5th Gen Ownership - Official Random Thoughts Thread - V3

[Shadow_419]

Scored some nice tools at work for free since they were just going to dump them. 3 analog Brown & Sharpe micrometers and a digital Mitutoyo depth mic and caliper.

 

http://i.imgur.com/srMAvp2.jpg

[Scooby Fan]

Hmmmm..... I may have been a bit premature in taking the snow tires off a couple of weeks ago. We got a cold snap on the coast where it has been below freezing for 3 days and we got 7-8 inches of snow today.

BTW today is our anniversary and we are going out to a really nice restaurant for dinner with friends...I will be using Scooby Too's car since it still has the snowies on it

 

We had our dinner out and came home to about 4 more inches and got almost a foot more over night.... I am tired of shoveling snow now. I am guessing my favourite golf course will not be open today

Edited February 24, 2018 by Scooby Fan

[brandon.mol]

I discovered today that there is a button on my rearview mirror that activates a Google voice search, built into the car. This is independent of Android Auto/your phone and uses the built in data connection the car has.

 

Cool...

[s2baru]

...snowblowers are for the weak!!!

[cww516]

Got mine running just in time for it to stop snowing (for now, at least), that must be a sign.

 

 

Seriously, I think Scooby Fan and I traded weather. We've gotten rain the last couple days, supposed to be highs in the high 30s to mid 40s for the next week and a half.

[GTEASER]

The weather is all wonky right now. A few weeks ago we were in the hi 70's, now we're having frost warnings on the days without wind and friggin' cold temps with blustery winds on the other days. Up in the mountains at my property they have had overnight lows in the single digits, which is unusual, it rarely gets below 25.

[Scooby Fan]

As mentioned above we got a bunch more snow over night so I couldn't resist taking the Leggy out to take a few pics in the sun..

As I was doing it I heard the sound of heavy equipment moving.... looked down the street and saw a city snow plow truck coming along....they plow right along the curb and fill our driveway with huge balls of frozen snow every year.....Hmmmm.... an idea!! I stepped out about 5 feet from the curb a put my camera up to shoot a pic of him making a mess of the driveway....sure enough he moved out to the middle of the road (Where the cars actually drive) and went by leaving my nicely shoveled driveway nice and clear..... doubt if he wanted a picture of his city truck running down a citizen

That probably saved me another couple of hours of digging

[Timothy.B]

K2Gear also makes a 3-piece kit similar to the DAMD ones, and the fit looks really nice, but they only list them specifically for the Wagon, so I'm not sure if they'd fit the sedan properly. They're also pretty expensive and still have to deal with shipping from Japan.

 

https://page.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/l431837792

 

 

Those look nice. They actually fit properly. I don't think they'd work on the Legacy. I believe our bumper is not as deep as the Outback

 

Anyone running the V Style lip in a place that gets a lot of snow?

 

Any issues with it pulling off?

 

I am going to fasten it with the self tapping screws it came with and add some 3m tape as well.

 

I used a buttload of self tapping. I ordered extra with the amount that already came. I think I did something like, one every 4". It's held up pretty good. Even plowed through a foot of snow in some parts of the road with no issue.

 

Most important lawn mower mod:

 

https://www.amazon.com/Swagman-80980-To-Go-Clip/dp/B000YZI6SY

 

Good idea. Looks like something Hank Hill would use

 

I think I'm gonna go with a gas powered. Waiting on house inspection Wednesday. Might have someone to take over the lease of the apartment too when we move out. Picking out paint colors. So much to pack.

 

Looking at all the stuff I'd like to do to the house, where do you guys fit your car parts in at?

 

The way it's looking, I'm gonna do the Koni install and the grill I want, possibly the sideskirts and that'll be it for the year. Actually kind of wanting to pay the car off soon. Buyout right now is $12500. Paying $338 less a month would be nice. I'm on teetering on exhaust, or no exhaust. Could use the extra cash towards a second non-daily fun car. Something turbo that makes woosh noises. I need some woosh in my life, haha.

Edited February 25, 2018 by Timothy.B

[cww516]

Looking at all the stuff I'd like to do to the house, where do you guys fit your car parts in at?

