Rooster2

Goodyear Gator back belts are good, but don't think I would buy the Duralast or a Kelly Springfield.

Low to High read marks on trany dipstick is about a pint measurement, so it doesn't take much ATF to hit the high mark. Unlike oil dipstick, which low to high reading is a quart measurement.

Good thing you got ATF, where ATF goes, and oil, where oil goes. Still, a bad idea to drive that car at all with way too much oil, even a short distance. If you have an oil catch pan container, it is not that much work to simply loosen to get slight oil drainage, but not remove the oil pan bolt entirely to drain out the extra oil. If you remove the bolt, it is pretty messy to reinstall the bolt, while oil is still flowing out the bolt hole, as oil will be squirting everywhere.

I think I would fix the head gaskets. Consider the figures of $1600 for repairs plus $1000, if you sold it..... you couldn't buy much of a car for $2600. The mechanic is charging the going rate to fix head gaskets. Another 100 for a water pump is reasonable too. Since you don't know this guy or his reputation, and if you do ask him to work on your car, I would ask him for references. Get names and numbers of his previous customers, and also where he worked before. A few calls should tell you if this guy is legit or not. You should also be able to verify with Subaru that the mechanic has his Subaru and ASE Master Certification as claimed.

Sorry to hear that you drained ATF instead of crankcase oil. It is an easy mistake, if you are not familiar with Subarus. Like others have said, DON'T DRIVE THIS CAR, UNTIL YOU HAVE THE PROPER LEVELS OF OIL AND ATF. OTHERSWISE, YOU WILL SEVERELY DAMAGE BOTH THE TRANY AND THE ENGINE. I assume you have an automatic transmission. When draining the trany, only about half the ATF can be drained at one time. The remaining half stays in the torque converter. So, to get a good clean change of ATF, it is a good idea to fill, drive at least 2 or 3 miles, then change ATF. Repeating this process three times eventually gives you good clean ATF in your automatic trany.

My understanding regarding putting in a used engine is advantageous, because his existing engine is super high millage at around 325K miles. At that millage, it is reaching the end of it's useful life and reliability. A used 2.2 in good shape for $200-$400 is a better value then considering a partial or complete rebuild on the existing engine.

Wow, interior condition and seats in excellent condition. Like how you yanked interior out for a thorough cleaning. I am impressed! Have you thought about doing detailing road trips? My two OBWs could use your cleaning expertise. I am in Indy, if that is not too far away.

All above is good advise. The trany drain yields about 4 and a half quarts in my estimation. I would suggest adding a pint size can of Trans-X after the third drain. Also, the trany dip stick measurement level from L to H is only about a pint quantity. It is good to know this, so you can avoid over filling.

Others smarter than me can tell you if it is an ez swap or not. Surprised the owner wants $800 for what is a 11 year old parts car. For what it is worth, in my opinion, he is about $500 too high, but I bet you already realize that.

Maybe a couple of hundred max. Depends if tires and wheels are good. Wrecking yard will prolly give you $50 to $100. Like you mentioned, list your car on Craig's, and other forums as a parts car and see what response you get.

HEAT is what makes a cat operate efficiently. If you have an exhaust leak, even a minor one, up stream before the cat, then there is less heat for the cat. As someone else wrote, fix the leak, and I bet your problem will be fixed.

Nice looking car, should be a nice ride. My neighbor has what looks to be same car, same color. Enjoy yours!!

Years ago, I was able to clear sun roof drain tubes with a compressed air hose with a long wand at the end, that shot out a high pressure air spray upon pulling on the trigger mechanism. This I did at an old fashion gas station, where they actually did mechanical work on cars, like changing tires and such. Now a days, going to a retail gas mart with an air hose to fill tires, won't have the wand chuck. Maybe going to a tire store, or mechanic shop will product the magic wand.

Prolly good idea to replace any clutch components if needed, since you have the clutch exposed.

I have changed plugs on the 2.2. It is way easier then the 2.5 DOHC. There is more room to work. Nothing special to watch out for. Ditto on treating the threads with antisieze. Sure makes plug removal and replacement a lot easier.

Good luck, Guy, I hope your newest Subaru gives you great service....Larry

With such a high electrical charged current sent to the plugs, gapping a plug is not that critical. I suspect that your spark plug wires may be causing the occasional "miss," if they are old. Best to replace with high quality wires, either Subie OEMs or Bosch. Not the cheapie "house brand" wires sold at parts stores. The cheapies just don't work well or for long in a Subie.

There is an external automatic transmission filter on your car that I recommend you change, but don't drop the trany pan to replace the mesh screen filter. I don't think they ever need changing. In my experience, the Trans-X fix will be noticeable after driving the car about 10 minutes. Trans-X seems to fix the problem of delayed trany engagement, when moving the shift lever from R to D. Your problem of "slipping out of gear," may indicate a different kind of problem. Let us know if Trans-X is working for you.

When I had a 91 Leggie, I had a 92 Leggie motor installed. My mechanic told me that some of the wiring harness connectors were not the same, so he had to do some wiring splice work to complete the job. That took some time.

My same thoughts, the system is low on 134 refrigerant. If you are mechanically handy, and like to work on cars, and have some time, I can give you some ideas on working on the system, that doesn't require much work.

I would think that you have checked the brake fluid level in the reservoir to know that it is full. I suspect that the master cylinder is going bad.

Agree that it is much better to have function over looks. I don't like car exhaust that has a single pipe that branches into duals or quads at the end of the car. That concept seems stupid. If they want to have duels, then run dual the entire length of the car. I would pay extra for the second cat.

I have both a 98 and 99 OBW with the 2.5 motor. I bought both used. Maybe the HGs have been changed on mine, maybe not. I just don't know. I haven't had any HG problems in the 5+ years for both cars. However, my recommendation is to buy a 2001 or newer car. The head gasket problem on the newer models is not much of an issue and if they go bad, won't leave you stranded. Other than the HG issue, these cars are very dependable, very durable, and easy to work on. My advise is to replace the timing belt and pulleys, if you have no idea when the belt was last replaced, because if the timing belt breaks, the valves will bend against the piston. Not a pretty sight.

The 4 door makes for a nice package. My concern is the 18" super low profile tires. Winter pot holes around here will destroy the tires and wheels at low speed where I live. Would that damage be covered under factory warranty??

No, I don't think so. Suggest avoid spraying on anything made of rubber, as the solvent will degrade rubber product. Also, avoid breathing the solvent vapor. It is nasty stuff that you don't want in your lungs.