porcupine73

If the knock sensor is gone, like to the point where the check engine light comes on because of it, you almost certainly will not get knock because the ECU pulls maximum timing as a 'failsafe' but you lose power. If it's just getting overly sensitive or it's cracked then again you probably won't get knock either because it's output signal may start looking like knock all the time so ECU pulls timing in this case too.

Wow that's a cool story and looks like it was a lot of fun!

If that O2 sensor was replaced previously it may have gotten messed up then or overtightened or galled or no antisieze or something. Like any service industry the dealer is under constant pressure to do more in less time and rather than spend time trying to free the thing up they may have just really laid on it with a breaker bar or impact wrench or something and whoops!

If that pump seal is faulty and the only symptom is delayed engagement, are there any risks to driving it like that if you're patient and wait for it to engage? Like is the pump not going to make enough pressure potentially and start allowing slippage?

Thanks for the info nipper. I'm not really sure how this venom gadget works then. Yah those gadgets on eBay are interesting, especially the 'voltage stabilizer' for more engine power, I think my favorite is the 12V squirrel cage blower 'turbo'. That wiki article is interesting, I saw it says "in Naturally Aspirated engines maximum power is frequently reached at AFR's ranging from 12.5 - 13.3:1"

LOL good one nipper! Are you back from your trip? Well if I don't adjust the belts with the engine running how do I know when they stop squealing? Well it was dark outside and I was relying on the light from the remaining functioning headlamps to kind of illuminate the area.

Hi all, had another low beam blow out on my '00OBW the other day, I think it was the low beam but I can't remember, it was the H1 (smaller) bulb. When I took out the old one, I noticed this brownish gunk around the seat between the bulb and headlamp case. It had this gunk the last time I replaced the bulb and I cleaned it all up at that time and now it's back. Actually last time the bulb wasn't even blown out it just didn't have a good connection on that springy thing that holds the bulb in place. The white plastic gadget has the gasket in place and everything and I don't see corrosion elsewhere in there. Also, I just learned it's best to replace the H1 bulbs with the engine off and key out of the ignition. I tried to it with engine running and accidentally touched the hot wire for the H1 bulb to ground and then heard the engine load up a bit and popped the headlamp fuse. Then I couldn't find any replacement fuse but noticed in the manual it said there were extras in the engine compartment fuse box cover (which i had just removed) and indeed there was!

I've been swapping my ScanGauge between my '96 Legacy 2.2L AT NA and my '00OBW 2.5L NA and watching the IGN parameter. I note on the '96 2.2L it will go as high as 50, but on the '00OBW 2.5L it goes no higher than 40, and on the '00OBW 2.5L it seems to be a little lower overall. I'm wondering if the units are different between the ECU's, or what, I'm assuming the higher number is more optimal for power although of course that's what the timing map is for I'm guessing. I heard most production cars today come with conservative timing maps because it helps keep emissions lower. Anyone see any performance chips or anything for regular (i.e. non spec B or C or Sti)?

Thanks for the info Noah, I wasn't aware of that about the Subaru fuel maps. I was just thinking about reading somewhere that the optimal A/F ratio for economy is like 14.1:1 or something, but for performance it's like 12:1 so I just assumed the Venom would try to make the system run richer.

Hi, I was wondering if anyone has tried the 'VENOM 400 Performance Control Module'. I see Summit has them for various Subaru's. The instructions say the connections needed are power, TPS signal wire, and MAP or MAF signal wire. My guess is that when the thing detects you're really getting on the throttle, it manipulates the MAP or MAF signal to trick the ECU into running a little richer temporarily. Any thoughts? I might like to give it a try but it's nearly $300 so I'd like to know if anyone has had success with it first. Heck for that much you could nearly slip in a 50 shot of NOS.

Had similar issue here in a '96 and knock sensor fixed it.

A coworker recently had a similar problem with his VW I think it was a jetta, we read a code of the CEL but I remember what it was, something like bank #1 long term fuel trim issue; I think he had the MAF replaced and that fixed the problem.

That '04 maint schedule does show to inspect a lot of things, but the items to actually do such as replace coolant, engine oil, fuel filter (why does the wrx sti have double the replacement interval for fuel filter), air cleaner, brake fluid, rotate tires seems pretty straight forward. ATF and gear oil replacement are suggested under 'severe service' which some drivers will qualify for based on their description.

Yah I think the 105k mi belts have Kevlar or something in them that makes them so durable. From what I've seen on endwrench it seems the vehicle will probably start if anything is one tooth off but there will be power loss; two teeth off it probably won't start and that drops compression pressure quite a bit.

