idosubaru

Pginter96 - you can also buy an axle from www.car-part.com for $25 - $33. It'll come with a good boot already on it....though it'll obviously be aged and prone to failure at some point down the road. But you can search for 2001 legacy/outback axles and use those - knock the outer tone ring off (just tap it off with a hammer, takes 20 seconds) and presto - it'll fit your 1996. They have a better outer boot with more convolutions that lasts longer than the older axle boots. I've had inner joints vibrate terribly when they run out of grease. cleaning/repacking them cured all the issues - i just drove a set to the office this morning like that. vibrated probably the worst i've ever seen from the inner joints. they've been fine for years now. Outer joints will click for a looooooong time with broken boots going around turns. Clicking is not an imminent sign for Subaru axles. Seeing an aftermarket axle is an imminent sign, so i'm not talking about those - they suck, i've had them fail right out of the box. Offroad, sand, and states where any kind of rock/gravel debris is used in the winter will make joints fail very quickly. If your area is full of those conditions it'll differ. In the northeast where it's largely chemicals and not particulate matter it's no big deal but does vary by locale. Either way it's not winter in NY yet so he's got lots of time. Eventually as LT said they'll start clicking while driving straight. And that's my general indicator, but they can still go a long time after that.

Yes, that is classic subaru front axle symptom. that is only a symptom of the outer CV joint. warn inner joints vibrate under load (acceleration/steep grades). Also - since they're aftermarket, they can fail in any way imaginable.

those are inconclusive and maybe even suggestive of issues: 1. aftermarket axles are horrendously problematic. high percentage of failures, an aftermarket axle with issues is the norm, not weird at all. *I wouldn't be surprised at all if your issue ends up being the new axles. never replace original subaru axles - always reboot them. if you need axles buy used SUbaru axles (www.car-part.com) and reboot them. 've only been getting 2-3 years out of aftermarket boots and now lean towards Subaru boots which last considerably longer than that. 2. gear oil being "clear" or "new" could be new because a prior owner was hoping to mitigate a known differential issue.

front diff fluid is far more important than rear diff. subaru rear differential failure is extermely rare, you can get by without ever changing the fluid in those things, not saying i recommend that - just that they're robust and it doesn't much matter. hopefully you checked for signs of external headgasket leaks.

the 3 week delay is odd and bleeding wouldn't be the normal cause. once bled, they should never need it again. meaning, they don't "work at first" - then go bad in 3 weeks because of bleeding. the most probable issue based on what you've described is that there's a slow leak somewhere which eventually lowered the brake fluid in the master cylinder to the point you had soft brakes again. that makes the most sense given the 3 week delay between symptoms. small rust leaks often form above the gas tank and don't show themselves by fluid under the ground/on the car right away. leaks in a caliper piston seal can also be hidden behind the piston boot dust covers. 1. was the fluid low when you went to re-bleed them the second time?

i've had the fel-pro/national seals leak on older EA/ER engines as well.

front differential: 1. check fluid level and color/condition 2. drain the fluid and check for chunks front axles - the inner joints specifically. 1. are the boots broken? 2. do they look recently worked on? the newer style timing tensioners can fail, causing a very loud rapping/metal/metal sound which sounds like rod-knock sort of. yours should be the old style - but they're easily swapped/converted and maybe the old sytle can fail in a similar way, i've never seen it so not sure what the older styles do when they fail/loosen tension.

pulling the transmission is by far easier in terms of number of bolts/parts. (in the northeast rusty exhaust is more annoying this way though). as said - the trans is "right there, with a few ancillary items and the engine is nearly covered in stuff that has to come off. but it can be far more annoying doing it from under the car. dirt, rust, scale in your eyes, not much room to work, working on your back, less light, gotta crawl under and out every time you forget/need/drop a tool and it rolls down the driveway. so a lot depends on where you're working, how big you are, experience, etc. if you can tolerate that stuff, pulling the trans is ultimately easier. there you go!

others have said don't buy "cheap chinese" zipties for this use. i'm not sure if it matters or if you can even buy non-chinese plastic stuff any more though. LOL

i would triple check those cam/crank gears. you can check as well but calling subaru, using an online vendor, or ebay or using opposedforces website to verify part numbers and see if they're positively identical. the 2005 originally has AVCS right?

you need larger wheels to clear the larger front calipers. you should be able to just bolt the brackets, rotor, caliper onto your 1995 knuckle and be done. if you swap hubs you may have differing ABS set ups. 1995 ABS tone ring is on the knuckle/housing. 2000+ legacy/outback...i'm unsure when impreza switches - but those tone rings are on the axle. that doesn't rule out swapping as you can install "tone ring" axles in "non-tone ring" older subarus, i used to do it all the time, by knocking the outer tone ring off...but gotta know what you're working with. the 1995 abs sensor may not bolt into the 2002 knuckle/hub. if you don't have ABS - then it doesn't matter. should be an easy swap - swap it all. i'm unsure about parking brake cables. i would think you simple use your existing parking brake cables and attach them to the rear WRX stuff if they didn't change the suspension by then (again legacy/outack is changed by 2000, but i don't think rear impreza does by that time?)

this, i've done it countless times including on those exact same cam cap bolts. ideally you do this: 1. clean the threads in the hole with a tap and the threads on the bolt with a die. obviously you'll skip this step if you don't have a tap and die set. 2. get a longer bolt - there are threads below the depth of the original bolts, you want to grab those. 3. if the bolt it too long - cut it and use a die to clean the cut end - or just use washers under the bolt head. use the washers if you don't have a die to chase the cut bolt. it's the standard subaru bolt - there's a billion bolts with that thread pitch on a subaru - 10mm head and M6x1.00 bolt thread diameter. If you go to a hardware store or auto parts store get M6x1.00 bolts the size you need. of course just take one of the original bolts with you to verity thread and length of the bolt you need. the timing cover bolts, valve cover bolts, many power steering pump, fender hold down...are all 10mm with M6x1.00 thread pitch. you can stick a nail down the hole to judge how deep it is. the copper wire trick sounds nifty too.

