59ctd

rain-x works wonders and wipers not needed imo.

Is there any connection to any road irregularities or bumps and the clacking sounds or does it make these sounds when at a full stop in neutral?

Is there any way to clean the headlight projector lens on the front top edge without needing to disassemble the headlight front from the housing? My daughter came home last Friday with three giant rock chips on the left front light on the 08 Legacy. I ordered a used unit from the local salvage yard. Price was cheap and the headlight is decent and clear no fogging. I do notice a smudge of something on the upper right quadrant of the reflector lens though. Not sure how that could happen since this is an OEM Subaru part and it has not been taken apart from what I can tell. Is this something I should just not worry about or is there a way to possibly try to clean the projector lens without taking the front off the headlight assembly?

Those pipe flanges actually look pretty decent and should be fine if you need to reseal them with new gaskets. I'd hit the mating surfaces with a belt sander when apart to give it a better flat sealing surface.

It depends a lot on the condition of the flanges on the mufflers - how much they are rusted. Mine were VERY thin probably half of the original metal thickness and it was extremely hard to get them to seal up properly again. The mating surface was just too uneven to give a good seal. If you go this route I'd recommend replacing the bolts and nuts with new stainless steel ones and also using a non-metalic style of gasket. This will sound odd but I have had best luck with MS12392 manifold gaskets and then just trim off the 2nd hole. Also, use plenty of muffler/tailpipe sealer compound when putting it back together and bolt the joint together tight. Replace the springs and shoulder bolts and the donut fitting on the front end of the pipe too. Honestly, it is easier to chop out the broken resonator and welded pipe ends and clamp in a suitable cylinder style muffler than it is to replace the cat-back midpipe and try to get it to seal up properly. My pipe/muffler flanges were super rusted but MN uses a lot of salt on the roads in the winter.

Oh, forgot to mention you will need a saw of some sort to cut off the weld bead on the old pipes. If you do not have the tools for this then I recommend you bring it to some local exhaust repair shop and they should have it fixed up in short order.

Measure the outside diameter of the pipe before/after the resonator (they are the same I think). Then measure the needed length to give yourself a good 3-4" (or more) of pipe overlap for the joint. Find a tubular style muffler that has inner pipe diameter that matches the outer diameter of the exhaust pipe you measured earlier. These used to be called glasspack mufflers but I am from the 60's so maybe that term is old now. You could also get a standard muffler with a slight offset on one end to match best to the design of the resonator. A straight cylinder type unit will work fine though. Also get two or four good ubolt clamps to tighten it up and crimp down the muffler ends onto the old pipes. One thing to avoid at all costs is disassembling the y-pipe to muffler fittings. Typically they are quite rusted and reassembling them and getting them sealed to be quiet is not easy. Be aware that if you get a complete replacement pipe/resonator/y-pipe unit online they are made for both the Legacy and the Outback. They fit properly on the Legacy but since the Outback has a lower hanging rear cross member the y section of the pipe is noticeably lower by at least 1" when mounted on a Legacy. I bought/returned two diff mfr aftermarket pipes that were like this. After trial and no good solution on my Legacy I posted a question on my local bookface Legacy forum and asked if anyone had a take-off unit willing to sell. I ended up finding one for $20 for the whole cat back and mufflers and it worked fine.

Another option would be to get a different resonator or even a glasspack type cylindrical muffler that is a bit longer. A bit more length would allow you to hack out the existing resonator, clean the pipe ends up and slide the new one over and then weld it to some solid parts on the existing pipes. A good clamp might work too but I like to have these welded together.

First I'd replace the sensor that has the white connector. It sure does look like the AVCS system but is diff from my 2.5i engines. Be careful not to over torque the new sensor as it can crack the housing where it screws into. I've replaced this oil pressure sensor on two my subies when they start to leak like that shows. Easy fix.

This morning I replaced the wilting / shrunken vent cowling on my 08 2.5i Limited. Replacement is not perfect but looks way better than before. We picked this up for $7 at the u-pull it last week. My son used some stuff he bought called "Back to Black" which he just wiped on and made the faded dull plastic look nice and bright black. First two pics before and last two are after.

