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QUACK I've been posting in the wrong section. I'll give it another go here. (darn newbies) I've been searching and googling without any help. I took off my timing belt before lining up the marks. (yes, I'm a rookie) Water pump is in and now comes the hard part. (i think) I turned the crankshaft so the mark is lined up. The intake and exhaust pulleys on the drivers side move but I can't line them because of the pressure. The intake on the passenger side is stuck and the exhaust is free wheeling. Should I move the crank around to help with this movement OR should I just apply more pressure on the pulleys? I'd appreciate any help. Thanks!

It was just the thermostat seal leaking a little. A new one solved that mystery. quack quack quack.

Pressure regulator could be bad. Or return line partially blocked. Pressure with key on, engine off, should not exceed 43.5 psi. You don't want a used cap - just buy the filter assembly for the newer model with the stronger cap. It's around $65 from Subaru. GD

Thanks a ton! Stopped my goose chase. I just replaced the o ring and used the same cap (for now). Pressure with just a key on went up. Then it rose to around 50-60 psi and blew the cap off. I will be looking for a cap in better condition but is there any concern that the pressure rose that much with just a series of key on no cranks?

That's leaking from everywhere. Need to just pull the engine and do a complete reseal. Just do everything one time and be done with it. Going rate on a proper head gasket job including all timing components, etc is around $2k. Varies greatly depending on region. Add in the radiator, hoses, possibly clutch if applicable... and on that engine we swap pistons for knurled 251's.... pretty easy to hit $4k. GD

Heater circuit hose from the water pump. Check it out for pin holes. Cheers Bennie

So you installed a new pump into the existing pump assembly? The pump assembly has a metal cap over a pressure chamber - this cap is a known failure point. The ears that hold it to the plastic housing will tear off and the pump pressure blows the o-ring out. There is later model that has a filter in that position on the assembly and you can buy the filter which comes with a new (larger, but it doesn't matter) cap with stronger ears. You use that cap and a new o-ring to fix this failure. Or you buy a new assembly. GD

Be careful with the kitty litter. The modern clumping litter is made out of grains of bentonite clay. It turns into a soft, greasy mess when it gets wet.

The 25D has head gasket issues for one reason only - the bore diameter caused a reduction in the thickness of the cylinder liner support walls where the HG fire ring seats on the block. Due to the thickness of the composition graphite gaskets they started with in 1996 (because of piston height above the deck at TDC) there is insufficient rigidity provided by the cylinder head to prevent the cylinders from moving around due to thermal expansion and contraction and combustion chamber pressure.This movement abrades the fire ring against the block and head leading to pitting, which ultimately leads to failure. Number of heat cycles is the primary indicator of lifespan coupled with any overheating events that add further thermal stress loading. It is easy to see this because Subaru solved the problem - you only need to look at what they did to effect a solution. They changed the piston to allow a thinner head gasket, and they beefed up the block around the liners to make them more rigid. For turbocharged applications they incorporated liner gussets to help stop them from moving under high cylinder pressure and temperature. Also the open deck 1.8 and 2.2 engines do not have this problem despite having the same thickness HG as the earl 25D. Why? Because the cylinder liner support walls are WAY thicker due to smaller bore size. The engineers that designed the EJ never envisioned a 2.5 liter displacement when they modeled in on early computer systems in the mid 1980's. When new engineers were asked to increase the displacement they inadvertently caused a HG issue by the bore size change without considering what that would do to the rigidity of the cylinder. It was an engineering design mistake. Nothing more. Nothing you do or do not do as regards the thermostat location will have ANY effect on the HG "problem" associated with this engine. Want to solve it permanently? Resurface the block and the heads, Install 251 pistons, and use the 642 turbo head gasket. They will never blow again. GD

well good luck! I hope the "help" part fits!

I'll call the dealer tomorrow and order one, and cross my fingers that it fixes the problem. I'm not a long time Subaru owner, but I just don't get why these cars are so OEM dependent. And why, if things like the thermostats are so sub-par, the aftermarket isn't forced to pick up their game to make better parts.

I would search for a local Subaru Parts group on Facebook. There is one in Colorado, that I sourced my shortblock for $200. Guys with imprezas or RSs are always looking to get rid of the SOHC 2.5 so they can go turbo. The STI headgaskets are the same price as the regular MLS. It's not that exotic. Everything else is the same. The normal EJ25d drops out by 4500 rpm. The EJ251/D hybrid is power all the way to 6k. I'm not even using headers or any larger diameter exhaust. Fuel economy is basically the same depending on how heavy your foot is. If the transmission fails, get another high mileage one for dirt cheap. I've not seen a subaru with a blown rear diff. The universal/carrier bearing can blow, but your car is just getting broken in at that mileage. Cars are toilets for money to be thrown into, no matter how new they are.

There's probably thousands of different shots of blue rally Subarus jumping. ... but this one is just insane! When you watch the video, you get a sense for just how far back behind the camera the launch was!

every time or first start of the day? CEL on? scan for pending code anyway. fuel pump? Try cycling the key to ON, but without turning-thru to start - still have noise?

The valves will be fine. Lap them and reset the lash. Call up some wrecking yards and find a 251 that's been hit in the front and blew off the timing. You don't care if it has bent valves you won't be using the heads anyway. I usually pay $500 for blocks in this condition. Cut open the oil filter to looks for metal and check under the valve covers for varnish. Swap the 7mm or 9mm oil pump to a 10. Install new rings. STi head gaskets. Done. GD