idosubaru

that’s a lot of issues. Sounds like something is off or you had bad axle luck which isn’t that unlikely as you’ll see check that your front strut top spacers are properly clocked. They install rotated one way only. check engine and trans mounts for slop add an extra 1/2” spacers. call Scott and ask. I’ve always found Scott reasonable to talk to. 1. CVs are trash. I hear you said you tried OEM but I have my doubts on how rigorous that assessment is and maybe they were driven horrendously without boots at some point in their life or compromised or 250,000 miles like many used Subaru parts now from the 80s. look up all the people blowing axles on here and discussing which aftermarket trash or new brand garbage is going to be the next magic unicorn for Subarus. It’s not going to happen. Including the epic thread of me telling folks the HD trac motive or whatever garbage had zero chance of being worth the trial. Yep ended up an epic waste of time. Wash rinse repeat. Avoid aftermarket like the plague. No matter what anecdotal report you hear or add you read They suck for Subarus. I won’t even install them on *non-lifted* Subarus They’re that bad. It’s not going to happen. You need to go buy 5 OEM axles. Then regrease them with quality proper amount of grease and new boots. maybe you’ll loose one or two due to high miles or previous grit exposure. But you’ll end up with 3 or so that perform well enough you’re playing more than working. ive busted boots with my 2”+ lift with no spacers at 10,000 ft in colorado and drove 2,000 miles home. They were OEM axles with new joints that vibrated like crazy the whole way home my rear view mirror was barely usable it was shaking so bad. what’s better - I cleaned and greasers and rebooted them and still run them and one is on another members car on this forum right now and has been for 8 years after that epic trashing. Marshall I’m colored axles FTW. reread everything I just wrote. Aftermarket is trash. maybe at 30+ years old they’re impossible to find but it’s worth trying.

Smart move posting those pages. What stands out is every time front toe is horrendously out. The others just shift a little bit but toe has wild swings way out of limits. I don’t know what normal is, but that seems excessive for the toe to be drifting that far out between short alignment time intervals. 2000+ Subaru rear alignment and control arms/bushings are a PITA and I’m not experienced enough to say anything helpful so I’m focusing on the front and your pulling issue I would check your steering rack bushings for slop. Seems like they’re loose and the entire rack is shifting around. That would explain why both side front toe is waaay out of spec easy time. Almost Anything else should only impact one wheel. They could check alignment and get different numbers every day if that’s the case. Give the rack lots of force and have someone turn it lock to lock while you watch it from under the vehicle to see if the entire rack shifts at all. See more notes on that condition in a moment. But first…. let’s assume my first guess is wrong and be a little more thorough: your questions: 1. Front Camber is absolutely adjustable. Top strut mount bolt is a cambered bolt. Can Google image search it 2. they couldn’t get front camber perfect probably due to the lift from the outback struts. That’s not unexpected. You can get it within specs (that’s why it’s green on that print out) but it might be towards the end of its adjustment stroke. They might not get it perfect dead center But it is adjustable to within Subaru specs 2.There are no issues installing stock Subaru sized outback struts into a legacy. Commonly done - no doubt that’s why you did it. You didn’t hope it was possible when ordering parts, you’ve heard it was possible like everyone else. Camber can use all the adjustment limits available but it’s doable and should not pull to one side. What we might not know is which strut you used and if it’s taller than stock. But I doubt it - your camber would be the issue not pulling to one side. Questions: 1. Did this pulling start definitely after one of those jobs….struts, tires, alignment…?? That would be a smoking gun 2. Is this an area where Subarus are common? I’ve heard “camber isn’t adjustable” from shops in areas without many Subarus. Not sure why that seems bizarre but I’ve heard it before. 3. How positive are you there were previously ZERO pulling issues before the tires and all this work was done? (it sounds like you gave evidence that you’re positive but I just want to make sure I’m reading it right) suggestions: check the steering rack bushings they can swell from fluid contact (atf oil or ps leaks). This makes the rack loose abs it can shift or drift inside the mounts because the rack bushings are useless. It may only shift under loads so give it some good forceful persuasion Check all your replacement MOOG bushings. I’ve seen aftermarket bushings fail in 1-2 years. I don’t trust aftermarket or quick struts. The Monroe struts installed on a friends car drove like trash. It didn’t pull but I had zero confidence in them. A moog or Monroe top hat I installed in a legacy failed the first time I drove it - strut top blew right through the rubber of the top hat. Folks have posted pictures of them ballooning terrible before and I’ve seen that as well. it’s hard to assume those new struts can’t possibly be problematic. Im not sure struts can cause pulling but if toe is perfect I don’t trust the springs/seat or bearing somehow inducing torque.

“The seals” - which ones?

