NOMAD327

Final report, got the motor running without any more drama. I finally got it all properly timed and back together and it's running with no misses and no leaks. Glad to have this job finished and thanks again for the help!

What Fairtax4me suggested is exactly what happened. Thanks much, just need a new tensioner now.

The reply Fairtax4me made in the ejected cam seal thread was absolutely what happened! Everyone else was right to question the timing being off, and that was what happened. The timing was correct initially, but the tensioner did not survive being recompressed. That's why it ran OK for maybe twenty seconds, enough time for it to slip a couple teeth at the crank sprocket. Very happy with the help I got here as usual. The notion of the tensioner failing in that way didn't occur to me, but once suggested, that explained everything. The tensioner came from the import experts and was put on 5 years 50,000 miles ago, and still looked brand new. I did squeeze it slow and vertical, probably close to an hour to get it squeezed until the pin could be inserted. It was just something I didn't do right. I would buy that tensioner again, my fault somehow. Again, thanks, these familiar little jobs can make you crazy when everthing seems to go right, and then it won't run.

I just finished up my post here under ejected cam seal. The motor ran normal this morning except very bad oil leak on drivers side cam cover. I took it apart and the lower drivers side cam seal was ejected from it's bore. There was a lot of oil over the bottom of the car, but the motor was never run out of oil. I replaced all four cam seals today and cleaned it all up. New timing belt and a fairly good job all in all. The drivers lower cam really jumped back when I undid the belt. It banged back much harder than they usually do. I was able to get it all aligned and assembled and no other problems. There was an oil change done but I forgot to partly fill the new filter before installing it. When I started the motor, it ran normal for about twenty seconds, then started to miss and stalled fairly quickly after that. It now will not start. It acts like it wants to start, but can't quite make it. I pulled the covers and the timing marks are all lined up correctly. It was turned over by hand at least five or six times before I tried to start it and the marks all lined up good. The wires to the crank and cam sensors are undisturbed and the only new pieces used were the cam seals and the timing belt. The sprockets were not interchanged. This is a 99 OBW 2.5 auto with about 190,000 miles. My only two thoughts were somehow it messed up a valve when the lower cam snapped back, or something triggered the knock sensor with the empty oil filter and the timing pulled back hard. I'll be doing a compression test tomorrow unless somebody can think of something. Thanks in advance.

I took it apart this morning and the drivers side lower seal was ejected from the bore. No obvious problems and the drain holes were open. I got it all back together and it ran normal for about twenty seconds and developed a bad miss and ran badly briefly, now it doesn't even want to start. I will start a new thread to pick up from here, thanks everybody!

I used all Subaru parts except the idlers which were from the import experts. The mechanic was independant but has been doing Subarus since the mid 80's. It may have just been dumb luck, or a slightly loose housing fit. I will know more when it's apart a bit. Thanks for the input.

99 OBW 2.5 DOHC about 190,000 miles, had the motor out 5 years & 50,000 miles ago and did all seals, idlers, belts etc. It’s been as dry as these motors ever are, uses no oil and PVC is relatively new and clean. It developed a very fast leak from driver side timing belt cover yesterday, just driving around town. Lost 2 quarts of oil in 20 to 30 miles. I can’t quite get the belt cover back enough to see for certain, but it has to have completely ejected a cam seal unless it’s something completely wild. The belt is still dry, but I will be replacing the belt and probably both camshaft seals on that side. If I open it up and there’s no obvious problems, should I do something extra to retain the replacement seal in place. As it’s only 50,000 miles since I did everything, would you replace anything other than the belt and the affected seal?

It's an elaborate thing, and very heavy duty. The price isn't cheap, but it didn't suprise me either. I just called the dealer and that's what they offered. I bought a similar piece for my ford focus in the past, it had all the same functions but was made near 100 percent out of plastic and it was near $100, so I expected this piece to be about $200. I have since recieved the piece, part number is 60320AC001, and included both the operating links and the complete assembly. Cheapest online price I saw was 180, with (probably) no tax, but shipping fee, At the dealer it was 192 with tax no shipping, but had the car back on the road in 2 days, can go on to the next problem now.

