Mr B

once a year for average usage . Changing oil & filter on these is pretty easy, you could drain on a slope and measure slightly short on refill then drive somewhere close with flat lay-by or car park to check level and top up . Service parts are very affordable, blueprint do nice oil filters . Check rear suspension not looking low if still original as common on these as self levelling struts don't last much over this age . Subframes and inner rear arch/turrets also want proper good inspecting for rust . Front window motors and drivers switch about the only other repeat failure see on these early SG models but can be fixed for small money .

When press auto down or up can you here any momentary activity at motor ? What I would be doing is putting scope on motor to see current drawer and what voltage getting in general and on auto button cycle . How free is glass/regulator movement ? Has window worked properly in your ownership or it faulty from when purchased and did you see refurbed motor work multiple cycles perfectly in another foz ? You got be careful with those switches as subaru has nasty habit of using same connectors but revised component and wiring at different build dates, can end up doing lot of expensive damage on newer version subarus with 5v monitoring circuits on window motors . Without looking at it I still be suspicious of motor current tripping thermally . If you can't test it well your best way forward would be pull passenger rear motor and first try refurbed front in rear door and rear door in the front as will conclude motor status from the puzzle . If don't want pull rear you can buy a nice used rear passenger motor for less than £30 .

Motors are super common on these due to water ingress (done hundreds of them) . only 2 power wires on motor so easy test and can wire either way round as polarity switches for up and down ... Read the thread linked for some info . I'll try link a used rear motor (don't buy a front as be well used and likely got some water ingress plus they over charge for fronts . Don't buy new pattern part or refurbed as they are ALL garbage ... genuine used rear passenger is best option ... Genuine new is stupid money (£200 roughly) Here's a rear passenger motor on regulator, 3 screws to take it off regulator and fit to your regulator, is easy but make best effort on bit fitment as if cam out the screws inside the door the whole regulator got be pulled . https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/152943272283?hash=item239c21215b:g:Jo8AAOSwklBap7OM job jobbed ...

it not just e-forester/subaru, most modern vehicles have lot of issues. As an engineer I recommend buying older proper made and designed vehicles, new cars are waste of money and material, pretty much constant landfill of parts and unusable junk in in 5 to 10 years

Is likely Fob broken, the push switch often needs replacing when old and well used. so worth testing fob working (emitting signal) Is plenty options for Fob repair mail order service at sensible pricing . Also easy pick up used fobs to either swap internal or use as is and as a spare . Most important thing with alarms is always have a spare fob or at very least have the 4 digit pin and have tested using it ... To add fobs read the M30 alarm manual, you need a working fob or the pin code to enter alarm parameters for learning Fobs ... M30 Alarm document .

It not just Subau, The Hybrid tech is toyota and german brands such as BMW also have battery issues. Simply engineering stupidity with far too much power consumption and poor system and battery charge status management/engineering all made even worse by general p1ss poor quality of modern car components . You can buy some of the best made cars ever from late 90's to mid 200's for few grand and they will still have decade of faultless life left in them, Spend 20 to 40 grand at dealers on newer tech and it painful misery emotionally and financially . My car is 21 years old, doubt I spend 50 quid a year on parts on average in last decade and I never had a flat battery seen a CEL fault or broken down . People need educate themselves to current issue of engineering stupidity/manufactured garbage and put an end to it by simply being smart enough not to buy it . I spend roughly 10 hours a day 5 and a half days a week working on this junk and most cars newer than 2008 I wouldn't want if you gave it to me free .

^ What an environmentally brilliant bit of engineering when you got do wasteful trips just so the thing will keep working and you not chucking another destroyed battery carcass in the waste centre . And to think you actually paying painfully earned money for this garbage too ! Get rid of it and buy quality older vehicles that far better engineered and about 3 times the component quality .

