heartless

my general take on most additive products - if it sounds to good to be true, it probably is a bunch of marketing hooey. that said, products that I have used successfully: Seafoam - for multiple purposes Trans-X - in an 89 Ford Taurus with tranny engagement issues Berryman's B12 - specifically for cleaning carbs/carb parts - on both an old Ford truck and motorcycles I try to stay away from things like the stop-leak stuff as they are known to plug up small passages. Oil additives - eh - most are marketing hype garbage. Regular oil/filter changes will do more for your engine than any of the additives will. And Slick 50 is still around, just without all the hype after an FTC filing alleging false advertising (filed in 1996): https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/1996/07/quaker-state-ads-slick-50-are-false-and-misleading-ftc-charges

the bolt extractor sockets are great, but yeah, too short for exhuast work... would be nice if they made them in the deepwell variety. we have the Irwin versions - both metrci and sae - and they do work quite well on short stuff. http://www.irwin.com/tools/screw-bolt-extractors/9-pc-metric-bolt-extractor-set edit: Looks like Irwin does make a deepwell set... http://www.irwin.com/tools/screw-bolt-extractors/5-pc-bolt-grip-deep-well-set

seems to me that lug nut torque and spark plug type/number should be in the owners manual, as well as a plethora of other info such as fuse types and sizes, various bulbs, tire info, oil and coolant info, etc, etc...

you should be able to manually crank the belt/buckle part into the upright/closed position, then unplug the control box in the rear of the car so it will not move again. then it is simply a matter of unbuckling the belt to get in/out of the car. the other half did this with his 90 sedan for more than a year - no extra work needed.

if the car was well cared for, has no rust, and is otherwise in good condition, it is worth putting another motor in it. Which way you go on that is entirely up to you. I can not comment on the quality of the work from CCR, simply because I have never purchased one of thier motors. have never needed to (knock on wood) What I can say is that they are highly regarded around here. Factoring in the cost of a used JDM, a full timing belt kit (belt, pulleys, water pump, tensioner, oil seals, etc) thermostat, various other seals/gaskets, and the time it takes to install all of that in the JDM motor - I would guess it would end up being pretty close to a wash as far as cost goes - the CCR motor would be ready to drop in, no extra work necessary. If it were me - given one of those 2 choices, I would probably go with the CCR motor, simply because there is no extra work/cost/time needed. Just my 0.02 cents worth... There is no reason to suspect the tranny is going to "fail" just because of mileage - unless it was beat on. Especially if the majority of those miles were highway miles (and that kind of mileage on that new of a car I would suspect they are highway miles - ie: longer trips). Do what was suggested and get a new clutch & throw out bearing installed at the same time as the engine replacement and you should be fine.

at least 2 people - 3 would be better. (at least for me it would) one person with the tools - 2 to support the tailgate (one on each side). check for any/all wiring, washer hoses, etc., that may need to be disconnected - not sure how wiring was run on the later models, but on my 1990 the wiring was run up under the headliner panel - took a bit of work to get it down enough to unplug connectors. Once wiring is disconnected, unbolt the support struts (this is where your help comes in - to support the tailgate when these are disconnected) then unbolt the hinges up top. Installation is the reverse. Hinges first, then support struts, then reconnecting wiring and such

there is no way of removing the tank without dropping the exhaust & driveline. Part of the reason I live with the leak in mine still...

just getting the pinch bolt out can be problematic in rust country... had one snap off once, even after repeated applications of penetrating oil and heat. ended up swapping the whole arm. Luckily we had a parts car on hand to steal the arm from...

Well, so far so good. Couple of days of running around after the repairs and it is actually quieter now than it was before. Weather has been pretty decent these last couple of days, tho... should be interesting to see if it continues to hold up in rainy weather - and of course how it does this winter... And, yeah, most aftermarket exhaust parts dont last nearly as long as the originals do, but I have found that the cherry bomb stuff does last at least a little bit longer than the cheap-cheap, no name stuff does I am calling it fixed, for now.

glad to hear a new thermostat solved your problem - AND that the T-belts have been done recently.

