idosubaru

a "solution" can end up being an artifact of the intermittent nature of the problem. verifying ground is a fantastic idea but i wouldn't necessarily have all my eggs in that basket depending how many times/how notable that test was. did you try removing the cables as soon as it "ran better"? did it immediately go back to running bad? wrong engine but the H6 00-04 engines have common TPS issues, by far the sensor with the most issues. 4 cylinder TPS issues are rare and used is a great option over the over-priced new. a guy on another subaru forum disassembled an older TPS and cleaned the contacts and he said it notably smoothed everything out.

soldering iron worked like a champ! that was awesome. all the holes were ripped and i soldered them all back up. i used some grommets and zip ties as filler material. worked great. if i ever do/did it again i'd use bumper material as it's more flexible. the grommets/zipties were brittle when finished and not as pliable as the bumper material, but nonetheless it's all back together. rivets - i've never used them so i'm confused with "sheet metal to edge" and then "rivet under the edges where it ripped". i'm done but curious what that means. are you completely bypassing the holes or repairing/using the original holes somehow? the bumper grommet holes protrude out (the lip is thicker there than elsewhere) so the remaining material isn't much to work with if one wanted to drill new holes for new grommets. i had thought about that - drill holes to the left or right of each ripped hole - but the material depth is much less there.

i have cut off wheels/air cutoff tool. they're small wheels, i should get a couple big ones to get up in there.

the fuel injectors/ECU don't matter. if you bolt the EJ18 heads to the EJ22 short block then it's all simple. if you use the EJ22 long block then you'll have to contend with some minor issues/work arounds. obviously the EJ18 intake bolts right up to the EJ22. it's a very straight forward swap, the issues are simple ones. 1. the single port exhaust 2. the EGR piping and metal tube piping john mentioned on the passengers side. EJ18's have that, don't know if it's all of them but I thought it was - it's way down low, under the valve cover so you may have missed seeing it if you only looked from up top. and you won't use the knock sensor in the EJ22, just remove it or leave it disconnected.

there are differences between 88 and 97.

yes, but one guy took 4 hours and many blades because of the hardened steel? i'll try soaking it and wrenching it first, hope I get lucky. torch? or would that compromise the crossmember? this isn't the knuckle. what you're referring to is the older late 90's legacy/outbacks, that lower bolt is nuts. the newer stuff doesn't have that, it's a different rear suspension configuration. similar approach though - ordered all new linkages, bolts, bushings, washers, etc, not going to try and salvage any of it.

well the good news is that if it sounds like it's in the head then it's probably not knocking and your block is fine. EA82's generally don't have block issues ever unless they've been run low on coolant or oil. pull the valve cover, it's easy, just a couple 10mm bolts (though for the drivers side it's nice to have a 10mm ratcheting wrench - i consider that a necessity for the lower rear bolt)- if a rocker arm fell off or HLA is seized, you'll be able to tell with the valve cover off. any signs of previous engine work on this car? new intake manifold or headgaskets - both are easily seen just by looking. did it still drive fine with the knocking or did you just shut it down immediately.

i just ordered them from Subaru, $11 each or something. but SVX is different from the 2000+ face lifted legacy/outback platform so it'll be different. mine has the bolt on wheel bearings, not the press in style like the SVX. rear suspension geometry and parts changed.

Also - i assume i should replace both bushings while it's apart - there's on on each end?

can't align the rear due to seized bolt/bushing so I'm going to replace the rear lateral link arm and bolt. assuming massive oxidation has rust-welded this thing together - quickest way to get this thing out without sawing for hours? took this guy 4 hours, i'd like to avoid that: http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/109-gen-3-2005-2009/51378-rear-lateral-link-bolt-bushing-link-used-adjust-toe-2.html

Definitely. It saves time - makes clean up way quicker. And when I get home I fixed the car, saved a ton of money, and don't look or smell like i did when i get home with my wife! The mechanics gloves are nice when pulling engines/trans/moving big stuff. The thicker gloves (some come up the arms a bit) are nice too for messy stuff and a bit thicker/less tear resistant. The thinner ones give you the fine touch you're asking about and while they rip easy, you just throw them away and grab another pair, that's why they come in huge boxes.

