Fairtax4me

Fluid is filled to the correct level? Try to avoid heavy acceleration when the trans is cold and the fluid isn't yet working around as well as it should be. The trans will warm up slightly while at idle, just not as quickly as by driving it. As long as the input shaft is spinning there will be friction between the shaft, gears, and fluid that will cause it to warm up some. The engine block also transfers some heat to the trans via the bell-housing, and there is an exhaust pipe that runs right by the trans which gets warm pretty quick, and the radiant heat from that will warm the side of the trans. Clicking/knocking that is engine speed dependent is often the main input shaft bearing. Those are a common failure on older models, but they usually make it to at least 150k before having any problems. The only ones I've heard of failing sooner than that are in cars that are poorly maintained or have had contamination (such as water) of the gear oil. Haven't really heard of that being an issue on the newer stuff (2005 +) and certainly not at such a low mileage. My guess would be that its just damn cold! Try to let it warm up a bit more before you drive away , and try to keep your foot out of it until everything has had a chance to get warmed up.

Bent valves are a good possibility but not guaranteed. Pull everything off so you can find the timing marks. Set the crank, then turn the cams to line those up. Replace whichever idler locked up hang a new belt on it and see if it'll start. If it runs OK you dodged a bullet and you can put it back together the rest of the way. If it runs rough, bent valves are likely. Pull the heads and have them machined and the valves replaced.

Kinda looks like something they would screw onto the dash before the dash gets put in the car. The airbag is in that area, so don't go poking around too much.

Mean to say at "idle in gear". Splines are the same, the joint is a different style. Auto trans has tripod style inner joints. Manual trans has a 6 bearing double offset joint (DOJ). Auto axles on a manual car, you won't notice any difference.

Manual splits power 50/50. If the rear diff grenades It will feel like the clutch is slipping bad, and it'll be hard to get over about 25mph. It'll do that until the viscous coupler in the center diff heats up then it'll drive ok until you stop and the center diff cools off again. On an auto trans car you can completely grenade the rear diff and it'll still drive fine because the autos power 100% to the front wheels All the time.

Low coolant level would be my first guess. Double check that in the morning before you start it.

If the caliper is hung up or seized it can heat up the rotor and cause vibration. Had that happen on my GFs 95. Jack up the rear wheels and see if one of them is harder to turn than the other.

The 2.5s are picky about plugs and wires. Pull the plug on cylinder 4 and see how it looks.

That toothed idler got you. Those things like to fall apart and when they do they chuck the belt out through the cover.

No kidding?! Have heard of that problem on the older cars but not on anything that new. I guess the same rebuilder is still putting out those crappy voltage regulators. IACV= idle air control valve. On the older models there was a large hose that went to the IACV. Yours doesn't have that.

Axles are interchangable between auto and manual but the inner joints are different. Using a manual axle on an automatic can lead to vibration in gear at idle. If it sounds like a U-joint, it's probably a u-joint. They tend to vibrate at around 35-40 and up. Check them for play just like any other u-joint. Wheel bearing is also possible but those tend to make a grumble/roar sound that increases with speed or make a properller type sound.

The extra plug is where the damn junkyard punched a hole in it to drain the oil. I hate that. There's a drain plug right there and they put a hole in it anyway!!

Beebs, do you mind posting the part numbers that you ordered? Or links to the parts? It would be helpful for other people with this problem so they can find parts easier. Thanks!

Ditch the plastic clips and get some stainless u-clips then use stainless screws to hold the mud flaps. http://www.ecvv.com/product/3776329.html Napa usually carries them. Use stainless washers under the head of the screw if to increase holding area on the flap and keep it from getting ripped off. Lowes or other hardware stores usually have stainless hardware as well.

Coolant should flow through the heater core all the time, whether the thermostat is open or not. I would suspect a blocked hose or clogged heater core. Check coolant level again (when the engine is cold) then let the engine warm up in the driveway. After it warms up on its own hold idle at about 1500 rpm for a few minutes and see if you start getting heat. The way these cars work, you should have some heat as soon as the needle starts to move up off of the cold mark. Let it idle until the radiator fans cycle on and off then check all the hoses. If you don't have heat by that point you have a clog in the heater hoses or the heater core itself. There should not be fluid spraying out of the overflow hose. That says there is pressure in the hose which may be due to a blockage in the hose. Remove it and make sure the ends are clear. Try to blow air through it, if you can't, see if you can run a coat hanger through it to clear it out.

