DaveT

Here's what I have done for the last 20 years. Replace belts between 40-50K miles. I never had one make it to 60K. Even the originals. New bearings on the idlers w/ new belts. Put belts on. Roughly tension them. Run the engine for 10 - 20 seconds. This lets the belts walk to where they want to run. Adjust the tension, using the new belt tension numbers from the FSM. The FSM lists lower tension for used belts. I have re checked them ocasionally, the extra tension seems to take care of the new belt stretch. Another advantage too the short run is you get to see how the belts track. I actually had one that wanted to run hard up against the flange on the crank pully. I flipped the belt, and it ran true.

I've been running EA82s for about 20 years. Also have an 01 Forester. I used to curse the timing belt system on the EA82s for the short life. Until I had to replace the belt on the Forester. You have to replace the timing belts about twice as often on the EA82 / Loyale, but the parts are *far* cheaper.

While that sounds like a good idea, the space between the bearings would have to be full of grease for the new to get into the bearings. The old dirty stuff would have to ooz out past the seals. Possibly even push them out. Brakes wouldn't work very well soon after that. I put zerks on my trailer dust caps years ago, and after a few runs, found the inner bearing seals poped out due to the expansion from normal warming during use! Grease doen't compress like the air that would normally have been in there. I think the bearing buddies for trailers have springs to allow for the expansion.

I use Waxoyl on the inside of any rusted area. Next exterior rust repair I do will be POR 15 on the outside.

The holes in the block are about 1/2" deep. The bolts are different lengths, as stated previously.

If by very hot you mean very close to engine temperature, coolant must be flowing. That would make me think somehow the air isn't getting through the core. Or the core has none of the fine fins left.

Ok, something isn't correct here. The stock Subaru solenoid is the rusty part in the picture on my web site. http://home.comcast.net/~davidtief/solenoid.html The EGR valve is bigger, round, mounts on the rear of the intake manifold. It can get carbon built up on the internal valve bits. 2 bolts hold it on. It has 1 vacuume hose, that goes to the Solenoid. Can you post a picture of the item you want to test?

Are the blinks all the same length? Normally, there are some long, then some short. 6 or 66 is not a trouble code. There is a "no trouble" code, I don't remeber if it was 6 or 7 blinks. I didn't find mention of that in the service manual when I was looking for your 6 / 66. But I know it is mentioned in there somewhere.

Do you get any codes just reading the LED? Just turn on the key to run, look at the ECU under the steering wheel.

Here's how I fix it: http://home.comcast.net/~davidtief/solenoid.html To test the solenoid, unplug it from the harness. Apply 12VDC across the 2 pins. If it clicks, it is ok. It most likely won't. The ECU only can tell if the solenoid has failed open circuit.

Did water flow easily through the core?? Does air flow well through the HVAC system? Assuming the above are true and the car runs at normal temperature while driving: With the engine up to operating temp, operate the heater as you described to get the warm air for a short time. Monitor the supply and return lines to the heater core. Before the blower is on, they should be the same temperature. After the blower is on, the return line should be a little cooler - but still pretty hot. If there is some obstruction reducing the coolant flow, the return line should cool way down. Also, check the lines near the firewall, and near the engine. If coolant is flowing normally, they should be close to the same temperature. If the coolant isn't flowing, I would expect to find the highest temps near the engine, coolest near the firewall. If you're not sure what the temps should be, compare to your other car. Also look at the air dam controlled by the temperature setting on the heater control panel. It directs air through the core or around it. About not seeing circulation in the radiator cap: With the engine not under load, the thermostat will only open ocasionally, so you would have to watch for a while.

Also, check that all 4 tires are the same make / model and treadwear. If they are different, they will have different diameters, and aggrivate the clunk. If they are different, it isn't as bad as an all wheel drive, since you only switch to 4WD when the road is slippery.

I'd think 3 or 4 times about them... Not to spoil the fun, but I've seen so much junk from there, I avoid anything MIC. Not to mention, the poison pet food, lead painted toys, etc.

