mikeanderso

Is there any way to troubleshoot the valve? The repair manual details how to replace it, but how can I determine if it's bad? Mike A.

Blitz, Thanks for the reply. That toyota article was the kind of general info I was looking for, just enough to get my mind wrapped around. The factory repair manual from subaru has procedures for servicing the canister, as well as the vent control solenoid valve, and the purge control solenoid valve. I'll look those over a bit. Now to figure what hose goes where... When I hooked up the 2.2, I have a neighbor with a '95 legacy with the exact engine I was putting into my car (very fortunate coincidence), so I hooked up all the hoses to match his engine. I had a couple of "extra" components (I think the vent control solenoid is in the engine compartment of the '98, and was nowhere to be found on the '95, but I can't remember exactly..). Perhaps it's time to park the cars next to each other, and trace where the hoses go. Come to think of it, there's another guy on my street with a '99 2.5 DOHC... Maybe I'll try that this weekend. Thanks for the help! I'll post how it goes. Mike A.

Hi Blitz, Okay, looking over the tech manual, the canister for the 2.5 is located in front of the fuel tank, while the canister on the 2.2 engine is located in the engine bay. When I put in the 2.2, there were two barbed fittings on the front of the engine that I connected into the two fittings on the underhood canister, and didn't think much more about it. I did nothing to the canister under the car (didn't even know it was there...) The post from Blitz makes sense, in that the canister in back is collecting fumes but is not purged, and the canister under the hood is purged but not collecting fumes. Perhaps the best way to remedy the situation is to disconnect the underhood canister, but what do I need to connect to purge the canister in the back? I'm not familiar enough with the plumbing of the evap system on the engines to know what hose does what, and goes where. Time to learn, I guess. I'll dive into my manual tonight, anybody have any words of advice? Always more to learn... Thanks! Mike A.

Hello Everyone, About a year ago head gaskets on my '98 2.5L DOHC OBW went out. After checking this board, and looking at my options, I decided to replace the troublesome engine with a rebuilt 2.2 from CCR rather than replace the gaskets and risk it happening again. Once I got the right engine (had a mixup with CCR, original engine had an impreza intake manifold on it), the swap went pretty easy. The engine runs great. I have one question I need some help on. The 2.2 fuel evap system is plumbed for a charcoal canister in the engine bay, while the 2.5 is not. When I put in the 2.2, I bought a new canister from subaru, fabbed a mounting bracket for it, and hooked it up to the engine (I didn't like the idea of hoses that went nowhere). I'm now getting a CEL, and my mechanic tells me it's because of the evap system. My question to the board is what are the differences between the fuel evap system for the 2.5 DOHC engine compared to the 2.2? My 2.2 is from a '95 legacy, so it has EGR heads if that helps better define what kind of engine I have now. I'm curious how the two systems work, and how to start troubleshooting. I think I recall hearing somewhere that the 2.5 DOHC engine cars have a canister by the fuel tank rather than in the compartment. If that's the case, I have two canisters. The obvious question is should I disable one of them, (one in the engine compartment is probably easiest to get to) and if so, how should I plumb the hoses to make the system happy. Thanks, Mike A.

actually, the light hasn't cleared yet, it came on again. I unhooked the battery for 30 seconds, thinking that should clear it, right? When I had the light checked at the shop, it was the knock sensor. However, I had an exhaust leak that might have been causing the CEL to come on. Now, the leak is fixed and the light is still on. I did have to splice some wiring to hook up my '98 knock sensor to fit with the '95 harness, so I'm hoping it's not that. I'll get the light checked again on monday, maybe. Mike A.

Hello everyone, This will probably be my last post in this thread, and that is a good thing. Went to a shop and had the CEL (thanks avk) checked, it was the knock sensor. Turns out I also had an exhaust leak, I didn't get the bolts connecting the exhaust manifold to the cat converter section of the muffler pipe on tight enough. I went home, dropped the manifold, and tightened them up. Unhooked the battery to reset the CEL, and everything is fine. Lot's quieter too ;-) Next item was the shimmy in the rear end. Got the car up on the lift, and the cords are showing on the right rear tire. I was hoping to get these tires to last until inspection time in august, but time for a new set of tires. Replaced the fluid in the clutch the other night, the car drives, and it is nice. My observations about the 2.2: It doesn't have the bottom end torque that the 2.5 has. Once you get the 2.2 up above 3.5k, it pulls just as well as the 2.5 though. It's not quite as quick from a dead start, so adjust left turn driving habits accordingly. 5th gear seems to be very low for this engine. I know the tranny was probably designed to mate up with a 2.5, 5th is great for level driving on the freeway, but if there's any hint of a hill, or passing requires a shift down to fourth. Related to the bottom end torque issue. All in all, I'm pleased with the motor. I'm not interested in going fast, just going forever. Now, hopefully this engine does that for me. Thanks for everybody's help, on an unrelated note, anyone know if the lightbulb inside the radio that backlights the clock/station display can be replaced? Mike A.

