Fairtax4me

Iac doesn't typically cause misfires. When is the last time you did a tune up?

How many bolts did you remove? Should be 17. Count them to make sure you got them all. Are ANY parts still attached to the block? Oil pump? baffle plate? Anything?

Sender o-ring or maybe a fuel hose has dry rotted or rusted where it comes out of the tank. Fuel sender can be accessed through plate just behind the right rear seat in the trunk/cargo area.

I have the relay buzz when starting my 96 but never have any issues starting, no flashing CEL or other weirdness. A loose terminal isnt helping anything, you should look into tightening that up. Did you install a lock washer there? Cranking but no start could mean the main relay is bad, as it supplies power to the fuel pump IIRC.

Going off-topic for a second. Doing some digging about what Molybdenum disulfide is, found this article from MIT News: http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2012/graphene-molybdenum-disulfide-flat-materials-0823.html Appears MoS2 could also be the future of electronics. Anyway, just trying to understand exactly how this stuff works with the synchros. Molybdenum has long been used as a friction reducer, and is inherently bad for synchronizers because of its ability to fill the small voids which cause friction between two surfaces. MoS2 appears to have very good pressure and anti-wear qualities while still allowing enough friction for synchros to work. Not just that but it apparently somewhat increases friction in certain circumstances, such as between sections of synchronizers. This is what I can gather from the few articles I can find that actually reference it's friction qualities in Gear oils, rather than motor oil, and that aren't just speculation. It would be nice to find an article on exactly how it works when used in transmissions, what exactly about it allows it to prevent wear/ friction, but still allow synchros to work. I'll keep digging.

Kinda seems like someone went along unplugging sensors to see what would happen. Or someone had the engine out and left the main harness unplugged. If the ECU gets no signal from the crank sensor you get no spark. They typically fail intermittently only when warm. If it were bad I would expect the engine to not start at all.

I would check for codes first, and also check the green test mode and black? diagnostic/reset plugs under the dash. They should both be unplugged.

The Subaru rubber seals are easy. Half the time I push them in by hand. Just wipe a little fresh oil on the outside of the seal and it slides right in. Of course be sure to put oil on the inside too.

Those nipples are usually fairly thick wall tubing. If it isn't leaking you might be able to wire brush it and paint it with rust preventive primer/paint. Drilling and tapping should be fine. I would probably use a non-pipe thread and coat the threads with pipe dope or Indian Head shellac before installing the nipple to prevent leaks.

No CEL? Which temp sensor is new? The one wire or the two wire? Checked the test mode plugs under the dash?

Auto trans has one switch with several contacts. It's actuated by a notch in the selector shaft on the side of the transmission. The shift cable has to be removed, and a couple bolts then it should pull straight off of the trans. It's on the passenger side and has a large wire harness connector plugged into it. You can remove the switch and test it with an ohmmeter before replacing.

Do you really need RTV all the way down next to the bearing halves? Seems like a waste there. Subaru also says if you don't get the halves together within X amount of minutes (I think it's 15) after applying sealant to wipe it all off and apply fresh sealant.

Paper gaskets can be used on a CLEAN flat surface with no sealers. If it is going to be exposed to oil, wipe the gasket with oil first. Otherwise it should need no sealant. If you need sealant it's because the sealing surfaces are not clean or flat enough. Ultra grey is not the same as Fuji-bond. It's not even close. Fuji-bond is far and away a better sealer than Ultra Grey. However, Fuij-bond is not practical to buy here in the U.S., and Ultra Grey works better than many other RTV sealers available here. Flange sealant works well for flat close tolerance gasket surfaces, such as between two machined pieces of metal. Engine block halves, transmission case halves, oil pump housing, that sort of thing. It will not fill large gaps such as the ones between oil pans or valve covers.

Those videos are always fun to watch. There is another one they took a bunch of cars offroad and tried to climb a few hills, then compared them all to a true 4wd SUV. Pretty interesting results there too. They've all been posted in "Off-Topic" at some point.

Problem with ABS based traction control systems is they aren't designed to be constantly in use. A few seconds here and there is all the typical ABS system ever has to work, so if used as a traction device to prevent wheel slip for an extended period the pumps will overheat. ABS control units are designed to work in an instant and provide pulses that generate up to around 2,000 psi in the hydraulic lines, so they use high torque motors and actuator solenoids which are very power hungry. The ABS is one of the first things to be disengaged if the battery gets low, because it can cause a large enough electrical drain to shut the ECU off which would stall the engine. ABS traction control is also hard on the brakes, and can cause overheating of the pads and rotors if run for an extended period. In short... It sucks. You're better off with a locker, and I bet a locker is cheaper and easier to install.

First question, auto or manual trans? Second question, are you sure both bulbs are not just burned out?

That's the fuel pressure regulator. All cars have that. Not related to cruise control in any way.

Change knock sensor first. Chase misfire codes after because knock sensor can cause misfire and low power issues. Plugs aren't too bad if you move some stuff out of the way (washer tank,etc) and use a short extension and swivel or universal adapter on the spark plug socket. NGK or OEM recommended for both.

One tip. If the stereo has a dimmer, DO NOT not hook it up to the dimmer wiring in the wire harness. It will blow the illumination control module.

27 degrees this morning and mine didn't seem bothered. The autozone something or other battery i put in it a few years ago started slower than this one dis this morning. I guess l see how it works out with more cold weather in the forecast. Any battery that's a few years old is going to be affected by temperature. And who's knows how that battery was treated before you got that car.

Any check engine light? Any recent work under the hood? When was the last tune up? When was the last timing belt change?

Check what the price of a Subaru battery is at your local dealer. I bought one earlier this year. $65 after the core. And an 80 month warranty. I think it's 36 free replacement, the rest pro-rate. Says on the battery, I'll have to check.

Sounds like a fuster-cluck. Is there any other module that controls ignition on that car? Or do the coil wires go straight back to the PCM? Seems odd for a spark plug to affect a coil pack issue. I honestly don't see how that's connected. Are the wires to the coils shielded?

How many bolts did you remove? Should be 17 bolts total IIRC. There are a few in the corners of the cooling passages right by the cylinder walls. The cylinder walls are actually notched where these bolts are. If you're sure you got them all, a bottle jack in the bell-housing can get things started.

Very similar to an issue a friend of mines Honda had. We had swapped the whole rear end, cross member and everything, then he never took it to get aligned. Found out later that both rear wheels were toed about 2 degrees to the right, the right wheel was at 0 camber and the left wheel was at about 3 degrees positive camber. If he hit a bump at speed the car felt like it was going to spin out. Finally wore out both rear tires (which had been almost brand new) in about 5000 miles, and he decided to take it in for an alignment. Had to replace some seized adjuster bolts but after the alignment it drove perfectly. I'd take the car to get an alignment.