wagonryan

well it wouldn't be a project without a road block.. since I am adding 1" spacers, I'm using 50mm bolts for the top hat studs and I realized after I got the damn strut in place that there was no way to tighten them.. so I found someone that can weld them to the strut tomorrow afternoon and I'll have another go at it. sighhhhhhhhhhh

I am going to pick up the subframe spacers when I get some spare cash. For now i'll likely drive my dads pathfinder around if I get the violent shaking I've heard about on the boards. The only 2 parts of the subframe lift I currently have are the outback rear trailing arm brackets and the outback steering joint. I'm about to do the front struts right now as I only have limited time today and tackle the rears early tomorrow. I'll post pics later on. Ryan

haha it's been pretty boring for a while, but it's about to get a little more awesome. 3 years ago

thank you that was the answer I was looking for! I've read a lot of conflicting posts, but my hunch was that if I just used the stock forester XT struts and subframe spacers I would basically have a stock height forester. with the 1 inch strut spacers i will have a 1 inch lifted forester, which is not enough to cause geometry issues. Cool beans. I am going to be doing the strut swap this weekend with the strut spacers, and will be buying the subframe spacers just to be safe. I won't have new tires for a while but when I finish up this weekend I will post pics of what I have.

ahhh your car has me stoked to get my FXT struts in my obs this weekend! are you using the legacy outback subframe spacers? seems like your CVs would be screamin without em haha

Okay thanks for the info and quick response! I'm debating now after reading a few threads that say the Legacy outback subframe spacers are not really necessary with lifts in excess of just the Forester or Outback struts. So now what i'm wondering is if 04 Forester struts, 1" spacers and 27-28" tires will give me 5.5" will I not have to worry about axle geometry if I do a 1" subframe drop? This is a highly debated topic, and I wish there were some definitive answers, but I guess it varies person to person. I won't be doing serious wheeling, but I am definitely going to take advantage of the clearance via puddle splashing/swimming. unless anyone thinks 4.5 inches of lift will put too much stress on my half shalfs with just 1" body spacers, that is what i'll be doing this weekend.

Hey all, Next week I'll be tackling a long awaited project. In the last 3 months I've been researching and slowly collecting parts for a Forester lift. I went with the 04 XT struts and springs and I'll be adding a 1" strut top spacer for what I think from my reading will give me 4" over stock. I'll also be buying some 215-225/65/16 tires unless I can find some just a junk yard tire/rim combo for cheap. So with tires, I'll be looking at close to 5" over stock. My question is regarding the subframe spacers. Clearly the half shafts are not going to like their new angles, so I'm going to be making body spacers out of 1/4" 2"x2" tubular steel. I bought the 99 legacy steering joint and I'm wondering if it will be long enough since I'm dropping everything 2" instead of the factory 1". I have no access to a welder, so lengthening is out of the question. Will it be long enough? -Ryan

should be fine if you use the legacy outback body lift kit. it'll help correct that somewhat

I'm coming to this too! PT is less than an hour from me!

That thing looks good! I've always wanted a white gc

I want to do this some day!

crazy leo is crazy! Love that car, its hideously perfect

just 4 hellas, 2 fogs 2 ff. getting lifted next week hopefully

wow that thing is awesome! what engine are you trying to get 250 hp out of?

just the body spacers and the hardware for it if you got it, I already have some strut spacers

the car is lookin good! have you put the outback spacers up for sale yet?

Got a lift question, I'm lifting my 2000 obs with '04 fozzy xt struts + 1 inch strut top spacers. I want to make my own body lift kit but am wondering is the factory outback kit 1"? will that be enough to help my cv angles? its a DD and it needs to be reliable. Tire size I'm shooting for is 215/65/r16. As for dropping the subframe 1", will I need to get the outback pitch rod or will the stock one work? I have sourced an entire factory body lift kit, but can't spend the $250 the dude wants for it. if anyone has spare pitch rods I'll pay for it! That's the only part I'll actually need to buy since I want to make my own kit out of 1" blocks. thanks for any and all input! Ryan

Hey, the car is looking great! Did you use the Outback pitch rod or does the stock one suffice when dropping the front? I'm lifting my obs and Ive heard mixed opinions. some say you need the outback one because it's longer and others say you can just loosen the stock one a bit to lengthen it and tighten it back up. Either way I need to drop my front a little because forester struts + 1" lift blocks is going to increase cv angles. Have you busted any cv's yet? thanks