[2.5x_sleeper]

I'm not sure why they go in there, as they die from either the heat or lack of food? :icon_eek:

Bobby...

The Table of Contents for Alex's Member Journal can be found :icon_arrow: here. (post #2)

 

[Wessneroo]

An arachnid expert should look into this. Perhaps these spiders have Japanese origin and are entering the taillights during manufacturing? I see a TSB here. :biggrin:

 

[2.5x_sleeper]

Looked like a home grown spider to us.

Very annoying to upgrade to '08 Sports tail lights to have a spider craw in there, crap, then die.

Bobby...

The Table of Contents for Alex's Member Journal can be found :icon_arrow: here. (post #2)

 

[Wessneroo]

I understand. A bug crawled into my 1998 Explorer's gauge cluster housing, laid eggs, crapped everywhere, and died... There was no way of sucking that mess out.

 

[hockeyrox_42]

Hi i was wondering where you bought your dust deflector... i have an 07fxt and i want to remove the spoiler and replace it. Also i was wondering if it was a direct swap. Thanks for your time...

 

[2.5x_sleeper]

I see this is your first forum post, so welcome to the forum from another Oregon member! :biggrin:

The dust defector isn't a direct replacement for the spoiler. You would have four 1/4" holes to deal with. :icon_eek:

I don't think the dust defector is even available anymore? I'd recommend calling Jackie, SubaruPartsGirl here on the forum. She's a parts wiz & a forum supporting vender. Her direct number at Annapolis Subaru is (866) 509-3019. :wink:

Bobby...

The Table of Contents for Alex's Member Journal can be found :icon_arrow: here. (post #2)

 

[dwmoss]

The rear hatch lifters were getting weak. They needed some help to open fully when it was cool outside. Alex wanted this as one of his Birthday presents... very wise, since they're nearly $50 each! :icon_eek:

This is one of those jobs that requires a second person. You need a helper to hold up the hatch while the lifter is being removed & being installed. That rear hatch is much heavier than it looks! :icon_eek:

I get my Subaru parts from Jackie, SubaruPartsGirl, a supporting vendor here on the forum. Her direct number at Annapolis Subaru is (866) 509-3019. :wink:

Bobby...

Subaru part description & part number:

• STAY ASSY R G LH - 63269SA011
• STAY ASSY R G RH - 63269SA001

Note that the ball isn't installed into the socket. It's shipped this way so the ball can be screwed into the body first, then the lifter arm is snapped on.​

The upper picture shows the tail light being removed. The tail light needs to be removed to access the lifter ball joint, which is screwed into the body behind the tail light. After removing the two 10mm bolts on the tail light, use a piece of cloth & a plastic pry bar to release the 3 retaining pins. The lower picture shows tail light held in place with masking tape & you can see the ball joint that needs to be removed.​

The upper picture shows the old ball joint being removed with an open end wrench. The lower picture shows the upper mounting being removed. I need to note here that this job would be difficult without a helper holding up the hatch!​

The upper picture shows the upper mounting of the new lifter being installed. We coated the threads of the bolts & the ball joint with NO-OX-ID "A" rust preventive coating (grease). The lower picture shows the new ball joint being screwed in. Once the ball joint is screwed in, the socket on the lifter can be snapped on. If the socket on the lift arm doesn't line up with the ball, it can be turned with some effort.​

I didn't include any picture on how to reinstall the tail lights, but it's as simple as lining up the 3 retaining pins & pushing the tail light until they click in. Tighten the two 10mm bolts & you're done. One thing that might be a problem is the starting of the bolts, which have to be positioned correctly for the threads to catch. I find that the bottom bolt is more of a problem than the upper bolts. If the bolt isn't going in easily, back it off & try again, so as not to cross thread the bolts.

The Table of Contents for Alex's Member Journal can be found :icon_arrow: here. (post #2)

Great post, I'll be using this when I get around to fixing my weak hatch struts!!

 

[2.5x_sleeper]

Always good to know one of our write ups were of help!

Very easy 2 person job, but those lifters are expensive! :icon_eek:

Bobby...

The Table of Contents for Alex's Member Journal can be found :icon_arrow: here. (post #2)

 

[commbdown]

Excellent journal - well done.

One thing I noted was when you spoke about the turbo install....

I should note here that you want the rear hatch locked before you disconnect the battery, unless you want it left unlocked!

There is a little blank on the rear of the boot hatch (or trunk hatch for all you non-Brits) that you can remove, put your finger in and flick the lock over so you can lock the hatch when the battery isn't connected. Discovered it when I was replacing a battery and ended up with a flat battery and then a knackered battery and the one I wanted wasn't in stock!

 

[2.5x_sleeper]

Thank you for taking the time to look over our Member Journal & posting here.

That rear hatch manual release/lock is good for emergencies, but us fat guys prefer not to have to crawl back there! :icon_eek:

Bobby...

The Table of Contents for Alex's Member Journal can be found :icon_arrow: here. (post #2)

 

[commbdown]

I found on mine that you can set it with the boot open, so no scratching around

Cool car though - if I had a garage and the money it would be a great project for my X - I appreciate an XT would be easier but there is nothing quite like your first Forester :-D

Sent from my BlackBerry 9360 using Tapatalk

 

[2.5x_sleeper]

The '03 X was great fun to MOD! It was a great father & son project, which made it well worth the cost. :biggrin:

Yes, an XT is almost too easy. I have all the parts to add another 100 hp to my '07 FSXT, but there isn't a whole lot of challenge. Bolt on the parts, tune & you're done. :icon_eek:

Bobby...

