idosubaru

nice, a square for holding on the other ones! got a pipe wrench big enough to just fit on the entire flange? oh right, i wouldn't use the nut either. if you rig something up to hold it in place, it won't snap those driveshaft bolts. though you could just use different bolts and throw them away when you're done for the holding process in case you're worried about fatigue, stressing, etc, but it won't be an issue - they will hold. i would not hold one nut to counter against the pinion, but rather somehow bolt a piece of metal or wood or to a vice or something like that to hold it in place and use the bolt holes to hold it that way.

are you sure it's leaking and not just blow back from some other leak/fluid up front? i think you're on the right track. that does look like a beasty nut, though i've yet to need to remove one. i wouldn't think i'd have any problem trying some things to get it off. the flange has the 4 bolt holes in it too for the driveshaft i think, those could be used to hold it in place. a friend of mine uses his elec impact for cam pulley bolts which can be quite tight, might be worth a shot to put it on there for a minute and see what happens.

unless i'm missing the question the intake manifold should come off for a variety of reasons. *could* it be done without removing....yes. there really isn't much of a reason though. you're going to save 30 minutes of work but it could cost you 30 minutes...or an hour in other ways (like it already has on this post), and the likely hood of a lesser quality job. helpful to remove mostly for cleaning. the block mating surfaces need to be thoroughly cleaned for headgaskets, they aren't like normal gaskets and should be installed correctly every time - clean surfaces are a must for HG's. cleaning the block with the intake manifold in place is challenging and requires more effort than pulling the intake manifold off. you could clean from underneath if you enjoy that sort of thing... the heads to have to come out of the engine to clean them, though if you wanted to try this they could be dropped underneath. i've done it before...but it's hardly any extra work just to pull it off. it never saved me time because the manifold makes things harder to get to, harder to clean, less room, needs moved out of the way for something, and it's just hoses and throttle cables, very easy to remove. you can disconnect the minimum and prop it up out of the way or even flop it all the way back towards the windshield....but still all the same comments apply and simple to remove. but if you're the kind of person that likes the thought of it sounding and seeming quicker, then by all means roll with it! it's only a few minutes work, not a big deal either way.

the heat could have compromised just about anything on a 20 year old car. water pump gasket, water pump as miles suggests are definite possibilities and headgaskets are too. probalby have to pull timing covers to verify.

definitely reboot - aftermarket axles have a lot of issues. simple to replace both at the same time but if the outer boot looks great these 2003 era boots last a long time, they're better than the old style boots which always need replaced. for the newer style, i have left them before without replacing the outers.

run 35-40 psi. it's just tire pressure, it's not that big of a deal. increase it and you're golden. most people that know anything about cars do not run the factory/dealer spec's, they're always to low.

i just had a 99 done a couple months ago for $205 total (taxes, everything), they came and did it in the parking lot while i was at work. there's various online estimate you can get. get one of those and the locals can usually come in under that by $50-$100 depending how high of a quote you got.

the clutch type ones seem to function fairly well even when old....haven't seen much info no rebuilding them, not sure how it works.

they are different - the centers fail to "locked" the rears fail to "open" so operationally they must differ substantially since they fail in opposite ways. a few folks have mentioned seeing quite a few warn out LSD's, since they fail to "open", most folks would never really notice.

if you're limited don't waste your time. clean the engine and find the leaks. if you have a simple leak that takes $10 in seals and an hour and a half to fix, it's kind of silly to think about a complete overhaul. to pull the engine or not is personal preference, there's a hundred angles to that question. most folks seems to prefer pulling the engine. i hate pulling engines and EA/ER stuff is really easy to do in the car, not a big deal at all if you don't mind a few cramped quarters. if you have a weak back, do not attempt it in the car, you will be leaning over the fenders a lot. also if you're doing it in the car air tools or an electric impact that can access the cam and head bolts make it really quick - just zip them all out. doing all of those by hand in the car takes awhile...but i'm used to air tools.

i'll leave that to a machine shop, the only one around i'm not sure is an option. 3rd largest town in this state is only 29,000 people (first and second are 50k or less) it's a tiny market across the entire state, options are often limited. i think i'll need to ship them or take them somewhere when we travel. i'm doing it for free to help a family and they're in no rush so i have time. right on, i've always replaced the valve stem seals. thanks.

it's easy for me to comment since i don't own such a new vehicle but while i would probably run synthetic from new, i would not hesitate in a minute to use conventional in an NA Subaru engine. if it's a turbo then synthetic is almost a must and conventional would not be an option for me.

changing the ATF won't hurt anything at all. flushing i'm not sure about, but just draining it and refilling it like you do engine oil is entirely benign. have at it and see if it helps, it can't hurt it. as for smaller engine - you could swap in a 2.2 - any Phase 2 EJ22 is a plug and play swap. not sure if it would help mileage or not though.

probably, i have one of those.

