idosubaru

how many 80's turbo's are there, 4? brat, XT, RX, and wagon. is the curb weight listed on the plates so folks can just post what theirs says.

make sure it's a transmission issue. if you need a transmission, get a used one, or at least look around to see if you can find a good deal on one, that's usually not too hard on these. as to keep or replace....cheapest car is usually the one you own unless you have rust to deal with :lol: in general, keep a car if you're willing to do the maintenance. for this car that mileage isn't that scary actually. why did the motor need replaced/rebuilt, an EJ22 does not "go bad" at that low of mileage, something happened to it. it's very possible to keep this car reliable, but not without some effort. put forth some effort and you'll be good. if you'd rather point and drive without much effort/maintenance then get something newer. unless you get a really new car you're still buying something without a warranty and needing work soon, so choose carefully.

i remove the throttle body preheat lines. remove them and just run one hose instead of two to bypass it all. sounds like you now think that isn't your problem. you need to narrow down where it's coming from. pretty sure there's a tiny little hose underneath the alternator somewhere - or top center just a little to the left since some alternators can be located differently. if you really can't find it - then remove some of the stuff up front like alternator, power steering, a/c, and their brackets will allow you much better visibility under the intake manifold. if you're not wanting to do that....then apparently the leak isn't bad enough yet, just wait until next year! the intake manifold gaskets have water passages through them that can leak as well.

yes it's possible. doesnt' make any sense but i've seen parts cause driving issues but no CEL. i'd troubleshoot/diagnose here or with someone who's good at this stuff first before just guessing though. all sorts of things can have similar symptoms.

if you lived around here i'd let you borrow or have an ignition coil to try it out. with all the NW folks i'm sure one of them can help. have you checked for OBDII codes? i'd do that first before making any guesses. i've been known to ship folks a box of parts to help them diagnose. i might do that with abe since i know him if he wants to help you out.

are you wanting to install yourself or have someone else do it? if the later then call around - Subaru or other shops that do this kind of stuff. it can be an annoying job to do yourself, it's just not simple for a few reasons. cutting or tapping wires, etc. look at the bottom left of the screen and you'll see a bunch of keyless entry threads....the one's in the New Gen forum may be helpful. the search function will help, keyless stuff is asked all the time. unfortunately there's no simple one-size-fits-all answer every time. you could post in the parts wanted forum too that you're looking for this, someone may have the parts you need.

i feel like someone recently posted a thread on trying to get it to "flash the code" like old school subaru's so you don't need a scanner? i might be getting confused with something else? ***edit*** i just searched and couldn't find it....?? some of the larger chain stores do "tool rentals". each area includes different tools in that but maybe they'd include scanners?

in a vice to compress it or hold it? it has a screw for retracting. that's a good idea though as it's unstable trying to hold the tension with one hand and fabricate with another. right angle screw driver FTW. works 100% of the time and is easy. i think i have pix at subaruxt.com. i have a clip to hold it and still use the right angle screw driver.

if you keep them from running out of oil or overheating they can last a really long time....well here in the rust belt most are eaten away. they can be very reliable. get the ebay timing belt kits with all new pulleys, they're a steal at like $60 for all new pulleys, two tensioners, and both belts. then reseal the oil pump and cam caps while you're at it. i usually throw a new water pump on too while it's all a part. only you know what kind of reliability you want, but that's what i wanted.

the mechanic isn't familiar with subaru's or at least this engine/year. which is okay if you give him some guidance. the oxygen sensor is an easy fix. depending on the code it'll need an oxygen sensor or a $5 adapter to fix, they're available on ebay. lots of info on that here. $1,400....or $400 is just plain stupid to fix that code due to the nature of the cause. find someone willing to fix it for you without replacing the catalytic converter, that would be a waste. now headgaskets - TONS of info on headgaskets here. YOUR ENGINE IS FINE. there won't be any damage on these motors. you just need new headgaskets. they leak externally and it causes no damage. actually you can continue to drive it like this for a VERY long time typically. they gradually get worse over time and don't "fail" or "blow up". if it's not annoying to you, you could consider driving it like this for a very long time, just keep checking/adding oil as necessary. unfortunately due to the layout oil eventually starts dripping and burning off the exhaust which smells terrible. as for the headgaskets. your engine/year/model is actually covered under a Subaru extended headgasket warranty up to 100,000 miles. you'd be aged out as well, but it never hurts to call Subaru and see if they'll give a discounted price or something? sometimes they go beyond the warranty guidelines and will offer help....and you're about as close as you can get. be sure to tell your mechanic some very important points: 1. Use subaru only headgaskets on this engine. aftermarkets aren't wise on this engine (fine, even better sometimes, on other subaru engines, but not this one). 2. Subaru has a coolant additive that is required in this engine and will be needed with the coolant refill after the headgasket job. It's the only Subaru engine like this, he's not likely to know. 3. Have the valves adjusted on the heads.