That's pretty good work John - high five!

make sure oil pan or filter aren't dented, but that's highly unlikely. checking oil pressure would be nice (the gauge, if equipped, isn't typically accurate). is it TOD or definitely knocking? TOD is common, benign, but alarming if you've never heard it before. if it is TOD replacing the oil pump has the highest percentage (i'm still at 100% success rate) in my experience. although the 85/86 era engines have a weaker oring in the cam tower that is suspected to be problematic. we have recently started a comprehensive thread about TOD. sometimes simply resealing the pump will cure it. look for that thread. if it is actual knocking, since you've only owned the car a few weeks it's hard to say what would cause it, but probably nothing you did. more than likely it was compromised when you bought it, previously overheated, run low on oil. you're telling us it's already low...after how many miles? previous owner could have easily run it too low....all speculation of course.

what material are the lug nuts...they seem kind of soft? i have all thread and lug nuts so i could easily weld one nut to the end. would one bead of weld on the edge of the lug nut hold it to the all-thread?

another Ej18 into EJ22 thread: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/topic/117057-ej18-95-into-a-96-lego-l-sedan-both-auto-awd/

why is the M12x1.25 thread important? For a ball joint tool or something else? Subaru lug studs are 12x1.25

+1. use the Fel Pro permatorque head gaskets, that's what nearly every one on here uses. don't replace head bolts, use Subaru intake manifold gaskets and thermostat (or the stant XACTA tstat). sounds like headgaskets but if that engine is like the EA82, they have a coolant crossover pipe which can leak coolant into the intake manifold and get into the cylinders that way.

right on, copy that. there are places where the CEL can be on and still pass emissions? i've heard of passing with not ready monitors, but never with a CEL, didn't know that.

abs won't matter for brake jobs, it's all the same. highly likely the bushings on the caliper pins swelled and seized in the bore, seizing the caliper in place against the rotor where it wears and gradually gets pushed more and more into the rotor every time you brake, but isn't allowed to pull back off. i remove those bushings on every 2000+ Subaru I come across, they cause a lot of problems and aren't necessary. but as a disclaimer i'll say you shouldn't do that or it's for offroad use only, it's entirely unsafe and you'll probably wreck.

what he said, it's very easy. no wiring swap. remove the entire intake manifold with wiring off the EJ18. install the EJ22 intake manifold (with new gaskets) onto the EJ18 engine - installing the knock sensor while you're at it. done. I'm assuming they both have EGR, i think EJ18's always do so you should be fine... good time to just get a new knock sensor off ebay for $20, they fail fairly often. i'd also be installing a new timing belt kit - $80 off ebay for all new belt, tensioner, pulleys.

what brand axles are people using that has this issue? it's so rare i'd expect it's a certain axle or something....? the roll pin went in part of the way? have you tried driving the pin in with the axle off the vehicle to see if it's an alignment issue or the hole in the axle issue? i would guess it's alignment though... this doesn't sound like it is but just to be clear since all we have is words. you said you "flipped it more than once" - by looking at the axle you can tell which way it's supposed to go in. one hole on the trans splined shaft will have the valley going through the center, the other side has the peak going through the center. so you can line the axle up definitively, no need to guess if you compare that to the axle holes. if someone is flipping it multiple times it sounds like they might be guessing and maybe inadvertently got it the wrong way each time?

"hold the power" is relative. it will definitely hold it if you're a hyper-miler daily driver, but has no chance if you're going to race it. obviously you're not the former, i'd lean towards it probably not holding. seems like it would be simplest to just get a RWD trans that bolts to a 350 and install the entire lump rather than adapting the 350 to a quarter of a century old trans that's used to 90 hp. probably would want some beefy front end components - struts and springs to hold that extra weight and handle reasonably. did you do a weight comparison - 350 to the existing engine?

what do you do with the bullpin?

indeed - getting it out of the bearing housing holds the potential for the worst issues by far. in the rust belt there's an enormously wiiiiiiiide variety of ball joint difficulty levels. some are relatively easy...some are really hard....and then you get some that are rust welded into place and need very special treatment. what works for some cases won't touch others. when they get really hard no amount of impact or leverage will work because the strut/bushings allows the entire assembly to move too much and not enough force to be transferred to the ball joint. i'd like to find a method that's easy and works every time - even on the ridiculously hard stuff that i've had to actually bash and drill out before.

note - you'll need exhaust header/manifold for any 96+ EJ22, they are single port exhaust, EJ25's are dual. otherwise it bolts right up though, you just need one extra part. 1995 EJ22's have dual port exhaust so no need for manifold for that one year (auto's have EGR, manuals do not - in 1995 only - later years are random and should be checked). you'll also want to make sure that you if your EJ25 has EGR, the EJ22 has EGR. 96-98 EJ22's are random where i live - they can have, or not have EGR, regardless of model/options. just have to ask/check.