Tony,
Sorry, can't make the Midlands meet. The wife is a carer for the elderly and is currently working most weekends as cover to her colleagues away on their hols or on sick leave.....therefore I'll be stuck at home with the kids most weekends for the foreseeable future.
Phil H,
Thanks for the info on Lancaster Subaru and Bell & Colville. Neither are too far from me and if they offer a courtesy car that would be even better.
Phil (& Belha),
My car is a legit Brit spec car so no worries about upsetting the Subaru dealers. David Hendry Cars look promising and not too far from me down here in Wiltshire.
Can you recommend somewhere I can get a set of service manuals? Or is like everything else SVX.......costs a bomb but you can't get them anyway!!!
Joe,
You've just confirmed something I had a feeling about after four months SVX ownership and reading this forum......that engine-wise the SVX is very well engineered the only real achilles heel is in the transmission/drivetrain area. But with regular servicing and plenty of preventative maintenance even this area can give years of trouble free mileage. My SVX has got 97000 on the clock but came with a fully stamped service book. Of all the ones I looked at my one had the highest mileage but drove better and looked in better nick than any of the others......it just felt 'tight and right'. To continue its thorough servicing history I want to find someone who 'knows' these cars to do most of the oily stuff but I don't necessarily want to pay main dealer labour prices.
BTW I spoke to Len at Subaru4You at
http://www.subaru4you.co.uk/menu.htm They're based in Berkshire and work on all Subaru types and use ex-main dealer personnel. I can't use them for servicing yet as they are not VAT registered which is a necessity to keep my 2-yr warranty valid but I may give them a spin on some other job soon. Len seemed very enthusiastic over the phone.
I was also recommended to use Protechnical in Bristol
http://www.protech-uk.co.uk/ by a local importer as they have a good knowledge of Subaru's. This was borne out when I rang them, they seemed well clued up on the foibles of our gearboxes and recommended not only a tranny cooler but a magnetised filter to collect any metallic filings from going back into the 'box. But as soon as I said it was a '97 SVX he piped in that mine probably already had a tranny filter.......so I think they do know a fair amount about our boxes. Again, they came across as very enthusiastic and knowledgeable plus can supply a courtesy car for any overnight jobs.
Keep the contacts coming in.
Cheers
Glenn - The Monzta
