illanrob

With the persistent engine code 2-1 for several months, then hard cracking to get the car to run plus cooling fans running when they should not, this thread pointed to the culprit the coolant temperature sensor, CTS. This sensor gets a +5V level with a 1Kohm source resistor from the ECU. Made resistance measurements with a Volt-Ohm-Meter, VOM. The CTS behaves as a negative resistor starting at 2.5K at 20C and 0.25K at 80C, normal engine temp per shop manual. These resistance values pertain to about +3V and +1V at the ECU or the CTS. The voltage measured at the ECU connector pin 7 pin 21 (lowest connector at the ECU is the 22 pin connector under dash drivers side) after stripping some of the wire insulation. On the 93 Leg the CTS at +1.2V is too high, the ECU expects +1.0V when engine is hot. The bad CTS was left on the car and a 1.1K parallel resistor was added between pin 7 and 21 at the ECU connector. With this resistor the ECU voltage is now under 1.0V and the car runs normal. Since the CTS is continuing to wearing out, becoming less responsive to heat and not reaching the 0.25K resistance without the help of the paralled 1.1K, this is a temporary fix and will have to monitor the +1V CTS reading in months to come. Robert Illan Huntsville, AL

bridorf 1993 Leg. L "Seems to happen more when it is warm outside, but sometimes it will crank longer before firing up than othe times - almost like it isn't going to start but then if you keep on crankin' it it will start - longest cranking period is about 3-4 seconds. Other times it will fire right off normally - no check engine light ever and all battery & starter terminals are tight. Any thoughts? I never have to press the accel. pedal or anything like that to make it start." My 93 Leg L 5spd does the same, but then the Temp sensor code 2-1 flashed on the Check engine light. Also a second symptom are the cooling fans running with AC off and engine cold. The Shop Manual mentions hard starting as a consequence of a bad Temp sensor. I measured the temp sensor voltage at the ECU connector harness while driving the car voltage changed from 2.8V cold to 1.2 when engined temp is normal. Robert Illan

Thanks for the reply: "it can, yes. what is more often the case (every time i've seen it actually, i've never seen an actual failed sensor) - the sensor contacts are bad." But I wonder if we are talking about the same problem: The Temp Sensor Code 2-1 flashing could imply that the voltage is missing (bad connection, corroded terminal, broken wire) or the level is off the normal scale. I measured the voltage at the ECU connector, under dash drivers side. The reading was on the lower side of the scale, will have to check my notes on this, from the ShopManual volt temp range but very close. Since the sensor is simply a resistor forming a voltage divider with the ECU, I will try to adjust the voltage some way to be "well" in range this weekend and test how the car starts. The sensor in question does move as the engine warms so it still has life. Robert Illan Subarus for ever!

I read the thread on hard cranking to start a 94 Legacy with the ECU temperature sensor and fuel filter items to check. My 93 EJ22 5spd does the same and the Engine Code 2-1 (think that is correct ) refers to the Temp sensor flashing. I monitored this sensor at the ECU connector and although it reads a bit low in voltage per the Shop Manual, the voltage moves correctly with temperature. I have reset the ECU codes several times. Noticed that the car will start properly 10 to 15 times, a normal week of driving, after a Code Reset. Have been able to let the car rest during weekends and has been OK for another week. Is all this trouble realy caused by a Temp Sensor? Also noticed that the radiator cooling fans come on 20 secs after a start while the AC is off and the engine has yet to warm up. Any thoughts on this? Robert Illan 93 L 160K 5spd original clutch

Anyone using 5W-30 oil on 2.2L Legacy? I used this oil for the first time, had a case intended for the 03 Baja, after trying to correct a limp lifter which was making a lot of noise at idle. The engine cleaner seemed to clear the clogged lifter since the engine got very quiet in idle after running the cleaner for 5 minutes. Then when refilling with 5W-30 the engine got noisier than before but the lifter tapping was less or gone. Maybe I need to go back to 10W-40 and it should get quieter. Robert Illan

The 2.2L engine has the easiest timing belt to change in the Auto World. Have done it 3 times to my 93 Legacy 153kmi, once for the water pump. The first time is the worst because the crank-pulley bolt is so tight that it takes a lot of force to get off. Then after loosening the belt tensioner the new belt barely fits. If you somehow missalign the belt marks with the three pulleys, you will know right away the engine will idle really rough but it should start right away. So what I do is install the belt and start the motor and look at the belt spin, the water pump runs of the timing belt, the engine idles normal now, tighten bolt, install the covers and accessory belts. Caution!! if you do not stop the motor with the 3 timing marks on top of each pulley, the camshaft may be in the wrong position, pulleys will have no free play and if they rotate you will have a harder time to reposition them correctly to place the belt correctly. Expect 3 hours your first try, 1.5 hours the second time. Cost $40. Robert Illan

Its hard to figure your car not starting for a Knock and Coolant Sensor. Never had that combination of failures on my 93 Legacy 2.2L, but these engines should have a computer that allows LIMP MODE a condition where the car will start, run rough, and get you home. Before buying a bunch of Sensors. Buy a battery charger or recharge the battery, Clear the engine faults and see if this helps. The coolant temp sensor may affect the fuel/air mixture at most and the knock sensor is for timing advance. None should prevent engine from starting although it may not run efficiently. Robert Illan

