Bushwick

It might run too rich w/o a cat and w/o stacking the rear O2. You can buy 2 spark plug anti-foulers from Auto Zone for under $5. You need to drill out the center hole on one of them. Then thread one into the other, thread other end into pipe bung, then thread rear O2 into them. It pulls the probe out of direct exhaust stream, but it can still sample the air (or something) and it tricks the ECM into thinking the cat is there. I ran my Saab like this for a bit. The CEL never came on (Mustangs, Civics, etc. do the same thing) but the car did run rich. Though all the extra power from no back pressure after the turbo I didn't care Yeah, those turbo mufflers are nice. I ran a pair on my Lincoln Mark VIII over the years and loved them as it gave "better than stock" sound, but people 2 miles away couldn't hear me flogging it. Running a 3" in/out on the Saab and it has a good sound. Definitely louder with larger "outs" on the muffler, but it's more mellow w/o the rasp or crackle. If you run a 1 7/8" pipe, you can easily buy a 2" in/out muffler and weld that on. If you get an adapter, you can easily jump up to a 2 1/4" muffler which will be a tad louder. If you are handy with a mig and thin-walled steel, you can dremel the "outlet" off a smaller muffler and stick a 2 1/2" "out" on. That'll increase sound too w/o being overly ridiculous. @fairtax the difference between 1 7/8" and 2" is virtually nothing (in fact 1 7/8" can fit inside 2" and accept a weld) and is typically easier to source.

If you have the dough, splurge for 2" after the "Y". Should help it breath a bit better. I always run "turbo mufflers" from Summit. They are still baffled, but give an increase in flow as well as a slightly more aggressive sound w/o being obnoxious. Very inexpensive muffler too. Auto Zone has a clone of it (think it's Thrush's "turbo muffler") and if you can find Summit Racing's price for the same thing online, Auto Zone will price match. They don't last forever, but have a decent sound and MPG will bump up a point or 2. Also, be aware running cat-less on some cars will cause CEL unless you stack the 2nd O2 with anti-foulers. Also, since it's a federal law to have a cat, some places will refuse to work on the car with the cat omitted, and by law they are required to replace with OEM (so in your case ej25) before doing anything else. Although the EPA doesn't aggressively go after people that are running cat-less, a sharp-nosed cop can and the fines are super expensive (like $10k IIRC with possible jail = felony). Also, if you ever sell the car w/o a cat, the buyer can come after you in court and seek judgement for the cost of an OEM replacement unit plus labor, which would be the entire "Y-pipe" section (same rules apply to dealerships). This post would sink you if the DA found it. Play it safe and stick a $90 universal cat on meant for, or rather safe to run on the car, or just leave the EJ25 exhaust in place if it bolts up the same. It won't hurt anything.

^Good eye! Nice looking sedan btw.

Mine sits at the halfway mark too. This car also heats up incredibly fast too. It's been around mid teens to low 20's. Start it up, idle for about a minute, drive off (I keep RPM's low until it's more warmed up so just baby it for a couple miles) and within 1.5-2 miles it's nearly at the halfway mark and blowing nice, warm air. So glad I bought mine as a winter vehicle instead of a Ford Ranger 4x4.

If it's the belt tensioner, you can pull the timing cover, start engine, and watch the tensioner. If bad, it'll be bouncing around whereas it should be still and controlled. I wouldn't pay $2k for a knocking engine though. Personally, I'd look over EVERYTHING else on the car (let it idle a bit (if he lets you) to see if it's over heating (meaning HG issues, more involved engine repairs). Check the oil. I'd rather see darker oil than a "fresh" oil change as it might be hiding coolant, so darker oil with no coolant would put me at ease a little over fresh, clean oil in a knocking engine. Make sure everything else works i.e. windows go up/down, heater works, lights work, no excess play in steering or front wheels, etc. etc. Anything you find wrong, point it out to him, but in a polite manner. Chances are he doesn't know, or if he does you caught it and he thinks you know a lot about the cars. Rattle off the extra repairs it'll need, and ask if he can work with you on the price. Chances are he just wants it's sold and will come down a bit. If the entire engine is toast, it'll be cheaper to swap in a junk yard one, which around me can be had for $150-200 all day long.

