bdecriscio

Thanks for all the info and posts regarding this, I guess being old school 10-40 oil mentality I was reluctant to look at the whole picture of synthetics lubricating better than conventional oils so the low viscosity numbers did concern me. My wifes 2013 camry also calls for and has 0-20 in it but I didn't quite feel comfortable with the 0-20 in a 2007 that called for 5-30. I will probably request 5-30 synthetic from the dealership for the free change and stick to that since it's what Subaru calls for. Thanks again for all the input

My daughter just bought a 2007 Impreza 2.5 with 78000 miles on a replaced engine installed by the Subaru dealership . The replacement engine was serviced with new fluids etc. The salesman told me they now use the 0-20 oil in all their cars even though the manual call for 5-30 I believe. They offer a free 5000 mile oil change (future) as well. Does this make sense or should She follow the manual instead of the dealership advice?

Add mine to the list, 99 Outback with 103 thousand miles. Very frustrating!

Hi all, Frankly a little embaressed to say I've got bad bearing in my engine. Confirmed by sound by two mechanics I trust. I know the best direction from here is a 2.2 replacement engine but short term if I put heavy oil in and drive conservativly, can I get by for days, weeks months? I did put a new filter on that quieted the initial knock and the overall bearing noise is not really very loud if that helps. I guess as I speak, maybe I was getting a dry start due to a bad filter that could have contributed to the issue. Thanks for all those who have posted. Bob

I,m sure you are right about the mechanic missing some common sense preventive mait. when he did the timing belt. I did know enough to have him replace the cam seals since I had leakage at the cover but it still leaks a bit there so I'm not 100% sure if they just failed as I'v read sometime happens or if he did it wrong or not at all(don't think so). I do have a leak at the rear but total all my leaks probably amount to about 1/2 quart between oil changes. Maybe some more input form the forum and then as Davebugs suggest do a lot of internal maintenance at one time. Thanks, Bob

Hi Olnick, I have had the timing belt replaced about 6000 miles ago but I'm pretty sure the mechanic didn't do what should have been done with the oil pump. As for the noise, I really am not sure what it is. I thought from my reading of other posts that my engine doesn't have adjustable valves so I went on the asumption it was piston slap. Again, not knowing that that behavior doesn't fit either. I guess a little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing. Anyway, to recap my sounds, pretty loud low tone knock on startup not really a chatter sound, goes away quite quickly, but this might be helpful, it does it even on a warm engine after setting for more than say 15 minutes. The car runs very well, very little engine noise when running or idleing, sometimes can hear a bit of what I would perceive as valve noise but not really noticable unless listening for it. As always I appreciate the forums elp with problems. If it is the oil pump issue, do I need to act quickly or is it more of an annoyance issue versus wear and tear? Thanks again, Bob

You guys may be right, My noise does go away almost instantly, at most a few seconds, I'll do some research on the oil pump/ backing screws. Any advice on that direction is also very appreciated. Bob

Great advise from all, thanks, Bob

Thanks for the replys, I guess I knew that the oil differences would't fix the problem but still not clear if the piston slap causes any damage and if so would any type of oil help mitigate the problem. I think I will change the filter as well since I'm thinking it's a possible dry start up scenario. Bob

My 99 Outback(103 thosand miles) has developed what I think is piston slap,knocking on startup, quiets down almost immediatly . Older posts seem to be a bit confusing. Some people suggest a lighter viscosity, other posts suggest heavier ones. I prefer 10-40 for all season here in central Pa. But that might be wrong for this condition. I'm assuming the lighter oil flows faster at startup and heavier oil would dampen or adhere better but I'm not knowledgeable enough to know which would help with piston slap. Any advice is appreciated. Bob

I have to agree with rooster2 about the relative value versus downside to using a fix in a can. I was one of the early 99 outback owners who had the delayed shifting problem and followed some earlier suggestions to do multiple fluid changes coupled with in my case Lucas transmission additive. After 15-20 months of perfect shifting, the short term benefits were obvious and after a transmission rebuild for a complety different(and unneccessary)reason, the tranny shop saw no internal problems with my transmission. P.S. The reason for the rebuild was because no one-3 tranny shops, an auto electric shop etc. could discover an internal loose wire in the dropping resistor. Bummer

You might also check the piston or pistons(my 99 has 2). I had a similar noise, checked the same stuff as you, found that one piston was hanging up due to a torn rubber boot and subsquent rust. Bob

I'm a little confused! On other posts regarding bad knock sensors, it seems that most posters say that a bad knock sensor code indicates just that, not a knock detected. My assumtion was that if you didn't have symptoms of knock or pinging then there was no retarding of timing, just that the risk was the computer would not compensate if you did have engine problems such as knock or pinging. Set me on the right path, I'll need to replace my sensor sooner rather than later. (not easy to do since someone previously put in an after market one with very little wire left for me to work with). Thanks, Bob

Sorry, I didn't mention the service manuel I was referring to was for a 2.5 DOHC for 1999 Outbacks, I don't know if the 2.2 has similar layout or not but on the 2.5 it's a large line, probably an inch diameter going into the idle air control valve off of the air intake assembly. Bob

Subaru service manuel says to use the Gm top engine cleaner to clean the idle air control solenoid valve.It says to pour it into the large air hose from the air filter housing going to the idle air valve whille holding throttle at 2000 rpms and wait for the white smoke to clear. What scared me off using anything through that tube was the next step which is to reset the TPS with Subaru scan tools. (beyond my talent/apprehension level) Bob