idosubaru

looks like a good list, i'd add the throw out bearing clips and reseal the rear separator plate on the back of the engine. i'd leave the rear main seal unless it shows any signs of wetness. i've never been particular on the clutch related parts. if you replace the rear main definitely use a subaru seal.

the roads are wet and nasty from snow which means dirty windshields and i need windshield washer squirters. can't roll without those and they're on the hood. as to my wife, she is amazingly resilient and deferential when it comes to my car antics.

Get a used pump, they never fail so they're cheap and not worth replacing new. Place I often get stuff from has one for $40 1-412-782-5580. It looks like the 6 cylinder pumps are listed as different parts than the 4. You could also post in the parts wanted forum here or subaruoutback.org. How did you know it failed, did you have any symptoms prior? Whether you replace it with new or used, you'll probably never have to replace it again. So you'd be paying a $800 premium for a a %0.01 increase in reliability. Save your money and buy an aftermarket warranty instead....just kidding. On the older gen stuff you can wire in aftermarket pumps that don't cost much. They aren't direct replacement but easily installed, you have to cut and attach the wiring harness plug of the original pump to the wires of the aftermarket and strap it in the original bracket. The newer stuff is completely different though and an in tank style set up that may be harder to do that with.

i plugged around for you and look at this!:

it shouldn't take long to diagnose if it's that bad. crawl under, look for torn boots/missing bushings, jack it up and start yanking on stuff and see what moves.

YES indeed! actually i'll be driving only a little bit in WV and then 3 hours in Maryland. i agree that it should strap in place just fine but i'm still a little timid on it. plus we're driving 500 miles after i get it and using the vehicle a lot - so simpler to just have it out of the way. if i was coming straight back i'd save myself the effort probably.

mismatched tires are really bad on the trans but that's already taken care of it sounds like. we need to know what that engine code is. is the fluid the proper level? change the fluid. hopefully you don't see anything but keep an eye on the fluid and see if anything comes out with it, particles, chunks, gunk on the drain plug. one drain and refill only gets %30 of the fluid out. TPS can effect shifting too.

thanks guys, good to see and hear from you Will. i'll use it some but have a few vehicles so i can easily just not drive it too. i just got the car, so don't know how long it's been like this. i'll ask the PO how long it was making the noise as it was never mentioned during purchase and i bought it sight-unseen from a board member here and another forum.

BAHHH HHAAAAAA HA!!!!! really, classic ball joint symptoms? they'd have to be really shot for that or what? i've never seen that before. not that other steering components aren't potentially dangerous but i'd hate to see what happens when a ball joint fails at high speed, so i'd check those quick.

this thread was at least worth the humor and insight! i've swapped a number of hoods before so installing won't be an issue. yeah that's me, i'd be constantly thinking about it. it'll have to be day time this trip. that's awesome. it did fit in the back of my parents van, but it would have to be with seats down or angled up in the wagon, not possible with family, child seat in the back, luggage, etc. the projectile feel would be a bit sketchy to me. after it's loaded we have 500 miles of driving to do after that, not going straight back home.

what are we working with here? FWD? 4WD? PT4WD? FT4WD? EA81, EA82, turbo, non turbo? all speeds? what does it do while turning and accelerating - still pulls? we can't see it, touch it, hear it, drive it, feel it.....i know we're really good but not telling us stuff requires classes at Hogwartz to figure this out!

i'm sure there's a good reason not to do this: 1. what say ye to driving my 2002 OBW without a hood? i have a hood at my parents house 200 miles away i want to get back to my place. i'm thinking about removing my OBW hood, driving there without a hood, then bolt the other hood in place when i get there for the drive back home (weather permitting of course). i can't think of a time i've seen a car drive without a hood....maybe there's a good reason for that? illegal, plain stupid, etc? rocks getting into engine? 2. the OBW has a roof rack so i could entertain strapping the hood to the roofrack too. that sounds too simple.

can you just call them and exchange it? even if you eat some shipping or something better than eating the entire radiator? radiatorbarn.com i believe my last forester radiator was only $90. unless it's going to be kept as a low mileage, longevity queen, barn-find into the future there's little return on investing in more expensive radiators, they just turn into a liability when future work is done around them. you could "add" a filler onto the hose going to the engine up top, wouldn't be terribly difficult to do if you're comfortable fabricating and making things work if you were really stuck. y'all figured it out but the later foresters i've seen all had the cap too.

