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Not too many since I do mechanical and not body work. (Body work is way to artistic in nature for me) Beyond not looking nice, fortunately its not a problem from the mechanical point of view. The body shops that I am familiar with do have some rubber filling agents that can be used to hide some damage but almost all of them prefer to simply replace the bumper cover. If its low enough, lightly sanding it to smooth it out and then paint it with...

Did not check anything other than to see if the throttle plate was opened. It was not. Could the idle air control allow the engine to idle at 5000 though without the throttle plate being open at all. It's been cold here in PA and maybe get a chance to check the IAC tomorro.

we did the links. still rattles. bushings look ok but we will do those next. front is quieter now. links were loose in front but seemed ok in rear.

I just got my 2004 Subaru Forester back from the dealer where I purchased a set of P215/60R16 (T speed rating) Pirelli P4 All Season tires, subject of another thread on this forum that helped me decide to buy new tires. The reason I purchased from the dealer was the price, yes lowest price. I got the set out the door for $419.19 including even the 7% NJ sales tax. I figured, correctly, that the dealer is selling tires at low profit to get the...

If you have the 6 cylinder engine, you are damaging the engine at 5000 rpm. That speed is enough to loosen bearings - never mind that the red line is a bit higher. Air is getting into the intake manifold somewhere. Are you sure that the vacuum hose for the power brake is connected? Maybe the IACS (idle air control) is wide open. On that engine, it typically runs at 1000 rpm on start-up and tapers back to 700 rpm within a minute. If there are...

Altho the car is garaged most of the time the seals could, of course, be deteriorated. After all the heap is 14 years old. However, the same problem occurs simultaneously with both the inside door lock/unlock button as well as with the remote on the key ring. To open the trunk, for example, I run thru the combination 3-4-9-4-5 then hit 5 again and the trunk opens every time. If within 5 seconds I hit 7 the remaining doors open every time....

I know this thread has been here for so long but I got some nice ideas here. My friend has a problem with his alternator and i'll bet we'll follow the suggestions mentioned here.

I screwed up and scraped the bottom portion of my front bumper, in front of the wheel, against a concrete step. The area is about 6" long and about 3" high. Image rough concrete scraping the plastic.....removing part and gouging the plastic. I've spot sprayed damage before, but uncertain how to smooth out the scrape. Any ideas? I'd like to avoid body putty....just smooth it out.

*My reason for posting: If I replace the tires for the above reason am I being foolish, or wasteful given the description I provide on the existing tires? I know I'd feel better going down the highway for 12 hours a day with new tires on the car.* It's never foolish to be safe. There's really no such thing as 'too soon to replace tires'. There is such a thing as too late. Though imo your tires sound like they'd go...

Worn tires, existing slow leak, live in NJ, winter weather coming, long family trip coming up, why even ask. Safety and peace of mind should come first.