LGT Wagon Suspension swapped into Outback XT

[WellsMcKenzie]

Well, I was finally able to cut out the rear control arm bolts with an angle grinder. Got the bolts from Subaru for like $13.

Jacking up the rear support arm made the camber bolt line right up. So it made that a lot easier to insert.

Everything looks good, just needs an alignment now.

 

http://i.imgur.com/hlDgxE4.jpg

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

http://i.imgur.com/xvfmPc5.jpg

Edited June 11, 2016 by WellsMcKenzie

[xAgyex]

A floor jack is your friend for the lower rear bolts. I used mine along with a closed end wrench to get them loose.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y142/ForceFedGTI/Cars/IMG_0155.jpg

 

I swapped my stock 05 LGT Wagon rear struts for the 08 Legacy 3.0R Bistein struts. Duffman this trick saved me...as I was ready to go to the shop then I found your write up. You the man. Proof again that the LGT community is pretty awesome.

[dvancleve]

I have a few question for the early adapters who used LGT wagon stuff with stock OB wheels & tires. I have been planning on Konis in LGT wagon take-offs for years. I have them (not assembled yet) and new Legacy bump stops. Do I really need anything else? It seems to me like the first few folks who did this reported everything was fine, but more recently folks are saying the Legacy upper arms are almost necessary along with camber bushings. I don't want to buy anything I don't need, but I also don't want to get it together and find out it is still on the bump stops too much or won't align decently.

 

Thanks, Doug

[N.Y.X.]

I have a few question for the early adapters who used LGT wagon stuff with stock OB wheels & tires. I have been planning on Konis in LGT wagon take-offs for years. I have them (not assembled yet) and new Legacy bump stops. Do I really need anything else? It seems to me like the first few folks who did this reported everything was fine, but more recently folks are saying the Legacy upper arms are almost necessary along with camber bushings. I don't want to buy anything I don't need, but I also don't want to get it together and find out it is still on the bump stops too much or won't align decently.

 

Thanks, Doug

 

 

This is purely how concerned you are with a proper rear alignment. If you're diligent in tire rotations, it won't be that bad.

[Acerguy]

They were able to get my rear toe to zero although my camber is still slightly out (dont recall the number but it is not bad). I still have to install the camber bolts those so that should take care of it. Otherwise, I just have a straight LGT shock/strut and rear UCA swap. Could use about a 1/2" saggy butt spacer and the LGT bumpstops (when I swap my summer tires back on)

[dvancleve]

Thanks. So are you putting in the Whiteline camber bushings? I emailed them asking what the proper tool is to adjust those (clearly those holes are there for a reason), no response so far though...

 

Doug

 

They were able to get my rear toe to zero although my camber is still slightly out (dont recall the number but it is not bad). I still have to install the camber bolts those so that should take care of it. Otherwise, I just have a straight LGT shock/strut and rear UCA swap. Could use about a 1/2" saggy butt spacer and the LGT bumpstops (when I swap my summer tires back on)

[Acerguy]

Yes. I meant bushings. I bought them but ran out of time when I was doing the swap. I'll install them too when I take off the snowtires. Hope this helps.

[bdcvg]

I'm collecting up the parts for this swap , what are You Guys using for struts? The KYB's are supposed to be stiffer which I'm trying to avoid. Gabriel? Monroe? stock Subaru?

[funkycharms]

I'm collecting up the parts for this swap , what are You Guys using for struts? The KYB's are supposed to be stiffer which I'm trying to avoid. Gabriel? Monroe? stock Subaru?

 

I just completed the swap Saturday with Koni's. 100 miles in, setup just started clunking. I will tighten the top hats in all four corners

 

Pics coming soon!

[Rhitter]

My tophats all went through varying degrees of clunking. I had to get a pass-through wrench set to finally get it to stop.

 

I am in the East bay if you are near by and want to borrow them to tighten down your top hats. However, they are only $20-$30 and I have used them for so many car related things, so it might be worth having a set.

[funkycharms]

My tophats all went through varying degrees of clunking. I had to get a pass-through wrench set to finally get it to stop.

