Niggly Annoying Stuff

Hello All!

As I promised in my introduction here are some of the small but annoying problems I'm having with my SVX that I would like to try to fix myself. (The service people at Subaru in Edmonton are very professional, knowledgeable and thorough, but they are also very expensive). Now I know these questions must have come up a hundred times in this forum, but be gentle with me - I'm new.

In no order of importance:

1. Moisture in the front fascia (air inlet thingy between the headlights) and rear taillights
2. floppy sunvisor
3. loose rearview mirror
4. paint doesn't want to stay on the centre-line caps
5. usefulness of a K&N filter ?

Here are some other things wrong with the car which I'm sure I'll have to trust to my mechanic, if necessary - any advice is appreciated.

1. noisy/thrashy engine at high Velocity and high rpm
2. Thumping from rear end seemingly at random

- Thanks heaps, Suheel

[Earthworm]

Your first 5 points have been extensively covered, I'm sure, in previous posts.

2. Thumping from rear end seemingly at random

That would likely be the rear differential mount(s). Most noticibly under higher acceleration especially from a stop or whenever the AWD would need to be used.

[NomadTW]

i agree every question has been covered in detail
i have floppy sunvisors, there are bent coathangers put into the headliner trim and over the visor to hold it up on my car, i don't have the mirror problem
i have the tail light problem, right now i'm just living w/ it, but that means that the seals are bad, it's common, ppl recomend not driving w/ your lights on, so that the air inside doesn't heat up, and suck in moisture when they air contracts

[Mr. Pockets]

Originally posted by NomadTW
i agree every question has been covered in detail
i have floppy sunvisors, there are bent coathangers put into the headliner trim and over the visor to hold it up on my car, i don't have the mirror problem
i have the tail light problem, right now i'm just living w/ it, but that means that the seals are bad, it's common, ppl recomend not driving w/ your lights on, so that the air inside doesn't heat up, and suck in moisture when they air contracts

I would recommend replacing the seals or otherwise dealing with the moisture rather than just not turning your lights on. I realize that you're not condoning driving without lights at night, but driving with your lights on during the day makes you much more visible. This is especially true with the SVX's lights, which are so nice and bright.

Anyway, others have drilled small holes in the bottoms of the light pods to let moisture drain out. Is that a good idea? I don't know. I'd go for replacing the seals.

[BluebyU]

quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by NomadTW
i agree every question has been covered in detail
i have floppy sunvisors, there are bent coathangers put into the headliner trim and over the visor to hold it up on my car, i don't have the mirror problem
i have the tail light problem, right now i'm just living w/ it, but that means that the seals are bad, it's common, ppl recomend not driving w/ your lights on, so that the air inside doesn't heat up, and suck in moisture when they air contracts


I had the condensation problem in the tail lights on my 92. I took them off of the car, and used a hair dryer to dry up the moisture. I also bought brand new gaskets and after I installed them on the car, I put a small line of clear silicone along the area where the light assembly meets the body of the car. I NEVER experienced the problem again.

[Phast SVX]

as far as the centercaps not wanting to stay painted, sand them down with a few diff grrits, gradualy getting finer. The apploy MANY coats of VERY light spray paint. sand with very very high grit very lighttly so that it has a nice texture
phil

Thanks Phil for the good advice. Any idea which brand has a good color match?

- Suheel

[Ron Mummert]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Suheel
Thanks Phil for the good advice. Any idea which brand has a good color match?

- Suheel [/QUOTE


I just took a hub into Pep Boys, & tried to match it to a cap on the Dupli-Color rack. The winner - a silver from GM. Close enough.

Ron (Color blinded by science).

[SubaSteevo]

with the rear view mirror problem. I searched but can't find a way to fix it anywhere (right now i have a piece of wire holding it in place). Anyone know how to fix this?

For the other problems-
Condensation fix: Take off the tailights, take out the bulbs, use a hair dryer to dry out the moisture, then swap the gaskets from l to r. For the front fascia you'd need to take it apart because there are no holes in the back or you could make holes (I painted mine).
Visor: Use a coat hanger or velcro to hold it up (or buy a new one for $100+)
K&N: Takes in hot air (loss of hp), shoots its juice onto your MAF(many weird problems)

Originally posted by Suheel

Here are some other things wrong with the car which I'm sure I'll have to trust to my mechanic, if necessary - any advice is appreciated.

1. noisy/thrashy engine at high Velocity and high rpm

This post is a bit old, but hopefully you wont mind me chiming in. #1 was an issue with my SVX until it had a spark plug change and a throttle body cleaning. I don't recall which seemed to take care of the problem since it was a while ago. But hopefully that will help you.

[huck369]

Originally posted by BurgundyBeast

K&N: Takes in hot air (loss of hp), shoots its juice onto your MAF(many weird problems)

Not if you get a drop in K&N, then it still pulls the cool outside air in.

[Landshark]

Originally posted by huck369


Not if you get a drop in K&N, then it still pulls the cool outside air in.

...and a bunch of dust, too.