Ionlyhave3suubs

Thanks for the info. It looks like more trouble than its worth. I had a 02 Forester X with the defroster elements on the windshield. It actually worked pretty decent in keeping ice out of the area where the wipers rest during intermit and when turned off . It also cut down on the time it took to defrost the windshield when icy. I think the Forester I had was similar to the limited package on the Outbacks. It had power everything, and heated leather seats, mirror defrost, etc. It was a nice car, but the kids were spoiled by the legroom of the outbacks so we gave up the Forester and later picked up another Outback. (Rear facing car seats don't fit so well in the back of Foresters)

The time has come for replacing the cracked windshield in my 02 Legacy Outback. The car did not come with the defrosting wires built into the windshield. I am looking to add that feature. Does anyone know if the wiring is already present and tucked away somewhere under the dash or something? If so, where do I find it? The windshield shop will not install the one with the integrated defrost wires if the rest of the wiring is not present and where they can hook it up.

Lights that have to flash (turn signals) will require a new flasher engineered for LEDs. Also they are somewhat directional. If you go that route, you need to make sure they "shine" outward. You can get them that have the LEDs face in different directions. If you get the right type, they are more visible with slightly lower power consumption. The following websites have lots of options. The first address has details about bulb selection and flashers. http://www.superbrightleds.com/cgi-bin/store/index.cgi?action=DispPage&Page2Disp=%2Fcarbulb-notes.htm http://www.superbrightleds.com/cgi-bin/store/index.cgi?action=DispPage&Page2Disp=%2F1157.htm http://www.ledlight.com/SearchResult.aspx?KeyWords=1157

Here's an idea, late model ls1 gm engine. Aluminum block and heads, available in a wide range of displacements and power ranges. They came in a wide variety of vehicles from corvettes, camaros, firebirds, gto's, caddilacs, and trucks. Lightweight v-8 (not as light as a H-4), widely available engine. There is also a great book out there on swapping those motors into a variety of chassies. I remember seeing swaps into jaguar, bmw, volvo, several others I don't recall now. I didn't buy the book but it was great reading. Use the gm trans, rear diff, hmm, that one may be tough, corvette, or gto independent rear suspension and shorten the axles to fit under the soob? Possibly late model Ford explorer rear (also IRS). Either way it's going to get expensive. I like the idea of a JDM twin turbo swap. Might actually be cheaper than some of the other options.

I read the drill and screw technique before, thought I would try it. As deep as it was, not sure how else I could get it out with out boogering the block, crank or both without cracking the engine in half. I'm thinking when the engine finally goes, I'll either buy a wreck and pull the motor and part the rest out or I'd really like to try to tackle a JDM twin turbo swap. The wiring scares me though.

A bunch of good information so far. Head gaskets can be an issue on the 2.5 engine in these cars, and the repair can get into some money, however these are great cars. Something that I have not seen in recent threads, but I have read some time back, not sure if it was this message board or another but it is worth mentioning. When I first read it, I thought it sounded weird, until it happened to me. With these cars, do not allow corrosion to build up on the battery terminal. Apparently this corrosion can make its way into the cooling system. This corrosion destroys the seal in the head gasket and compression leaks from the cylinder into the coolant jacket of the engine and the compressed hot air/exhaust leaking into the water jacket causing overheating. I was a skeptic when I first read this, but when it happened to me, I quickly became a believer. Case in point, I bought a 97 Outback with the 2.5 dohc engine (same engine carried through 99) with 34k miles back in 98. I drove it until around October when It developed the dreaded overheating problems (car now has 230k+). Sure enough, when I popped the hood, the battery terminal was growing coliflower looking corrosion. Many people have had problems with lower mileage and with younger cars, and maybe mine is the exception. I have had three of these cars with the same engine, the one I mentioned (my first one with this engine type), a 97 legacy GT 2.5 sedan (which I regrettably had to sell when money got tight) and a 96 legacy LSI. The LSI I bought with a blown gasket, 150k miles The GT had 109k on it when I bought it, put about 15k on it, never had a gasket issue. I have seen quite a few of the 2.5 dohc powered legacy bodied cars for sale on e-bay with around 150k, with blown head gaskets, mystery overheating problems, and "bad water pumps". That is a common mis-conception among those not familiar with the vehicles and those who want to blame the overheating on a cheaper problem when they are trying to sell a subaru in need of repair. Steer clear of an overheating outback unless you can buy it cheap enough to pay for all of the engine repairs nipper mentioned. Using subaru brand parts is highly recommended. When I did the repair on the LSI, I used fel-pro gaskets (a little over a year ago) and have had no issues. Others on the forum have had issues however with the fel-pros. The price difference is probably not worth it. Go with the oem! Keep the battery terminals clean, use the battery terminal grease (ask for it in the parts store if you don't know). Even if the head gasket failures are a coincidence, what's it going to hurt to keep the battery maintained? I still have the 97 outback and the lsi, also have a 02 outback with the sohc 2.5. I am waiting for parts to come in to finish the 97 outback head gasket job. The 97 will be my snow-mobile this winter. It has minor battle scars so I don't mind taking out in the snow. It goes great in snow and ice, especially with chains.

