idosubaru

i'm not against spending more if it's something i can use. i just really don't know how/what i'll use it all for so it's hard to make a decision...freeze frame and seeing other data is stuff i don't even know how to do or use right now. i'll look around and see what's out there. thanks!

almost positive it'll be a 3.9 the only other possibility is 4.11..but not because it was offered just because i can't remember exactly. the manuals are the easiest to look up with a search. some plugging around here or on the internet will pull up a large spread sheet of all the manual trans final drive ratios. auto's are more difficult to verify.

no, definitely not. follow OB99W's suggestions above, or have the code checked again and tell us exactly what it is. if you ever have the codes read the best thing to do is to right down the actual code that the machine reads and let us know.

from your description it sounds like it is going too high (3/4). like others mentioned change the thermostat (use Subaru only on this one, the aftermarkets are tiny and far lesser in quality), and the radiator cap. when was the timing belt replaced? was the water pump replaced as well? keep us informed of other symptoms too.

i agree, sounds like the second one has issues. it sounds like the dedicated radiator fan is stuck "on". i think this usually means the thermosensor (i believe it's the only electrical gizmo that is screwed into the radiator - usually the lower passengers side i think?), anyway usually this thermosensor is bad or the contacts/electrical plug are just dirty. or the associated relay is shot/sticking. or the previous owner hard wired it. should be an easy fix, good luck!

definitely worth making sure it's not something simple but it wouldn't be that surprising for it to have a bent valve anyway. that there is no noise and it still runs doesn't mean much, it might be tweaked just a bit to keep it from seating flush against the valve seat. if i had to guess i'd still guess bent valve. yes the cam and crank sensors are relatively close to the cam sprockets and crank pulley. they're the only electrical gizmo's located directly behind these items, they typically have orange connectors and are very easy to find, the cam sensor is behind and on the upper side of the top drivers side cam sprocket. very easy to see and replace - one bolt and it's the only sensor back there that can read the cam position. i think it runs in 'closed loop' mode when it's warming up, so that's why you're not seeing any check engine light until it's up to operating temperature and goes into open loop mode where it's actually incorporating feedback from all the sensors.

in 1995 the auto's have an EGR set up and the manuals do not. i am fairly certain...and it looks like subaru360 knows what i am unsure of, that the 1996's are the same. the EGR issue is workable. just block off the EGR ports (one in the intake and one on the exhaust port of the head). that's not very hard to do at all. other than that it'll be a drop in swap.

right, i meant with the transmission - shifting and such. but this explains that: yep, that's torque bind. and this was the missing piece of information. this is what is causing your problems. you don't need to replace both axles, if money is tight just replace the bad one. when torque bind first starts usually you can change your fluid and make sure all your tires match and are properly rotated and you alleviate any further damage. back then it would have been a cheap fix. you can still try it, but by now the damage is probably done and a fluid change won't fix it. your AWD clutch pack is probably in bad shape and needs work. that's a rather expensive ordeal to pay someone to do it (roughly $500), the only good thing is that the transmission does not need to come out to fix it. the other good news is that your transmission isn't entirely hosed...if you did fix it and kept the fluid changed it may last the life of the vehicle. you have some options - you can run it in FWD - install the FWD fuse. this may or may not work since you've driven it so long like this. if it drives fine in FWD and eliminates the torque bind, then you're good. if it doesn't work you are essentially in "permanent" 4WD. you can remove the rear half of the drive shaft and just run your now "permanent 4WD" car in FWD. that's a FREE fix and the car will drive and perform flawlessly. i've done it. an even cheaper fix would be to remove both front axles and just drive it in RWD as it is. you would need to remove the outer joints and leave them bolted into the front hubs, but you'd entirely remove the axle, giving you RWD only. this would save you $175 for the front axles and "fix" your torque bind for now. you could easily drive it like this for a long time. i know people driving in RWD with transmissions that have torque bind. the FWD option is a better one though, i don't like the idea of relying on those clutch packs to continuously deliver all the power to the rear.

just shows the numbers? i want one that will tell what the code means as well. if it was just for my subarus' i could do without, but i work on family/friends vehicles so that will be a big help to just show me what the code is.