 

I am in the East bay if you are near by and want to borrow them to tighten down your top hats. However, they are only $20-$30 and I have used them for so many car related things, so it might be worth having a set.

 

THanks for the offer, I actually purchased a set for the disassemble cut/gut and build, they made lift much easier. Tightened the front, but I have yet to tear into the rear. Hopefully I can fit the wrench without removing side panels

[Rhitter]

THanks for the offer, I actually purchased a set for the disassemble cut/gut and build, they made lift much easier. Tightened the front, but I have yet to tear into the rear. Hopefully I can fit the wrench without removing side panels

 

I actually ended up cutting "flaps" in the carpet so I could tighten them without removing the side panels.

[willmonts]

Does anyone know if there is any way to visually tell if a rear spring is for a sedan or a wagon without removing it from the strut?

[bdcvg]

So anybody that is still on stock legacy suspension have any " it's been XXX mi. and here's how it's going" updates?

[funkycharms]

Will have to check car log for mileage, bit i am still clunking. Mostly happens with an empty/ lightly loaded hatch and bumpy roads. Even tightened the top nut in all 4 corners, no luck

 

Other than that i am happy with the setup. The height is perfect for me, stock springs were the way to go

[jonnyt88]

So anybody that is still on stock legacy suspension have any " it's been XXX mi. and here's how it's going" updates?

 

Its been 7000 miles and its going fine. Though I don't know how happy I Am with with the tein street basis coilovers. The back seems really soft spring and I think this will really show when i start working on my rental property here in a couple weeks.

[bdcvg]

Will have to check car log for mileage, bit i am still clunking. Mostly happens with an empty/ lightly loaded hatch and bumpy roads. Even tightened the top nut in all 4 corners, no luck

 

Other than that i am happy with the setup. The height is perfect for me, stock springs were the way to go

 

Sweet, this is My next move as My stock OBXT struts are on the way out at 88k miles.

[cocodog13]

just finished having a go at this on mine as the stock suspension was shagged (160k miles and i suspect they've never been changed before). rear is looking good but the front is a fair bit higher than i anticipated.

 

measuring from the floor to the bottom of the doors im about 1 1/2" high at the front. i think this is partly because i used mk3 legacy front shocks (kyb-334167). i had to turn up a 1/4" thick shim to fit the mk3 shock into the mk4 mount/bearing (the bearing of the mk4 mount is thinner so the threads dont reach), i put the shim inbetween the spring seat and the mount and in hindsight i could actually move it on top of the mount, inbetween the mount and the nut which will give me 1/4" drop in the front.

 

hopefully the front will settle down a bit more than the rear so with the 1/4" drop in the front + a 1" spacer in the back i'll be happy =]

 

i think my rear is also sitting a bit lower than most would as theres about 250lb of propane/tank in the spare wheel well and the springs were the cheapest rubbish i could find lol.

 

also riding the rear bump stops a bit to much atm, still waiting on some leggy bump stops and rear upper arms + whiteline rear camber bushings to come in the post =]

 

dat front camber tho :S off for an alignment i go

 

http://i.imgur.com/VlfP9Xl.jpg

Edited June 18, 2017 by cocodog13

[MrMaGoo711]

Hey All, looks like this thread has been dormant for a WHILE now ... but hopefully a couple of you are still hanging around.

 

Saw that you replaced the bump stops when you did this swap ... Is that absolutely necessary? Cheapest I can find those things is over $40 EACH! If I leave the stock OB bump stops are they going to hit?

 

I found all 4 LGT struts/shocks/springs brand new on ebay for $220, I'm having a tough time grasping the fact that the bump stops are going to be half that again, really driving up the cost of this.

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Quick-Complete-Strut-Assemblies-w-Mounts-Front-Rear-for-2005-09-Subaru-Legacy/152576778055?fits=Make%3ASubaru%7CModel%3ALegacy%7CSubmodel%3AGT&hash=item238648df47:g:XucAAOSwY~lZ-x6j&vxp=mtr

 

Let me know what you guys think,

 

Cheers!

