VirtuaIceMan

Let me know how you get on!

I've got the stock head unit in my 04 Forester STi, without even a band expander. It's getting annoying using a radio transmitter from my phone, so I'm thinking of getting a new head unit. I was told by Torque GT that I'll need one of these convertors: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PC2-44-4-SUBARU-FORESTER-1997-2008-ISO-STEREO-HEAD-UNIT-HARNESS-ADAPTOR-LEAD-/150850233558?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item231f5fe4d6 then I can fit a replacement head unit. Is this correct? I've read about losing the sound from the bass sub speaker in the boot unless you add some sort of amplifier (the stock head unit has this built in, or something?), can anyone advise as to what the situation is, and what I'll need to keep everything working? Thanks in advance!

Should the hole be there at all though?

I recently had a slow puncture fixed, and noticed this hole in the cover under the engine, which has some sort of ripped fabric and what looks like wires in it. Any idea what this is, and whether I need someone to look at it soon? Sorry for the large pics! From the front: Bit nearer: Close up: From the driver side front wheel:

The car's great, so much quicker than my 2006Celica VVTLi GT! Just some random little issues as above, but it drives well. The GPS added on screen is Japanese, but has a functional reversing camera, so I haven't ditched it yet! There's no real bodywork issues at all!

@stants 1, sounds like the common shock issue I've seen the pictures/videos for fixing this, do you think any garage would be able to do this easily? I've not got the skills or space to do it myself 2, the clacking noise could be one of many things, possibly drive train movement, they are a bit slack, maybe investagate the various bushes, Should I ask a Subaru specialist place to have a look, or could any garage? 3, at what speed and revs does this sound occurr? The injectors are noisy and do tap away plus the engine is know to be a bit noisy, unless it's horrible knocking sound it should be ok, has the car been mapped for UK fuel yet ? It's at low revs/speed as you accelerate hard, it could well be the engine. It's not a huge issue. I don't know if the car was mapped for UK fuel, I've just been running super unleaded as Torque GT recommended. 4, Is it the factory sub in the side of boot ? An aftermarket head unit will have pre outs for a sub to be wired in so you should be able to keep it Okay, I think I'd need some radio specialist place to have a look, if I ever go that route (am using radio transmitter at the moment to play music from my phone). 5, the ariel is usually the bigger back cable with a 3.5mm jack on the end The band expander I have looks a bit like this: http://i01.i.aliimg.com/photo/v0/115387571/FM_Band_expander_Radio_Converter_18_MHz.jpg - it's where should the red cable be soldered/tapped into that I need to figure out. I haven't taken the existing radio out yet though (not had time with new baby!). 6, I guess the car has been sat on the boat for a while so it may just need driving more, or some more grease on the back of the pads Torque GT replaced a couple of the pads but said the other 2 were OK instead of Good, so I suspect they might be getting old. The car brakes well though, I was just wondering if the squeal was some sort of "pads are wearing out" indicator? 7, it's probably got some fluff in or general grime, you should be able to take the b pillar trim of to get at the reel and give it a bit of a clean @peejay may have the answer, I'll look into this stuff. 8, not sure about the steering, mines imported too but it doesn't feel that light, what pressure are you running in the tyres ? Actually I haven't checked the tyres yet! They're Toyo Proxies. I plan to have a look soon though. @scoobystu78 reply (which I can't see now but was emailed to me) said the STi has a more sensitive rack, it might just be that. 9, I've sat in newage sti's and didn't notice the seats to be small they do grip you tightly though, may be worth seeing if any impreza owners would measure the base dimensions? Yeah, be interesting to know. I was just curious, that's all! Hopefully I'll get some time to take a look at things soon...

I've had a Japanese imported Forester STi (blue) for a month now (this is the car I bought: http://torque-gt.co.uk/car/subaru-forester-sti-11/), and I have a few little questions about it, some are probably quite noob-ish I realise! 1. Rattling from rear shocks at slow speeds, I assume this is the knocking that I've read about, which requires the suspension stripping down and greasing up? 2. There's a short mechanical "clack" sound from the left somewhere, every time I let off the accelerator, at any speed. Should I worry about it at all? 3. Under reasonable acceleration there's a light rattling sound inside the dash, possibly around the steering area, or it could be a noise from the engine. Has anyone else heard this? I guess it could be some loose wiring or trim rattling otherwise. 4. Am I right in thinking that swapping the original stereo with a different unit loses the rear subs in the boot, without extra amplifiers? 5. I've been given a radio band expander, which needs tapping into (ideally) the aerial electrical line, how would I go about identifying which cable this might be? 6. When I brake gently, the front brakes squeal, but when I apply normal pressure they don't. Is this a sign the pads need changing? 7. The seatbelt on the driver side retracts very slowly, can this be easily improved? 8. Is the steering usually quite sensitive? I had it converted to MPH from KPH (BIMTA certified mileage) but I remember reading for some cars the steering sensitivity is related to the speed conversion, is this the case with the Forester (and the conversion might be a bit out), or is the steering usually quite quick to react? 9. Does anyone else find the STi front seats feel a bit narrow? Are they optimised for smaller Japanese peoples rears? That's about it for now.