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And the answer is, not without modification of the trim and also fabricating a bracket for the AC control unit.

Bit of an update. The brake carrier saga was a mess, I got the wrong one. Then after much googling found the equivalent Impreza calliper and carrier for less money. I ended up doing the discs and pads myself in the yard of the garage it was in because the mechanics were snowed under. I live in the middle of town with nowhere to work on it. I learned that under the steering wheel behind the panel that there are plugs that are deliberately unplugged and there for different testing of systems and such. So my check engine light wasn't really on it was just that I plugged something in I shouldn't have. Anywho now it has brakes with actual brake pads I have finally been able to drive it properly and it's really nice to drive. It's peculiar going back to a 90's car and also back to an AWD. My very first car was a 98 Land Rover Discovery which shares some similar characteristics but is obviously completely different. I'm really eager to get the cosmetic work done but I know this is going to be costly. It's just a shame that the car drives so well but looks a bit of a dog at the back.

Last night I got to look at the underside while it was up on a ramp and it was mostly good news but then a couple of niggles. Rust - everything that matters is solid and just needs a tidy up. Sills aren't great nut knew this anyway. So it's not about to snap in two which was my number one decider between keeping it or selling/breaking the car. Oil leak - it looks like the underside has been sprayed with oil as there is a uniform thin layer from front to back in the middle third. Possibly done to protect against corrosion. No obvious leaks. The thing that makes it look like it's been sprayed is that there's a thin spread oil on the top of some things and oil doesn't tend to fall upwards. Front headlight is gaffa taped and missing bits of plastic mount. Luckily found a set on ebay. Passenger brake carrier bracket snapped when being removed for disc replacement. Finding a Legacy one was impossible/ quite expensive. Tracked down the part number and it is shared between two models of Impreza and a Forester so could get one off a breaker for a fraction of the cost. Running total including delivery costs, not paid for. Car £300 Brake discs and pads £58.99 Set of front headlights £37.95 Brake carrier £33 Hole repair £18 Total 447.94 I know this is a fraction of what will be spent over the time of my ownership. Paint and welding is going to kill me, will need to do some research or cheap out and rattle can it. I will definitely go the welding route rather than bodging it though. My next job is rear brakes including heat shields as these look horrid right now. Uniform oil coverage underneath no obvious signs of source. Drivers drop link has been replaced, passenger has surface rust but is solid Front drivers and rear passengers sill give most concern

Thanks, I looked there first. Apparently part number is 26226AC010 or 26226AC011 and fits Forester S10, Impreza G11, Impreza G10, and Legacy B12. Here's a good resource if you need it - http://opposedforces.com/parts/

The middle third from front to back had a thin layer of oil. Mechanic and I suspect that maybe the underside was sprayed with oil to stop corrosion as it it is uniform, not dripping, and in areas where a leak wouldn't reach. Just wish they'd sprayed the left and right side as well. Sills needing welded, everything structural seems solid which is the best news I could have hoped for.

Got my first ever look underneath it while was up on a ramp. Some good bits, some bad bits, some strange bits.

I've only just bought my first one, will try to once it's in a fit state.

Found out the money pit is not actually in that bad a shape underneath so I've committed to keeping it and signed up to support the site. I think I'll need a lot of support from the site to get this thing back in shape.

Hello, mechanic sheared a bolt and broke my brake calliper carrier or (brake calliper bracket). It's a 1997 Legacy but I'm guessing this will be the same part as on some other cars of the period. If anyone can point me in the direction of where I can find manufacturer part number, or to buy one new or used that would be amazing.

Hello, sorry if this has been asked, I couldn't see it in search. Does anyone know if you can swap the heating controls (I have the digital AC controls) and the stereo without modification of the console? I'm considering putting an after market single din head unit with a screen but it doesn't make sense at the bottom where the tape deck currently sits. I tried just making mix tapes but that was a disaster.

