bertmann73

So...............here's the twist. when i swapped out coil packs and started the car it did take a couple of minutes to fire up and blow out the cob webs. I had the exhaust manifolds loose and it was noisy. so for my neighbor's sake, i shut her down and tightened them up. i started again ans she ran for a few seconds and started to bog i tried to accelerate but nothing. the hissing sound was back.............clogged catalyst as i had suspected earlier. so in a nut shell i had suspected this to be the culprit and loosened the exhaust the night before but the plugs were already fouled. in the morning they were dry and would have started with whatever coil i had on it. to check this theory i put the old coil pack on the 94 and she started right up.........wtf!!! i dropped the exhaust, cut out the catalyst and found it had a dent and the front biscuit had been turned to powder. i got my carb cleaner and sprayed from the back and then took the air chuck and dried it until i could see through the other biscuit. I welded it back in and mounted. now she runs good.............. Any hoo.................What a ride this car took me on.

yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!!!!!!!!!!! ......................................coil pack!!!!! Thanks to all who responded to my post helping me to narrow it down...as always the more minds on the task the better. so...if your wondering if a coil pack that has a strong spark, a good way to test is to put your timing light on each wire to see if the spark is enough to light the strobe. now to fix everything else..........starting with the rear control arm bushings, which are metal to metal.

so i have now tried to isolate the fuel system and use propane and starting fluid to no avail. i got out the timing light to verify and to my surprise the light is dead on with cylinder 1 but intermittent and sometimes no signal at all. i tried the others and got a signal on 3 and got nothing for 2 and 4. the light will flash sometimes but nothing at all on 4. i can see clearly the spark when i remove the wire but the gun will not pick up on it. i am speculating a weak coil pack or faulty ecu. this will explain the random ignition and unburned fuel. another thing i noticed was after cranking each time i would hear a hissing coming from under the left head. seems the exhaust may also be plugged as when i loosened the exhaust manifold the hissing stopped. may be unburned fuel clogged in the catalyst and compressing air into the exhaust system. I have my work cut out on this one.,

that makes sense....at this point it has to be a fuel problem of some sort. just going to swap fuel rails on saturday and see what happens. thanks for all the replies

going to swap fuel rail this weekend.........for now i need a break before i light a match and roast some mallows

swapped out fuel and no luck. pulled plugs and they were wet. cleaned and dried cylinders with air chuck. reinstalled plugs and it tried to start. pulled plugs again and drenched. if the regulator is over pressurizing wouldn't the injectors still control the fuel or would they be forced to over inject?

also thinking maybe the knucklehead put ethanol i it.

yeah sounds good. gonna drop off the wife on saturday and spend some quality time with both cars until i find out whats going on.

so to test this theory i hot wired the pump and crimped the return line. turned the engine and got a backfire through the throttle body...........still seems like a timing issue but belt is on correct..........maybe someone installed an incorrect ecu or other electronic component?.......im pulling my hair out now!!!

found it. tiny little booger. looks like fuel goes in on drivers side and starts at 4 and passes on though the rail and comes out at 3 through regulator. if this does not hold pressure , fuel passes right though to return to the tank and no pressure to injectors..............thanks. hope this is it. gonna change it

thanks. that had crossed my mind but i did not see one. where is it located?

has anyone checked cold compression on an ej22? i understand that normal warm compression is around 160-170. i am getting 150 psi on all cylinders cold.

gonna pull the cam pullys off and see if maybe they have slipped on the camshafts

i am absolutely positive about the timing. this is my second ej22 and the first one i took apart three times to replace leaking front seal. turned out the crank had a scratch on it. nonetheless i am very confident about changing timing belts on these engines so i have eliminated timing as the problem. at cold start the plugs are usually wet as more fuel is needed to start and less air. maybe just not getting the fuel it needs due to low pressure. its probably the fuel pump or an injector problem or something stoopid i have overlooked. At this point i am ready to just rip the front clip off this car and fix the ugly one that runs.

on limited funds so i did not replace tensioner but it seems fine. i removed the belt twice and counted teeth from crank to each cam. i am very sure its not a timing issue at this point but sure seems like it is.

