blitz

My '02 EJ-25 with 60k miles has been dripping a little oil from the center of the cam cover since about 30k miles. I assumed it was the crank seal but after digging through the Endwrench articles I came across this: "If you encounter a 2.5 liter engine with a leaking or dislodged front crankshaft oil seal, consider the oil pump as a possible cause. It may be necessary to remove the oil pump and examine the rear sealing plate of the oil pump. The screws holding the rear sealing plate may be loose. Some have been reportedly backed out 1/16 inch. This allows oil to exit the pump rotor area and get into the oil pump body where it is pressurized. This pressurized oil pushes on the seal, causing it to leak or pushes it out of it's mounting." The question for anyone familiar with this is; other than the slight drip, is there any harm in waiting until the big front teardown (t-belt, et-al.) to address it? **** ******!

You're in New Zealand, any chance you chug up steep grades at wide throttle openings? If so, then the rapid buildup is normal because the PCV system becomes non-functional at WOT. Just clean it off periodically. You'll probably get a lot of blowby oil in the front portion of your air-box too. **** ******!

As a side note: All current production Turbo Subarus w/ auto-trans use a real center diff in conjunction with an electronic transfer clutch. They all have the capability of putting greater than 50% to the rear axle. The one exception is the Forester XT (for whatever reason). N/A models make-do the with basic transfer-clutch arrangement. **** ******!

Keep in mind that the repair is only as good as the person doing it ...who could (by some stroke of bad luck) be the exact same person doing your next repair again after he moves on to a new employer and you move on to a new repair center. I've often thought that the dealer service centers are the training ground where fledgling mechanics cut their teeth before deciding to move to a better-paying, well-respected independant shop and possibly ultimately on to their own business. **** ******!

Here's the big question (drum roll please) ...Hodges? **** ******!

It wouldn't seem unreasonable that the loose belt was the cause of the slipping water pump as well. Man your lucky that it didn't completely jump time and destroy itself. **** ******!

Good job! Anyone know what that car would weigh? (approx.) **** ******!

I think there's a bit O' difference. The water is instantaneously thermal-shocking and steam-blasting away the carbon, whereas I'd think the Seafoam being a solvent and all, would benefit from some soak-time. I was under the impression that Seafoam instructions were to essentially "fog" the combustion chambers heavily, then shut it off for a period to let the solvent dissolve the deposits, then restart. **** ******!

In a nutshell: After thoroughly warming up the engine (oil should be at full operating temp), draw water into the intake plenum through a length of vaccum hose, while keeping the RPM's around 3k. Be careful to meter the water carefully so as not to give the engine too large a gulp. Use just enough to cause the revs to drop a bit and give the sound of a slight stumble. Run a good 16-20 oz. through. When you're done, drive the car to vaporize any water out of the oil and exhaust. **** ******!

A short section of flexible aluminum dryer-vent can replace the intake horn above the radiator and draw air in from the hole in the fender well. This way you can keep the torquey, quiet, stock plumbing. $ave bux too. I've done it , it works. **** ******!

No man, that's the beauty of using water ...no toxic chemicals. Other than a little steam from the tailpipe, you get a bit of sulfur odor from the cat - sorta like Yellowstone, only not as bad. For all I know it may actually be extending the cat life as well by stripping and releasing potential surface contaminants (sulfur, lead, phosphorous, silicone, etc.) from the cat media. Maybe there is a little bit of toxic fallout from the tailpipe, I dunno. **** ******!

FWIW, I didn't blast the carbon with the intent of getting rid of slap, I did it to keep spark-knock in check as a part of my yearly prevantative maintanence. The reduction in slap was incidental. I passed my findings along for two reasons: 1. USMB appears to exist for such a purpose. 2. I enjoy watching people struggle with new and unfamiliar knowledge. **** ******!

So what you're saying is that he actually has spark-knock that was still slightly audible after warmup? He wasn't really hearing piston slap after all? **** ******!

