idosubaru

i have a picture of the connector posted here: http://www.xt6.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1560&highlight=air+suspension+light that way you don't have to remove the seat and carpeting to get to the computer.

that's normal for the height switch to blink with the front disconnected. the light blinks if there is a problem. the computer thinks there is a problem because the fronts are not operating. once you convert the rears to coil overs you can unplug the computer and no more air suspension lights. the computer is under the seat. but an easier plug is found by the fuse box.

answer this - does the car vibrate at all? if it doesn't, then i doubt this vibration is u-joint related. i'd hate to see you replace the driveshaft and the vibration still be there. he is correct in saying the u-joints are not replaceable. they are staked in non-replaceable u-joints. i have actually replaced them before, ROCKFORD makes a ujoint that will work and is designed specifically for replacing these staked in "non-replaceable" ujoints, but it requires someone willing to do the work which your mechanic will not want to do. my Subaru has Rockford Ujoints on it now, but it's not something a mechanic would know how to do probably. this is not a common issue for the ujoints to go bad. i'd get a used drive shaft. should be able to find one for $100 or less. actually....i'd make SURE the driveshaft is the cause before wasting time and money on it. again...does it ever vibrate while driving? or just make noise?

of course it can be done. with time and $ you can do whatever you want. i've looked into it and haven't found any that would be an easy bolt-on and i have plenty of spare parts so i didn't go to far with it.

that's where i got mine too! so i tested it again last night. how does this thing work anyway, my CD player has never worked. turns out, i can't even insert a CD. when i push the CD or TAPE button nothing happens. When i push load nothing happens. Tape player works if i push the tape in. since mine has never worked, how does the Load and CD button work?

can we see a picture of how it's fitted? does it have any hydraulics or controls to raise/lower, tilt or adjust side to side? i bought a snow plow a couple weeks ago....

change your own filters, leave the grease gun in the barn next to the carb. you won't need it. is that geeky enough or do i need to elaborate!

i don't recall needing to remove the cam sprocket and rear timing cover to do the 2.2's and 2.5's i've done but that could be bad memory.... i did a couple last year.

i would post exactly what is needed here and we can comment on that. on the driveshaft - why is that needing replaced? a bad driveshaft will result in very noticeable vibration at certain speeds. if there's no vibration i wouldn't believe it needs replaced unless i saw it. every bad driveshaft i've ever seen (u-joints fail) vibrates at some speed. if it had to be replaced, source a used one on the board here, he may be quoting a very high priced new or used unit up there. you can get a driveshaft for 50-100 bucks. and they are very easy to replace, an hour labor. on the CV - don't replace it if the $ bothers you and you're not keeping the car awhile. on fronts...i've driven 50,000+ miles with broken boots. on rears i've gotten 100,000+ miles on ripped boots and i've never heard them make any noise (still on there). CV boots aren't worth replacing in my oppinion. there's a chance if the inside boot breaks that the grease spatters on the exhaust and smokes a little, no harm but really annoying. if you can ignore that smoke or don't have it, don't have the cv axles replaced. if you do replace them, get subaru only as the aftermarket ones you get at shops are horrible quality and will break when new (do a search on this board, it's happened to a number of people, including me). and by break i mean the entire axle will break, not just the rubber boot. subaru OEM axles never break. what gaskets are leaking and how bad? loosing a quart of oil between oil changes is tolerable if it's not dripping on the exhaust and smoking or leaving marks on the driveway. if you can forgo some uneceesary repairs this car can last you quite some time and reduce that price tag. good luck.

dealer number 1 will deny fault. my guess is they screwed something up. did they say for sure if the oil level/pan was EMPTY? oil all over the engine could have happened over time or right when the motor failed all at once. any mention of coolant/oil mixing. just curious, none of this would probably tell much. i'd search this board as well, most get charged $1,000 - $1,500 for a complete head gasket job. $3,500 is absolutely insane, i'd be very stern about fixing this motor with that kind of money in it. i'd search this board and print all the dealership head gasket replacement jobs that people have had done for $1,500 and ask them what the difference is. kind of late for that, but i wouldn't trust them. i'd have someone (not the dealer) install a used motor for you. grab a 2.5 liter for about $1,000 - $1,500 or install a 2.2 in it's place for $500-$1,000. 2.2 won't blow head gaskets. good luck with it, hope you get good results. i can't recall the cam cover and how it would be installed backwards, maybe someone with a more recent memory can add to that.

i tried multiple CD's, but i'll try again. before and after i blow compressed air inside it.

was there a fix, what did you end up doing? sounds like a cleaning of some sort isn't a bad idae. i'm thinking blast it with the air compressor.

mine does the same thing and i can't figure it out. i'll replace it at some point, but would be awesome if there was a "fix".

head gasket - search the forum like mentioned above. tons of info and this is a weekly if not daily topic. for the 2.5 liter of your vintage.

tire balance. shouldn't change much, it would always be there and the same. if it's AWD the driveshaft ujoints can cause high speed vibration as well when they first start going bad. this will get noticeably worse over time and across larger ranges of speed.

