JT95

Hey all. I was on the interstate this morning, crusing at about 80 when my car just died with no warning or no weird noises or anything. I hadn't noticed anything blinking on the dash beforehand. Luckily, it happened right at an exit ramp, so I got pulled on there. The car would start, but then die after 5-10 seconds, or immediately if you gave it any gas. I checked all hoses. I removed the cover and made sure the timing belt was in place. Took the fuel hose off and made sure it was passing thru the fuel filter, as that is what it acted like--a starved engine. I unplugged the MAF sensor and the car started and ran okay. (Not perfectly, but good enough to drive.) Now, driving with the MAF unplugged, the Check Engine light was obviously lit (not blinking), but the AT Oil Temp light was blinking. Neither was illuminated before dying and then unplugging the MAF. What in the world would be a connection between those two lights? Do MAF sensors just go kaput like that with no warning? I let the car sit in the cold for 5 hrs, and the AT light still blinks as soon as I start the engine. The engine itself did not seem to happy to be running when cold w/o the sensor plugged in. Can the unplugged MAF sensor do something to make that AT light flicker? (Can moisture ruin a MAF sensor?) Is it useless to have a diagnostic comp read the ecu because the sensor is unplugged and that is going to give that code, for that obvious reason. Does this sound like something replacing the MAF sensor will fix (for those who have had one go) or is something deeper awry here? Could it be an issue with my ECU? (Should a 99 and a 00 ecu from two different OBS cars be the same? I have a spare ecu if so.) I really need the car to get around this week. I sure don't want to pay for a MAF sensor--damn those are expensive--if that doesn't fix the problem. Honestly, if it works, I don't care to shell out the Franklins for it. Any assistance is greatly appreciated!

Check over at rs25.com, as they have a thread dedicated to non-turbo power, including several discussions on the little 2.2 engine. 200hp is possible with a non-turbo Sube, but the money you'd invest would make it more practical to just swap in a turbo setup from a wrecked WRX, which would be cheaper in the end. To turbo a non-turbo block, keep the PSI lower, as the pistons are different from turbo and non. For searching non-tubo oomph, you'd be best to upgrade your cams, add equal length headers, a good-flowing cat-back exhaust, and maybe experiment w/ your intake/filter setup. You might want to consider phenolic intake manifold spacers. I bought some from grimmspeed, though overpriced for what they are imho. I tried a throttle body spacer on my engine and had horrible luck with it, but others have had good experiences after adding one. To do it right, you would probably want your intake manifold and heads ported/polished, which is where some serious jingle would come into play. I think your 2.2 has about 135 crank horsepower. Without dumping in a lot of cash, I'd set my sights lower than 200...say closer to the 165 a stock 2.5 put out. That's what I'm going for. My phase II 2.2 was factory rated at 142, and I hope to be able to add 20hp to it. It isn't a race car, but in my Impreza, I'd hardly call the engine weak. I'm a huge fan of the 2.2 engine, so I'm curious to see what I can realistically get from this one...on a budget. You have an engine from a Legacy, but is that what it's going to be living in? In all seriousness, past your basic upgrades to a drivetrain, I think you might get more "bang for buck" in investing in the improvement of your car's handling. The first "performance upgrade" any car needs is a set of good, sticky performance tires. Then, upgrade your suspension setup for better handling. Your 135 hp Sube can be setup to corner just as well as someone's 250 hp whatever, and there's only so much speed you can hit a tight curve with anyway. Now, I have heard mentioned you could put 2.2 heads on a 2.5 block and produce a more torqued engine (what you probably want more of anyway). I acquired a 2.5 engine with head problems and am wanting to investigate this as an option for it as a project engine. Some of the more experienced guys here can offer more wisdom on that than me.

Yeah, my Sube is maf, so you have to take that into consideration. I'm actually going to fab up something with an open hood vent. Honestly, not sure if sucking in cooler air from outside will make that much difference for a 2.2, but heck, it's fun to piddle and experiment...

OK--here's another Impreza I fixed with only the mini-scoop. The solo-mini scoop looks better than the solo vent.

Well, rather than running the duct straight to the hood vent, fab a "box" that is open on top and seals against the hood when shut. Run your ducting into the side of the "air box" at the vent. Water would fall into the box, and not be falling directly into the air duct itself. I don't have photoshop, so instead of putting a vent on a Legacy, I just painted over the other vent and scoop on an OBS: I think I'd go ahead and do both. Keep thing symmetrical. Although, you could consider putting one of the mini-scoops over the solo-vent. I was talking about just a universal mini-scoop, but these are made for the Impreza hood vent fitting, which doesn't really do anything easy for a Legacy owner, but anyways: http://www.etsracing.com/3..jpg http://tyneteestuning.co.uk/images/DSC00090A.JPG http://tyneteestuning.co.uk/images/WAGON.jpg http://www.etsracing.com/001%20006.jpg

