Mr B

I would be inclined go for outback or if want all in one a Forester XT. Extra ground clearance is useful, amount of legacy's I see in with damaged sills & bumpers due to grounding even if just a high curb or deep ditch on a tight road, Forester or Outback cope better & tend to be found in better condition too. For versatility The Forester is hard to beat, dogs,logs, camping or spirited drive (XT) Outbacks can be found at bargain prices due to running costs. Forester 2.0XT wins here too as can be reasonably close mileage to the naturally aspirated engine if driven gently. Any of these cars normally have minimal common faults & mileage in access of 120K can still run superb. Always best buying with close to full service history & 1 or 2 long term owners, sometimes 2 or 3 owners can be better as new owners tend to splash bit at a newly purchased car & tick off some service items & minor faults that a 1 10 year owner may want avoid.or live with. Other thing is view & test drive a few perhaps from local dealers even if not exact price colour or whatever as helps gain knowledge & value plus perhaps reduce model options you think are suitable. Happy hunting ... I would cross diesel off the list as early ones not the best & they hold a premium & can be costly unless buy wisely & do enough mileage compensate extra purchase & running costs.

Standard transmision service oil we use for your average Subaru is Castrol Syntrax 75/90 (now branded as universal) A better oil that has helped in past experience is motul 300 75/90. Motul 300 has made a long term difference on a couple of boxes we tried it in.

Hope module route works out for you. Biggest issue as getting old is battery cell in the siren housing. User manual in above link is quite useful, hopefully you get alarm working normally & you can rebook your ferry trip soon.

I can bypass faulty alarms or remove leaving just the default transponder immobilizer, for £100 to £200. I wouldn't say the main modules are that common for faults but hand fobs are as get thrown around, wet etc. Highly likely just fobs have issue over main module & I suspect disconnecting power if still armed made further alarm confusion. I've dealt with more sigma alarms on subarus than I can remember & normally reprogramming key fob, new key fobs or batteries & setting new 4 digit pin codes is all that needed Only ever replaced couple of main modules & lately rechargeable PP3 battery in siren housings Good topics on Sigma with useful links is below. http://uk.subaruownersclub.com/forums/topic/1543-alarm-system/ http://uk.subaruownersclub.com/forums/topic/306-remote-needed/page-3 Sigma User Manual https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7Ub2apq5-pfcjJhSm5XUHNyUzQ/view?usp=sharing

Quite agree Rick & sounds like progress been made :-D Few things learnt though so any future issues should be simpler ... Seller in this case is obviously a rouge from your posted experience ... £15 should be yours shortly :-D That'll teach the fooker. Bad feedback for him too :-P & post reply comment to his nasty feedback comment to you.

I think then because you went through eBay & done return item resolution then cancelled the system recorded that as your resolution option used & resolved thus unable start again on same transaction. Fortunately he can not leave you a negative feedback, You can though so best do that & state item never shipped & tracking never provided. you can also comment on feedback remark he left you by going to: http://feedback.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?PersonalizedFeedbackLogin Don't be too abusive in remarks as if are he can easily get eBay remove them then he looks all squeaky clean to the next buyer. You should be able get some help on this from eBay via phone-call but indeed could be a lot of hassle. In future only use Paypal resolution as far better from my experience ...

Link below to PDF with some screenshots & tips, is easy if think it through. You have 45days from payment made date to use Paypal resolution. Basically you will be writing a message that Paypal & the seller will see (he sent email via paypal ) Be polite, second step is then esculating to claim, tips in PDF should help. I've had full refunds on couple items that never received so think you will too ;-) Paypal make it less than obvious on purpose & the help lines are 100% useless merry-go-round :-S This is super simple all online in paypal account & takes minutes once got hang of it. https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7Ub2apq5-pfUlpwUFI5ODhLU1k/view?usp=sharing

