micahfelker

Sits nice and low, fits it really well. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Honestly what everyone is saying is true, but only partly. It all depends on how you mount your rack. For a long time I had that dinky little Walmart roof rack (which is now on the Subaru), and I broke a total of 3 crossbars while that was one. That rack was great for carrying about 1 kayak, but I broke a crossbar when I tossed my spare into it a little to hard. I also broke a crossbar on my 1000+ mile trip to a bunch of national parks in Montana and in Alberta with 2 kayaks on it. The final time I broke one was by sitting in my kayak on top of it lol. The reason that it broke so easily and so often was because of where the narrow rack mounted on the bars. The crossbars are made of 3 pieces: a center section and 2 corners that attach to the roof. With all your weight on just the center section, it stresses the seam where the center meets the corners and snaps easily. With my new rack, it's wide enough that I was able to attach all for mounting point to the actual corners of the crossbars, which transfers the load right onto the roof. I've had 3 kayaks mounted on it with no problem and can stand on it and even jump on it without anything breaking. Sooooo to wrap it up, those crossbars will give you no problems whatsoever as long as you distribute your load evenly on the corners instead of the center. Plus they're way better looking IMO. OH and side note: if you mount a roof rack on those edges instead of the center it will sit even lower. Way easier than mounting the rack right to the roof. I'll throw up a pic in a second here

They're just the oem crossbars from the pre-facelift models. They'll fit no problem, and I'm sure you can find some at any local junk yard.

Man that thing is rad!! Why'd you ever get rid of it? What was your setup on it?

Not much of a story haha but appreciate it brother!

Yeah man I've been nothing but impressed with it so far, as you've probably noticed haha, it's freaking rad. Thanks Kent!!

Didn't know there was a craze for them! I've liked their design and wanted one for a couple years now. I've always been a huge fan of wagons too. Subarus are freakin dope, and this gen of outback is just as awesome as the wrx and such, only more practical with more room for gear and stuff. I love the fact that I can completely lay down in the back as I sleep in the back sorta often. It's even longer than the Pathfinder, so I can actually fit straight instead of diagonally. Like Kent was saying it does like 80% of what a 4wd rig can do. I didn't expect a whole lot out of the awd system but it's done nothing but blow me away so far. It handles curvy mountain roads like a beast and can get almost anywhere. Haven't got stuck yet lol. I guarantee it's already seen more "wheeling" just this winter than most "overlanders" will in their lifetime lol. These things totally live up to--and surpass their hype.

@mjotrainbrain convinced me to get back on here, so here’s some recent pics. I’ve got a friend in town who has a lifted forester (which actually has the same mirrors as the pathfinder). It’s pretty dope. I also got a new car a couple months ago, a 2002 Subaru Outback with a 5 speed manual, nicknamed the “swaggin wagon.” I’ve always liked this generation of outback, and I got a great deal on it. I absolutely love it, it’s super fun to drive, does amazing in the snow, gets great gas mileage, and actually can do the 80mph speed limit in Montana. I told myself I was gonna leave it stock but that didn’t last long. Here’s some pics. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Every single bulb in my car is LED and my cruise still works fine. Maybe just you newer guys have that "feature." Also everywhere I looked said the license plate bulbs are the same type as the front marker lights but they're not. They use the same base as all 3 of the lights on the taillight, 1156. Just make sure you find an LED shallow enough to actual fit back in.

Alex is that you?!

Sorry I haven't been on here in awhile! It's still doing it's job of holding the antenna there haha, and I never put more than that one screw in. Over the summer my kayak got dropped on it pulling it off the roof which snapped the antenna, but the mount help a-okay. I replaced it with a longer antenna and it seems to still work just fine. I just wish I had made it more carefully, the antenna doesn't stick up perfectly straight.

Thanks Jake! You gotta come out sometime. Maybe we could meet in Spokane some weekend too

Thanks man!! And nope you're seeing correctly, that's what the hitch receiver is for. It acts as a recovery point without a bunch of useless d rings clanking around and I can stick a winch on it whenever I decide I want one, which I probably never will.

