idosubaru

good job pulling the codes, that's a tricky process on the ones i've seen. check the fluid first. the transmission speed sensor is located on the rear extension housing, i believe it's an external sensor and you can probably test it fairly easily. maybe you should check the connections first (make sure it's plugged in and the wires look good) from under the car. it's very close to where the rear driveshaft slides into the transmission. test continuity of the sensor and it's resistance and see if it matches what someone else gets off of a good unit. someone here probably have one lying around they can test for you to compare too. i'm not sure where to get those spec's from. maybe it's in the FSM too if someone wants to post that.

you will not find your problem here, i'd look elsewhere.

he installed the transmission? did it do this before the trans install? if it didn't do this before the transmission was installed then it's certainly something related to what the install. transmission mounts and pitch stopper all need to be checked. motor mounts as well. basically anything related to the transmission install or any other work he did.

most of the lower priced versions are underdrive pulleys. i was looking a few months ago and found nothing for stock sized pulleys on the cheap. i'd price stuff out before cutting your own. if you can come up with low priced stock dimension pulleys (and not the under-drive ones that saturate the market now), i'm in. if you're interested in under-drive pulleys (smaller than stock), they are indeed a dime a dozen.

it could last 1,000 or another 100,000 there's no way to put a number on it. if it's wasn't large pieces i'd be inclined to say it would go in the 10's of thousands of range...10,000 or more but who knows i certainly wouldn't be surprised if it ran a week. be nice to know what they are saying. aluminum or not? if it's aluminum and you can pinpoint some cylinder wall issues that aren't too sever the car will run nearly as long as you want to maintain it, assuming you replace any oil it wants to burn. if it's bearings....ah, not long.

dealer quoted my cousin $699 last summer for a timing belt job. so yes, you could easily be gouged. i did it for cost of parts only and the total came to about $300-$350 i think and i did it right. i replaced the timing belt, water pump, thermostat, timing belt pulleys, oil pump seals, cam seals....you get the point. dealers quote did not include all of that which i think should be done. your 2.2 is the last year for the non-interference 2.2 so if your timing belt did break there is no chance of damage to the engine. so if you wanted to keep plugging along in it you can. have the plugs, wires, PCV valve, and thermostat replaced as part of your tune up. cost will vary. be absolutely certain to use Subaru OEM wires and NGK plugs. NGK's are probalby $40 at Subaru, same exact plugs are probably $15 at the local parts store. you don't have to have it done by subaru, i never do, but always use Subaru replacement wires for this motor and the 2.5. this is not a dealer required service either, any competent mechanic can do it. these items along with an air filter and fuel filter would run in the $150-$300 range depending on all the possible variables. ask around (on here or word of mouth) for reputable local mechanics for sure.

even later 2.5's have HG issues. issue went from initially an internal head gasket then an external head gasket leak for which subaru dealers use the "conditioner", a coolant additive, to treat. not sure on the last year the 2.2's were available either. in general manual transmissions are much simpler by default and have fewer issues. auto's have the "torque bind" issue but are otherwise quite reliable as far as automatic transmissions go. get an aftermarket transmission cooler if you ever do get an auto trans...that goes for any vehicle not just subaru. at $30, it's great insurance. many transmission shops install them with new transmissions for just that reason. the 2.5's are great motors and not a bad choice at all, but they dont' carry the reputation of the 2.2's either.

look at the latest model 2.2 you can find and see if you like it. see if you can tolerate the year/body style then you'll have an awesome car that will last just as long as any other used car you're going to end up with and they have fewer issues. cheaper and more reliable if that's what you want. type in "headgasket" on the search forum and see how many 2.5 head gasket threads you'll see. i'm not saying the 2.5 is terrible but i'd rather have the 2.2 since it has far fewer isses and awesome reliability back to the early 90's. the reliability aspect isn't confined to "models" as they all use same/similar engines and transmissions. reliability is more accurately split into 2.2 vs. 2.5 and automatics vs. manual transmission.

i checked part numbers between non-turbo and turbo subaru's i have lying around and the MAF sensors were identical. the part number is printed large on the side of the MAF, have a look and see. i bet they swap.

the rear main seal, torque converter seal and rear seperator plate gasket should all be replaced at the same time. less than $20 in parts, a few hundred in labor. $300 - $600 depending on area/mechanic. check around for prices, this is a very straight forward job that anyone can quote. any BS and hang up and go elsewhere. i'd check a transmission shop as well, some will only charge $150 to swap a transmission (you provide the transmission_...my point being that's all that's required to replace the rear main seal basically. either the engine or trans has to come out to get to it. after that's it's under an hour labor. if they'd do a trans swap for $150 they'd do a rear main for $200/$250. i'd consider that a very good deal.

i've only owned about 15 of these things and sold a bunch so what do i know? seriously though we do live in entirely different markets, but here's what i'd do. it's all about time and what your time is worth. first - the severity of the rust is important. the rusted car will sell if it's sheet metal and not too terrible. you can work on that some yourself. if it's not safe and that bad then this isn't a good option. if it's really bad then you want the other car to be able to move on it's own power. you have a bad transmission? well if time is an issue swap in the AWD trans and lock DUTY Solenoid C (VERY easy) and run it in FWD. you won't need to swap the rear drive shaft, rear suspension (very large job and the mounting holes are not always there), and rear hubs, etc. that would save a ton of time, but you won't have AWD. if you have the time swap the AWD stuff over and sell it..hopefully at a better price if AWD is a good thing down there. the TCU should swap no problem, the wiring harness i would guess should be the same. might want to check and make sure all the pinouts are there before you start the swap and decide if there are any wiring issues (i'm guessing no) and if you got the time for those issues if they are present. there's a guy in colorado right now dying for a XT6 motor if you're willing to sell a good one. he just threw a rod.