good score, way to go paul keeping it around the "family". welcome to USMB. tapping is very, very common, lots of info here on fixing that. first step is oil change. second step is reseal the oil pump. 3rd is replace the oil pump. you could attempt some treatment options that sometimes work (depending on the cause) before getting into the oil pump. sometimes it's just simpler to replace the oil pump than try multiple things over a long period of time. if an HLA is sticking then it'll need replaced. but you can leave them, it's just annoying and won't cause any issues. you said a daily driver winter beater so just turn the radio up. due to the HLA set up it's best to change your oil often to keep them happy.

sweet! while we're on the topic: earlier - 95-99 hoods with the grille removed don't interchange with 2000+ do they (since 00+ the grille is part of the bumper)? pretty sure that's a "no" but just wanted to check.

i've seen some folks claim newer subaru stereos are MP3 compatible, but i haven't looked into what they mean or if it's true.

these can be a real pain. i bought a 3/4" socket set just for axle nuts. i've broken many 1/2" breaker bars, sockets, etc. my 900 ft/lb air gun couldn't get one off earlier this year, took about 6 foot of pipe. what is odd about that one is that i had installed it about a year before on my buddies car. i didn't make it that tight and a year doesn't seem long enough for corrossion/rust to cause it but somethign was keeping it from moving. if you're going to be doing your own maintenance like this into the future get a 3/4" ratchet for it and 6 feet of pipe to slide over the handle.

welcome, this is a good community for hands on technical, get dirty stuff like this. you should fit right in, now get off of here and start craigslisting.

you're in luck, those side covers rarely break, should be fine. keep your fingers crossed. just remove the side cover and leave it off until you go to do the timing belt job. some of us, like me, don't even reinstall the front...or sometimes the rears either. i run naked covers and will thank myself next summer when it's due for the next timing belt job. so yeah you can just leave it off until you replace the belt.

my 02 OBW has LATCH so I've seen that and some others too. the center two are just welded to the metal, that's it. not much to it, just a metal rod welded right to the floor meatl. that's how all of the subaru's i've seen so far do it for the center the side ones can look a little different but are either included in the design of or are welded to the seat bracket which bolts in place on the sides of the car. i removed the side seat brackets from the seats and want to bolt them in place. i'm installing side brackets that have the bar already on them, into the center position. so you end up bringing up a good point, look at the side attach points. i don't feel comfortable welding that bracket in there. maybe GD will do it for me?!

Can I bolt (and latch !! ) a 2000-2004 Legacy hood onto an OBW of the same vintage. The hoods for OBW and other Legacys are listed as different parts sometimes but I'd think they're the same? Maybe just different grills?

you're pretty much exactly right. it's covered by the center cover, but you can tell by removing the drivers side cover only. have a flashlight handy to look back in there if you don't have good lighting. yes an early EJ25 could have the old style tensioner, i'd check it first. hopefully it is, the old style are more reliable and cheaper to replace.

okay that deserves story time. my neighbors are awesome. they keep me in touch with other parts of the world. when I mentioned "i'm not much on beer" they replied with "awwwwww HELL, they let you live here!!!"? this summer i was walking my daughter down the road and my neighbor and his buddy walk to a motorcycle each with a beer in his hand. the driver hands his beer to the rider, they both hop on the same motorcycle with the passenger holding both hands outstretched to the side with a beer in each hand and take off down the road. it was amazing. last summer my other neighbor asked if he could take some kids fishing on my property. went down to their place later to see how they made out and they pulled in when i got to their place - he was driving with a beer in his hand, beer cans everywhere, and two roughly 12 year old boys in the back. got out and popped his can of budlight right on top of his car like the term "drinking and driving" didn't even exist. same budlight cans i've hit 50 times with my Kubota when i mow up against the road.

sorry for the word choice, LATCH is a better fit for us. you partially answered it for me though: though i can get it to work, in my opinion it should be easier and simpler. my wife pretty much can't do it...the grand parents would fare even worse. with multiple vehicles, kids, travel, etc it's more dynamic than install it and leave it. LATCH is what I want and what we will have, I accept all responsibility and risk.

wow rob, what a job! want to do it again!?

i was hoping to avoid getting flamed. i should find a car safety seat forum to post this in! i'm installing brackets from a newer Legacy with LATCH attachments on them so we can use LATCH to install child seats in my Legacy LSi instead of seat belts. My horrific ghetto job will be safer than the lame seat belt installations. The brackets have two holes, one will line up with the seat belt bolt holes and the other is up top and lies flush on the bottom of the trunk floor - this is where I need to bolt it too. But I need more than that thin metal to work with so I was hoping to have a long flat steel bar under there. Rob's showing us there's not much room to work with. I've never done pop rivets before, have no idea how they work. That's what the aircraft engineers use for repairs. I'll call up my friends that design repairs for the airline companies. Seems there would still be the gas tank in the way issue.

this isn't an oil problem. any check engine light? coolant temp sensor, plugs, wires, cap rotor, or idle control valve are all likely sources.

you fixed it - how? an inch or....would a half inch even help, you could probably find the smallest amount needed and not even notice it changing the looks/ride height any significant amount.