GeneralDisorder

EJ22 is the better match - the only phase-I EJ25 is a DOHC beast of an engine with a lot of problems. They also don't fit in the engine bay of the EA's very well. The later EJ25's (EJ253/EJ251) is wider than the EJ22 and the wireing is more complex. Best of both worlds is the EJ25 "Frankenmotor" (as we call it) where you are basically doing a phase-I EJ22 swap but you sub in an EJ25D bottom end. That gives you a high-compression EJ25 pushing about 180 HP. It's a monster engine - more power than a stock EJ25 but fits in the same space as the EJ22 (no difference in size actually). This is the swap of choice IMO for the EA cars. GD

By state I meant "condition". Sorry. LOL. I would definitely think hard about putting in new valve cover gaskets (easy), and a new oil pan gasket (less easy but not bad at all) and then running synthetic in it. I am a believer in the stuff just from the differences in the engines I've torn down with/without synth. It's AMAZING how much cleaner they are and they stay that way. Synthetic's PRIMARY benefit in my opinion is it's higher temperature handing and longevity. It's great stuff and it's worth having to reseal an older engine to be able to use it. And with the low miles on your's I wouldn't go any other route. For ATF - not a concern. Use the cheapest stuff on the shelf. Regardless of brand you NEED to change it every 15k miles. That will lengthen the life of the 3AT considerably. Use Valvoline synthetic gear oil for the front diff. GD

Yeah - the beam style are definitely more reliable (and easily calibrated). But the click-type are more accurate. The best of both worlds is the dial indicator style or the new digital units. Those aren't cheap though. GD

Could be a bad wrench - I've seen it. Had a Snap-On torque wrench fail at my last job and it cost the company $20,000..... You can get a new bolt from the dealer or any junk yard - that's no problem. You will likely have to pull the engine to get the old bolt out. Carefully center punch it (and I mean CAREFULY) and hit it with a left-hand drill bit. Might get lucky and spin it right out. You'll need another head gasket for that side. GD

Heh - yeah people are always surprised what Subaru's can do even with little wheels and tires. They are very light for the amount of traction they have. Thier light weight is their biggest advantage. Do you have any pictures of your car? It is always interesting to see Subaru's from other countries. I often wonder why we don't see more people posting from europe? GD

Yes - and to check the ball joints remember to put a pry bar on between the knuckle and control arm and try to pry them apart - otherwise it will seem like they are tight due to the sway bar holding the control arm tight against the ball joint/knuckle. A large flat-blade screwdriver or pry-bar will tell the real story though. GD

I had those come loose on my lifted EA81 wagon once - made a nasty clunking noise when you were on/off the gas pedal. That's all it did though. It was only one side in my case and perhaps any steering effect was dampened by the big tires, etc. GD

What tranny? 4 speed? 5 speed? GD

Really need more info - what state is it in? Miles? Condition? GD

Yep - that's the ugly mother right there. I've also seen some other wacky failures on the 5MT's - you might rememember my post about the '96 Legacy where 2nd gear stripped out completely, and then I've also seen the center diff/VC eat itself (but that was a '99 tranny with a different design for the VC I guess)...... would want you to let it go too far and end up with a secondary failure like a chewed gear set, etc. Gear oil is real good at suspending particulate I've noticed - even after draining silver gear oil out with large chunks in it - an ATF flush later and it's good to go. That stuff doesn't usually seem to cause any big issues. GD

Depends on the size of the tires you put on those wheels, but yes it will get along alright in the Mud. I run a 28" tire on my '84 wagon with only 74 HP and it's driveable. You'll be fine if you keep the size "reasonable". GD

Both of the sensors are going to use sheilded wire back just a few inches into the harness. Where the wires emerge from the harness that sheild is typically folded back and taped, etc. The sheild IS a ground. You can ground it on the engine somewhere if you choose but it's already grounded back in the harness near the ECU, etc. As for the two-wire vs. one-wire deal..... that I'm not sure of. Most of the earlier knock sensors were single wire and grounded through the engine block. Later they went to a 2-wire unit. I *think* your '98 should be a one-wire still because I'm pretty sure it stayed single-wire till they changed to the phase-II engine in '99. You definitely have a phase-II DOHC EJ25D correct? If you have a SOHC engine then you probably have the phase-II (unless the EJ25D was swapped for an EJ22 ).... confused yet? GD

I live in OR so I might be somewhat biased..... I've seen people drive around with much more than just the hood missing. Doors, fenders..... you name it I've probably seen it. We've got some real winners out this way..... I might be one of them +1 on the ratchet straps and the roof rack. If it blows off..... HAMMER DOWN! GD

