dylantheham Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 (edited) Hi everyone, I'm what you'd call a late bloomer. I've driven since I was 16, but living in a big city, never saw the need for a car. That changed when I recently changed careers and was basically told by my superiors: GET A CAR. Bumming around on Kijiji (a Canadian online classifieds listing), I saw a beautiful red 1997 Subaru Legacy L Wagon with a little under 200,000 km for $700 that was "in perfect condition". Turned out that the owner actually wanted $1,250 for it, which was really sketchy but I liked the car so I signed in blood. $700 and a new gas tank later (owner failed to mention a tank leak), I'm on the road and really enjoying this ride. I've always had a thing for Subarus. I just think they look great, are reliable and practical, but have plenty of room for driving enthusiasts to do their thing. The stock auto AWD on most recent models really helps in my part of the world too. I'm a total car newb but I've just got the repair manual so I can begin tinkering around on this ol' thing, which my dad has somehow nicknamed "The Tadpole". She's gonna take some work to get her in pristine shape. What immediately comes to mind is some body rust spots that I think I can get to. Looking forward to learning some good stuff, meeting some cool people, and puttin' out some good vibes here. Cheers EDIT: Would post pics, but car exterior hasn't gotten a thorough clean yet (raining...) . Edited October 23, 2015 by dylantheham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olnick Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Welcome to the USMB, Dylan. You've found a great place here to "learn some good stuff!" Car sounds great--glad you're enjoying it. As you get familiar with it do keep an eye on the temperature gauge--2.5L engines of that era have a tendency to blow head gaskets! (Not trying to spread doom & gloom, just watch out for overheating.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dylantheham Posted October 26, 2015 Author Share Posted October 26, 2015 Thanks a bunch, Olnick! I'll make a note of the head gasket issue. So far, no overheating problems. I've dived into the owners manual and a pdf of a repair manual I found floating around on the internet. I'm basically gonna get up to speed on all the maintenance for the car, but come next spring, I intend to check out those rust spots and see if I can remedy them. Could you point me in the right direction in these forums for getting that done? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olnick Posted October 26, 2015 Share Posted October 26, 2015 You're off to a good start, Dylan. Some PM (Preventive Maintenance) and TLC (!) and your Subie will serve you long and well. It's amazing how much information is available these days. You can Google pretty much anything. You can use the USMB Search function. Best of all you can ask questions here on this forum. It still blows me away how helpful and sharing the knowledgeable, smart folks here can be. Be polite, be considerate and ask away!!! As far as that danged rust goes, nothing special to Subarus. Just use general "best practices" and good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SubieWagon Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 You're off to a good start, Dylan. Some PM (Preventive Maintenance) and TLC (!) and your Subie will serve you long and well. It's amazing how much information is available these days. You can Google pretty much anything. You can use the USMB Search function. Best of all you can ask questions here on this forum. It still blows me away how helpful and sharing the knowledgeable, smart folks here can be. Be polite, be considerate and ask away!!! As far as that danged rust goes, nothing special to Subarus. Just use general "best practices" and good luck! I'm sorry that my first post on this forum has to come in possibly pointing out an error, but doesn't the '97 L have the 2.2 and not the 2.5? I'm kind of curious if there are exceptions, because I've got a same year Brighton Wagon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olnick Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 It gets a bit confusing! Yes, the '97 L has a 2.2L engine but it is what is called an interference engine. If the timing belt ever breaks or fails it could cause severe, expensive-to-repair, damage to the valves. Up through '96 the 2.2L (the famous "bullet-proof" EJ22 engine) is non-interference. If the timing belt fails it doesn't damage the valves or heads. You have to repair whatever caused the failure and replace the timing belt, of course--but the engine hasn't been half-destroyed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdventureSubaru Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 Unless it was a GT yeah, it would be the immortal EJ22 motor. As mentioned, 1997 is an interference motor. Check your timing belt and make sure that it is relatively new. This would be top priority as a failed belt or idler can cost you your motor. A gates kit is in the $120. range and takes about 2 hours to do the job. Cheap for dependability and peace of mind. Otherwise, check your fluids. Oil changes routinely and as a religion. Trans fluid is a good idea. Drain and fill. Regular cheap ATF is good to go. Coolant and OEM or Stant thermostat. Secondary would be electrical tune up. NGK spark plugs and wires. If you drive far or don't have good access to towing a junkyard or cheap ebay alternator and fuel pump motor are easy to stash and are there in case one ever leaves you stranded. These 90s legacies are some of the most dependable ever made. Good choice! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 1997 L is an EJ22. There are no exceptions unless the engine was previously swapped - unlikely given the scarcity and cost of EJ25's in the past. L & brighton models are EJ22. www.cars101.com I'd install a gates timing belt kit soon. they're cheap on amazon for belt and all pulleys. 97 is an odd year in the US - usually the newer style tensioner but sometimes the older style. EJ22's don't have headgasket issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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