in my experience subaru's are not very drivable missing front axle power, i have experience twice, both in automatics. you can "move" them, but they exhibit very noticeable issues. i drove an XT6 around a little with one broken CV joint (BRAND NEW crap aftermarket axle a week old)... anyway, it would not drive properly. it would basically spin the front axle, then the rear would get more power and push it forward..then it would spin the front again...etc. it would rev, lock-up, move, rev, lock-up move...it's like the TCU was confused. it would move but not without noticeable confusion and erratic move/not move/move/not move type driving around in the parking lot. i got a 96 Legacy LSi this year with a bad front diff. it would do something similar...it would rev, you could hear the front diff spinning but not moving, then the TCU would kick more power to the rears and the vehicle would move. if you gave it too much gas it would spin the front diff...light on the pedal and it would maintain enough power to the rear to drive it. an interesting note for this guy - the ebrake, as WA mentioned, did not work in this Legacy. and certainly that would affect steering feel somewhat. but - i'm not sure how he keeps driving it without noticing anything else, that's confusing.

the 3.9 is annoying for highway driving as the RPM's are loud. but i doubt you're building this thing for highway driving! so why not drop the dual range in there?

if you have current TCU codes the POWER light should blink 16 times at start up...that is your "check engine" light equivalent for the TCU. does that light ever come on, i wonder if it's blown?

check your CV boots and ball joints - very easy to look at and see if the rubber is ripped or torn. might be obvious. does the steering ever seem to "drift" while you're driving? for instance while going straight it will seem to go right for a second? or does it have a slight delay in steering...turn and it seems to take a split second longer than normal? this would be warn out...or completely missing steering rack bushings. very cheap and very easy to replace. although it doesn't sound like you have these or other symptoms than when turning right. if it's only when turning right i would inspect the ball joints and tie rods. have the axles every been worked on - new boots, new axles, etc? and if so were the parts Subaru or other? if it's other - then that is almost certainly your problem.

does your POWER light blink 16 times when you first start the car? it would be a good idea to clear them all and check it again later, that is a bunch of codes. have you ever had any major work done to this vehicle - requiring engine or transmission removal?

i'm going to be picking one of these up this week. i want one that shows the code and interprets it for you, looks like they can be had in the $50-$100 range. any feedback?? that ebay link is dead, if you have any info on the kind/brand/vendor, let me know.

sounds sort of normal. not sure if different years have different responses but 10 minutes seems a bit long considering it hasn't been brutally cold in morgantown yet. i have a 97 impreza OBS and it has not seemed to take that long to shift into 4th, but maybe i just didn't notice. i'm in morgantown now as well. if you ever needed me to look at something for you we can probably arrange that. if it does the same thing every time, then you don't have anything to worry about, if it starts changing and acting differently then that would be odd. i would check the fluid level and flush/replace the ATF as well if you have no idea when it's ever been replaced before. does this car have an external/alternate transmission cooler on it? that may delay it getting the temps up in the winter?

i have a new suspicion - where did you get those driveshafts and did the vibration start or get worse after you replaced those? i think one of those could be your problems. and yes they will vibrate under load and make noises, it will be the inner joint (by the transmission) that's causing this. if you got anything but Subaru or MWE axles then this is my guess. if so you need to fix it now or else they'll blow apart your speedometer gear inside the transmission, it's only plastic and is very close to the front cv axle stubs. all that vibration will break it. if bushings/mounts are bad enough to cause really bad play they can cause metal to metal contact. i have seen seized ujoints on the driveshaft that would cause severe vibrations under load but then get much lighter when off throttle or coasting (this was an automatic).

there is most likely some valve damage, it definitely won't go away with time. but just in case check these items: compression test may be off if the cams and crank aren't aligned perfectly. i would make sure those marks are dead on. if you removed any of the cam sprockets, then make sure you didn't accidentally put the wrong cam sprocket on the wrong cam (someone else just did that recently). wires are more likely be the culprit for cylinder misfires then spark plugs - try swapping the wires and see if the misfire stays with the cylinder or moves with the wires. did you use NGK spark plugs. on this motor you should only use NGK plugs and OEM Subaru wires. if it is bent valves and you plan on fixing, at least you'll have new head gaskets too.

