I Bought a Broken Subaru for $1k - Here's What i Found

Comments · 507

• WI

  @wittwittwer1043 · 6 months ago

  I would have pulled the top radiator hose to give myself better access working from the top. I'm a former Caterpillar mech from the mid '70s--early '80s. I'm 82 and in poor health so I can't do that anymore, even though I still have all the tools. I enjoy watching videos like yours; they bring back some fond memories.

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• JC

  @jcnikoley · 6 months ago

  Subaru does not use a paper gasket for the water pump on the 2011 outback. It’s metal. If you removed the “old” water pump and found a paper gasket, you had aftermarket junk, and that is why you had an issue.

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• TJ

  @Tjbulli1 · 6 months ago

  Little advice from someone who’s done plenty of Subaru timing belts: pull the radiator, it makes life much easier. Also if your impact gun won’t budge that crank bolt put a breaker bar on it, have the handle snugly sitting on the frame and bump the starter. Works EVERY time 👍🏻

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• GL

  @glennshale7663 · 6 months ago

  Whoever  changed the timing belt last time,  cheaped out and just did belt and idlers! They should have done the whole replacement! You did the whole job

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• BA

  @BarbasDeMolho_BR · 6 months ago (edited)

  take care with those hoodie’s strings hanging…😮

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• JE

  @jeffreychristopher5953 · 3 months ago

  Wouldn't that water pump job have been a lot easier if you took the time to remove the radiator first ?

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• SI

  @SIE44TAR · 1 month ago

  I just bought my first Subaru, a 2013 Legacy with 225,000 miles and the FB25 engine. Paid $1200 and put in 30 hours repairing/replacing a long list of minor and moderate things- among them the coolant temp sensor, thermostat, radiator, TCC lockout solenoid, exhaust leak at rear muffler, new valve cover gaskets and spark plug tube gaskets, spark plugs, CVT fluid, oil change, filters. The general cleanup of the intake plenum, throttle plate, TGV assembly, and EGR tube took probably the most time as it looked like it had never been done. The body and interior look great after detailing, and for under $2000 I now have a solid, well-running car. Now I want another one!

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• BR

  @bryede · 1 month ago

  A few things....<br>-Blocking the flex plate (through the rubber cover in the bell) is the easy way to remove/install the crank pulley.<br>-Take the stupid radiator fans out. It takes 2 minutes and gets you several inches.<br>-Removing the bottom &apos;orange&apos; pulley is the right way. but you need to move all the belt slack to the bottom by putting some torque on the cam pulleys while using document clips to hold the belt on the cams.<br>-USE ATF for the steering, NOT the clear steering fluid. Looks like someone mixed them, and it looks like you put the wrong stuff back in.<br>-That&apos;s actually not the right CVT fluid. The 2011 TR690 transmission uses the CVT-HT fluid. The CVT-II fluid is for the TR580. Amsoil CVT is a suitable substitute.

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• DO

  @Doug-u5y · 6 hours ago

  I &nbsp;👀 &nbsp;it... 😂, brother u make a great auto shop instructor, I wooda been a retired shop manger with no worries about the shop, &nbsp;cuz the crew wood be well instructed... U are &nbsp;a great mentor.. keep it up cuz I&apos;m watching 🫵😎 , &nbsp;😆😆😆😆😆😆😆😆😆

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• MP

  @mph5896 · 6 months ago

  Those are some of my favorite cars to work on, because they are so easy to wrench on. I can have the engine out in about 60-90 minutes.

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• DA

  @dadparker3569 · 6 months ago

  I used smoke to diagnose my car,too.<br>Turns out,the damn thing was on fire.

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• PR

  @prestonbear8981 · 6 months ago

  Couple things to help others do this. Take the extra 5 mins and pull the fans and top rad hose out. It is super easy and gives you so much more room. When installing timing belt, install tensioner with pin in before putting belt on, but leave the bottom passenger side idler out like you did. Rout belt on and lastly work it over the toothed idler. Then install the lower passenger idler. It&apos;s quite easy when doing this way. As far as the power steering whine goes, that pump was more than likely good. What happens is the o ring under the suction hose fails which then allows the pump to pull air into the system. A $3 o ring probably would have fixed your problem

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