uniberp

OK this is all crazy. It the car drifts, the tires will wear unevenly, causing even more difficult handling and possibly mechanical problems. That isn't safe. Cars should track straight. Also, if a car drifts slightly at 50mph, it's going to veer right into the ditch in 3 seconds at 100 mph. I used to wonder if I should compensate in the suspension for uneven weighting (driver only), but found that IS NOT a factor in suspension setup.

I did the same thing, but I had to remove it because the woodruff key was broken inside and the fragment jammed the gear. It's a cheap, but time consuming fix. 8mm tap, a little bar of steel at leat .25 thick and 2 inches wide, 4-5inches long, a couple bolts and nuts. If you have never tapped a thread from blank before, GO slowly, and back out the tap each 1/4 turn to snap teh chip you just cut. You will feel a little resistance as you break of the chip. Maybe practice on the steel bar. Where you might get that IDK. DO NOT BREAK OFF THE TAP in the gear. It will take you an hour or so once you get all the stuff together, I did mine without removingthe radiator. Just put a piece of cqardboard behind it so ward off damage from errant wrenches.

Thanks. I was wrestling trying to get a recalcitrant TC shaft installed, and couldn't get it tha last .25". The innermost seal ring, the split one, had slipped out of the groove and jammed. The correct placement pretty much like this:

Yeah, I had to dig for hints, and I'm going to write a pictorial for the USRM on this situation. Glad it wasn't "hosed". That answer kind of made me freak a little. I got mine within .25 and though it was the alignment pins hangin up. Glad I stopped.

Here's my thread and pic of the setup in the USRM : http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=78096

Thanks very much for responding so quickly, that gives me the rest of this Sunday off from this thing. I've been sitting here with a cup of coffee think of how to secure it as it goes in, with a little ring cut from a disposable latex glove. Just enough to hold it, but maybe small enough to get flushed through or dissolved. Nice hot day in Chicago today. Couple cups more and go for a bicycle ride. mpergielelmhurstil99foresterl97legato

I ran into a major snag re-installing the transmission. The #10 seal from this diagram: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=1445&d=1094095460 slips out of its groove when seating the TC that last final .25 inch. I am considering gluing it into the groove with a tiny amount of some rtv or something, just to get it placed. It's very flimsy, and would easily slip out. Should I wait to Monday and get a new part from the stealership? There seems to be no way to confirm that it is seated correctly. mpergielelmhurstil99foresterlauto97legato

Helpful. Maybe not. See http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=21106

I hate to use language, but that little #10 b**** seal slipped out of the groove when the convertor was moved barely .25 inch, then got pinched and prevented reinsertion. :Flame:The little s**ofa***** is a split ring, of some kind of fiberous graphite material and will not stay in the groove when reinserting the convertor and tube. I have pics of this fiasco, and will post this in the SRM, but wanted to get this out where I could find it. Can someone tell me the actual function of this seal? Does it affect shifting at all? It's a split ring, so it can't be a critical seal. I think it's a lubricated wear ring. It's pretty flimsy now, won't hold tight enough to the shaft to insert. I may glue it into the groove if it's not a critical seal. Am I going to get the standard blank stares from the dealer when I show him? Yes. I'll take the diagram. Any other sources? Someone has to emphasize the imnportance of Keeping the TC FIRMLY PLACED IN THE TRANNY AND NOT MOVED when removing engine or tranny. I even put a zip tie through a bolt hole and a bellhousing hole, but that wasn't enough to prevent this major annoyance. Another day delay. Also, the tc flange should be about .25 incha above the bellhousing lip. Not .5 inch. Not .4 inch. .25 inch or less. Thanks for listening. Mpergielelmhurstil99foresterLauto97legato

What was that measurement?

Thanks. I used the 518. It seems to be thicker, and easier to apply with a squeeze tube and seemed to set about as sticky as the Av stuff. I removed the tranny because I can drop that, instead of picking the engine up and out. In limited space it works much better, entirely within the perimeter of the car.

