GeneralDisorder

You install a LINK ECU and click on TPS calibrate. That stock computer is just a huge waste of time and effort. GD

Use 5w40 The rings were not made to spec on that engine. But on the plus side they are low friction and will improve mileage. Add oil as needed and don't worry about it. Slight oil consumption is cheaper than the loss of fuel economy from full friction rings. Subaru should have increased the capacity and desensitized the low warning. But they didn't. Put oil in it and drive on. It will probably need a new catalytic converter earlier than usual. GD

Toss it and install a blanket instead: https://www.rallysportdirect.com/part/heat-isolation-heat-wrap/fpro35-009-07-ptp-turbo-blankets-turbo-blanket-lava The heat shields crack. But you do need *something* or you heat soak the crap out of the intercooler and that does lead to unnecessary pulling of timing, detonation, and poor performance. GD

We sell the bad cats we pull off about every 3-4 months. We have a company pizza party on those days. Last sale I had about 16 converters. $3700. Guy I use ONLY buys from shops - trucks them to Chicago. Doesn't care about any proof of anything. LoL. GD

Go to parts.subaru.com Open up a second window and do the same. Compare internal part numbers till you are satisfied they will interchange (with or without a rear diff swap). The CVT-HD that uses different fluid didn't come out till the 15+ WRX and the 16+ H6 IIRC. GD

The extra nipple is for turbo models - that port leads to the upper water tank. The manufacturer has consolidated part numbers and provided a cap for the NA models to use the turbo variant and not have to produce both. It's usually better, in such circumstances, to use a bit of hose, a bolt, and some ear clamps to make a better "cap" this is not likely to fail like the common caps that come with them. GD

There is no significant difference between phase II 2.2 and 2.5 heads. They are virtually identical except the 2.2 head uses difficult to source single port exhaust gaskets that will probably go NLA at Subaru any time now. My preference is for the 2.5. Honestly have no use for that second gen 2.2. It's the answer to a question no one asked. The head gaskets are no better than the 2.5 and there isn't a good upgrade path for them other than special order Cometic gaskets like there is with the 2.5 and the factory turbo gaskets. GD

Highly recommend a n00b take my advise and DO NOT split the case. If there's no metal in the pan or the filter just leave it alone. Change rings and do up all the gaskets - being a n00b you will probably make mistakes even going that far unless you read for a solid couple months on the subject and buy the correct tools. I have many old posts on the subject and why this is the case. Search is your friend. And in general Subaru engines are not economically viable to rebuild in the first place - ReSEAL yes. Rebuild no. GD

Blinker fluid has gone bad or leaked out and isn't conducting a proper ground causing a back-feed through the seatbelt control module warning lamp. Fix the leak and fill it with the proper ratio of DOT3 and water. GD

Probably either the toilet bowl gasket under the throttle body or one of the throttle body heater hoses. GD

Commercial offerings such as the LINK ecu's we use are lightyears ahead of the Megasquirt stuff, etc. You would be much better served by an entry level LINK Monsoon. Very robust unit about the size of a deck of cards. Completely sealed and weatherproof, USB interface, very well developed software and data logging, excellent customer support and an active community forum, etc. They support the EA82 optical distributor chopper disc (it's actually the same as the Nissan stuff that LINK specializes in). And the Monsoon is less than $1k. Programming the stock ECU is WAY beyond your abilities if you want to "go mechanical" And running purely mechanical is a pipe dream unless you want to dig up an EA71 mechanical distributor (good luck finding any quality points/condensers for it) and stick it in an EA81 with a carb. People always want to do stupid things like that - easier to just harden the EFI against EMP. GD

97+ engines are solid lifter so you did not hear a lifter tick. GD

Very much agree on the first gen being a much better car than the second gen. Sadly parts availability for the chassis (not the engine itself) is poor and without the OBD-II diagnostics you are asking a lot of a new owner to properly diagnose one. Good choice for the guys like myself that fear nothing as regards fuel injection and diagnostics - difficult for those that can't just buy a diagnostic scan tool for $25 on Amazon. The first gen - you can get a plug and play LINK ECU board for it and have a full stand-alone engine management with very little effort - it just blows his budget completely. But it's sooooo choice and make all your sensor and engine diagnostics about a million times easier. GD