the Ej25 doesn't typically blow by throwing white exhaust out the tail pipe. did you have any other symptoms? it may have just been condensation in the pipes being blown out? any overheating? if it's not overheating it's probably nothing. if for some odd reason the gaskets are bad...the EJ25 is not to blame. the job wasn't done correctly if they blew in 200 miles, i'd go back to the mechanic that did the job. were the heads milled and what gaskets were used - Subaru or aftermarket? this is one vehicle that should only have Subaru parts for the head gasket. if it comes to it you do not want a used motor...JDM, USDM...anything. either way you're paying a grand for the same basic head gasket issue, bad gamble in my opinion and more importantly, my experience. have it fixed properly or swap to an EJ22. the EJ20 swap is far more work, the EJ22 is a bolt in affair, with no custom work needed, just a couple simple tricks to keep it easy. send me a note - auto/manual, mileage and a picture, basic details if you want to sell it.

did you replace the pilot bearing as well, i only see throw out bearing listed? i've seen those in very bad shape...very rough and no grease in them, even on late 90's, low mileage Subarus.

rumbling/grumbling is often wheel bearings or ujoints in the driveshaft.

okay i guess i missed the forester differences too todd. didn't realize there was that much difference and i don't have a ton of experience with those later SOHC EJ25's. the impreza OBS had 99 EJ22's as well, and yes a goofy motor they are - plugs in the side unlike the older EJ22's. but i have no idea if they'll swap. the best bet is to swap the engine wiring harness onto the intake manifold that you want (which here is the EJ22). this is much easier to do if you have them to compare though, like i happen to have for my project, verses looking for the motor you want to buy. i just bought it with the idea that i would figure something out.

why not use it? i mentioned this in an earlier post. if a non-EGR EJ22 works, then an EJ22 with the EGR will work as well. just block off the EGR port in the exhaust port of the heads. if for some reason it doesn't work all you would have to do is swap intake manifolds which is easy on EJ's...but it will. actually that's what i am doing right now, except the other way around. i'm installing a non-EGR and non-compliant charcoal canister EJ22 manifold (it doesn't have the canister lines in the engine bay) into an originally EGR equipped vehicle. if i don't like it for some reason i'll just swap the manifold to an actual EGR equipped manifold to simplify things, but i don't plan on needing to do that. so i'm doing exactly what you could do with an EGR equipped EJ22 (with the EGR removed). NO - your EJ25 manifold will not fit on an EJ22. you get an entire EJ22 engine assembly (entire engine and intake manifold) and drop it in your car, it's a plug and play. the plugs/wiring are identical, it just plugs right in. there's no need to swap ECU's, disregard those comments from people they're just guessing and making stuff up. if for some reason you want to keep your existing EJ25 intake wiring and such you can swap everything over to the EJ22 intake manifold. all the wiring and fuel rails and such will swap to the EJ22 manifold. not sure why you'd want to do the extra work but i suppose yours may have fewer miles (but i would just have the injectors rebuilt) or technically it would be "nice" to have actual EJ25 injectors and rails, but it doesn't really matter.

impreza's had them up until 2001. but only the OBS or sedan, not the RS or WRX obviously. search online car parts or subaru parts sites and you can figure this stuff out.

yes the 1995 will bolt up, but it won't be exactly the same. your bellhousing will have 8 bolt holes where any EJ22 prior to 1999 will have 4. but those 4 bolt holes line up with 4 of the 8 in yours so you can make it work just fine. you'll have one bolt holding the starter and can leave it like that...or drill and tap for the second one. if you want an "exact" 8 hole drop in then you'll need a 9 hole EJ22 which i guess means you'll be checking out 1999 and up EJ22's. not worth the trouble and narrowing your pool of possible EJ22 candidates and you get a more annoying motor (the 99+ EJ22's). of course you'll have to make sure any 99+ EJ22 has those 8 bolt holes (can't recall if that's an EJ25 change only) and you'll definitely need to make sure it's a non-EGR engine. i'm not sure what 99+ EJ22's are EGR or not.