idosubaru

yes that splash plate can easily be removed from under the car with very little work...at least if we're thinking about the same part. i'm not sure what i'd call it, but i think it's the part you're tlaking about. right under the bellhousing access hole under the car? just bend it back in shape, or remove it, bend it and reinstall or put another one in ( from your old trans since you did a swap)? they get bent often, they're very thin and only attached by two bolts. as for trans removal, if it's any comfort it wouldn't have been any quicker pulling the engine. if it took long, it's because it was your first time or you fumbled around with things, things that would have been the case pulling the engine as well. but it sure would have been less annoying not being on your back, little room, and rust and dirt falling in your face.

check the PCV system for sure. use Subaru seals only, i had a Fel-Pro seal do the same thing last summer. i've had 39 out of 40 Fel-Pro seals do just fine, but one didn't seat well. the crank seal is installed int he oil pump, if that's compromised at all then a new seal will never seat right. i doubt this is the issue though as it would have happened after a seal replacement...not prior to. they are right to replace the timing belt, the brand new belt i installed last summer on my friends car that began leaking only last 10,000 miles tops because of being oil soaked. his was non-interference so not a big deal, i replaced it. but yours is an interference engine, if that belt breaks your engine is toast. that wobbling crank pulley is common, but it's hard for us to say much about it without seeing it. could be bad, could be tolerable, could be fine.

not sure what yours are like but check your existing backing plates and bolts - you might have a BEAR of a time if they're rusted at all like they get out this way. spray some PB Blaster on them multiple times over the course of a week or more and hope for the best. Definitely use a 6 point socket and if they're really bad you might have some sheared or rounded bolt heads to contend with.

thanks guys. ordered mine today. found a place in PA that had it, so hopefully it doesn't take long!

If Subaru units are priced well, then get them from an online dealer unless your local dealer gives you "online" pricing. Subarupartsforyou.com or a few others are fine to deal with.

Some very important questions. What vehicle or engine do you have? the H6 engine doesn't have a timing belt - it has a timing chain. The next question would be which belts are you talking about - drive belts or timing belts - or all of them? The timing belts (if equipped) are IMMENSELY more important than the drive/accessory belts. If the the timing belt breaks you'll be needing a new engine or thousands of dollars in repairs. It is due for replacement at 105,000 so i'd plan on doing it very soon. You can not see this belt, it is hidden behind the timing belt covers and is not a part you inspect - it's replaced at 105,000 miles (at the most), earlier on cars that aren't driven much (the belt gets old). The drive belts, well just pop your hood and have a look at them. And not a big deal, if they break there's no major engine damage costing thousands of dollars. But if they're cracking or glazed then replace them.

what's up alleyboy! do you mean you're wanting to put 2WD rear disks on 4WD rear drum or 4WD rear discs? if the 4WD is already discs it's a straight swap. and you mean EA82 to EA82?

what's up alleyboy! do you mean you're wanting to put 2WD rear disks on 4WD rear drum or 4WD rear discs? if the 4WD is already discs it's a straight swap. and you mean EA82 to EA82?

where do we find the Motive product that will work on a Subaru? i didn't what i was looking for on that site or ebay.

that's mentioned often on this forum, but often times it's not an issue as the cost of turning in many areas is prohibitive or inconvenient. where i used to live auto shops quit doing it and machine shops charged $50 minimum, hardly worth the down time and running around, when you can just go buy new ones. i have only used new rotors, i don't think i've ever had a set turned though i did mic a set two weeks ago and would have for those if they were in spec.

the dog smell would be the deal breaker for me as well. maybe it's amplified by being shut up and unused for so long, but who's to tell. foul pet odors typically do not go away. i will say your mechanic is not even close by suggesting the tank, pump, and injectors will probably need to be replaced. i highly doubt that. the sitting for 3 years part wouldn't scare me that much.

awesome, EJ22T-ness at your feet! had you covered on the first reply!

wow that sounds really bad. sounds very strange too, noises and all. you didn't answer my question about the belt marks or actual engine marks, so i'll assume it's the engine marks you're referring too.

which timing marks are off? if you mean the marks on the belts - those do not "stay" lined up. they are lined up when first installed and based on geometry they only actually line up every so many revolutions. if you mean the actual cam sprocket/crank marks are indeed off then that's wrong. why not just line them up properly, that's far easier than a motor swap. the 2.5 motor is fine, keep it if it's running fine and is easily fixed. but that is very suspicious someone would install the belts wrong? hmm 99 is a cross over year - different models had different 2.5's. the DOHC EJ25 is easier to swap over than the SOHC. but in 1999 the bellhousing did change so the engine and trans bolt patterns are different. that being said, it's no hard to get around that. enough of the holes line up that you can make i work, you just won't use all the holes. and the starter will only have one bolt holding it in place unless you create the second....something like that. it's doable.

unless dealer springs are really cheap i'd just get some used ones and test them if you're worried about it. springs and valve train in general are not things subaru's typically have issues with.

dave said something about a "Motive" product, but i haven't looked or ordered yet. i know there's a few out there. i think they're on ebay.

i have compressed air, but i'm going to go ahead and buy a unit to do that pressure bleeding. dave PM'ed me about one and said they're great. they're that much better i suppose? for $50 i can't go wrong if it'll be easier to do myself.

thanks for being understanding. my original suggestion did sound too "easy" and that's not what i meant, so it needed correction. even though we still may disagree slightly on rotor maintenance, that was a very important clarification. i don't use any rotors under spec's (tossed a set away before my current brake job last week). obviously this guy has $500 so it doesn't matter. i buy new rotors all the time (last week for my OBS and last year for my XT6). but there are people that can't or won't afford to do that. rotors in spec and not grooved will work well. maybe not %100 factory spec. but how many 10+ year old cars do? there's plenty of other things that decrease braking distance and are far more dangerous as well...cheap tires, not bleeding fluid, extra weight in the vehicle, and more...all very common and all get virtually zero air time.

make sure the ebrake drums or disc brakes aren't dragging on that side. i just had wheel bearings replaced and there's still a roar back there. so either it wasn't the bearings or the shop did them wrong.

on the ABS unit - Nipper says they're a pass through design and shouldn't require bleeding or hold air? but of course i saw the endwrench article.

