Mr B

When you contact springcoil for your springs they will be able calculate height changes from data that they already have so just telling them you drop range front and rear should be all needed, I would drop front more than rear as helps keep some balance when rear loaded as you no longer will have SLS . Tell them your usage and requirement for stiffer springs & all should be good. Try roger clarke motorsport for group n top mounts, they not cheap but good way go if standard rear top mounts not serviceable, modding front has way more gains than rear so should be priority . camber bolt kit (2 bolts, 1 each side) for rear strut to hub uppermost bolt hole is super useful at setting perfect rear camber . other top mount option could be whiteline top mounts . pillow ball camber plates are for front strut top mounts. Bit of tweaking required to combine it with standard top mount spring platform from old top mounts . ideally need do this prior to ordering springs as they tend make the top spring platform sit lower so that distance change needs measuring & added to your spring drop requirement . pillow ball mounts come up used, new can be had starting around £100 a pair . You can make up a block to raise the HD brackets you have (that why I mod standard brackets to HD) Strut braces from impreza will fit, massive amount around new or used so best hunting about for a nice one/price, cusco or ultra racing are couple of names. The sti titanium top strut bar is nice, any good H shape 4 point lower brace will be good . Check out condition of your wishbones as do corrode bad, sti alloys are nice if need replacements but not a must, good polybushes on wishbones help a lot but more cabin noise & vibration is the negative factor . another good mod is poly mounts for steering rack or even better the 2004 impreza sti rack . Keeping with standard style struts is key factor for daily on B roads though so your excel-g is sensible choice & all other mods will keep things tight & aligned & improve feedback to the driver without ruining daily drive-ability & safety. i've had some coilover cars come in that just damn dangerous on real roads & owners only too glad go back more standard via softer springs on coilovers or switching back to standard struts .

Double posted so thought would edit & make it bit useful . Meyle HD drop links (front & rear not sided, same part number does left or right) - links> front>http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MEYLE-Front-Right-Stabiliser-anti-roll-bar-DROP-LINK-ROD-No-34-16-060-0003-HD-/361074352328 rear>http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MEYLE-Rear-Right-Stabiliser-anti-roll-bar-DROP-LINK-ROD-Part-34-16-060-0004-HD-/351190480626

other thing review is drop links, they make a lot of clunky noises on bumpy or wavy road surfaces when worn, Meyle HD do decent robust drop links at sensible price. Some squeaks could be struts such as front top mounts or coil spring base rubber pads corroded/fallen-out so worth a look while you in the area. front nuts & bolts tend be better than look & easily cleaned up, rear can be different story but most are reusable, an anti-seize paste makes future work hassle free ... Do follow strongflex/polybush guide on lubing bushes correctly as polybushes can squeak real bad ...

Assuming you just a non turbo 2.0x all you need is one of these kits> http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Subaru-Forester-2-0-SG-2002-2008-Silencer-Exhaust-System-858-/400637858938?fits=Model%3AForester|Cars+Year%3A2007&hash=item5d47e0947a:g:HxEAAOSwG-1WzAy1 Quality is pretty good too, steel is quite thick & resists corrosion quite well (better than what available at any of our factors & cheaper too), gaskets & bolts handy too, prefer original rubber hangers but these handy if you missing 1 or got broken 1 . Have a back box fitted almost 2yrs on a sf farm forester & it still perfect, they could do 5 to 8+yrs easily in most cases besides salt water boat towers etc. They'll probably take £50 or £54 if put in offer (had few systems SF SG Legacy and a Justy . Fitting can be done in a hour unless got other exhaust issues that need a fiddle to get everything perfect . Old thread on it here >

