jaredb3000

Awesomeness- I'll go the rope method. I'm thinking nylon, a little less thick than a climbing rope... I'm guessing that I can leave it in until I go to tighten it up, at which point the rope would have to work itself out and then wrap around the other way to tighten. This leaves me a bit confused as to getting it out once its tight- would I crank it counter clockwise again once the bolt is fastened, at which point the pulley/timing belt would all rotate just as it is now as the rope comes undone? Anyhow, you guys have been super helpful. I imagine the answer will be evident once I get cranking:brow: in the morning...

Thanks Gloyale- I tried to put the pics in my post with HTML code, but no luck... Unfortunately, I had already removed belts before reading your comment. Being in the salt/rust-belt, the crank bolt is going to give me a time, methinks... I found this quote: If I go this route, would I remove one of the spark plugs to feed the rope into? How thick, the thicker the better I'm thinking? That would be bad news if it broke... I have as burly a C clamp as they come, and using cardboard to protect the pulley got some decent grip/leverage and still no luck, clamp would slip before the bolt would move... Thinking I might try the rope idea- I looked around and could not find specifics though...

Cool, thanks yall. Yeah, I'm seeing 125$ kit w/water pump on ebay, vs. $600+ quote from dealer, and 230$ w/o pump for aftermarket kit from local parts store. Internet wins on this one! I suppose I'll pick up the seals from the little guy. Your input is much appreciated!

It looks like the timing belt kit is the way to go, they are around 80 bucks or 125 with a water pump. Is there any aftermarket water pump issues-like with the T-stat to be aware of, or are these 50$ range aftermarkets legit? Getting back to the never having done a timing belt issue, if I put a new one on am I correct in assuming that I will not have to mark anything- just make sure to have the sprockets aligned to the top position when I put the new belt on?

Thanks GD! You rock!

Greetings all- Having figured out my cooling and battery issues recently, my new can of worms includes trying to pinpoint the source of oil leakage (94 Legacy Wagon Non-turbo/auto). In this pic, you can't exactly see the fresh oil- the arrow points to the source (the green dots are the older noticeable valve cover gasket oil, been like that for some time): http://i995.photobucket.com/albums/af80/jaredb3000/Subaru/Car1.jpg In this pic I have circled what is a rubber gasket behind the camshaft pulley (at a bad angle, the best I could get with my bulky old camera) that appears loose/stretched a bit so that the male component of the gasket does not fit the female component. Seems like that may be the culprit: http://i995.photobucket.com/albums/af80/jaredb3000/Subaru/Car2.jpg I circled where there is some fresh looking oil in the driver side timing belt cover: http://i995.photobucket.com/albums/af80/jaredb3000/Subaru/Car8.jpg The timing belt appears to be in great shape, with no oil splashing up on to it at all. What I was hoping, but does not seem to be the case for all this oil, is the oil pressure switch: http://i995.photobucket.com/albums/af80/jaredb3000/Subaru/Car9.jpg Sooooo- this switch is cheap enough, I'm thinking I should change this, or is it no biggee? As for the camshaft pulley gasket- I feel a bit overwhelmed when studying the shop manual. How tricky is the timing belt for someone who has never done one? Do I need to pick up a camshaft wrench for this car specifically, or is there any tricks to avoid this purchase? And lastly, is there anything to beware of if I replace the rocker cover gaskets? I have never done these before, but it seems simple enough. I figure since I have the room now might be a good time to do those... Any odd tools necessary? Could I get away without having a torque wrench? That is alot of questions, and I thank anyone who takes the time to answer some of them in advance. As soon as I am no longer a broke college student I will certainly donate some loot this forum for the help I have received over the past couple years- cheers.

Thanks AllPar Mod- Turns out the battery tested good, the alternator tested bad- sort of... It was sitting right in the middle of green and red on a nearby mechanics tester, which he said indicated it was on the way out. That could explain the high pitch squeal I've been hearing before the engine is warm, and during acceleration... Discovered my coolant loss is from the radiator (aftermarket copper and I'm in the salt belt)- picked up an aluminum core in great shape for 50$ yesterday. I have noticed that I am leaking oil now at a significantly larger rate than the prior marginal rate that this car has had for the 2 years I've owned it. I will know more this afternoon, I am hoping its not a head gasket, and there is certainly no signs of oil in the coolant or vice-versa, perhaps an oil pressure switch (if not the valve gasket) from what I have gathered reading older posts. While I thought it was the valve cover gasket for some time, the source seems to be coming from somewhere behind the timing belt cover, closer to the water pump. After running engine for 10 minutes, I can wipe my finger along the lower rad. hose and its covered in oil... Thanks again yall for all the input. I may be back to post some pics of the oil leak, or let yall know things are all squared away.

