McDave

Are you sure the change interval in the UK is in miles and not kilometers? 60 kilometers = 100 miles.

I would want the best parts money can buy on an interference motor.

At $600 installed they must be talking about the expansion valve under the dash, particularly since that's the only valve in the system. I've never heard of one causing a hose to leak and they are usually very reliable. About the only thing that happens to them is if the desiccant inside the drier breaks loose it will clog the valve. Since it has a "very small leak", I would take it to another shop for a second opinion and consider asking them to just top it off with freon if there are no real obvious leaks. Since your car has so few miles for it's age, it's more likely the compressor seal leaks a little during long periods of non-use, rather than a hose leaking. Try to use the a/c, or even the defrost regularly, then see how long the freon lasts before committing to larger repairs. If/when you decide to replace the hose assembly, change the drier too. Don't worry about the expansion valve unless the tech says it's restricted. BTW One reason a/c work is so expensive is because the equipment is expensive. We've already had to upgrade once from R12 to R134a, now the manufactures are wanting us to do it again once they decide which way they want go. Plus like GD said, it is labor intensive. A seemingly simple job can snowball quickly when threads strip out taking hoses off evaporator cores and condensers. It can be frustrating work and our shop tends to bid jobs high to cover the bases. It's easier to make the customer happy if we can get it done for less than the estimate, rather than explain why it's going to cost more than we thought it would.

I don't have a manual for an ej22, but the one for an ea82 states maximum crankshaft thrust is .012 inch. One eighth inch is 10 times that at .125 inch. I would get another motor. That one had an oiling problem (or a super stiff clutch) that wiped out the thrust bearing, assuming the ej22 spec is the same/similar to an ea82.

This tip is mainly for cars with a/c. Last weekend was quite hot here and while I had noticed the a/c was having a hard time keeping up, I didn't notice the temp gauge creeping up until I heard a little pinging while pulling away from a stoplight. (I have my timing advanced a bit from spec) When I looked at the gauge it was up to about 2/3rds but quickly dropped down to normal. At that point I wondered if I had a thermostat sticking or the beginning stages of a head gasket leak. I checked the coolant level and checked for bubbles and since all was fine there I just kept an eye on the temp gauge on the way home. It acted up the same way one time pulling away from a stop light, but was fine after that as the sun was setting and outside temps were dropping. The next afternoon on my lunch break I discovered I had no a/c. The compressor was shot - running but not pumping. I quickly figured out then that the compressor was on it's way out the day before and was not building enough high side pressure to trigger the electric fan at an idle. The fan was only coming on either when I accelerated and built up enough pressure, or when the radiator temp switch kicked it in. Thus the fairly wide fluctuation in the gauge. So, if you're running the a/c and it's not cooling well, it may be low on freon or the compressor may be going bad, thus not allowing the fan to stay on like it should. No reason to panic since the temp switch should kick it in, just something to be aware of. Be prepared to get the a/c serviced soon.

Did you ever find out if your cam and crank sensors were transferred to the new motor?

PS You might want to look over your engine to make sure there aren't any plug wires near your ecm/sensor wiring harness possibly inducing stray emi.

Only if you changed the ecm too. No Well, the example I found was 5 years old before it messed up. Good! Keep your fingers crossed.

Doh! Must drink caffeine before posting! Post edited.

Well, shielded wires are shielded for a purpose. And improperly spliced shielded wires are easily shorted...

Edit: nevermind.

From what info I was able to dig up: P1134 is Subaru speak for an ECM internal problem, specifically "Front Oxygen (A/F) Sensor Micro-Computer Problem." Unfortunately the only cure is to replace the ecm (ecu). A Subaru remanufactured ecm is said to be "reasonably priced" as apparently this problem was covered under a recall on some models. (is yours a manual transmission?) It is suggested you call the dealer with your VIN to determine if your car was included in the recall, and to get the correct ecm. Note: The above info is dated 2005 and was referring to a 2000 OBW 5 speed. It might be worth having the dealer do a scan/diagnosis to determine if this applies to your car too before plunking down the bucks on an ecm.

Scroll to the bottom post for the latest code... http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?p=762625#post762625

Check out this thread for new old stock wheel wells, post #27... http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=90063&highlight=wheel+well

Was that a NAPA Lifetime or 3 year warranty?

Shoot, he might as well reuse the old '58 GMC gear oil too and really stink up the place! (what's worse, old gear oil or gas?) :-p

It will but you'll probably have to baby the throttle to get acceleration.

Try disconnecting O2, tps, and maf one at a time and driving it for a short distance to see if it will run significantly different. One of them could be shorting or opening. Clean maf too.

I've got the Sensa-trac Reflex front and rear on my '93 2wd wagon and really like them. I got mine from Rockauto.com and saved about $25 for the set, even with my NAPA jobber discount. As far as using a spring compressor on the rear, unless the '86 wagons use much lighter springs, I would. I weigh 225 lbs and could just barely move the top hat down on the springs. Maybe if you have a big friend to help, but definitely not by yourself.

A ruptured fpr will be bleeding fuel into the vacuum hose. Pull off the hose and check for signs of gas. No, don't pinch the fuel return hose off for more than a few seconds. It needs to be pinched off completely for a couple seconds to test for max pressure. Do as SuberDave suggested and drive the car with a pressure gauge tee-ed in to see if it will maintain the minimum pressure under all driving conditions, which also proves that the pump/fuel system can produce sufficient volume. The only symptoms I've ever seen from a bad fpr is a rich condition. Based on your second description of the symptoms in the other thread... ... I would be more inclined to believe what torxxx suggested, that it's more likely to be distributor related. Running the fuel pressure tests would be useful to rule fuel out as the problem, then I would start looking at the ignition. PS Have you checked for codes? Disconnected the test connectors when finished?

It certainly sounds like a fuel volume problem. Is this the car that had a stopped up screen filter at the pump inlet?

A buddy that runs a body shop told me it gets real old explaining to Geico customers why their settlement check won't cover the actual cost of repairs. I think he said the checks are usually about 25% too low. Somebody has to pay for all those TV ads!

They were there a few days ago. I guess once he got it figured out he took the photos down.

How old is the gas? I've seen 2 year old gas act like what you're describing.

I used to have a First On Race Day ford, but that was a long time ago.