nipper

I'm going with looking deeper into the axles. This is awfully early for a VC to go bad, especially if all the tires have always matched. I mean it is possible, but really unheard of. nipper

Didnt older soobies with a spedo cable have a split cable? the cables would join up with a VSS sensor for the cruise control? The VW / sooby people have a fix for this http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/subaruvanagon/files/Speed%20Sensors/ nipper

1997 is OBDII, its electronic no cable.

re check the timing marks on the sprockets, dont go by the belt. Even the best techs get the timing wrong on occasion. If you have a vac gauge use that to tell if you have any bent valves. My feeling is that the timing is off. nipper

Damn and i thought i was an anal retentive engineer. This description makes me look absoloutly sloppy http://endwrench.com/images/pdfs/BrakeFluidSumm02.pdf nipper

www.endwrench.com look in the archives under the engine section.

In your case it is a different problem, which can be the drive in the spedo head is worn, or at the tranny, or a broken cable in such a way it doesnt grab all the time.. In the original posters case its his cable hanging up inside the housing. Its not all about you you know (hehehehehehe). The cable in his case is jumping instead of spinning. If i walk along (being one spedo needle)and you decide to cover the same distance by jumping every three feet (being the other spedo needle) , the same distance is registered at the end of the trip, but the needles dont move the same. nipper

Going by the marks on the belts are useless, as there sometimes is very little quality control on these things. ALWAYS use the marks on the gear and sprockets. Even subaru says to ignore marks on thier own belts. nipper

Radiators get plugged up with age, especially if someone uses tap water. You have a couple of issues. You have a stuck thermostat and a failed radiator cap. The cap keeps the system pressurized and releases any pressure above the preset limit. Yours is not releasing. You may also have a HG issue, but lets start there. HG issue will show up as bubbles in the coolant and make a failed radiator cap problem even worse. ALso fill the cooling system with car running. Slowly fill it up, stop when full. Wait for the t-stat to open (surge of fluid) then top off. Put cap on system go for drive around block. Makes sure tank is filled to hot line and let car cool off, then repeat if needed. nipper

Oddly I found it fairly easy to swap outr dashboards. I found this same issue when I tried swapping spedo heads. My next step was going to be swap out logic boards in the spedo heads, but I got tired of taking things apart nipper

Odometer will read correctly even if it is a cable issue. At the very least you need a new cable and housing. nipper

Er um, not sure what you are describing actually. A spedo works really simply. It is basically a spinning magnet inside a metal bell. The bell has a small spring on it to get the needle go back to zero (the resting pin). The magnet and bell do not make contact with each other. nipper

We go wheelin in the pine barrens all the time we dont need no stinkin cones we just drive in the mud. Come and join the fun nipper

Well define "break the timing belt" Sometimes a break is much more forgiving then a jumped timing belt. Either way get the timing marks lined up and get a compression test, as you may have lucked out. Maybe. nipper

Belt timing marks mean nothing. You didnt set up the engine correctly. www.endwrench.com in the archives under engine will have great info on how to set it up. I also hope you replaced the seals, tensioner waterpump, otherwise you will be back. nipper

Lets do a simple test. Pump the brakes ten times with the car off. Press the brake pedal. Start the car. When the car starts the brake pedal should move towards the floor. If it does not the Power Brake booster is bad or the Little check valve for the brake booster in the intake manifold is stuck. The brake booster is between the master cylinder and the firewall. nipper

Replace the t-stat with one from OE, and get a new cap. Then slowly fill the system back up with the car running, check the level, cap it, drive, repeat and you should be good. Aftermarket T-stats have much smaller opening and restircts flow. They als have no jiggler valve. nipper

Thats new. the antiseeze comes with it, and the blueing is from welding on the shield. nipper

I think they may ge offended just because you have as much clearance as they do most the time. I like to climb, and the lift kit actually helps alot with attack angles (and chainging spark pugs). nipper

I can never tell on a justy if it is working fomr a pic I always wanted to take one to the pine Barrens http://s183.photobucket.com/albums/x234/nipper-dawg/NJ%20Pine%20Barrens%20March%2026%202009/ nipper

We had the same issues in the Pine Barrens in NJ. It didnt look that bad untill we got into it. Wet clay is really slick stuff. And gooey. is that a 4WD justy? nipper

Thats supposed to be a 2" lift but it came out to be more like 3. I am not compalaining. nipper

NO. Those are the more standard larger twist type bulbs. The ones that you are in plastic mounts, you can replace the bulbs then reuse the mount. nipper

Any high mileage engine (even soobys) with a question of power the first place to start would be a compression test. Yes i wouldnt know what to do with a newer sooby with less then 160,000 on it. nipper

175,000 miles and you suspect its a weight issue? I would suspect it is an engine compression issue. nipper