Thanks Rooster- Speaking of the 91's, are the 2.2s in the 91's swappable into the 94s? Veering from my other questions, I have been thinking about doing a motor swap instead of head gasket replacement (if that proves to be the dilemma), and have found a 91 2.2 non-turbo for 250$ with 112k and 6month parts warranty. I have managed to tackle just about all types of repairs over the years, except swapping engine/tranny or doing a head gasket replacement. If you or anyone out there cares to comment, please do- swap engine vs. replace head gasket? For either route, I would probably hire a mechanic (anyone in the CT area that wants to make some bucks?) that has an at home operation, so I might be able to help/look over shoulder. Alternately, I would maybe take a stab at the head gasket first, but it seems like I'd be looking at around $100+ for the kit, what about additional tools beyond my sockets? If I botch the job, then I would go the new engine route... Have any of yall better-than-novice/no-where-near-experts' tackled a head gasket, not having done it before?

Thanks for the input yeahultimate- I think the new T-stat and proper burping did the trick as far as overheating goes- I'm pretty sure that I did not burp properly the first time around. While I believe I have done this properly the second time around, my question is mostly out of concern for covering all the bases- but so far so good, it did not overheat at all during 20 minutes of driving last night, and seems like the coolant is circulating properly.

Greetings all, Trying to keep posts to a minimum, I have searched around older threads to try and answer the following questions with mixed review- so here it goes. Quick run down of the chain of events with my 1994 Legacy 2.2. (non-turbo): Lost some coolant through the smaller of the two hoses (bypass?), so I replaced that and the lower radiator hose, as well as the thermostat with OEM aftermarket (which I have since discovered is a cardinal sin, and have replaced with thermostat from Subaru dealer). This first go-round, everything seemed A-OK, as I allowed the system to burp with the cap off until normal operating temp. The next day, once on the highway, I pulled over/turned the car off just in time (as it was dusk and my dash-light is out near temp gauge) as I just about jumped in the "red zone", cooled off enough to get off highway and parked without overheating. After a couple rounds of cooling off/driving to somewhere that I would not get towed, the battery died. Round two, last night: new Subaru T-stat installed, a proper burping while elevating front end etc. (thanks to many well explained posts in USMB), after waiting until fans turned on and all air out of system, I drove around for 20 minutes and all is well on the cooling front- good power, no white smoke, no milkyness in oil so seemingly no head gasket problems. This morning the battery barely had any juice- not enough for a start (it did restart once last night after my drive however). My burping question, to avoid any possible problems with air in the system, is: if there is any air in the system, would it be immediately evident, or can symptoms be erratic? (i.e. I can drive w/o overheating for several days and then suddenly it overheats?) My battery question: Does it seem likely that the battery is shot because it got depleted (which other posts suggest), or could this be indicative of a more complex problem, such as the timing belt? There is no bad alternator symptoms. Any hope for the old battery, or does it sound like I need a new one? Since the battery won't keep a charge only since the overheating problems, I wanted to run this by the Subaru experts here before I go spending parts money in the wrong place... Thanks in advance! Jared

I hope mild dyslexia does not transpose to the three dimensional world of automobile repair... My thank you's above are for grossgary, and not Greg. I dropped the gross on account of not knowing grossgary all that well, and unwittingly dropped the whole name... Topical error aside, I hope this does not cheapen the breadth of my gratitude for Gary's encouragement and assistance in my learning processes- j

Got it all done! Thanks a million Greg. The piston situation made complete sense once I was in there, as well as were the pads are situated. That was incredibly easy, and would have taken about 2 hours total if I didn't have a wrestling match with the emergency brake... interestingly, the hub on the other side had the same scenario, with one of the tone wheels missing. Car stops like a champ, no rubbing or any noises. Cheers! USMB rules!

(Hmmm, I just posted the following as a reply, but I dont see it so I will post it again) I'm curious, and since you're online at the moment I figured I'd ask, the following... I grasp the depressing the cylinder concept, but I could use some clarification on two things- 1) the optimal distance of the pads from the rotors, and 2) once I get the cylinder depressed where I want it, do I then close the brake master cyl reservoir cap to keep the piston where it is? Thanks again Gary, I've usually left brakes to the pros in the past, and as this is my first rotor replacement I'm just trying to be as informed as possible. I'm glad I could skip the tone wheel, as it costs more than the pads and rotors and is special order only!

cool, appreciate it. Yeah, given my lack of garage I was hoping to not have to go into unchartered territory, and it sounds like that rebuilding the whole thing is not on many peoples most fun things to do list... Hey, seeing as how youre online at the moment, can I ask you a quick question about the c clamp and caliper piston? I grasp the concept for the most part- loosen master cyl reservoir/remove some fluid to avoid a mess under the hood and allow somewhere for that pressure to go... I am curious how much space is optimal between the pads and rotor, and how much space might be too much. Also, once I have depressed the piston where I want it, is the next step to tighten the master cyl reservoir so the piston stays put?

oh yeah, I should clarify as well, that it is the tone wheel and the bolt (not just the bolt...) that is missing...

