. Cheers Bennie

Correct. There are many conversions on the forum. Most typical one is the ej22 from the gen1 or gen2 liberty. If you go this way try and get a good running car as you'll have all the important bits to make sure you can get your car running with the EJ. It's a lot of work for just getting rid of the lifter tick though. And to do this conversion reliably you should put in some engine maintenance too. Cheers Bennie