Dunno if the 91' is much different than a 95', but if it has AC (even if the belt is removed or AC compressor is omitted) turning the AC on in-car should kick the fans on for quick reference. Also, (at least on my 95') turning on front windshield defrost (selecting the defrost button ONLY) will also kick the fans on, but I'm assuming this is only on AC equipped cars. Makes for super quick fan ON tests and emergency "fan ON" scenarios, which is nice.

This is common with Saab and is usually a failing crank position sensor. Get a volt/ohm meter and check it's values when warm. If they are off, replace the sensor.

I've owned a multitude of different cars over the years (usually end up getting unique cars with some HP) and have been working on my own rides since 15 (35 now). I paid $850 for my Legacy Wagon with 177k miles. Interior was in REALLY good shape, body fair, it needed a rear cross member ($18 at Pull-A-Part), rear brake line ($10 + brake fluid), obligatory timing belt as age of previous was unknown (think I paid $18 for the belt, repacked the pulleys), had a bad valve stem so all 4 were replaced at $10 each ($40), driver side CV boot lost the metal clamp, so a new one from Auto Zone was put on ($3), upgraded replacement alternator (130 amp; cost $25 +shipping/core charge), oil and trans fluid change ($30 for synthetic and filter, trans fluid around $15), air and fuel filter (around $15 for both) new plugs and wires (around $25). Not only are these cars REALLY cheap to work on or replace parts, they are also VERY easy to work on. Those quotes you are getting are super ridiculous. You can do most of the repairs with very basic hand tools. Even if you don't have many, you can drop $100 on a ratchet, some sockets, a good breaker bar (for the suspension parts) and maybe a $25 floor jack and a cheap set of jack stands for good measure and you just saved a couple grand to put towards that WRX you eventually want to buy

Unfortunately it's too cold to do anything now unless absolutely needed. Big change up from last week when it was still hitting mid 50's (about 19 right now and going to 10 or so tonight, and let's not forget the nasty wind chill). I'll have to check out the sway bar with front usage eventually. As long as I could get it to attach somewhere firm I can probably get it to work. Gotta measure overall length to see how far off it is. I'm probably going to keep this as a DD for awhile (after winter) and leave the Saab as a toy. Besides the lack of HP, the handling in the rear is my biggest gripe. Any solid bushing inserts for the trailing arms? Could probably get some large washers, cut back any rubber, slip a washer on each end, weld to arm while leaving center alone and be similar enough to a solid bushing set up. Definitely wouldn't care about a slight added road noise. I know when I put Lakewoods in my 79' Mustang is was the single best improvement I did to that car (and I did 4.10's in place of 2.73's, 5-speed, headers, etc.) as Lakewood's had no actual bushing anymore. Though, this car won't benefit as much as it doesn't have the power to wheel hop or run 12's . I've thought about making an adjustable bar to "lock" both trailing arms together to help limit independent movement. Thinking of a straight section of square tube, with a half circle cut into each end so it'd wedge between both bars. So, it'd sit in between both bars on it's own, with a u-bolt (or 2) on the end to allow sliding it for alignment adjustments (or bar removal) but still give the added strength of an I-beam set up. Should take some of the stress off the arms moving laterally independently too. Might even be better to make 2 bars per side, sliding one towards each end nearest the bushing. What do we do for lowering? Are aftermarket springs the only route? Or are we lucky enough to have WRX or similar drop-ins? When I say drop-in, I mean the actual strut assembly. Or at the very least, the springs? I put B&G in the Saab and really liked them. About a $100 less than Eibach and basically the same as Koni or Vogtlands minus the price. Not overly worried about ground clearance as the fun factor goes up 100%. Not to mention MPG should go up slightly on the highway. Thinking a 1.5" drop would suffice.