I'm unclear - if I cut out one single wire, i'll be cutting the shield which is grounded. How would I reattach the shielded portion - to where? If it's grounded at the ECU - where does the shielding wire go at the engine harness - does it have it's own pin? at the connector it's only pins that pass through - so the shield wire would have to have a dedicated pin? or something else?

untrue. Original Subaru axles routinely go 50,000 miles for fronts and 100,000+ miles for rear axles with broken boots. Almost zero risk if it's a Subaru axle (inner green cup) I've done it countless times over the decades. If it's an aftermarket axle it had just as much chance of having issues without a broken boot, so who cares. LOL!!!!! *** keep it out of the dirt, offroad, gravel, and particular sand. It'll go from noise-less to noisey very quickly in sand for obvious reasons. take that precaution and you can drive it for years as-is. If you're going to replace the axle - you've got years before it would break (if you follow the note above). If you want to reuse the axle - replace it sooner rather than later. if you want to drive a few miles, stuff grease up in there by hand and wrap it in saran wrap. You got options and have no reason for concern about driving it. Aftermarket boots don't last as long as Subarus, i'm having them break in as little as two years. I'm using Subaru on my own vehicles from here on out.

1999 EJ22 I need to replace the wiring from the cam sensor to the engine harness: 1. can i buy wire that's already shielded? where? is this automotive grade, withstand engine heat: http://www.amazon.com/Shielded-Single-Conductor-Allparts-GW-0809-000/dp/B001FL8SBG/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1407851771&sr=8-3&keywords=shielded+wire (or does someone have a wiring harness they could send me, i think I through all of mine away) 2. is the "shield" simply a wrap around the wire - or does it need to be "grounded" or continuous? I don't see where it's connected to anything, it looks like it just "ends" inside the insulation. Is it just a cover or does it need to connect to something?

i've got a couple snow plows i picked up for attaching to my subaru, though i haven't done it yet. one issue is that they're typically not as wide as a car, so you'd be driving through some snow while plowing. not sure if it matters or you can get wider ones, but just one thing i noticed about mine. might want to aim for a large one - or tractor plows - like for the subcompact Kubota's, etc, but then they'll be beefy and weigh a lot too, need some excellent structural support underneath.

+1. if the transmission is lower than the engine, jack the transmission up.

The cables do go bad, they corrode up inside the insulation. The corrosion can be so bad that it's solid white throughout the wiring. These will cause starting problems. Bending/wiggling the wiring will get it to start. Cleaning the first few inches from the battery cable will get it to last a few months to a year.

sounds like you're right and it needs to go one more notch. in case i'm misreading, here's the definitive test: compare that distance to distance of flexplate from engine bell housing. when bolted together the flexplate and torque converter should never touch. once bolted together there is a gap between them and the torque converter bolts draw the torque converter together with the flexplate.

LSD should be fine. being viscous i'd think you'd feel it if it is heating it up enough. many tired Subaru rear VLSD's function as open differentials over time, so there's a 50/50 chance there's nothing to compromise in the unlikely event t was symptomatic. someone more familiar can comment on strut/alignment/caster.

post a rough location, most people don't want to ship engines. jdmenginedepot as well www.car-part.com

what he said - bolt 1996 intake and sensors onto 1992 engine. the 1996 will have single port exhaust heads unless it's an oddball or had already been swapped previously. the good thing is that dual port heads are the easiest to find - pre 1995 EJ22's, all EJ18's, and all Ej25's have dual port heads - so every 4 cylinder EJ engine offered in the 1990's except 1996-1999 EJ22's.

cylinder one is the passengers side front - so that's the one in question right? 1. power steering pump leaking. 2. valve cover gasket 3. replace the PCV valve if it's never been done - it's probably plugged and crankcase can't vent properly, pushing oil out places it doesn't need to go. need to pull the power steering pump and confirm the source of the leak. it's easily removed: 1. remove belt 2. unbolt bracket from engine block and swing entire assembly to the side (and any bolts on the power steering line brackets to allow you to swing it - 2 10mm bolts i think). only takes 15 - 30 minutes

hose clamps are wider than the ridges intended for the clamps, i suspect they'd still hold but haven't tried it. there are companies that sell thin hose clamps, i think they should be more widely available, but alas. i haven't done zipties, but in a sense it doesn't matter - it's just holding the boot in place. if it holds it tight enough, it'll work. some people use cable, fence, metal string (whatever it's called for farm use), etc....there's nothing special about it. gotta be thin enough to wrap and tight enough to hold, that's it.

Buy the boots from Subaru. Clamps and grease can come from anywhere - match clamps to the install tool, there's various number of tools/clamps - they have to match. The squeeze type are simplest, the following are for illustration purposes only: http://www.summitracing.com/parts/wmr-w83013 pretty standard tool, google how to use it/clamps/etc.