Mr B

The eBay services are quite good & price good http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Subaru-Remote-Key-Fob-Repair-Service-Same-Day-Fast-Efficient-Repair-Service-/361505093448?hash=item542b61f748:g:Xg4AAOSwBLlVRh~l You can use the single button fob only remotes with your M30 alarm so if ever want 3rd remote or cheap solution pick up a secondhand single button for the sigma M30 & program it to your system. M30 manual link below. https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7Ub2apq5-pfcjJhSm5XUHNyUzQ/view?usp=sharing

try closing the female spades down if can or bend pins slightly so drag in female side creating better contact. A squirt of electical contact cleaner would be good too .

Yes cowl panel at top of bulk head, at least you know where the main module is too ...

Yes it tucked away in engine bay in bulkhead slightly to n/s. I'm not sure if the main module of the m30 has a small piezo speaker too as the quieter chirp you get with low battery voltage does not sound like main siren but I believe it to be, either would sound dash area slightly to passenger side. I had a 2004 forester in few weeks ago during colder snap we had, owner told me they had air bag fault & airbag light staying on. & buzzer going. thought odd as no buzzer linked to airbag self diagnostic, turned out be m30 alarm chirping when turned key as main car battery had dying cell & voltage dropping low & chirp went off in time with airbag light startup check of couple seconds. Really can play up with iffy battery, mainly car battery but siren backup pp3 too sometimes ...

pp3 in siren are NiCD rechargeable but do degrade & also moisture can cause contact issues as well. Siren has 2 screws in it, seems you reported fact car battery bit suspect I would fit that first then evaluate alarm, your problems have been varied faults such as not unlocking which not pointing to door switches. pp3 is something to consider though & mentioned as easily over looked & does cause issues such as bleeping & indicators not flashing & others. I've seen M30 do quite odd things with car battery faults so if lucky that your issue. link to M30 manual below that has some test mode info https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7Ub2apq5-pfcjJhSm5XUHNyUzQ/view?usp=sharing

^ you have to remove siren then remove back of siren (2 screws in mounting slots) then remove the board inside with battery attached to it, test battery/replace. I've only done about five but always use new battery on refitting simply as so cheap .

This Sigma alarm ! they can be bit funny and do odd things when car battery voltage goes bit low. by default they should give a light burst of chirps when turn on ignition & battery voltage is a bit low as a warning feature but sometimes they just erratic in behaviour. common one for beeps on arming is doors, bonnet & boot being usual culprit . Also on the sigma when the inbuilt rechargeable pp3 in the siren goes bad it can cause constant beeps (can be replaced) First thing I would do is get your car battery done to rule that out as yours sounds a bit erratic & check all door bonnet boot switches/wiring for obvious issues.

jumping would work fine, don't have car running though. 9V battery works fine. 9V battery on cable with 2 decent crock clips is all I ever use when doing quick battery swap in yard etc. Decent pp3 battery holds memory for several hours & it less clumsy plus less likely create power spikes.

Yuasa & Banner are good & only 2 we really use due to good working life, warranty, fair price & minimal returns . For memory we have lighter socket/eobd/crock-clip power supply from mains but for battery swaps I mainly use a little cordless one that runs off a rechargeable pp3 battery (can be had cheap or home made-2 crock clips with short run of cable and a pp3 battery connector), super easy use & saves setting clocks and radio equipment .

worse case scenario is radio code pending on what radio you got. also don't leave keys in car with door shut, some alarms & some scenarios can lock doors when power reconnected, then you locked out & trying find your spare key .

Buy locally from motor factors, make sure buy one with 3 or 4yr warranty. keeping receipt & using local supplier means it easy make most of warranty . think your battery model is 005 but look on your battery & see if can see a code number. Banner or Yuasa brand is my favourite these days, we get very little issue on those & use them for most battery jobs we done over last 8yrs. Cost is indeed around £70 region I expect .