if still in time frame for claim (think it 40 days from purchase date) all you need do is login to paypal, look at you recent payments & copy the transaction ID for transaction in question. Then on main paypal summary page you will see resolution link on the lower left Click link & go through steps & write your issues to seller, be polite & smart. If seller does not reply it a good thing & just click link in resolution centre to escalate to a claim & within a few days you will have your £15 back. If seller replies but you find anything he offering unacceptable simply state that in a last reply & add 'you going escalate it & let Paypal review the case' as generally always in buyers favour. Takes only a few minutes logged into Paypal as needed to go through stages & best learn use it as £15 better in your pocket. I just done one for failed delivery after 33day wait, fortunately seller has not replied to the resolution case so I escalated to claim & should have money back in few days :-) If want screenshots of steps on Paypal site I will try do some to get you started if you still in timeframe for a claim.

Powerflow pricing is normally quite good. you could probably find a bargain decent stainless steel second-hand impreza system & tweak it to fit at low cost.

Do resolution through PayPal, just done one today for failiure to receive item so know it can be done via PayPal & far better than the eBay resolution faffing about ... Once resolution opened in PayPal you escalate to claim them once reviewed you get refund. £15 not a big deal but better in your pocket. Is wise do some research before buy anything on eBay as it is not what it use to be ...

organics can handle beyond 400hp if proper heavy duty assembly, twin plate organics or mixture of organic & ceramic full face plates can handle 500hp & beyond. The 6puk sprung plates are not too bad on a road car but I would only use one when power/torque output is big or usage is mainly track, sprint, drag etc ...

ceramic plate disc are snatchy, 6puk sprung being the better of them for road use but still juddery, if you intending on re-using clutch cover it would need skimming as needs be perfect as does flywheel for ceramic pads. Ideally new cover & release bearing is needed. Decent organic can handle 400hp without hassle & don't turn your gearbox into a grenade like ceramic paddles can ...

Yes pre marked belts or marking your own belt plus pulleys will go out of sequence of marks once engine rotated as belt length is not equal to pulley rotation but they make it almost fool proof to go wrong in initial assembly. I use this trick a lot on cars such as Pug 206 HDI were belt access is awful along with viewing angle to pulleys as allows you get belt on all pulleys in right place first go. The Dayco belts come pre marked & are part of same japanese company doing Subaru OEM belts, you can get these complete with all OEM bearing pulleys/tensioner for sensible money. alignment marks tend to be 2mm or like you say looks about half a tooth out but that the norm on many cars not just Subaru. Subaru are generally a pleasure to work on & make french & german cars look an engineering shambles in many basic maintenance work. Clutch is not a hard job & think you will enjoy the pleasure of observing good engineering when pulling & refitting the gearbox.

Well kind of can be not completely in line but look close & see if think moving one tooth would make better or worse. This sort of issue is why I recommend the home mechanic to mark old belt tooth to pulleys (marker pen) & transfer markings to new belt as makes it almost impossible ***** up & gives more confidence job jobbed right ... Certainly worth checking bit more by checking tension seems tight enough & rotate engine few times to help settle it more ...

Not cheap but hopefully quality bearing & decent fitting, My base price is £120 but this can go up to £180+ a side if need hubs off car & lateral links are seized & need new bolt etc. Big part also depends on how garage source bearing as buying jap bearings direct from bearing specialist can be far cheaper (half the price for same bearing/seals) than ADL or Solid Ace bearing kits from autofactors. We get NTN or NSK bearing kits which complete with seals, clip, hub nut etc for £40 & these are exactly same parts as Subaru use but not in Subaru branded box . We use Bearing Shop Exeter but ICP do these as well I believe so you can order online if preferred & if can not fit yourself you can at least supply quality bearing & just sort labour cost. Job jobbed without hassle & in your time frame which the main thing :-) ...

