GeneralDisorder

That's the dealer and Subaru corporate has no control over what they charge for their services. Unfortunately that's the way it is and if you have any complaints it will have to be taken up with the dealership's service department or management. The most SOA can do is sympathize with your complaint and possibly call the dealer on your behalf. GD

I could also get one but I'm farther. We almost never se failures like that here. Occasionaly. Also there's plenty of places around here that are familiar with installing the replacement u-joints for these. GD

Just don't put it in 4WD with the driveshaft out (obviously that wouldn't do anything anyway) since the rear output isn't spinning and there is no syncro system for the 4WD engagement - it won't slip into 4WD unless you are at a full stop. GD

EJ22T heads are no different from plain old EJ22E heads except they have smaller valves . They are a total joke of a head. They will raise the compression just like the NA EJ22 heads will. It's the pistons that change the comp. ratio not the heads on the 22T. The heads are worthless. Worse than worthless actually since EJ22E heads would be an improvement. Yes - the 2.35 stroker is a monster engine. But it's closed deck makes it difficult to keep cool under high power situations and with the advent of the 257 it's not really a popular block anymore. If you already have one (like me) then it's a nice starting point. But these days most people go with the 257 due to availibility, larger displacement, better cooling, and ability to handle basically just as much power. GD

Maybe more. The deal is..... the DOHC heads *could* be built up to flow better and easily outstrip the frankenmotor in performance. But the cost to do so is rediculous. The cost for a frankenmotor build with 22 heads for renob123's Brat was $700. It would have DOUBLED if he had used 2.5 heads. The cams are more expensive per-each and you need twice as many. It would be like $500 in cams. Then the port/polish work would be several hundred more. The goal of the frankenmotor is excelent performance for cheap. It accomplishes that. If you spend a little time gathering parts it's actually very little more expensive than a regular 2.2 and bolts right in place of one. It's a very sneaky and cheap power upgrade. Basically you take any EJ22/EJ18 car (swapped or otherwise), pull the engine for a head-gasket job, and sneak an EJ25 block in under the old heads. GD

I've often wondered if you could just carefully split the tone ring with a hacksaw and then bolt the two peices on and have it work. If you did it with a thin blade and made your cut's down in the valley between the sensor tabs It shouldn't comprimise the hall-effect sensor's function. The only reason I can come up with for wanting to do this is in the case where I want to use a non-ABS knuckle on an ABS car to avoid a wheel bearing job - used knucjle is $10 cheaper than the new bearing *and* less labor. Front's don't fail very often so it's not a concern to me to put on a used one most of the time. GD

12 AGW should be more than enough for most of what you are doing. The only notable exception is when wiring amps or dual battery's etc. Chart: http://www.affordable-solar.com/wire.charts.htm I would run a good 8 AGW from the batt to the junction block - that gives your junction about a 50A total capacity which ought to be more than enough since it's doubtful you are going to run all those circuits at once right? From there base your wire sizes on the chart for the circuit you are running. GD

Removal of the tone ring requires dissasembly of the wheel bearing (removal of the hub). This basically means you have to replace the wheel bearing as it will be comprimised durring removal. You would be better off just taking the whole knuckle. And yes - they should be the same though the sensor might be different. GD

I understand. Don's been in contact with me about a replacement vehicle down the line and I'm going to keep my eye out for something. I agree that fixing it enough to make it driveable again is not without merrit. I just don't think that fixing it *right* and keeping it long-term is a worthwhile goal. It will NEVER be the same again. It will always be a damaged unit. GD

GD

It's a car - it's a hunk of metal. Your family, your health, and your welfare are more important. This falls *at least* under the welfare catagory. Foolishly spending money on valueless material objects because you think they have "sentimental" value is bordering on a metal disorder. That's how people turn into hoarders. They feel that if they throw away the object they are somehow throwing away all the pleasant memories associated with that object. That's a sign of someone that needs to seek counseling..... I can honestly say it and I honestly mean it. That NEEDS a front clip. The whole driver's side crumple zone is trashed. I've had to put a front clip on one that was damaged far less than that. That's a diseased mentality. I'm sorry but it's an '80s japanese station wagon.... it's never going to be worth much and it's certainly not worth being needlessly poorer over - I would rather blow my money on a vaction with family. If it's a hobby - great. But you still have to budget for hobbies and you can't let them interfere with things like primary transportation, etc. And (at least for me) it would be nice if the hobby saved me money or netted me something I couldn't otherwise afford. That wagon meets none of the qual's IMO. GD

+1. I would totally do that. It will look like hammered $hit but it will get you around. An afternoon of pulling and hammering is worth it for wheels. Plus you might be able to sell it to someone after you do enough work to get it to hold headlight buckets straight, etc. Not for much, but someone will want a $500 turbo wagon that you have put all that effort into. GD

Sounds like a wheel bearing to me. GD

Really? I thought almost all Subaru rods were identical? I'm no expert though..... GD

