NorthWet

Yeah, I was thinking about that, and figured I was close to the line, just not sure which side of the line I was on... I am a substitute, so I get to work with all sorts of kids. The vast majority are nice kids that were dealt a lousy hand in life. I have met only a few that "enjoyed" their status, and they were pretty antisocial. I've worked with medically fragile, I've worked with aggressives, and kids that have just had bad breaks at home. Sometimes they joke about being on the short bus. That doesn't give me an excuse to do so, and if I have offended anybody I apologize.

The overheating is a little wierd. T-stat good first thought, radiator is easy to pull and have flow-tested at a radiaor shop (free or nominal charge). Engine can soak up heat for a while and then show signs of overheating if radiator flow is insufficient. Fan is another possibility; I have had trouble with the connector on mine. Automatic tranny??? If so, check the fluid lately? Could overheat going up, and take time to discharge heat to radiator. OOPS! "in 5th", so not the problem.

Thanks, EL. Is this personal experience, or someone you trust? Where can I get some to play with?

Yup. I even ride on the bus myself. My wife wants to get me a shirt that says, "My mom says I'm Special!" Not sure how well that would go over at work... I don't think the parents would find it funny at all. :-\

I may be way out of date (last welding training was '81), but I haven't heard of any way to stick weld aluminum. Maybe they have come out with some neat fluxes, but last I heard a gas shield was needed. My MIG can do 3/8 inch aluminum no sweat, and what we are probably talking here is a patch, anyway.

For a pic, look at: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=27093 Go down to Gravelrx's post with the pretty picture of his shiny engine *envy* . Just below and to the left of center is the t-stat housing, with the black plastic on top and the aluminum spigot coming out at 7-o'clock.

I'd go with the coil, too. It sounds a little too much go/no-go to be a failing thermoresistor like the CTS has. And coils will act differently at different temps, and engine load will stress the coil. (Needs to produce a greater voltage to jump the spark gap.)

Well, according to the gods of USMB, I am no longer just a Subaru Nut, but a Certified one!!! WOOOT!!! Just another testament to post-grubbing. And since I am working in Special Ed., I guess that no only am I certifiable, but I am also Special! Pat

Just got off the phone to the mechanic, and he said that he doesn't know where the "towing damage" idea came from, but he hasn't heard a cause. He did say that it was the front pump seal. At least this tells me that I am not driving it away under its own power. Tow or cut bait...

Thanks, gary. And my apologies to ANYONE who took offense to my prev "buy out from under me/stink-eye" reference. It was meant as a joke, stink-eye sounding funny, and I should have originally put a LOL or something following it. Again, my apologies.

Maybe the Coolant Temperature Sensor (CTS)?

Easy-peasey: Standing in front of car, facing engine. Locate (your) left side of radiator, near the top is a large (5-6cm) radiator hose, follow it back along its 30-40cm towards the engine. The housing that it goes into is the thermostat housing. It should have all sorts of goo-gaws attached to it (vac hoses, temp sensors), but that is the housing for which you quest.

Thanks GG. They actually make tranny caps, and I have a set. They are meant for static situations, but nothing some duct tape and/or Yankee ingenuity can't handle! How long are you going to be busy? This car was originally posted 2 months ago, so unless someone here buys it out from under me (*stink-eye*) *edit LOL j/k edit* it probably won't disappear soon. Although I would appreciate someone local looking at it, I am willing to take the risk on it. Looks like (if I get it) I will be tow-dollying it home (after pulling axles or driveshaft). I plan on "optimizing" my trip, so not quite as silly as it sounds.

Aluminum tranny=TIG or experienced MIG. Kind of hard for average DIY, not sure that many muffler shops I have known will do TIG. I don't know that sealant would work any better than JB-W, but not enough personal xperience to debate it. Whichever way you do it, let us know what you did and how it worked out.

Not sure if it is the same one... is Abbottstown in the Lancaster area? Mistyped price... should be 200 not 100. Maybe just wishful thinking. It turns out that it is at a dealership, so not sure how to deal LD with them. Supposed to call there mechanic and find out what he thinks is the problem. And after all of the bad weather posts today I am beginning to wonder if I am insane or not.

It's the "4wd turbo thingy"! I think that it can be called the intake plenum... probably has a more proper name, and others will probably point that out. FSM calls it an "air intake duct".

I would stay with the 192 year round, but that is just me. Lots of folklore and myth around t-stats, but my belief is that the hotter the better, as long as it the system temp is kept consistant. The factory designed the system for 192. One of the other members posted recently that his EA82 ran almost all winter with an almost completely plugged radiator, indicating that the subes didn't need much in the way of cooling in colder weather... this engine-as-own-radiator might be contributing to your cool running. Either way, I would start with a 192 t-stat. "Free advice today only!"

Assuming that this is not near a structural web or anything, drain the oil, take the tranny out, clean clean clean the area all around the hole. If the hole is very small, use some JB Weld to cover the hole and some surrounding metal. If the hole is not small, use some material to use as a patch, and use JB Weld to secure the patch. Allow to cure completely before filling with oil.

Gee, I thought that you were gonna say that with MS&EDIS that you didn't need an alternator! ROFLMAO

Keep that donut from going stale... I might be going by to collect it in the next week or two! Yes, I found that problem the hard way. Good has come out of it in that 2 people so far have benefitted from my grief.

Quite often the radio lighting is just a standard bulb. You might want to consider just opening up the radio and having a look see.

What Dr. K. said. Freeze plugs really aren't freeze plugs; they are casting core attachments. If the block freezes they are likely to pop out, but the block is also likely to crack. So if the freeze plug was damaged due to freezing rather than rust-out, you may have serious probs with the block. I hope it is something else.

Intercooler? Are you talking about the water jacketing on the turbo center section? Where was that "freeze plug"? I guess that I have at look at mine to see if it has any freeze plugs at all. Cracked turbo heads normally crack into the exhaust port, draining into the exhaust pipe. That rapid of coolant draining sounds like something different to me.

Sounds like a lot of work to rid your car of maybe 15-20 lbs. And there are issues about depressurizing the system... The AC really does help demisting of the windshield/windows when on defrost. If you don't want the power drain, there are several ways of deactivating the compressor. Anyways, my $0.02 is that you might keep it and just try deactivating it for awhile first.

The rising and dropping sounds too much like a thermostat. If it was caused by a blown HG, I would expect the temp to rise and stay high, or get high under load. Doesn't mean that you don't have HG issues, but that t-stat should be looked at first. Also, might check if radiator fins got some mud or other material clogging it near the bottom.