idosubaru

i've bypassed the coolant lines before - no issues. i figure it's *more reliable* since there are fewer connections/clamps. i've never seen those leak. i doubt it matters what you do. i've also used generic hose, looks like larry knows the size.

AM - no stations at all.

there's a lot of different possibilities, need to narrow it down more. if it's doing it at first start up, that makes it really really easy to track down, just open the hood or crawl under it while it's making the noise. heat shields are a really good possibility. start there and inform us as you rule those out. front or rear of engine, left or right?

some have markings, seems like the ones i've gotten do, but not sure all of them do. the markings are not even close to necessary. line up crank, cams, and install belt - make sure they're still lined up after belt install. really simple. you can even count teeth if you want, though i don't bother since it's so simple to visually inspect. since the timing belts have "teeth", it's either exactly right or it's completely wrong, there's nothing ambiguous, difficult, or tricky about it. the accessory drive belts are rather benign, i'd just get them from anywhere myself.

thanks for the shout out. i would be, but MA is too far to mess with. wife is due with second child in the next three weeks, i'm not planning on going anywhere any time soon.

yes any EJ engine will bolt up to any EJ trans. wiring is identical for this year EJ22/EJ25's - you can remove an EJ25 and drop in an EJ22 and it's a plug and play swap. the EJ25 has a propensity to blow headgaskets, very common. you can google it and find gobs of information about it. that suggests a few things to me: 1. be wary of a cheap DOHC for sale. even when repaired they can have bottom end failures and cam seizures, probably from previous overheating since EJ22's don't typically have those same failures. if you get a known good one, it's a really good idea to check to see if the HG's were ever replaced or go ahead and preemptively replace them before installing the engine. might be good to just knock out the headgaskets, valve covers, spark plug boots before cramming it between the frame rails anyway. there's an RX with an EJ25 in it on subaruxt.com. 2. the EJ22 might be a better fit for you. though turbo's are not my specialty so you should defer to others with more turbo specific experience and knowledge. the EJ22 does hold up to low boost just fine. if you're the kind to start pushing things then turbo-ing a non-turbo block is not a good idea. REDDEVIL (REDEVIL?) a member here and another forum supercharged his non turbo EJ and has gone through a number of blocks. he has an extensive write up about it on another forum. you could find it by searching his user name here to see his experience with slapping a turbo on a non-turbo block.

since the block is still good and demand is high you can probably recoupe some of the costs of the new motor for the EJ25 block. heck you can probably get close to the cost of the motor for it.

yep, that's a fine solution. was that Ej25 previously overheated or headgaskets replaced?

AH! boo, that's no good. what's your plan? i just priced out heads for a friends car - used heads are about $100 each. previously had the headgaskets replaced i presume?

thanks guys. plenty of heads out there, seems to make sense. i understand the sentiment but no charge on this one, helping this family out. they're just paying for parts.

2003 Forester, timing belt let loose. Trying to fix this for a friend as economically yet wise as possible. I'm thinking $100 for a used head is going to be hard to beat. No way a shop is going to replace all 4 valves (or probably 8 to be smart) and grind them for that price right? Would be nice to shoot for new valve stem seals but at this point a full on head rebuild is going to be costly. A local place quoted $400 per head, definitely not doing that.

i've seen folks mention EA81 support removal/installs. i have a new gen radiator support thread from earlier this summer on a legacy wagon that got a ton of very helpful replies - though i ended up repairing it with only the hood and fender, didn't need to do the core support stuff. but - i'd be finding that thread next time i have a core support to remove. you could try taking a cordless sawzall or sawzall with generator and cutting off more than you need - then properly de-spot-welding it or whatever when you get it back home.

good job getting that figured out, it's definitely in that rear extension housing then. it needs to be pulled apart to inspect and see what's going on. inspect clutches and make sure the hub drum isn't sheared, it happens. whatever is broke, fix it.

it's held in place by two bolts and is a rectagular...i want to say "silver" box, though my memory is'nt perfect and that could vary. it's close the to steering wheel and not against the fire wall if that makes sense. the bolt heads face the floor and threads point directly up.

