idosubaru

i'd replace it with a known good unit or remove it and check to see if the center hole is rounded out at all. usually if it's been like that, the hole through the center of the pulley is rounded. i use a socket wrench with a 3 foot pipe on the end and crank the ever loving nut sack out of it. cast iron bolt and crank, it won't strip. whatever you do, make it tight. don't use that philosophy on aluminum parts (like the engine block) as the aluminum is much softer and will strip.

if you don't know the last change, have the timing belt addressed as well as the timing belt pulleys and water pump. good to go for another 100,000 with those in place. cam seals and oil pump o-rings are advisable while yo'ure in there doing the belts. only a couple more dollars for the seals. previous owner might be able to tell you how recently the timing belt was changed? with that mileage it would be best to make sure the belt and pulleys are good since this is an interference motor. i got an outback last year with only 60,000 miles and change the belt immediately, though that had the possibility of the "older" belts with lesser mileage ratings. 96-99 2.5 liter motors have head gasket issues. keep your eye out for overheating. catch it early and new headgaskets will fix the problem for good, though set you back about $1000 unless you do the work yourself. see if it has heat, seems pulling the thermostat will hide the overheating but shows itself by not giving hot heat in the cabin.

tune up stuff would be important. O2 sensor people like to suggest though i've never had a good increase after changing...always hopeful but it never happens! random checks: front brakes dragging some. wheel bearing? tire pressure. use cruise control, i just drove back from canada from up your way and got about 2-3 mpg better on the way back using cruise control was the only difference. none on the way up - about 24. cruise on the way back and 27?? same driving. compression test?

call them back and ask where they got their parts from. the crank angle sensor built into the distributor should be easily replaced if you can source the part. otherwise they were the only source i knew of. how about two used units, that should last you as long as one rebuilt one!

what i said is true, a matter of semantics really. i was making a specific comment regarding this thread. in terms of a general theory that cold air is more dense, that's true but very generic and only part of the equation in practice. in terms of this thread that variable is not driving the results. there are a few variables in play here and based on hard evidence that i posted links to, it is not the dominate factor. yes...gains are lost to heat, but improvements to the intake may offset those. these are random numbers but make my point: +10 for intake design - 5 for hot air still gives a gain of +5. that being said, the OEM design runs a hot water hose right through the throttle body, heating up the throttle body with hot engine coolant. in theory, intentionally heating the throttle body and intake charge is a bad idea, but in practice it is insignificant. although i reroute my coolant lines anyway.

here's a post by kevin showing 1-4 hp gains...maybe even 10 on the one plot, i can't see it too well on my screen. interesting read though. now i don't know if this is a K&N filter, but it is removing the stock box and sucking in "hot air" and a similar cone style filter: http://www.xt6.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1817&highlight=jc+sports+dyno there are gains to be had. i'm pretty sure i had a small gain in highway gas mileage when installing my K&N years ago, but that was...well years ago. the argument "if it's better the factory would have done it" doesn't apply. lots of things have some level of improvement that OEM choose not to implement for various reasons.

you would think the "hot air theory" is correct, but it is not. Kevin has done extensive dyno testing on different intake set ups (among lots of other things) in the older gen forum. take a look at his plots, he's a no BS, doesn't beleive anything until it's dyno'ed type of guy (that's why he gets numbers). he proved lots of people wrong by showing some gains with a cone filter "in the engine bay". interesting read if you'd like to find his old posts on it. lots of dyno time too. i agree, i wouldn't expect much with a drop in filter either. i do like the fact that i can run one for 200,000 miles.

since i've got the uncanny ability to read and remember, i'll help with this one. he hasn't got the bushings yet except the steering rack which aren't expensive. i just bought impreza urethane bushings for $30 and he said tires are free. i'm not sure the need to completely criticize what he's doing, he's having fun with it and likes the car. this is almost commical in a way though. i wouldn't do what he's doing with it either, but look forward to see what him or any others do. he's quite creative and comes up with good ideas and information that noone else has. i like him doing what he's always doing...being an inovator and sharing.

rebuilt motor - CCR. new (or have yours rebuilt) alternator, starter, battery and batter terminals/cables. new radiator have all 4 wheel bearings replaced replace all fluids - diffs, coolant, brake fluid. have all the brake calipers rebuilt or replaced. (rebuilt kits are about 10 dollars) and replace the brake master cylinder. replace the steering rack bushings, front suspension bushings, ball joints and tie rod ends and clutch cable. that'll give you excellent reliability and safety and won't cost much. the rebuilt motor will be the high price item. you can have it rebuilt locally. the more work you do the less it'll cost. either way, all of this will be well within if not way below your range listed above. once the motor is done, the other stuff you can do a step at a time. that's what i do, have a list of items i address just like mentioned above. i've done just about everything mentioned above except a complete rebuild.