fairly certain the Ej22 just has the rubber seal on the thermostat housing.

i have them on my XT6's and will be converting one XT6 from coil over back to air struts that someone before me swapped. they are troublesome at times, but not too bad if you're prepared. first - with good maintenance the air struts will last longer than you have the car. get a decent set (used) which isn't hard to do since people are always dumping them. then look up my post on reconditioning the air struts. the bags essentially fail to rust build up at the base of the strut/air bag conjunction. the metal lip rusts and the air bag rubs against it. extend the air strut, wire brush and sand all the rust off and paint it. that will protect the strut. i've never had a blown air strut in my multiple XT6's. my now rusted to death daily driver has 215,000 miles and i got it with 105,000. still the same air struts and they are in great condition....they'd go another 100,000 i would suspect, at least the air bag would which is the main failure point. do this maintenance on the struts, replace all the o-rings in the system and they are much more reliable. few people do this kind of maintenance on their air system. the air compressor, tank and drier assembly is the trickiest part. there are a number of leakage and failure points here. the tank solenoid and pressure sender, the air compressor has a weak valve, the piston can fail and the line fitting there crack as well. these are essentially unfixable. some of these can be cleaned, like the pressure sender typically gets clogged internally. remove it and clean it. there are no aftermarket replacements or rebuild kits for these. best bet is to have an extra set of everything around for replacement. troubleshooting is very time consuming and tedious...and results are iffy. easier just to replace what normally fails - air compressor, tank or the suspension computer. the system is maintable, but requires a learning curve and spare parts. in 5 years my 215,000 mile daily driver only failed one time and that was last year after taking the car off the road for a couple months for other work. other than that i don't recall it ever failing, maybe once that i forget. letting the system sit is not a good thing. before that i went 100,000 miles without anything but preventative maintenance - pulled the struts once for reconditioning mentioned above and replaced all the o-rings. the ride height can be adjustable somewhat. letting all the air out and driving is certainly not good or even safe. the car bounces like crazy on any kind of bump. bridge joints are especially painful and dangerous.

i think there's only one kind of EA82, that i know of so it's either a poor description or a typo or it doesn't matter. i just did this a couple weeks ago and found the spec's on this board if you want to search for them, don't know off the top of my head.

good idea to try and fix this. i recall one instance of someone having inexplainable transmission problems with an XT6 years ago. ended up being the oil pan was dented enough to restrict flow to the oil pump sump. if you take the pan off, you'll notice the sump hangs down really low, not much clearance and would be easy to restrict oil flow or even bend the sump if the pan went up high enough. on solutions, i have no idea. weld thick steel to the bottom? that way it dents the whole thing and not just part! how about a lift?

i'd get the 2.2 (actually i did last year). we have a 1997 Subaru Outback Sport that we picked up for my wife. great car and no head gasket issues to worry about. they at least offer them to 1998 in the Outback Sports, i don't think the Outback Wagons came with them, i think they are 2.5 but i'm not possitive. the ones i've seen are all 2.5 but that isn't many. It would be hard to definitively tell if it's been replaced, though signs of major engine work would point to that. owner would be the best source of knowledge. The new head gaskets solve the problem, once it's replaced you're golden. If it fails you also have the option of swapping in a 2.2 which would be easier than the head gasket job on a 2.5. they are nearly a direct swap, computers wiring and all that stuff is plug and play. There isn't neccessarily an enormous failure rate, but it is more risky than most subaru's in my oppinion (except maybe the old turbo's since they're 20 years old). And of course of all the 96-2000 2.5's out there the ones most likey to hit the market are ones showing signs. People are more likey to trade in or sell a bad car than a good one. It is very difficult to detect when it first starts and they almost always pass all the common head gasket tests - even the exhaust in the coolant test and compression and coolant in the oil. All that can be fine but still have issues. The 2.5 is a great motor, i would recommend not paying top dollar for one in the 96-2000 era. sounds like you're already on your way to making a good decision.

check the fluid level. did you replace the filter as well? try another filter, maybe something is restricting oil flow inside the filter. i've seen dropped filters "collapse" internally. some kid probably knocked it off the shelf and dad put it back.

probably pulled a hose out of the intake somewhere like mentioned. make sure all hoses are in place, no gaping holes, intake tube isn't cracked or torn and MAF sensor is plugged in (it's right by the air box, though it would be hard to accidentally disconnect it!). 98 impreza...if it's an OBS then it's a 2.2, if it's a wagon i believe it's a 2.5. since lots of parts swap on the motors, the air filter is probably the same between them.

they are minimally functional and mostly aesthetic. a motor looks better (too some, i like seeing more stuff), but it offers a more pleasing look to most people that don't know anything about cars. no covers on my XT6 and no problems either.

brand name shouldn't matter on these. advanced auto carries the smallest one in a kit for 30 bucks. contains hose, clamps and tie downs as well. i don't use the tie downs that go through the radiator, it's annoying. remove the fans, pressing stuff through the radiator and damaging fins. then you have to cut them to remove the radiator. i ziptie the end to the center hood latch support. bypass the radiator ATF lines completely, no need to use those.

the smallest one like he said.