the TCU (transmission computer) won't use the ABS sensors, so no worry for your transmission. remove the ABS sensor from the old hub and install just the sensor on the wiring harness plug. no need to install it in the hub, just install the sensor so the computer sees the proper resistance in line. or you could measure the resistance of the ABS sensor on the other side and plug a 25 cent resistor into the wiring harness plug for the missing sensor and the computer will be happy. also you can just unplug the wiring harness plug from the computer to get rid of the light. i can't tell you where the ABS computer is though. usually you can find a plug for the computer somewhere easy like above your feet by the fuse panel, just have to know which plug it is. i wouldn't worry about the mismatched tire pressure. it is a bad thing, but that one instance should not kill your transmission unless you're really unlucky. i towed one 700 miles (without addressing anything AWD related, tried but the shaft wouldn't come off) and it's still driving excellent to this day. i don't recommend it, i don't do it on purpose but....i wouldn't consider it the end of the world.

bam, what he said. he's got you pointed right. let us know what you find out.

make sure the coolant reservoir and or the hose it has running to the radiator aren't leaking. they are very weak systems. i've had a number of older subaru's that didn't even have a working overflow tank. to this day i don't know how or why that is, but i've definitely driven a subaru before that for 100,000 miles would never have any coolant in that reservoir but the motor was fine, no coolant loss. a new radiator cap might not be a bad idea. they can leak tiny amounts only when warm. of course i wouldn't expect any of this on a 2003 with only 40,000. that being said, i'd keep a close eye on it heat is nothing to worry about.

i'm not a mod but you'll find what you need here: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=25

here is a way to "recondition" your existing TPS: http://xt6.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5525

some places sell rebuild kits of master cylinders. i'd imagine a rebuild kit may contain the same seals RHD LHD. http://www.thepartsbin.com http://www.rockauto.com and possibly subaru OEM? might be worth trying to find a rebuild kit than a RHD master cylinder. there isn't much to a master cylinder. i 've never had one fail so i haven't done it yet but i did rebuild a caliper for the first time and was amazed at how easy it is, ended up doing a couple of my vehicles as prevenative maintenance.

i'd avoid JB weld, vibrations do kill it. i like his idea. seems like removing the pan might be the way to go to get to the threads from the bottom. the filler bolts so low and close to the pan seems like you should be able to get to it.

anyway to install the purge control solenoid from the 2.5 to the 2.2?

if you're looking for another reliable 100,000 miles you'd be good to replace the timing belts, oil pump seals, cam seals, crank seal and repack the timing pulley bearings or buy new ones. i do all the stuff at the same time when i go in there, doesn't take long at all and it's all in about the same spot. if the cam seal starts leaking then you're pulling the timing belts back off to replace it. here's a write up i did on repacking the bearings: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=50430 it's trickier on the EA82 as the bearings are more hidden than those pictures i posted which are off an XT6. although the XT6 pulleys are way more expensive than the EA82 which led me to doing that to begin with. if you don't want to do all that, leave the seals if they aren't leaking and don't reinstall all the front timing belt covers, leave them open. this will allow easier maintenance if you need to go in there again. personal preference, i and others do it, but some find that appauling. good, clean battery contacts/terminals, radiator cap and thermostats are cheap insurance. the coolant temperature sensor connectors get dirty and cause issue. for now, remove the wiring harness connector from the sensor (it's right next to the thermostat housing i think). look for green corrossion or general dirtiness. that will soon cause problems if it's there. good cooling system - if the radiator doesn't look like it's going to last as long as you plan on keeping it, then replace it. better to replace now and never again than have it blow on you in the next year or two and cause overheating/engine damage. a new one should last as long as you keep the car. 20 year old gaskets don't like to overheat, takes one time to blow your head gaskets and cause serious engine issues. new radiator, water pump and thermostats are great insurance against that. change your oil often. these motors have hydraulic valve lash adjusters. let your oil get dirty and they will get noisey. keep your oil clean and they treat you much better. change your transmission fluid/oil.

i'm sorry...i'm not sure about the hubs. i do not know at all if the impreza or legacy hubs will work. my thinking was off when i was first answering your questions. if you have both cars, it shouldn't be too hard to find out and i'm sure lots of us here would be very interested to know if this works or not. someone else here will know.

you don't need any special tools. there is information on here about holding hte cam sprockets in place. definitely replace front and rear seals at a couple dollars each no big deal. no need to replace the oil pump, just the seal.

gut tells me master cylinder as well. from what i've seen master cylinders can go out on rare occassions after alot of brake work...bleeding, pumping, leaking all put a little more strain on the system.

the 2.2 doesn't have a purge control solenoid? the car should run fine without the EGR system installed. have you attempted to start it yet?

if it's EA81 block and heads then the heads are certainly interchangeable. if they are EA82 blocks and heads then they are also interchangeable. as far swapping between EA81 and EA82 i don't know.