You can buy batteries for these for less than £2 for quality duracell long life (CR1620 I believe) Quite easy program other fobs yourself if need, no special equipment needed . You can also actually use subaru 2 button fob seperate from key & any decent auto locksmith can cut key & sort key transponder. ebay service on remote good if remote buttons or board bad & fair price. Key blade itself can be done too, locksmith can cut key & modify it to fit the fob part, not many will offer that service though. I done one for a customer, cut key blade was £14 & I charged 1 hrs labour for running about & customizing key into original key handle fob . £300 for new key is crazy money ...

actually another thing look for on SG is corrosion in rear inner wheel arch. Normally it near the lip seam to out arch & down side to sill edge tends be heavier rot & is mot failure. done odd one over years but done 2 for pre mot work and a failure in last 5 weeks so made me think about adding this as easy over looked, subframes & rear chassis rails always worth a good look too. Easy to inspect so do have a good nose/prod & take a decent torch when viewing (you can buy half decent 24LED inspection lamps on ebay for £4.50)

I would get a stainless backbox custom made either by longlife or powerflow, longlife do good work but powerflow has lot more outlets so most people got one close. Price probably about £145 ... The impreza exhausts fit badly in my opinion unless chop them about fair bit so follows standard exhaust line better, by time you buy materials/pay someone mod it the price is not so favourable. works out ok if get a decent impreza backbox free or real cheap & you handy with welder .

Meyle is good drop links. is dead easy fit. soaking nuts on old ones for few days before removing may make things simpler simple do on ramps, jacked up evenly on stands etc. Price you got quoted is ridiculous. new drop links are only 10-15 £ each & 30 minutes labour .

rear prodrive/sti rollbar & strengthened rollbar mounts can help but best gain is custom stiffer springs & shocks like kyb excel g or ultra, especially on ones that done a lot of mileage & some towing. 18" rims won't be great on uk roads .

Reinz & Payen both do gaskets for the EK42 engine if that what you got. Think Reinz P/N is 71-52522-00 They can be had online or through any good professional parts factors

Best 2 ways to be 100% is from part number on the shock or calling subaru parts with your chassis number or reg handy & ask for part price & confirm it sls. Most of the sls versions look same, springs are normally thinner but this hard notice without having seen non sls springs.

mix kyb with custom progressive springs with perhaps 20mm base lift from springcoil.co.uk would help keep rear at sensible level for your sort of usage I suspect. See what outcome is from test drive, prices won't be good unless you work for or marry someone from dealership. KYB & custom springs would be about £340-£370 pair fitted, shocks have 2yr warranty ...

kyb will be non sls if want sls it has to be subaru parts. Rear shock/shocks could have internal issues & no leaks. Stripping off vehicle may tell more . Don't sound right to me though as I would say good order suspension on these cars are far from bouncy. If car towed a lot or carried reasonable load then shocks & springs do work hard so could be fatigued. KYB shocks are good price, subaru sls will be 8x the price. The KYB's can be used with some custom progressive springs & slight base height gain to try & balance ride height better. sls is nice & strut quality superb but most people won't cough up well over 1k for new shocks - springs when can get above options for £250ish

Some new kyb excel G shocks would be less than £100 a pair. some new springs too could be good. kyb is heavier damping than original. roll bar will make no difference to this but drop links are cheap (£14ish each) so could be worth fitting 2 new ones if get rear shocks done so all A1 back end.

Not from part listing for it. looks to be same for SG 02/2002 to 12/2007

Take door card off & have a look, test feed & earth to motor. I find more motor or regulator faults due to wear or moisture damage over switch, relay or wiring. You can get a pattern part motor assembly for these should sourcing used becomes tricky although pattern part not well distributed in uk . It not that hard to remove & only a few screws .

Lots of parts get revised without recall, was indeed known issue but not a big amount of failures & many had 2 or 3 owners & nearing or over 100K by time it popped . One of the reasons I don't buy that gen diesel foresters is they are a big risk . damn shame really . think safest solution is later gen short block. had quite a few block design changes too .

what model forester & with what aim ! lowering ? cheap repair to failed sls ?