New Beater

In reply to MrChaos:

What sort?

RoughandReady wrote:

GameboyRMH wrote: I haven't driven a Subaru with a cable clutch but I don't think there's anything inherently wrong with cable clutches, my Samurai has one and it works great. It's much simpler than a hydraulic clutch.

Maybe it just needs to be adjusted. Feel is hard to describe. I would say it feels "segmented," like the clutch is an on/off switch. I have to lift my foot out pretty far to get the clutch to engage (impending clutch doom?) and when it engages it doesn't ease on as I lift my foot, it just grabs all at once. Feels very different than the other manual trans beaters I've had, where the clutch begins to engage right as you bring the pedal up and it comes on smoothly.

Yeah it could be just out of adjustment...when I first brought home my 'rolla it was like that.

Here's a tip for removing the window sticker: Let it soak in a citrus cleaner like De-Solv-It or Goo Gone first and then it will scrape off fairly easily. I once had a windshield number sticker that was stuck on better than paint, that's what got it off.

RoughandReady wrote: In reply to MrChaos: What sort?

It seems the only thing on CL here that isnt clapped out is a F250/350, Chevy 3500, gas dodge truck, or a work van in that $1500 price range.

In reply to MrChaos:

Even those can be had in better condition for less money an hour south in SC. My favorite thing about the AVL CL is the wide selection of $1500, 20 year old cars with blown transmissions. I'd been trying to get into another Volvo 240 since I sold my last one. The only one I could find was a 1980, was $2k, had a myriad of electircal problems, no heater, and K-jet.

RoughandReady wrote: In reply to MrChaos: Even those can be had in better condition for less money an hour south in SC. My favorite thing about the AVL CL is the wide selection of $1500, 20 year old cars with blown transmissions. I'd been trying to get into another Volvo 240 since I sold my last one. The only one I could find was a 1980, was $2k, had a myriad of electircal problems, no heater, and K-jet.

Any yet my MJ has been for sale for like 2 months and almost no interest and 1 scammer.

In reply to MrChaos:

It took me more than 2 months to sell my Camry, and it might have been the best car on CL under $1500. Everything worked, everything. I put 3500 miles on it and drove it to Raleigh and back without an issue. Yet, every time someone would call me about it, they'd ask the mileage (250k) and that was it, no interest. Ended up selling for 1200 and only making about $100 on what I was sure was a great flip.

What's an MJ? That's what really puzzles me about the Asheville car market. It would be one thing if people were buying the cars at those prices, that would make sense. The market would determine the price. But people aren't buying them. I see the same overpriced cars for months and months, there's a couple on there that have been reposted over and over for more than a year. There was a high mile Crown Vic I was watching. It was 1500 forever, then dropped to 1300 for while. I thought I could maybe get it for 11 or 12. When I talked to the guy, he didn't sell it at 1300 so decided to bump the price back up to 15. How does that make any sense?

So yeah, I wish I knew the brightest minds in economics. They could tell me how grossly inflated prices come from nowhere, double the prices of the surrounding region, and why those prices would exist when they aren't supported by consumers.

I got lucky and picked up a '97 Outback Wagon 5 speed for CHEAP a couple years back. It's the nicest car I've ever owned and the A/C works, so I've been using it in the summer, only.

This past year, I got a deal on a pre-crashed '94 (I guess) legacy wagon (auto ). I am just hoping we'll get lots of snow yet this winter!

Because Driving in the snow in a $150 AWD beater is way more fun than most other driving in the snow.

Anyway...I've decided that I'll probably want to have a Subaru in my life for the foreseeable future.

RoughandReady wrote: Okay, questions for the experts. - '02 RS = WRX without a turbo? - Same struts/springs as a WRX? - Will the brake calipers be a bolt-on swap? Or do I need the RS hubs/rotors. - Adapter kit available for RX-7 4 pots? (There's a couple at the junkyard. If I've got to buy adapters, I figure I might as well 4 pot)

Yes, with a few exceptions. Different motor entirely. Different transmission gearing. RS has smaller front brake rotors than WRX. Calipers are the same though.

Your car has like 80whp... why do you need a brake upgrade exactly?

RoughandReady wrote: What's an MJ?

Jeep Comanche aka the XJ pick up

ProDarwin wrote:

RoughandReady wrote: Okay, questions for the experts. - '02 RS = WRX without a turbo? - Same struts/springs as a WRX? - Will the brake calipers be a bolt-on swap? Or do I need the RS hubs/rotors. - Adapter kit available for RX-7 4 pots? (There's a couple at the junkyard. If I've got to buy adapters, I figure I might as well 4 pot)

Yes, with a few exceptions. Different motor entirely. Different transmission gearing. RS has smaller front brake rotors than WRX. Calipers are the same though. Your car has like 80whp... why do you need a brake upgrade exactly?