Yeah, thats it- the tone ring aka tone wheel... You think its o.k. to not find a new one, eh? I would say that by the buildup in the space where the ring should be, there was a decent amount of buildup (meaning its been missing a while...). My time frame/locale (as I live in Brooklyn) necessitates the car being moved fairly soon, so if I could skip it, that works for me...

aaaaaaaaaand, a new can of worms- hopefully a small can. For lack of terminology, I will describe what is missing: one of the 3 disc's (roughly the size of a quarter) fastened by an allen bolt, that would be flush with the "plate" surface with which the rotor contacts. Is this a junkyard-only part? Or, with fingers crossed, something I might be able to find in a parts store? Most importantly, is the absence of this component a red flag for the need to replace anything else in the axle/brake system (in that some critical damage might have been imparted due to the part's absence). Everything else appears to be not-out-of-whack. As far as wear on the pads, the inside pad was at roughly half of the thickness of the new pads I have, whereas the outside (away from center of car) was non existent and matched with a complementary gnarled rotor. I guess the suddenness of really bad brake noises where there wasn't even a squeak prior to this scenario adds up...

nevermind. Parking brake was on (a habit from 10+years of manual vehicles...)

so I got the caliper removed easily enough- it was only one bolt however (not 2), followed by the the removal of the caliper bracket. I just want to double check that there is no other bolts that might potentially be hiding somewhere. The odd thing is that it feels like the rotor has "broken" at all points of contact, as the whole rotor will pull nearly a 1/4 away, but with what I would liken to the tension of a spring, it happily resumes its original resting place... I realize its necessary to be aggressive with new england rotors, but the only times Ive seen rust be a problem the rotor would not move whatsoever. Is this normal due to the slight warping in the metal? I just don't want to cause any new harm so I figured I'd throw it out there (having hammered and pulled with decent might, I am mostly curious if there is any leverage point tips/do's/dont's....) Also, I ran the diagnostics and got a 32 (Oxygen sensor) and a 35 - which from a website link from USMB is itemized as Canister Purge Solenoid Valve; is there any co-relation with these codes, or are they stand alone issues to address? Thanks in advance (and thanks to previous reply too!)- there is alot of auto repair that I am unfamiliar with, but I am stubborn enough to take most of it on. USMB is an invaluable formum, to say the least!

I've been searching around for a couple hours this morning, and havent found any photo journal links/posts... I've seen it done a while back, but I just want to be as thorough as possible before I dive into the project... I have a 94 subaru legacy wagon with critically poor rotors... Any other tips/words of wisdom appreciated!

Thanks GD. Yeah, I double checked on the dates only after I published the thread - couldn't find a way to switch the thread's forum area... lo siento. Appreciate the input.

Greetings, I've searched around quite a bit and not found anything exactly like what I'm experiencing with my 94 (auto) 4cyl. legacy wagon (2 separate queries actually...): 1) I've recently noticed, that no matter what speed I might be going, I hear what I could best describe as a deeper sort of rumbling noise, and only from between around 5mph down through to Omph during a stop; nothing when I speed up from a stop, and nothing if I brake hard, briefly, as in entering/exiting the flow of highway traffic for example. With near certainty, this is coming from the rear of the car, though sounds can be deceptive inside of a car... 2) I will preface this next one with a promise to buy my own diagnostics device when I have the extra dough (for the moment, I am a grad student in NYC begging for work alongside a whole lot of unemployed individuals...)-- I figure that the precursor to my CHECK ENGINE (CE) coming on, and the conditions that make it come on, might help isolate the cause: A couple months ago, CE started showing up only after 10 minutes or so of driving. When I did an oil change, I noticed a pinhole leak in radiator hose, and some dry-rot starting in the belts, so I put in some new belts/hoses as well. The light still comes on only after warm up, but I suspect a temp gage somewhere maybe to blame-- on warmer days if parked in the sun, CE will occasionally be lit up right off the bat; as there have been no sunny days lately, its back to coming on only after 10 minutes of driving (and only once the car is turned off and back on again i.e. its never come on while driving)... Any thoughts or wisdom from you pro's/folks who might have encountered anything similar will be incredibly and thoroughly appreciated!

Sure enough-plugs and wires did the trick. I appreciate the response-and the site! A wealth of info for the first time subaru owner.

Greetings! I have a 94 AWD legacy wagon (not turbo)-auto-178K which has been a champ for the three months I have owned it (trans was replaced a year ago, apparently due to an overheating of orig tranny because coolant hose was improperly replaced after new radiator was installed...). So about a week ago on the highway I noticed at around 65mph, if I accelerated as if to pass someone, there would be a brief sputtering loss of power, and then car would go just fine (no overall loss of power). Getting up to speed is not an issue either- full power from stopped to 65mph. Yesterday I noticed this power loss is accompanied by what I would best describe as a backfire noise, usually 2 or 3 really quick... then full acceleration no prob: also a rough idle has started (keeps wanting to go to 0, then goes up to around 750rpm) I am going to replace plugs and wires this afternoon. Yesterday, I put in a new air filter and noticed that 3 of the 4 bolts for the filter housing were m.i.a.... so possibly this is related to the MAF sensor? I found a thread the other day that mentioned cleaning this sensor. If anyone thinks this would be a good idea, I would greatly appreciate a how-to on exactly going about cleaning this sensor... Any and all input is greatly appreciated! cheers!