Thread: lift kit
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Old 2014-12-31, 04:08 PM   #7
sperry
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Real Name: Scott
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: Portland, OR
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Car: '09 OBXT, '02 WRX, '96 Miata
Class: PDX/TT-6
 
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Originally Posted by jon View Post
Thanks Sperry.I wonder if the shop was Folbeck? They had not done work like this and also was some sort of liability issue. I would like to put high profile skinny tires on it for snow and ice. I ski. But if this lift idea may cause other problems, Probably should stop thinking about it ?
Folbeck was not the shop. They were a fabrication shop, not a repair place. They could probably lift a Subaru 10"... if you have a ton of cash for a one-off custom created suspension.

Like Cody said, your best bet is following the guidance of the guys over at subaruoutback.org. Since you're looking for snow/gravel type clearances, not rock crawling, the OEM suspension geometry is probably acceptable with a lift. Longer springs plus strut spacers sounds like a good bet, with low risk, since people have done them before you can find out what issues to expect. My guess is that you might need some extra bits (camber bolts? Whiteline rear camber kit?) to get the car back into alignment. I had to do that when I lowered my outback about 2", so a lift is probably similar.

For me, I ran into tire clearance issues up front against the trailing edge of the front bumper. It's pretty low clearance from the factory, so lowering the ride height made it worse. I don't know about a lift... it might be better or worse than factory, but regardless any significantly larger tires will probably rub there. If you're going skinnier or similar to stock width, you probably won't have issues elsewhere (assuming you are able to align the car close to original specs). All the clearance issues I've had outside that front bumper have been with width/offset issues.

One thing to consider is that you might not need or want much bigger tires. If you do the lift, then run smaller wheels, you can probably run a tire that's really close to OEM diameter and still get the benefits of taller sidewalls. No clearance issues, plus your speedometer will read right. The Pirelli Scorpion ATR comes in a 205/70/15 that's OEM sized for a '99 Outback, and that's a decent tire IMO (I've got them on my pickup). The General Grabber AT2's come in 205/75/15 which is a little less than an inch taller than the OEM tires, and are popular ATR tires with good snow ratings on TireRack.

I bet the King springs, spacers, 205/75/15 Grabbers, some camber bolts (I forget if the '99 has McStruts or multi-link in the rear, I think it's a strut, so you may need camber bolts in the rear too), and a little massaging here and there to eliminate any rubbing and you'll probably end up with a pretty awesome setup, assuming the OEM struts can work with the lifted springs. Again, subaruoutback.org is your best friend.
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Last edited by sperry; 2014-12-31 at 04:12 PM.
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