So the 09 outback was totaled ando i had to put my 94 legacy parts car on the road for mama. It is pretty beat up so i started looking for something else I picked up a 92 legacy that i was told has a bad fuel pump. I tried to start it when i got it home with no luck. so heres what i have done first was to check if the pump primed up. turned the key to on position and heard it prime up. pulled the line and verified by watching fuel come out. next was to pull the plugs. all plugs were wet with fuel. changed plugs and no luck starting. next was to check the timing belt which was cracked along the top and the right side cam was off one tooth. timing belt was replaced checked for compression and each cylinder has about 150 psi cold. now the engine tries to start once in a while and backfires through throttle body. it would seem that it was a firing order or timing problem but i have gone over all specifications and all is in order. I ran the fuel pump directly while trying to start and it seemed to want to start but then no luck. the fuel pump seems to work and have pressure but i am curios how much pressure difference would effect the ability to start. any input is appreciated.

will do. thanks

my daughters wrx has a low idle. without the a/c on there is no problem but when using a/c the car will stall as the compressor kicks off. before i go on my own goose chase i would like to know if anyone else has experienced this and found the remedy. thanks

i always wondered if soob engines are balanced by the flywheel or torque converters but it seems they are internally balanced.

so your saying the ea82 wheel needs to be re-drilled? i do have one that came with a clutch kit. i ended up only using the disk from it with the ea81 flywheel andpressure plate

will the ea 81 bolt on with no balancing issues?

And now for my next trick.......swapping out the ea81 for an ej22 just picked up a 94 legacy cheap so far it looks like im going to need to wyden the frame a bit by cutting and re- welding the sub frame 1/2" on each side. I will need to re-mount the radiator 1/2" forward and be sure to include room for a/c condenser I will need to go through the wiring harness.... oh so slowly.. and label each wire and then toss anything not needed. I will again need to mess around with clutch parts as soon as i get my hands on an ej22 flywheel courtesy of brother-in-law in mexicali. I am getting older and just want some peace and the assurance of turn key ignition, a bit more power and a better charging system. I will be spending time in the late model forum but my home is still in the classic forum.... i promise did i forget to mention air conditioning?

Updates on the wagon. I got the 5 speed dual range installed with the ea81. Modifications were made by cutting the cross member on the 5spd and welding this portion to the crossmember of the 4spd. I used the original shifter from the front wheel drive trans and modified it to clear the rear drive shaft. I used a 22 spline ea82 clutch plate inside the ea81 clutch assembly with ea82 throw out bearing. works great and clutch is soft as butter due to longer fork and shorter pedal ratio. had to adjust the pedal stopper all the way up. starter is shimmed with standard ea71-81 head bolt washers due to thinner mounting on bell housing. for now rear output is sealed..........dont laugh, but the battery cap from a full size mag flashlight fits in the seal like a glove with some help from RTV silicone. transplant took all of one day and lots of fun. for anyone planning this i recommend the getting following: crossmember shift linkage 22 spline clutch plate throw out bearing working on funding the driveshaft.

My wife has an 09 impreza sport with ej25 doc and my daughter has a 97 impreza sport with ej22(now my mother has it and loves it). Given gear ratios and a maybe few pounds factored in, i felt the 97 is the same or even quicker in acceleration at its ripe age of 165,000. I just stumbled on this thread and am a bit concerned, but not discouraged. By reading this i will now make it a habit to check around the heads on wifeys car when doing routine oil changes to prevent this evident nightmare from entering my happy subaru way of life. If i avoid an overheat by noticing a leaking gasket i can save my bearings from failing thus saving the engine. good stuff. knowing this, however, sends me in the direction of finding another 2.2 to rebuild just in case that engine fails as i see no major difference in hp between the 2 engines and yes, the ej22 is a much friendlier engine to work with. I just got one from a 94 legacy to replace my ea81 in the 79 wagon. To me its a no-brainer and if the wiring is in fact plug and play, well..............no more comments for me on this. this is why i love this forum. you all rock.

great thanks. i see a lot of those on eBay and not too expensive either. not sure if im gonna tear this engine down before i transplant it. it sounds good for its age but might as well if its out and on the table. depends on how long my ea81 is going to hold out. the lack of third gear on the 4mt took its toll on the rings as i was shifting from second to fourth. got the 5speed d/r in now to relieve some stress. good to know what to look for now. is there a good resource for ej22 tear down that i should look in to? "Ho to keep your subaru alive" was my bible for first gens, unfortunately it stops at the ea82s. Im exceptional with a wrench but there are always things that surprise the unsuspecting disector...such as my first time removing an oil pump on a chevy small block and breaking the plastic ring that attaches the distributor up above........what a fiasco that was.