Just across the water in East Lothian

1997 Legacy 2.5L AWD Automatic (36 left on the road in the UK..... for now at least). The first owner had it at least 17 years as I looked him up and on google maps and in 2014 the car was still sitting in his drive. Purchased Saturday 23rd January 2019 for what I think is a small amount of money. This is a diary of what I've done, what I am going to do, and/ or how much money I've thrown away. The plan is to mend it before making any modifications because that's the sensible thing to do. Unless it's about to break in two, then the nice people of ebay can buy an engine, gearbox, wheels, an interior, etc. As far as I can tell the only things on it that are after market are the wheels since these have carbon fibre accents and a universal multi-stud pattern. I would assume factory with just be 5x100 stud pattern. Possibly the rear brakes have been switched from drum to disc but I'm seeing conflicting information about this. A list of obvious issues. Rust, hole in the wheel well/ boot floor, rust rear arches, general rust including mount for rear bumper so it's hanging down slightly. Front brakes, drivers side missing outside pad, calliper directly onto disc so the disc is goosed and means there's a yellow streak of dust all over the drivers side. ABS light on, suspect this is linked to the missing pad. Drivers side front fog light smashed in, not sitting properly, found a cable tie behind it today. Boot lid doesn't open from release at drivers seat, boot doesn't hold itself open and is very heavy/ impractical to hold Front grille feels a bit loose not sure if normal. Rear brakes dust cover falling apart and rusty, brakes look in generally bad condition, not sure if this will clean up. I booked in to get the front brakes done because I wanted my mechanic to give it a look underneath and tell me if it was a death trap that needed to be humanely disposed of. Dropped it on Wednesday late afternoon to get done on Thursday. Friday came and it still hadn't moved so I went to go take the wheel off and see what state the calliper was in on the drivers side as the mechanic thought this looked shot. I ended up taking it apart and successfully wound the pistons back so that was a relief. Now fingers crossed that they get on with it and put the new brakes on, was going to continue and do it myself but the bolts on the calliper carrier were seized and I didn't want to shear a bolt. I've got a quote for welding but concentrating on making it start and stop for now. To be honest it drives great apart from the brakes, the engine sounds very healthy, it's surprisingly smooth and quiet for a 22 year old car.

It drives great but doesn't stop. Needs pads on the front and I think discs while we're at it. I don't have a big pile of money sitting aside (or even space to work on it) so it would be an ongoing restoration doing one piece at a time. As far as I can tell it's just rust issues on the rear arches and boot wheel well. There is also some wetness underneath but it's not yet dripping to the ground. As far as I can tell the engine might be worth about twice what I paid for the whole car. There's apparently 36 on the road and 66 on SORN so although parting it out would fund the next car purchase it might be a criminal act to take another one off the road for the sake of a bit of welding. Just had a rough guestimate based on photos for the welding and it's a lot less scary than I thought it would be. Welding is the thing that scared me most because it's way beyond my level of competence.

OK SO I went out and looked at it in the cold light of day. Some observations. There's a hole in the wheel well in the boot. A big rusty one, I just cleaned the surrounding area and brushed on Kurust. One of the front fog lights is smashed up and just hanging around inside the front bumper. Engine bay surprisingly clean. Mount for rear bumper on drivers side has rusted off so it's just hanging around. My three options as I see it are: Repair and restore spending time and money and enjoy it as a rare modern classic. Repair it just enough to keep it usable, save money and enjoy it until it goes bang. Punt it/ Part it out. Would you rather have a car with a good engine and gearbox, with a quite tidy interior and apparently all the electrics working but with a lot of cosmetic and possibly structural work needing done, or a car with great chassis and bodywork that has gremlins and drive train issues? I spent what I think is a very small amount of money on this. If I intend to drive it at all it needs front brakes sorting and the hole in the boot seeing to, but that's the decision, whether it's worth just patching up for now until I have the time and money to have welding and paint done. I'm thinking out loud, happy to hear any thoughts you may have on whether it's worth my time or not. I'm not quite down the rabbit hole in love with it yet but there are bits that I'm really falling for.

Any idea which size brake pads it needs on the front? Apparently there are two sizes. Eurocarparts has one of their ridiculous sales on so I'm going to take advantage of that.