Old worn out clutch

[Gen JeFT]

Hi, Ive got a 1990 subaru station wagon. 183,000 miles on it give or take a few 100. 5 speed manual. It runs great, gets 31-34 mpg average, increadibly reliable, and I wouldent replace it with any other car I could find. Me and my friends use it as de-facto transportation during blizzards and heavy rains because of the excellent handling. Powers thru anything. Only problem with it is the clutch. The clutch slips horribly and its getting hard to drive it with that clutch. My mom is no longer able to drive it, even tho it used to be her car, because the clutch is so bad (not that thats a bad thing, I dont like her driving it). My macanic says that the clutch is so bad he feels like hes driving an auto. He also wont fix it, he dispises subarus, not because they are bad cars but because they are so complicated. All I have him do is inspect it and fix the brakes, I take care of just about everything else. Does anyone have experiance with fixing the clutch on this model car who can give me an Idea on how difficult it is and how much the parts cost? I have the manufacturers manual on it but manuals make everything look eazy, but then most things arnt as hard as it seems to begin with.

Before anyone says get a new car Im going to say Im not going to do that, my entire family is telling me to get a new car. In the past 2 years the car has not failed to start once nor has it given me any problems other then the clutch and it gets great milage. The fenders are rusty and the hood is faded (its not the original hood) leading me to think that everyone wants me to replace the car because it dosent look the greatest, but I prefer reliability over looks. Whats the point of a great looking car that never runs.

I would appriciate any advice. I hope to hear from one of you.

[sha_zapple]

Ive never done any clutch replacements, so I wouldnt know, but you could ask over at www.nasioc.com. Its full of a LOT of Subaru info.

I wont tell you to get a new car, but i will tell you to get a new mechanic.