Topic: Polaris' 2005 Legacy GT Limited Sedan

[RedBimmer93]

Oh look, they're on sale.

http://www.westernsubaruclub.com/smf/index.php?topic=51179.msg624655#new

uckfay yeah!! Canadian tire is awesome sometimes!! They are great for tools!
 
 
 
Other things, not so much

[Polaris]

Thanks jelly!! Are these one-day sales? If not, I'll swing by tomorrow night after class!!

[jellynuts]

All week baby.

DELAY NO MORE

[diamondedge]

Thanks jelly!! Are these one-day sales? If not, I'll swing by tomorrow night after class!!

Flyer seems to indicate sale ends today. I'm going to head over and see tonight just for giggles.

http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/flyer.html

[jellynuts]

By today, do you mean tomorrow?  In either case, not all week   Thanks for catching that.  Fixed my post.

[diamondedge]

By today, do you mean tomorrow?  In either case, not all week   Thanks for catching that.  Fixed my post.

XD yes I mean it ends tomorrow. sale appears to be inclusive of today.

[DaDuke99]

Hey I think torque wrenches on sale. I read it somewhere.
 

[Polaris]

Picked up the 40 piece screwdriver set for $20 and gingersnaps got the full 233 piece set, should be a fun summer.

Cleaned the MAF sensor this morning, the thing was greyish and ash-colored before and now I can see the silver "stalk" part and the top nub is amber/copper colored now instead of a charcoal/ash color. Giving it some time to dry and will see if it helps anything.


Also, I was looking at valve cover gasket sets on RockAuto: http://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=1021001&cc=1430733&jsn=432. $46.26 CAD, with shipping and all that I don't see the set being more expensive than $60 or 70, and at Vex it'll be $120. Is the fix something easy I can do and I should buy the set from RockAuto? To clarify, this is to fix the oil sweating that Vex found in my car: http://imgur.com/a/MgmBk (valve cover sweating, oil filter, turbo drain area).

For the front struts, struts = shocks, right? Or are like struts the part without the spring? I assume I'll need a shop to do them since I need the compression tool thing?


Thanks all!

[ultimatt]

Picked up the 40 piece screwdriver set for $20 and gingersnaps got the full 233 piece set, should be a fun summer.

Cleaned the MAF sensor this morning, the thing was greyish and ash-colored before and now I can see the silver "stalk" part and the top nub is amber/copper colored now instead of a charcoal/ash color. Giving it some time to dry and will see if it helps anything.


Also, I was looking at valve cover gasket sets on RockAuto: http://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=1021001&cc=1430733&jsn=432. $46.26 CAD, with shipping and all that I don't see the set being more expensive than $60 or 70, and at Vex it'll be $120. Is the fix something easy I can do and I should buy the set from RockAuto? To clarify, this is to fix the oil sweating that Vex found in my car: http://imgur.com/a/MgmBk (valve cover sweating, oil filter, turbo drain area).

For the front struts, struts = shocks, right? Or are like struts the part without the spring? I assume I'll need a shop to do them since I need the compression tool thing?


Thanks all!

It's not too difficult to do the valve cover gaskets, but it's not necessarily where I would start working on cars. IIRC, there is a lot of fiddly bs in the way. $120 doesn't seem to bad for the job.

Legacy Struts:


Front on left, rears on right.

[LilDrunkenSmurf]

Struts = Shocks.
Valve cover is annoying. There's not much clearance in Subaru engine bays, and you need to do 2 valve covers. I did my own several times, and it always started leaking again. I finally took it to Balance Auto and have them do it, because they warranty the work, so if it starts leaking again within X KM/months, they'll do it again for free.

It's not too difficult to do the valve cover gaskets, but it's not necessarily where I would start working on cars. IIRC, there is a lot of fiddly bs in the way. $120 doesn't seem to bad for the job.

I think it's $120 for the gasket kit, not the labour.

[ultimatt]

That makes more sense.

[Polaris]

So the $120 price Vex quoted is for 2 of those sets on RockAuto? If so that's a very fair price then. 

I still haven't checked out Balance Auto yet, and they're a lot closer to me than Vex, I'll give them a call after my exams are done and talk about the valve cover gaskets and maybe even the KillerB oil pickup.

Thank you for the pictures and the explanations regarding the struts vs shocks. So that "spring" coil looking thing is different than the struts/shocks themselves? And when I'm buying "struts" it doesn't come with the spring thing?


Thank you once again!

[Canuckrz]

Struts = Shocks.

Technically no, there is a difference between the two.

[LilDrunkenSmurf]

Fine, the shock is technically inside the strut body. But in the GD at least, it wasn't common to replace the shock without replacing the whole strut, unless you were installing some koni yellows.

[ultimatt]

I didn't see the second page of the Vex stuff when I first looked, oops. 