You might also want to consider looking farther south as well. I live in KY, and used Subarus (the ones close to a decade old) don't seem to bring as much as they do in Subaru hotspots elsewhere in the country, as to most non-Sube people down here it's just any other Japanese car. Are you dead set against an A/T? At highway driving, is there that much difference in mileage? Also, check over at rs25.com, as those guys are all about Imprezas, especially the older ones. People post stuff for sale there all the time. But, yeah, as people have mentioned, gas is cheap now, so going some distance to drive one home is a good option. Someone also mentioned that the Impreza doesn't get that different of gas mileage from a Legacy. I'll have to say that has been my experience. I drove a Legacy wagon for 5 years. This past spring I bought two wrecked Impreza Outbacks (99 and 00) for $2400, used the parts off the 00 to fix the 99 (with 73k on it). But, anyway, I was planning on just selling the car (and leftover parts) when finished because I assumed it was too small for me (6'3" and two kids). And, yeah, it's mpg is almost the same as my high mileage Legacy. But, dude, the little Impreza is SO FREAKIN FUN TO DRIVE! Seriously, you might not notice any real difference in gas mileage, but man will you feel like you almost bought a sports car in the little Impreza. (Biggest space loss you notice is hatch space.) I had to keep it. Too much fun, and I'm hoping this phase II EJ22 will last like my phase I 2.2 engine. I love the EJ22. Here's a travel-to car in Ohio: http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.jsp?ct=u&car_id=254790353&dealer_id=619368&car_year=1997&rdm=1227242439555&model=IMPREZ&num_records=25&systime=&make2=&highlightFirstMakeModel=&start_year=1991&keywordsfyc=&keywordsfyc=&keywordsrep=&keywordsrep=&engine=&certified=&body_code=128&fuel=&awsp=false&search_type=both&distance=500&marketZipError=false&search_lang=en&showZipError=n&make=SUB&keywords_display=&color=&page_location=findacar%3A%3Aispsearchform&min_price=&body_style=WAGON&drive=&default_sort=priceDESC&seller_type=b&max_mileage=&style_flag=2&sort_type=priceDESC&address=42101&advanced=&end_year=2001&doors=&transmission=&max_price=3500&cardist=380 This may end up going for a crazy price, but may be worth watching: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Cars-Trucks___1993-Subaru-Impreza-Wagon-MPG-Runs-Perfect-Low-Reserve_W0QQitemZ300274792284QQddnZCarsQ20Q26Q20TrucksQQddiZ2282QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_Cars_Trucks?hash=item300274792284&_trksid=p4506.c0.m245&_trkparms=72%3A727%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318

I always thought it'd be cool to use the hood vents off an Impreza RS or OBS, remove the shield from beneath it, and run your intake ducting directly to the open vent on the passenger side. Not too many people wanting to cut a couple holes in their hoods though...

Is there a trick to removing the shift lever knob/cover off an A/T stick in a 95-99 Legacy? I was wanting to take one off a car that had a leather shift lever and put it on a car without, but when I took out the two little screws on the sides, the cover didn't want to lift off the lever. Am I missing a trick to getting them off? Does it not just slide up and off? Obviously, I don't want to break either of them...

I replaced this on my 95 Legacy a couple months ago and it was super easy. I bought my sensor from O'Reiley's and it was $30 cheaper than either Autozone or Advance, if you r interested in non-factory replacement.

Sorry. Better?

Thanks. The parts store would have to order it, so I'm just gonna pay a few bucks more and order from a Subaru online retailer. It's not so bad I have to change right away. It spits out fluid rather slowly, so I'm fine with waiting for mailorder.

Got any photos of what you think was swapped out? I started driving a 99 Impreza Outback Sport wagon this past May and LOVE IT. Very fun little cars. Geez, that thing eats up curvy roads. I also junked out a 2000 OBS wagon, so I have a little experience seeing the guts of these cars. You might want to check out www.rs25, as there are a lot of Impreza owners there and a lot of non-turbo guys.

My 95 LSI came with 15" wheels on it. I thought all the Subarus of the mid/late 90s had 15" wheels, but IDK. Do you want to go all out or go on a budget? If on a budget, put 205 instead of 195 on 15" wheels the next time you buy new tires. I swapped wheels/tires between my Legacy wagon and my "new" Outback Sport wagon. The OBS had 205 tires on it, and it made a little difference when I put them on my Legacy. Runs fine with them. To look a little taller from the side, buy some flat black spray paint and paint you rocker panel flat black. (Not the whole two-tone from the side molding, do that too if you want, but the length of the rocker panel area below the doors--from where the fender "bumps' at the very bottom.) Make sure you paint it flat or matte and not gloss or it does nothing. I did that a few years ago on a white LSi wagon and visually that gave me a 2" lift. Cost me less than $10. Not sure if you'd like it? Buy a can of that black temporary bug guard paint from Wal-mart and do it with that first. Stuff washes off when you wash the car w/ soap. As far as an outback bumper--ask. When I replaced the bumper cover on my LSi, the outbacks used a rebar with a different part number, so an Outback bumper cover might not bolt right up to the metal beam you have. I dunno--it might--but they do have different part numbers for the structural part of the bumper assembly and not just the cover. Get outback logos from eBay. Hey--you won't have that frumpy Outback roof either, which is cool.