Used Engine Gunk engine cleaner in the oil, the motor at idle got really very quiet after 5 mins close to normal engine temperature. Sounded like a new engine. Then drained the oil for longer than normal to get most of the cleaner to drip out. Poured the same oil that I use on the '03 Baja 5-W30 Castrol GTX. This is a sludge inhibitor oil formula. The motor at idle is noticeably louder than with the cleaner in the crankcase. The loud tapping sound was gone once I drove on the road. I am aware now how much noisier the Legacy 2.2L is over the 03 Baja. I only use the Baja for long trips. I have not seen in any of the 2.2L lifter discussion the O-ring that may be the seat or seal for the lifter. I have the '92 Legacy Service Manual and it clearly mentions to install the O-ring but doesn't say where. Thanks for the extensive discussion on tapping lifters Robert Illan

Craig wrote this extensive lifter success story with a 91 Gen 1 Legacy 2.2L Wagon/AWD/ABS/Auto. Question: Did you identify which head or which section of head was noisier whenever the tapping noise reappeared before starting this repair? Plagued by intermittent lifter noise. Question: You used the engine cleaner, refilled with new oil and filter and the lifter noise got worse? Last task was to address the tick. I used some gunk cleaner by Berryman Chemtool added to the oil, but when it made "the lifter noise" worse. Question: Below you are removing the valve covers and then removing both valve rocker assemblies using a 10MM wrench? Did you remove the 8 10MM bolts starting with the 4 in the middle upper left first, lower right, upper right and lower left last. Then the outer 4 bolts in the same order as above? Using 10mm tools. I disassembled both banks, starting with the right side, and blew out all the passages of the rocker arms Question: Used compressed air on rocker oil holes/passages? and shaft with compressed air, while paying special attention to the lifters one-by-one. Question: The spongy condition is from compressing the hydraulic lifter? I did not notice any with the typical spongy description or find plugged oilways as in many posts, Question: Did you remove lifters by hand or pliers? Did you removed the rocker shaft and carefully arranged all parts in order so that reassembly is in the original position? Was there less than a 4Mills or 0.1MM ( 4 one thousands of an inch or 0.1 MilliMeter limit, ) clearance between the 6 valve rocker arms and rocker shaft? Was this clearance measured? however I popped them from the RA housing, blew out the housing, and blew out the lifter. Question: You are using compressed air to push out oil out of the lifter? You are depressing the CHECK ball with what? There were 3 or 4 that had a bit of varnish on their sides I scrubbed off and blew clean. I depressed the ball bearing and pumped out the existing oil, then Question: You submerged the lifter in oil pressed down on the CHECK ball and compressed the lifter until no more air bubbles apeared? When you were done with the lifter did you compressed it to assure that it was locked? submerged them in fresh 10/40 and pumped them with the bearing depressed until I felt consistent resistance and no air bubbles. Question: You added some oil into the lifter cavity before installing and was there an O-ring in each cavity? I filled the RA cup with oil and pressed the lifter back in it's original location. I used generous amounts of oil when reassembling, Question: You didn't have a problem reinstalling the rocker arm assembly on the heads? Was there any damage/uneven wear where the cam rubs against the rocker arms? Did you tighten the 4 outside bolts first and 4 inside bolts last? and had no major issues reinstalling onto the head(s). The whole procedure took me a little over 3 hours for both sides. Question: The igniter is the ignition wire? Hence you are cranking the engine to build up some oil presure? I pulled the igniter and cranked the engine beyond the oil light going off for about 1 minute, then reattached the igniter and went for the start. I got nada. It spun without even so much as a sputter. I spun it some more, and more. On my 3rd or 4th spin, I finally got a tumble, just a bit faster than the starter. This went on for about 5 minutes, spinning about a minute at a time. I was just about to get discouraged when I got a bit of a cough, and a very rough idle that held for a second or two. The next spin it sputtered to life, and I held it at 2k for about 5 minutes. Question: After holding the RPMs to 2000 you let the engine idle normaly and the lifter ticking/tapping was gone? When I let off, it purred like a kitten. There was no trace of lifter noise, and the loping that accompanied the tick was gone. Question: The valve tapping was some how corrected, but did you find a specific problem? Has the engine been fine since then? Did you change the oil weight? I let it warm up, then took it for a drive. What a difference! I was truly amazed at how much pickup it had (now like our other 2 Sub's), especially off a dead stop. I will know the true status of my efforts after an ice cold start tomorrow morning, but I must say I am cautiously optimistic it is cured. Thanks to all for your input and the dedication of Legacy777 for sharing his excellent pics and SM pdf's. This board is great. Craig Robert Illan Who may soon follow your steps on a '93 2.2L

It has been 3 years since I have done any work on my 93 2.2L Legacy. The Autozone replaced in 2000 axle was getting too noise on left turns. So I let the Legacy sit for a week while waiting for the free replacement axle and replaced the rotor and pads all on the front drivers side while I was at it. All this went well until I started the engine and a loud tapping sound appeared, the engine was struggling a bit the first minute or so. The struggle rough idle was not as severe as when the intake manifold gasket had a crack several years ago. Drove the the car around the block 25MPH tops and except for the tapping noise all seemed OK, no loss of power or hesitation or vibrations, just noisier tapping. The new CV joint doesn't click any more and the new rotor and pads are also OK. Used the stetoscope on the injectors and the heads. Sounds noisy on front passenger side of head. Not sure what to do next. Probably sounds like a lifter problem, the injectors couldn't be that loud. Robert Illan