As much as some people say fix that..... it's not worth it. You will need a front clip from the strut towers forward and at least that A pillar..... you are talking about a lot of labor in cutting, fitting, and welding. I've done partial front clips before and if you are careful it can look alright but it will never be the same again - and it will be worth basically nothing having been through that much damage repair (heck it wasn't worth a whole lot in pristene condition). At the end of the day it will be worth *maybe* $800 to $1000 and there's more than that sitting there in labor, bondo, paint, etc. From purely the $ involved - it's a poor investment of time and resources. That's all I'm saying. GD

Two bottles of conditioner should fix it right up. If that doesn't do it or it ever becomes not enough to do the job - replace the head gaskets. GD

Power steering is possible but you need the entire engine cross-member, power steering rack, hoses, pump, and pump brackets from an EA81. Also the thermostat housing and a new upper radiator hose if you use the EA81 PS pump. To use the EA81T stuff you need all of it or you will have to mix/match EA82 parts into the game to get the lines over on the passenger side. It also helps to use the EA82 intake manifold or you will have strange things going on with the PS lines and the upper radiator hose which want to occupy the same space.... The EA81T style also really needs the EA81T crank pulley, water pump, and alternator pulley. It's not as *simple* as people make it out to be. You need to find an intact donor car in the junk yard. GD

I have never had a single problem with OEM gaskets, properly prepped surfaces (soft wire wheel), chased block threads, wire wheeled bolts, and 12 Ft/lbs of torque. I have never had one come loose or leak when done right the first time. Back when I knew no better - I had multiple failures of Fel-Pro and other cardboard junk gaskets from the aftermarket suppliers. I haven't bought a set of those in years. GD

Two words - HELL NO. Not on the EJ's. OEM is the stuff. GD

Yep - head gasket fail. There's a leak that's only opening up when hot. That's a classic head gasket failure-prone engine. OEM gaskets are $34 each GD

Well - we put SOHC heads on DOHC blocks all the time so I really see no reason that this wouldn't work. EJ25 blocks are very hard to tell apart without their heads in place. All the EJ blocks are about the same really just different diameter bores for the different displacements. I beleive the combustion chambers on the DOHC heads are larger than the later SOHC heads due to the later SOHC block's having a shorter pistons that don't pop-up. So you might end up with low-rise pistons and large combustion chambers with that combo..... which means lower compression ratio. I don't see why it wouldn't run though. And you could always just swap the pistons out of your old block into the SOHC block and it should then be basically identical. GD

The estimates are based on various builds and people's dyno runs, etc over on NASIOC. This would be my guess: HP: ~180 Torque: ~200 (with the delta cams) Comp. Ratio is somewhere between 10.5:1 and 11.5:1 - depending on which gasket you use and what head/block combo. All I know for sure is that it's a kick-in-the-pants to drive. It's got more power/torque than a stock 2.5 DOHC/SOHC and fits in the engine bay of the EA's much better as well. GD

It sounds as though it's running alright now other than the ECS light. As such I wouldn't worry about it till you have the time and money. Just leave it alone and it should be ok. Most of the systems that fail on the feedback's won't keep them from running - just takes a big hit on the mileage generally. *If* it should stop running suddenly (such as at a stop light, etc) - unplug the O2 sensor. I once had one that failed and the feedback system gave the wrong signal to the slow speed metering solenoid and it died at idle on me. I unplugged the O2 and was able to drive it home. I probably have more experience with these than any other member on the board and I gave up on them years ago. The Weber is straightforward. How much experience does your husband have with such things? The carbs can be bought new and Redline (the US distributor for Weber's) makes an adaptor plate that fits the EA81's manifold (assuming you have a Hitachi - if you have the carter-weber single-barrel you will have to source a Hitachi manifold for it). It all pretty much bolts on and with a little adjustment will run like a new car. There are lots of threads here on the board detailing this swap. The two biggest hurdles for most people are the PCV hose routing (which a lot of folks have done wrong - not understanding how the system functions), and just getting over the initial shock of how much junk gets removed durring the swap. It changes the whole look of the engine bay. If you husband is a technical guy and enjoys a little project now and then - the engine can be swapped over to fuel injection from a newer model. Here's my guide on that: http://home.comcast.net/~trilinear/EA81_SPFI.html The FI conversion is the ultimate solution to fuel/ignition on the EA81 engine. The SPFI system was totally bullet-proof and generally would last the life of the car with no troubles at all. I have a complete FI system on one of mine that came from a '94 Loyale with 240k on it. Everything still works perfect. I won't kid you though - it's not the type of swap that's for people who aren't familair with cars or wiring, etc. Mechanically it's very simple but the electrical and high pressure fuel systems are too much for those without some experienced wrenching skills. GD

There's only one "rear" cam o-ring on the passenger side. The heads use the same casting and the driver's side head is turned around and the cam o-ring is on the front along with the cam seal - either one could have failed. GD

That's right - almost forgot about that thing. It's a vapor seperator tank. Definitely could be something to look at. Is the smell stronger in the back of the car? GD