I was able to get it apart without any cutting or prying after all! I know at one in the morning it was getting to me, especially when I put my shop manual disc into my new computer and windows 7 insisted on formatting the disc instead of reading the files!! That was actually when I grabbed the pry bar, but today I was able to look at my backup service manual at work, and I saw the lower bar was bolted to the bottom of the opening as gbhrps has since said. The bolt heads were way back under some trim, but I was able to get them out pretty easy but slow with a 12 mm gearwrench slid back into the slot. I don't think you would ever get them out with any other tool. The bolt heads were close to 2" back from the edge of the opening, but I was happy to have a solution. I also had to strip the interior bare and pull the hinged lid over the spare off it's hinges and lay on the spare tire to do do the job, I just needed the extra 1/2" or so of extra low reach to get back into the slot. The bolts were a bit tight, but moved pretty easy once going. It appeared to be better to shift side to side, I did each bolt in about three steps this way, They were about 1/2" long and as I gained ground I could lift the lid slightly which gave a bit more access space. Once they were out the hatch opened right up, and the first lucky break, The lower bar was small enough to pass through the opening in the bottom of the hatch. This made it a bench job to get the two lock halves apart. Even having it out with good light and access, it took about half an hour to get the two pieces dislodged. I never found any problem with it. As I said, the pieces were clean and lubricated. Some little piece broken off inside I suspect. The latch housing is built up inside of a small steel cup of sorts. It's real tough and prying did not work. I ground off the rivet heads, but it would not spread apart. What worked was to crack away the little bits of plastic inside the latch where I could get to it. That seemed to loosen up enough I could get the crescent shaped lock rotor to spin and release the bar. The bar will be reuseable, The latch was not going to be reused even if it did come apart without too much fuss. By the way, the new latch when equipped with electric lock solenoid is $190. Also, thanks for the repair suggestions, this was an odd one and I needed the help.

I have a 99 outback wagon with trunk latch stuck. It's not the little spring having come off, it's not rust on the linkage, it's not electrical, both the external link arms are free and move normally. I've had all those things happen multiple times over the years, and I have always been able to get it open. I am familiar with all the parts that are there and how they work. I now have the interior access panel removed. This is a high mile car with very heavy hatch useage.Every piece of the latch and linkage is clean, lightly lubricated, just very normal in appearance. You cannot move the external lever. I unhooked it and it the lever now moves free. I can move the lock lever on the latch and see the external parts move OK. At some point deep in the mechanism, The latch is jammed, There is a little tab which actuates that internal linkage. I can put pretty hard pressure on it with a screwdriver tip, but it does not disengage. I have unbolted the three bolts that hold the latch assembly to the hatch, but the latch is solidly stuck to the bar below holding the latch shut. I thought I might be able to move it side to side or get a bit of a twist, but no help. I have gotten to the point where I had a very large pry bar under it while trying to pressure the linkage tab with a screwdriver. This also did nothing. I think it's going to be drilled or cut out as a last resort. Has anybody actually had to do this, and what worked?

Plugs and wires may be a good place to start, They were done about 45,000 miles ago with genuine subaru parts. The EGR moves when you blip it and the EGR ports were checked clear in the last year. The temp gauge comes up pretty quick and heater works well, but the water temp sensor for the computer could still be bad? Appreciate the insight.

I have a 99 OBW, 2.5 auto. It has 187,000 and starts good and runs normal. I’ve been getting 12 MPG or less in all around town driving. It used to get more like 17 MPG around town. This has been going on for awhile, not just a new thing with cold outside temperatures. From reading, this could be lots of things, including mass air sensor, air or water temperature sensors, or bad injectors among other things. Is there any preferred order to check into these things? Does anybody have any good troubleshooting methods?.

It seems to be speed dependant but not load dependant. I don't notice any change in tone when turning corners like i would expect with a wheel bearing.

I have a 99 OBW, 2.5 auto, about 187,000 miles. It has had a very noticeable whine while driving for some time, sounds exactly like tires with a pattern worn into them, present at all speeds and gets a bit louder at higher speeds. I just replaced all four tires and both front axles with new and the whine is still there. Lube levels are OK, but fluids have not been changed for awhile. Is this something with the rear driveshaft, it’s hard to pinpoint where the sound is coming from.

I've seen threads on other forums where a piece of 1/4" tube bent into a u shape was used to connect the two hoses that normally connect to the shut valve. The auto shutoff feature may not work correctly, but it did make the check engine light go off.