hankosolder2

Thanks! That looks really high up under the dash. I'll peek again.

Pretty please? Someone has got to know where the locations of the fuel pump and main relays are on a '98 OBW.

I will need to look at the wiring diagram, but that procedure sounds screwy if they're talking about the TPS voltage hitting '10 or 12' I'm just about positive that the TPS shares a 5 volt reference voltage with the other engine sensors.

I think you either have a wiring problem, are probing the wrong pins, or the sensor is not mechanically engaging the throttle mechanism. (Been a long time since I've pulled one, so I don't remember if the shaft can break or not be engaged) Basically, for the 3-wire TPS sensors, there's a 5 volt input pin, the "wiper" pin which has a variable voltage depending on the shaft position, and a ground pin. Make sure the ground pin is in fact grounded. (you can measure the voltage from the ground pin to a known ground like the engine block) If the ground pin measures closer to 5 volts, you have an open ground connection. You should probably check the voltage at all three wires. I'll bet you'll be able to figure it out. Nathan

Can anyone steer me in the direction of where to find these relays? (Again, '98 OBW) I had a bit of a nose around under the dash and came up empty. I did a search and didn't come up with many hits- are these relays all but bullet proof? Nathan

You can call the dealership and give them your VIN, ask if there are any 'open' recalls on your car. Alternately, you can sign up for Subaru Owner link (google it) register your VIN and it will show you a list of open & completed recalls.

I hadn't thought of renting one. Good thought. I do already have a gauge-- just can't connect it to the subie w/o a T fitting. I'm dealing with an intermittent problem and want to rule out loss of fuel pressure as a potential cause rather than throwing parts at it; it could just as easily be a bad relay or a corroded connector going to the pump than the pump itself. Nathan

I'm trying to monitor the fuel pressure in my '98 OBW. I have one of those fuel pressure gauges that's designed to attach to a schrader valve. I'm guessing I'm going to need a T fitting, a couple of bits of high pressure fuel hose, etc. Does anyone know of a handy/ cheap kit for this? Or can I kluge something together with fittings from Home Depot? This seems like it might work, though I'd need to figure out a way to attach the gauge to the center of the T. http://www.amazon.com/Mr-Gasket-2975-Pressure-Adapter/dp/B00093CL3M/ref=sr_1_3?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1314663268&sr=1-3

I decided to start a new thread; the old one seemed to fizzle out and had an embarrassing misspelling in the subject header! I'd really appreciate suggestions- I'm getting desperate to fix this. '98 OBW 5-speed, 216K, 2.2 swapped about 5 years ago. It has started doing a variety of things- Sometimes bucks/ stalls on takeoff. Once in a great while stalls at idle, hot or cold. Sometimes loses power (all cylinders dead) while accelerating, then power comes back on. Sometimes light "trailer hitching" trace miss when cruising at a constant speed. Sometimes it will run perfectly for an entire 45 minute trip. No cel is on, no stored codes. I put a scan gauge II on it- coolant temp reads out normal, TPS seems OK, it goes to closed loop OK, no out of range or erratic readings that I notice. It's hard to get a reading while it's doing it though- the scan gauge updates pretty slowly. I tapped on the MAF. Plugged and unplugged all the connectors on the engine harness, wiggled wires with the engine on. Any thoughts? Thanks in advance! Nathan

I installed KYBs. The old spring was just fine. I think the strut which failed was OEM...'98 with 200+K miles on it- the tube was incredibly badly rusted- never seen anything like it before, even on older cars than this.

I installed the new struts today. The "broken" side (longer than a normal strut assembly where the spring extension is limited by the strut rod) took a bit of maneuvering to get past the lower suspension arms, but came out OK. I was planning on taking pictures of the bad strut, but I left them out back and the metal scrapmen took them before I had the chance to get my camera! Thanks for the advice! Nathan

I don't think a fuel filter could possibly be intermittent, but I've been wrong about "X failure mode couldn't possibly cause...." before. Nathan

Use hand signals instead? Kidding aside, it's got to be A.) the voltage drop that the extra load of the turn signals causes B.) a high resistance ground. C.) a short or leakage in the wiring harness between the turn signal wiring and the TCU or an engine sensor. Can you cause a similar effect by "blinking" any other electrical loads on and off? (i.e. if you turned the headlights or rear defroster on and off repeatedly would the same thing happen?) You're going to need a voltmeter, a wiring diagram and some logic to figure this one out! You could start by cleaning and resecuring grounds... Nathan

OK, I tapped on the MAF- it didn't seem to make the slightest difference at idle and didn't change the readings on the scan gauge.