[Rhitter]

Hey All, looks like this thread has been dormant for a WHILE now ... but hopefully a couple of you are still hanging around.

 

Saw that you replaced the bump stops when you did this swap ... Is that absolutely necessary? Cheapest I can find those things is over $40 EACH! If I leave the stock OB bump stops are they going to hit?

 

Cheers!

 

 

Yes, they will hit over big bumps if you have people and things in the back seat and the trunk. But it's okay, because even if you swap over to them you will probably still hit them until you change out the rear uca to an lgt.

 

If hitting them matters to you change them out. If you are diving around mostly on your own without stuff in the trunk and don't care if you hit / use them. Do what you want.

[jonnyt88]

 

Saw that you replaced the bump stops when you did this swap ... Is that absolutely necessary? Cheapest I can find those things is over $40 EACH! If I leave the stock OB bump stops are they going to hit?

 

I found all 4 LGT struts/shocks/springs brand new on ebay for $220, I'm having a tough time grasping the fact that the bump stops are going to be half that again, really driving up the cost of this.

 

 

What do I think..........

1. I've never heard much good of the quick strut kits

2. Legacy bump stops will be a problem as Rhitter said. I went with option B which was to cut mine with a dremmel.

3. Consider rear upper control arms as a requirement too

4. You will need an alignment

 

This would be the bare minimum for a stock Legacy height. I know as I tried to do it on the cheaper side as well. Get used rear upper control arms and bump stops. These are parts that generally don't go bad unless they have seen a lot of road salt.

 

The alignment part can be tricky. If you constantly carry weight in your trunk like tools / band equipment, etc. Load it up with this first, then get an alignment.

[Acerguy]

x3. You will want the UCA and bump stops. I didn't change my bump stops at first and was constantly bottoming out on them. It's super easy to change them anyhow. Yes, they are surprisingly expensive new. I picked up all my bits from the Classifieds here. Find someone parting out a LGT and you're good to go.

[jkaic]

Hey All, looks like this thread has been dormant for a WHILE now ... but hopefully a couple of you are still hanging around.

 

Saw that you replaced the bump stops when you did this swap ... Is that absolutely necessary? Cheapest I can find those things is over $40 EACH! If I leave the stock OB bump stops are they going to hit?

 

MrMaGoo I may be able to source used legacy bump stops for much less than 80 USD. Depending on if there's any in my local junk yard.. PM me!

[kaluce]

I just wanted to follow up. I did the suspension swap about ~1k miles ago or so. I was told that my alignment bolts were too rusted to actually do anything with, so I chopped the rear arms off and replaced all the hardware with new, so it took me awhile.

 

Here are my thoughts.

 

1. Alignment is needed almost immediately after doing this. It drove like crap until it was done, and it's absolutely terrifying hitting a bump like that. Fix this before anything else.

 

2. I knock my head against the tailgate now, that kind of sucks.

 

3. It's REALLY low compared to the stock suspension. I removed the subframe spacers and did a "true" conversion. My exhaust hits if I'm not careful when driving up sharp angles, but I don't have an LGT bumper, so I can't run an LGT exhaust.

 

4. While I did the suspension, I also found a 2011 STI steering rack at the junkyard for $50. I cleaned it up, replaced the tie rods with new LGT rods, and is substantially quicker than the stock OBXT rack. It's drop in even without replacing the rods or lines, so once it's adjusted you should be good. That said you will need the stock OBXT U joint to do it successfully.

 

5. I put on Legacy sized tires since my OBXTs got a flat. My cluster is pretty off now, but I don't know by how much yet (~17% I think?). I've just been driving at the same speed as everyone else until I can clock it properly. Supposedly it cannot be calibrated and it's set that way from the factory. I highly doubt that, but I don't want to tear apart my cluster. So I was thinking of getting an LGT cluster to poke at and see if I can figure out anything, hopefully they have a JTAG interface and I can dick with it.

 

All in all I don't know what the hell to call my OBXT anymore, it's such a mish-mash of parts.

[kzr750r1]

That would be called a Bitsa. Bits a this and Bits a that.