Fairtax4me

Factory service manual has all the info you need. Could probably get by with the ATSG manual for the phase 1 4EAT. That covers up to 98 but 98-99 are similar enough.

Belt is slipping. How old is it? Fluid level isn't really a factor as long as it's somewhere on the dipstick. If you check it Hot and the fluid level is at the bottom of the dipstick, add some. Otherwise the fluid level isn't that important. Assuming that's original fluid, it's probably due for a change at that mileage. Use a baster or large suction bulb to suck the fluid out of the reservoir and refill it with clean fluid. Run the engine and work the steering back and forth several times then repeat the drain/refill. I do that until I've put a whole quart of fluid through the system. Usually three cycles.

Well... You probably didn't need a cat before, but you sure do now. P0130 is a code for the front O2 sensor. The signal voltage is out of the acceptable range. Two main questions: Did you buy a direct plug-in sensor or a universal sensor that you had to cut and connect wires? Does the car have California emissions? P0420 you're stuck with until you replace the cat. Totally benign, annoying to deal with the light but won't affect the way the car runs. P1518 code doesn't have anything to do with the way the engine runs. It's simply a signal circuit from the key switch to the ECU that tells the ECU the key has been turned to start. The ECU uses that to simply record data on how long the engine has been running and some other really non-important things. Again, Annoying to deal with the light but will not affect the way the engine runs. Figure out the running problem first. Do not replace the ignition switch, it's not the problem.

Fuel pump is going out. Pressure should build instantly. Before you can count "One" it should be at max. Once at pressure these pumps will tend to maintain pressure for the most part. Eventually that delay will turn into 5-10 seconds, and then the pump will not build pressure at all. Check valve possibly, but that's part of the pump.

How quickly does it build pressure when you turn the key to start? If pressure build is slow the fuel pump is going out.

Probably something that makes no difference. Build date is on a metal tag under the hood on left side, or on a sticker on the drivers door.

Lift up on the trans with a pry bar. If it lifts completely off the mount the mount is bad. Engine and Trans mounts are usually pretty soft on these. movement is normal. You had the engine out, did you tighten the engine mounts? Exhaust was removed? All the exhaust mounts hooked up? Hanger bolt on the back of the trans tight?

Pound on a 12 point 13mm socket? Air grinder is usually too big, but a dremel with a 1" cutoff wheel is usually small enough to get to tight places to cut a rusted or stripped nut off. Cut into it in several places and use a chisel in the cuts and that will usually split the rest and break it off. Acetylene is not a gas to be played with. If you don't know how to use it GET EDUCATED! It will burn your place down and could kill you or others in the process if you do something wrong. Wrong settings on a regulator can cause an explosion. Acetylene is so unstable it will self combust if it's exposed to oxygen in the right proportions.

On top of the first cat. Wire runs down the bellhousing from the main harness on the passenger side.

Wheel bearing. These hearings don't exhibit play until they're totally toast, so grabbing the wheel and rocking it around is not a valid test for wheel bearing noise. Stethoscope on a lift is often the quickest way to check, but isn't always conslusive if there's no weight on the bearing. Chassis Ear kit on the knuckle has always worked for me. Put one sensor on each wheel, drive it and see which on makes the most noise.

Have seen stuck purge solenoids several times on Subarus over a wide range of years. A few I've taken apart and found carbon chunks in them sticking to the seal at the bottom of the valve. Depends how big the chunk is what code gets set. Sometimes get an evap system small leak code with no other symptoms. Sometimes get hard starting and other codes similar to your issue.

Run it to operating temp and check the overflow bottle for bubbles and/or coolant pushing out of the bottle. If he's losing enough that he had to add every few days and there's no evidence of coolant on the outside of the engine or on the ground, that's usually a pretty severe head gasket leak. Externally the head gaskets often leak on the lower rear corners of the block/head mating surface which is usually the hardest to spot. Have to be under the car and look up with a bright flashlight. It can often just look like a greasy blob mess on the bottom of the block, but if there's any yellow or greenish blobs mixed in that's the sign of coolant. These rarely mix coolant and oil, and almost never smoke even when coolant is being burned in the combustion process. Also pointless to try any of the chemical test kits, they are never conclusive on these cars. Leak down test will confirm a head gasket leak of coolant into the combustion chamber.