No, it doesn't. The TPS reading is usually around 25 when it happens. My code scanner seems kind of sluggish with reading out the data, so it's possible a small glitch could come and go without the display updating in time to reveal it though. It also goes open loop on coasting/ decel fuel cut, but I think that's normal. Nathan

Hey guys, I don't mean to be asking a question a day here, but... My wife reported that her '98 OBW ('95 EJ22 swapped, 5MT. 216K) was lurching and stalling. No CEL is on. I started the car from cold and drove it down the alley. Under light throttle in 2nd, it cut out briefly (not a cylinder misfire- complete loss of power on all cyls.) It also stalled on take off a couple of times (seems like it's going to launch normally, then it's like someone just clicked the key to off.) It will restart easily and then sometimes do it again. It cleared up and ran perfectly the rest of the day. Next day, it ran fine. Today I drove it for 45 min, it ran fine. Shut it off for 5 min, restarted, car briefly bogged at about 3/4 throttle at speed. Later cold started the car, took a short trip and the car once had an abrupt near stall while idling. (This is unusual- the problem almost always seems to happen under load with the car moving) Borrowed a scan gauge II. The car stalled badly two times after a cold start under acceleration. By the time I had the scan gauge set up properly, it was too late to get useful readings. Monitored the CTS, TPS, bat voltage and open/closed loop readings on the way home. Is it normal for the car to go open loop on moderate acceleration? For some reason, I thought that was only supposed to happen near WOT. Anyway, I'd be open to any suggestions. It's so intermittent it's driving me nuts! MAF sensor? Plugs are NGK, OEM plug wires, probably 5 years old and not a ton of miles on 'em. Nathan

Thanks to you also, John. I don't know why that later kit didn't show up in my e-bay search. Now I feel like an idiot! It's good to see the two different styles side by side. Nathan

Thanks, GD! I think I have a bunch of parts I stripped off a '95 EJ22 block I scrapped which probably includes the tensioner bracket. It'll bolt right up with no problem? I suppose I should probably buy a fresh early style tensioner? Nathan

I just bought a "98" Legacy L Wagon (2.2 4eat) with a production date of 09/97. All of the timing belt kits on e-bay claim to fit up to early '97 (feb cutoff?) or '99 and newer. My question is: what is the difference between the early and late '97 engines and kits? Can I use most of the parts from a kit and just order whatever bits are different from a dealer? I did a search and didn't come up with what I needed. thanks in advance, Nathan

Thanks guys- good to know. I'm really (overly?) cautious with compressed springs. Knowing that it'll decompress enough w/o flying off and impaling something or someone is a big help. Nathan

I just bought a '98 Legacy Wagon. 214K. One of the rear struts has failed to the extent that the strut cartridge insert and rod has pulled out from the main tube of the strut assembly. So, there's nothing to limit the travel of the spring if the weight of the car is not on the strut assembly and it's unbolted from the car. I need to replace the strut (duh) and if I try to unbolt this thing as an assembly, I think the spring might go flying. I guess I could see if I can get a spring compressor on it while the hub is resting on a jack... has anyone run into this problem, and if so, how did you work around it? Nathan

Are you sure you don't have an air pocket in the cooling system? Subarus can be very difficult to purge. You need to use the bleed screw and burp it. Did you unplug the cooling fans when /if you pulled the radiator during the t-belt job? You didn't stuff a rag or anything into a disconnected radiator hose or anything to stop it dripping, and forget to remove it, right? Good luck. It seems unlikely that the radiator spontaneously failed.... Nathan

I'm pretty sure the popular "frankenmotor" is phase I ej22 heads on a phase I EJ25 bock. I'm talking about phase II ej 22 heads on a phase I ej25 block.

Gary- You mention swapping phase I and phase II ej 25 blocks- I'm asking about using '99 phase II ej 2.2 heads on a phase I ej 25 block. Do you know if that'll work? I'm just worried about coolant passages lining up properly, bore sizes, etc. I'd definitely inspect the tensioner and consider piston slap if I had the car to inspect- but I don't, so I'm just running though the worst case scenario (rod knock, needs a block) to see if I'm even interested in looking at the car. Nathan

I'm looking at a '99 Legacy 2.2 MT with an engine knock. (I haven't examined the car yet, but let's assume the block is hosed) I have a '97 EJ 25 DOHC phase I engine (not perfect, but good enough for my low mileage beater needs) sitting in my garage. Is there any way I can mix and match parts here to make one good-ish engine out of what I have? Phase II ej 22 heads & manifold on a phase I ej 25 block? I live in an emissions inspection state, so I can't have any CELs. Nathan