hankosolder2

I had a similar problem with a Honda some years ago; parts store guy claimed that alternators "are never intermittent." Being an electronics technician, I was quite confident that I had checked the wiring thoroughly, so I deliberately fried the alternator to ensure it would test bad. "Gosh, it seems like it's quit entirely now, could you test it again, please?" Installed the new alternator and the car worked fine for close to a decade after that. The problem with taking measurements with an intermittent problem is that the measurements are only relevant WHEN the issue is occurring. I would suggest that you install your spare alternator for a test or try a junkyard alternator if money is tight. Hope that helps.

Why not contact the supplier and see what their attitude is towards returns? If memory serves, the axles are symmetrical, so could you install the 2nd Empi axle on the driver's side as a test? For what it's worth, I used a pair of cheapie NAPA axles on a '94 legacy with no issues whatsoever. YMMV.

Thanks to all for their replies, & explanations, especially NOMAD 327 for providing the part numbers! Unfortunately, the online wholesale OEM parts suppliers don't have good illustrations or lookups for this stuff (or I just can't figure it out- one of the two.) I'll order what I need and finish this up. The original filler pipe on this car _does_ have the valve, it's just super rusty. Nathan

I ordered a new filler neck for our '98 Legacy wagon. I thought it would come with that widget (it's a little pipe which goes into a small rectangular box, and attaches near the top of the filler neck with a couple of nuts. Sort of a 90 degree reducing flange if you will.) Anyway, said piece is pretty rusty and I'd like to replace it. -what is the proper name of this part? Is this the valve some people refer to in their fuel neck threads? (I did do a search!) Does anyone have a part number? - does it have any sort of gasket or o-ring which I'll also need? Other tips? TIA, Nathan

I would not pay a premium for a low mileage car; it can be indicative of lots of short trips (bad for a number of reasons), the mileage may not be genuine and the odometer reading does not seem to be a good predictor for how much longer the car will last. Your mileage may vary....

Yes, there's an extra hole there and I think it's threaded. (I'm pretty sure the EJ22T used a cap piece here instead of the plug as the oil feed for the turbo- the cap piece used the alternate hole) Unfortunately, the extra hole is close to the "good" bolt side, not the bad one. Otherwise, that would be a pretty solid "rigged" fix- it was a very good idea though! I have a spare head at my folk's house. I'll examine it closely, pull the plug and see what I can work out. Nathan

'98 OBW with a '95 Ej22 swap. I've discovered that the plug which seals the rear camshaft opening on the passenger's side head is leaking badly. I know that normally this would not be a big deal; undo the two bolts, remove the cap, replace O-ring and reassemble. Unfortunately, one of the bolts is seriously stuck. About 5 years ago when I first installed this engine I tried to remove this cam cap and gave up when one of the bolts started to feel "spongy" like it was going to shear. Hey, it was barely leaking at all at the time and I was in a hurry to get the car on the road. Never thought I'd be keeping the car this long anyway.... I think it's going to be really difficult to drill or extract the bolt if it shears with the engine in situ. I don't want to pull the head or the engine. If I can get one of the bolts out & shear the other one, is there any chance it'll seal ok with a new O ring (and perhaps liberally applying RTV or something to glue the plug in place?) Nathan

Isn't it under warranty? Take it to the dealer and let them sort it out. If they don't duplicate the fault, take them on a test drive with you, and if they claim it's normal, ask to drive another 2011 Legacy on the lot. Nathan

Thanks for the info! I might do just that.

Thanks for your responses. I think I'm going to have to do some more inspection here. Unfortunately, I don't have a garage handy, so I'll monitor the coolant level closely and wait for a break in the weather or borrow a friend's garage. (Though I don't think anyone is going to volunteer the use of their garage for engine degreasing!) The water pump and all the hoses were replaced with OEM when I did the engine swap 5 years ago, so they _should_ be OK. Nathan

I have a '98 OBW 5mt with a '95 EJ22 swap, done about 5 yrs ago. My wife has been complaining of coolant odors lately, especially shortly after start up. I noticed the overflow bottle was a bit below the low mark... took a peek underneath (dark and raining out) and I think I see drops of coolant on the join between the head and block. Everything looks dry up top. Do these ever develop the external HG leak like the later sohc EJ25s? Nathan

OK, that's my philosophy for motor oil (well, not 30K change intervals :-) ) , so I'm liking that advice.

I'm new to having an automatic trans in a Subaru and am befuddled by the choices of ATF at the local auto parts store. I have some minor torque bind and would like to do the flush & fill routine. I know the car calls for Dexron II and I have choices of "Dex/Merc" type fluid which meets the requirements of Dexron II, III etc. or "import trans fluid" which also meets Dex III requirements and costs a bit more. At the risk of starting a "which type of oil is the best?" type discussion, what are the preferred brands and formulations? (Emphasis on value for money...this is a high mileage car I won't be keeping for >1 year anyway, but I would like to keep it in decent shape for the next owner.) Thanks Nathan

I think this is the second, or possibly third time in the history of the internet that someone has accepted a contrary opinion so graciously! :-) Cheers to you, sir!

