idosubaru

the clutch type seems better for the steep unmainted snow i drive in but it's hard to say given i've only had clutch type in XT6/EA and VLSD in EJ's, not interchanged. seems like the clutch type is easier to tell if it's "working" and in good condition. interested what you got coming.

read through the swap manual and ask specific questions. i'd keep your transmission too, i'm a fan of the old school "locked" 4WD models and they're very reliable. yes - he's a member here and very well respected. if i were doing a swap that's exactly how i'd do it.

nothing out of the output line? interesting. here's a picture of the FPR in a 2000 - should be the same as yours. i'd suspect maybe it's hosed? pull the vacuum line to it and if there's gas in there then it's ruptured. not sure if the newer ones work that way and can fail that way, but it's a test that works on some. if you see gas then it's hosed. if you don't see gas - then it might still be hosed or not. if the return line has any rubber hose portion i have heard you can squeeze the line (use some vice grips maybe) and that may get it to start. though i've never tried it. starting fluid might be the simpler test. a squirt around some vacuum lines should only take a few seconds. *** EDIT *** Forgot to attach pic

Fairtax - thanks, but i'm in Morgantown. i'd typically give it a try. WJM said a Phase I block with Phase II heads had piston to head contact with the thin gasket. Thicker gasket and it was fine. Turning over by hand did not reveal the contact, so can't test. Did the heads get shaved too far to put me back in contact like WJM had? Probably not so I'm going to try it. An untouched head with thick gasket is 60 thousandths, I lost 12 - so I'm down to 48. The thin headgasket is 23 and doesn't work - so I still have somewhere between 0 and 25 thou to spare. I think I'm going to try it. i doubt they'll be very obliging. one problem with an economically depressed state is the number of complaints, lawsuits, abuse, and people trying to get something for nothing. you often just get lumped in with them...which is part of what i feel like i heard when i went in yesterday. i think i'll just do less head resurfacing as a result. The two Subaru dealers I asked are gasket slapping anyway without resurfacing.

that's probably a dealer only part, or at least not something you'll find at a general auto parts store.

any check engine lights? does the AT light flash 16 times at start up? when were the plugs and wires changed? were they NGK plugs and Subaru wires or something else? hesitation can be caused by spark plug wires. i've seen brand new out of the box aftermarket wires cause EJ engines to not even be drivable they hesitate so bad. i could easily see that being mistaken for fuel or trans issues.

any check engine lights? i would check for fuel pressure/output. or try to start it with starting fluid/carb spray through a vacuum line. if it fires up then your fuel pump is probably hosed. only takes a few seconds, i'd check there first if you don't have any check engine lights to go on.

did you check the clutches/plates? does the FWD fuse work now with the new Duty C? as a last resort pull the rear half of the driveshaft, and cut power to the Duty C (takes 30 seconds once you know which wire) so that the car is driveable in FWD. if it's completely gone and you have torque bind you don't need to cut the power to the Duty C. but i'd know which wire you need to pull or have the rear shaft in the trunk in case it starts operating again. it's at least an easy way to get a daily driver back on the road and not damage anything else.

if it exhibits no noises/symptoms now then just reboot it and you're golden. i've rebooted a couple of old noisy axles before too and cleaned out with new grease they were fine, still running two of them like that. i drove them 4,000 miles to colorado and back, beat the snot out of them offroad, they made horrible racket the entire way home, i had to nurse them home by stuffing grease in at every gas stop....rebooted them and they've been perfect since even on my lifted XT6. not saying i recommend it, but they are rather robust to begin with unless you are rebooting some aftermarket junk. if it's aftermarket then they're a gamble even when brand new, if they're Subaru axles (even if really old) you'll probably be fine.

i've ran mine out of fuel multiple times and it's never caused problems. dump in a gallon (or less) of gas and it firse right up. 4 or 6 cylinder, auto or manual? check engine light? not sure what is causing it but running out may not be your issue? maybe it was coincidence that it quit running while it was really low on gas?

honestly i'd probably post a picture of the crack, pull the intake manifold and see if we can figure out a repair. gotta be some way to fill in a coolant leak, it's not under that much pressure or combustion forces. maybe a shop could lay a bead across it if you can't weld aluminum. or CLEAN and fill the crack with some kind of sealant and then put piece of metal on top of it also coated with sealant...gotta be some way to stop a coolant leak. the JB weld and similar stuff sucks. I consider it a last resort now. it's amazing sometimes but for anything cycling, vibrating, moving, hard to clean...it's hard to get it to set or hold up. as for swap question im' not sure what you're asking. are you wanting to do the full on engine wiring, body wiring, ECu swap? that's a big job. for plug and play you'll need another EA82 1.8 liter. (an EJ18 1.8 liter is a completely different motor and won't work...without all the wiring mentioned above).