I've always just put used ones from the local salvage yard in and they fit and work just fine. None of them had the OEM green paint on the ends. No vibration issues. They are ~$30 each when needed. I think I've replaced at least four of the axle shafts on all of our Legacy/Outback rigs.

I own an 09 LGT with the HK setup and this 08 Legacy 2.5i Limited with the normal audio. I can tell with certainty that the HK setup is WAY better than the normal non-HK setup. Going with the JDM switchout is too expensive. We have store credit to use so the HK amp+speakers will be basically free. I am fine with splicing all kinds of speaker/power wires together I just do not know about the line vs speaker level of the interconnection between the head unit and the HK amp.

What is the interconnection between a stock 09 OB 2.5SE head unit and it's Harmon Kardon 440w amp under the pass seat? We have store credit to use at the local u-pull, The 09 OB SE where we got a bunch of parts for my son's OB has the factory HK system and we can use the credit to basically get all the speakers and the amp and whatever wiring we can find/cut out. This will hopefully go into an 08 Legacy 2.5i Limited. I do not expect to get all the wiring harness out of the donor and I am fine with splicing in all speaker/power wires as needed. Will the speaker level outs on the 08 6 disc changer be suitable as input to the HK 440w amp or are line level connections required?

My 08 Legacy 2.5i has a Legacy GT catback y-pipe and mufflers on it and they fit identically to the original. Find a local Legacy Facebook group to join and ask if anyone might have a take-off setup they are not using. That is how I found the replacement setup for my car for $20.

Those sway bar end links look identical to the Kartboy end links that I have here and yet to install.

My son and I replaced the inner CV boot on my 08 2.5i and also replaced the front sway bar end links. I was not looking forward to the end link job since when I did it ~2 yrs ago I had to cut them off. Good thing we used anti-seize then as the old nuts came off easily this time. While the wheels were off I snapped two pics of the LCA rubber bushing. I know that cracking is a bit normal for these. Is this anything to be concerned about?

I ordered those links from Kartboy for my 09 LGT. The moog end links in the picture will go on the 08 2.5i. What is really odd about them is that the label on the links state to mount the upper grease fitting to the rear so it can be accessed on the vehicle. While this certainly makes sense they only have one part number for left and right and while the grease fitting clears the control arm, etc on one side (right I think) it is so close there is no way to get a grease gun in there. I have not been able to find a left vs right version of this moog end link.

Are there any better sway bar end links than the ones we can get from the local parts store? I have two of the 4th gen Legacy sedans (08 2.5i & 09 GT). I've used Moog sway bar end links on both and they are now clunking again after ~20k miles. Is there any other longer life sway bar end link?

I bought one from DB Electrical for my son's Outback. Good price, free shipping, no core charge. The starter works just fine.

I am looking for the two metal mounting brackets for the XM satellite receiver for it to mount to the bottom of the head unit. Looks like these in the picture. I have the XM receiver already.

For the door lock/unlock can you discern if the solenoid is trying to switch the lock on/off or not? Might be able to tell by having a hand on the door while pushing the button on the key fob. If it tries but does not unlock it then maybe the lock mechanism is obstructed or needs lubrication somehow. For paint touch ups go to paintscratch.com. I've never had a color that is not a perfect match.

I am curious about the Amsoil 5w-40 European Classic oil choice. I've been running Amsoil Signature Series 5w-30 for a few years in my 2 Legacys (09 LGT and 08 2.5i). What is the difference that made you choose the 5w-40 European Classic?

I am thinking about trading in my 09 LGT for a 2019 Buick TourX wagon. I guess I'd like something with more room inside. A wagon vs this sedan gives a lot more capacity. I've read many good reviews on the TourX. I really know nothing about Opel or their cars and how they stand up, etc. I think I read somewhere that the engine is a 2.0 turbo made by Saab and that the 8sp trans is not spectacular. I've heard the same about the 5EAT which I think is perfectly fine. Anyways, what are your thoughts on the TourX?

Cool. That looks like the same kit I have. I don't think I've used it since ~2005 so the hardest part might be finding where my flaring tool is located here. Thanks.

What diameter NiCopp line is needed for this and do you use a normal flaring tool for the double flare ends? I need to pick up some of this tubing since I have four of these vehicles that will need it eventually.