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Looks like there are new plugs available on there, too! Not sure of the quality, but auction 252794180548 is one example (has the sockets, rear gaskets, and connector body – in theory, I could use a tool and release the pins from the old socket and plug them into the new one…
that is definitely the plug – I am a little leery of buying and splicing in a 12 year old plug, though! I wouldn’t mind soldering in a newer plug – do you know if the coil plugs are pretty standard for Honda? A pigtail like that is ideal, I suppose (not sure how easy it is to get the connector apart)
I would suggest checking the four wheels to see if there is anywhere that looks wet, suggesting maybe a brake fluid leak (perhaps the hard braking pushed out some fluid from a not-quite-sealed bleeder screw, and let a little air in?) If you look at the brake fluid reservoir and it looks a little lower than you started, that could also suggest a leak somewhere. You might just try re-bleeding the brakes and see if that helps.
If you pull the rotors, is it the same on the inner surface as the outer? One thing to check would be the rotors to make sure they are actually flat – measure the thickness at the edge of the braking surface closest to the brake hat, and at the outer edge, and see if they are thinner towards the ID (also – if when you look at the inside surface of the brake rotor, if there is a similar region that is not being contacted by the pad, but it’s on the outside diameter, then maybe the rotor isn’t parallel to the brake pads.
The good news is if it’s just uneven wear, the pads will wear to match the rotors, so it might not be contacting that area now, but as the pads wear, it will. I would think floating calipers would follow a slightly angled surface, so my guess would be the rotor is thicker on the od. Another thing to check is the pads themselves – maybe they aren’t flat? maybe measure a pad in the region where it hits the rotor and where it does not – if it’s thinner where it does not, then that’s your answer (and again, it will catch up as the pads wear)
How did you bed the pads?
I’ve been pretty happy with Lexol products (cleaner and conditioner) – it brings the appearance back to how it was new (I have a black leather interior in my car, as well). For creases, steam/hot water might help… also – keep in mind that most of the seat is not leather, generally just the seating surface/center panels – the rest is usually artificial leather. There are some nice videos on youtube on cleaning/caring for leather that might be worth checking out.
There are actually a series of videos on different solvents/methods to try and clean catalytic converters – here one that Eric did on lacquer thinner
here’s one he did on soap and water
and another one on sodium hydroxide
I would guess that the efficacy of any cleaning method is going to depend on what the problem is – if the catalyst is fouled (with gunk like oil, dirt, etc.) then cleaning should be able to help (if you use an appropriate solution to do so) – however, if it’s damaged or has been partially removed, then all the cleaning in the world isn’t going to bring it back.
I would be hesitant to use lacquer thinner in my tank – the reason being as we get driven to use more “green” solutions, the make-up of lacquer thinner is changing – from a mix of methanol/toluene/acetone (which will burn just fine) to other things, that might not. (I’d be more inclined to buy the solvents and mix/add them myself than to use an unknown (if you can’t see the ingredients/composition on the label) – last thing you want to do is try to clean your cat, and in the process damage something else!
For Subaru stuff, there are a number of good forums with more info that would be worth taking a look at – http://www.subaruoutback.org and http://www.legacygt.com (the Outback is just a legacy wagon with a lift – lots of good info there, too)
for 1, I have seen a number of instances where the guides on one side are popping into the track. I would suggest (if you dare…) open the sunroof and clean and relubricate the tracks and mechanisms. Definitely check for loose grounds/connectors, and ohm out the switch to make sure it’s working properly. (couldn’t tell from your message if it was binding, or just doing nothing) If all else fails, there is a manual crank you can use to close the sunroof, so if it’s open, you can definitely close it (for the Outback, you’ll see a plug in the headliner just behind/rearward of the sunroof – you need to pull that plug out, and move the sunshade forward out of the way – then you can insert a hex key into the motor (don’t recall the size) and turn it clockwise to close (service manual says turn it to the right and has a figure showing an arrow going clockwise) – you’ll need to reinitialize the system to get the automatic open/close to work again after that.
for 2, definitely check the electrical stuff as indicated already – also, it would be helpful if you could pull the code. Suggest going here for more info:
http://sl-i.net/FORUM/showthread.php?18087-Subaru-Factory-Service-Manuals-(FSM)-Every-Model-USDM-EUfor 3, make sure it’s the strut and not something else that’s loose/binding – if you compress and release that corner, can you replicate the noise? there are lots of bushings/contact points in the rear suspension that can make noise
for 4, that is unfortunate – usually what gets damaged is the center differential when the vehicle is towed with one set of wheels on the ground. The center differential is a viscous coupling, and is a sealed unit in almost all Subaru’s – changing the fluid for the front or rear differentials won’t impact it. (note that you do have a separate front differential to check/maintain the gear oil for – it does not live inside the automatic transmission – make sure you use a GL-5 rated gear oil for the front and rear differentials – not a GL-4)
in and of itself, the R134a isn’t really that bad – the primary hazard are related to dealing with liquified or as it rapidly evaporates where it can cause freeze burns (same as most refrigerant gases)
Here’s an msds from Airgas for R134a
https://www.airgas.com/msds/001055.pdfInteresting results – any chance you could run a similar comparison on a vehicle with projectors instead of reflector housings?
