idosubaru

i talked to a place in australia at least 5 years ago that said they could do it, but i'd have to mail internationally and it was 500 or so dollars.

they don't have any that long, that's surprising. studs aren't complicated. if you need 11 inch studs, then getting anything 11" or longer will work. cut them and clean the end up with a die, i've done it plenty of times. i worked at a plant that used to make studs/bolts all the time, it's really a simple process i can't believe it's this big of a deal. there has to be a shop or person out there that's willing to cut some stock the size you want..and not for the crazy prices they are asking.

it could be alot of things. bad timing belt or tensioner, throttle plate sticking, intake leak, fuel issues, spark plug wires swapped, timing off.....more info would help alot. any previous work done? any recent tune up?

don't know about the idle problem. solve your no-start problem and check into other stuff later. i would suspect spark plugs before wires...so replace them both or just the plugs if there's a reason you can't replace both. how are the battery terminals? are they corroded? you should not be able to turn the terminals around the battery post by hand. can you? if you're super unlucky i think a broken timing belt causes a no start in older soobs, i'm guessing the direct ignition soobs aren't much different. they'll just crank and crank and not do anything. only bad this is 1997 is the first year of interference motors so lets hope that's not the problem. if you here a faint slapping sound from the front of the motor while cranking then a belt is broke or off. only takes removing a couple 10mm bolts to pull the cover and have a look at the timing belt.

i would guess head gaskets as well....i'd check into this a little more. don't want to spend money on radiator, flush and all that jazz and still have issues. i've been around the old school subaru boards for about 10 years and seen plenty of dryed out, rotted, rows missing radiators that are 20 years old and i've never ever heard of one person having a situation where radiator/ATF is mixing. i highly doubt this is the case for you. if you're sure it's the radiator i would get new unless you can see the used one and it looks in good shape. used radiators are fine if they are good. but there are plenty that aren't in very good shape. look for missing rows, corrossion and green crusty flakey stuff, avoid any like that.

at first i'd guess a battery or more likely the battery terminals. are your battery terminals in good shape? if it's cranking over that good then it sounds like your battery is okay. but good contacts are very important so double check the terminals. how many miles (km's) on the car? spark plugs and wires can cause intermittent no-start problems. how long since they've been replaced? check for spark.

the tranny stubs do pull out, but typically take quite alot of force to get out. i've always thought it was weird how they just pull out, but they do and i've never heard of someone having a problem with it in the 10 years i've been on internet subaru boards.

you can try changing the transmission oil but i don't think that will help your grinding. but i guess it might. subaru XT6's often have a second gear grind (i think i've had 3 that have done that). in the case of the XT6 it is annoying, but has no affect on the transmission. i've driven them 200,000 miles no problem and the trans were still in great shape. don't know why, but i believe i recall a TSB (Technical Service Bulletin) from Subaru titled "Second Gear Grind", but i never subscribed to the service to read it.

i say look elsewhere as well, those early generation 2.5's can be bad news unless you're really comfortable around subaru's and know how or want to deal with the problem if it occurs. i think 1998 is a bad year for that motor, check into that further if you're still interested. that being said, i don't know what is meant by "rust" on the motor, but the exhaust, bolts and clamps being rusty is quite normal. the engine block/heads can't be rusty as it's aluminum.

creeks are no problem (i assume you can read the water and know something about this place). unkown water - be wary. if you know i'd worry about mud. a fews years can make a big difference in silt...farm runoff, developments and such. tearing up a stream isn't ideal in my oppinion though, so care would be nice. streams don't repair nearly as well as a field/forrest does. no salmon runs in reading...but there are salmon runs in northern PA/NY. you won't have any problems driving in a creek....i'd be more worried about a landowner than an officer. rut my land and i'll have something to say about it. but really no big deal, we go offroad all the time with no issue. if they DID get a wild hair and wanted to say something, they'd say something like "don't do that again". well...how close are you to new jersey, those city boy yanks might be more tight.

depends how bad the rust is. surface paint chip rust or underbody, stuff falling off? i'd consider depending how bad it is....but careful inspection is a must and i'd want a smoking price for it. also - price is way too high. hold out for a better deal.

i dont know, but i would guess yes. parts site idea is a good start. go to http://www.1stsubaruparts.com and check the parts for both years as well - they won't list the part numbers, but if the price is exactly the same then they should be identical. call the dealer and ask, they don't mind answering questions like this when i call. either way the parts guy is on the phone making his hourly wage...the dealer just doesn't make their riches in parts. another option - pull the part (it's bad anyway or you wouldn't be replacing it right) and compare part numbers to the other one. on older soobs these things are super duper crazy easy to remove.

swapped starters and all is quiet. sounds great, thanks. had the wife start it and i heard it, started it again with hands on the starter and sure enough i could feel it.

i drove less than two miles earlier this year (i could measure the actual distance because i know where i left the house from and where i finally pulled over) without tightening my cam cap bolts (the part that holds the cam o-ring) on my XT6. oil leaked like a mofo, just poured out and i never noticed it. funny thing - the HLA's never started tapping. i was surprised that running out of oil the HLA's wouldn't start tapping...guess it takes them a tad longer than a mile or two to start with no oil? after i tightened those bolts and fixed the leak it started knocking horribly in less than 10 miles and i found one of my piston pin clips...those "G" shaped things in the oil pan when i started taking the engine apart (after i pulled it). when i turn the crank all seems fine but one pistons is out of whack...doesn't travel the full motion...i have the heads off.