The RockAuto valve cover gasket set looks to be for both sides, is about $65 shipped.

What Canuckrz posted is correct, but people tend to use the terms interchangeably on Macpherson Strut cars (like subarus). The strut will has the shock integrated into it.
Regarding the vex quote, they will be replacing the strut.
 The spring coil thing is the coil spring and yes, is different than the strut/shock.

If you're buying struts they usually do not come with springs or tophats, though you can get fully assembled sets.

[Polaris]

Thanks for the great info! I'm just going to assume I only need to buy the struts and not the springs (but this will be after I do the valve cover gaskets and KillerB).

I'll call Balance Auto and see how much the things will cost and if the prices are fair I'll probably end up being too lazy to order myself and just pay the extra bit and get the parts from them!

Thanks once again everyone, will update a bit later after my exams are done (though I'm thinking of doing sparks soon so might post an update for that)!

[jellynuts]

I'll call Balance Auto and see how much the things will cost

Do you need his number?

[LilDrunkenSmurf]

Thanks for the great info! I'm just going to assume I only need to buy the struts and not the springs (but this will be after I do the valve cover gaskets and KillerB).

I'll call Balance Auto and see how much the things will cost and if the prices are fair I'll probably end up being too lazy to order myself and just pay the extra bit and get the parts from them!

Thanks once again everyone, will update a bit later after my exams are done (though I'm thinking of doing sparks soon so might post an update for that)!

Balance auto deals more in labor than parts. You'll likely be better off getting the parts themselves online.

[Polaris]

Do you need his number?

I think this is the number: 403-454-5239? What's his name?

Balance auto deals more in labor than parts. You'll likely be better off getting the parts themselves online.

Oh ok, thanks for the head's up I'll do that then!

[jellynuts]

I think this is the number: 403-454-5239? What's his name?

No, that number from google is bunk   His name is Jackie, I'll pm you his number. 

[RedBimmer93]

No, that number from google is bunk   His name is Jackie, I'll pm you his number.

Thats why this number hasnt been working.
Balance auto garage really needs to market themselves better

[Polaris]

Copying from the Help a Noob thread to make it more relevant, let me know if I should delete that post as well:

Wanting to save on shipping when I buy my pads and rotors so looking to buy a valve cover gasket set (not too sure if RockAuto is the cheapest) and getting a shop to do them. Not sure which one to buy, but I'm assuming the one with the "heart" icon? And these are the full sets right? I don't need to buy both sides? At least for the $45.27 set. Just as a note, the inspection report for my car said there was sweating around oil filter, turbo drain and valve covers, but they only recommended changing the valve cover gasket set, so my next question is if I need to address the other two areas of oil sweating.

http://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/subaru,2005,legacy,2.5l+h4+turbocharged,1430733,engine,valve+cover+gasket,10710


Also, is it worth it to spend some money on rear swaybars to eliminate body roll? Not a big deal since I only DD my car and don't do events, but would be nice not to transfer over to the passenger seat when I'm taking a corner

Thank you, and much appreciated!

[seat safety switch]

The Fel-Pro appears to have both sides in it, which makes sense - it's twice the price of the singles.

I am unsure what it takes to fix the turbo oil drain line leak, but the oil filter pedestal (is there an oil cooler on this engine too?) can have the gasket replaced. You can probably just get it from the dealer and do it during the next oil change.

A small rear swaybar is probably a decent investment, but if you're getting ridiculous body roll I would make sure the stock bars are even still attached. I seem to remember the LGT was fairly flat on the street compared to Imprezas.

[RedBimmer93]

The OEM swaybars on the legacy are pretty tiny. I experienced a lot of body roll when I took my car to autocross, and I know 05LGT did as well when he had his legacy.

Whether or not it's worth it to spend money on the swaybars is completely up to you. If you want more control over body roll while you're driving around in the city, then yes spend money on swaybars. If you are okay with how it is now and dont want to spend money on them, then dont

If it were me, I would spend the money on a decent rear swaybar. I appreciate a car's ability to handle cloverleafs with a little more composure.

[Polaris]

Thank you both of you! The Fel-Pro has a cute heart on it so I'll be picking those up along with the pads and rotors. For the turbo oil drain line, I'm trying to convince myself that it's not a big deal since VEX only told me to do the valve cover gaskets 

In terms of body roll, I'm not sure what a "proper" suspension or car should feel like. It's not that bad, it feels the same as my old Lancer maybe a bit better. The cloverleafs are definitely when I feel it the most and I have to go slow on them. Haven't found any used ones on Kijiji but have found a bunch online new at around $300 or so. Is there a quick way to check if the swaybar bushings to see if they need work? Maybe when I change the wheels and have the car jacked up already? Would be nice if that's the issue!

Thank you once again!