Paul_JJ

Well I'll be charged an hour's labour to move the strut and than full tracking fee on top of that. I figured I'd rather replace the shocks/springs at least at the front at the same time since I would have to pay for the tracking anyway... The shocks are not leaking but not as comfy as they were last year and the springs seem to be ok at the moment. It seems as a better idea to replace the shocks/springs/top mounts - can anyone advise of the brand/place to buy? The car is NOT for the track use, so I don't need the sport version, but rather tough for off-roading, since I do some off-roading when I have a chance -)

I see. I did rear calipers rebuild today, also mechanic was using rather dodgy grease, since it had no name on the can, but he said if it's starts leaking he'll fix them for free, so that was a relief -) Still got old discs and pads though, they're ok, but I want to put good mintex pads at the back and I need to find them first.

ok thank you. I think I have to replace the shocks and springs aseembly in order for the camber to be adjusted. The shocks are not leaking, but 19 year old and for sure have seen better times. In terms of RELIABLE shocks/springs (not for track use, some off-road as well), what would you recommend?

Just spoke to a mechanic he said he undo both bolts and even lifted the front of the car and tried to move the wheel by hands, but it didn't move at all, like sort of camber is seized in place...

Ok thank you! very good information! DO you have a part number for the rear camber bolts by any chance?

Well 17 should clear 350mm easy not 294mm -) 300mm can be cleared by 15 inch..... I see your point though. Offset makes the difference here as well.

Do I understand correctly that the bigger the offset the better for the 4 POT installation? or is it vice versa?

Right, tried another mechanic. Well my camber is left -0.2 , right +0.1 and the worst thing of all is that when the was able to undo the actual camber bolts the wheel wouldn't move even when he lifted the front of the car the wheel just doesn't move to be adjusted... Is there something else has to be done as well, not just the camber bolt for the Subaru??? Or is my car so old and something rusted pretty badly? The castor is not perfect either 1 wheel has 3.0+ and the other one is 2.4... also the mechanic said that it's not adjustable at all on my car! Now the funny thing is he didn't change any angles or anything, but after he tried (and failed) to do the camber the steering wheel is spot on now and gets back to place the way it should do... the only issue is that the car pull slightly to the right.... However the TOE is 0.4 on all 4 wheels... Any advise? or shall try another shop???

Any luck?

Right, I see. Can you share your offset please and whatever is written on the actual wheel when you get a chance? Thank you!

Thank you very much.

It's a pity about standard wheels though... probably the actual wheel design then, With some aftermarket wheel they will fit with 16 inch for sure.

This might be the problem I have!!! http://rennlist.com/forums/944-turbo-and-turbo-s-forum/292100-steering-wheel-won-t-return-to-center.html Please someone upload the tracking printout for me or just write the text of what should be set for me, as I want to have a reference of the car which handles good.

Is anyone tested them? cause it's a fake copy isn't it not original calipers? Are they need good in terms of reliability? Where can I source the rear calipers, as mine needs replacing really or rebuild, but I would rather replace and get a spare set.

ok thank you. Why won't that clear under 16? it's under 300 mm, I've seen a guy who has ford Fiesta and his brother put the brakes from Mondeo V6, 300mm to 15 inch FIESTA. I've seen it with my own eyes -) Can you show me the pics of how the late classics looks like? The price is pretty good, however I need all 4 ideally and was not after the brand new...

Is that the whole lot included, calipers, pads, discs for both rear and front? Is there an advert somewhere or pics?

4 POT brakes 294 mm (NOT brembo) + matching 2 POT rear calipers, ideally with discs to match and in good condition, ideally painted. Some SF5/Impreza sensors - part numbers can be provided. Middle section glovebox - above the stereo Driver's side wind deflector

What other parts for SF5 have you got? I'm after quite a few bits, sensors in particular -) Have you got the 4 POT brakes 294mm? Please PM if you want to.

NO worries mate!

I check my tyre pressure every week -) it's always spot on. I can feel a bit of understeer which wasn't the case before, the rear seems to be very soft (I probably need to replace the antiroll bar, not sure which one I would need though?) The steering is not as responsive as before, a lot stiffer. When I turn the steering wheel it won't come back to the centre line 100% on it's own on slow speeds, if there is a pot hole or uneven surface the car pulls towards the side of the road instead of going straight (it used to be similar before but now it pulls a lot harder). Basically the steering rack? pump? it is sort of not doing its job properly, but all this happened after I had replaced the bushes, drop links (the whole suspension apart form the shocks/springs), also I replaced the track rod ends (the old ones were OK, but was advised to do that as well), also steering rack ends (1 was slightly bent when I bought the car), http://importcarparts.co.uk/parts-info.asp?id=1872 Then the tracking was done for 99 forester and even checked later on. On the straight road the car does NOT pull to the side the steering wheel is straight, however if there is uneven surface instead of going straight with a slight pull to the side (as it used to be) the car pulls a lot harder to the side. The mechanic says that the issue has nothing to do with tracking, however I'm trying to understand why this happened after all the repairs? May be the new track rod ends a lot stiffer, thus putting more pressure on the power steering pump (or steering rack)? I would also want to see the print out of the other cars, so I could compare to mine and show it to the mechanic if needed! I have replaced the power steering fluid (thank you Stants for your manual) 4 times now (wanted to flush 100%), after about 3-5 weeks the fluid gets darker, but not black, is that normal? I could probably make a video of my steering behaviour if needed -) So at the moment, I have an unknown sensor error 25 code (speed signal) for the gearbox, steering issues, leaking up-pipe and occasional loss of power - so when I have a heavy foot nothing happens or there is a very little acceleration for some time, but this is totally random, just like my error code. So the car might work like a dream for a week or so, then I get an error code which might be for a few days then it will clear itself and the car will drive normal again for some time...

Sounds like very reliable cars.... I just can't figure out what is wrong with my car -(((

OK in terms of handling I could agree, but that's again strange after the overhaul it handles worse? How about the steering wheel not getting back to it's centre position 100% ? Bad steering rack? bad Power Steering pump? I was asking for tracking just to have some kind of reference. And yes ALL the parts I have ordered from my forester are from Impreza...

Since we have so many experienced guys here, what sensors did you have to replace during the ownership of an impreza/foresters? I suppose MAF is the biggest issue, but what else?

Hi All, I have a forester, but I feel like my car has a lot from Impreza, since I had the tracking done recently with all the new bushes/drop links/track rod ends installed and the car is actually handles worse than before the suspension overhaul... My JDM 1997 Forester wasn't available (of course) and the 1999 Forester data was used as a reference. I wonder if it had to be an impreza STI instead for the reference??? I don't do track days, so all I need is a good tracking the way it used to be done before for the daily driver and a bit of off-road even -) Also I've noticed that there is some kind of a problem with the steering - even though the car drives straight on the road and doesn't pull left or right, however the steering wheel doesn't centre itself 100% anymore and the actual feel is way harder than it used to be. It's only goes about 85-90% so I have to do the rest by hand... Can anyone advise? Thx a lot!

How about the EGR? Any idea which Impreza/Forester have an EGR? (starting from what year?)