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Anybody noticed the error? 5AT ATF drain plug tightening plug is incorrect at 4.5 ft-lb. 20 N.m ~ 14.5 ft-lb I guess it missed the "1" in front of it.

I found out that my local Subaru dealer doesn't use OEM P/S fluid for Power Steering Fluid Exchange service. They use Carquest P/S fluid as you can see below: http://legacygt.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=1589&pictureid=8184 It's interesting that the color of the fluid is translucent, not red like regular ATF fluid. The part guy at the dealer says that they prefer Carquest's fluid because, "It's less frothy than other brand..." Has anybody here use Subaru's ATF-HP fluid for Power Steering? http://legacygt.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=1609&pictureid=8183 It's noted on the label that it's safe to use for Power Steering fluid. I'm thinking of "flushing" the old fluid with the Carquest fluid and then finish the job with Subaru's ATF-HP. What do you guys think?

^I'm also planning to do tackle this myself. I got '05 (naturally aspirated). I believe it's pretty much the same as '06. What kind of extension(s) did you use?

Did anybody experience the same issue with this post? I think I might be in the same situation as markbrotens.

This is an excellent write up. I just noticed that my bottom warmer doesn't seem to be working. Back warmer is working. Passenger's back and bottom warmer are working fine. I would recommend people to read the thread completely to include other people's experience on fixing the bottom element without removing the entire thing. Question to people who fixed the bottom element by pulling it from the back of the seat: Was it problematic to re-insert the element back to the seat?

^Gotcha. I believe that's the "proper" way to do it per technical manual.

Oh no. Don't tell me you got your pump seized one time.

^Thanks! That was my suspicion as well. If I can't keep up with the intake of the new fluid, that could potentially damage the pump.

^Any comment on the method I described above? Is it a good idea or not? I've never done this before and I have no clue what would happen if I do it the way I described it above.

Thank you! Awesome pics!

If you think about it, it actually works similarly to the cassette adapter. Except that the "blank" cassette and the "mod" is all-in-one as one unit. My 2003 Accord came with a cassette deck and once I got the adapter, I forgot the fact that the car never came with an Aux-In. I've always treated the cassette deck as Aux-In via adapter.

Just out of curiosity, would we be able to do this without taking off the belt by doing the following two men operation? 1. Person A take out the return hose and put it on the catch pan 2. Have person A stand by next to the opened reservoir with an opened bottle of P/S fluid (another bottle ready by his side). 3. Have person B start the car and remain seated inside car's driver's seat 3. As the engine running and P/S fluid starts flowing out of the catch pan, person A keeps filling up the reservoir with new fluid as it continues to go down, never to let it empty. 4. Have person B rotate the steering wheel lock to lock as person A keeps filling the reservoir with new fluid 5. Repeat step 3 and 4 until only new fluid comes out of the catch pan 6. Have person B turn off the car and person A re-connect the hose back into the reservoir 7. Drive the car around and top off the fluid as necessary. What do you guys think?

^Thanks for the tip. I'm planning to do this along with changing the O-Ring on the P/S pump. On step #4, OP suggests not to empty the reservoir, but not completely empty it. So, at what point should I stop turning the power steering pump? For example, should I stop when the old fluid is barely visible inside the reservoir? I imagine even with empty reservoir, there still would be fluid inside the hose, so, it still technically won't cause any problem.

^Thanks! So, just to illustrate this by using a picture, I pointed out the clamp that we should loosen: http://legacygt.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=1589&pictureid=8075

Just curious, when I unplug the return line from the reservoir, am I to expect some fluid flowing out of the reservoir? I notice the pipe for the return line on the reservoir is below the fluid.

Thanks, guys! I think I'm going to do this right before I do the P/S flush. I went to the dealer last night and checked out the new Legacy sitting inside the dealer floor. I noticed the level of the reservoir for P/S is at "Max Cold." Meanwhile, my car's P/S reservoir is at "Min Cold" in the morning. So, perhaps it's been seeping out of the P/S pump due to the o-ring issue. I do notice oil dampness around the pump. I might want to take a picture of the reservoir with the brand new fluid on it. Mine is actually really dark...

^Thanks, SBT. Question though, why do we need the universal joint? Instead of just connecting the spark plug socket to the extension and to the ratchet? Many thanks.

Post removed.

My 2005 Legacy doesn't have coil packs. So, I suppose this is for different model? BTW, I can't figure out what a knuckle extension is. Can someone be kind enough to post a pic on how it looks like??

How do we replace the o-ring? Is this something that can be done without bleeding the system?

Hm... Knowing how far in the middle the drain plug is, I'm really leaning towards ClimberD@HexMods' method of just draining via the cooler line. However, the OCD-ness inside of me is telling me to do what BarManBean's suggested, which is to drain the pan beforehand. Hmmm...decision decision. The thing is, unlike the Accord, the car sits lower and I can't reach the drain plug without using jack stand. With the Accord, I can just slide in and unplug the drain plug without even using a jack.

So, I traded my Accord LX for Legacy Ltd with Weather Package. I told my wife, well, our 5 months son will grow up with a nice car, fully equipped, and leather wrapped seats. This will be the car he remembers until he becomes a toddler. Something that I didn't have back then, lol.

Thanks, ClimberD@HexMods! Having read trough the thread carefully several times, it dawned on me how I over complicated the whole thing. I normally only do drain-and-fill (1x) on my previous car, so, this flush method freaked me out a bit initially. Mind you, I'm not a car expert, just regular DIY-er following instructions in the forums. BTW, you mentioned that the point of NOT doing draining the pan is for us to skip the crawling part. Are you suggesting that I could unplug the cooler line return hose directly from under the hood, without crawling down? This didn't hit me because all the pics and videos are showing the line from underneath the car. I will trace the line and post the pic of it later. Mind you, as of today, I've only owned the Legacy for less than 1 week. I beg your pardon if I sound too needy or asking too much details.

BarManBean, did you mean, draining the pan first and then refilling the pan BEFORE you do the cooler line method? OR, draining the pan and then proceed with the cooler line method? Edit: I saw another DIY drain-and-fill on another website and got a better idea on how it works. Plus, reading the PDF on Transmission Cooler clarified it even more. Edit2: Not to put words on BarManBean's mouth, but, I think he would suggest to drain the pan and fill back with new fluid before moving forward with the cooler line return "flush" method.

^Wait. I just read this again and watch the video. So, instead of draining the AT fluid from the bottom of the car by taking out the plug, we're actually draining using the line?? I also notice post #16, so, we can use both technique? Drain the pan, insert matching amount of liquid, then drain it again using the cooler line. This is amazing. I've never thought of doing it this way. I wonder if this is possible at all to do this on the 2003+ Honda Accord. The DIY in the Accord forum never mentioned about draining via the cooler line. Edit: I think this is exactly what Honda is cautioning us not to do. They're against the complete flush and only suggested 3x drain-and-fill.