Outback struts/springs would gain you about the same - for max "bolt in" lift I have heard to use Outback struts with Forester springs (or is it the other way around? cant remember exactly)... would have to do a bit of research on which years/models to use for what. as for the axle flex - I have been driving this car like this for a year and a half with no problems at all (around 20K miles). One rear axle was replaced when I got the car due to a bad joint, but it was bad when I got it...before the lift...torn boot and it looked like it had hit something - had a slight bend... put new tires on the Forester 15" rims, had everything balanced and aligned and she has done great since. The extra height also makes it easier to get in/out of the car - a bonus for my old creaky knees.. LOL a side by side shot with my old 1990 Legacy LS wagon - bone stock suspension...and the 95 with the used Forester stuff (still on the 14" wheels/tires - the 15's gain just a little bit more)...

I was warned about the "saggy butt" thing when I did the swap, and yeah - with used parts, it did sag a little (the used parts were pretty worn out) When I replaced with new parts, i have no sagging - car sits nice and level. - it may eventually sag a little as things wear out tho. There have been some that used 3/8 inch spacers on top of the tophats (between tophat and car body) to combat the "saggy butt" thing, and if I start to see a bit of sagging, I may go that route... Rockauto is a very good source for parts, and I got some of my stuff there. I also purchased some parts from partsgeek.com, and the stock springs came from Park Subaru in Akron,Ohio...ordered online (was the only place I could find them at the time. they have since changed thier website - the online store is no longer available ) I used KYB struts to fit a 98 Forester, KYB tophats (the old tophats needed replacing), and stock 98 Forester springs. I am very happy with the results and love the extra clearance. It is fun to see my car parked next to a newer pickup and see that I actually have more clearance than they do! LOL

Umm, you better go back and read that again - he says "NEW" tires...

Absolutely would have had me freaking out! LOL I know it can be done safely and all, but yeah, gas and "fire" - umm, not me! thanks! LOL and yeah, I have done enough exhaust work over the years that I know to cut off as little as possible, but still have good metal to clamp new pieces to - I should have gone to the larger town and picked up a 1 foot length of pipe, instead of the 6" coupler... but I didnt feel like driving the gas hog PU that far...went to the closer small town instead (15 miles vs 30 miles). Oh well... the gap was maybe 3.5-4" at the widest points, leaving only an inch or so on either end of the 6" piece for clamping onto - not enough for a good seal. the reducer gave me another 2" to work with to get good clamping and the putty filled any minor gaps - hoping the putty holds well - it has been sitting for about 36 hours now... and I doubt I will go anywhere today - we are expecting some severe thunderstorms to come thru later this morning... Think I will just stay indoors.

definitely interference and not worth taking the risk with. Yes, some have been lucky & had no damage - others, not so lucky... It is far cheaper to take care of timing belts and related components ahead of schedule than to wait and "hope" it doesnt destroy the heads and/or pistons when it does break.

I am not very good at welding, and the idea of welding close to the gas tank (that leaks, btw) is not my idea of a good thing... (these issues are at the rear of the car, just forward of rear axle - right under the fuel tank...) anyway... job is done (did i mention I hate doing exhaust work? LOL) cut the old flange bits off - ended up using the sawzall... quick and efficient. (no, they are not perfectly straight, square cuts, but, eh, whatever - they are clean cuts, with good pipe showing) used a 2" ID x 2" ID coupler, but that wasnt quite long enough to bridge the gap solidly, so dug around in our boxes of stuff and came up with a 2" ID, x 2" OD reducer to lengthen things a tad... and had picked up some permatex muffler and tailpipe putty - supposed to be good up to 2000* F... 2 pouches of the stuff in one package for just under $6 (only used 1 of them so far). and the repair... (note the splodge in the upper left? it burped out when the car was started per instructions (let car idle for 10 mins to speed drying), a quick swipe of a gloved finger stuffed it back in the gap, and it stayed put for the 10 mins the car idled... we shall see if it stays permanently) for the hanger cracks... fairly obvious after hitting things with a little emory cloth... and the putty applied... So, after idling for the prescribed 10 mins, the putty instructions advise avoiding driving the car for 24 hours if possible... no problem, it is a holiday weekend, and I have no pressing need to go anywhere... I will update after I do go somewhere and see if this stuff is gonna hold up. The hanger will more than likely be getting a more permanent fix later - as in cutting out that section, replacing with good pipe, removing the hanger from old pipe and clamping in place on the new.....

