Dr. RX

"Faint of heart"????

Yes, but not completely, in 89 they were standard on RXs and GL-10 Full Time 4WD Turbos with manual trannys.

I'd love to do this, but I have a feeling that is about the time my building permit will be approved and I'll be deeply involved in building my garage. Hope they do it again next years.

Boy, this must be the week for 95 Legacy wagons, I just picked up two of them, one on Saturday, and the other on Sunday. I really don't think it would hurt to run around in 3rd, but you will lose that automatic part of an automatic tranny (automatically shifting as needed).

Smart people.

Well I don't see where you said that you replaced the axle after you noticed the torn boot. My guess would be the axle is on it last leg, you need to get it replaced.

Ok, I numbered your questions to help answer them. 1) Either tie rod end should work, I used the XT6 ends on my conversions. 2) Yes. Yes. 3) I don't know of any, but you'll need to set the alignment like a XT6, not a Legacy. 4) I'm not sure, someone else should be able to answer this, but you should be using XT6 front brakes since they have tha e-brake up front, otherwise you'll have to do the not yet perfected rear e-brake conversion too. 5) Can you say "Big $$$$", in all the wrecking yards that I have seen Legacys in, I have yet to see one with air suspension. In the long run, it would be less expensive if you change to a non-air suspension during this conversion. That is a simple bolt up conversion and will probably cost less then the price of two front Leagcy air struts.

You'll need an ECU to run the ignition since it is based upon the signals sent from two sensors, the crank angle sensor and the cam angle sensor, The only way around that would be for find one of those EJs with a distributor. I have only heard that they exsist, I personally have never seen one. You probably could carburate an EJ engine, but I'm not sure why you would want to do that.

So, did you hang the V8 out over the back like the 6 was, or did you flip the tranny and make it mid engined? If you had a V8 in it, you should aready have a radiator in it. I think you biggest problem will be the rear axles, getting power from the tranny to the wheels. I believe there is a place called Clark's Corvair that sell alot of performance parts for Corvairs.

You also need a tranny with 25 spline stub axles, which is what a turbo tranny has, non-turbo and 3 speed automatics have 23 spline stub axles.

If it was professionally repaired, there should be no problem. Just remember, the salvage title will effect any resale, and may limit the type of insurance that you can get.

Suabru made Legacys with air struts, you might want to try and find a set of those, then you can use the whole front strut and knuckle assy.

Since it is the wife's car, it's an automatic, she could never get the hang of a standard tranny.

Gee, I like this answer.

Well with the gold Enkei wheels, a set of steel wheels with studded tires, and a set of wagon wheels with good tires, the price will be about $5 less then the current year.

Why not just use the intake (with all the wiring going across the engine) and power steering pump off the 85 wagon engine.

I have decided that it is time to get my wife into an EJ series car. So I find the 95 Legacy L AWD Wagon with front end damage, it fixable. The guy wants $750 for it, but tells me that it has a salvage title, plus there is another guy who wants just the tranny. So I go over to look at it, it's not bad, but with the salvage title, I’m wanting to get it for as little as I can. I call the guys and tell him I'd liek to make an offer on the car, but would like him present to show him why I'm offering the price (I'm think $650, but my wife says $550). The guy shows up, and before I tell him my offer, he tells me that the guy who wants the tranny is willing to pay $500, so I say $550, and I get the car. OK, I drag it home, check a local car auction place and they have a 95 Legacy coming up for auction the next day. So I go down there, not only is it a 95 Legacy, but it is an L model AWD in the same color as the one just picked. It is pretty complete, there are a few places were it looks like someone was in the process of making some repairs, but didn't finish. It hasn't been licensed in two years, but it starts right up and moves under it's own power. There was a quick bidding war, but I got the car. The place is about 60 miles from my place, so my wife is driving it, I tell her if there is any problem, just flash the high beams and we'll have AAA tow it home. The whole trip home is uneventful, the drive drives great. Ok, OK, here is my dilemma, do I use the parts on the complete car (car #2) to repair the wrecked car (car #1)? Car #1 has over 120K on it, the tranny fluid it a dark brown, car #2 has 77K on it and as far as I can tell, just needs a paint job. Ok so it is not really a dilemma, car #1 becomes a parts car and car #2 gets painted. All in all it was a fun weekend.

I love you too Calebz.

I've got a little work to do on the wagon, I'll post it in the For Sale section when it is ready for sale. It's not going to be cheap, it has a rebuilt engine (CCR) and a rebuilt tranny, plus low mileage for a car it's age.

Not to take anything away from the car, but it has been my experience that it is the driver that is the most critical thing in winning. You can have a car that is all set up for racing (I think you gave an example) yet it doesn't perform as might be expected, chances are it is the driver. Another example is that out here on the RallyX circuit there is a guy who drives a 4WD Justy, he holds the fastest times at most of the tracks, he constantly beats WRXs and STis.

Well today I purchased (actually won the bidding war) a 1995 Legacy AWD L Wagon, so as soon as I sell the 85 Turbo Wagon we will not own any old gen Subarus. That doesn't mean I won't be lurking around.

I don't think I have even gotten that amount that I put into a vehicle for the same vehicle when I sold it. I think it is unrealistic to think you can. If your BRAT is straight and clean, then yes, put the money into it an enjoy it for many more years. If it is a rust bucket, then scrap it out.

Yep, it is old world tech, but still capable of de-coding a Subaru VIN from 1980 to 1989.

Just curious, is this going to be a one day trip or a weekend trip??

Gee I've had one on my web page for years.