 

I'll let you know when I find the time. The LGT hasn't made it out of the garage in weeks, let alone had any tinkering done on it, only thing I've had time to do recently has been changing the oil in the Baja. Hung a 60A subpanel in the garage to feed the welder (and eventually everything else in the garage as well), got an air compressor that I need to stuff into the crawlspace and plumb out to the garage, gotta finish reassembling the downstairs wall (drywall crack repair) so I can paint said wall and hang the TV on it...

 

As far as paying off the car- pay down whatever has the highest interest rate first. If you have a higher rate on the house than on the car, and you don't just have $12500 sitting around burning a hole in your pocket (and if you do, you should max out both of your Roth IRAs for the year rather than just sitting on it), you're doing better by paying extra on the house than you are by paying down the car. Granted, there's definitely peace of mind in actually owning it and knowing you don't have to make payments on it if you end up out of work or something.

 

Also, and I say this having just bought a TV and speakers, so take it with a grain of salt- I'd suggest putting your mod plans on pause for at least a couple months to see what unexpected expenses pop up, and go from there. My fridge stopped working about a week after I moved in, but luckily it was just a bad thermostat (and I was able to diagnose and replace it). Only cost me about $14 to get out of that one, but a whole new fridge would have tacked a couple zeros onto that figure. Similarly, I had a pretty big limb drop off of a tree in my front yard a month or so ago, and it somehow threaded the needle between the power line, my garage, and another tree. That could have gotten ugly quick as well.

 

 

Dammit, I'm 29, I'm too young to be that old and sensible. It needs to be spring soon so I can figure out how and where to install a garage heater, that should balance things out.

[brandon.mol]

As mentioned above we got a bunch more snow over night so I couldn't resist taking the Leggy out to take a few pics in the sun..

As I was doing it I heard the sound of heavy equipment moving.... looked down the street and saw a city snow plow truck coming along....they plow right along the curb and fill our driveway with huge balls of frozen snow every year.....Hmmmm.... an idea!! I stepped out about 5 feet from the curb a put my camera up to shoot a pic of him making a mess of the driveway....sure enough he moved out to the middle of the road (Where the cars actually drive) and went by leaving my nicely shoveled driveway nice and clear..... doubt if he wanted a picture of his city truck running down a citizen

That probably saved me another couple of hours of digging

 

And what do you think is going to go down the next time he goes by your driveway when you aren't standing there?

[brandon.mol]

On the south side of the city there is a big ripper bar named "Diamond's Gentleman's Club" and today driving by, the sign out front read:

 

Clown Stripper

BJ McNaughty

February 26

 

 

[emoji23]

[GTEASER]

Took the Fozz up to the snow to work on the property today. 6" of snow, a high of 45*, and loads of fun. Had the burn pile flames raging 6 feet high for several hours and cut up a lot more wood. Also left a snowman up at the road to wave hello to the neighbors.

[Scooby Fan]

And what do you think is going to go down the next time he goes by your driveway when you aren't standing there?

The chance of the same driver doing our street is so low I don't even think about it.... we get very little snow here....this is the first time the street has been plowed in a year....a couple of times last year.

The reason they plow our little side street is because a neighbour is an executive at the city works dep't....doubt if they want to crap in their own bed

[GTEASER]

Installed Prothane 16-1610 Diff Bushing Insert Kit on the Fozz today. Now I'm gonna order one for the GT. Took about 1 hour and was fairly simple. Only cost about $22 so it's a no brainer mod, but I can't believe I didn't do this sooner. Thanks for the suggestion guys! Noticed a little difference in throttle response and a little quicker hookup from the rear when I jump on the throttle, but with the slushbox 4eat, I'm sure it's not as solid feeling as it would be with a manual. Less drivetrain lash for sure though.

 

Edited February 26, 2018 by GTEASER

[Humble Rumble]

Thanks for the pics too, this really gives me a good visual on exactly how to install my own when the weather gets nicer.

[brandon.mol]

Installed Prothane 16-1610 Diff Bushing Insert Kit on the Fozz today. Now I'm gonna order one for the GT. Took about 1 hour and was fairly simple. Only cost about $22 so it's a no brainer mod, but I can't believe I didn't do this sooner. Thanks for the suggestion guys! Noticed a little difference in throttle response and a little quicker hookup from the rear when I jump on the throttle, but with the slushbox 4eat, I'm sure it's not as solid feeling as it would be with a manual. Less drivetrain lash for sure though.