Maybe change coolant/antifreeze. What does your manual show for spark plug replacement interval? Probably just depends if you have long life plugs (such as platinum or iridium) in it. Is this an MT or AT? If AT you could add front diff gear oil to the list (assuming on the '04 AT's the front diff still doesn't share oil with the ATF). Could also consider changing PS fluid.

If you're considering a rebuilt engine I hear in other posts the CCR I think it is top notch. The only time you'll see coolant out the water pump weep hole is if the bearing is loose/worn. All the fins could break off the impeller for some reason and there might not be anything coming out the weep hole. The water pump is a pretty simple device.

The next step is to get the exact code of the code reader. Don't settle for them telling you the description of the code that the reader gives, you want the number like P0123. Trying to do anything else without knowing that code is putting the proverbial cart before the horse.

Wasn't this the issue that whole law suit was about? I think Castrol said group III basestocks are synthetic, someone suing them said no they're not synthetic because they're a highly refined petroleum product, but I don't remember the outcome.

Other sensors for that kind of driveability issue could maybe include MAF or MAP, knock sensor, and maybe even engine coolant temp sensor. But first you need to know what the P code is that is causing the check engine light to come on.

Seanski the only real thing I see that could be a problem there is if you make a lot of short trips (where the engine oil doesn't have a chance to get up to say 180 deg. F) as then the fuel and water condensation in the oil doesn't really have a chance to get out of the oil. But you say you drive 25 miles each way to school every day and that should be sufficient to get the oil up to temp; it takes me about 20 miles in cool weather to get oil to 180 deg. F.

The bypass filter not only reduces engine wear, but can also significantly increase the OCI (on a quality oil that has a sufficient TBN, not getting overly fuel diluted, etc.). From a cost standpoint, it is possible to save money with bypass filters and increased OCI's probably more so in OTR trucks than it is in passenger vehicles. Also, if the interest of the bypass filter is for reduced wear, it might be of use to consider oil preinjection such as from a canton-mecca accusump to shoot a quart of oil or so before startup. Are either of these necessary in a passenger car? Probably not, as there sure are lots of Suby's and other vehicles making plenty of miles on the engine without them and as already stated it is likely other systems will have issues before the engine wears out.

The basestocks in synthetic oils of course are either group IV (PAO) and/or group V (ester), and some companies will say group III is synthetic although is actually made from petroleum. There are different quality levels of basestocks. The additive pack is critical also as you need quality AW anti-wear and other additives (antioxidants, etc.) and there are many types available to the oil blender, some are cheap and some cost more. If you look at the specs on various oils, you will see many differences between the pour point, flash point, TBN, viscosity at various temperatures, HT/HS, etc., all of which must be weighed determining on the application. Often, the blenders buy the additive packs from places like Lubrizol, who then suggests a basestock to use with it to meet the target specifications such as API-Swhatever.

The tp filter works very well from what I've seen esp. if you use the right kind of tp. I didn't really want the mess/hassle of changing the tp fairly often, plus you need makeup oil every time you change the tp (or any filter of course). I use the big eabp110's which are 2qt capacity filters and I think it would last 30k miles before needing a change because it's full. If you have an AT I would consider some sort of bypass or bypass used as a full flow for the ATF probably before worrying about the engine oil. For this purpose on my 4eat phase II I run two eabp110's (in parallel) in series with the cooler circuit, plus that gives me an additional gallon ATF capacity.

A mechanics stethescope would work wonders to pinpoint the noise; when I was trying to find a noise I couldn't tell where it was coming from other than 'the engine compartment', but with the stethescope it was simple to pinpoint the exact source without guessing.

What year/model vehicle do you have? It looks a lot like my '00 2.5L intake. Anywho, for whatever reason the Subaru doesn't have any 'breather' filters like I've seen in other vehicles for the PCV return to intake and valve cover to intake lines (both on the intake side of the air filter). That definitely looks like a little oil blowby or something in there which of course is sticky and then dirt sticks to it. Some amount of dirt after the filter there is normal; no air filter is 100% efficient at small micron sizes. Then that stuff sticks to the oil that's in there. You could consider putting in a PCV return 'catch can'; many people make them from various plumbing and compressed air components. Your throttle body does look like it could use a cleaning; I love to use redline SI-1 in a spray bottle warmed in a hot water bath, block throttle full open, spray in there, wait a while, then brush gently with a soft nylon brush or toothbrush, spray some more, til it melts off, lots of smoke for a minute on startup but clean TB, I accept no liability for this as some manufacturers say there's some coating on the throttle butterfly that can be damaged by cleaning. A shop light and inspection mirror are your friend on this job unless you plan to actually remove the TB.