Those don't usually wear out though. Possible. I've never had to replace a single one. Climate? I've replaced a LOT of ball joints though - some so bad I really don't know how they didn't fall apart....... Also - the effect is on vs. off the gas pedal - not when braking. So the car is moving forward - you push on the gas and it drifts to the left. Coast and it drifts to the right. The leading rod is still being pushed the entire time and the control arm pivot/bushing pretty much holds it fairly steady. But a worn ball joint allows the knuckle to move independantly of all that. Either way it's pretty scary when you realize how worn that stuff had to get to make it operate like that. I've never replaced a leading rod or control arm bushing on a Subaru - EVER. And I have solved this same problem before so...... GD

Adjusting the spring perches up creates a marginal increase in ground clearance - it is useless on the street (duh) and throws the car's camber out of whack - causing you to burn through front tires when the outer edge wears much faster than the rest of the tread. The owners manual cautions against this except for OFF ROAD use. Further - it makes the front stiffer and that's bad for articulation. It's just a better idea all around to leave them adjusted down in the front. And it's a MUST that they stay down when you measure up for the lift - or otherwise you wreck the camber measurements as I pointed out above. You can lift the rear all you want with the torsion bar adjuster - that does not affect anything other than ground clearance but it makes the rump roast end stick up in the air like a cat in heat - rediculous IMO. GD

He said EJ22T in his post :-\ A plain EJ22 puts down 135 HP (EJ22T is 165 HP and 185 Ft/lbs stock). The EA82T puts down 115 HP and likely pretty similar torque numbers due to it being turbo-charged. That's not a huge difference. I would think that a good condition RX box should handle a non-turbo EJ22 as long as you treat it halfway decent. Jacob (renob123) has a ~180 HP high-comp. EJ25 running into an EA 5 speed D/R - running around in 2WD on the street and 4WD in the dirt. He hasn't broken it yet....... yet . We are rebuilding a JDM 5 speed close-ratio AWD box for it. I wouldn't want to run much more than an NA EJ22 (maybe with some torque cams, etc) on a stock EA 5 speed. I think it's a bad idea for longevity. And actually the RX box can't be put into 2WD (where wheel spin actually cuts down on how much torque you can torture it with) so..... that's a drawback in some respects. GD

Confirm +1. My '99 Forester has a radiator with a cap. Plastic tanks, aluminium core..... replaced it when I bought it. $115 local purchase. GD

When I first got my Brat it was like that - I've seen it a time or two since then - always with EA's with their strange control-arm leading rod setup.... It's not real common because you don't often see *both* of them bad at the same time and if one is good then it typically won't do the gas pedal steering trick. I'm not entirely sure what effect causes this from the ball joints - but nothing else really makes them do that from what I've seen. All kinds of play in the tie rods and ends won't do it - since the accelerator doesn't really have much effect on the rack and linkage, etc.... it's like some gyroscopic effect I think. GD

Just depends - but I've heard of them lasting 20k to 40k making noise. Depends on where the failure is and how rapidly its progressing. Could also damage other bearings or gears if allowed to progress too far - remember these are shaft bearings and play in the shaft will affect gear tooth alignments, etc. GD

Classic ball joint symptoms - steering with the gas pedal.... yep. Didn't even need my wand for this one...... GD

The input shaft bearings are "floating" when the clutch is disengaged - once you release the clutch the input shaft is loaded with engine torque - it gets quieter when you go down hill and would probably be it's quietest when everything is just coasting - slightly downhill, no throttle pressure, but not fully closed either..... you know what I mean. Sounds like classic input shaft bearings to me. This is usually an AWD transmission problem but being the XT6 is the FT4WD without the D/R it would have the same bearing setup as the AWD tranny's. GD

Better low-end torque, throttle response, etc. Easier to maintain, simpler, and more reliable. Nothing if you tune it properly and drive the same as before - chances are you will hot-rod it a little more though and lose a few. None - the carb isn't the bottleneck at the peak HP RPM range. You are much better off calling www.carbsunlimited.com and telling them what you want - electric/manual choke, air filter height (short for stock height rigs, tall for lifted rigs), adaptor plate, manual choke cable if applicable.... etc. Sure. GD

What exact measurements? Don't you want 6" blocks? Take some measurements - got a tape measure? This aint rocket science and people who build lifts aren't going to just throw their intellectual property at you. Search the forum - that's what the search function is for. Then go take some measurements. You aren't going to be able to just build the full kit without taking the car apart and building it as you go - just doesn't happen unless you have built some already and have the jigs for it. Get out in the garage kid - put in some time on it. Put the car on jack stands and LOOK at how it's put together. GD

It probably has rear drums if it's a basic L model without ABS and a leaking wheel cylinder will coat the shoes in brake fluid and make them grabby like that. Just fixed a similar problem on my 4-wheel-drum truck..... GD

Yeah - drain the gear oil and check for glitter. Sounds like input shaft bearings. You will likely find cage material in the gear oil. GD