subsince77

Original post was about going a couple of blocks in a small town between stop signs. In second gear 30 mph is just about 3500 RPM. I routinely run this car up passes at between 3700 and 4700 RPM. During an acceleration onto a highway I'll hit 5000 or so. It seems to like that just fine. I don't run all over town in second, but with a 25 or 30 mph speed limit, I don't always go to third between stop signs. On the highway, 3500 in fifth is 75 mph. I think horizontally opposed engines like to spin. Actually, I think the auto tranys on these cars keep them running way too slow most of the time. My problem was an old coilpack. All is well after that change.

No dash thermometer but, yesterday was -26 (daytime high -6), day before -28, this morning -20 - it's not unusual - goes on through January and early February. I think my coldest start was -36, but I use an oil pan heater when its more than 10 below.

My 97 2.5 did something similar, but did not get nearly that hot. It started intermittently getting slightly hotter than it should, then dropping back to normal, and the fans were running too much. I panicked, but there were no other indications of an HG problem. It turned out to just be a faulty thermostat. I replaced it with one from napa, because the nearest Subaru dealer is 150 miles away. I had noticed how different the aftermarket thermo was, but tried it anyway. I had the same problem within a couple of weeks. Then I really panicked, but ordered a Subaru thermostat. The temp has been rock solid ever since. I would at least try a new SUBARU thermostat, if you don't have other symptoms. Not all 2.5 HGs fail, and not all that early. I know its a common problem, but remember you are reading a forum for people that are having problems with their cars, so you read about a high percentage of problems. Stay calm, it might be simple. If not, you can always panic later.

My wife had that experience once in our old Nissan Pickup. It was caused by a kid with a pellet gun on the side of the road.

Yup. But old, old habits are hard to break (brake). I'm working on it.

My Sub is the first ABS car I've ever had. I have never liked it, but I thought it was just because I grew up in Colorado and North Dakota driving many months of the year on winter roads with regular old brakes. I learned early how to use my gears and pump the brakes to stop. I almost never give the ABS a chance to work, because my foot isn't on the brake that long. Anyway, never liked it, thought I was just getting old, turns out I was at least partially right.

Recently I have had the dis-pleasure of working on a Chevy Suburban that belongs to our church. We had a strange electronic problem, so I found a site "like this one" and posted a question. I did finally get an answer that may help, but I just wanted to say that not all repair/enthusiast sites are created equal. The level of helpful information and expertise that you get here is really awesome. I'm not much of a mechanic, and I have some pretty stupid questions that I don't always ask. But a quick search of this site will almost always turn up the answer given in a very respectful tone. You guys and girls are doing a great job. Thanks.

I do, and yes I bought it used from someone I know, and he provided me with a huge stack of receipts for everything they had ever done to it. I think the biggest thing they did was an alternator. I was impressed! I wish they had done an HG, but no. I'm going for the record! It's been a great car. Anything it does at this point won't change that.

Looks like mine is the granddaddy on this list so far. 97 OBW 2.5 Man. Trans. 196000 with no HG problems - not gonna have any!

I can highly recommend MWE for the axle. I just got two rears for my 97 OBW, fast, reasonable, helpful, and perfect - what more can I say.

Thanks, those are good suggestions. I didn't know what the flashing was about. Strange that something could be that wrong and not be able to feel a thing. Yes the codes are misfires on 3 and 4, again, that's why I replaced the plugs and wires last time. After it flashed, I shut it off and parked for about an hour, when I restarted, the light just stayed on steady, After clearing the codes, it did not come back on. For what its worth, when I changed the plugs, every one was perfect color with no sign of oil etc. The car runs very strong, starts perfectly, idles smoothly, does not use oil, and gets 25 mpg in town and 30 on the highway. I have had no indication that anything was wrong until I started getting this code occasionally. I think I'll change the coil out first. Any information on whether it needs to be from Subaru or not?

Hi all, I have read through the threads on these codes, but I am still not quite sure of my next step. My problem is similar to many others here. 97 OBW, 2.5L, 195000 mi, occasionally giving the CEL, usually while cruising down the highway for a couple of hours, no feeling of missing or stumble, or loss of power. So far it is always these two codes together. This morning it happened after only 15 minutes of driving, I was going down the street about 30 at 3500 RPM. The light flashed for about two or three blocks (that was new) until I shut the car off, then stayed on after I restarted. Again, no hesitation or missing perceptible. I have just, like last week, replaced the wires and plugs with Subaru wires and NGK laser platinums. I have never replaced the ignition coil. Is that the next logical step, and should that also come from Subaru. I only ask because it is a $100 part, so if I should check something else first, I will. And, the nearest Subaru dealer is 150 miles away, so it means travel or buy it online. Just wanted to know if this is my next move.

I'm not sure what your factory rack is like exactly. I use Yakima lowrider mounts on the factory rack on my 97 OBW. I carry two bikes and a cargo box all the time. I have carried both river and sea kayaks also. It is a very strong system that allows you to attach any size cross bars.

