idosubaru

agreed, that's a high price around here anyway. $150 for the last EJ engine i bought. 100,000 miles with warranty, it runs great. for the kind of money it sounds like you're going to put into this you'd be better off finding a complete car. you got room to keep a complete vehicle? it's not hard to find a rusted out, wrecked, or needing work car that runs and drives fine for cheap.

good point, you don't mind loosing 4WD? on the 4EAT's if you have both transmissions in front of you, you can "convert" a 2WD to 4WD i believe...assuming the 4WD components of the 4WD trans are good. not sure that you can do that with the 3AT though.

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EA vehicles had two distinctively difference auto trans - 3AT and 4EAT. you'll need to make sure they're both the same kind of auto trans. i think these will both be 3AT's, right? thumbs up or down someone? as for converting from 4WD to 2WD, that shouldn't be a problem, but answer that last question first.

while sitting still but engine running turn the steering wheel lock to lock a few times (all the way left and all the way right). does it make the noise then? or does it only do it when moving? does it sound like it's coming from the engine bay or the wheel area?

can you give us more information on the noises? keep in mind we can not see, hear or drive the thing. that makes it VERY difficult to diagnose. first and foremost - if you are positive the noise was never present and then only presented itself immediately after the first time he worked on the car...then something they did/looked at/worked on is the likely cause. if you have the bill - look it over and tell us everything they replaced or checked. describe the noise as best you can - when, how, does it go away, how loud, screeching, grinding, all the time, some time, does it go away when you gently press the brakes? give us as much detail as possible. minor differences in description can point to different components. is the noise you're hearing now, the same noise you heard before? what is all the work and parts replaced since you've had it? have the axles ever been replaced - the mechanic should be able to tell.

1997 Impreza OBS auto, ABS, AWD If I'm swapping from drum to disk brakes do I need to have the rear disc ebrake cable too?

ignoring 1999 and newer models: legacy has EJ22 up to 1995. some after that still have it too. impreza's have EJ18 or EJ22 up to 1998 (except RS and WRX impreza's). the rear is an XT6 only swap for 5 lug. if you want something else you'll need to do some research and/or just try it. there is no definitive way or information for doing a 5 lug without using XT6 stuff. keep in mind.....early impreza's and legacy's are super cheap vehicles. i think i'd rather put the money into one that's already converted or needs some work. they can be had for $0-$500 and will probably have half the mileage that yours has on it. considering you want EJ engines and 5 lug...that's really the easiest and cheapest way to go to get what you want.

a light but continuous coat of anaerobic sealant (or permatex as a substitute) for the oil pump. tighten any of the oil pump backing plate bolts that might have loosened, add lock tite to them if you like. tighten the oil pump to block bolts to whatever the FSM says. for engines out of the car i drill a tiny pilot hole, then use a self-tapping sheet metal screw to pull seals on subarus. be wary of damage . have fun!

woo hoo! did the old plugs look bad? wonder why there were two different kinds?

not surprised. i know other things can cause it but in my experience it has been plugs/wires 100% of the time. i've even seen brand new and fairly new spark plug wires cause cylinder misfire issues and driveability issues on EJ engines. i've never seen that happen with older EA/ER stuff. very common.

this is not carb'ed, it's FI. this may sound negative but i'm not telling you what to do - just some information. the EA82 is slow as balls, i wouldn't bother doing any performance mod's to it. the more you do and the less you get out of it, the more frustrating it will be. you'll never be satisfied if your goal is to make it fast. even the 6 cylinder XT6 which actually has some grunt is a waste of time for performance upgrades. now if you just want it to "look" or "seem" fast, then by all means tear it up. just make it whatever you want, loud exhaust, wing, whatever you like. the only kit that "might" fit is an RX body kit. they aren't easy to find. you have a great, reliable vehicle that is good for some excellent gas mileage. it is best to enjoy a vehicle for it's attributes rather than make it something it is not (apply this logic to lots of areas of life...like women and dating too). i have XT6 bits 5 lug bits but they won't sell cheap.

