idosubaru

well done, that's exactly how you do it. highly unlikely but i won't say it's impossible since i've seen something very similar happen one time. no, i suggested this sounds like a waste of time: i doubt they won't charge you and you can probably narrow it down yourself...to a point. so i'm with you now - yes it's a good idea to verify the Duty C is causing this. if you put the FWD fuse in and it doesn't go away then your Duty C is likely the culprit. given other indications the Duty C is failing. reading the code is being very by the book - but i can't say with 100% certainty it can't be something else so there's nothing wrong with that. i'd bet a lot of money if you're the gambling type! (though i am not) so yeah - making sure is a good idea. i just doubt they'll read the codes for free unless you tell them you'll have the work done there. and i think there's a 99% chance it's the duty C. so if the free part and time/cost is worth verifying that last 1% then by all means that's definitely the best way to proceed.

pull the CEL code again and tell us what the exact numbers are. it's possible that there might be more than one code coming and going or something like that. doesn't seem like it, but need to check. i've never heard of a check engine light causing the AWD not to work, particularly an O2 sensor code. CEL for O2 code has been on in my 2002 for the past 3 years and 60,000 miles...AWD works fine. the 0420 code is benign and caused by the rear O2 sensor. you can remove that sensor completely and leave the code and the car should run perfectly (just an annoying CEL!). if you think it's the code - just fix it. the spacers to fix that issue are $5 on ebay and come ready to install. or if you have an exhaust leak somewhere, might just need to fix that, leaks can trigger that code.

that sucks doing it all over again. positive the HG's are bad huh? with all that work they should have held? overtorqued - how badly, how do you know (just fishing for a good story here LOL)? i wouldn't stack subaru HG's, never heard of it before and sounds like a generally terrible idea, but i've never tried it either. as to compression readings - the resurface increased compression some, maybe someone can chime in exactly how much? if all of them are affected fairly equally then this seems highly likely. if there's fluids in the chamber i believe i've had that up compression before. but that's not the case here, you mentioned plugs were okay and it would be very odd for all cylinders to increase a similar amount. do you know what headgasket was used when it was replaced? there's a really thin headgasket and a thick one - just use the one ending in 610, that's the one i prefer for this engine anyway - it's MLS style and very thick, it will decrease the compression ratio some verses the thinner one.

that's sort of subjective. it can be bad, it can mean nothing. keep the tires close to the same diameter and it won't matter. so if one tire is really warn, then just inflate that one really high - 35-40 psi depending what your others are....etc. tire shops around here install two new tires on one front and one rear (opposite side of the front though). they claim the way the subaru AWD works this is "acceptable". so if you were really concerned i suppose you could look into this option and get some more details - i'm not sure if it matters which side up front or it doesn't matter so long as the rear is on the opposite? i don't do that. yes, that's the first step. i doubt it, sounds like a waste of time to me unless that particular dealer is exceptional or you know someone there, etc. besides, you have torque bind so i'd just start there and fix the torque bind first. put the FWD fuse and just run it in FWD. of course note if the symptoms persist because FWD cures one cause of torque bind but not the other. if that doesn't work it's still not a huge deal, just make sure your tire tread depth is as close as possible like i mentioned above. rotors are really easy to do yourself, not hard at all. of course there are important things to know but once the wheel is off it's only 3 or 4 bolts to remove the rotors. the set screws are likely not still there but if they are they usually require an impact screw driver (the kind you hit with a hammer) or drilling them out. you don't need to reinstall them, indeed some rotors don't even come with the holes for them. they're only for manufacturing process. shop across from my office turns rotors for $12 or $15 each, a fine option sometimes. they will of course check thickness first.

all subaru's with adjustable valves tighten with age right?

good points about tire possibility and simply putting another wheel/tire on there to see if that was the cause.

if it's leaking through the sensor then the sensor needs replaced. since the title and first post is incorrect we need to clarify: 1. did you replace temp sensor and now oil sensor is leaking? or 2. did you replace oil sensor and now it's leaking again? if it's leaking again - did you replace with a used one or a new one? subaru or aftermarket? if the sensor is leaking is sounds fairly straight forward - replace the sensor.