If you have the oil pressure gauge, just thread it into the warning light sensor hole under the back side of the alternator and ignore the dummy light wire for now. I'm running mine like this and leaving the oil pressure light gauge wire unplugged, you just won't get the oil light on with key "ON". It'll stay off indefinitely, but at least you can watch the oil pressure instead which is more helpful. On mine with 10w30 synthetic, the pressure stays high for quite awhile before finally settling around 11-12 psi at 650 rpm idle. Closer to around 14 at 700. Hope you used the RTV sparingly. If any breaks off in the oil it can get in places you don't want it.

Thanks Fairtax. I suppose another option would be buying longer bolts and sticking a spacer between the bracket and the body. Ever look at the front bar mounting points? Does it look like a WRX bar could be retrofitted to a Legacy? I'm also pondering the idea of welding the ends of this front bar to the factory rear ends, though it'd probably be overly stiff. Although solid axle trucks/cars have no sway bars (those without 4 or 3 link rears). Would be an nice way to repurpose the front bar if it's hard to sell. I've done similar stuff on the rear of my Saab rather than wasting $150 for aftermarket. The result was a much improved handling in corners, though that's lowered with B&G springs and has a custom rear 4-point shock tower brace I designed myself which greatly compliments one another. Speaking of which, do rear shock tower braces help the wagons at all? It's definitely not, nor ever will be a race wagon, but I miss the the feeling of taking normal corners with confidence

Like I stated already, I haven't gotten any codes and only bumped the loaded RPMs by about 75 RPM as there seems to be a "hole" in idle rpms where it goes from too low to too high when using this method. The set screw is just a stop. I agree the IAC probably needs cleaned and although the vacuum lines are OK on mine, it wouldn't hurt replacing them. Either way, doing this corrected the idle speed originally to something I was more comfortable with as a far as a warm idle. I'd love more than anything to just reflash the ecm to have a slightly higher loaded (in gear) idle rpm but since no one has reverse engineered the Subaru brain in these nor supplied an adapter to run modern USB into a back door port, you are sorta limited with options. Leaving the throttle blade a tad more opened (in my case) hasn't hurt anything. The throttle never fully closes anyway. That screw might not be a true "idle speed" adjustment, but it is there from the factory. No idea why it'd hurt the bore or throttle blade?? I've got a mechanical wire, not electronic. It's a factory adjuster after all. The TPS just reads where the blade is it at, and sends signal to the ECM. I'd just have to tell you to try it before stating it doesn't work.

Anaerobic will start curing near immediately. I've bolted the pan on my Saab, filled oil within the hour, and was driving almost right away with ZERO leaks. It isn't dependent on weather or humidity. It ONLY cures in the absence of air. If exposed to air, it'll never cure. I can run my finger on the outside seam and there's still soft 518 there as it never cured since it's squished outside. I've used it on my Saab (it's a requirement) which has the same style oil pump as Subaru. If any gets in the oil, it won't destroy the oil pump like RTV will or other hard sealants as there is still air in the pan. Only what's compressed is without air. ONLY concern is the mating surface MUST be nearly flat with NO gaps. Saab uses an aluminum oil pan, so that really isn't an issue. Steel pans on the other hand can be.

Yeah, this forum is pretty good. There's a handful of really knowledgeable Subaru people here and there doesn't seem to be any inadequate village trolls.

If you keep your foot barely on the gas pedal the ECM doesn't try to drop RPM, right? The idle stop screw on the underside is a mechanical travel limiter and a way to fine-tune idle speed by altering the throttle body valve a bit more to let more air in. As far as the ECM is concerned, you are just pressing the gas pedal slightly. I originally altered mine and could get from 500-1000 RPM (in gear with e-brake set and fully warm) and didn't get ANY codes. It needs altered again as the bigger alt is placing a slightly higher demand at cold idle and I haven't readjusted yet as I think my IAC needs cleaned anyways. My low oil pressure (as seen on the oil gauge) at fully warm idle is "low" from the lower (below 600 RPM) idle speed. If I get idle to around 650 it's 11-12 psi. 700 seems a little to high on this.