^ Indeed as a mechanical engineer I find current engineering trends of eco stability complete lunacy . Quite simply you can not fix the damage of industrialism with more industrialism . All these batteries and solar panels rely on diesel powered machinery and oil in production stages and finally people driving round in diesel and petrol vehicles fitting the products which have a short working life as quality is appalling with reason being it reduced pollution in manufacture to make modern eco product spec garbage ! where the logic in that !!! (only logic is you need replace more frequent so someone making more money) If you start looking at landscape damage from sourcing base materials and damage from electrical power plants of any type that going be needed keep potential grid supply capability for the amazing eco battery future you have a MASSIVE environmental impact issue greater than anything so far . The only thing eco marketing and legislation been good at is scr3wing mr average out of more of his hard earned money for garbage ideas and products . Things going get even worse as ability to repair is going be restricted even further with more basic parts being coded and no affordable aftermarket parts and restriction on part manufacture used and who can fit them all under the disguise it environment and safety concerns !!! Farm and construction equipment suffering a lot from this and it spreading thanks to companies like Apple that now coding phone parts so highly difficult repair as can't even swap used original parts without specialist coding . We all being lied to and about time a lot of people started thinking and researching rather than following marketed nonsense . The real answer is clever products that last decades and easily repaired but unfortunately you can't make so much money doing that so world got suffer to the bitter end unfortunately ...

In the trade it refereed to dumb charge . They would save more fuel if reduced weight by throwing lot of the electronic garbage in the bin . You would also reduce landfill and pollution from all the short life battery waste and constant part replacement and poor mpg from emission engineering (diesel DPF prime proof of this issue) and excess system weight and horrendous exhaust cleaning chemicals needed in keeping newer cars usable . My battery waste recycling collection has doubled over last 4 years as we get quite a pile and keeping too many on premises is an issue with insurance and safety inspections . The modern world is a ballache and headache of stupidity just snowballing issues that never really needed re-engineering in first place . I remember a time when an OEM battery lasted 7 to 8 years and alternators worked faultless for 15 to 20 years ! People could leave their car parked up for 3 months and when came back to use it, it would still start. You didn't need read forums to do hack modifications and didn't need carry jump packs and lucky charms lol . What amazes me is people still stupid enough go out buying this garbage for 20 to 40 grand of hard earned real money when can buy far better made older cars for few grand that work better, far more reliable and cheaper run long term and potentially better environmentally based on vehicle life to death pollution waste .

What year (2006 !) also do a pic of your switch pack original and replacement, top and bottom if possible showing any numbers and wiring sockets . Some questions are faults same with both switch packs you got or slight differences in faults . Who refurbed the motor and what extent work done to it . The motors generally fail to water ingress and worthwhile repair is not viable route generally when cheap and easy get used (keep reading) The passenger rear motor is exactly same as driver front (besides drain port plug clocked position needs changing) so could be used for diagnosis in a pinch . Used rear motors make best replacement as genuine quality and rear don't suffer water ingress as clocked with motor housing upwards, also rear motors generally get lot less use cycles .... You in Newport that the home town of the once great MOLE & SON factory ...

Lol that is complete garbage . Ride height was purely simple hydraulics within original struts. no structure fitted or removed that interferes with physical fitting and the tow bar mounts to chassis not suspension . It looks like the pf jones company are listing 10 of them on eBay !? Wouldn't be giving them any business though 🙂 Hunt online for kit and job jobbed, the Forester is easy one for tow hitch fitting ... If you have any good breaker yards around you might be worth a call/visit as any 02 to llate 07 forester tow bar would be good and it be cheapest way if stumble on a fairly clean one .

I would assume still available and someone will have stock . plenty listed online/ebay etc . Just buy online and either fit yourself or use local garage . Peddars is approved and even sold via main dealers, at the worst if had heavy trailer tongue weight you may need change out springs but check what spec kit you got from peddars and contact them on that if needs be or if need/want custom springs speak to springcoil who done a lot of work on forester SG coil springs . Pulling a used one is a PITA unless particularly minimal rust , OEM tow kit wiring is nice to have though .

The SH model is a complete redesign of rear suspension not using a strut setup . Aftermarket shock option on these is Bilstein or Monroe, I've used Bilstein B4 (do B6 versions as well) as they good quality product and tuned more towards our rougher B style road conditions .

you touch roughly or spill water on anything when done the radiator ! Pulling plug at tank only eliminates pump, harness could be shorting, check relay/fuse box and try split circuit down and don't overlook visual inspection ability to find likely area of fault .

New radiator will be sensible cost effective solution . NRF Nissens or Denso sensible options. NRF can be had silly cheap off eBay seller carpartsinmotion as regulars in eBay coupons so pretty easy wait for 15 or 20% off coupon code .

well really depends on condition of rest of it and mileage . possibly 800 to 1,200 to right person ! always try high as can come down but can't go up ... If it really clean and I mean really clean you be better doing an engine swap, if it more good average you probably find a very to proper clean replacement in mid 2K to mid 3K range .

