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bigboy292000

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    2011 Legacy 2.5 Premium

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  1. FWIW: our 2011 Legacy just got totaled 4 weeks ago (with about 124K on the clock) but - I will just say that having extended warranty on it was totally worth it. I had variety of issues taken care on the Legacy under the warranty and I saw issues with CVT in my future (CVT issues on that generation were not uncommon). During summer months when AC is running, the Legacy would many times threaten to die when idling at stop lights or switching gear from P to D etc. (and yes, I got the software update for idling issues when AC is running about 2 years ago which made it a little better). Additionally, I know my AC compressor was having issues as it was quite loud making strange noises at times. My wife really wants to get the Outback now. I am not so hot on the idea but it is her car so ultimately, she will get what she wants. But if we do get the Outback, I am absolutely getting extended warranty for it (and will resist the finance guy pressure tactics but will get it from a different dealer after the fact). Our two other cars are Hondas and I will say I am very unimpressed with Subaru long-term reliability.
  2. I wanted to provide a final update on my air mode actuator replacement saga: When I originally bought both driver side actuators (my legacy does not have a passenger side unit as it does not have separate climate control) I took apart the upper (mode door) actuator. I wanted to see how it looked on the inside before installing it. What I did not anticipate is the part basically falling to pieces as soon as I opened it, with cogs and everything falling out. I then put it together how I thought it should go but as I said in my previous post, it did not look like it worked right. I bought a second copy of the upper actuator and yesterday, I took out the lower actuator (heat) to gain space and then took off the upper actuator again. Then I lubricated the "channels" on the new part with quite a bit of dry Teflon lubricant. Then I took a bit more time to try understand the positions of "pins" as they go into channels... Going back to 2 weeks ago: I went to Subaru dealer and spoke to a tech about installation of this. He said that I do not need to worry about the position of pins; as long as the part was lubricated and installed correctly (pins were in their right channels, no matter the exact position) - the part would sort itself out and move the pins in their correct locations when car was turned on and you cycle though all positions (air up, down, both, defrost etc.) And finally - success! I was able to fiddle with pins and put them in about mid position and then placed the upper actuator on. The evidence of it all being aligned properly was that this time, I was able to drive in the last (top) screw (you have to do it blindly if you are doing it from below, I used a magnetic stubby screwdriver). Put the bottom actuator back on, connected the body integrated unit loosely and tested - all is working great! Funny thing is - all this took under 1 1/2 hours yesterday as I did it before, LOL. But anyway, this is now fixed.
  3. Well, Today I managed to replace both of those, from the bottom (no taking dash out). The key to the top screw was a #2 stubby screwdriver. I took off the lower actuator first (that's the one for heating) and then it was easier to remove the top one also as screws were a bit more obvious (the top one had to be done by feel). I am not 100% certain that I managed to align all the pins into the grooves on the new top actuator; I tested it and tested it and it seems to be working but it bugs me that it might not be totally right; I dunno if the bottom (air on the feet) is working correctly (but this is not my car so I am not very familiar how airflow worked in it before when the actuator was still working properly). I could not get the top screw in for the top actuator again LOL so right now it is held by only two screws, but it seems to be holding and is secure enough. After a ton of searching, I was unable to find out any information on how the 3 pins should be positioned when the actuator is installed, so they all sit in their proper channels?
  4. Hmmm... what I just realized is that looking at the illustration, it seems like the "mode door actuator" illustrated is the one that is marked as #2 in my attachment... and it is one that is above the part #7 in my illustration so that would indicate that yes, in fact, both of those can be replaced from below using the same process?
  5. Does anyone know if the air mix door actuator can also be replaced using the same instructions, or the dash has to come out? Mode door actuator is below (7) and air mix is above (2).
  6. Brilliant, thanks!! Curious - I am thinking it would be safe to have the A-pillar clips ready at least as they might break / deform as you take off the trim; any clips / plastic fasteners that broke for you during the process? Good idea on sound material; I would take this opportunity to tighten whatever I find beck there as there ate at least two rattles that have been going on for a while.