Water pump change: might as well. Change the tensioners. I made 2 sets that I can replace the bearings on. I have replaced the seals in the oil pump - a specilal "mickey mouse" one, a couple of o rings, and a shaft seal. I got them with an engine reseal kit. Idler gear bearing can be replaced. Use contact seal bearings for the 3 idlers. Usually the seals are a dark reddish color, not black. Cam seals and the O-rings on the seal carriers. Refill the coolant, re check before each run for a while. You don't want to overheat due to low coolant. Check by squeezing the upper rad hose, listen for the jiggle pin & no air gurgle. Also the level in the recovery bottle.

I've seen the voltmeter start to drop more than normal (at idle) when the battery is at end of life, 5+ years old. A couple of things with the alternator could show up also: one of the slip ring brushes worn out. one of the rectifier diodes open. Either would reduce the maximum current output, making it less likely to keep up with the loads.

Excelent.

This will work for the purge solenoid (evaporative emmissions) also: http://home.comcast.net/~davidtief/solenoid.html

I had that happen one time. It never happened again, so unfortunatly, I don't know specifically what it was. Everyting looked & worked fine after that. I drove that car for years after the incident.

The center of the 3 marks is always the reference. With the flywheel at the mark, one cam chould have it's hole at the notch, up top. Turn the crank one revolution. The other cam should now have it's hole at the notch. The cams should be 180 degrees from each other. You only have to adjust / re set the belt that doesn't match up.

+1 for the Sube mechanic. Here is my fix for the EGR code: http://home.comcast.net/~davidtief/solenoid.html If the O2 sensor was going bad, it can cause the mixture to be off, and kill the cat. I had that happen once. When this partial failure happens, the ECU doesn't recognize it as a failure, and no error code shows.

Iv'e used an LM34CZ with a volt meter as a remote thermometer to monitor engine temperatures. It costs about $6.00 @ Digi-Key. It is accurate +/-1 degree F, also available in C. Since I was only doing testing, I just powered it with a 9V battery. The output is 10mV / degree, so 1.90V = 190 degrees. If you want to get fancy, add a digital panel meter, and a few parts, mount it in the dash. There are a few unused holes in the head, I put some thermal grease in one & pushed the sensor in. The sensor is connected to a piece of thin 2 conductor shielded wire, with heatshrink tubing to insulate the pins from each other and the engine.

The cooling system needs the cap on to let the pressure rise. This raises the boiling point of the coolant. The system operates very close to boiling at atmospheric pressure, so it woudn't take much for it to boil without a cap. It might be a good idea to check that the cap actually holds pressure in addition to the other things mentioned previously.

I am running EA82 4WD wagons. So I probably have a little more time before things get bad. But I have most of the parts from the last 3 cars I have had to retire. Start thinking about rebuilding things like water pumps, alternators, steering racks. Buy a wreck or other dead car similar to yours for parts. About 10 years ago, a guy walked up to me in a parking lot as I was getting into my car. His dad was closing his auto shop, and had 4-5 EA82s out back. He told me I could have anything I wanted, up to & including the whole cars. I tried to arrange for a friend with a trailer to get one of them whole, but that fell through at the last minute, so I spent 2 days removing CVJs, heads, lights and all kinds of small parts.

I always removed the bumper. 4) 14mm bolts, 2 signal lamp plugs. I make adjustments in the position of harness & hoses that are sometimes in the way of the bolts so if there is a next time, it is easier.

Things that help in cold weather: 1. Battery older than 4-5 years? Get a new one. (flooded cell lead acid batteries are at end of life (I think it was 70% of rated capacity) in 5 years under ideal conditions.) (ideal conditions have little to do with those found under the hood of a car) 2. Get the physically biggest battery that will fit in the battery area. A battery at 0 degrees F is about 1/4 of what it was at room temperature. 3. Higher age and lower temperature work together against you in cold weather. 4. Synthetic oil in engine. 5. A battery warmer might be worth considering if you are thinking about or using a block heater. I would do 1,2 & 4 first. 6. Silicon spray on the door gaskets & body where they touch when closed. 7. If the locks freeze, there is a lock lube available at parts stores. 8. Sometimes, it is the levers & linkage in the door. Remove the interior and clean & lube with synthetic grease / oil.