Does sound very much like bearing, with right tool you can do with hub still on car so no need remove lower hub lateral link bolt which can be the major pain ( they seize & need cutting/gas torch) when doing wheel bearing, Do use a quality Japanese wheel bearing (one piece bearing cartridge) about £70 for quality bearing ) cheap non Jap bearings are junk & soon need replacing again, Labour 1hr if got right equipment & have no issues & know way around subarus. Rear Diffs are known to have similar noise when LSD starts failing but your comments sound more like wheel bearing & that is most common too.

Well a race engine may have some slap from cold due to larger clearances due to higher temps it expected to reach. a lot of race engines are pre-heated because of these larger clearance factors. Problem is people like having race spec this, group A spec that & it not a good thing if you not a race or rally car so correct parts & specs need to be used for the cars use. CP pistons come with guide on clearance based on usage plus piston design requires less clearance as expansion size changes are better controlled.

To be honest they quite easy to rebuild, just be sure use a good competent machine shop & check everything & do research or ask questions if not sure on something. If Big-end & Main journals on crank are in good order (good chance they are) you only need change shells if show wear & you can easily obtain ACL bearing shells for standard crank size & fit/check clearances-juggle shells to help even up clearances prior to final build. rebore & hone for new pistons is straight forward, just be sure stipulate a bore to piston clearance that suitable for you usage. For road use I would use CP pistons as the piston design allows smaller bore clearance values & they run silent (no slap even on a winter morning) plus are tough pistons & good value for money. Even doing it yourself it will consume quite a chunk of cash as a good job requires quite a lot of new plus decent quality parts than soon start adding up to 4 figures ...

DPF is absolute waste of time on low average mileage of say 12,000miles a year. the amount of pollution caused from manufacture of a DPF & the cleaning of it in terms of fuel & chemicals works out far worse impact in term of pollution than a bit of soot. All that was really needed was stringent emissions & engine oil checks for MOT so tune/emissions was very healthy thus minimal pollution. DPF is technically quite clever but if not a lorry/bus/van etc doing silly annual mileage it is a complete negative in term of environmental care & common sense engineering :-S Part of reason I like the older vehicles is because they are better engineered & far less hassle & far less polluting in term of birth to death figures.

What alarm is it ! Sigma ? sounds like it when mention keypad. Basically any additional alarm wired in with circuits cutting fuel or starter for immobilization can easily be totally removed or just immobilizer circuits removed if want keep some of the alarm function if working suitably (sigma included). This will not effect the key chip/transponder as that is a separate immobilizer linked to the key the ECU & OEM wiring. We have a lot of threads on the Sigma including how reset the pin code assuming you have at least one remote that seems function enough to allow the recode process. It is known for the relays fail for immobilization, also I think the backup battery in the siren assembly can cause some odd faults when it fails (can be replaced but require surgery on siren)

lol

If you buy used from specialist engine importers who deal with recycled engines from low mileage JDM you can do ok. Rebuild could be a disaster if you have no experience. certainly sounds as if needs new set of pistons & rebore, If big end & main bearings are perfect you would not need replace but all needs good inspection by someone who has experience. you will replace all engine seals/gaskets & Heads should be stripped, cleaned, valves checked/lapped etc. A decent helpful machine shop will make things easier for you but still plenty of areas in the rebuild that many first timers can mess up.

any member can ...

ideally you will want 92.5mm pistons so your bore can be sized/honed to suitable clearance for usage. Fast road use with forged pistons require less clearance than an engine dedicated for track use. Personally I prefer CP pistons for more road usage build as they can run quiet & bore clearance range is very good. Would be good to strip & review your engine prior to getting parts as if found other defects it would be easy/cheaper to go for another engine over rebuild perhaps ...

yes either to the obd2 loom or perhaps modding the adaptor if want leave vehicle untouched. I would personally have it 3 way switched to either run via ACC power, default power or completely off no power. leaving cheap chinese electronics unattended & running 24/7 is never a good thing. Have replaced more than 1 ecu due to faulty OBD reader damaging ECU board so be careful with them.