idosubaru

still good info, differentiating the causes and symptoms helps.

i'm guessing you're using an XT6 flywheel on a non XT6 vehicle? if the distributor was never removed or moved, then the timing shouldn't be that far off to keep it from running. you don't have the goodies up front to time it off the crank pulley? if you have that stuff lying around or another vehicle you could at least swap just what you need to time it up front.

how many miles, does it run at all? how well does it drive once it's started? did it have this problem before the timing belt change and other work? i wouldn't throw parts at it. subaru fuel pumps can fail, but they don't fail very often. alot of people that don't know much about cars say "it's probalby a fuel pump". not saying you do'nt know much, but if that's what other people are telling you, they're probably wrong. i say that, because many people that bring their car to me say "my dad" or "i think" or "so and so" said it's probably the fuel pump. and it's never been the fuel pump, ever. one of mine needed replaced, still worked it just leaked because it was very rusty. if yours did leak somewhere you would likely smell it unless you have horrible allergies. there are other items that are more likely. first thing to do is to verify it has spark at each cylinder, fuel is coming out the fuel hose and the timing belts were aligned properly. did you use Subaru spark plug wires? EJ engines do not handle aftermarket wires very well. but if that's causing your problems it would likely show a check engine light "cylinder misfire". so, does the check engine light ever come on? if so, read the codes. do a diagnostic check on it as well. the coil pack, cam sensor or crank sensor are likely culprits as well. if this problem started happening after the timing belt and seal job then the crank and/or cam sensors are likely to blame since their right next to all of that stuff. check the coolant temp sensor for corroded connector plugs. replacing the fuel filter and PCV wouldn't be a bad idea either. PCV won't cause a no start condition though. well you originally asked about fuel pump...parts and labor will vary alot. $100 - $400 depending if you go used or new, dealer or not. they don't fail enough to justify buying a new one in my oppinion. i'd get a used one for $25 and swap it out. they are very easy to replace, so labor isn't insane, should be one hour of labor.

i had never heard of the choking problem, but i've never done an EA to EJ swap either. the EJ headers may look bigger because the heat shields are still intact, just a guess? the ones i have in my garage "seem" larger, maybe it's the heat shield, or lack of rust or me. did you start the car after bashing the honeycomb out? that's the best part...listening to it pop and sputter and shoot the remaining pieces out like a projectile. do not have anything valuable or breakable behind it after "cleaning" a cat out.

it wasn't mentoined because he said it happens at idle, so that would rule out the ujoints. but it's fairly common for these ujoints to go bad. always a good thing to be reminded of since they are easy to overlook. joost - i thought you fixed your shaking, it was a turbo line or vacuum something? i can't remember, but hope you get it figured out.

i like the pearl stuff, like pearl white on the XT6.

EJ stuff (impreza, WRX) will not work in the rear. completely different set up, design and construction. i guess with some serious fabrication, money, welding and metal, machining skills you could get it to work but i'm guessing that's not what you're asking. EJ stuff will not work in the front unless you do the 5 lug conversion. do a search, there are comprehensive write-ups on the 5 lug swap. read up on that before asking too many questions. if you got with a XT6 5 lug swap you'll be able to use EJ hubs and struts. i do not know for sure, but i am betting that an impreza rack will fit an EA82. i've installed XT6 power steering racks in EA82's and i use impreza WRX steering rack bushings on XT6 power steering racks...so they are at least very similar. my memory is vague but i think you'll need XT6 or EJ tie rod ends to work with an EJ or XT6 steering rack...but that's not difficult anywya and if you do the 5 lug swap first you'll already have XT6 or EJ hubs anyway for the tie rod ends to bolt to.

he might not be very familiar with subaru's or other 90's vehicles that came with updated headgaskets? it's best to stick with the Subaru updated gasket on this one. he's right, the heads will likely test fine, but being a second shot i'd try again. are you sure they were leaking from the headgasket and not the coolant ports on the intake gasket. if those were aftermarket (not subaru), they may have been very thin and sucky as well. if those leak, coolant ends up in the cylinders as well.

what gaskets did you use? subaru head gaskets are highly recommended for this application. the engine block or heads could be cracked or the intake manifold gaskets could be leaking. i wouldn't expect the block to be bad unless you ran it hot for an extended period. maybe you could have a machine shop pressure test the heads?

this variable control has been done before on a 4EAT. unfortunately he is not willing to talk about how he did it, but he essentially built a stand alone TCU for the 4EAT and could control nearly everything. i did talk to him about the duty C thing years ago and he mentioned it would work but wouldn't talk about it any more than that.

like nipper said, what you are talking about will make no difference to the transmission. i keep the difference even at the higher numbers. the manual says to check tire pressure after driving, not while cold.

wow, that's some stellar information right there.

