2004 wrx problems; simple questions

[mike22beatty]

I know very little about mechanics, but I am at the very least, smart enough to ask people that do


2 things going on here ><

1) My clutch has started slipping a few weeks ago... in any gear other than 1st and 2nd, the car gets no aceleration over 3k rpm, but the engine revs up (at which point I say $hit and release the gas). Its especially bad when climbing hills.

Im pretty sure thats the clutch yes? So if it is, Id like to fix it in a pretty inexpensive way (I plan to upgrade to an 09 wrx next year). What is a reliable place to buy a clutch online, if I can get the work done at a shop? They are quoting my for 1300+ at the dealership and I was hoping to keep it under 1000.

Any suggestions about replacing the clutch? I would read a tutorial and try it myself but I have no tools




2) my steering wheel shakes on the freeway at speeds over 60ish mph. Would that just be the alignment, or could it be something more serious? I hit a curb pretty good being overconfident on a u-turn... maybe that was it


guys, thanks in advance!

[EvoEatr]

It does sound (from your description) that your clutch is slipping. How many miles are on the vehicle? If your just looking for a basic replacement clutch I have purchased things off Auto Parts Warehouse | Car Parts, Truck Parts & Auto Body Parts Online - Free Shipping on most Auto before and have had success. As far as price goes they are definitely cheaper than the dealer. Man, that sucks you don't really have any tools, these transmissions are pretty easy to drop and reinstall..
As far as the vibration in the steering wheel goes. Does the steering wheel vibrate when you brake also? or just when cruising? A few things that come to mind are out of balance/chopped tires, worn tie rod end (s), bent LCA, Wheel bearing ( you would hear these usually though) etc etc...You mentioned you hit a curb? maybe you bent the rim?...If I where you I would shake down the front end and do a through visual inspection of the tires, steering, and suspension systems.

[mike22beatty]

the car has 65k miles on it. Ive personally put 40k of them on, and I do drive hard everywhere all the time. No doubt the clutch has got to be replaced.

I checked out the website, and found that they ranged from 215$ to 700$ I wouldnt know which one to choose even though they all said for wrx. any advice?




the rim in scraped and there is a chunk taken off the wall of the tire... I didnt know that would make the whole car shake though. Ill get the tires realigned and see if that fixes the shaking problem.

[EvoEatr]

At the end of the description of each clutch kit it tells you the year/make/model it will fit. You could also check out http://subarupartsforyou.com/ I hear they have pretty decent prices...
Your vibration, you mentioned was just in your steering wheel at highway speeds, which what leads me to think maybe a bent rim, out of balance/worn tire, defective tie rod or other suspension/steering component. Before I would do anything I would do a visual inspection and shake down the front end. You don't want to go putting money into something you don't have to. Plus you mentioned your eventually going to sell the car..