If a tooth is broken off of the ring gear it would make one hell of a chunking noise and lock up when driving. You confirmed the tooth is missing off the gear by looking up through the drain hole?

This may seem like a stupid question but I'm ignorant to the laws of that state...How would they ever know you swapped the transmission? This is a car that barely exists. How many mechanics in that state, or even the whole country will be versed well enough in Subarus to know its been swapped, and if it works properly why would they even care to report it? I know they have tough emissions laws there, but seriously, a transmission is a plucking transmission.

Drill a 1/8" hole in the lowest corner in the bottom of the lens. As for bumper removal: http://www.subaruforester.org/vbulletin/f85/how-remove-06-headlights-dissasembly-paint-clear-corners-11516/#/topics/11516

What timing position is the camshaft in? If a cam lobe is pushing against any of the rockers and pushing a valve open even slightly you won't be able to turn the cam by hand. What are you using to lubricate the cam and rockers when you put it all together?

KYBs will have the KYB logo and part number stamped into the strut tube. Have to look for that. The old Gr2s were painted silver. Those have been replaced by the Excel-G series which are painted black. I think they still have a performance line for some vehicles which is silver but you won't likely find those on a Subaru. Buddy of mine put a set of Sensen struts on a Ford Taurus several years ago. (Against my advice) Fronts and rears with springs. The rear struts were 2" too short because use their part listing was wrong. He kept them anyway, and they lasted about 3 months. In about two weeks the front upper mounts started squeaking when the wheel was turned. Eventually both fronts blew the seals out, and one rear spring broke. He bought Monroe assemblies after that, which lasted the remaining two years he owned the car.

Cams are easy. Left side cam is longer. Plates aren't any different side to side but they are line bored on the head so they have to be on the correct head for the bores to match. Remove the cams bolt the cam plate down and check the seams inside the bores where the two meet. If it's the wrong plate there will be a ledge on at least one of the bores where the halves aren't lined up. If that's the case, swap the plates and recheck.

Check engine light on? Have you scanned it for codes? Double check connectors. Two big connectors on the passenger rear of the engine where the harnesses join. Plug on the ignition coil. ECU Grounds on top of the intake manifold. Crankshaft and camshaft position sensors. Last would be to check the timing belt. Make sure the marks are all correct and hasn't jumped. Did you remove the cam sprockets? If so, Did you make sure to install them back on the correct side? Left sprocket has notches on the back for the cam position sensor to read. If you switch sprockets the sensor doesn't give a signal and you'll get a no-spark condition.

Finally dug up the diagram for this and had a look. The roof lamp grounds through the cluster. There's an array of diodes that splits the ground from the lamp to each door switch. It's either a bad solder joint, or a burned out diode in the instrument cluster. Or possibly a bad trace on the PCB.

Is it the lights or the actual guage that doesn't work?

On older Subarus at least with the normal 4 speed fan control the blower fan gets power direct from the relay. Then the motor is grounded through the resistor and then through the fan speed switch in the HVAC control. So a non-functioning fan is typically an easy diagnosis just by checking for power on both sides of the fan connector. If you follow the wiring behind the glove box one wire comes out of the fan and goes straight to the resistor block a couple inches away, so it's easy to tell which should be hot and which should be "ground". On newer cars with variable fan speed or automatic climate controls there is actually a small electronic module that controls the fan speed. Either the HVAC control panel or the ECU may command the speed controller. The controller may be on either the ground side or the power side depending on the car, so those get a bit trickier to test. Typically I test at the fan connector first, and if there is no power there I find the speed controller if possible and test for power there. The wires going to the fan will always be the larger of the wires at the controller, and one will usually match color of one on the fan. The other wires go to either the ECU or the HVAC control and are typically small and go to low amp computer circuits, so avoid testing those directly with a multimeter unless you have a wire diagram and good understanding of the control system which could be either power or ground or PWM of the speed control circuit to signal the change in speed.

Probably not a blend door/flap problem. Does the car have automatic climate control? Does the fan work properly if you set it on automatic and turn the temp all the way down to max cold? Or all the way to max hot? Are the speed changes quick or gradual? Have you ever changed the cabin air filter? Agree it does need to go to the dealer for warranty. No reason a 2015 should have a possible fan motor or fan speed controller failure.

Take it to an auto upholstery shop and have them replace the section that's damaged.

Unbolt the driveshaft from the rear diff and see if it still has the problem.