Suppose the Y pipe on base non-turbo models would be easy enough to circumvent if someone wanted better handling for cheap, but thanks for mentioning it for those that might want to try. Is it shared between base WRX and STi? Are there any base Impreza with a turbo that are non WRX? I used a ratchet as a quick measuring guide and saw the same height across Forester and Outback. Could you measure yours? Say just the height of the bracket from where it touches the unibody frame rail to where the clamp bolts onto it? Would be helpful to know.

Yeah, I'd never seen a separate parking light like that before. Found mine by accident to be honest, but glad I was able to help. You might just have 2 burned out head lights. I'd check the fuses and see if the lights are bad. My Legacy had both corner brake lights burned out and I didn't even catch it right away, so it's possible. Bad CV joints will manifest as a clicking sound on turns. Usually they fail if the rubber boot rips, which cause the grease to run out. Over time the joint fails and you'll hear clicking (this means they are toast and need replaced). If ignored TOO long, they separate and break. On FWD cars, you are dead in the water. On AWD, you might be able to limp it home. On mine, I actually lost the clamp that holds the boot in place, and *some* grease was seeping out. Appears to have happened before buying the car. I was able to get a replacement clamp from Auto Zone designed specifically for CV boots. I put some fresh bearing grease in the boot, then tightened it back in place. Thankfully caught it in time. Walmart oddly enough sells a bag of steel clamps that appear to be the same. I bought some as back ups, but dunno if those stores exist there. Definitely get them taken care of. Turn your wheel hard right, then check driver side front, hard left for passenger side. Look at rubber boot right behind wheel for rips in the crease. Grease on the boot is a tell tale sign it's leaking. Still not sure about bushings on those. Only bushings I can think of might be on the A-arm or for the strut bearing. Maybe an Impreza person will speak up.

Mine's been acting funny sometimes when still cold. Normally, it hikes the rpms to around 1500 for awhile (to long for my tastes to be honest), then settles around 650-700. Once in gear and warm, it's been dropping on occasion to around 500 and won't auto correct either, which is forcing me to leave the heater on front defrost as it's supposed to kick the AC compressor on as it apparently works to dehumidify the air. I've got my AC belt off for time being, but it'll still kick the RPM up to a more normal RPM. I need to clean my TB and IAC as well, otherwise I think the IAC is getting lazy. Oil pressure also gets REALLY low around 500 rpm or less which makes me nervous. If cleaning and all that doesn't help, and you don't like leaving front defrost + plus heater speed at least at "1", there are 2 ways you can adjust the idle manually. One way is there is a small idle set screw on the underside of the throttle stop. Need a flat head screw driver and an 8 mm wrench IIRC. Put car in "D" (if auto) and set parking brake or block wheel. Back the nut off, turn screw until idle moves, put foot on brake, blip the gas, recheck idle. Adjust accordingly. Once it's set, hold the screw in place with screw driver and carefully tighten with wrench. Be careful as it's easy to lower the idle again as it's sensitive while turning nut. Other option is use the throttle cable and cruise cable adjustment nuts to bring idle up, though you really should use the idle stop screw instead and just use the cable adjustments to remove any slack in the line, which can prevent fully opening the throttle blade at WOT if there is too much slack.

"Fuel vapors" are just vapors. Years ago in one of my carb'd mustangs, it had a tiny hole punched in the fuel cap to assist in easier fuel suction at the mechanical fuel pump or something. Car still got 12 MPG city and maybe 16 highway. Unless gas is actually leaking from the tank, your "fuel vapors" escaping aren't 2-5 gallons "evaporating" into thin air. Read my post further up and follow the advice.