Spring platform is lower on SF than SG , they direct bolt on, SF can be bolted to SG & SG can be bolted to SF . Due to Spring platform difference you ideally need custom springs to set a desired ride height and as you want lower & increase spring rate mildly it no extra expense . Springs to be used with SF ultra sr would need be longer than specific SG excel-g's due to differing spring seat position on strut . Unfortunately easy options are limited on struts, you got sf ultra sr, sg excel-g, sachs (bit firmer than excel G) or pedders kits . You can custom fit Bilstein inserts but not cheap for decent effort. Excel G's are superb for the cost, no hassle fit & easiest to specify custom springs over phone. sti or wrx wagon struts can work out cheap upgrade if find decent used set but ideally want custom springs especially rear to get sit right . Most people really like the excel-g's, i've used them on XT with custom springs lowered 30mm & owner been very happy with setup, throw in group n rear mounts-pillow balls mod to front mounts, rear stabilizer mod, strut brace & lower brace & make sure bushings good or replaced, allignment setup & it should feel far more stable/precise at speed but remain compliant for devon road daily use so won't fatigue you from harshness . wrx or sti struts are worth considering especially if aiming lower 50mm+ . Done one with inverted struts modded with greasing nipples, standard wagon springs lowered 65-80mm & rear was too low to front so we got springs made up off of the wagon springs . Choices are up to you & your budget and your use, if carrying load or sometimes towing you need build this into your final package spec .

turret hole pattern is 100% same, what differs is spring end style from SF to SG .

KYB's tend be best price from motor factor dealers on ebay, sf fits sg using custom springs. ultra srs are damped more fore performance & work well with stiffer rate springs Is hard justify cost & hassle when sg specific excel-G can be had as cheap as £49 a strut, sr is better fast road damper though . alloy control arms sourced from foz or imp sti pillow balls are available from many suppliers, cusco do them & cheaper options can be found online . Polybushes, I like strongflex red (80shA), good value for money too, Nolathane also good . Other options can be inverted impreza struts with custom springs .All comes down to your final goal & how much you want spend on it & how easy you want it to be to achieve . If want lower over 30mm you best looking at impreza struts to achieve it .

KYB ultra sr are available for SG too . Mix them with good custom springs to suit your usage and you get good results for road use. Bilstein is good stuff, i would still be wary of coilovers if you tend use lot of bad B roads or similar . Rear arb not a bad mod for fast road use XT, standard mounts can be reinforced similar to purchased ones Front lower arm is good place start with bushes as keeping alignment on high loaded front suspension is critical, alloy control arms is good upgrade . Standard bushes in good order perform well, If going Poly don't go too hard for road use . I would be inclined go with pillow balls on front as gives good benefits (feedback & more camber adjustment & not too harsh on good dampers. Done a handful of XTs with Ultra sr & custom springcoil springs & result is pleasing, quite expensive as unfortunately sr struts never get discounted prices like the excel-g's . custom springs work out close to £65 each . Keeping realistic is important for road use as excessive rate springs & poor damping of low cost taiwan style coilovers don't make a vehicle easy live with on real roads & daily usage .

KYB ultra sr have ones suitable for foresters (324054 324055 rear , 324052 324053 front) . Main downside is price (£95 each roughly) . You will need change rear struts as lowering springs won't work with standard SLS struts . Standard struts are pretty good for road driving, drop it about 25mm on custom springs slightly higher rate & you get good balance between ride comfort & high speed stability.Go too stiff & on short stroke coilovers & you loose a lot of grip .

I would go with custom springs from springcoil.co.uk on standard shocks or kyb ultra sr shocks if budget allows . coilovers on uk roads are not great, I got involved in a test on standard style struts over likes of miester R & BC etc & stopping distances & grip on rougher surfaces like B roads is worse as stroke , coilovers & 18" rims on UK roads generally don't make for good handling . stroke on cheap coilovers is awful, Meister R & BC valving is quite awful when compare to better stuff from Bilstien & Ohlins, if go coilovers be sure have height adjustment separate to coil lower perch as if not it impossible set spring preload & corner weights.They can be ok for track use on budget but for mainly road use I recommend avoid .

either keypad then arm once outside the car or before removing key from ignition (must be on ACC or beyound), press fob once > remove key from ignition > arm alarm from outside vehicle either way just over-rides the ultrasonics just for the 1 arming cycle .

anticlockwise to undo. if reel tight be sure plug hole cleaned out so square socket fits deeply so less chance of turning itself out the plug hole . problem using 1/2 inch ratchet or extensions is tip is tapered & domed so don't get full depth grip plus it slightly too small, works ok until get tight ones, then it rounds the plugs out & I get the job of removing them by welding a bolt into the fooked plug hole . If don't budge try some gentle heat. I always refit these plugs with 3 turns of PTFE tape as doesn't weep, no need do murder tight plus it acts as barrier between the 2 differing metals stopping corrosive seizing issues ...

