Mr B

They not bad, early SF was the best as less over hang front & rear & less plastic under front of car. A 2 inch lift makes all the difference for rougher ground, they good on the slippery stuff as the 4wd is proper awd with viscous centrer diff while likes of the freelander has a awful cheapy viscous coupling in the rear prop & rear diff is geared higher than front so it 2wd most of time well most are 2wd all the time as the transmission design is so bad it rips itself to bits quite easily :-) I've done a few fozzy lifts & 2 sump to bumper skid pans for the SG for some farmers & the likes, they seem rate them well for general rough lanes/tracks, crossing fords/streams & field work. They no landrover 90 but with slight lift & good tyre choice they will take you from city centre to a remote moorland farm in the worst weather imaginable & do so in comfort & complete warmth if you got the AWP model :-D

^ pretty much, the old 2.2 had some issues but most had done some serious miles before ran into trouble. 2.5 is the trouble one with a fair few HG failures at quite low mileage. Even my old legacy 2.0L which close to 200Kmiles still fine & engine untouched. I have 2 Foresters but only buy the 2.0L as it the best buy really, I done too many 2.5L HG repairs to want the hassle for no gain really .

2.0L NA of all era are almost bullet proof. as long as oil is changed regularly & correct spec coolant used they go on forever . 2.5L was main one for HG issues and reason the HG issue gets thrown up so much ...

I would get a custom one made up to your needs, something like a 70mm system with good sports cat & silencers with particular attention to rear box to keep noise level close to oem .

Can't see disco springs working well even if do fit, no way spring rates or heights front/rear going be right range. On the fozzy you best using 1" metal spacer blocks on top of the strut hat & then 1" springs, at 2" you may want make custom trailing arm brackets so wheels sit central to rear arch, over 2" it a must. you won't be able go very big on tyres as the strut spring seat sits close to top of tyre. Best option for lifting springs is king spring, iron man or springcoil.co.uk who will do them to spec. I've done a few at 2" & 205/75/15 or 215/75/15 tyre: general grabber AT or Toyo open country AT+ which gives close to 2.5" or 3" lift all combined. Other way is about 40mm on springs then rest via larger tyres. I prefer 25mm on spacers & 25mm on springs as lifting to much on spring means little droop left in the strut travel . 2" is all I recommend for mechanical lift as beyond that cause more issues with stress on UJ & shafts & also alignment issue of camber & wheelbase. 215/75/15 tyre gains a good 17mm in lift but remains sensible in terms of speedo reading difference & gearing and actual body clearance plus can carry a spare that size without much bother. Farmers like it as really improves front/rear/sill clearances. Not cheap when look at tyres & ideally wheel spacers or new wheels & springs & custom brackets/spacers & alignment & telling your insurers :-/ Total gain of 2" looks good, it not overly noticeable until parked next to standard yet it makes vehicle far better for bit of off road use.

^^ only 2 source of the SLS tokico struts and that from the main dealer (tokico only made/supplied to subaru) or used from breakers yard. best option for cost is new non sls struts & springs. Springcoil.co.uk can supply custom springs with progressive rates, heavier rates, lifted or combination which helps for those towing etc. All aftermarket struts are non sls ...

Due to way they constructed & fact no internal parts easily available they not viable for rebuilding.

^ does happen, I done a couple over the years, picked up used ones from breakers as they not a nice price from subaru stealers .

First thing I would do is fault code check & log data from sensors while on a quick test drive, second thing would be checking plugs & leads as they super common for issues, plugs don't get checked or changed as much as should as hard to get at, leads can fail due to long route & tough conditions. lots of other things could be to blame but worth ticking off very basics before spending out.

Best bet with exhaust is likes of powerflow or similar to make up a custom stainless. For scraping/scuffing it worth checking hub for play with dial gauge as bearing play will allow spindle tilt & disc is on the spindle so this tilts & scuffs on discs or shield.

Bit unsure how it exactly change but worth thinking about & researching when buying the 2.5 & 3.0 cars .

tax bands are being revised in next 2 years so keep an eye on it & buy wisely or you could end up with big bill & depreciated market value ...