you know this but just to get it out, probably want to make sure EJ18 or EJ22? i've had a herd of 97/98 impreza's. 97 and 98 (and i would presume 96) are all the same as long as the EGR is the same (and even then they're still plug and play, just EGR different somewhere). it seems it might vary by area but around here i've seen impreza's around 97/98 have EGR and some not have it (eventhough with the same year, style, trans, etc). i've installed a 97/98 impreza into a 96 legacy before - plug and play. a 96 imp would also be plug and play, so i don't know what that means with wiring but if it's plug and play how different can it be? all 95-99 stuff the ECU's are in the same location and EJ22/EJ25's are plug and play swaps in terms of drivability.

yeah it's pretty simple. it doesn't seem like it should be on some levels, but it does simply pop out and pop back in. sounds like it came out during some work and just needed popped back in. sounds all normal to me. i mean, they don't typically come out very easily so that's not normal but i have pulled them out before. there's a million of these all over the country maybe just have someone send you another one off a junk trans somewhere? post in the parts wanted forum? might be worth the piece of mind knowing that part is good since it's so easy to swap out. if the front diff is hosed or gets hosed then you do have issues and a trans swap is the most likely solution, rebuilding front diffs just isn't cost or labor effective. and used trans aren't that expensive and are robust (hence the low demand, high supply, and low prices).

great price. i'd be wondering why it's so low, but if the seller checks out that's a great deal. i've got two - great cars and engines. like John i rebuilt a wrecked one (the pre-tensioners and air bag stuff scare people), and got one with a blown trans. replace the serpentine belt idler and tensioner pulley bearings NOW. they fail, all the time, like insanely frequently. reliability issue and they can take out other parts once they let loose. the bearings easily tap out and tap new ones back in. 6203 comes to mind for bearing part number but you can check. same bearing for both. there's also an off the shelf DAYCO pulley available at nearly any auto store that's $10 - $20 each if you just want to swap a part.

woah crap that's freaking nuts! have you simply jacked it off the ground and checked for play? any looseness or noises? clunking? play in tie rods, wheel bearings? uneven wear like that *can* be a bad strut. any leakage, how does it return or compare to the other side, any noises on bumps? the way it was explained when mine did this is that the strut is too weak to keep the tire on the road so in certain situations the tire drags across the surface instead of turning with it. subarus don't often have tie rod, ball joint, or steering issues so none of those are immediate suspects.

if the accident was someone elses fault - you need to threaten lawyer and go that route if necessary. don't try to do it on your own unless you're really well versed in this process. if you're straight forward you'll never need a lawyer though, insurance companies never add value to their processes if that happens. buy back should be cheap. if it wasn't someone elses fault and you're dealing with your own insurance then listen to these jokers here, that's out of my realm. if you expected higher than average coverage that should probably be talked about ahead of time, in which case your premiums may have been higher, but they weren't. "you get what you pay for" so to speak.

cut power to the Duty C and put a wire/switch in place to turn it on and off to give you full "locked" performance. it's well worth the effort. it's one wire, not a big deal. tires are huge - are they brand new winter tires? they don't retain like new traction very long, they age, unless they're Nokians. memory is a powerful thing, you will likely never reach the memory of your push button experience. hundreds of subaru owners (me and many friends included) have high centered plenty of subarus in far less than 2 feet of snow, i would not consider that description anything close to normal.

clean threads and put a light coat of RTV on the threads.

you can get the system to flash the codes for you - just look for the procedure and the light will blink in a way that reveals the codes and tells you what is wrong for sure. that being said - sounds like it's the clock spring. and yes the steering wheel comes off to replace it. it's actually fairly easy - takes a matter of minutes but is probably tricky the first time you do it kind of thing - steering wheel can be tight the splines to wiggle off, finding the fasteners that hold it in place, and messing with those goofy yellow air bag connectors. otherwise it can be done in 30 minutes to an hour easily.