95 to 98 Brighton or L wagon with the automatic would seem to be the best choice for you. The newer and lower mileage you can find the better. Don't worry about the "interference" engines - if you do a timing belt kit with quality Japanese components the potential for a belt to fly off or break is essentially zero if the job is done right. Replace any plastic cam sprockets, and replace the harmonic balancer as well. They are much too old at this point and can't be trusted. Get these parts from the dealer. Use a timing kit from Aisin or piece it together with OEM or Japanese brand components ONLY. Replace the radiator (Denso or Koyo), and get new radiator and heater core hoses from the dealership ONLY. Use the wire clamps or use embossed clamps - cheap clamps will chew up the hoses. Use a dealer or TAMA thermostat ONLY. Replace the PCV valve and any cracked hoses and clean out the ports and nipples and fittings for the PCV system - get these parts from the dealer ONLY..... starting to see a trend here? Subaru parts in the aftermarket are almost always complete $hit. Anything you CAN get from Subaru, you absolutely SHOULD get from Subaru. They currently and for the last 5 years have a HARD ON for parts being marked NLA (No Longer Available) in their system. Anything more than 10 years old is in danger of parts shortages. Heed my warnings on this and what parts you NEED to get from Subaru and you can likely keep the car going another 10 years if you act soon. Won't be long before I'm telling people to avoid these chassis because they are time bombs with no support. Change all the other fluids and check the brakes, etc. It's not unusual for the power steering pumps to leak and you can get a rebuild kit from the dealer parts department. For handling you can use WRX suspension on these cars as well. There are coil-over's that allow ride height adjustment - even slight amounts of lift - while offering much improved handling. GD

Post a video of what it does. GD

Just point the keyway to 6 o-clock. The mark will be on the tooth directly under the crank sensor. GD

Any metal evident in the pan? GD

Possibly the pump has failed. They commonly leak from the damper bulb that's built into them. It can be replaced by a mid-80's Ford F150 frame rail mounted pump with some modification. GD

You might have to swap cam and crank sprockets and the 99 EJ22 needs it's single-port exhaust header but otherwise it will be a direct swap. The EJ222 is prone to oil consumption due to a poor ring design - watch it closely. GD

That's an aftermarket tensioner. Some junk from China or a Gates one from Canada (I see you live up there and I'm sorry Gates makes you fellas produce that horrible garbage). The ONLY tensioner you should be using is NTN. And all the other parts are probably Chinese $hit as well. Replace all of it with proper Japanese parts - a complete Aisin kit is the easiest way to know you are getting good parts. GD

Throw away the stock computer and put a LINK ecu on it. You can get rid of the MAF and not have to worry about all the sensors and interlocks that you are missing. GD

Yes. The only thing you missed is the cabin filter. We spray the cabin filters with this: https://www.amazon.com/WEB-Filter-Charger-14-oz/dp/B000RGS4PU It has a light citrus scent also - customers love it. GD

The issue with composite gaskets is they are too thick for the quench that Subaru needed to meet modern emissions. The image for the EJ222 gasket may be incorrect. AFAIK they look just like the 633 gasket used on the EJ251/EJ253, etc which is a single layer shim (SLS) gasket and has problems with the coating delaminating which causes oil leaks from the bottom of the head. GD

Unfortunately there is no updated gasket for the EJ222. Unlike the 2.5 where you can just buy the turbo gasket. For the EJ222 you have to buy like a cometic gasket, etc. As I said I really don't like that engine - seen way too many of them with bad rings. The piston re-design is to blame. And not being able to get a Subaru turbo MLS gasket for it..... it's an avoid for me. GD

Brake fluid is every 30k, along with clutch fluid if applicable. I would highly recommend you do it to avoid issues with the calipers and moisture in the fluid. Brake fluid is hygroscopic and absorbs moisture from the air - this can then condense at the bottom of the system (calipers) and rust the piston bores. Also changing brake fluid is cheap. I have to disagree with idosubaru on this point. I have seen way too many caliper pistons seized and bleeder screws broken off because no one did the fluid maintenance regularly. A 60k at my shop also includes the CVT fluid and diffs - even with that it's about $1000. BUT you are in the bay area and my shop is in Oregon - expect to pay more. Everything listed on the two more expensive packages is what we call a "wallet flush". Does absolutely nothing. The exception might be the evaporator cleaning but that's only if you have a problem with bad smells from the HVAC. Subaru sells a can of foaming AC evap cleaner that you spray into the evap drain tube - you can do this yourself. GD