you wouldnt' be worried about the one thousandth or less below subaru's stated minimum i mentioned above? thanks all.

if you have any problems, i got a new one from radiatorbarn last year i think it was for $98 shipped to my door. great price and no time spent, on my door step.

what's your address and how much do you charge. good call, wonder if i can pull that off somehow? i'm not really in a good place for that, my friend that works for the mercedes dealer and the subaru dealer both use that shop. i'll make some calls next week, thanks.

ask them what headgaskets they used the first time - probably aftermarkets which are known to be weak. if so, a properly installed Subaru gasket probably won't cause you harm down the road. quite a few folks on here have seen aftermarket head gaskets fail, including myself. what part of baltimore, i'm from Westminster? your name looks familiar - maybe just from the board i guess? zillions of EJ22 swap threads/information on here, yes it's plug and play if you choose the right one. ** Edit - it's really rare for these blocks to crack, i highly doubt it is. Probably aftermarket headgasket or it just wasn't installed very well the first time - torque sequence and head flatness/finish are critical and need to be perfect.

much better than before. it was only the one that was really bad. as you know, can't plug and play a DOHC Phase I into a SOHC Phase II vehicle. there's not one automotive machine shop where i work, which is the third largest city in the entire state. welcome to a small state. i'm hosed when it comes to machine shops, it's the only one i know of even close to here. all the machine shops around here work on mining equipment, because i called them all a couple years ago.

what would you do given the end result below? right now i'm out two headgaskets that i bolted on before thinking better of it and getting your feedback. and i now have two heads below spec too. he said they always use a belt. he wasn't bothered or offered any comment on the gouging or the heads being out of spec (numbers below). he touched up the really bad one i posted the picture of. he mic'ed the heads at 3.82" and 3.81" which is right at or just below the Subaru minimum, if the 3.827" mentioned in an earlier reply is correct. the lowest one was the one he didn't touch up as that one didn't look nearly as bad...and was obviously low and shouldn't be shaved any more. the limits are probably conservative? i'm using the thicker Subaru headgaskets which are 37 thousandths (0.037) thicker than the normal headgaskets (1.52 millimeter instead of .58 mm). maybe that buys me enough additional space? this is for SOHC EJ25 heads on a DOHC block swap. Phase II heads on a Phase I block. There is interference when using the thinner gasket, the pistons hit the head so there's not a lot of room to work with. Is there any way to calculate how much?

if everything else looks normal that should help. i'd avoid zipties or at least make sure they're high quality ones. cheap ones won't hold. i've used them before for undercarriage auto stuff and if it moves at all i wouldn't use them. i'd go with a metal clamp. i haven't been able to find any without ordering online that are thin enough to sit inside the groove intended for the clamp. but - i know folks that have done it anyway. with a needle type grease gun insert (a dollar or two at an autoparts store) you'd be able to inject more CV grease under the lip of the boot with the clamp off. but you don't want to overfill it either.

wow what a marathon fairtax! you have one more test to do - run the new belt with the old pulleys for awhile and see if it causes them more play/noise? good call, it does sound like the belt caused the pulleys to fail. unlikely to have that many failures at once. you mentioned you suspect wrong belt - what could it be?

that was the question, what makes it right? i only ask because the engine is already apart and i'll see this more later. most of the time the engine isn't apart already, is that why it's usually done with the belt on?

yeah oil comes out where the driveshaft installs. fluid mostly comes out due to the trans being tilted when you go to remove it, has to come out at an angle. when you tilt it, it's goign to come out where the driveshaft slides into the tail housing.

no, not quite but nice thinking. i wish it was, this seems like it's going to be a PITA.

you mean removing the driveshaft for dropping the trans? yes - just unbolt the two bolts holding it up under the car and it'll slide out of the trans. then nasty smelling gear oil goes everywhere.

can't you adjust them without the timing belt installed? when those valves are in the relaxed state?

thanks for all the feedback, this has been helpful and informative! if the heads are beyond limits then what? i'm not one to demand things in situations like this but if they ruined good heads that's tough. guess i just wait and see what they say. hopefully they mic fine or are good to work with. i don't have a mic to check myself. Dave - maybe you could PM a price on your engine/heads so i can give them a "quote" just in case they offer? they have a belt though i was never sure what they used it for. i didn't know until this thread how heads were resurfaced or that there were multiple ways to do it. i figured it was a fairly standard operation. i have a head that they did for me last year on the shelf that looks normal, so i'll take that one with me. it is warrantied so maybe they require it be installed and have them fail first for the warranty to kick in?