Several years ago I bought a mid 90's F150 to scrap. It's rear drums were frozen up from sitting, so both rear tires were yanked to get the drums freed up. Put both on, tightened down, ratcheted it up on the dolly, and off I went. About 60 miles later, (I was pulling the dolly with a 96' Lincoln Mark VIII- had air bag suspension so it could pull anything w/o squatting) I looked in the mirror and saw sparks. Pulled over and the wheel was missing LOL. Couldn't even tell from in the car to be honest other than the car lurched briefly but still pulled it fine w/o bogging. Anyways, the lugs apparently were NOT tightened enough, and the force from the rotation caused all 5 to loosen and fall off. Lug threads were 100% OK. I grabbed 1 nut from the remaining 3 rims, stuck the spare on, and quickly left before a state trooper happened along. Thankfully the missing wheel didn't run anyone off the road. What you should be doing is taking a 1/2" drive breaker bar with you and a socket the correct size, and hand tighten all 4 rims after getting tires rotated. Since it's happened twice, why are you risking it?

On the 95' Legacy there was a separate "Parking light switch" on the top of the actual steering column completely independent of the headlight switch. It's a rocker type switch and in the spot most cars usually put their hazard light switch. See if yours has one and if it's on. I've only used mine once and that's when I was checking the car out. Pretty sure it'll work with the keys removed. Turn it off and see if the light switch works. No idea what "bushes" are. I'm guessing he meant "bushings", but not sure what he was referring to specifically. Should of had him point it out. Unless it's some weird Aussie slang for something else.

I googled it and compared, definitely a front bar, but at least it seems to be an STi front bar so I can at least sell it or trade as it's in fairly good shape. OK, so you mean the actual mounting bracket that attaches to the frame rail like a stand off, then the bushing clamp bolts to that. It has something like 2 12mm bolts holding it to the body. You must have gotten yours from a 00' (or newer) then as I was looking at a 98' and 99' at Pull-A-Part and both brackets had the same height as the Legacy. Well, the seller blew me off and ignored my question if he actually had a rear bar, which I find to be poor manners on his part. So I'm now stuck with an 04' STi front sway bar. It looks just like this and even has those exact same bushings: http://jdmengineland.com/images/SUSPENSION/02-07_IMPREZA_STI_FRONT_SWAY_BAR.jpg If somebody would like this bar, and has a 20 mm REAR STi bar like Fairtax mentioned, I'd gladly accept a straight up trade, or $45 + shipping, but would rather have the rear bar. If you have a 20 mm rear bar collecting dust in a corner of your garage and find a slightly more valuable front bar appealing or want to possibly upgrade your Impreza, shoot me a PM.

It's a front bar so not going to bother with pics. It's basically the same length as the rear bar with similar bolt hole locations. The guy goofed and I just didn't know any better as I know nothing about STi or Impreza for that matter. Let's hope he's a good guy and makes it right.

Ugh. I just went out with a flash light and compared it with the original sway bar that came with the car...... apparently the guy sold me a front sway bar? I'm at a loss for words.

The guy had a ton of STi parts (including a full STi he was parting out that still had the engine, trans, full interior, etc.;too bad I'm not gung ho about this car as it'd have a been a nice full-on turbo swap to use) and had what appeared to be a pre 99' or earlier Outback rear sway bar he showed me first for some reason stating *that* came from a wagon, then right next to it was a very similar looking rear sway bar but w/o the hoop (I hope it's not a front bar LOL). It's definitely larger diameter than the Outback's, though not by much. I specifically asked for a the factory Sti's "20mm" rear bar, and he said this was from an 04'. I didn't need an STi "wagon" rear bar did I?? This bar is probably from a 4 door sedan. It was getting dark by the time I got home, so didn't have time to look under the car to see if it'll clear the exhaust or not w/o mods. What year Forester are you supposed to be able to use the bushing clamps from? Has anyone successfully done this swap to theirs? Any pics? Would like to see how it was done on theirs/yours. EDIT: Was the shape of the bar changed in 05'? Meaning does an 05' up not have the hoop?