dude that's crazy shat, runs with the tbelt broke!!!!! that's funny in a way. HEY - GET SOMEONE TO SEND YOU USED TIMING BELTS!!!!! someone has to have some lying around. they're so easy to replace and no interference, who cares? is this an ER27 or EA82? I'll send you an old ER27 belt if that's what you need. let me know, i can mail it monday, i'll eat the shipping charge. if noone else wants to cough one up i'll even pull the belt off my EA82T and mail it to you....but it's kind of my "back up", i keep one set of pulley's/belt in the trunk at all times...particularly on road trips. so i'd rather keep that one, but i got plenty of XT6 belts and i'll give this one up if you need it and noone else offers. surely someone has as many EA82 belts lying around as i have XT6 belts. email or PM your address....or PM over at http://www.xt6.net, i'm there more often. i'm working nights shifts the next 4 nights, so i'll be on the internet every night the next four nights.

yes

type of driving, driving conditions, condition of engine, turbo/na....lots of things probably make a difference. just check them every 10,000 miles and see what they look like. look for rounded edges, coloring, check gap and compare the set. or get torque master plugs and never change them again. there is no gap to wear out. i ran one set with a matching set of magnecor ignition wires in two cars for about 150,000 total miles and they were in great shape. they run 12 dollars each, but retain good spark nearly indefinitely...supposed to anyway, i had good results with them.

started the car with no belt, so it's definitley not the belt/pullies because it still did it. checked t-belt pullies and swapped one that was a little noisey, still made noise. it never ever makes it except at start up....maybe the starter? ah...those are easy enough to swap out, i might try that.....after the "have someone else start it" trick.

i get a screetching at start up....very brief and no other symptoms. it is not accessory belt or pulley related. and almost positive it is not timing belt pulley related. i'm thinking clutch stuff.....any input?

kind of snow makes a huge difference. i've done alot of offroading and snow driving in my soobs (AWD XT6 with air suspension, LSD and center looking diff/transfer clutch). i've done 9 inches of fresh snow (not packed at all) with no problems up steep hills and cheap all season tires. but...i've also gotten stuck with wet snow that packs up under the car. success stories are grand, but the reality is that snow can pack, ground clearance reigns for all purpose functionality. keep moving is key as well.

no, didn't get the tool. may get it later, don't need it now. not sure on the part numbers, but i feared if they spun freely the grease is mostly gone. they basically all spin freely except the tensioner which feels smooth and makes zero noise. those prices are insane. i'm contemplating getting them that's an a$$ load of cash for a dinky pulley. i was trying to help by doing it for free and now it's hundreds of dollars???? dang it. i'll post part numbers if i figure it out soon....

wish you were closer, i'd do your cam seals for 100 bucks, add in whatever else you wanted...timing belts..... EA82's are EASY to work on dude and parts are cheap. i'm so used to the XT6, the EA82's are easier and the XT6 isn't really that bad....(once you get used to it). i can do timing belts in my XT6 in like 45 minutes. Add another 30 for cam seals and done. i'm with everyone else, do it yourself, it's not that bad and with this board you can be well prepared and get help along the way. dont' drive it for long at ALL. starving of oil on that side and possibly the rest of the motor if you loose enough is not a good thing. and replace the o-rings under the cam caps as well, not just the seals. it's only a few more minutes and three 10mm bolts. http://www.thepartsbin.com sells the cam seal kit, includes the seal and the o-ring both. good luck,

if by puking coolant you mean it's bubling into the overflow tank when it starts overheating....this sounds like head gasket issues indeed. are you loosing any coolant? can you drive awhile without "puking coolant" so you can take notice if you're loosing any? i agree with starting with a compression test. autozone has a tool loaner program, borrow tool and bring it back all at no cost to you. they may or may not have compression testers available. they arent' that expensive anyway. radiator being plugged and thermostat can also cause overheating ...verify this isn't an overheating problem. if it's overheating now, remove the thermostat at least so it doesn't keep running hot, that will only degrade the leak faster. you just won't have any heat.....brrrrr.....

some penetrating oil (PB blaster or liquid wrench - use nothing else) will help the O2 sensor come out. can you get a good wrench on it? i think i usually do mine in the car with a 22 or 24mm wrench, whatever it is. autozone has tool loaner program - use the tool and bring it back. no cost.

pulled the t-belt off of my cousins 2000 2.5 liter subaru. SOHC 2.5. trying to decide whether to replace the pulleys or not. the tensioner pulley makes no noise at all but doesn't free-wheel much at all. i spin it and it stop almost immediately, but it makes no noise and feels very smooth. the rest of the pulleys (and the toothed sprocket/pulley) spin freely and keep spinning for awhile after i spin them but they make a little noise. not much...all about the same, but you can hear them spinning. what designates a pulley i should replace? what do brand new pulleys spin like? do they make no noise at all and spin freely? try to stop by a dealer today and hear one if i can split out of work for a bit. what prices/advice can anyone give for these parts? i know they are expensive, trying to keep the bill down for her. no labor charges but the freaking parts are still over the top...