Don't need, just want. I drive too fast always. Upgrading the suspension is more important to me at this point. I'm just trying to figure everything out. Subarus have almost too many interchangeable parts and it's a little confusing for a newcomer to the brand.

Plus its fun to just wrench on something and give it some upgrades, especially if it's an old beater and one can get parts cheap. Why does anyone have a 300 hp car? It's fun. Why would anyone install non-stock parts? It's fun.

Plus plus, when your suspension and brakes have 350k + miles and you have to replace them anyway, it's the same labor to just install better parts.

I see no flaw in my fun-oriented reasoning. haha.

You're right though, 4 pot is going to be overkill for the car and my pocket book. Stock RS calipers seem to offer improved stoppage and are a fair bit cheaper than any 4 pot. I'm hoping I can find an RS or WRX owner who decided to upgrade from their stock suspension and brakes.

RoughandReady wrote:

ebonyandivory wrote: I wanna do that! But I'm too scared.

By that I meant buy an old beater Subaru and go to town on it!

ebonyandivory wrote:

RoughandReady wrote:

ebonyandivory wrote: I wanna do that! But I'm too scared.

By that I meant buy an old beater Subaru and go to town on it!

Do ettttt

MrChaos wrote:

RoughandReady wrote: What's an MJ?

Jeep Comanche aka the XJ pick up

Those are awesome.

In reply to RoughandReady:

I've been going nuts trying to figure the best path for me to take as I need to ditch the too big yet to small F150. I need a smallish beater for ~$2,500 and thought a beater Subaru might be the ticket. But I need anvil reliability as I'm ditching the truck for that reason (plus gas mileage).

Sorry if I hijacked your thread!

In reply to RoughandReady:

Gutsy buy at 350K,good body.Looking forward to build thread. Also, what's going on with the Falcon? Nice!

In reply to ebonyandivory:

It's not a hijack. Personally, when I'm beater shopping, I'm not trying to spend 2500. That'll buy a pretty nice car. haha. I'm leaning toward half that.

The Subaru seems to offer a lot of choices for OEM upgrades and aftermarket parts. I've only wrenched on a few, but they're easy to work on. From what I've seen (a lot of folks I know have had Subarus over the years), the H6 and 2.5 aren't as reliable as the 2.2.

Something else I considered was a Volvo 850, or a V70 if you need AWD. If you could find a T5, 5 speed, AWD, that would be sick. Whiteblock Volvos are kind of weird, you either get a good one or a bad one.

Is that a Brighton? I really miss mine. Was a really fun stock class rallycrosser.

In reply to eastsidemav:

No clue. Doesn't have a trim badge.

RoughandReady wrote: In reply to eastsidemav: No clue. Doesn't have a trim badge.

I didn't see a roof rack, so I kind of assumed it was. But it's got a rear wiper. If it's missing a tach, and has manual locks and windows, it's probably a Brighton.

ScreaminE wrote: In reply to mndsm: Very much so. Asheville has a metric crap ton of Subys. And not the good kind. The Birkenstock, harry armpits, Impeach Bush bumper sticker kind.

Hairy armpitted women or men? If you're a man and you shave your pits well....thats the opposite of manly nor is it hippie. I recall someone getting a blanket party in basic training for shaving their pits. Don't piss off the latrine queen.

Nice score on the ride though. Good luck with all of the future modifications should be a fun beater.

In reply to eastsidemav:

It's got a tach, pw, pl, and rear discs. I think it's an L. I'd rather have the manual interior stuff, though.

In reply to RoughandReady:

Cool. I'm sure its not hard to swap that stuff if you find a Brighton in a junkyard. I did an upgrade or two off of outbacks I found in the junkyard fairly easily, going the other way should be a cinch.

In reply to eastsidemav:

I'll definitely be junkyard hunting. I really want some cloth seats with cheesy 90s graphic patterns, so I bet I'll need to find a base model for that. haha.

To all EJ22 owners: I've run rotella and delo 15w40 in a lot of my older high mile beaters. My buddy has been telling me that a more modern engine (Than a Volvo redblock or Datsun sixer) has too tight of tolerances for heavy weight oil. Is this the case for the EJ22, or is it not "modern" enough? I'm thinking it'll be fine. The only engines I've rebuilt with these super tight clearances are super late model Chrysler v6s and v8s.

Subarus love 40 weight oils, helps with all the leaks and rattles.

In reply to RoughandReady:

there is a pick and pull in marion that has a website with a list of vehicles it has in the lot. Rusty's Pic a Part never been but it is the closest. it also has a price list on the site.

In reply to MrChaos:

I go every Monday. haha.