Finally got out and hit some trails with a friend yesterday, it had been way too long since I last went. Got some sweet video footage of some obstacles and also some sends over jumps but I haven't gotten them yet. More uploads to come! Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G870A using Tapatalk

Finally got out on the trails yesterday, been way too long since I've been out wheeling Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G870A using Tapatalk

And now here's the latest upgrade! I'm painting them this weekend so I'll hopefully have better pictures soon, but for now here they are! I'm super stoked how they turned out. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G870A using Tapatalk

Definitely have been slacking on posting updates, but certainly haven't been slacking on the build. I moved to bozeman not too long ago and have been working full time 50+ hours a week as a truck driver, so I've finally been getting money and pretty much spending it all. I've done a bunch of little things that aren't worth mentioning, but you're gonna want to see the last few pictures for the ones that definitely are worth mentioning. Before that, enjoy some random pics taken between today and when I last posted. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G870A using Tapatalk

Dang those components looks soooo clean... I'm jealous

Awesome man! Throw up some pics with how they look!

They should fit fine with no issues. They're slightly larger in diameter (still less than an inch) but a little bit narrower than the stock tires, so there is no chance of rubbing on the strut. When I first got my wheels they came with that size tire on 2 of them and they didn't rub anywhere. They're pretty small

Welcome man! Those should fit fine with no issues, since they're stock dimensions pretty much

Heck yeah man! It was the best day I've had in awhile. Great wheeling and great hanging out with all you guys (:

Thank you man! I try haha

To be blunt, that is absolutely false. Keep in mind I have absolutely no extra weight in the front at all. It's noticeably firmer than stock, and it's almost a perfect match with my LR springs (175 sr) in the rear. The best I can do to explain it is that it feels way more solid, but is not harsh (like leaf springs) in any way. I would say that even the HD OME springs are less stiff than the AC coils. I can not express enough how good the ride is with the OME springs up front and the LR springs in the back. People who know nothing about cars who've ridden with me have even commented on how sturdy and well the car rides and feels. Don't let their comment on that scare you away at all! I would 100% recommend them.

https://www.amazon.com/KYB-335016-Excel-G-Gas-Strut/dp/B000CODES4/ref=sr_1_7?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1522431739&vehicle=1996-67-893------------1-0&sr=1-7&ymm=1996%3Anissan%3Apathfinder&keywords=kyb+strut https://www.amazon.com/KYB-335015-Excel-G-Gas-Strut/dp/B000C44C44/ref=sr_1_10?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1522431739&vehicle=1996-67-893------------1-0&sr=1-10&ymm=1996%3Anissan%3Apathfinder&keywords=kyb+strut These are the struts that I run in the front paired with OME HD coils, and they have held up great. They're way less sloppy than oem, despite the fact that I do a ton of wheeling. They have a good ride and a good price, and they hold up. I can't speak for Rancho as I haven't ever run their products, but I have OME shocks in the rear and they are fantastic. Either one will serve you well, but I would go with KYB just because they're way cheaper. If you get the KYB's, you will also want to make sure you get these, but you will have to drill out the center of the bump stop a little bit to get them to slide over the strut. https://www.amazon.com/KYB-SB129-Strut-Boot/dp/B001FY578K/ref=sr_1_1?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1522432068&vehicle=1996-67-893------------1-0&sr=1-1&ymm=1996%3Anissan%3Apathfinder&keywords=kyb+strut+boot&dpID=31KV9psGJdL&preST=_SX300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch You'll also want to replace your strut bearings and top hats at the same time. I would recommend either reusing your original ones or getting an oem part (or something else that you trust to be solid). If you get either KYB or Gabriel ones they WILL fall apart and you WILL have to pull your strut apart again to replace them with something better. I say this from personal experience and from the experience of many others, just so you don't have to go thorough the same thing. You don't have to, but if you also get a new plate with the studs on it then you'll have all new parts and won't have to disassemble your old struts to reuse and parts. This will save you a lot of time and frustration, as taking struts apart and dealing with spring compressors is a royal pain in the butt lol