I am exactly halfway through replacing the oil separator plate job, and ready to seal the new plate and bolt it all back together. I have Loctite 518 Anaerobic sealant and Permatex Aviation gasket sealant. Which of these sealants would YOU use on the new stamped steel plate with button head allen cap screws? I found plenty of other things to work onwhile underneath, and am considering changing struts now. BTW: the pictorial thread on Nasioc didn't completely work for me, but was very helpful and encouraging. The Haynes is pretty good too.. I couldn't free the axels without undoing the lower strut bolts, which turned out to be a hugely easy way of freeing the axles. And for those who are following the Haynes manual, on my 99 Forester 2.5 sohc auto, there are 7 (seven) bolts and nuts holding the bellhousing to the engine, not 4. Also replacing all exhaust sytem bolts, in anticipation of replacing system in the next year. Tightening down some rattly heat shields. Wirebrushing spots and touching up with rust convertor. Not a horrible job so far, but we'll see how tough it is to mate up teh tranny to the block. I used the HF scissors tranny jack. Well worth the $69.

Thanks for the info. I read those instructions and paused and the "quite a bit of force may be required". That much force might easily deform/weaken/crack such a small piece of cast iron as a subie yoke. Also, no part listed for a 99Forester/Impreza. I would be concerned that the rough surface of the inside of the yoke may not be sufficient surface for the clip to seat solidly. Seems like it would need machining. If I were to go the machining route, I'd mill outthe staking while the machine was set up, remove the caps for that side, then mill in a groove for a proper circlip, IF I could find a matching ujoint. It will be replaced as is, and this info will be shelved for future ref. Maybe I could soak the end in hot grease before reinstalling, or something. Or find an aftermarket performance DS. Thanks again.

Since I removed the driveshaft anyhow in prep for doing the oil separator plate replacement, I checked the u-joints and found the rear one to be a little notchy. At my trusty local diesel driveshaft place they pointed out that the ujoint was swaged in, couldn't be replaced. Only option was to replace whole driveshaft. He said the joint was a little iffy. If it were a moving suspended joint I would definitely want it replaced, but since it's static position, is it okay? I know from experience that MUCH vibration can be caused by driveshaft ujoints, considering hte high speed they spin. I would like to avoid removing the exhaust again, although it was a nice surprise how easy that was. The front and carrier bearing seem fine. Is the rear section of the driveshaft replaceable? I would still have to get the whole thing balanced. Any good sources? (Ed. 99ForesterL Auto)

I did the front timing belt and pulleys just a few months ago and all those seals looked nice and pretty dry. The left head had a bit of external HG leak, but that stopped with the additive. I will be triple checking the pan gasket before I start, to make sure that's not the source. Anything else you can think of?

That's what I want to hear, thanks. I'm going to get the cheap low profile tranny jack and go to it.

No codes. Runs fine except internal exhaust rattle. I expect the bolts to be all frozen on the exhaust, so I was thinking new parts would be easier to work with and I could just cut the old system out. Would a new cat improve anything?

1999 Forester L 2.5 sohc. My GF's Forester is losing a quart of oil a month, leaking under the belhousing. At what point is it worth it to remove the tranny to replace the separator plate? Should I replace the cat with the one piece while at it? Other considerations?

I subscribed to CR once, but was disappointed in the totally commercial mainstream products they reviewed and the very amateur advice they gave on DIY topics. I unsubscribed shortly after. I was looking for advice on a vacuum cleaner, but they didn't review anythign but the most widely available ones, the Hoovers, Kenmores, Dyson, Bissell, etc. I wanted comparisons with the Simplicity, Riccar but they didn't have it. The most highly rated Kenmore were subsequently bid up to near retail on ebay. It may be that people who responded to the survey are too mainstream. They had a sample of 7,000, of which a small number would be Subes. In a sense, we should be thankful for those people who CANNOT maintain their Subarus and correct things like clicking CV's and bogging performance. That increases the pool of inexpensive cars for those of use who can.

If it's metallic with clearcoat, I would say no, respray is your only worthwhile option. If it's not metallic, roll it on with a roller and sand it flat with colorsand and then compoound it.

Unless you have actual damage, it's the rear struts. Yes, rear sway bars are much thinner. There are conflicting opinions on the efficacy of a rear sway bar. Some say a thicker bar give you more precise feel of what the suspension does in a corner. Others say a thicker bar just lifts the inside rear tire off the pavement sooner, and actually makes the car slower in the corners. Some Subarus have so much horsepower it's often a tossup whether confidence or equipment is more important.

There's a long illustrated thread at http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=965763

IMO Edmunds.com gives much more realistic prices for quick sales.

"it's loaded with every extra available" is kind of hype, because the different editions had a stock set of features. Subes are not heavily optioned, but very wel featured.

Are you sure it's not blowback from the common separator-cover leak? That's what I see on many cars.