He is right on. My 95 LSi wagon threw that code. I got a knock sensor from O'Reiley's for way cheaper than anyone else. The manual said to do all this stuff, I looked under the hood, then swapped them out without removing a thing. Some graceful fingering is involved, but be patient and save yourself all that hassle of going all out. I unplugged the battery to reset the ECU, and was good to go.

I bought an Impreza a few months ago with nasty steel wheels. I took the factory alloy wheels off my Legacy wagon and they fit just fine. I also ran a set of steel wheels from a Legacy for a rallycross and they fit fine as well, so interchange away--You'll be OK.

I just installed a pair of intake manifold spacers from grimspeed.com on my 99 EJ22 engine. Haven't been on there a week yet, so I can't report a whole lot about them. Wasn't a simple install, but if you can do basic maintenance stuff this is not that hard. Probably a little overpriced for what they are, but hey, tear the top off your engine and you feel like you're doing something constructive anyway. My dad had a cone filter from XXX chain parts store laying in his garage he'd bought and used once as an emergency filter on a used SUV he bought out of town. I undid the filter box and put an adapter plate at the end of the intake where the MAF sensor is and just put the cone filter on there. I don't know if it did anything to gain power, but I kept my low end and it changed the sound a little bit. A 96 doesn't have that "torque box" at the throttle body does it? As I've heard told, those were supposed to help a little with bottem end power. (Verify that yourself.) Maybe snag one of those setups from a junkyard and bolt it up. Might give you a little better sub 3500 RPM feel. All I know is the guys who take that box off to install a fancy aftermarket intake system say they lose some on the bottom end. I also installed a throttle body spacer and had crazy trouble with my car running correctly when not really warmed up, so I took that think off pronto. Others have no problems with them. For a chunk of machined aluminum, they are way overpriced IMHO. Buy some good tires if you don't already have some. I put Fuzion HRi tires on my Subes and have had good luck with them. Not OMG amazing tires, but very affordable for a "performance" tire. Strut tower? Bigger sway bar? Not a lot to do to make these faster w/o big investments, but you can make it corner/handle better. Watch eBay patiently. I've done nothing to my exhaust yet. You probably have dual port heads, so there should be options for headers for you. Uneven length do nothing for power but add sound, as I have been told. Even length add a few hp but do nothing for sound, again, as told. In short, if cash is tight, don't worry about boosting power. Make the car more comfortable and better handeling.

I have a couple pinholes in this hose that send a very small yet steady stream of antifreeze out. I can't find any info at all about replacement. The manual called it a heater hose. Does this have to be a fit part, or can I just buy a length of hose and fit it. (If so, anyone know the correct size?) Also, since it's above the thermostat, do I need to drain all the fluid out of my radiator? I think I can change it without having to remove the lower radiator hose. Thanks for any input. 99 Impreza EJ22

The non-interference 2.2 is a bada$$ little engine. I'm getting ready to put my 95 LSi wagon up for sale and it has that 2.2 and I drove it for 5 years and was made into a believer. It now has 230,000 miles on it and going strong. It went that long before throwing a check engine light (knock sensor) and still runs smooth/strong. It was very well maintained, though. And, other stuff like wheel bearings, rear diff, clutch, etc. have wear and tear to take into consideration with high miles. I was surprised what kbb.com listed my car to be valued private party for, and haven't decided what is a fair asking price for it. i was thinking starting at $2,000 as an asking price and working down from there. It's in good shape with leather interior and sunroof and new CV shafts, but it's still a car over 200k. I'd have a hard time paying over 2grand for a 200k car, and even then the interior had better be in good shape. Also keep in mind it might be in need of the timing belt change, even if it is non-interference EJ22. I'm selling my LSi because I started driving a 99 OBS this spring. They are FUN little cars! Keep us posted about asking price and what you decide to do...

HG failure is not uncommon w/ the early 2.5 engines. However, you might want to first make sure you don't have air in your coolant system. I had a 95 a few years ago with a 2.2 that kept overheating at random times after two thermostat replacements by me. Coolant level looked normal. I was new to subaru and clueless. Someone here suggested I "burp" my coolant system and, sure enough, it worked out some air and I then added the fluid to top off the system and never overheated again. High temps with an alum engine makes me nervous...