Lots of good info there avk. I talked to the counter parts guy about the charcoal canister, and I decided that since the engine was designed to have one in the front, I might as well put one in. What is a CEL? I'm going to try to get into a shop today after work and get the check engine light diagnosed. While there, i'll see if I can get them to put the car up on the lift to check what is causing the shimmy in the rear end. It feels like a rubber bushing somewhere in the rear has gone out so things are loose and wobbly. Bit, by bit... Mike A.

Hi everyone, I said I would post as the day went on with any questions I had. No news, is good news, right? I'm almost ashamed to admit it, but in my rush to get everything connected saturday, I neglected to connect the ground wire onto the intake manifold. Did that, and a couple of other little things, and she fired right up. Runs great. I took it for a drive thie evening, clutch pedal was a bit soft, so I had my neighbor help me replace the clutch fluid. Much nicer now. The check engine light came on, and stayed on so now I need to go to a shop and get hooked up to a computer to diagnose why it's on. I've also got an exhaust leak somewhere, i think as the engine sounds a bit loud, expecially when you let off the throttle, and the slight shimmy that was in the rear end before I replaced the engine, well it's still there. I was hoping that just letting it sit in the driveway would make it go away ;-) So, in summary, the 2.2 swap into a 2.5 car DOES WORK! Here are the gems of wisdom I would pass on to anyone that wants to do it: 1. Specify that you want a '95 engine. From what I understand, 95 heads are one year only as they have EGR. You need EGR in order to use the 2.5 ECM. The folks at CCR could tell you more about that than I could... 2. SPECIFY THAT YOU WANT A LEGACY 2.2 MANIFOLD ON THE MOTOR. I have no idea if the impreza and legacy 2.2 manifolds are the same, but I can tell you authoritatively that the 1.8 and 2.2 manifolds are much different. Having the wrong parts on this motor cost me an incredible amount of time to rectify. I had to learn the hard way that wiring, and plumbing of air lines into the various sensors on the manifold are different. The EGR pipe is a different length for imprezas and legacies. Found that out last saturday. All of my problems could have been eliminated if I would have had a legacy manifold on the car in the first place. 3. You will need a charcoal canister. the 2.5 cars did not come with them, and the 2.2 manifolds are plumbed for one. You will need to also fab a mounting bracket for it, although the stock subaru one might work if you can get your hands on one, I didn't try it. 4. When you get the motor rebuilt, get the wiring harness for the 2.2 motor, and the sensors that came on that engine. Your core 2.5 harness will not swap straight across with the new 2.2. I'll keep everyone posted as to what the check engine light holds for me. Maybe there's just a bad connection somewhere. Thanks to everyone for their help. I'm a little embarassed that the solution was as simple as it was, but I'm not ashamed to admit it when I make a stupid mistake. Mike A.

To clarify: The cooling fans (on the radiator) would switch on when the key was in the off position. that's because the temp gauge was pegged on high. Cougar is right, in that the fans can run independant of key position. To get the fans to turn off, I would move the key to accessory position, and they would switch off. When I move the key back to off position, temperature gauge continues to read high, ABS, and oil pressure lights remain on. It was then that I tried the cooling (internal/heater) fans to see what was working and they turned on. Interestingly enough, the radio would not turn on with the key in the off position, while the fans would. I cannot confirm or deny if the accessories turn off when the key is between positions. If it does, then it would imply that there is something wrong with the ignition switch, as mentioned by cougar. If it does not, it would imply that power is getting to the accessories independant of the ignition switch, by some other route. That would be bad. I'm taking a day off work tomorrow to try and get the car running. I will be posting my progress, and questions as the day wears on, i'm sure. I will see if the accessories work when the key is between positions, and take a more accurate accounting of what I can and cannot turn on when the key is in off position. That might help me pinpoint where the problem is. I'm also going to call CCR to see if Rick or emily have ever run into something like this before. Thanks everyone, you will be hearing alot from me tomorrow! Mike A.