For the LEDs, some folks have mentioned that the orientation of the bulb is important – since you have discrete LEDs (usually two sets, 180 degrees apart), their orientation within the headlight can make a big difference in terms of how well the reflector (or projector) is able to handle the light – some of the LEDs let you adjust the rotational position of the lights for that reason
which kit did you use? Restoring badly oxidized headlights requires that you remove as completely as possible, the oxidation on the surface of the light – if you can’t grind through that, you won’t have a clear lens when you are done. Also – if there is any damage, dirt, debris, etc. on the inside, that will still be there after you finish the outside of the lens. Can you post a picture of the result you achieved?
So here’s a link for the owners manual for your car
http://techinfo.honda.com/rjanisis/pubs/OM/AH/ACV0505OM/enu/CV0505OM.pdfI think the recommended change interval for a manual transmission under severe conditions is every 60k miles (based on the above owners manual). You can use regular motor oil based on the manual, but they recommend against it (as it won’t have the additive package you need in the transmisison) – honda makes manual transmission fluid you could use, or a better option might be to use RedLine MTL – I used that in my old Corolla, and it was great! (I can’t use it in my Subaru as it requires a GL-5 rated gear oil, so I use Motul Gear 300). Another gear oil which gets very positive reviews for manual transmissions is Penzoil Synchromesh.
poor shift quality/grinding could be that the fluid is shearing down, etc. and needs to be replaced, but could also be a sign of worn synchronizers, in which case new fluid will help, but it can’t fix something that’s worn out. If the synchros are going, the oils I mentioned above – Penzoil Synchromesh and Redline MTL – will help with that. If they are really bad, something like Redline Shockproof gear oils might help.
tirerack is great for researching tires – I particularly like the spider charts where you can compare the factors you find important for the different tires.
It sounds like you are looking for a good all-season tire, rather than something performance based. The Michelin Defender is a good tire – reasonably priced, very quiet, and comfortable. If you are looking for higher performing all season, the Michelin Premier A/S reviews well, as does the perennial favorite in the high performance all season category, the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S (current version is the A/S 3+) – it’s going to be noisier than the others (though it’s not a bad tire in that respect) but the stiffer sidewalls might translate into a less comfortable ride than you are looking for.
We’ve been running Michelin Defenders on our Honda Odyssey and really like them. For a more performance oriented tire, I have been running Pirelli P-Zero All Season Plus tires on my Subaru and they have been great.
Sounds like you have decided on your path forward, which is good – I think it will work out just fine. One thing I would definitely try to do is get the price down a bit – $900 seems a bit high for a job that books at 2 hours (particularly if they are going to ding you for 25% interest!) Timing belt kits can be had for under $150 for from RockAuto (the Gates kit is $88.79 and the top end Continental kit is $135.79 – both include the belt, tensioner, idler, and water pump. the continental also includes cam/crank seals). I get it that shops like to make money on parts, so they aren’t going to go that low, but it gives you an idea as to how much profit they are making on the parts alone. If it’s a two hour job, I think a much more fair price would be in the $500 range, but that’s just me, and I don’t know the shops in your area.
Something to think about when doing this job – you might consider replacing the accessory drive belt and tensioner. Shouldn’t cost you anything in labor (since those parts are already coming off) and they are inexpensive – a continental belt on rock auto is $13 for your car and the tensioner is $25. Definitely replace the plugs as well (they may or may not remove them when doing the belt – I like to as it makes rotating the engine easier) – these are $1.25-$4 each and you need 4 of them.
Preventive maintenance is a good thing! Given how long the car has lasted, I’d keep doing what you have been doing. Oil is cheap – you can get a decent synthetic (Castrol Syntec, Mobil 1, etc.) from Walmart for $20 or so for a 5qt container!
The material used in a wire rope/cable is generally a high carbon steel which has been heavily cold worked (by the drawing/fabrication process) – that’s why you were unable to drill through it (tensile strength for something like a 1080 used in prestressing tendon and other wire rope and other cables is on the order of 260ksi+) – grinding is definitely a better way to cut it, as you found out! I will say that welding might not be a desirable approach when dealing with that material due to changes in the microstructure brought about by the welding process… crimping is preferred as you maintain the integrity of the material. I’d keep an eye on it, as the weld and associated heat affected region is going to be a weak point and with repeated load/unload cycles you could be looking at a failure (as happened with the first cable)