Oil starvation - rod bearings, crank bearings, and oil pump rotor and housing for scaring. That would be the easiest to check - the oil pump comes off easily in less than an hour with no special tools and no need to remove the engine. But if we are talking about real proof and not just mechanically inept lawyers talking to mechanically inept judges - that would be barking up the wrong tree. I would want to carefully document *sump damage*, bent, cracked, etc, which would be directly related to them replacing/resealing the oil pan and baffle clearance. Documenting oil starvation failure modes is of limited scope since oil starvation from a year ago can cause catastrophic failure tomorrow. It sort of just proves the engine failed which is already known. If I run my car dangerously low on oil today, fix the leak and have perfectly oil changes afterwards - it could catastrophically fail tomorrow....or next year. A shop isn't going to want liability for events from a year ago. We already know the engine failed, compromised oil is the likely culprit....you need to prove what compromised the oil. At least in mechanical terms that's what's most important.

Awesome. Glad you got it bacK and not all beat up. How do you keep a level head about it? That would bug me.

Rear tail lights work when parking lights are turned on. No tail lights when headlights are turned on. The parking lights and headlights use a different fuse and relay. I swapped relay with no change and all fuses are good. oddly the wiring diagram just shows two wires from the headlight switch - one to ground and one to MB-14 “tail and illumination relay”. Seems odd it doesn’t trace it all the way to the light fixtures. Tried a different relay in tail relay in the engine fuse box and it made no difference. gonna buy new bulbs and relay any suggestions?

Cheers that’s awesome ! Given how bad it was it sounds like that may have done the trick! I’ve done it, thats a horrendous job. Squeeze a 17 ft continuous bead of sealant that can’t be compromised when sliding that awkwardly huge cover in a tight space to line up the 60 bolts that hold the cover on. Good price for the headache.

A lot depends on paint condition, how much is all original - paint, trim, interior, and how well the vehicle currently starts and drives, and also how you sell it. $3k is a somewhat of a very rough starting point. More if paint/originality/drivability is better and less if those get some deductions.

It's not a bad idea to ask how much they'd charge to install another engine. Engine and install would run $2k-$3k, considerably more than repair. I'm a little hesitant to spend a lot more to replace a known engine with an unknown. and at least he'd get a new water pump and seals out of the repair. If OP is serious about driving another 150k, JDM begins to look more attractive.

Sorry again. Glad it wasn't worse and may you continue with your attitude about it which seems about the best possible given those circumstances. Take a case of oil and check frequently. It'll drip onto the ground or blow back where the most it can touch is the exhaust manifold heat shield. They are routinely coated with thick, burnt on oil like an old charcoal grill from frequent oil exposure. I see it all the time. Not to encourage flippancy but these issues are very forgiving. This is probably a rare case where a lower plastic shroud is ideal - it would likely prevent a lot of blow back while driving. If you still have it or can get one - put it on.

Oh wow sorry to hear that. I hope your wife and the other parties involved fared okay in that accident sounds bad!? I don’t know what they were doing exactly but The tire spinning is probably benign. Awd cars do it all the time depending on any number of factors - how and why it’s lifted started in gear brakes etc. Yes the mechanic is replacing too much but I wouldn’t necessarily fault him, he’s just not overly familiar with that engine and he’s in way more trouble if he doesn’t replace something and it back fires than simply replacing more than necessary. I’d fault the dealer for not being a little more mechanically savvy for of up-selling so many parts. If you end up selling yours and it’s rust free let me (or the board) know how much you want for it.

Are there any check engine or AT flashing lights? ATF is correct level? Check the resistance of the shift resistor. Or swap in another one. Check throttle cable for any signs off odd adjustment. If that TPS is adjustable like old models, maybe do an adjustment? The procedure is listed in the FSM if applicable still in 2000 vehicles. Try a different TCU? I've swapped TCU's without zero noticeable difference on engine swapped cars. I wouldn't think it would change anything for trans swapped cars but worth a shot if you have reasoable ability to get a TCU.

I don’t know how true it is but fire departments have told me never to open a hood. what I don’t understand is how many Subarus have oil all under them and never catch fire. It’s not random - there has to be some causation. The ratio of “Subarus that had an engine fire” to “number of subarus with copious oil leaks” is so small I have to believe it’s rare. If we reduce that by the fact that some of those are pure user error like bad wiring or battery antics, or they have no heat shields remaining (assuming oil contacting the 1,000 degree headers matters) then it’s even smaller.

You drove it some before taking it in without a fire. I’ve seen copious oil leaks and it’s usually a non issue. Some people call it rust prevention. Engine fires aren’t rare - ask a fire department if you know anyone who works there. In cities with lots of people the fire departments are rather humbug about car fires. if it starts smoking bad don’t pop the hood - that greatly increases air flow to the fire.

No that’s not what I said.

Thats worthless aftermarket. If that’s the one being replaced then this is an example of what GD said - aftermarket are lower grade and don’t last as long.

That’s typical. If you sent a picture maybe they can tell it’s subpar or aftermarket which are worthless. I can’t sell them locally for more than $20 either so I don’t. The local scraps yards want to “discourage” (or act like they’re discouraging) local thefts from trying to use them. The minute they’re known as the place rhay pays hundreds for used converters they’ll be in hot water. Pretty sure I can get $150 or more for it. or Maybe the market changed recently and I don’t know it. But I doubt it.