 

FYI do a little scouting of the situation on the LGT first. A couple things to note:

 

1. The spare tire tub will piss you off royally. It's impossible to get a socket on the studs because its in the way, so torquing to spec is a problem unless you have open end adaptor for a torque wrench.

 

2. One or both (don't remember) of the front ones are solid on the Legacy vs the Fozz so it's not needed there. Don't remember the details but you'll figure it out.

 

Anyway... It's mildly more complicated just because of the tire tub.

[GTEASER]

Thanks for the pics too, this really gives me a good visual on exactly how to install my own when the weather gets nicer.

I just ordered this kit for the GT and I will post pics and a little write up when I do it. My New Years resolution was to install parts right after I receive them and this one doesn't take long so hoping to do it this coming weekend. Access to the rear bolts is far easier on the Fozz than it will be on the GT because the GTs spare tire well is very close to the diff which makes tool selection trickier.

[amusa]

I got a recall notice for the air bags from Subaru. Now I need to make time to bring the Legacy in and while it's there I will get them to inspect the CVT trans fluid and maybe change it.

[FLlegacy]

FYI do a little scouting of the situation on the LGT first. A couple things to note:

 

1. The spare tire tub will piss you off royally. It's impossible to get a socket on the studs because its in the way, so torquing to spec is a problem unless you have open end adaptor for a torque wrench.

 

2. One or both (don't remember) of the front ones are solid on the Legacy vs the Fozz so it's not needed there. Don't remember the details but you'll figure it out.

 

Anyway... It's mildly more complicated just because of the tire tub.

 

I used a long handled wrench on the diff inserts, yeah its a pain, especially breaking them loose and getting the inserts in. The front is the same as your forester, one solid and one not. It will be exactly the same install just a bit less room.

 

I will say this, at first every thing seemed very tight, now there seems to be a bit of a clunk somwhere and I haven't had time to get under there and look just yet. I did this mod well over a year ago. When I get back under there I will get some pics of how it has held up over time. I am thinking maybe the trans mount is going now, but IDK for sure.

[SpidermanMTL]

I just ordered this kit for the GT and I will post pics and a little write up when I do it. My New Years resolution was to install parts right after I receive them and this one doesn't take long so hoping to do it this coming weekend. Access to the rear bolts is far easier on the Fozz than it will be on the GT because the GTs spare tire well is very close to the diff which makes tool selection trickier.

 

 

is this kit the whiteline kdt903? Does that company make the kdt905 + kdt906 kits?...

[GTEASER]

is this kit the whiteline kdt903? Does that company make the kdt905 + kdt906 kits?...

The Prothane 16-1610 is equal to the Whiteline KDT-903, at a cost of less than 1/2. I don't know if they make anything equal to the other 2 kits.

[Humble Rumble]

Discovered a bulge in my left rear winter tire's sidewall today. Only had them since Halloween. :/ Not so much concerned about the tire shop replacing it (already spoke with them, they're more than happy to), more concerned that the tread depths will have gotten too far from new by this point and I'll end up needing to replace both rears, (basically I'm unsure if they'd charge me for the second one or not). Going in to have them look at it tomorrow.

 

It's nearing the end of the season for them anyways, but I'd rather get this taken care of during the relevant time frame rather than trying to fight it next year.

[FLlegacy]

Put it on the back and don't worry about it. I would bet they are well within 2/32 of each other.

[BBPeik]

Joe

Plus one on the gt bushings being a pain. I ended up modifying a socket so that I could get it in there to torque correctly. I contemplated just drilling a couple holes in the spare tire well to make it easy, but I am pretty sure you do not want to do that. Reinstalling the nuts was a lot easier than breaking them loose. It was very frustrating. Just give yourself plenty of time and as mentioned do some scouting first.

[Timothy.B]

Installed Prothane 16-1610 Diff Bushing Insert Kit on the Fozz today. Now I'm gonna order one for the GT. Took about 1 hour and was fairly simple. Only cost about $22 so it's a no brainer mod, but I can't believe I didn't do this sooner. Thanks for the suggestion guys! Noticed a little difference in throttle response and a little quicker hookup from the rear when I jump on the throttle, but with the slushbox 4eat, I'm sure it's not as solid feeling as it would be with a manual. Less drivetrain lash for sure though.

 

I've been needing to do this on my Legacy for two years now...