Thanks for the replies everybody, I think cougar has a point, I can track which relays have power and such to the ends of the harness, but the trick is to figure out what is different now with the new engine that wasn't there before. Once you figure out what's different, you can track through the wiring diagram how that difference would cause the things I'm describing. Work the cause, not the symptoms. Problem is, what's the problem? First of all, the 2.5 ECM and the 2.2 ECM are different. The pinouts for the wires coming from the firewall harness into the ECM are different on the two wiring diagrams. What is the same between the two harnesses is the wiring that goes from the engine harness to the three connectors that connect the engine harness to the firewalll harness. For example,for the 2.2, the engine coolant temperature sensor connects through pin #5 of the engine to firewall connector E2. This wire from the firewall then connects into pin 29 of the ECM. On the 2.5, engine coolant temperature sensor connects again through pin #5 of engine to firewall connector E2. the wire from the firewall then connects to pin 22 of the ECM. Since I have not changed any wiring downstream from the engine, the wires from the engine all go through the same three electrical connectors (E1,E2,and E3) in the exact same way. Once through those connectors, things get different between the two cars, but from the engine it is the same. That is why I believe the swap should work. As far as the ECM knows, it is still getting the same signals from the same sensors. now, for the nitty gritty details. I did clip the 2.2 wiring harness knock sensor wire to swap electrical connectors so I could re-use the knock sensor from my 2.5 motor. they both connect through one wire, but use different shaped connectors. Wires were clipped, joined with solderless crimp connectors, soldered anyway, then insulated with shrink wrap. The connections are solid, I'm sure of that. Also, the wires from the crankshaft position sensor got smashed under the intake manifold, and i had to do the same drill on those wires. I could believe that there will be a slight change in the resisitance of those wires due to my soldering. I dont' think that could be a source of my problems, but I figure now is the time to confess all my sins and get all the info out there :-) Right now, my area of study is the power supply routing section of the '98 wiring diagram. Got to figure out how current from the battery is getting to the headlights, fans, etc. when the key is in my pocket. This post kind of turned into a big ramble. Thanks for the suggestions, keep them coming. Mike A.

hello everyone, I'm having some electrical issues, and I'm hoping y'all can help. Background: car is a '98 legacy wagon. head gaskets on 2.5 motor went at 109,000. Rather than replace the gaskets, and have them go again in 60K, I decided to put in a 2.2. Called CCR, and ordered a 2.2 from a '95. The motor originally came with an impreza manifold, and wiring harness, so I had to deal with those issues, if anybody's interested with that story, the post is here: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=14940&goto=newpost Anyway, CCR sent me a '95 legacy 2.2 manifold, and got it all bolted on today. As far as parts, and electrical connectors for, the '95 2.2 is a straight out swap with the 2.5. I checked the wiring diagrams, and everything goes back into the ECM the same way. Okay, so new motor is in, and everything is connected up. Refilled radiator, power steering pump, and dumped in 4.5 quarts of oil into the new engine. Dumped a gallon or so of gas in the gas tank, connected the battery, and then unplugged the coil so that I could crank the motor using the starter to run the oil pump, water pump, and steering pump without ignition. crank, crank , crank. Reconnected the coil, and tried to start. Won't. Here's some strange things that are going on. I don't have a check engine light on, so I think all the sensors are hooked up right. Here's the wierd part. I turned the key to lock position and removed the key, but the following dash indicator lights stayed on: ABS, oil pressure. With the key out, I can still turn on headlights, and the interior vent fan. That shouldn't be happening. It's like the key is in, and in acc position, but the key is out. Hmm. Also, the temperature gauge was pegged on H, so the radiator fans triggered on. If I cycled the key between lock and acc, I could get them to switch off. I unhooked the - terminal on the battery so it doesn't drain all night long. So, in summary, here's what I've got: 2.2 in a 2.5 car. wiring all lines up and double checked. No check engine light. motor will not start. When key is removed, I've still got electricity everywhere.? Any ideas? This one is weird, and I'll take any suggestions that are out there. Thanks! Mike A.

another option is to put in a 2.2 to replace the 2.5. That's what I'm doing right now, but I haven't got it working yet, so wait a bit. If you do it, you need to get a 2.2 from a '95 legacy. the '95 has one year heads with EGR, which you need to fit into a 2.5 car. I assume you will probably buy your rebuild from CCR. Make sure you specify the correct manifold (legacy or impreza) for your engine. the legacy to legacy swap goes straight across. I'm posting with some other questions in a second here, if you're interested in the 2.2 swap, search for some other posts I've put up. Mike A.

Hello everyone, the clearcoat on the hood scoop of my 98 outback wagon is chipping off. the paint on the rest of the hood is fine, just the scoop. Anyone know if you can separate the scoop from the hood without destroying the hood? If so, How? Thanks! Mike A.

thanks for the tip avk. I will talk to CCR about that next time before the manifold gets shipped out.

from conversations with the dealer, and from info on this board, I believe a 95 motor is obd2 I talked with Rick and Emily at CCR today, and I decided that I'd like to get a legacy 2.2 intake manifold to replace the 1.8 impreza manifold on my motor at the current time. I could probably get the franken-motor setup to eventually work, but then in a year from now when I need to fix something I'll pop the hood, and have absolutely no recollection of how I made anything go together. I'd rather have a full '95 legacy 2.2 motor, that way I can just use the subaru tech manual for the '95 legacy to make any repairs. They will find a manifold for me and ship it out when they find it. I'll post when the next chapter begins! Mike A.