Chef

Good call. Sounds likely.

Sounds like a hole or crack in some part of the intake system perhaps. Maybe a cracked intake hose or an improperly sealed airbox. Worse case perhaps a deteriorated gasket or even cracked intake manifold. Get under the hood and pull the throttle cable and listen to where it seems to come from. Once you've nailed down the general area, perhaps some kind of coloured smoke could show where it is specifically. Just a thought.

If you're burning oil, your piston rings are worn, plain and simple. Sounds pretty badly too considering the amount of oil you're going through. As for the other issue, what is etc etc etc. Be more specific. You mention plug wires, but not plugs themselves. But to be honest with you, it's probably sensor related, like the TPS or MAF. Do some searches here on hesitation and you will find something useful.

Sounds like a good buy, but I know I would sure miss the AWD. That being said, I've lived in very snowy climates all my life with long icy winters, and have had no real troubles with FWD cars period. But if you're used to it, you'll certainly miss it. Are you keeping the old car? If so, make the new one your summer drive, and the 94 your winter one.

My suggestion is to get a haynes manual if you intend to remove the head. It's not too difficult, but a bit time consuming (or so the manual claims - I';ve never done it myself). You'll definitely need to bring it to a shop to have it worked on though. I'd certainly run through your options a bit mroe first though. PLus provide some more info. What model, year, engine, etc. Plus a more detailed history of the problem (i.e. when did it start, gradual/sudden, etc).

I agree too. Driving is a privilege, not a right. Perhaps by raising gas prices people may begin to realise this.

Perhaps a faulty knock sensor is at play. Wasn't there a recall regarding the knock sensor and subies from that period? If so, it might be adjusting the timing such that it knocks. Probably not liekly, but a thought.

Definitely sounds like you got a faulty rebuild. If you don't have one, buy a cheap multi-meter and test the voltage at the battery terminals both just after starting the car and after driving for a bit. It should be ~14.5 V when just started (actively charging), and around 13 - 14 after a while. I got a rebuild on my old car, but had the opposite problem - it was overcharging at about 16 - 17 V. It killed my wiper motor and blower motor before wrecking my battery. Nice. At leats the guys at the shoip that installed it replaced it for free (especially considering I had no receipt). So go back to the shop and get them to check it out. Any decent place will change it to a new one for you. If the alternator is charging fine, the battery is probably not holding a proper charge, and needs replacement.

Sounds like multiple problems occurring here. The shocks not working may well be a fuse or solenoid, but may also be a faulty compressor. Don't drive it any further, as it's riding on the bump-stops and will become quite damaged. Not sure about the idle problem, could be a number of things.:-\ Good luck.

I've got the same thing, pretty mild though. My tires are nearly new and all inflated the same (~32 psi, 35 max on these suckers). My alignment appears fine, and the struts are the air ones so they are not in question. Probably ball joints like suggested.

Parking in the university lot where my girlfriend goes to school there seems to be an abundance of subies, all newer than my own. Nice to see the representation though. Of course, this small city happens to have a nearby dealer, so that may be part of the reason anyways.

I wouldn't trade in your Cavalier if you're losing $3000 on it! Definitely go for a private sale. That dealer is just going to turn around and sell it for 1.5X what you were paid for it. You could get nearly that much through private sale. Also, 12k USD sounds a bit high to me for something 5 years old. I'd be ready to haggle more.

I've had my 92 legacy wagon now for nearly two weeks, and I love it to death. 217 000 km and runs great. Last week we got a huge dump of snow in a very short period, and cars were all over the place everywhere except my subie, which blazed through like the roads were dry with AWD and ABS. Replaced the torn inner cv boot (joint fine), and soon to fix the exhaust leak (need moolah first). So far so good - this has to last me a while, so hopefully all remains well. I intend to baby this one. Probably change the ATF soon, along with the differential oil. Duobt it's been done in a while. Then in thre next couple of months I'll have the timing belt and all associated bits replaced. Slightly concerned about the height adjustment button that intermittently flashes and only shuts off once I've turned the car off. However, there seems to be no leaking of air from the suspension, so I don't know if I should be concerned or not. I don't believe it actually raises the vehicle, but provided that is the only problem, I don't really care.

