New to me '98 Impreza Outback Sport

[1 Lucky Texan]

plugs and plug wires happen to be something folks have bad luck with if aftermarket - get OEM or NGK.

Edited June 5, 2017 by 1 Lucky Texan

[FlyB0y]

Yeah, not going to go with anything less!  NGK all the way!  

 

I am pretty sure that is why the #1 spark plug wire boot doesn't fit right, the last set put on it were probably cheap ones.  I will have to wait till something sells or next month to afford it though.

 

Any recommendations for a 2" receiver for this car?  It has a current mini 1 1/4" but I need a full sized one to attach a bicycle rack, not planning on towing anything big or anything crazy like that lol!

[1 Lucky Texan]

dunno, when I was using a bike rack (1UPUSA), the rack had an adapter for the small receiver.

[FlyB0y]

Oh, that's an idea, I will see if there is an adapter for this one too thx for the idea  

[FlyB0y]

Well looks like i have a brake job in my near future, nothing terrible, just replacing the rear passenger caliper (remand) and a new set of pads, got all the still locally, just need to do that and fix the inner CV boot of the passenger front axle, and I am good at least till I want to get serious about the oil leak, gonna clean up the motor and do that part next month I think though.

[FlyB0y]

DOH!  I think the guy at the parts counter looked up a '98 Outback instead of a '98 Impreza Outback Sport (Subaru doesn't make that confusing at all! )  Got the wheels off the rear, and discovered Drums instead of disc (good thing! Cheaper to maintain, and usually last longer IIRC .. )

[idosubaru]

Yep drums are just annoying to work on but have good tools and make mental notes or take pictures of spring and part alignment and they're not hard.

 

Rockauto has (had?) real cheap drum brake kit parts for that car. I had an extra set I just recently through in the trash.

[idosubaru]

Ive used my 2" rack on 1 1/4" hitch with adapter. The adapter slides to the first hole and you're stuck with the entire rack sticking way out. It works but I now have all 2" hitches. But those aren't available for every vehicle.

 

You could give a shop your hitch and buy 2" hitch square channel (its cheap) and they can weld the 2" channel in place of the 1 1/4". I have some of that channel in my garage just for that purpose.

[Subaru Scott]

https://www.flickr.com/photos/69918845@N05/35135313905/in/dateposted-public/
 
Harbor freight has receiver tubes ready to weld up to whatever, like my new Tribeca! 

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/69918845@N05/34749108430/in/dateposted-public/

 

Why won't the photos from flickr no longer attach here? It's so confusing and such a hassle!

Edited June 6, 2017 by Subaru Scott

[FlyB0y]

Good Idea!  I think in my case I will just use some u-bolts or similar and attach the HF receiver tube to the existing one, since it will just hold a bike rack thanks for the idea. 

 

I really am frustrated with this drum brake shoe kit ... the pins for the parking brake aren't even in straight!  I goofed thinking I would have to transfer the old pin from the original to the new (didn't realize I had 2 front shoes doh! now I have to take that one apart ...  )  Oh well, I guess back to the parts store unless I can make this one work, I think I got the pin aligned enough with my vice to work.  Putting anti-seize on it as "grease" just a tiny bit.

[FlyB0y]

Question: is there a special procedure to bleeding the brakes with ABS?  I have used the bleed order I found here: /http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/topic/128024-bleeding-air-out-of-master-cylinder/ but I still have an issue with a soft brake pedal.  All the old fluid has been removed, and I used both a mighty vac to suck fluid at each caliper, and then I also used the manual pump the pedal with the bleed screw open (with a bottle of fluid to create a seal so no air could be sucked back in) my next thought is a new master cylinder?

 

Also, I replaced the torn pass side front inner CV boot, and wow, it was sooooo easy!!  I remember someone trying to tell me to do it this way years ago with my '85 brat, and I just wasn't convinced it wouldn't be better just to replace the axle, but now I am sold!

 

Here is a helpful video on replacing the boot on youtube:

 

 

I will also not use just any replacement CV boot, the first one I got from Autozone was expensive, cheap and wouldn't have fit very well.  I then went to Napa, got one that was cheaper ($17 with AAA 10% discount instead of $24 for the "one size fits none correctly" boot from AZ).  The Napa one also came with new C-clips and looks to be very much the same thick  rubber of OEM!

 

Got it on the road now, and just need to wait till next month for a bit more $$$ and I will get valve cover gaskets as they are leaking a bit.

Edited June 8, 2017 by FlyB0y

[1 Lucky Texan]

did you keep the MC topped-up? are you sure?

 

if it sucks in air - may have to be 'bench bled' .

 

but, it isn't unusual for folks new to Subaru to complain about the brakes feeling soft. On a vey old car, the caliper hoses might 'balloon' and replacing could help. Other folks claim a master cylinder brace helps.

Edited June 8, 2017 by 1 Lucky Texan

[FlyB0y]

Yeah, I definitely kept the MC topped up, but thank you for double checking me, I went through a large bottle of fluid flushing it out, so I wonder if next I might look at the MC, it was soft before, but now it seems a bit softer, and the parking brake isn't doing much, I guess it has to be adjusted.

 

One strange thing, with the mighty vac, only the Left Rear caliper seems to allow me to pull fluid consistently, the rest seem to give me as much air as fluid, but I know some of that is just what seeps in around the bleed valve.