i could possibly have rear XT6 stuff shipped to you - i've shipped them to norway before! you'd need to contact me via PM or email if you're interested.

i wonder if testing of the ignition coil procedures are on here or you have an FSM to look for that? that should be an easy test to do. chances are very high that it's plug wire related. if it's running bad, try popping the hood in a very dark place and watching for sparks with the engine idling. have someone give it gas and keep an eye out. i think some people have recommended light spritzing of water to exacerrbate the sparks but i've never done that myself. #1 and #2 plugs and wires, is that too much work? those 90 degree holes are annoying for sure. grab another spark plug wire and swap it with the cylinder #2 wire, otherwise i can't think of a specific way of positively identifying the cause. if the plugs/wires are of uknown age/mileage i'd personally want them/recommend them be replaced anyway but i can understand that's not the best fit for everyone.

very good point. it comes down to how you feel and how you personally manage risk. (duck - made up numbers coming!!!) it's like the difference between .5% failure and %5 failure...not a huge quantity increase but still a 10 fold (%1000), significant statistical increase.

very easy. take note of the belt tension before loosening and try and get it back to about the same when you reinstall. loosen tensioner pulley face bolt first before loosening it....have to free it up so it moves. alt is easy - remove bolts holding it in - unplug - replace. sometimes the new one takes some persuading to get on over the ears, but real easy.

plugs, wires...when were they changed and what brand are they? EJ engines are notorious for having ignition issues, they are not nearly as forgiving as older generation engines. that being said the usual solution are new plugs and wires. the second solution is to make sure they are OEM plugs and OEM (or magnecor) wires. i've seen brand new and relatively new wires cause issues....best to stick with OEM Subaru on EJ engines. if that's not it you can swap in another coil. swapping plug wires and plugs can help determine the cause. if the problem moves with the plugs or wire then that's the culprit.

shaft will slide out of the rear of the trans. my preferred method is to remove the two carrier bolts holding that carrier to the underside of the car. then pulling it through the exhaust...tight, but they usually come out. could differ from different platforms though..leg, imp, FWD, AWD, etc. ATF dumps out once the shaft is pulled out of the trans - beware! you only need to shift into neutral right? there's a safety release mechanism under the shifter console cover. stuff a screw driver in there an dyou can shift now.

hands down i'd go with the 97 with a new ebay timing belt kit (just for the pulleys/tensioner) and subaru timing belt. 100,000 miles is a significant amount. a compression or leak down test on the 97 would seal the deal. compression can be done out of the car with some rigging or a leak down can be done for sure. if you do go with the 97 you might consider adjusting the valves too, should be cake with the engine out. good luck!

no kidding, thanks Gloyale!

did you have to drill? drill, tap, insert heli-coil and you're done? i've used helicoils before for other things but never done a spark plug. how do you keep the shavings out of the cylinder?

test, adjust, or swap in another TPS. clean and/or swap in another MAF.

you're probably better off that way anyway. EA82T's are problematic now due to age and issues.

has the power steering ever given you problems before or run low on fluid? go for the sound check edrach mentioned. can you tell if it's definitely on top the engine and not the timing belt components? if you can't and your 96 OBW has the original EJ25 in it then i'd get on this right away. the EJ25 is an interference motor and you could have a bad timing pulley bearing or tensioner. if one of those fail it could cause major engine damage.

each state has different laws. but either way it will never create a 'problem'. worse case scenario is some states mark the title for it. like "mileage not actual" or "mileage exceeds mechanical limits", and that will show up on car fax reports and stuff like that. but that's not big deal, it's just in place to protect buyers from unscrupulous sellers. they have various phrases but it all basically means what the odometer says isn't too be trusted as actual vehicle mileage. but it can't create any "problems" with the state, title, or buyer if that's what you mean. sell away and no worries (at least, so long as you're telling the buyers, which you are!). i was in crossville TN a couple weeks ago! got completely confused that it was in a different time zone, that was bizarre! i always forget how far west i'm going when i go south. up here - 5+ hours from time zone. in atlanta - 1 hour.