idosubaru

there's no timing concerns here, you can't time this engine, there's no distributor to adjust. the mark was probably to check to see if the pulley was separating, a common failure mode. remove the cam bolts with the belt still on the car. impact wrench is best. a strap or chain wrench around the cam after the belt is removed should work. the special subaru tool does not hold up well to torque at all and should not be expected to be used to remove the bolts. they easily bend, as a friend of mine (also living in Atlanta) found out last week. the tool bent and failed and never got the bolts loose.

i'd read some labels of stuff if no one here has differential level experience. Trans X works good in some situations, i'd probably have a look at that. It's just a diff, they aren't that complicated and it's shot so I'd just have at it. I never recommend stop leak kind of stuff, but here it might be the ticket for short term fix and a junk part anyway. If it's a leaky side seal, those are replaceable but you probably don't want to do that either? Install a drip tube from your trunk down into the vent tube for the diff!?

if you have decent sources it's often easier (and cheaper) to just replace the entire hub assembly used that has bearings already in it. guy in texas has a front set of hubs for 1st gen legacy for sale very reasonably in the for sale section. i would have bought them except they're for a non-ABS vehicle.

yes - test drive a couple more and see if it's "normal". pursue it, you have a warranty, get them to honor it.

First thing is to make sure the fans are coming on when it's running hot. Might be a fan or relay. Headgaskets replaced: Use a Subaru OEM thermostat only - the difference is amazing just looking at them. The aftermarkets all look like a 2 years olds toy. Was the conditioner added? Subaru requires it on these engines? Have the radiator properly bled or burped, these engines are notorious for running hot after engine work because of air bubbles in the system. Although typically they actually overheat with an airbubble, not just run hot. Hopefully a Subaru headgasket was used? The aftermarkets aren't considered a good bet on these motors.

$100 is online or ebay pricing, mechanics don't get parts from there. auto parts stores are higher. mechanics often mark up what they buy as well. that's legit. they have to maintain relationships, keep track of parts, liability, return parts, and repair if it's under warranty. he's going to round up to cover costs and to make sure you don't end up with a higher bill (should be only a small amount of course). sounds reasonable to me and at least he's doing it right by not just replacing the belt. i only do work for "free", having friends/relatives pay for parts only. i always end up getting hosed and loosing money. tools, rags, oil, grease, coolant, heat the garage, penetrant, anti seize, brake cleaner, degreaser, gas to get parts, returning wrong parts...i always loose out, but that's okay i'm helping folks out. it's very time consuming to get exact prices, much simpler to round. multiply penny pinching by how ever many customers he has and he could conceivably loose time...customers, jobs...money, just for accounting. now if you have reason to think he's hosing you, that's one thing but you haven't mentioned that. if you question his pricing, i'd say give him a little slack at least. particularly if he's a good mechanic.

well sounds like something confusing is going on. no...no...no....no, Subaru never had a timing chain on older motors. EA stuff definitely does not have a chain. please post pictures!!!!

again - temp difference via hand like john said or temp gun.

a lot of folks incorrectly substitute names from previously common things for new components. happens all the time, i'm not too surprised or concerned.

Right on thanks Dave. Yes planning on the timing belt gig already with it out and he's 40,000 miles (or 60k?) over due! Yeah I always replace everything - clutch, pressure plate, pilot and throw out bearings, and both retaining clips. Not sure what the hydraulic equivalents are of those or if they're all the same, can't recall. But i'll figure it out when I pull it. Just hoping it comes out easy, not looking forward to putting hours and hours into this.

If you're replacing the diff, doesn't really matter what you do to it, throw anything you like in there the bearings are shot. Not that I would really do it, but i'd probably use Trans-X instead or something else.

no resolution will happen here, move on. this is like the arm-chair quarter back. not interested in buying - read the threads regarding rules on for sale items, have you seen them after 12,000 posts . you don't like the price or deal - move on. i don't necessarily see dichotomy GD. locating trans and finding shipping info can be done all online or with a few phone calls. he may have no idea what's involved in figuring out final drive ratios. but i've seen mention of "splitting the case". i'd walk away from this gig if it were true, no way i'm liable for something not going back together right. if folks were interested and helpful they should be plugging around trying to find out info. fortunately it doesn't require splitting the case - but since folks are not interested in helping this guy, no one has bothered to tell him that yet. maybe he does need to update the process here - like find out who needs specific gear ratios and who doesn't care, i'm sure he's considering that now. it's hard for me to imagine that the folks signing up haven't thought about gear ratios. there's a trans chart for manual trans stuff, not sure if NZ market is on there or not, but someone should go find it. as to validity of the deal - call the references and talk to the middle man holding the cash. the info is out there, make some effort.