As important as the belt age - it may not be a Subaru belt, and the lower toothed idler failing. The lower idlers are ubiquitously in poor shape by the age of that car and belt checking oil pressure with a gauge before and after addressing the pump would potentially confirm it was the issue. Good luck! Hope you can knock this out soon!

sure thing. I get that. I’m not questioning them. when we are limited by typing and third party communication, clarity can help work out some kinks on limited platforms like this.

"belt" or "chain" is easily interchanged for expediency sometimes, but if it means this shop isn't familiar with Subaru H6's then it might mean they're also likely to replace tensioners or chains, both of which are pointless to replace on that specific engine. Given that price difference he almost certainly means the inner timing cover seal between it and the block. It's an 11 mile long bead of sealant from a tube. lol

If you correctly placed the sealant - it leaked because of the issue I outlined in detail earlier. The second you're done cleaning it - oil inside the chain cover and just past where the cleaning agents reached - started to seep back into the crack, preventing proper adhesion of whatever you stuff up in there. It's like turning an oil bottle upside - it just continually drips for a really long time - that's what's happening inside the pathway of the leak - it just keeps coming. Your best chance might be to clean, then wait as long as you can to clean again, then wait as long as you can to clean again....and repeat until maybe no more oil is creeping down the pathway of the crack when you go to seal it. But that's highly inconvenient and still might not work - we dont' know the source of the leak internally and how much oil is pooled up there to keep supplying the leak. Thicker oil won't hurt the engine at all - but it's not going to help either so just skip that. It doesn't have timing belts Do not replace the chains or guides or tensioners There are no sensors related to the covers - nothing to replace there. The only thing to consider replacing is the water pump - buy one from Subaru, not aftermarket. That, and the timing cover origns/sealant should be the only costs here.

I think the 04 Forester got the tiniest dinky 7mm oil pump subaru ever put on an EJ engine. Replace the pump with a 9mm version and tigthen backing plate screws. I'd send one but I think I cleaned out all my EJ stuff. If you want to try to keep the current oil pump, tighten the backing plate screws (a few/all of them are usually loose and that little pump doesn't need to loose any potential efficiency), install a new oil pump oring/crank seal, and reseal it to the block.

basically the same car. Some trim differences. Struts taller but swap, Brakes bigger but swap Most legacies are 2.2s unless they’re a GT wagon or LSi. Those are 2.5. If yours is a 2.2 that’s a Phase II and has some differences from the 2.5 outback. 99 is odd in that 2.2s are phase II and 2.5s are Phase I. Outback’s are all 2.5 in 99, legacy can be either depending on trim. The outback engine will bolt right in but doesn’t plug right upand won’t run on the 2.2 electronics (like it will on 98 and earlier 2.2 electronics). You can however bolt 2.2 heads to the 2.5 block. So there are options to use the engine.

Oh yeah I didn’t see that it’s a 2002.I’ll edit my post. Original poster can’t put a turbo in that car without extensive wiring and ECU work. You can’t just “put a turbo engine in a nonturbo vehicle”. It doesn’t work that way. There are a multitude of issues and custom work that’s beyond what someone who needs to ask is able to do.

You probably already know all this but to make it clear. To help you imagine what’s happening and help plan a successful attempt: At the atomic level the surfaces are rough, and long. We think of these as smooth short surfaces. That’s not the case. A “smooth surface” to us is a rough, albeit less rough, surface at the atomic level. Think of the mating surfaces the oil is passing through like ridges on textured furniture. The oil is traveling from inside the timing cover, pushing or running through the mating surfaces/leak area, and dripping outside. The width of the mating surfaces, or the distance the oil is traveling through the leak - is let’s say 1/32 of an inch. If we zoom in such that the leak path appears 6” wide - because at the atomic level 1/64” is a long distance. It is also rough. When it’s cleaned from the outside the cleaners will only get to the first 1-2”. The remaining 4-5” are rough (ridges/texture) and still holding residual oil. After cleaning, that residual oil then gets pulled down by gravity from the uncleaned areas (which is rough/has ridges) down to the recently cleaned area. That will prevent proper adhesion and curing to seal the leak This is what makes it very difficult to clean and seal from the outside. It seems thin and smooth to us but it’s most definitely not. There’s no way to clean the entirety of the crack. but a few considerations: 1. clean it multiple times. 2. Do this when it’s cold outside and the oil is thicker as long as the sealant or epoxy allows it. If working in the cold leave the sealant/expose inside st room temperature until application 3. Spray cleaner as close up into the mating surface as possible. Put the nozzle right on it to build pressure 4. Be prepared for a quick, thorough application of the sealant/epoxy 5. if any sealants are more forgiving of oil contamination - use those. 6. Probably not worth it or won’t want to but Changing the oil to 20w50 to may impede oil migration through the mating surfaces becaUse it’s thicker. Let us know how it goes!