Bushwick - there is a shop (or used to be, not sure if they are still there anymore) similar to yours about an hour away from me - went there with my first Subaru, the 89 GL, that had a bad spot - 15 mins later the bad spot was gone & it had a nice patch welded in, cost me all of $40. the one closest to me now - seems they are only "open" on fridays, and you need an appointment to get your car in - too busy for a "just show up" kind of thing... Yeah, he does good work cheap, but I dont have time to wait for an appointment, never mind driving 30 miles with a blown exhaust - and small town cops between me and them... And being small town wisconsin - we dont have any of the "big chains" like midas or meineke - haha... it is mom & pop or nothing... we have the tools to do at least a halfway decent job ourselves - just a bit of a pain, crawling under it to do the job...doing exhaust work is not one of my favorite things...but seems it is a part of life when you drive a 20 yr old car...

I do know for a fact the 98 is a direct swap, no extra stuff required - did it on my 95 Legacy. as there were very few changes to suspension, i would assume that newer ones would also be a direct swap. The trailing arms are not an absolute necessity - the centering difference is barely noticeable. But yeah, alignment will be a necessity as the added height does throw camber out of whack It does make things easier to fit in if you unbolt the sway bar from the chassis... dont try to undo the link ends, you will probably end up breaking them (plastic) if you cant find a set of decent used ones, buy new components, assemble, and install. I started with a used set, but they turned out to be pretty worn out...back end bounced around like a bucking bronco. gathered all new parts - struts, springs, tophats and related parts, assembled them and swapped in the new stuff in an afternoon. easy peasy. 2--I read things about new camber bolts in rear--would I need this/ - doubtful, but even if you do, you wont know until you take it in for an alignment. The alignment shop will advise on this. 3--what about trailing arms or trailing arm brackets? different ones needed? - not necessary, unless you are OCD about stuff being perfect... 4--spacers? of any kind needed? - none needed... 5--drilling of may holes required? - no.

Yup, that is the plan - I did pick up a couple of extra clamps, just in case. we have several options available for cutting, just a matter of deciding which tool to use.... really hoping the worst of the rust is confined to the immediate flange area... Keep the fingers crossed....

yeah, if I was working, I would go that route - but right now, just cant afford to. That, and our local, privately owned muffler shop seems to only work one day a week and it is 30 miles away.... Picked up a coupler piece & clamps for the flange area repair, and some permatex exhuast putty for the hanger area. will be attempting to tackle this one in the am...

ok, sounds good, Thanks. I have used some kind of exhaust paste stuff before to seal a new gasket on an imperfect flange before, worked pretty well... was the permatex stuff I think...

any particular brand you would suggest for the goop around the hanger cracks? it is leaking there some, but not too bad yet...

well, got the brakes on the 95 all up to par and working nicely, went to town on Monday and on the way home hit some pretty big puddles after a good downpour... and the exhaust blows out... crawled under the car a couple days later and found this... Flange let go due to rust... this is towards the back, just before it goes around the rear axle and the break is pretty ugly - rusty & ragged. also found cracks at the hanger just a little in front of that...note the moisture at both ends of the hanger mount... so... what kind of repairs would you all recommend - short of replacment of the section... flat broke, no job, need to keep this as cheap as possible, but last at least a few months - a year would be better, if possible. has anyone had any luck with the exhuast repair bandages/goop? (for the hanger area cracks) if so, which product(s)? for the flange break, thinking I will cut it off, carefully, and put in a section of replacement tubing with a couple of clamps...there is a bend about 2.5 inches further back from the flange, so cant take much off the rearward part... should cost less than $20 to do that.

check mine out - forester strut lift - super easy to do - outback struts would do about the same... http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/topic/124175-the-awesome-newer-generation-picture-thread/?p=1234116 oh, and 221,100 something, and counting.

Thanks to wtdash for the second link - had the jdm one already, but grabbing current needs from the sli link too - can never have enough information!