 

I tested with pumping the pedal with the valve open (always a little fluid in the bottle so as not to allow air in) and do not see bubbles yet, it's soft and seems I cannot pull fluid like I should on all the 3 other bleed valves.

[idosubaru]

there's no special procedure for ABS, makes no difference, though maybe it can take longer. 

 

your MC is fine.  Subaru MC failure is rare, replacing one only to have the same symptoms is common. 

when they have air introduced into them they can take forever to bleed, i've definitely gone through like 3 huge bottles of fluid to bleed a Subaru on some ocassions.  i'm not sure what makes one easy and one take forever. 

 

why yours would have any air in it at all, i have no idea, maybe you do have another issue. 

[1 Lucky Texan]

There are folks that warn against using full travel if using the pedal to bleed brakes on older vehicles. It's evidently possible for some corrosion in the MC to cut into a seal or o-ring.

 

It doesn't seem common in practice, but has been mentioned.

 

if the pedal drops, that's different than feeling 'mushy' so, make sure you're chasing the correct problem.

 

I only know about adjusting p-brakes on some rear disc cars. You may have some adjustment under the console but, that is probably meant to take up slack in stretched cable.

Edited June 8, 2017 by 1 Lucky Texan

[Subaru Scott]

Could have sucked some air in there with the mity vac. The anti-lock can be difficult to bleed sometimes. There is a bleeder valve on the ABS unit. All the older Subarus without ABS will gravity bleed. If you open one bleeder at a time, give about 6 pumps to flush the gunk out, then let it drip for a few minutes and shut it off. I've done them for years like that. Don't think I've ever seen a master cylinder go bad on a Soob. Best way to check is without the engine running, pump it a couple times to empty the vacuum assist, then apply light light pressure on the pedal. If it slowly leaks down, it's bad.

[FlyB0y]

Thanks for the info!  I will go ahead and continue to bleed the brakes then, where is the ABS unit's bleeder?  And where does it fit in the order of bleeding?  I have been using this method:  front right, rear left, front left, rear right.

 

I will also look up how to tighten the parking brake, as right now it doesn't even engage the shoes at all.

[Subaru Scott]

Must have just been the early ABS that had bleeders. I just went and looked at my Tribeca, and it has none. Sorry, I don't have much experience with these "new" Subarus.    I was always taught to start bleeding the wheel farthest from the master cylinder and work back. That's how I've always done it, but I have seen different recommendations.

Edited June 8, 2017 by Subaru Scott

[FlyB0y]

No worries,  I talked with a local subaru repair shop and they told me the ABS in the case of this vehicle shouldn't make a difference, but I wanted to confirm that, as I wasn't able to talk to one of the mechanics.

[FlyB0y]

Ok this is strange, when I have the car off, the brake is firm, then I run the engine and it gets very soft again, and there is a CEL on, and a audible "click" like a solenoid valve coming open, it sounds like it is just below the gear shifter, would this be the ABS?

[Subaru Scott]

When the engine is running, you have vacuum assist. The click you hear is just the park interlock, which is normal. If you pump the brakes once or twice, does the pedal get higher?

[FlyB0y]

Yes, but the travel is much less, and it gets nice and firm, not sure how far it should travel before it does?  I bled it a bit more, and it seems to be ok now, much better than even when I first got it from my friend, but I'm thinking perhaps a master cylinder is in my future doh!

[FlyB0y]

Oh, and the parking brake is working only for the left rear, I didn't see any adjustment underneath the car at the hubs, so I just tightened the cable at the brake arm, is there a second adjustment under the consol that will allow for tightening the right rear?

 

*** EDIT ***

 

I looked at some pics and figured out where the rear brake adjustments were, the slot at the top wasn't what I was expecting, finally got the parking brake adjusted, seems most everything is working now.

Edited June 9, 2017 by FlyB0y

[FlyB0y]

Ok so I fixed the problem with the coolant leak, I was the cause! LOL!!  I cannot believe it was something so simple that I managed to miss, when I put all the hoses back on, somehow I managed NOT to get the clamp back on the hose for the heater, so that is why it would only lead occasionally (when it heated up it would loosen just enough to leak, and stop when it cooled down and re-sealed).  Fortunately it never got low, so I am sure nothing was damaged, it's amazing how easy it is to miss things so obvious at times, was a good thing, needed to replace that old clamp anyway.

 

Thanks again for everyone who helped me out on this adventure!  Hopefully this will help someone else solve a intermittent coolant leak that made the same mistake, easy to do when you replace a lot of stuff at once. 

[Cactus Music]

Just to share a story about your year and model.. We had the same until our carport caved in on Christmas eve due to rain on 3 feet of snow.  

The Subaru was flattened to 2' and the tires where like the Back to the Future De Lorian when it flies. My 96 explorer fared better as we all know they have to have strong roofs because they spend a lot of time parked that way. They fixed the Explorer which I still use as a snow plow.

The Subaru which we had bought 2 years prior to this for $12,000 they offered us $13,500!! and wrote it off. We bought our 2005 then And my wife was not happy because it had no character compared to the 98. Anyhow much later down the road we run into a local kid who said, hey I think I have your car.. he found a piece of paper with our name.. I couldn't believe they re built it it was a pancake. it's still going strong and looks in mint condition.