I'm going to caution against any method which involves holding the outer part of the pulley/harmonic balancer, such as the wrap a belt around it method. It's not unknown for the outer part of the crank pulley on these cars to separate from the rubber ring coupling it to the inner hub. If you use the outer part of the pulley to keep the crank from turning while loosening the crank bolt, it's going to have far more torque applied to the rubber coupling than it ever would during normal engine operation- which could result in pulley failure later. I'm not saying that it will happen, but knowing that these pulleys can be a bit weak, if there's an alternate method you can use, it might be a good idea. I've used the breaker bar/ starter method on quite a few cars with good results. It sounds dubious, but if you position everything carefully it should be OK. Nathan

Does the cam sprocket on the replacement engine have the same number of teeth for the cam position sensor? I have heard that there are multiple versions, though I don't know what years might be different. Compare it carefully to your old engine. Is it possible that you reversed the fuel supply and return hoses? They are right next to each other, at least they are on the earlier Legacies. Good luck. Nathan

I don't know how you're checking for pulse at the injector plugs, but if you're using a DMM or a "Noid" light, remember that both of those don't really draw any current. A high resistance in the wiring leading to the injector can result in a blinking noid light or a good reading on a dmm, but won't pass enough current to open an injector which is something 10-20 ohms. Plug a spare loose injector into the harness and make sure you can hear/feel it clicking. Also, if the ECM detects uncontrolled idle speed, it kills the output to one cylinder's injector as a safety measure. Do you have any CELS for the IAC? good luck, Nathan

OK, I did some poking around and found an old style tensioner from a '95 leggy it's been sitting around for probably 4-5 years in the fully extended state. OK to carefully compress and reuse? Does anyone have the part # of the old style tensioner bracket I'd need to convert from new style to old in case I go that way? I take it I'll need some hardware too... Finally, I removed the driver's side T-belt cover and it doesn't seem that I can get a good view of the tensioner- is it really possible to tell which style it is w/o removing the center cover too? I want to order the parts prior to having the car "down." The belt on this puppy looks like it might be original- 214K miles! Yikes! Nathan

It finally threw a code- MAF sensor low. A good used MAF sensor solved it and it's been running fine for over a week now. Very relieved. Just thought I'd post this to help anyone who has the same symptom down the road. Nathan

If you pulled on the wires hard enough to rip them from the connector, perhaps the connection is broken internally where it goes into the o2 sensor as well. Do a resistance/continuity check of the 02 sensor heater. I second General Disorder here- I did an EJ22 swap on a 180K mile '98 Outback 5-speed and have had a solid 5+ years of never-had-to-walk hardly spent a dime motoring since. Only routine wear items (brake pads, struts, ball joints, exhaust) in that time & one rear o2 sensor. Just recently it needed its first real repair- bad MAF sensor, $50 off of E-bay and it's back to running great.

Didn't you post another thread about pulling wires out of your o2 sensor connector and wondering what the pinout is? Are you sure you don't have wire(s) going to the wrong terminals? Alternately, if you powered up the car before you discovered the loose terminals, it's possible something shorted to ground and damaged your o2 heater circuit. Why not check for voltage on the o2 sensor heater wires with a voltmeter? I'm guessing that the o2 heaters are turned on by the ECM/ECU so you may have fried it if the heater wiring was shorted to ground. Good luck, Nathan

Gentlemen, thank you both kindly. Nathan

Our intermittently poorly running '98 OBW finally threw a code for the MAF sensor (YES!) I am semi desperate to get this car running right ASAP. The car has a part number AA160F MAF sensor installed now. ( 3 wires on the connector) I bought an AA160 (no F) MAF sensor on e-bay accidentally. The seller says a 4 wire pigtail is included with the sensor and their chart says it fits a '98 Legacy. Supposedly the AA160F replaces the AA160, but are they backwards compatible too? (i.e. can an AA160 replace an AA160F) What's the deal with the extra wire? Perhaps the seller is just mistaken... Supposedly the AA160 came out of a '97 Impreza. I'd just wait and see what arrives, but if it's the wrong one, I want to order the right one now rather than waiting a week for the wrong one to arrive. Thanks in advance for any advice! Nathan

That's a good idea, Gary. I'll grab the old o-rings off the parts intake assy and see if I can match 'em up. Do they have to be special fuel resistant rubber or will any old o-rings of the proper size be OK?

I'm trying to track down some issues with my '98 OBW with a '95 EJ 22 swap. I'd like to swap out the injectors and I have a complete (but non EGR) intake manifold with injectors lying around. Grossgary and others have recommended swapping the complete fuel rails as opposed to pulling individual injectors. So, if you're pulling the fuel rails, you have to disconnect the flanges and tube which connects the right and left fuel rails... are there O-rings in there to seal the flanges? Is this a dealer stocked part? Can you get generic O rings at chain auto parts stores? Nathan