I've got a non-turbo 2.2 in a 99 Impreza. What's the highest octane rating that is safe to occasionally run in this engine?

I have a 99 OBS with the phase II 2.2. It's no sports car, but the little 2.2 is peppey for all I need...maybe not all I want, but all I need for sure. It is a fun car to drive. I was used to drive a 95 Legacy w/ the 2.2 (230k miles, thank you), so the slighter hp increase in the 99's EJ22 and the Imp's lighter weight made it seem like a boost in power for me. Now, I am in the slow process of working a 2.2 out of an '00 Impreza OBS into a '99 Legacy Outback with a blown 2.5 engine/tran. The phase II wiring is a different setup than earlier engines, so I would avoid going that route if you want simple. I had to tear the top off the engine and re-wire the engine using the 2.5's harness, and even then everything doesn't match perfectly. My swap would have been so easy had I been able to interchange the intake runners, but alas, that was a no-go. However, I would think you would have good luck using a low mile phase II EJ22 (a few extra hp and still reliable) and use the intake and engine wiring harness of one that is specifically for the 97 Impreza. Now, if you want a fun engine that's a little different, I have heard of people building a 2.5 with 2.2 heads. Supposed to be a pretty torquey engine, but I've never seen it in person. Of course, I now have a 2.5 sitting in the garage with a crapped out head (what came out of that '99), so my plan is to tear it apart and rebuild it with some dual port 2.2 heads when I find some. That setup might do the low end oomph you'd like. Research it though, cause I'm just looking into it myself. The 2.2 heads would let you use the correct 2.2 intake manifold for the car and still have a 2.5 bottom end, which would make wiring up a snap with a 2.2 harness on the engine. Since you're already into a project...

I like that setup you've got. I'm gonna try the dual filters off the backside of the engine first--mainly because I just want to see what it looks like and how it does out of curosity--and if I don't like it I will do a setup like the one you have here. Heck, I might run a Y-pipe off the throttle body and do the right side just like yours and do the left side to the back with a cone filter. I just want something that looks a little trick, is different, something I can say "Yeah, I made that", and at the same time either enhances or has no negative effect on throttle response. Otherwise, what's the fun in owning a 10 yr old car? Just out of curosity, does anyone know if there's any info/data on the actual airflow that takes place through the factory Outback Sport hood scoops? I know some cars with non-functional scoops don't even have the thing vented--it's just an add-on on top of the hood, but the Impreza's has some flow, though I'm not sure what kind of air volume realistically passes through it.

Well, I have an OBS, so it has the hood scoop. I know it's only there for looks, but there is flow through it, although I have no idea if it amounts to anything. I don't know of a practical way to see if there's any real air movement through the thing. If so, it probably still wouldn't negate the engine heat, huh? As far as the sound--does a different setup like that really change the tone of the car's sound, or do you have to do exhaust mods too to get any effect?

I've got the bug to create a custom air filter/intake setup for my non-turbo Impreza. 99 model. I want to run a T-fitting off the throttle body and from each side run an aftermarket cone filter. I thought dual cones would look pretty sweet as well as let my engine suck in some more volume and hopefully gain at least 5hp. Assuming I customize it to keep my factory vaccum lines and my sensor as part of the intake housing, is it generally not that much of a difference in power and/or mileage when replacing factory air intake with a less restrictive system? Are there any common issues that I need to be aware of when trying this? Am I just better off leaving the factory setup as-is? I thought about just buying a K&N element to fit my stock filter element box, but then there's another filter in the big box right there at the throttle inlet, correct? Wouldn't both have to be replaced with upper quality filters in order to actually do anything? Why two filters in the same flow path anyway? I'll admit part of me wants the dual cone filters because it would look sweet, but there's no sense in investing the time and money if it runs just the same. Experienced input?

OK--I'm out of town, so I don't have access to my folder of photos from this project, but if you look at the bottom of this photo, you can see the yellow wire housing running inside the fender. Doesn't show the actual sensor, but you get the idea where it's located: http://bp3.blogger.com/_aR5eeWt3n-Q/R94fVp0ZCBI/AAAAAAAAABE/NrDZcD0vzT4/s1600-h/DSCF3357.JPG Here, you can see all things yellow within the dash that go with the airbag system (minus the yellow shop light of course): http://bp2.blogger.com/_aR5eeWt3n-Q/R_xIE80R0gI/AAAAAAAAAHc/nYv99_A1UQ8/s1600-h/DSCF0360.JPG And here is the control module that's under the radio: http://bp3.blogger.com/_aR5eeWt3n-Q/R_xHgM0R0fI/AAAAAAAAAHU/UcTeWIWHA9U/s200/DSCF3464.JPG It takes a special bit to remove those bolts that hold the module in place, so plan on getting one from the parts store.