Friend has a legacy wagon I offered to do a clutch on starting tomorrow. Been awhile since I've done an EJ clutch job and I've never done one by itself, always with a motor swap or something. I hate doing clutches, or should I say hate pulling engines, but want to help the guy, any tips or anything for making this fast? Flop a/c over, yank motor?

no, it's just a simple circuit.

get a temp gun and keep hitting each wheel after some extended driving. the bad bearing will generate heat that will show a 10-40 degree difference. you're welcome!

pop hood - passengers side strut tower is a small box receptical that accepts a standard automotive fuse. place one in there. if torque bind doesn't go away - you have a bad Duty C.

not sure about swapping the harness. wouldn't surprise me either way if it's a pain or easy work around. i heard (have not looked into it), that the MAF to MAP change and something else complicates things. and i saw somewhere the injector connectors were different (not verified but not a big deal anyway)

just replace the pulley, no worries about top dead center, the crank pulley has nothing to do with that at all on these cars. i have some extra pulleys, if you want one email/PM me and i'll sell/mail you one. starter method or impact wrenches are your friends in this case. the only way without those is the redneck impact method - socket and some SERIOUS blows with a huge hammer.

make sure all the tires match in tire size and tread depth/wear. and change/flush the fluid. no point in repairing it only to have those things screw it up again. put the FWD fuse in place and drive it like that as long as you like. if it doesn't go away with the FWD fuse then indeed your Duty C is bad. you can remove the rear half of the driveshaft (only 8 12mm bolts) and essentially drive it as a FWD vehicle as long as you like. Impreza wagons are called OBS (Outback Sports), not OBW just so you don't get confused with Legacy stuff (which are OBW's) later. good luck!

SOAK in PB Blaster or Liquid Wrench (WD40 is not suitable for this). The more times you drench every nut and bolt before hand the better. I'd probably soak every nut and bolt I could a few times a week for a few weeks if the rust is bad. Sawzall won't help since you need every bolt removed to reattach the new one. I'd have some good torch equipment ready if there's any bolts that are accessible with a flame. Not for cutting, but for expanding rusted nuts.

done right he head gaskets should be a once and done deal, particularly on these newer ones. use Subaru only head gasket and do it right - heads machined, etc. Subaru requires their additive and either they or other suggest a year coolant change with the additive. the EJ25's are not as reliable as the EJ22, but pretty close once the head gasket issue is taken care of. the rod bearing issue is the strangest, i'd like to know what causes that. it's harder than that. needs to be 99+ EJ22 and requires some parts swapping.

The questions about what exactly is being bought are absolutely essential and need to be clarified. Final drive and VLSD or center diff lock are essential. 4 bolt or 8 bolt and hydraulic verses cable clutch also come to mind since those are US specific differences. And what about mileage? Do some have 50k and others have 200k? High mileage transmissions are everywhere over here. I happen to like Rick, I even know his *given* name. If you aren't comfortable, move on and let the free market work it's magic on those involved. You've made your comments which act as a good disclaimer for anyone interested. Personally I get the feeling this guy is legit and I'm good at reading people. I know enough amazing people that i'm not 100% cynical (yet!). I have arranged shipping stuff all over the world and troubleshooting boxes of parts and FSM's in the US. When offering time, parts, and resources "free" i limit time investment. It's "my way or the highway" to some extent, if I'm doing it free. It's easy to get wrapped up in stuff - emails, PM's, phone calls, people wanting special treatment, save a buck, services, check for something else, throw something else in on the deal, different colors or sizes from everyone else, quicker shipping...etc. That gets demanding quick, though it just seems like one set of questions to any given individual asking. In a sense you're "getting what you pay for" if someone is offering free services:lol:. If you want all out service, warranty, and parts - call around and find a place to answer your questions, do your research for you, investigate every transmission, and return your calls. you're going to have to pay for that. When dealing with used parts, there's always *some* amount of risk, I think anyone buying parts knows that. Everyone involved is just hoping nothing comes of it.

if it's leaking oil it is most likely the rear diff. good news is this isn't that big of a deal, it's a very simple job. there are only 3 bolts holding the diff to the car. very easy to replace, shouldn't cost much at all. i have a known good 4.11 rear diff I can mail you for $75 plus shipping. considering they almost never leak and most folks never have the fluid changed i definitely would not be paying Subaru for a new one. i would definitely replace it before going on a road trip, the bearings are bad. they could last 100,000 miles or 10. really no telling.

oh right, that's significant! so you'd have to fabricate (custom job) or buy an adapter plate, probably upping costs significantly. i guess they make adapter plates for EJ22's into EA vehicles, so it could work for the 3AT too? if an adapter was made, the 3AT torque converter would have to attach to the EJ22 flexplate or the EA82 flexplate would need to attach to the EJ22.

i'd just track down any oil leak you can and fix it. thing is - any EJ22 is going to shortly have oil leaks too. they always leak at valve covers, cam seals, cam orings, crank seal, oil pump, etc. you'll be tracking down and fixing oil leaks no matter what you do, so you're really not saving anything with the swap.