idosubaru

It's plug and play to install another system so I'm not surprised. The McIntosh system has 11 speakers so "they" say and an amplifier under the seat. Maybe ends up being a wash functionally but I think it's a bit different than others. I'm not an audio buff so I really don't care, I would love an AUX port but apparently Subaru has little desire to be cutting edge with practical things!

where have folks had problems? i know someone running this set up behind a 240 hp EG33, i've driven the car. it's actually an EJ trans with a bad case of torque bind! no problems for awhile now.

best bet is to just leave it running in RWD as you now have it. it's been discussed before so you could try and dig up some old threads about it.

A friends legacy needed a new converter, I bought one off ebay for $114 (shipping included) just a couple months ago. It was a direct fit OEM style, just bolted right up. Get the parts you need and have a shop install them. Problem with exhaust is rusted bolts, sheared bolts, etc. It's unlikely it's going to come apart easily. I had access to a grinder and a friend cut off all the bolts for us (my friends car i was working on). Without tools/time exhaust work is one of the more annoying jobs to attempt yourself. And don't forget your old converter is worth something at the scrap yards!

ha, no joke. i created a thread just for that reason not too long ago. fought with that thing too.

Will, if it's just one side then it's one (or two) HLA's on that side causing the problem, not the oil pump. Which is what I would expect anyway. If you do suspect the oil pump, that's much easier though so worth a shot if you have the time (which i think you don't?!). As for the seats, if you think that having them angled back would help it wouldn't take much to make some brackets to extend the front "higher" than it currently is and make the seats lean back a bit. The way subaru seats bolt in the front...well, period, lends itself to pretty simple fabrication to change the angles. With 250,000 miles the seat cushions are probably in poor shape too, huh?

Best bet is to have a muffler shop weld in some straight pipe for $50. Or - just cut the cat out and then have them weld the straight pipe in if they don't want to mess with emissions components. Heck, the converters were worth $125 each at the scrap yard last year, you could make money off the deal. Straight pipe is dirt cheap, just need an honest welder to do it for you for a reasonable cost.

2002 OBW has the McIntosh 6 disc in dash changer. What's the difference between that and other units, anything but cosmetics? Is there any reason not to just install another Subaru stereo? The WRX 6 disc changers are much easier to come by and it's a plug and play deal, I have a tape deck in there now.

i don't mess with CV joints, i always replace the entire axle, so i'm not sure what would cause that. maybe it's fine to leave it like that but i'd probably replace it, i'm not well versed in cv joints. so it came apart but the boot was still intact? that's why i'm confused, i didn't think this was a cv issue, because you never said anything about boots?

if you bolt the 4EAT up without any computer it'll run just fine...in 3rd gear and "locked" 4WD! it can be done because people have made their own paddle shifters/controllers for them. problem is that information is not widely available. there's a thread a few months old that talks a lot about building a paddle shifter and someone in that thread was well versed in that kind of stuff, might want to find that thread. the main thing it uses is the TPS. you could probably keep enough of the wiring harness from that to keep input to the trans?

i was addressing your #3 comment. if it's oil supply related then all the HLA's are subject to that, that's what i meant by the "whole engine". So you should here the HLA noise on both sides and it's more likely to change and be a bit variable. A bad HLA is very consistent in my experience and is only heard on one side. Back, in the day I've used ATF mixed in with the oil to free them up. Not that I'm recommending that, but I've done it.

The shoes were nearly identical to new ones, so I'm not replacing them. You just used brake caliper lube and put it anywhere there's metal on metal contact basically? I'll give that a try.

Dave is quite well versed in subarus, it is highly unlikely he is using the wrong marks. Not sure what the deal is. You swapped heads but retained cams? Is it possible something is wrong with the cam itself? Doesn't make sense but I don't know what else to make of this. If it's only appearing to be one piston/cylinder then I'd begin to expect somethign other than the block...heads replaced....so i'm tempted to look at the cams, though I can't suggest what to look for. Maybe you have another cam you can throw in it to test? Timing belt is the right one?

