legacycentral bbs

The daily for the last 18 months has been a drag. Sorry to all those Outback EJ251 4EAT owners out there but...

I found a deal on this (maybe too good to be true, we'll see) and it's almost exactly what I wanted. 5MT would have appeased the go-fast part of me, but the 5EAT with wheel-mounted suggested shift buttons isn't terrible.

It's had a LOT of money spent on it (by someone else), but what good is that if the mechanic isn't too great...we'll see.

Swapped on my GT-B wheels.



Looking at getting an 07-09 stereo to get input (WTF SOA) and some new front/rear linkage bits to tighten up the steering and get rid of some of the klunking. Struts are in bad shape but it's a cruiser.

Certainly the most powerful car I've ever owned and crossing my fingers that I won't find any hidden issues that will necessitate more money being spent. There's a "holy %#$^" when I really want to move that I remember from 10 years ago (when I sold my BJ TW)

Some may recall that SOA invited me to the dealer launch event for the BL/BP in Vegas and to NAIAS in 04, and I've looked forward to the day when I could own one of these cars. I have a VERY soft spot in my heart for the BC/BF/BJ and would LOVE to own another 5MT Touring Wagon, but THIS is one of the spiritual successors to that car, and it's really an upgrade from my BK, BG, and BH.

Congrates on the purchase and I like the wheels on the car! Yea need to get on LegacyGT.com Dave. There are alot of things to check which I am sure you have already started looking.

Long time member of LGT and the first thing I looked for is the radio hacks. Looks like there are a few good, affordable options.


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Oh, and I forgot to mention this :

My seventh Legacy now, never having owned the same chassis code.

BC, BJ, BE, BK, BG, BH, and BP.

I have also only owned the same set of Subaru OE wheels once, the 99 RS silver five-spokes.


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DLC wrote:Long time member of LGT and the first thing I looked for is the radio hacks. Looks like there are a few good, affordable options.


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yea, I agree Subaru really dropped the ball on not offering AUX. I mean even the first gen had AUX.

Congrats Dave!

I hope your BP gives you more driving enjoyment than the one I owned. Based on your description, it sounds like it will

Very nice for sure. I love driving my sis in laws 07 oxt 5mt ltd. The manual version is every bit as good as youd imagine

It's a straight-line rocket, but the struts are as bad as I've ever experienced. Probably not going to drop it, but it's high on my list of to-dos.

I am also surprised that the XT uses the 01-04 Legacy GT/Outback/WRX brake sizes on the front, but that its rear brakes are _smaller_ than those Legacy models. I'd expected them to have the same setup as the 05+ LGT, but there are some tradeoffs that I'm willing to accept, namely the huge amount of extra weight those 12" setups add. Thankfully this car stops very strongly.

My top concerns are what might be a nasty rear main seal leak and the smell of coolant. HGs were done one year ago, but as mentioned in the first post, not by a shop I'd ever consider (Tunex?!) so I'm hoping its an external leak and not internal. A bottle of Subaru/Holt conditioner is going to be added soon, with an oil change to 15w-40 and some of that rear main seal stuff I've read about. Fingers crossed.

Watch out with stop leaks and whatnot, subies don't take kindly to them. I've seen cam and crank seals pushed out by people going too thick! So don't forget that's supposed to be a 5w-30 car!

Bar's 1040 is the seal conditioner I am looking to use for the oil leak. Sounds like it's not a patching type, rather something which renews the seals themselves. More worried about the Holt/Subaru coolant conditioner for that reason.

I have used 15w-40 in my Subarus, as recommended by several Subie mechanics here, for many years without problems. This car has nearly 150k miles and it stands to reason that a higher viscosity would benefit looser tolerances.


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Whew! Found a little puddle of coolant which had found a place to hide, on the block, right in front of the intake manifold. This does much to explain the coolant smell on starting. I can rest easier about the head gaskets being done properly.


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Hey a lot of us use Rotella T6 5w-40. Good stuff

SILINC3R wrote:Hey a lot of us use Rotella T6 5w-40. Good stuff

Everyone in the Audi community does as well!!

Very nice! Your sentiments about this generation being the spiritual successor to the Touring Wagon echo the way I feel about it also. When it comes to replace my Touring Wagon I will only consider an '05-'09 Legacy 2.5GT or Outback XT (or another Touring Wagon, lol). I wouldn't be able to stand non-turbo power and the newer ones seemed to start targeting that dreaded broader, non-enthusiast audience. Plus I just feel like this is the sexiest Legacy Subaru made since the first generation too.

As preposterous as this sounds, even to me, I sold the XT today.

To it's credit, the car was awesome, and I am going to miss it, but I know that I prefer a manual transmission, lower ride height, and possibly, no turbo.

Here's to the next Legacy.

I completely understand not settling for what you really want. These cars aren't exactly rare (except the first gens), no reason to compromise.

You did pretty much the same thing I did with my 2006 2.5i...and I even had the manual trans. I think these years body styles look great, but just may not have that special driving feel to them.

Sweet ride, keep her clean!

If I could find an 05-06 BP 5MT locally, even if it was overpriced, I would love to take it out for a good test drive. They are very uncommon, and might be why Subaru dropped the wagon style from the Legacy range entirely for the Outback.


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my friends dad has a 06 BP 5MT, and I have driven it and overall it is a great car to drive, not particularly what I would buy but it's a great car!

They're like hen's teeth. I searched Autotrader and found two of the BP 5MT Legacy in a non-base trim, nationally.

I've got my eye on an 03 BH GT 5MT now, a one-owner. It's less than 600 miles away too.

Anyone live in Colorado Springs or know anyone who could go give it a once-over for me?

yeah he stumbled upon his and the guy didn't really know what he had so he got a good deal on it.

Like you've found....they are rare. I didn't find too many when I was looking, especially ones in decent shape.