Will cross with impreza . If only issue is the rusted flange you can get away with a short length joiner to slide over pipe once rusted flanges cut off. Joiners are about £8 . shields need slight modding fit with joiner but cheap solution if rest of cat good /solid .

i would stick to manual, no point going auto unless desire it . have a look on eBay, search forester xt or xten > http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2060353.m570.l1313.TR8.TRC1.A0.H0.Xforester+xt.TRS0&_nkw=forester+xt&_sacat=0 http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_odkw=forester+xt&rmvSB=true&afsrc=1&clk_rvr_id=1057738215121&_osacat=0&_from=R40&_trksid=p2045573.m570.l1313.TR2.TRC1.A0.H0.Xforester+xten.TRS0&_nkw=forester+xten&_sacat=0

Dealer one is indeed over priced, front bumper gap spacing looks off too. if local worth a look just gain knowledge & potential condition/price of car. They probably drop £900 quite easily (my local Subaru dealer does, prices drop 1k to 1.5k once advertised for couple months & before if haggle hard & car not got much interest) 2004/2005 is good for cheaper tax and if not concern to you it might be one day when resell . plenty of good ones about & many under 80k. Nice 1 or 2 owner FSH 2005 can be had 4k or less pending on fine details & condition, always worth spending extra £500+ for best example as pays you back in reliability & no nasty garage bills plus a joy to own a super clean car .

Not exactly, it close . . . 26mm is not an inch . you will find quality 13mm drain wrench sockets a tighter fit & less likely twist out on tight plugs .

13mm square, if tight proper decent 13mm plug sockets work way better ...

measure the bar with a vernier calliper .

Keep looking, do remember 2.5 headgaskets are an issue, no oil changes & poor oil play big part in the gasket breakdown ... You'll buy one then few weeks later see way better options appear . on cars like this it worth spending the extra to get a proper tidy one as they will be faultless/reliable & pay you back in no garage expenses & pleasure of a mint purchase . Bad ones can rack up expensive bills from £300 to £2,000 quite easily and more so if not handy with wrench yourself ...

I would at least take a code reader to check fault codes, if easy fix surprised it not done ! As for what to go for, I would take first one you find that is a proper impeccable clean low mileage example with impeccable paperwork whether it 2.0 or 2.5 Normally quite easy find 2.0xt clean & low miles, manual is way better, 2.0xt manual probably holds better resale potential too . extra grunt of 2.5 is good if think you need it . Main thing is be fussy & really look at the car in detail & don't buy intil you 100% happy .

they not same but fitment same (even forester struts can be fitted), you want stick with estate/wagon as rear spring rates are different . I personally would go new KYB & if want lower it get some 25-30mm lowering springs with slightly increased rates.

You can get a pair of KYB for about 150 or less & pair Optimal about 140 or less . eBay will have them as pairs. I wouldn't bother with cheap coilovers, they are a downgrade on a road car. if serious on lowering get a quality lower spring set go with it You could go with some used turbo stuff but I wouldn't bother unless super cheap .

@FozzySTurbo I would look at getting your cambelt done within next year/18months but worth checking visual condition by removing covers, uk service is bit over keen, US & Oz do closer to 100k on the belt and it exactly same parts, main reason difference is need more competitive servicing figures for those regions . As for clutch if bite point very high it maybe clutch dragging slightly, also could be worn syncros (common on turbos as higher rpm changes), If clutch seems poor might want get someone test drive it & give you an opinion. Worth changing gearbox fluid (75/90 Castrol Syntrax) as that can help sometimes with syncros .

^ that the right sort of price for full kit inc DMF fitted .

yours has DMF (dual mass flywheel) . It is recommended to change DMF with new clutch but if you do really come down to you & the fitter really, they can be resurfaced even though many say can't, they probably won't last another clutch life though . Blueprint or Sachs ok, Sachs kit with DMF is £500 region. Get your Garage check it, they may even do a good deal on clutch if does needs doing . Smoke issue needs be priority though, I would suspect injectors possibly . early boxer diesel can be a PITA and as potentially highly expensive best pursued while garage showing interest .