Well I properly bled the system today and the brakes are still spongy. Better but spongy, still really bad. Didnt' really see any air coming out of the lines though? If I pump the brakes it stops noticeably better, much better. Is that a sign of MC failure or bubbles still? That makes sense now about sequencing the hydraulic unit. The article should say that if a rocket scientist can't figure it out on first glance. I tried cracking the lines on it since there's no actual bleed screw for it, but that's obvious not how to do it.

i should have clarified that, but it's not bad advice. i never said "keep them"...i asked and suggested: i was having a discussion and asking questions, awaiting his reply. this is a "discussion board" - not an "online repair manual" - that's how i treat it. i'm hear to help this guy through a discussion about his problem. otherwise he can get the Subaru FSM or go to endwrench and get a step by step there. i didn't go into details i was awaiting his response to the condition of rotors...i'm having a conversation with the guy, not writing a documentary on all and every possible failure mode, solution, and problems that might be encountered along the way. it's not bad advice because rotors don't need replaced with every brake job....i'm awaiting his response to see if they actually need replaced. but you are correct - i should have qualified that for the average joe that doesn't know any better. that's over stated in the context of this thread. we are talking about the rotor...not the brake system as a whole. not replacing the rotors will never cause an accident if everything else is properly done. and stating liability issues with insurance companies is ridiculous as well, that's closer to "scare tactic" than it is reality. it's not even remotely on the radar screen of possibility. there are more important and ignored safety items on a vehicle...tie rods come to mind. i would take a used rotor any day over a used tie rod. ever seen a car loose a tie rod? ever seen a car loose a rotor? but thanks for clarifying that and steering it straight. it's definitely an important item to take seriously, although we may disagree about the replacement interval of the rotor.

are you sure you need new rotors? if you don't have vibration when braking (warped rotors), i would recommend considering keeping your rotors. if they are madly damaged or gouged and shedding metal that's one thing, but this GREATLY simplifies the job and works just fine. to replace the rotors you need to remove the caliper and bracket, not just the caliper. if the rotors have worked fine for the past year and stop fine, your braking will only be better if you get new pads. i recommend ceramics. to replace the pads you'll need to swing the caliper up. the caliper doesn't necessarily need removed. it is connected to the bracket with with two bolts or a bolt and a pin. there are a couple different styles, but they're all basically the same. on my Legacy's all it takes is one bolt - a 14mm and the caliper swings up on the other side which is pinned. on others you need to remove two bolts to get the caliper off. with the arm swung up (or removed if you have to remove two bolts), look at how the old pads are installed and arrange your new ones so you know how they are to be installed (one usually has a metal tab, so orient that properly). now compress your pistons, you'll need to push them back to make room for the new and thicker pads. to do this - first open the master cylinder cap. that's the reservoir where you add fluid. open the cap to let the pressure release when you press the pistons in. if you don't that fluid pressure has nowhere to go and things (the master cylinder) will break. also - when you press the pistons in the level of fluid in the reservoir will increase - i use an oversized eyedropper to remove fluid or papertowels to soak some up if i don't have that handy. you'll notice rubber boots at both caliper contact points - whether it's a pin and a bolt or two bolts. i either remove the pins inside them or slide the caliper off the pin (depending which style)...bascially just get access to those rubber boots to regrease them. use CALIPER grease ONLY. do not use any other kind of grease. buy it at any auto parts store and i'd buy a bottle, not those tiny packets they have at the counter, those aren't nearly enough to have. if you end up doing the rotors...be prepared for two very difficult to remove bolts. sometimes they come right off, sometimes they are a real beast. i had the toughest one i've ever seen yesterday. sprayed it with penetrating oil (PB Blaster), hit the surrounding area with a torch and needed a 2 foot pipe as an extension for it to come off. if you decide to do the rotor - the small holes to help remove the rotor are 10x1.25mm threaded holes. stop by lowes or home depot and buy two bolts that are 10x1.25 mm threads....or just steal one off the car somewhere - all subaru's have a zillion 1.25 thread pitch bolts on them, you'll just need one that's 10mm. being your first time it would be nice to have one ready. thread those into the hole to help loosen the rotor. good luck!

sequence control? that's ridiculous - it doesn't even tell you why that insane amount of tinkering is necessary. i still can't find anywhere that says how to bleed the ABS unit itself. and what's all this talk about "secondary blah blah blah first"...why not just TELL ME. spit it out you goobs?!? tell me the bleed order, don't talk about it. i'm starting to hate ABS even more than i do in the winter!

i don't even know what that is or if i'd know how to use it properly? seems like i'd see it if it were a leak, i know where most of the hoses/connections are...but i should double check all of those.