Sorry, but isn't the differential in the back, and this is the front axle? Why would they change the differential fluid? I had a thread here a couple of weeks ago about my 97 OBW left rear axle popping out of the differential while driving down the highway. I ended up replacing both axles (194000 miles on them). So far all has been working fine. The best theory was that the inner joint may have momentarily siezed and pulled the axle part way out of the diff. But I think that's a whole different set-up if this was on the front.

Others will know more, as I am not a mechanic, just a happy owner for about 30 years. The engine should not feel rough at all. On the contrary, I think horizontally opposed engines love to spin and do so very smoothly. Also, don't be afraid to rev it up. I have always driven manual transmissions so I am a bit prejudiced, but I think sometimes automatics try to keep the engines running at too low an RPM. I run my 2.5 4cyl from 3500 to 4500 rpm up long passes all the time. Accelerating onto the highway I often run it up to 5000 +. I have noticed that it has a real sweet spot for long climbs right around 4300. I find that I have plenty of acceleration and power even at 11 and 12000 feet, but I have been driving 4cyl. engines for a long time, so maybe I’m just used to it. Sometimes I have to drive a Chevy Suburban that my friend told me I would like because of its ability to pass on the highway. I find that my Outback has LOTS more pickup than that thing. All of this is just my opinion. Welcome to Subaru.

I used seafoam into the intake, let it soak a while, then run until it stops smoking. There are some good instructions on this site someplace about it. I think i searched for intake clean or something like that. It was fun and spectacular. Don't have any idea if it helps the HG thing or not. Found it - http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=65012&highlight=seafoam+intake

I will be interested to read what the experts think. I am not one, but my 97 OBW 2.5 has run like a champ for 195K and counting. Just regular maintenance (oil, filters, belts, plugs and wires etc.), one knock sensor, one starter. Other than the recent rear axle replacement, even the rest of the car has needed just regular maintenance. I would think having hydraulic valves and a non-interference engine would be a better set up. But as long as you do the jobs on time, no issues in the real world. Of course I have not had the dreaded head gasket problem. When I got the car, a long-time Subaru mechanic in Billings told me that he thought, and it was just a theory, that doing a serious intake/combustion chamber clean every 30k to 50k might help prevent the HG problem. I don’t know, but I have a clean engine and no HG problems.

I had to make a trip to "the big city" today, so I picked up a set of wires from the Sub dealer. We measured them against my original 1997 factory set. They were almost identical in length. Tomorrow I'll pull out my short set and see how they compare. Thanks for the help.

Hmmm, telephone, talk to a human, not a bad idea. Thanks

Sorry if I'm just being stupid here. But when I go to Subaruparts.com, in their parts ctalog under "Genuine Subaru plug Wire Sets" for a 1997 Legacy Outback 2.5L, it gives this part # SOA430Q121. That is what I already have that is too short. It looks like you are saying to order individual wires, rather than a set. Is that how everybody orders plug wires for their car. I just never realized you had to do it that way - seems a little crazy.

Sorry, that should read 97, not 07. How do you get the right parts then? That is the number that everyone seems to show for what they call OEM parts.

Recently I ordered a set of OEM plug wires for my 97 OBW 2.5L. I had been using Bosch wires, but read here about the importance of OEM. The box seems to be the right part #, SOA430Q121, but the wires are very short. They barely reach by the shortest route to the ignition box. I can't even push them into plastic clips that are supposed to hold them. Anyone ever run into this?

Our temps too are below what you describe for many weeks every winter. I have started and driven my outback at -37. The hard part is getting away from the woodstove and out the door. The Subaru works fine. Yup, it'll make some noises. We run an antifreeze mix around 70% - good to -40 something. You may find your tires are under inflated when you go from warm temps to sub-zero. I run 5/30 oil all year round, and now have started using Synth. I do use an oil pan heater (head bolt/plug heater would be better) when it is more than -10. I plug it in for a couple of hours in the morning. You can notice a pretty big difference on cranking. On our Nissan pickup it is even more noticeable - much less clatter.

I have new clips and axles. I'd have a hard time trusting the car on long trips without trying to fix it. We spend a lot of time on mountain passes and back and forth to New Mexico. Bad places to break down. Even with the new equipment, I don't know if we've identified the problem or not. Time will tell.

Something interesting has surfaced that may shed some light on why this happened. I asked MWE to send me some new clips (the ones that hold the axle in the differential) in case the old ones had worn out or something. It turns out that the old ones were of a much larger gauge material than the new ones. When I first heard that I was thinking that if the new ones were smaller, they might not hold as well. I have not had a chance to line all this up yet, but if the old ones were not the right clips (this was a junkyard differential that was installed 40,000 miles ago) and if those clips were too large to really seat into the grooves in the axles, maybe that is why it pulled out. It maybe that some of this goes back to having replaced my original differential with a junkyard one several years ago. It’s a long story, but at that time a mechanic convinced me that the differential was going out. Actually, I have long since decided that it wasn't true, I think the guy just saw a way to create some business in the winter. Regardless, I wonder where these clips came from. I sent some pictures to MWE to see if Marshall has any opinion on it. I will post one here. Anyone ever see different size clips come out of a diff, or on axles? - more confused