A little mainly as specify rates little stiffer again over the kyb springs which nice on the XT. you should find the kyb springs & struts stiffer than standard ...

Only just out the workshop, late one unfortunately, just checked in the KYB catalogue to be sure and 910046 are 100% correct to pair with the struts you will be using. used them myself on SG versions & no problems. On the XT the springcoil custom springs tend be better than the kyb springs .

^ no they not. if linkage/mount just broken/corroded then a linkage & mount can be fabricated. You could try ICP importcarparts.co.uk as they might be able supply one, other option is subaru breakers ! :-/

Not 100% sure, have swapped remote boards in them & the responder chip is somewhere in housing, they quite small. Have a word with some auto locksmiths & also see if subaru can confirm how new key comes, whether blank shank or complete housing ! A new key with transponder is about £20 or a little over, it may work fine with 2 transponders & still pick up the proper one but it also may be temperamental. another option (but fiddly) if key is moulded in is cutting it so a stub sticks out then cut down new key to overlap & drill 2 holes for very small machines screws & tap them or even rivets, then tidy the join & add 2 or 3 layers of heat shrink tube, key overall would become a little longer but could be neat result with some patience, done similar to keys for workshop door that has custom lock.

Best without 2 transponder chips so ideally needs removing, tweaking another blank in it should be possible with bit of innovation but indeed it could be used like a fob.

^ +1 on that What I would like to see is tighter control on vehicle tyre, brake & suspension in term of police fines & mot inspection. Should have a fixed age for shock replacement as most 15+ year old shocks are far from best. Better road surfaces, better signs & more consistent road layouts would also reduce accidents & lives far more than fines but that costs money rather than making money :-/

By looks of it it will be free to anyone with valid 7 - 8 windows already. From what I seen it will be far better than 8 but as new for sure will have a few glitches for some. See if Gambit has tested it on his mums computer yet :-D

Not super simple, new key will also incorporate transponder chip cloned from current key which will need go into the fob along with cut down blank, good helpful auto locksmith will do it or you can chop it about yourself, transponder chip is very small.

^ Insurance vehicle inspectors are a pain in the butt . most of time minor stuff generally overlooked but in a big accident it can be used as a cop-out by insurers leaving you up 5hit creek, crazy really when just a quality part doing same or better than oem part !

lots of things could fit but not exactly plug & play. inbuilt sat nav is junk on most cars as get old & update hassle is right pain on many. I prefer buying without sat nav & adding my own. If was mine I would replace it .

Only other thing I can think of with a proper linkage that connects to a plate & would only be on drives side would be height sensor for models with HID headlights ... If still knocking then ball joint is possible & quite common, should be able see play in it & actual ball joint not expensive: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Moog-OE-Quality-Replacement-Suspension-Ball-Joint-SU-BJ-104141-/131632896273

Not a modification really but if concerned, worth telling your insurers & getting response in writing. Funny lot insurance, drive round on 10year old+ suspension & it fine but spend good money make your vehicle handle better thus safer with new suspension parts & it could be hassle ! Suspension bushes are a bigger concern, things like poly bushes especially castor, anti-lift etc .

Your XT will have SLS at it standard on them. the drop links on the SGs are metal - ball joints both ends. when suspension good order rear should be higher than front. rear with weak/failing SLS tends to sag anything between 20 & 50mm Easy to replace the struts and springs. KYB excel G are heavier damping than standard & slightly stiffer springs from springcoil.co.uk make a big difference too. you need new springs to pair with any aftermarket strut as the SLS springs are slightly shorter & softer rating than non SLS. It not expensive & all parts at moment come to less than £250. Thread on it linked below> http://uk.subaruownersclub.com/forums/topic/7216-2005-forester-xt-rear-sls-unit-leaking/ One simple thing to check on handling is tyre pressures as low pressures = awful handling on these, on XT I recommend 3psi over standard pressures. Difference is night & day between 1 or 2 soft tyres & all setup correct.