If you Foz XT super clean fix it, if not sell yours for repair and buy another, don't sell as scrap as you won't get a lot . No idea why want use your heads, if engine cooked to death and been having long term heating issues heads likely not great at best or garbage at worst . A good used engine can be anything from 500 to 1K pending on luck, time you willing wait and how good/complete it comes . Good job on swapping heads involve machine shop costs and is fair few parts want replace make job a no ballache and no come back effort . If found good donor engine for pretty much straight swap it could be as low as 1,400 and if start stripping heads as well it going be 2K and up easily for worthwhile effort . Rebuilding from new short block going be over 3K assuming your heads good enough and need basic machine shop services but if they bad then you need source them too . Sensible option is source used engine or MOT failure with good engine then scrap donor car and your engine for bit of cash back . Main areas to effect what you do is true condition of your car and how long you can wait find good used engine/donor car .

looks pretty close to factory height . measure it from wheel centre to arch folded lip and compare to the chart . If do want/need tweak height further you could add 5mm to 10mm spacer above the top hats (can buy these pretty cheap online) . Spacers are not a 1 to 1 ratio, add a 5mm spacer any you gain closer to 7mm measured at wheel to arch ... Go enjoy the Fozzy now it got it;s dignity back ...

If you need any detailed help just ask, I done loads of these sigma alarms and they fairly easy resolve. Might not be so easy if messy disconnection . Ideally want pinpoint the parasitic current draw first rather than guessing . Really not that hard narrow down the circuits drawing current and any mechanic worth paying could do it . If it is the alarm you can buy used alarms pulled from vehicle and with they keyfob supplied so can easily program it. 80 to £150 normally gets alarms parts, swapping parts and programming can be DIY job .

Well I would suspect alarm disconnection likely area to be issue, that garage just palming you off, least they could of done is few basic checks . don't get too many parasitic issues on that vintage Fozzy but alarm poorly disconnected could cause it and certainly needs looking into . If you near me I would of looked at that as expect conclude something within an hour . I generally never remove them as cheaper/quicker repair with used parts and better end result . Seems it constant fault it not going be that hard find root cause. Is the siren still under the bonnet ?

you need do a parasitic draw test, either current clamp or voltage drop across fuses to see how big a draw and hopefully pinning it down to a circuit then individual items on that circuit . The sigma m30 alarm is a possible culprit, either main module behind glovebox area or siren/backup battery on bulkhead under bonnet . If is alarm used alarm module parts can fix that cheaply and the siren can be opened and 9v battery replaced . If you not up to multimeter/amp clamp testing take it someone who can, should be easy find as constant fault .

Main issue is will you like auto ! I think you going have drive one and conclude that yourself . 150K plus is what I class as upper limit buying used, pending on use and quality of care they can be A1 beyond that but wear and tear niggles will occur higher the miles and harder the use and you likely incur more minor faults/repairs on higher mileage examples, having said that most very low mileage cars can be garbage as short journeys in rough roads wear them out quicker so don't go crazy chasing ultra low mileage cars . All you got do is conclude you like auto box and make proper effort buy cleanest example you can find and don't be afraid over pay a little for proper clean example as it will pay you back 10x over . I will say from my experience cleanest examples I find always tend be automatics and also auto prices not as high as a manual for turbo model . Turbo engine and auto box can have more expensive faults over non turbo and manual transmission so be thorough and be prepared have spend on at least one fault get it A1 . Just be diligent and if not 100% happy walk away, plenty 04 to 06 XT models available if willing travel and can wait 3 or 4 months for right one crop up . Good time of year see them cropping up too . Once you get one and happy with it look into quality underbody coatings like lanolin based products and good quality cavity wax for inner arch front c frame and sills . Keep on top of underbody protection from day 1 on a clean base car and you get 20 to 30 years out them . Hope you sort one out and fall in love all over again 🙂 ....

set of winter tyres and rims is best result, some all seasons not bad but in many cases it a mix of trying be good at it all resulting in not very good at any conditions . Not biggest fan of bridgestone, think they could of done lot better for forester vx and outback odels for uk climate and vehicles likely usage .

unfortunately battery swapping is just a band aid covering poor electrical engineering choices on sleep mode activity and parasitic draw values . I can see same dilemma in 6 to 8 years as the diesel issues which is off to scrap for 300 quid as no repair solution at acceptable cost and owners fed up/bankrupt from constant issues and diagnostic bills .

if goes away in neutral it gearbox output side, could be low oil and lets hope it is but also highly likely be shaft bearing .