  7. I have two air actuators that have either died or are dying; the blend door actuator is totally dead. The driver side actuator is still making clicking noises all the time, but more and more, it also just goes quiet. I am talking about this problem: Sound inside dash when I turn off the car. Now - Subaru of course wants ~$2000 for the work. But I think I can do this by myself, but it is unclear to me if the dash can be taken out without taking off the steering wheel / steering column on the 5th gen Legacy? The shop manual indicates that the steering column needs to come out, but the following video (which shows an Outback) seems to indicate that this can be done without taking the steering wheel off: Has anyone done this? That actuator right there in the middle on the top is the one that is dead (blend door) and without it, defrost will not work, air mode cannot be changed... PITA!
  8. Okay - problem solved. What you need is Subaru part 57530AJ00A. Then: Take the trunk internal trim off (pop off plastic holders by slightly popping out the middle and then pulling the whole thing out) - you might want to leave the middle one in just for stability. Take out the trunk handle by prying out the side that is closer to the front of the car (side away from you when you have the trunk lid open). Take the trunk trim off. Unplug the electrical harness to the latch. Unscrew two 10mm bolts that hold the latch assembly. Now you can navigate the latch out and observe that there is a cable with a ball on the end that needs to be taken out and put into the new latch. To do that, you can use a small screwdriver to navigate the cable out of the notch inside and then open the latch mechanism to be able to remove the cable. The latch mechanism has a cover that kind of pivots; to pivot it, see this photo. The red arrow shows the metal bump that extends through the black plastic (that plastic is the cover that pivots). All that you have to do is push the cover over that bump in the directions of green arrows. Once that is done (you almost feel like you'll need 3 hands for this but I did it by myself OK) then it is a matter of guiding the cable out of the old latch, putting the cable into the notch in the mechanism and wedging the cable secure, closing the latch mechanism back up and then screwing it back onto the trunk lid. Torque (if you care): 7.5 (0.76, 5.5) N·m (kgf-m, ft-lb) MAKE SURE TO PLUG IN THE ELECTRICAL HARNESS BEFORE TESTING THIS. Then put it all back together and that's it.
  9. That right there might be the reason why this is a problem. About two months ago, we found the emergency handle thing in the trunk. It never fit right again; and I think it is because of the wire that held it in place. I’m going to get the new latch mechanism and replace it, as it is all together. Will report back! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
  10. Thank you! Yeah, tried lubricating and no help (in fact I think it is worse now, LOL). I tried the button in the glove compartment; but that is really only for making the inside button not open the trunk, right? Anyway - it seem to have made no difference at all. Definitely nothing is in the way of closing.
  11. Wife came from a store and the trunk does not want to close. You drop it down and it just bounces back. It’ll close maybe once in 10 tries. I checked the mechanism on the trunk lid side and it appears to move freely. If I “lock it” while opened, it properly unlocks with a button or remote but then just would not close? Do I need to replace the lid side trunk latch mechanism? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
  12. Yes! All fixed. Wife and daughter (both around 110-120 lb) confirmed that since the repair, the airbag behaves as it should, no intermittent turning off. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
  13. Just for others who might run into this in the future: We took the car to a different dealer who took more time to try diagnose the problem. In the end, they too said to replace the seat bottom. Ended up having them do it; if one does a DIY replacement of this, you still need to take it to the dealer to do what’s called ODS rezeroing- essentially factory calibration after the new part is installed. $1350 all said and done. Could be worse, I guess. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
  14. My wife just returned the 2020 Outback loaner we had while her 2011 Legacy was at the dealer for about 2 weeks. She liked the utility of it and noticeably better lights than the candles that Subaru calls lights in her Legacy. She kind of hated the media unit; CarPlay was less reliable than in the aftermarket pioneer unit I installed in her Legacy. Driver monitoring was annoying her at times too and can’t be permanently turned off it seems. I can’t believe that the engine on the 2020 still vibrates as much as it does when in park. Meh. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
  15. Nice! I think it's really time you polish those headlights; they seem to be quite oxidized, just like mine were. That will definitely cause some of the light not to make it to the road.
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