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If it has a factory tow package, it has a hitch rated for (I believe) 1000 lbs. and a transmission cooler. Emily

I have an AWD 2009 Forester and we also have 2 4x trucks. We would NEVER run a truck in 4x on the highway unless we needed to get through some heavy snow. All my Subarus have done just great in any depth of snow and you'll even see Subarus pulling 4x vehicles out of the road-side ditches because idiots and 4WD just don't mix. On ice, nothing will help you, except possibly special "ice" tires. But the Subaru AWD system still performs better in icy conditions than any 4WD. Also, AWD performs like a boss on curvy mountain roads, sure-footed and responsive. I've done enough "canyon runs" to really appreciate the Subaru driveline. Towing capacity on a Forester is 1000 lbs without trailer brakes. 2400 with trailer brakes according to cars101.com. Emily

Actually, you could just disconnect the coil pack and crank it until the oil light goes out. While I rarely disagree with Fair-guy ( ), I feel that taking out the plugs and unplugging the injectors is overkill here. Emily

It's the DL/GL designation that confuses people. Those were only trim/options designations and had nothing to do with the engines. Emily

Performance Radiator sells them. I'm sure you can Google them, they're a nationwide company. Their products are excellent and not horribly expensive. We've used them for years. Emily

If enough coolant from the bad head gaskets got into your cat, then yes, that could cause one to clog up and fail. However, 3 months later is a stretch. That should have happened much sooner. I'd get a second opinion. Have the shop put a vacuum gauge on your intake manifold. (Yes, they're still around and still useful for diagnosing stuff a scanner can't.) It should show 14" or better of mercury. If it's below 10" (that's inches), it's likely you have a plugged cat which will have an effect on how the engine runs and poor gas mileage. Emily

www.cars101.com is your friend. The towing capacity for every Subaru model and year is listed there. Find your model, scroll down to specs and it's in the list under towing. Emily

The people at Superior are good. We've worked with them before. After listening to the videos several times, I can say that I DO hear some lifter noise, but I would definitely ask them about checking the flexplate. A cracked flexplate can make a noise just like that, be responsive to gear changes/rpms and not have any effect on the engine itself. Emily

All things considered (and the fact that its in a usually rusty area), it looks like a righteous buy to me. Face it, any time you buy a 20 year old car with high mileage, you are going to have to expect to fix something. Overall, this looks pretty well cared for. The only way you're going to know is to go look at it and drive it. Anything you get from anyone here means nothing: you have to go check it out in person. Emily

Timesert products are great. We use them all the time: NEVER helicoil. Emily

I happen to know of one in the Denver area for sale for $9500. I know the owner and the 2 previous owners. It is a real gem, in primo condition. PM me if you want the info on it. Emily

Frankly, it sound like stuck rings to me at first glance. It's also probable that the valves may be just plain worn, especially the exhaust valves which are smaller. And yes, they DO go bad, just not very often. Did you use a Subaru Genuine PCV valve? The aftermarket ones are mostly junk and a Genuine one isn't much more expensive. Also, when you changed the valve, did you clean out the PCV hoses? Emily

As long as you understand that those transmissions are considered to be made out of glass... They never did handle the torque from the EJ20 engines very well to begin with. I've heard of people who are on their 3rd or 4th transmission before they understand that high revs and "sport" shifting are gonna be the death of it. Emily

My money is on the torque converter. If it shifts normally otherwise, that is. They do go bad and most people start chasing other stuff without knowing what they're doing. Emily

The thing about turbo engines in particular is that they need a certain amount of backpressure. Doing what he's wanting to do is dangerous for these engines. Trust me: we won't even give a warranty on one if the exhaust isn't stock. Emily

Oh man, what I wouldn't give to drive the Autobahn again! Or the Italian Autostrada.

You guys are assuming that you'll use the entire wiring harness. NO. You're overthinking it. There is no way for a '73 VW transmission to communicate with a 2000 Subaru harness. Don't worry about the pins: as I said before, all you need is the part of the wiring harness which makes the engine run. When we modify a harness we start with the entire, 27+ lbs. harness and when we're done, it's about 7-10 lbs. That said, the harness, engine and ECU should all be from the same vehicle. That way you are assured that all components match up. It's much more difficult to mix and match components. VW/Vanagon conversions are a significant part of our business. We do the conversions on the 2.2 harness, we outsource the 2.5 ones to a guy in Canada who is the well-known authority on these for N. America. (Besides, we've done 2.5 harnesses and it's just not worth our time due to the amount of effort which it requires.) With all due respect, this is kind of "our thing". People tell us all the time that they've seen our name on various VW conversion forums and because of that, came to us. Many of our customers are shops which specialize in conversions. I won't say it's easy, but keeping it simple (KISS) is the way to go here. Emily

When you do a swap like that, you need to modify the wiring harness so that you eliminate everything except that which makes the engine run. There is absolutely no need for your car to even know that there's a difference. I suspect you left some of the wiring in that would pickup that signal. Of course, the VW has no way of sending it. PM me and I will send you the information to the only place I know which sells the wiring diagrams for modifying the harness for that style of engine so you can permanently correct the problem. We do VW conversion engine setups all the time, so I know exactly what you're talking about. (If it was me, I would have recommended the '90-94 EJ22: must less expensive, less hassle and only a 25-30hp difference. But you've already done the job, so...) SWEET bug, BTW! Emily ps: we shipped an engine to Darmstadt last year! Small world.

Waiting more than 10-15 minutes with Ultra Grey is iffy. The stuff starts to cure pretty quickly. Waiting an hour usually means it's pretty well set up and you have to clean it off and start the job over again. That's a royal PITA with that stuff. Emily

In fact. 7.5 ft. lbs. is exactly what I've always used. Emily

The numbers on the block mean nothing as far as the parts you need. Use the King catalog and match up the year, model and whether you need standard, .25 or .50. Basically, King sells turbo, non-turbo and race bearings. We like the race bearings for SOHC engines. It's that simple. Emily

If it was my car and I was already in there, I'd replace all 4: pressure plate, pilot bearing, throw out bearing and clutch. If the pressure plate goes bad in the next 6-12 months, somebody will be kicking themselves around the yard. I agree: easier to go in from the transmission side. Emily

That's why the "low brake pad" warning things are called "squealers". Emily

Well, it depends. USPS does not give any discounts, except the minor ones available to anyone when you order online. UPS, FedEx (ground), DHL, etc. do give volume discounts, but you have to be Amazon-sized to get much of anything. Mostly, it costs more than USPS for almost anything. We practically always ship small stuff via USPS Priority Mail. It's faster, easier and less expensive, AND trackable. Now, engine-sized stuff: that's an entirely different ballgame. We use LTL (less than truckload) motor freight all over N. America and get enormous discounts, but that still doesn't make it cheap. The price is included in our engine prices. On some we make money, on some we lose money. One size doesn't fit all if it has to go from Denver to Maine vs. Denver to Albuquerque. The headache of having to price each shipment individually for customers is (somewhat) offset by the fact that we just decided this was simpler and easier for everyone concerned. For large, light weight items, dimensional shipping comes into play and that is never pleasant.

I went and looked at the diagrams, and frankly, I don't see any real differences. It is possible that the 390 number is simply a superceded number for the identical item. Subaru's well known for doing this. Or maybe different rings or bearings were used. Although, it is possible that one is the EGR version and the other is the non-EGR version. If you want new, go for the newer part # if you can verify it is non-EGR. You do know that Subaru has a reman shortblock program too, right? About $1000 less expensive. Same warranty. Emlly