i would be very surprised if you noticed a decrease in mileage due to the K&N. actually i woudln't believe it was because of the K&N unless i saw and tested it myself. accurate gas mileage comparison is tricky. conditions, weather, driving habits, weight of the car, condition of brakes, transmission, car all have to be similar to be accurate. that's hard to do unless you're really paying attention. the best gas mileage comparison i've been able to do is on highway trips. i used to drive alot of 500-1000 mile trips. i'd drive, replace something and make the same trip. good comparisons that way, but for normal daily driving i find it hard to get good comparisons. cars are each different. i'll get the same mileage whether or not i use the cruise control or not in my XT6 automatic or XT6 manual. in my impreza OBS i get much better mileage.....like 4mpg better if i use my cruise control on a highway trip versus not using cruise control (just tested it last weekend on a 800 mile trip).

$500 would be a good target. don't forget new throw out bearing and pilot bearing. they are normally included in a clutch kit, but not always. if the clutch is fine and no signs, drive easy and it'll last quite a long time. if you get good at shifting without using the clutch and do alot of highway driving (easiest place to shift without using the clutch) you might be surprised how long it lasts. never done it in the newer soobs, but my XT6 is really easy to drive like that. my truck is much trickier.

post in the parts wanted section here as well.

what is it you'd like to know about the XT6 power steering? the dozens of XT6's i've owned had it and i swapped the entire set up into my EA82 series XT Turbo. very easy swap mechanically speaking. now getting the electronics to work is another thing, but you could always power it constantly and remove all that XT6 computer controlled speed sensitive, input sensitive assiting gizmo stuff. i was told it's a quicker ratio rack, fewer turns lock to lock. and i get to dump the belt driven pump which was my main goal.

get pictures of that hammer swinging and this will be the coolest thread in a long time!

you can always drive it until the DR blows then upgrade to an EJ trans that was built for the EJ engine. WJM showed the LSD front center diff of the newer generation EJ's will swap into the EA series trans. not sure if it's worth the work if the trans won't hold though. and this has been done before...check the retrofitting forum for suberdave, super nice ride.

if your current car is an EJ series then the dual range EA series trans will not bolt up without a custom adapter. i believe your car is an EJ, but i'm not real familiar what year they changed either. at least you're not going auto to manual, that's even more annoying, the pedal assembly and shifter to mess with. having a donor vehicle with trans and associated parts is nice.

i'm confused how it flipped looking at the photo's, the road appears flat? you said "going down a slope trying to avoid a big rut"......i think "trying to avoid the big flat snow covered road 10 feet away" is more accurate. admit it, you were playing around! no better way to learn than testing the limits, glad all is well and even the subaru has a chance of making it through all of this.

now that i think about it, sometimes i think the diff number could be "up higher" on the rear foil stamp and covered by the bar that the diff hangs from. you can turn the driveshaft and count how many times the wheel turns. or turn the wheel and count how many times the driveshaft turns...you get the point. 39 for every 10 would be a 3.9 ratio 41 for every 10 would be a 4.11 ratio etc.... from what i'm seeing on that chart, the impreza in the yard should match up to your 95 legacy, but you are wise to double check!

awesome. that's craziness.

you'll also need the driveshaft and the cross member the diff bolts too (rear mustache bar?).

it will definitely bolt up and work if you grab the rear diff. not sure what other parts exactly that you'd need though. the rear differential has a metal foil plate on it that has the diff ratio stamped/printed on it. read the diff ratio and make sure they are the same or grab the one from the donor parts car if you're not sure, then you'll know it will work.

i would re-evaluate the throttle reponse after the engine racing/temperature sensor problem is resolved. temp sensors can cause driveability issues like you mentioned.

now that the car is driving properly, other problems might be more noticeable if that makes sense. i'd have the transmission fluid changed and install an ATF cooler if you'd like to keep that same transmission in good shape. it's nearing 15 years old, has the ATF ever been changed?

if you can post a pic the experts here might get a better idea.

cost i'd definitely pay for one for an EA82 or ER27 depending on final cost and if it's plug and play/has directions, etc. if it's much cheaper to figure it out then i'll do that. there is a market, it may not be on this group, but there is one out there.