The Table of Contents for Alex's Member Journal can be found :icon_arrow: here. (post #2)

 

[2.5x_sleeper]

RalliTEK HD front & rear endlinks!

I picked up a set of these for my '07 FSXT & decided this would also be a good upgrade for Alex's '03 X!

RalliTEK is closing out their stock, so now was a good time to get these before they're all gone!

Bobby...

These are sold in sets of 2. They're normally $69.95/F & $69.95/R. They're on sale for $39.95/F & $24.95/R!

The Table of Contents for Alex's Member Journal can be found ► here. (post #2)

['07 FSXT Member Journal] ['03 X Member Journal]

 

[2.5x_sleeper]

RalliTEK 4EAT transmission mount insert bushing.

RalliTEK is closing out their inventory, so this great deal won't last long!

Bobby...

RalliTEK "soft" polyurethane 4EAT transmission mount insert bushing normally $49.99, now on closeout for $9.99!

The Table of Contents for Alex's Member Journal can be found ► here. (post #2)

['07 FSXT Member Journal] ['03 X Member Journal]

 

[2.5x_sleeper]

Adding switches to the dash blanks - Part 1 - the fabrication.

It seem like I'm always adding what's installed in my Forester into Alex's Forester. I thought this would be a simple MOD, having just completed this MOD in my Forester, but it turned out to be much more difficult!

The plan is to do this write up in 2 parts.

• In Part 1 I'll go over the fabrication required to add rocker switches & LEDs in the dash lower blanks.
• In Part 2 I'll go over the wiring & testing of the lower blank switch MOD.

Bobby...

► NOTE - Unlike the one piece lower blank used in the '06-'08 Forester, the '03-'05 Forester has 2 lower blanks! The single piece lower blank is a soft plastic like the dash. The two piece lower blanks are a hard plastic & extend deeply into the dash.

The first step in the fabrication is to remove the excess length by cutting on the yellow lines shown on the picture below.

This picture shows the bottom of the lower blanks with extension cutoff. This step was pretty easy, compared to what comes next!

This picture shows how much of the plastic needs to be cut away from the top. There no easy way to do this. I used a small pair of side cutters & nibbled away until the pieces looked like this.

Now the templates made from a yellow Post-it sticky is stuck on the lower blanks. Once the position is correct, a scratch awl is used to mark thru the template onto the plastic.
I drilled a 1/16" hole, followed by 1/8", then a unibit to cut the 1/2" hole for the rocker switch. The LED holes are drilled to fit the LEDs, which can vary in width.

Version 1 - This picture shows how the lower blanks looked with the rocker switches & 3mm LEDs installed. The 3mm LEDs look too small on these blanks! I like the 3mm LEDs on the large lower blank on the '06-'08 Forester, but on these '03-'05 double blanks, they look too small.

Version 2 - This picture shows the rocker switches with 5mm LEDs + mounting bezels. We think this looks much better, more balanced than v1.

Related post:

• Adding switches to the dash blanks - Part 2 - the wiring & testing. (Post #283)

The Table of Contents for Alex's Member Journal can be found ► here. (post #2)

['07 FSXT Member Journal] ['03 X Member Journal]

 

[Guest]

Nice. I modified my switch blanks as well to accept an LED rocker switch for a subwoofer amplifier plus my SP3T horn switch setup. I like using a Dremel tool with the "dentist drill" bit. :icon_eek:

 

[2.5x_sleeper]

I MODded couple of the upper blanks on my '07 FSXT for my audio upgrade. It was a nightmare installing 3/4" round switches into those small blanks! You can view my write up here. :icon_eek:

Recently I needed more switches on my '07 FSXT, but I used up all the upper blanks, so turned to the large lower blank. That write up can be viewed here. There are links to the related posts on the bottom of that post. :wink:

Of course once Alex saw my switch MOD, he wanted more switches + the features I added in his Forester!

Bobby...

The Table of Contents for Alex's Member Journal can be found :icon_arrow: here. (post #2)

 

[commbdown]

I always try and use switches that require a round hole and ones with integrated LED's! So much easier - looks great though!

 

[Guest]

I MODded couple of the upper blanks on my '07 FSXT for my audio upgrade. It was a nightmare installing 3/4" round switches into those small blanks! You can view my write up here. :icon_eek:

I used the same kind of switches, 15 minutes and a Dremel tool with the dentist bit does the trick. I messed up on one of them when the bit spun out and scratched the showing surface. :icon_redface: Of course, your end result is much cleaner than mine, nobody got time for shrink wrap! I used hot glue like I use on speaker jacks on my custom cabinets.

 

[2.5x_sleeper]

I always try and use switches that require a round hole and ones with integrated LED's! So much easier - looks great though!

When I was searching switches for my project, I wanted square mini rocker switches. I thought I'd have to make square holes, but I found these Alcoswitch TDR series mini rocker switches which mount in a round 1/2" hole!

I like the ease of having a switch with a LED built in, but the LEDs can fail. I had that happen on one of the switches I installed in my '07 FSXT. The switch works, but the LED is dead. I had to order a new switch. :frown:

Bobby...

The Table of Contents for Alex's Member Journal can be found :icon_arrow: here. (post #2)