when is the last time you changed the oil? if it's been awhile, change it. yes and no. it's not "needed", in the sense that ticking is not causing any damage and it's not a sign of anything bad. it is likely that new oil pump seals ($15) would cure the ticking. on rare ocassions a new oil pump will be needed to cure the ticking completely ($120). it's possible that the ticking is from high mileage, wear, or dirty HLA's and none of the above will cure it. in my experience resealing the oil pump usually does the trick. the only soob i've come across that a reseal didn't fix the problem was driven for a long time with a blown headgasket and had lots of water in the oil.

i need to check those hoses, maybe they are too prone to collapse?

is it agreeable that the statistics are so small that this isn't really a big deal? it's going to be hard to convince those of us that have done this for years and on many soobs with never an issue..except issues where the covers caused a problem. rather than take this discussion to mean everyone should do it, make your decision based on your situation. if you have snow packed up in your engine bay...then the real issue is something more than timing belt covers. underneath protection or a different vehicle are likely needed if you're getting all of that kind of snow packed up in there. one anecodotal incident does not make a trend. two issues without covers, and i've seen two with covers myself. and i know it's nice to have perfect covers, but that's not realistic....go bend one when it's 10 degrees outside, they break very easily. having snow packed up in your engine isn't a typical driving situation and likely doesn't apply to many people. i drive an XT6, maybe my skid plates or ground clearance help but i've never had that problem in all of the XT6's i've driven.

you don't have to worry, that's your choice. you assume this state of worry is necessary based on a biased oppinion, what you want and choose to do and zero personal experience. that the plastic is 20 years old, brittle and can fall apart isn't debatable. that's great that yours are in great shape and don't have any issues, i've worked on dozens of soobs and that is not the norm. i'm not about to replace them on every EA/ER vehicle i work on or drive. if they are in good shape and it's not my car i put them back, but that's not often the case. but i don't really care about this though either, there's really no way to statitistically quantify every possible failure mode and say one is more probable than another. stating the risks is one thing but assuming snow is going to blow your timing belt is a far stretch and seems misleading to people wanting good information.

if i wanted to make a hitch for my XT6, where would i get the 2" hitch part? like the 2" channel piece, is that a specific towing type, hitch part, or just any old generic 2" channel?

the bad catalytic converters i've seen ran like crap, but certainly worth a try. how about just disconnecting the cat for a week and see if your mileage goes up and that 4,000 RPM glitch goes away rather than spend a ton of money to replace the converter. how are the brakes? the last time i replaced my XT6 front pads and my OBS front pads, both got about 4 mpg after replacing the front pads and rotors. maybe they were dragging too much, i don't know.

turbone - i probably should check the fins in the condensor. i did a quick peak and nothing appeared out of the ordinary up front, but i never really looked in the fins. i have the ATF cooler in the way, but i've done that on numerous XT6's without issue. the radiator is definitely not the problem. same symptoms with two different radiators and this new radiator worked fine in my previous daily driver.

i'm with nipper, almost every XT6 i see with the original radiator needs a new one. of course start with the simple stuff - replace the thermostat with a subaru only thermostat, replace the radiator caps, and make sure you're not loosing coolant anywhere.

half way is not normal. 1/3 is about normal for an XT6. our overheating is not likely to be related since i've replaced everything in the cooling system that normally causes issue. if you're getting close to the red, you want to get on this fast. it will get worse before it gets better.

they should replace the water pump and timing belt as well since it's all apart any way, there's no extra work involved really. a new thermostat and radiator caps to complete the cooling system service. check all your fluids and drive away.

not knowing the history, i always put a new timing belt on a soob. if that's anywhere in the future for you then i'd plan on a new belt and you can reseal the oil pump then as well. be sure to do it right, replace all 3 items in the pump and use the right sealant in the right place. in my experience with these things, a reseal of the oil pump is more likely to cure your ticking than playing with your oil supply. even if additives/oil did help, it will most likely return in the near future. so if the mmo, seafoam, oil thing doesn't help just plan on addressing it with the next timing belt.

new water pump, hoses, Subaru OEM radiator, Subaru thermostat, radiator caps and no coolant loss. the thermostat and radiator caps have been replaced multiple times with no change in symptoms. both fans work and turn on, heater blows hot. did this last summer, but being winter it never got hot enough to matter. now that it's warming up the symptoms are back - the temp gauge drifts more than normal and will get high when climbing steep grades (interstates through the mountains) or when it's really hot and using the A/C. i occassionally find the radiator hose collapsed, but i've replaced the radiator caps multiple times, which is the typical cure for that. maybe i need a different hose? it has an XT bumper instead of an XT6 bumper, that wouldn't cause anything right?

i've never changed the oil immediately after adding MMO. but if it goes away after warming up, i wouldn't expect any oil treatments or additives to fix it. i agree with nipper and would add, change your oil frequently and don't run the car hot. has the oil pump ever been resealed?