on the very few that i've seen the HLA's were seized. and by seized i mean they wouldn't budge even under a vice. i'm sure i could have Supermanned the thing to get it to move but i just trashed them and replace at that point. mizpah engineering or whatever that goofy named place is called sells rebuilt HLA's for like $5 each, well worth it as they're totally annoying to disassemble yourself. will - it should be obvious what the issue is. if it's oil pump/supply related it should affect the entire engine. on older gen stuff the ticking changes a lot and "moves" and is just generally variable a tiny bit. if it's an HLA it will be noticeable which side it is. that should save you the effort of yanking both sides at least.

that screw is just to let air out while filling through the normal radiator cap area. loosen screw just enough to let air out. sounds like you got it.

i disagree, i think.... you see, even if it's interference, something is wrong. interference EJ22's are easy as pie to do timing belts on, set cams and crank and install. that he's having issues like this points to something more ominous.

ha. actually i did, owned that car for many years and miles. randomly 4 out of 5 lug nuts sheared off almost instantaneously doing about 75 on I-85 through Charlotte. I mean, I'm sure it's something I did it's not like that "just happens", but i really have no idea what. It had hundreds, if not thousands of miles on it prior so I don't think it was just "not tight enough", but who knows.

could the switch be bad in such a way that they open but don't close? i'm not sure how that switch works but good point that it's part of the puzzle and one thing i haven't touched yet.

I don't think there's really anyone familiar with this here, but just in case, we're getting stumped on the XT board. My lights will open but not close (retract). If I manually retract them, they open just fine with the headlight switch and high beam switch. I've swapped out the control pods (with the light switches) - 5 relays, a timer, and checked the fuses/fusible links. They will neither open or close with the Retractor switch - a special switch for opening the headlights without turning them on. Even if I manually close them, they won't open like they should with this switch, though they open fine with the head light switch. But I already swapped out that switch, so that's not it.

BURP!!!! Check for air bubbles. EJ engines are notorious for having trapped air in the system!!!!! Do not drive this car until it's properly bled from your radiator change! Try and get the car to be "nose up" - meaning the front is slightly higher than the rear to help with bleeding. There's a bleeder screw (well on stock Subaru radiators, don't know about if you got an aftermarket one)> on the top passengers side of the radiator. It's plastic. Unscrew it and fill it up until fluid starts pouring out of that. Then tighten, fill at normal. Drive it around at least once, if not more, let it cool and fill some more.

Nah, you won't have to buy a new spindle. Worst case scenario if you can't get the bolt out is to drill a hole in the existing bolt (still stuck in the knuckle). Those bolts are huge, won't be hard to drill and tap for a smaller bolt. Like you probably did to get it to the shop, I've driven a vehicle with only one bolt holding the bracket to the knuckle. In my case it was because all but one lug nut sheared off at the same time on one wheel. I was hundreds of miles from home at 3am. Those caliper bolts were the same thread as lug nuts, so I removed one from each side to use as lug nuts. That gave me 3 out of 5 lugs to finish the trip.

Pad material is 2 pennies thick, but I've never seen new ones so I have no idea what I'm looking at. Shoes don't have any kind of wear indicators or marks on them to tell? Almost sure it was rear brakes - typical "disc brake" squeal that went away with ebrake. I'll grease those points with or without new shoes once I find out if these are good or not.

So this is my first drum brake work ever. OBS has had some minor squeaking for a long time from the rear brakes, like a year. I figured it just needed new shoes/pads. I took it apart today and they don't seem all that thin. Seems the pads are about 2 pennies thick - is that time for replacement or fine? How do you know when drum shoes need replaced? I have a spare set of hubs that I was told are low mileage and those shoes/pads look about the same.

torque bind and rust are about it. you need to limit your range to just first gen? you can look for 90-99, more than doubling your search and still find the great EJ22. got a friend his 1997 Legacy manual trans with EJ22 for $700 in one owner perfect condition, only 120,000 miles, brand new tires. literally an older couple that just bought a new car and didn't need it, were tired of driving a manual. best deal i've ever gotten and didn't need anything. the more you expand your search, meaning area too, the better your chances for a good deal.

the H6's and turbo's are great motors. hard to really say "turbo's have more problems" - they do have more hoses, coolant and oil lines and of course a turbo. but how many folks actually own vehicles long enough to see those things start to cause significant problems is probably small. the older turbo engines - definitely shy away from, but you're talking 20 year old parts and lots of abuse to cars that aren't worth very much.