+1 to what GD said. i have a set of used EJ25 heads if you want them for far less than the $125 a piece you're seeing. these are low mileage, PM or email my username here at yahoo.com.

is it just a pass through bolt with a capture nut on the back? and the nut just spins because the welds are broke? if that's the case I think i would just tighten it until the bolt shears off. once it's tight you won't have to struggle and wrestle with it - just put the smack down on it until it shears. trying to loosen will likely be a nightmare if you have any rust/corrosion to deal with. the outer exposed ends of the thread will just gouge into the nut as you try to loosen it. sawzall, torch? lots of PB blaster. some folks have mentioned some stellar results after using some kind of rust penetrant stuff from like advance auto parts. they soak a rag and wrap the offending part for a night or two and apparently it does great things. i'd be finding out what that stuff was next time i have rusty stuff to contend with.

as to "hard and fast rule" - no it's not a hard and fast rule. every month adds 0.5% (i'm making that up) failure rate (although actually it would be parabolic-ish, not linear), anyway of course it's not hard and fast....risk of failure just increases with time. can you make it another 50k, of course. would I be surprised if it broke before then - not at all (but you would be!), particularly if the pulleys and tensioner are all original.

105k is Subarus interval. at 13+ years old the pulleys/tensioner are as troublesome as the belt. i'd be planning on replacing those. with age it's not a bad idea to replace early.

go to http://www.car-parts.com and you will see that $50 is fairly common price, even in your area. while $10-$15 might be possible - there isn't one listed for twice that price in the entire state. so what you're describing is not a reality for most people. we're not all price shoppers and penny pinchers, i am in some ways and then completely not in others. with some effort that's an option here too - but only at pull it yourself yards which are a waste of my time. not everyone lives convenient to one. driving to a yard alone is a waste of my time, not even counting the pulling it yourself cost. i almost never visit junk yards, even though i buy a fair amount from them. if my time is worth $100 an hour then i could waste $100 - $200 trying to go to a yard or pull one myself to save $50, which doesn't make any sense.

i replace with used hubs all the time. make sure they have ABS if you need it. if there's any rust then the sensor could be stuck in there, a bolt sheared off, sensor still in it with wiring clipped - i've seen it all. just make sure you're cool with whatever situation you see! check for play obviously. i've paid like $30 - $75 for EJ hubs. $50 is a generally reasonable price. ABS equipped impreza, legacy, forester knuckle assembly will work. get a new ball joint and have a pickle fork handy so the ball joint removal portion takes 3 minutes rather than 2 hours. before owning a pickle fork i've had a heck of a time removing some ball joints and getting them out without tearing the boot is a very small success rate.

did you pull the motor? couple of great H6 timing chain threads on subaruoutback.org nice hit nipper, i already have some H6 technical engine sections from the FSM but that one is laid out really nice, thanks!

sure. remove the AWD auto and install the FWD auto. It bolts right up and is plug and play, you don't even need the TCU or anything - the AWD TCU will run the FWD trans just fine. with brand new subaru radiators from radiatorbarn.com for $70-$90 shipped to my door, not worth my time to mess around saving a few bucks on used radiators. but if you wanted to check you can usually compare pictures in listings on ebay, rockauto.com, thepartsbin.com, and other online forums.

consider this a learning experience - like a college education. you should have never went through with all of those repairs to begin with. you should have checked here first. but if you learn something from it the rest of your car ownership experience could be inexpensive and very reliable. next time - get help from a forum like this. this place is a gold mine. give us your symptoms and goals with the car and we can help you fix this. highly unlikely you'll ever run into something we haven't seen or can't help you properly diagnose and fix this for a reasonable amount. i would not put much stock in the dealer. sounds like a great place, but i would avoid the "grass is always greener" phenomenon that is at work here. dealers tend to be insanely expensive and it's easy to "say" they would do it for less without being the ones that actually did the work, encountered issues, needed to replace more than they expected due to unseen wear, leaks, and rust. not saying you got treated right - but i wouldn't really worry much about cost comparison and a war of words verses experience. anyway - it's sort of apples to oranges and it's a nice selling point for them to talk about how much less they would have done the work for - makes it more likely you'll be a future customer or buy another car from them - their favorite customers are ones paying for inordinate amounts of service to the tune of thousands of dollars. i would seriously consider this a learning experience and come here for what this place is best for - looking for repair guidance, not damage control from hundreds/thousands of miles away - you're kind of putting the cart before the horse and asking the plumber for tax advice. there's some value but you'll have a much better experience coming here for *** repair specific *** instructions. this place is more experienced and knowledgeable than any dealer. leverage that to your advantage starting now. and good luck dealing with the aftermath, i don't have much to offer there except what has already been said.

there are companies that flip salvage cars from auction, but prices won't be favorable. there's a website that auctions/sells wrecked cars...forget what it is but there are always subarus on it. post in the Parts Wanted forum here and other forums as well.