Aggravated by carbon buildup in the squish band. Oh wait... Subaru engines aren't known for that. "There've been a lot of complaints about cold-start knock in the Vortec engine family, and most General Motor's customers are getting incomplete answers at dealerships. We've spoken with Matt Kester, assistant manager with GM Powertrain Product Communications, about the situation. He said General Motor's engineers are aware of the problem and are currently in a research stage. The cold-start knock involves the 4.8L, 5.3L, and 6.0L V-8s in all applicable GM cars and trucks from '99 to '02. They believe the cause is carbon buildup on the circumference of the piston above the top piston ring. This interference is affecting the dynamics of piston travel and therefore causing a knock. It seems the problem begins after the first 12,000 to 15,000 miles, and the knock will last between five and 30 seconds in temperatures below 50* after a cold startup. The noise also seems more pronounced after long trips and at lower temperatures. The use of a top engine cleaner will give only temporary results, if any, and a replacement engine without modifications would most likely develop similar symptoms. We were also told that a Technical Service Bulletin is in the process of publication, which should provide an explanation of the condition but not a fix, and that carbon deposits and associated knock are not causing any structural damage to the engine." Disclaimer: Keep in mind that this "solvent fix" originated from the same company (GM) that determined chronic leaking head gaskets are caused by lack of GM coolant conditioner, rather than design error. **** ******!

The slap-slap-slapping on my 2.5 had gotten to the point where it was still slightly audible after warmup. After doing the yearly water-blast, carbon-removal thing, I noticed some mitigation of the slapping noise. It's not ALL gone, but it did lessen somewhat. Shades of the GM TSB for top-cleaner routine. **** ******!

There are warnings in the Subaru owners manual not to do specifically what? **** ******!

Actually the accessory position is provided as a means to NOT burn the coil out during extended accessory usage. Now leaving the key in the ignition position with the engine not running might present a problem... with points anyway, I'm not 100% sure this applies to transistor-triggered ignition. **** ******!

This may or may not be applicable for your specific problem: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- HESITATION ON ACCELERATION - 11-53-98 (2/99) Applicability: 97-98 Legacy, Impreza, and Forester Manual Transmission Vehicles with 2.5l and 2.2l engines. In the event you encounter a customer complaint of a slight engine hesitation between 1500-2500 rpm's when the engine is cold or hot, perform the following: Eliminate all external influences, such as an incorrect or dirty air filter, loose or tracked intake duct, dirty fuel filter, low fuel pressure, PVC system, or low engine vacuum that would indicate an external leak or an internal engine component. If all external components are confirmed to be operating within vehicle specifications, the hesitation may be caused by the ignition control logic in the ECM. Under certain low rpm driving patterns, the ignition control system can pick up engine vibrations through the knock sensor and may retard the ignition timing. This ignition timing is learned by the ECM and placed in memory. NOTE: This area of memory cannot be viewed by using the Select Monitor. When the vehicle is driven under these conditions, the timing may be retarded and could cause the engine to hesitate on acceleration. To confirm this condition, road test the vehicle while viewing the Knock Sensor Signal on the Select Monitor. If you duplicate the hesitation, and the reading on the monitor is around -10 degrees, you will need to change the ECM to correct the concern. [my note: this is an enhanced ECM, not a replacement with the same component.] **** ******!

Depending on the specific vehicle and the various sensor algorithyms (IAT etc.) ambient temperature and humidity can play a role in your octane selection. Often time you can get away with running a lesser octane on cooler/damper days, then as Nipper mentioned, altitude is a major factor. If it were my vehicle, I'd run premium if it speced premium. **** ******!

Since the engine is already on an upward incline and the coolant-crossover outlet-pipe is centrally located, raising the front of the vehicle will most likely encourage even more air to get trapped toward the top of the front water jacket than it already does. Usually I bounce the front of the vehicle hard with my knee while raising the RPM to dislodge and chase those stubborn air-pockets back toward the outlet. I'd imagine this happens automatically during driving. **** ******!

I bring mine up to 90 ft./lbs. - anything less feels like it's gonna work itself loose. **** ******!

A bottle of Techron once every oil change is a good rule of thumb. Regarding the burned valve, Subaru began touting "Stainess steel valves" in their literature at some point. I wonder if it's in regards to a previous issue with valve integrity. **** ******!

Looks like a burned exhaust valve, no? **** ******!

Instead of spending money changing sensors, why not send the money to me? **** ******!

I had no problem with your post, actually I was merely groking over the original question. ...then predictably went-off on a rant. "PM at 185K or "if it ain't broke, don't fix" Those are the only two choices?