O2 sensor should be 3 wire or so i thought. knock sensor, not sure but two sounds right. you could probably just look them up on ebay or thepartsbin.com or advancedautoparts, napa, etc and see a picture to verify for a 98 forester. folks on here can tell you which wires on the harness are needed as the FSM details all of it. just figure out exactly which pin location and wire color pattern and you got it. your 1998 Forester is a Phase I EJ25 so the information should be the same as any 1996-1999 Legacy or OBW with EJ25. i have those FSM's as well as tons of other folks. doesn't matter in a sense where he cut it, the wire is always accessible beyond/on the other side of the connector if need be. *** keep in mind - 1999 and up Forester is a different EJ25 and the information is not likely to be the same.

O2 sensors are sold as generics that you splice in, they are much cheaper than buying the factor originals with the actual plugs. If the plug is still in place, just buy a new one with a plug and install it. As for the knock sensor - same thing - is the original plug still intact? if so just buy one and replace it. if they actually cut the plug off the knock sensor then yeah that should be really awesome to repair as it's hard to get too. In that case i'd just figure out which pins are for the knock sensor at the main engine harness and just run new wire to a new knock sensor. that wouldnt' be that hard or time consuming. i would personally just splice it (properly) right behind the main engine connector - it's the huge one(s) seen under the air intake hose on the passengers side. they are usually bolted to the EJ engines via a bracket unless it's been removed. i would just splice the wire there but if you're really anal you can technically pull the pins out and actually "repin" it but sounds like way overkill to me.

oh no, i hope it's not that bad.

you might want to describe lacking brakes, what is wrong exactly? is it all the time? there are many different brake set ups but most are easily interchangeable and dont' require anything but the complete caliper and bracket and rotors. often a complete fluid flush (your fluid is 10+ years old now) and a quality brake job - regrease the caliper slide pins, resurface the rotors, and get something other than the cheapest pads available will vastly improve braking. has your fluid ever been changed? have all of your rotors been turned? have all of your slides been removed, cleaned, greased, and boots replaced if needed? if some of those items need attention, you might want to start there. if you do swap, a lot of your "improvements" will simply be because you're including the items above in the project, not because they're "bigger". the dual piston calipers and rear discs that your OBW should have should perform quite well when in perfect working order for daily driving duties. if you still want to. when swapping to larger calipers you need to make sure your wheels will clear them. most of the cheaper and easily available larger brakes will fit under 16" wheels. if you're running any 15" wheels you may have issues, but should be fine since you probably have 16" and you already have dual piston front calipers so they obviously clear fine. some of the larger and more expensive set ups require 17" rims, but i doubt you'll be going for those anyway. you'll want to read jamals brake caliper thread, i believe it's in the USRM.

well crack head. how long will it keep rolling like this? can i drive it until summer, i've got way too much other stuff to do this now? should i avoid long highway trips or driving altogether?

i emailed it rather than shrink it to attach here. wasnt' much more info on it that i could find.

look like it's called a "turn signal and hazzard module", so if the hazards don't work then you're probably almost positive it's the controller. i found the connector B32 for the 2000 model year legacy stuff - i would think the forester is the same? 3 pole black connector. it looks like it's up and to the right of the gas pedal - kind of where the TCU and ABS terminal is located but up a little higher and the the right. im trying to copy paste a picture from the FSM.

i just went through an entire 2000 FSM body electrical system pages and didn't find the module location. the combination switch on the column could be bad too - like it's not activating/dirty contacts/etc.

great thanks guys, this is my daily driver XT6. just to clarify since, while i've done a number of clutches and trans swaps i'm not well acquainted with them: the only time it's perfectly QUIET is when i push the clutch pedal in. if the clutch pedal is *not* being pressed it tends to make the noise. seems like the fact that it's perfectly quiet 100% of the time when i press the clutch pedal in should point to something? it's loud under load - up hills or accelerating - when going down hill it's noticeably quiet(er), not sure if it goes away or not. it's perfectly quiet like it should be when the cltuch pedal is in.

i don't know the limits, did you check the owners manual? i have a 2002 OBW and just use LATCH, the seat belts absolutely suck like you said. the leather seats probably don't help either, they probably slide easier.

yes you can visually look at the headgaskets to see if they've been changed. you should ask the current owner. if anything you get a quick read on how honest/shady they are. if it's a dealer then you can explain the prevalence of the headgasket issue on this motor.

you don't need to plan on rebuilding or replacing the motor. make sure it's not leaking when you buy it, change the coolant, add the subaru coolant conditioner and drive it. it'll be fine. if they start to leak you have GOBS of time, they don't leave you stranded like the older styles if you stick with 00+ EJ25's. they just gradually seap coolant, it's rather benign really and you can drive them for a really long time like that, just add coolant when it's low. many have already been replaced too. so you can try to find one that's already been replaced.