So I took a look under my car today...

Fkyx · Post by **Fkyx** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 1:06 am

...there was a strange rattle coming from underneath, and I finally got it on a jack to look at it... Here's what I found:

Potentially dangerous, I would assume *nervous laugh*. I've been driving it for about two weeks thinking it was just the heatshield causing the rattle.

Anyone have any ideas for a DIY fix, or should I just bring it to a shop?

ciper · Post by **ciper** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 1:23 am

Why not just replace the bolt?

Murphy · Post by **Murphy** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 1:31 am

did the bolt just back itself out?

or was it .....MuRdEr!!

Fkyx · Post by **Fkyx** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 5:12 am

ciper wrote:Why not just replace the bolt?

That's what I meant. I don't know the size of the bolt, or what torque specs are required (if any).

Murphy wrote:did the bolt just back itself out?

or was it .....MuRdEr!!

Not sure. I don't even know how long it may have been like this, so I can't be sure if it was broken/sheared or if it just backed out.

Laura · Post by **Laura** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 6:36 am

If it sheared it would still be in there...

ciper · Post by **ciper** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 7:40 am

Fkyx wrote:That's what I meant. I don't know the size of the bolt, or what torque specs are required (if any).

Goto the junkyard and get the same bolt? Then you dont care about the size or thread!

Fkyx · Post by **Fkyx** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 5:36 pm

ciper wrote:
Fkyx wrote:That's what I meant. I don't know the size of the bolt, or what torque specs are required (if any).
Goto the junkyard and get the same bolt? Then you dont care about the size or thread!

Hopefully the junkyard around here has received a Legacy since I last checked.

If anyone else knows off hand what size/thread the bolt is, that'd be great, too.

n2x4 · Post by **n2x4** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 6:12 pm

Talk to Blackbart! He can get you that bolt. I was missing it when I was swapping my car and he got it for me!

Blackbart · Post by **Blackbart** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 8:08 pm

Send me your address and I will drop one in the mail for you.

Dynamic Entry · Post by **Dynamic Entry** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 8:19 pm

Murphy wrote: or was it .....MuRdEr!!

ha ha, maybe someone has your number Fkyx....... one bolt at a time, eventually they will git you

Frank's the hero again!

theflystyle · Post by **theflystyle** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 9:12 pm

that looks a little crazy

New92 · Post by **New92** » Sat Jun 07, 2008 2:42 pm

Fkyx wrote:
ciper wrote:Why not just replace the bolt?
That's what I meant. I don't know the size of the bolt, or what torque specs are required (if any).

That is why you must have a membership to my personal library. It is call AutoZone and the answer you seek is located in the Haynes Manual section. Right next to the little old lady with the shushhhh sign.

I kid...I kid!

Arctic Assassian · Post by **Arctic Assassian** » Sun Jun 08, 2008 1:29 am

Or just buy a thread gauge...

91legacyawdturbo · Post by **91legacyawdturbo** » Mon Jun 09, 2008 7:29 am

I hope you get that fixed! a dropped tranny is not a good thing! I had the same mount strip out due to being inpatient. then the shop I had hired to fix the striped bolt welds broke 6 months after. and Then I had to pay another shop to fix.

Fkyx · Post by **Fkyx** » Sat Jun 14, 2008 12:58 am

I'm just wondering... is the crossmember supposed to mate directly to the chassis, or is there a sort of spacer that will go in between? The reason I ask is the bolt Blackbart sent me (thanks, by the way) seems to be too long.

The bolt itself is about 3" long and the threads go up about an inch , then the remaining 2" is just blank shaft. The threads in the hole start right at the edge of the hole, and the bolt will thread all the way up until it hits the blank shaft, but it doesn't secure the crossmember at all. The crossmember still just hangs down.

My Haynes manual shows a spacer, but the diagram is of a 1996 and up model, and says the spacer is apparently only on some Outback models.

Ideas? I'm doing this with a ratchet, so if there should be a significant amount of torque required to thread it in, then that could be an issue, too.

n2x4 · Post by **n2x4** » Sat Jun 14, 2008 1:07 am

there shouldn't be much torque required to get it in. a ratchet should be fine. Did you clean the threads? There's probably a bunch of junk in them depending how long that bolt has been missing.

Fkyx · Post by **Fkyx** » Sat Jun 14, 2008 1:19 am

I'll try that...

...but the blank shaft part of the bolt is the same diameter as the threads themselves, so even if the bolt threaded further in, it would just hit the blank shaft and stop, and there would still be 2" of bolt hanging out. Which is why it still wouldn't make sense. Here's what I mean:

It still wouldn't thread past where the threads stop.

Thanks.

n2x4 · Post by **n2x4** » Sat Jun 14, 2008 1:25 am

Hmm, well it doesn't sound like it's the right bolt then. I think it will thread in until it runs out of threads though. At least you have the right size bolt. Just go to the hardware store and buy a grade 8 one in a shorter size.

Save the bolt as a spare though, metric hardware is a PITA to get!

Fkyx · Post by **Fkyx** » Sat Jun 14, 2008 2:31 am

I went and used a brush inside the hole. The bolt threaded in further, but it got to a point where I could twist the bolt by hand, and it wouldn't go up any further. There wasn't any up and down freeplay, though. There's still quite a bit of room before the bolt even touches the crossmember, let alone actually pull it up to the chassis.

I suppose I could jimmy-rig it, and put washers on the bolt to make it contact the crossmember, but something tells me that would be unsafe, even if it is just temporary.

beatersubi · Post by **beatersubi** » Sat Jun 14, 2008 4:34 am

That 'blank shaft' is commonly refered to as the 'shoulder' area of a bolt.
You could use one or more flat washers between the head of the bolt and the crossmember, but that would put the head of the bolt closer to the ground (more likely to get ground flat when jumping RxR crossings).
If you got a shorter bolt it would likely have less of, or no shoulder at all, which would be your best bet.

Fkyx · Post by **Fkyx** » Sat Jun 14, 2008 4:51 am

beatersubi wrote:That 'blank shaft' is commonly refered to as the 'shoulder' area of a bolt.
You could use one or more flat washers between the head of the bolt and the crossmember, but that would put the head of the bolt closer to the ground (more likely to get ground flat when jumping RxR crossings).
If you got a shorter bolt it would likely have less of, or no shoulder at all, which would be your best bet.

Thanks for the term!

Hopefully I can get myself in gear early enough tomorrow to get to a hardware store before they close. I'd like to get a bolt with maybe 1/4" shoulder at most.

I could do the washer thing and I wouldn't have to worry about it being ground flat, as the head of the bolt sits higher than the lowest point on the chassis, including the crossmember itself. Still just doesn't seem right to use a workaround like that.

Napa had a nice selection of metric hardware that I wanted to check out, but they were closing soon, so I just picked up a ratchet and 17mm socket for myself so I wouldn't have to borrow my friends' anymore. I'll buy more sockets as I find the need for them.

*EDIT*
Wen't and picked up a bolt about 1.5" long without a shoulder. Works great, but there's still a tiny little rattling sound that I'm assuming is coming from a bracket that is sticking off of the exhaust... no idea why it's there. Going to have to cut it off, as it doesn't seem to have a purpose.

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So I took a look under my car today...

So I took a look under my car today...