1 Lucky Texan

Fair - no way a car this old would have the brake lights in the inhibitor circuitry right?

I was just wondering if it's reasonable to expect the fluid reservoir for the clutch on my 06 WRX might actually be 'synchronized' with clutch wear? It seems to be about halfway between max and min. Or, is there an inspection port for looking at clutch material?

2.5 liter? 105K miles OR 105 MONTHS, whichever comes first. belts are tough - an idler will seize or dump its bearings before the belt breaks. then you have bent valves. get the TB area serviced soon, new idlers, tensioner probably waterpump and maybe cam/crank seals. Consider having the oil pump backing plate resealed.

many items of an upgraded suspension will add NVH. The endlinks have bushings so, not really a big deal. You could just run what you have until one breaks, then get some kartboy or Whiteline w'ever endlinks. My kartboy links made no difference I could detect in noise. But I had some prothane rear transverse link bushings on the wife's Outback and they were VERY noisy - got them changed out for Febest rubber units now. So, it kinda depends on where and what is being swapped out. just wondering if they were in with the swaybar deal or not. something to keep an eye on too.

definitely check spark plug tubes for oil.

if you don't already have up-sized rims, you 'might' need to also consider the cost of new rims to clear those calipers. I don't know if you will also need new brackets? swaybar deal seems legit. do you get metal endlinks with it? Old resin endlinks might not survive the extra strain for long.

try a search. I had to replace o-rings on both my soobs. now the PS is as [Foghorn Leghorn] "quiet as a caterpillar walking across a moss bed in tennis shoes - SNEAKERS that is!" [/Foghorn Leghorn]

look in the power steering reservoir for bubbles. do you hear it inside the car? overcharged a/c can make a weird noise - sometimes described as 'hooting'.

I have learned a LOT from the Forums.

I have some pics with rough measurements of free length and top and bottom diameter measurements of my 06 WRX WAGON OEM springs if that would help. pm me with an e-addy that can receive large-ish pics (2.5M each) otherwise I cannot answer the question. maybe that suspension thread at NASIOC has some guidance.

it's your call - if you have fairly low miles on a trans that is known to you and hasn't been neglected - changing the center diff is probably a good choice. but a high-mileage trans....well, you might consider a lower miles unit from a wreck and swap it in. Maybe someone will reply who has been in your situation.

OK, but what if your struts were worn-out back at 75K? just saying, for the labor/hassle, I think a lot of people would go with new KYBs. But, I can understand wanting to save the money. . . . . . . . . . I also have regretted saving money.

I think 60K is a lot of miles on stock struts. They probably have 'some' life left. May depend on what type of miles though. I had a rear strut leaking on our Outback at about 63K miles (well, that was about when it was discovered....) I change all 4 struts and, while perhaps not 'worn out' the other 3 were noticeably weak compared to the new struts. But, her car gets 95% side street use. Highway miles are different, I'd think dirt/gravel would be the worst. just a single observation.

are all 4 tires the same brand/model/size ? Likely center diff - particularly if this is a manual transmission. HOWEVER - torque bind is almost always felt as a jerkiness or 'holding back' when turning in tight circles. What you describe, if it's noise only, could be something else. A bad front CV joint or possibly a bad driveshaft component (u-joint or carrier bearing.) Try to make arrangements with a good mechanic familiar with Subarus and demonstrate the problem for him.

this will probably be annoying but, 'just to be clear' you shold NOT use the triangle/arrow on the front of the crank sprocket. Only use the dash on the tab at the back of that sprocket (arrow will at about 3 O'clock position) do a tooth count

hand crank the cams and sprocket to their marks, do a tooth count. are you moving the intake over? maybe some IAC problem? can you scan for codes?

if your engine has overheated, and/or an engine from a wreck will have substantially lower miles - that would seem to be the way to proceed to increase chances of a reliable and long-lasting solution. Junkyard engine with TB and HGs refreshed would probably be my 'vote'.

I once had a car (Mitsubishi) that had an odd problem. When I unlocked the hatch, the latch would would sometimes 'bounce back'/rebound enough to 'half-way' lock back again. I had to fiddle with tiny adjustments and slightly bending a part until it was reliable. But I doubt that is related if the key doesn't unlock it.

next time it happens, see if holding the pedal on the floor (the ECU's 'clear flood' signal) helps it start. That at least would tell you if it's flooded/overfueling.

oh yeah, I have no idea how severely the angle may change but, rebuilts of the same model would still be worse (and new Subaru axles would be $$$$$) so, what you suggest sounds like a good starting point.

if you must do something to them , consider re-greasing and rebooting your originals and swap sides with them. That way, you get the less-used surfaces that were only worn when reversing moved to forward direction wear. but, as mentioned above, I read a lot of various Forums and have yet to read of a bad rear axle (or even a boot) that was bad unless a wreck was the cause.

if you're not gonna re-use that bushing, I'd try starting with 20 seconds of heat from a propane/MAPP torch. Wait maybe an hour and try to get it off with a 6 point socket. If it still won't move, hit it with some more heat. You should also be trying some penetrant. PB Blaster or 50.50 ATF-acetone mix. hit it with a full 60 seconds of heat next time. try again.

general tune-up issues are good to address when chasing this. Followed by things like exhaust leaks or vacuum lines etc. clear the code and monitor how quickly it comes back too. If possible, get freezeframe or, better, live data to see if fuel trims or other issues are out-of-line. make sure there's no rodent-chewed or bad wiring. Refreshing ground connections is not a bad idea, etc. the last thing you want to change, the cat conv., COULD be bad, but you want to be sure.