TCU is under the dash, above your feet so to speak.

yeah those axle nuts are sometimes crazy tight. if you've got a torch, heating the nut up quickly then going at it can help.

mods delete? duplicate thread: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=127229

you know, i'm not sure exactly how that circuit works since its receives a varying signal. it needs to be getting something because default (no signal at all - unplugged) is locked 4WD so to speak which you obviously don't have. The TCU or the big connector on the passengesr side of the engine bay are the only two places i know of that are easily accessible, not sure which wire it is though. You could also just unplug the transmission connector. The trans will run in purely mechanical mode - which is "locked" 4WD. if you unplug the connector you should have severe binding from the 4WD. if you get 4WD/binding then it's an external issue - wiring or TCU. if it doesn't bind at all then it's an internal issue - clutch pack related. it'll be gutless since default it 3rd gear, but perfectly drivable. that's probably the simplest test.

there are two "style" cam sprockets that have different trigger marks on the back of them for the cam sensors to work off of. if you install an engine with different "trigger marks" so to speak, then the ECU isn't correctly interpretting the results. swapping cams from the original engine onto the new engine will give the ECU the correct signal. your location says "northern cambria"...not sure what that means but if it's international then information may vary.

good call, drilling...if you're going to drill get a high quality drill bit...they're pricey relatively speaking...but cuts the time way down. oil it often for lubrication and cooling and that will reduce the time a lot. or get a bunch of cheap bits and blown through them!

you can't, automatics don't have center diff's. center diff's are on manaul trans and they only fail to "locked", not open. measure voltage and see if the Duty C is getting power or not. is it possibly in FWD mode? the AT light isn't on - so i guess you probably checked or noted that it does work though (meaning the bulb isn't non-operational)? not sure why it wouldn't give anything, maybe the clutches inside are hosed? if the clutch/hub/drum (forget the name) sheared, which happens, i would expect other symptoms/noises. so should be Duty C or clutch related....maybe? not sure if a Duty C can stick "on" all the time, essentially in "FWD mode" without throwing a code. would be the first time i've heard of that.

disconnect, check, and reconnect the transmission connector. it's on the passengers side top of the engine below the air intake stuff. how is it running and driving?

I would work around this issue for zero dollars and not waste time. more on that in a minute. maybe it works on zero rust areas, outside of that it's a terrible method for replacing axles in the northeast/rust prone areas. particularly since there's an easier and 100% foolproof method. once the wheel is removed you only need to remove one bolt to replace the axle - the top strut mount bolt - which is never rusted and much easier to deal with if it is (rare). remove that bolt and loosen the lower one. once that bolt is removed the entire knuckle, with strut still attached, swings "out" away from the car, giving room to pull the axle out. it's a little tight to get out, but comes out every time. pull the inner DOJ up so to speak as you pull the axle out of the hub, then snake it out around all the brake lines, etc. you need to mark the *head* position of the top bolt so you can reinstall it in the same orientation as it adjusts camber - but that's really easy. use a high quality marker/grease marker, or i just hit the head of the bolt/strut body at the same time with a chisel and line the marks up when i'm done. i never touch that ball joint bolt around here unless i absolutely have to. also in rust prone areas you'll only get 1 out of 10 ball joints out without destroying the boot so yo'ull be replacing those most of the time as well. adding more work, time, and cost. not surprising at all, those tools suck. you're best bet is to throw away every bolt extractor you have and never use them again. they cost more time than they save. they're a nuisance. anything that comes out with a bolt extractor is not that difficult to remove by other means. they only work on really easy to remove stuff....which almost never happens since easy to remove stuff doesn't shear off bolts - not in automotive applications anyway. an extractor would have never touched that ball joint pinch bolt, those aren't easy to remove. i would leave it as is. install that axle like i mentioned above and leave it be, it's not going anywhere. no way that bolt is ever coming out without metal working equipment. if you're amped to fix it. i would drill the pinch bolt out from the other side where the extractor is not embedded. only the end is threaded, once you get to the sheared off extractor you should be able to use a punch and knock the remaining shaft of the pinch bolt and the extractor out the other side. once it's all drilled out - just use a large bolt and nut - don't bother threading it or anything it just needs to be able to clamp down which a high quality bolt and nut will do just fine. or if you're really amped up it's not that hard to tap threads either. or even helicoil it back to the original size. you've got a ton of options, all which can be done without removing/replacing your hub. given the rate of failure of EJ wheel bearings i'd rather keep the known good hub you have than install a hub that's been sitting, rolled around a yard, possibly contaminated, etc. i've had used hubs fail bearings....it's still a good option sometimes since two used hubs are still better fit sometimes than getting into bearings, but you've got a known good hub that was just driving fine - i'd try to keep it.

you haven't given any information to go on. we're good, but not magicians. in general it is almost impossible for all of those parts to fail at one time. so this suggest something else.... 1. how many miles? 2. has the fluid ever been changed? more diagnostic related stuff: 3. is the transmission pan dented or compromised at all? 4. has the transmission ever been worked on before? 5. has the trans pan ever been removed before? how long have you driven it? has it always worked perfectly and then one day this happened? how is it currently driving?

the switch might be easy enough to replace to give it a try? they never fail so they shouldn't cost much used. and 4 and 6 cylinder should be the same on that part?