Ok, I got the seal back out and re-installed another new one flush. Thanks for all of the responses. In case anyone is wondering how to remove a seal buried that deep, I used the drill and sheet metal screw technique. Drill 4 holes in the metal part of the seal evenly spaced around the perimeter. Run a sheet metal screw through a fender washer then screw it into the hole you drilled in the seal. Use a extra washer as a spacer on the flange side so the screw is straighter and slowly and evenly tighten all four screws, a little at a time. Works great as a seal puller. You can use more than 4 screws for this, the more the merrier, but I wouldn't do it with less. Some of your screws may pull out, that's ok, just drill a new hole 1/4" over from the one that pulled out and put the screw in and tighten as already mentioned. Be careful not to mar the crankshaft or the seal mounting surfaces. This process took about 15 min. If I was doing it over, I would have started with 6 screws instead of 4. I only had 4 matching size screws available at the time so that's what I used (I'm 20 min away from the nearest hardware store). Front seal and cam seal driver, 32 mm socket- same one used on axle nut!

One other question on this, When you install this seal, do you use any sealant on the outer surface of the seal where it mates to the bore? I know to lube the inside.

I can see this thread is a few months old but I am hoping to get a reply from this post. My current project is a 97 Outback 2.5 dohc I have had since 98. 230K miles, finally have to replace the ORIGINAL head gaskets. After getting the engine out I discovered the cheap plastic plate was leaking AND the rear main seal was leaking also. Well I removed the old main seal and drove in a new one. There was a groove in the crankshaft, so I elected to drive it slightly deeper. Unfortunately it was slightly un-even looking and I tried to even it up as I drove it in, it kept getting deeper, but I was not satisfied with how even it looked until it was all the way in. It is at an even depth all the way around now, but I am concerned it may be in too deep and may leak now. It looks like there is enough room to install another seal in there. Do I need to pull this seal back out and try again? I don't want to get the engine in to find out I drove it in too far and have a leak. If anyone has any experience with driving the seal in that far successfully without leak, please let me know. I know I'll have to ruin that new seal to pull it.

Oh forgot to say where to put it. enter it in Google.com

For those who are too lazy to do the math (or would rather just use the computer) you can enter "convert (insert numbers here)inch pounds to foot pounds" and presto, it does the conversion for you. Converts between standard and metric too

Thanks for the help. It seemed when I took it apart that the bolts on the caps that also hold the cam seals were not as tight. Is there a different spec on those?

I am in the middle of the same head gasket job and my manual does not have any torque specs for the cam caps. Can someone help me out with this? Mine is a 97 dohc 2.5.

My first Suub was a 88 hatch. Loved that car. I am fantasizing about getting another one and swapping a ej25d in it. The only thing I didn't love about it was the lack of abundant power and limited wheel choices for the 4 lug bolt pattern.

Welcome to Subaru ownership. I am a new user to the forum but long time Subaru owner. My first was a 88 that I bought in 89. I have had quite a few over the years, still have three. Also long time lover of GM muscle cars (first car 68 Camaro).

Hmmm... Jeep vs. Subaru? Just sold my Jeep that I bought in 97 with 107k miles when I bought it , sold it with 129k. Still have my 97 Outback that I bought in '98 with 34K miles. Subaru now has over 230k miles on it, finally had to do that dreaded head gasket that everybody else seems to have so many problems with. Oh well, I guess I got a good one. Needless to say, the Subaru got a lot more use! I have had 3 Subarus since buying the Outback, Unfortunateley I had to sell the 97 Legacy GT (too many cars).

Type of Wrenching: Complete engine rebuilds (SBC GM), head gaskets, motor swaps Subaru, no job too big! What: Mostly 68 & 69 Camaros for fun, Subaru's to keep em going How Long: 24 Years (Dad got me started at 15 father son project 68 Camaro) Other Skills: Complete restoration on a 68 and a 69 Camaro. Engine swaps (on Subarus) Some sheet metal fabrication, and body replacement work.