Problem is you won't be able to tell just by yanking the boot off and taking the axle out. You'll need to clean all the grease out and see how grooved or scratched the inside is. Get a haynes manual if you don't have one - they have pictures of what it should look like. I just had the inner CV boot replaced on my 92 legacy today, and was in a similar dialemma. My outer boot was intact, and I had no reaosn to believe the inner cv joint was damaged. A remanufactured axle was $120 (cdn), with $60 of labour, or the boot $15 with $90 labour. The cleaning of the joint and repacking with grease increases the time. I went with just the boot, as I am nearly broke right now. I hate minimum price charges. It only took an hour, but still got charged 1.5 hr of labour. Still, the place seems pretty tight, and I will probably return for any necessary repairs (hopefully not any time soon!). I now have a nasty exhaust leak to take care of. It's opened up under a bracket just south of the catalytic converter. I am also afraid it might be open a bit north of there too, but I can';t seem to find another hole. I will probably attempt to patch it for now, but I don't have jack stands or a proper hydraulic jack to get under the car with. I had reasonable success patching a hole in the downpipe on my last car using aluminum muffler tape, fibreglass cloth, and hose clamps. We'll see about this one. Good luck.

Sounds like your rack is not in such great shape. Check the pinion boots - are they torn? I know this is lower down, but it might be causing problems along the way up to the column.

I find my 92 legacy is similar. It idles smooth as butter, but a little rough at a stop while in drive - not badly though. I generally slip into neutral as well for these, but I'm used to driving a manual so I have a compulsive need to shift.

Well, it's looks fairly good, and I only noticed it because I've done some bodywork in the past myself. I suspect it will start to show rust again within a few months, but I intend to take a couple of extra precautions by refinishing the edges myself and the inside of the wheel-wells with some spray on tar. As for if it's worth it, that depends on how bad it is and how bad do you want your car. If it's pretty bad, it might be worth a quickie job if you intend to sell it. I know it may not be fair to the next buyer though, so that may figure into your thoughts. If it's only just begun to rust, do it ASAP. Rust spreads like cancer, and the earlier it's treated the better the repairs will last. It will inevitably come out again, but a good job now hen there is miminal rust will last for a while. Good luck! Yikes. I hope there's no significant problem. I don't recall any hissing, and the car rides fine without sinking. Perhaps it's a sensor or solenoid issue? Hopefully by the time it manifests itself problematically I'll have a few more bucks to deal with it. I've read that it might be most practical to simply replace all shocks/struts with conventional ones instead. Not a cheap or attractive alternative, but consideirng the cost of t he air ones, well... I will check it out a bit netter in a little bit. I noticed today one of the inner CV boots is torn, so I need to get on that before anything I suppose. Trying to decide how to go about it. I've been reading on this site about some kind of "quick-boots" or split boots - although maybe not the best choice, it may be a good temporary fix. The joint is still intact, no noises coming from it. Chef

I would like to introduce myself to the board. I just purchased a 1992 subaru legacy wagon LS, and would like to state for the record that I have fallen in love with the car. It is an automatic with 216 000 km, and the engine purrs like a kitten (or roars like a lion when stomped on). Normally I'm a manual tranny kind of guy, but decided to try an auto this time and I'm really impressed. It shifts smooth and sharp without being harsh, and is very responsive to downshifts and upshifts. I'm a poor student living on loans that needs a car. I purchased it because I've always wanted a subie, and felt it would be the most practical and reliable one for the money. I managed to pick it up for $2500 cdn including taxes. The body is in good shape, but it has had some rust repair around the wheel-wells. The inside looks amazing, and is filled with more options than I could have wanted in all the right places. Plus, it's sophisticated and practical at the same time. The handling is great, both sharp and cushioning at the same time, although I have some concerns over the hydraulic lift system. It doesn't appear to work - no big deal - but the height adjuster button seems to flash for extended periods intermittently. I don't care if it doesn't lift, but I don't want to have to replace the exceedingly expensive shocks It was serviced at the dealer for the first 9 years, so at least for that period of time it was taken care of well. Anyways, I'll be around from now on, hopefully only raving about my new car. It's the best I've ever had, and if all goes well I'll be a converted subie fan forever. Chef