Speaking of ground wires, the ECU grounds through the intake manifold. On the 01 you should have two sets of ground wires right up top of the manifold. Make sure those are clean and tight.

You have power on the large wires going to and coing from the relays? Then you'll need to look beyond those at the wiring that supplys power and ground to the ECU. I don't have a service manual for a 98 Impreza so I'm kinda flying blind on this one. Somewhere you're gonna find some white/grayish power looking stuff on the tape around the harness or on one of the parts. Did you swap the ignition switch? How about the wiring along the steering column?

I don't know of any code scanners that interface with Subaru ODB1. Typically if you buy a scanner with adapter plugs for OBD1 you end up with about 10 different plugs for various Ford GM and Chrysler, and maybe some Toyota or Honda adapters, but no Subaru. Its a total waste or money to buy a scanner for OBD1 anyway, since all you need to do is plug two wires together (which are already in the car) and turn the key On. As for OBD2, there are boatloads of them, and which one you want depends on what you're trying to do with it. If you have an android smart phone check out the Torque App, and buy one of the recommended Bluetooth OBD2 adapters for it. The app is usually free and the adapters cost $20-30 on eBay. Elm327 (?) is a popular one and is usually less than $20. There are several others. If you have an iPhone there are some OBD2 scanner apps like blue-driver. The App is free, but the Bluetooth OBD2 unit from them is $99. The app works well and they frequently update with new parameters and new code definitions. Both of the smart phone options above allow you to view live-data which is a very useful feature for troubleshooting. The smartphone option gets you the best bang for the buck as far as usable features are concerned. You can get cheapo code readers on eBay/amazon that will read codes, but usually you need to look up the definition on your own. This can be a cheap and effective route if you pair it with a Subaru factory service manual so you has Subaru specific code definitions. Slightly better scanners will read codes and display the definition, but these cost more, and sometimes the definition stored in the reader for the code isn't correct, or you may have a vehicle manufacturer specific code that the cheaper readers don't support. You'll still get the code but no definition, then you have to to look it up yourself. Innova makes some of the best code scanners on the market and they have a huge code library that they work to keep updated. Their mid range scanners read live-data and some can read ABS codes (last I checked this function was limited to Ford GM and Chrysler only). They have computer connectivity for internet updates and transfer of recorded data from the car to computer for easier viewing. These typically cost in the range of $150-200. Check amazon for the best prices on Innova scanners. I ordered mine from Innova via amazon for about half the cost that Innova listed on their retail site.

Oil degrades the boot on the plug wire and allows spark to arc through it. Fix the leak, then put a new set of plug wires on it. Common leakers on top of the block in that area are the power steering pump, ad the oil pressure switch. What color is your coolant? What color is the fluid that's getting in the plug well?

Sounds like a spark related misfire. What kind of plugs? How old are the wires? Cylinder one is front cylinder on the right side (passenger).

Make sure the plugs on the bell-housing are plugged together all the way.

Unplug the connector on the alternator and see if it starts. It probably won't, but worth a try. Need to check fuses and the fusible link in the underhood fuse panel. Hopefully it didn't over-volt and fry your ECU.

Fluid doesn't get that dirty in 50k miles, especially if it has been changed at some point. Was he towing with this car? Its hard to imagine that someone drove the car hard enough to cause damage to the trans in such a short time, but I have seen it before.

A quick google search reveals this: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/topic/32374-95-legacy-gt-b-spec-diff-lock/ Scroll down to post number 8 by 4WDFrenzy.

What's the VIN on your car? Placement of the spare doesn't really matter, and won't affect the outcome of what happens when you put the fuse in. The fact that a "diff lock" light comes on when you put the fuse in says to me that it's working as it is designed to work. If the FWD light came on, but it locked into 4wd instead, that would be a problem.