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I did fill it, and ran it, and it wasn't very conclusive. Yes, there were some bubbles, but it could just be a normal settling. The tailpipe wasn't wet either. Bottom line is, I can't tell if its a head gasket or if I have holes in 2 pistons. With my trip, I don't have time to tear into it now, and I'm not going to take it to a shop just for them to tell me the motor is shot. I'm looking for another subaru. Later this summer I can open it up and see what's wrong. I agree that I should be seeing coolant leakage if a gasket blew between the cylinders. However, I'd think I'd be hearing a lot more in ugly noises if if the rings/pistons were destroyed.

It isn't smoking in the driveway. Antifreeze was about 1/2 gallon low, and it was just filled recently. The cam isn't siezed, or the cam sprocket wouldn't be spinning, unless the cam actually broke, which I seriously doubt. The motor isn't making any scary noises. There is not coolant in the oil either. It was driven about ten miles trying to nurse it home. Finally it got stuck on a hill, died at idle, and would not restart. However, back in my driveway, it starts and runs again, at least on 2 cylinders.

Here's the deal. I did a new timing belt 2 weeks ago. I've put about 200 miles on the car since then. It ran fine (and was without a doubt timed right) until it died today. I was sure that I had screwed up the tensioner and that it had skipped teeth on me, but when I took the covers off, it was right on. I checked it, spun it around again, checked it, did it 4 or 5 times to make postively sure it was still on time. I'll try the oil test. However, what will that tell me? If it is still zero when I add oil, does that point to a bad HG?

So is this a bad head gasket? I'm not hearing any ugly noises from the lower end, and that is all I can come up with. I need this car (or go buy another one) to take a trip in less than 2 weeks. What can I expect a head gasket repair to cost?

Found my answer. 0 compression on #2 and 30 psi on #4. Engine has fresh oil, spark plugs look unmolested. I have no idea what could have happened. And, knowing that a motor off time can create low compression, I checked the timing belt AGAIN. Its spot on. The mark on the back of the crank sprocket is straight up, both cam sprockets right in line with the marks on the case. WTF?

So I am lost. My car just had to be towed home. It runs, but extremely roughly and with no power. At first I thought it was a timing belt skip, but I just took the covers off and verified the belt is on time. So, I checked for spark by using a timing light on all 4 plug wires. The light works for cylinders 1 and 3, but not for 2 and 4. What the hell? What's confusing me is that these cylinders have 2 seperate coil packs. If a coil pack was bad, I would expect 1 and 2 or 3 and 4 to not be firing. What the hell would cause this? Ignition module?

I will note that removing the crank pulley and cam sprocket bolts is exceptionally easy with an impact wrench. However, to get enough room, I did have to take out the radiator, and on the crank pulley I needed to unbolt the AC condenser and swing it out of the way. Still, if you have one, use it...

Even if the battery shows no signs of being undercharged?

This is on a 1990 legacy. Lately I've been having a problem I think is a bad ground. The AT temp, brake, and stop light "idiot lights" will stutter on and off while driving (all three will light simultaneously). At the same time, I will feel a slight stutter in engine power, and the blower fan will slow down for a moment. So far, I've cleaned and checked the ground at the battery and done the same for the wire that goes out to the chassis (by the headlights). I've cleaned the ground wire that goes to the transmission, and actually relocated it from a plate by the starter so that it connects directly to the transmission. No help. Given that, I suspect that one of the grounds under the dash is messed up. But I don't know where they are. Any ideas?

I'm lost. My book says it is under the carpet behind the glovebox, but I've pulled it apart and nothing is there. Where is it?

Thanks. Are both fans driven off the same circuit here? From what it looks like, I can probably rule out the temp sensor, as I would assume the ECU would be throwing a code if it wasn't getting a temp signal. If both fans are driven on the same circuit, that would leave the relay or wiring as the culprit. I'll check the fans, but I am 99% sure they are good as they spin freely, and bad bearings are usually what kills em, right?

No, they do not kick on with AC. The temp on the gauge has been just under the redline with no fans. Believe me, its getting to the point that the fans should be kicking on.

Hello, I'm finding neither cooling fan in my car is coming on. I've checked fuses and that both fans spin freely. My best guess is that the coolant temp switch is bad, as the fans would be controlled by seperate relays, right? Where is the switch? I coouldn't find one on the radiator.

This could also be a failing fuel pump on both issues. The rough running at 1/4 tank could be because the fuel pump starts to overheat when it doesn't have a full tank of fuel to cool it. The issue of it falling on its face past part throttle can easily be a fuel delivery problem, where the car is only getting adequate fuel under light loads, which could be a deteriorating pump as well.

Sounds like a common consensus is to get a tranny cooler, so I will look into that. Any specific recommendations there as to what model? FWIW, I towed these jet skis on my 1985 and 1987 EA82's, and they both did fine, although slower than piss. Hell, last summer I towed them over Independence Pass into Aspen. So, going to a car with 50 more horsepower and much better breaks doesn't concern me with payload. Doesn't seem to concern subaru that much, as the owners manual says I can tow this too.

Almost all fuel injection systems rely on some version of a "long term fuel trim". Essentially, this is designed to account for variances in operation between different vehicles to allow for smoother running and more tolerance for wear. Essentially, the long term trims apply an adjuster to the base reference tables that determine fuel delivery given airflow, throttle position, rpm, and all other factors. As the computer sees consistent rich or lean situations over a period of time it will update the long term trims to either add or subtract more fuel from that entry in the fuel map. Over time, it will continue to change until it reaches a relatively stable map that gives the desired A/F ratio with minor adjustments. This allows it to account for an injector that flows more or less fuel than it should, or vacuum leaks, reduced compression, and many other factors. Some will even account for engine knock in determining whether to add more fuel. So, it is entirely possible that the trailering created different running conditions that caused the computer to update the long term fuel trims based on the increased load, and it has not relearned "normal" values yet.

Thanks for not answering my question!

All, I need to get a CLass 2 hitch for my legacy to tow my jet skis (about 1600 lbs). U-haul sells one for $140.00 Is this a good price? (I don't care/want installation- I can do that myself).

Yes, a wobble in the main crank pulley can kill a water pump- the uneven pressure on the belt will chew up the bearings, that then get enough play to kill the seal.

Sounds like your Map sensor is suspect. I'm betting removing the airfilter changed the vacuum signal enough that the faulty map sensor gave readings close enough to make the car run better. Or, the airfilter(s) were really clogged so bad that the vacuum was out of range. And your transmission needs help. Sounds like you need to pull the tranny codes, and if you are getting torque bind, insert the FWD fuse and see if it is able to go into FWD mode.

What about the optional filter? My car (1990 legacy) has this- its right below the drivers side cam cover. Is this something the part stores stock?

Do yards actually sell this seperate? I would think they would be hesitant to split up a transmission.

Where do you buy the parts? Mine doesn't have torque bind, but it doesn't engage either.

Ok, I have a 1990 Subaru AWD with 157k miles that doesn't act like it. I don't have any torque bind issues and the transmission doesn't slip, shifts normally, and doesn't display any trouble codes. But, the AWD unit doesn't work like it should. If I have it in "manual" mode in 2nd and 3rd, I get a little bit (or perhaps I am deluding myself), but if I am stuck in snow the rears will not turn at all. Definitely not 50/50. I'm assuming the AWD clutch packs are fried. Is there a writeup anywhere on how to replace them? I've read other posts that seem to indicate this is pretty straightforward. I'm hesitant to swap the whole transmission, as it is otherwise running properly.

Compared to many other 4 cylinder engines on the market.