friends 2003 forester SOHC EJ25 broke a belt and has bent valves. i have some used heads with good valves but the heads aren't useable. can't swap valves right - not without a valve job/grind? what's the best course of inexpensive action to repair the heads in the absence of machine shops? am i missing any options? the closest one that does the Subaru dealers work (which i don't think is much since they don't typically resurface heads) botched my last set of heads on a sander (really bad). i'm basically out of machine shop options besides shipping them somewhere.

welcome to the USMB audi5000, glad you made it over here! i guess that means you saw that thread i was telling you about?

rubber plugs or remove one side cover as rob suggested - it's only 4 (or 2 or 3 remaining if you live in a rust state LOL) 10mm bolts and off it comes. get the ebay kits to repair it - you can get all new pulleys, both tensioners, and the belt for only $60-$80, great deal for all new components. i would not reuse any of those 2 decade old pulleys.

what they said. plan to replace it (have the part on hand and visually check it) - but if it's bone dry and the engine isn't questionable or sat for years.....i would feel content not replacing it. couple days ago i installed a transmission in my 03 H6 OB Sedan and i can't recall what i was thinking that night but i didn't bother to pull the flexplate off to inspect that seal, which is something I would never skip normally? and i even had purchased the seal, that's just silly....hopefully it's as dry as just about every other rear main i've ever seen.

nice research! you don't have to pull the engine for head work, but it seems to be preferred by many. sounds like you have it down for pulling it. the trans is not held in place by anything up front except the pitching stopper which you'll remove. after that it's only held in place by the engine. which means: 1. yes - just jack it up for the motor mounts to clear the cross member. 2. when reinstalling you'll need to lift the transmission up with a jack or something to help line it up with the engine, otherwise the engine mounts won't clear the crossmember to get low enough to meet the trans which now sits on the cross member with the engine out. you certainly know this by now but given the propensity for HG issues, using the Subaru gaskets is preferred by most in recent years though aftermarkets are starting to come up to speed in some ways, but i haven't seen any added value yet so no need to deviate from Subaru for me. i like the 610 gaskets, that's the last 3 digits of the part number. they have a another thinner gasket that they'll probably give you for that engine.

is it worth trying to change the fluid first? that's the first logical step, but maybe there's more to the story? a common tactic with ATF is to drain and refill the ATF 3 times (change, drive, change, drive) and change the spin on filter. it's exactly like changing engine oil - remove drain plug, fluid comes out, install drain plug and then refill through the dipstick with a funnel. this trans also has a spin on ATF filter on it, replace that while you're at it. if you're still amped up to replace the transmission and rear diff: trans - yours is a 4.44 final drive which is the same as any 4 cylinder automatic OBW. i believe non-VDC H6 OBW's are also 4.44's. all foresters atuo's are 4.44 as well. LSD - rear LSD's have been said by a few people on here (GD i believe is one of them) to have a short life span. they fail to "open" so i don't know if you can easily confirm their condition in a junk yard. i guess both sides turn the same direction, but not sure if that verifies how well they do under load? go to cars101.com, the subaru related website and it lists which cars came stock with LSD's - like Forester S models of your vintage do, as well as upper level OBW's, and most (if not all) 2001-2004 H6's. a 99 Forester is a Phase II SOHC EJ25 for when the engine oil gets old and dirty sorry i couldn't resist being a dork.

i had an XT6 that was driven a few thousand miles with a leaking headgasket. when i pulled the engine apart the area between the coolant passage and combustion chamber was warn down, pitted, and strangely rough (not smooth like a rock warn by water). i suppose localized overheating or something else was happening at the leak point to do that. if oil/water is mixing then you're definitely hosed. i would never run a block like that or want to keep the engine if it was - like GD said bearings have tight tolerances and will fail if compromised. it's going to depend how and where the breach is but the general notion of running long term with bad HG's is probably not a good idea. external leaks would be low on the worry list though.

the top 14mm bolt is one of the transmission to engine bellhousing bolts and is typically tight. but it's never rusted or corroded, it just takes a pipe over the handle of the socket or long breaker bar and they come out the same every time. starters fail so rarely you may not get any more than anecdotal and limited experience on this one unfortunately. there have been a few Subaru remanned alternator failures, does that mean they're to be avoided, i don't know? since they fail so rarely i'd be tempted to just install a used one. might even be able to take it apart and clean it up before handing it to your mechanic.

keep the crank mark lined up (make sure you're using the right one, sometimes people use hte wrong one, though i'm not sure how), and you're fine. the cams are "loaded" by the valve train so that's why they snap and are under tension depending where they are in the rotation, but one is more notorious than the others. good luck, sounds to me like you're fine.

awesome, good job. now make sure you or someone else, does not accidentally leave it on.

if you're smart about it it's not that big of a deal. if you're just winging it and slacking, then probably best to get new tires. places around here often install two new tires - one front and the opposite side rear on Subaru's. i do not do that, just relaying what i see in a Subaru heavy area. not sure if it matters which side, probably should be the driven side up front if there is one. i've never done it nor think it's a grand idea, but it's fairly common practice around here so there must be some kind of logic behind it. i generally run the ones with more tread up front and they wear down to match the rears. but i'm not talking about new fronts and bald rears either.