sid_vicious

I too have heard of people doing the swap into older air cooled models, but of course the wasserboxer vanagons are much easier because a coolant system is already in place. Even among the water cooled models, '86 or newer is supposed to be easiest to deal with. As a rule of thumb, I've read that you should stay away from models with round headlights and look for the square ones because they went to square headlights in '86. Keep in mind that I have NO experience with actually doing the swap, but I have been researching it a lot because I'm definitely thinking about it...

The plastic cover at the front of the engine is the timing belt cover. It might be covering a more significant leak than you think because the cover's gasket could be holding in some of the oil, even though it has already leaked out of the engine. The leak is likely to be coming from one of the cam seals or the oil pump, all of which are covered by the timing belt cover. Remove the cover, and it should be clear where the leak is coming from. A search should get you plenty of threads on the subject.

hmmm...yeah, i did a search for the subject and didn't find much of anything. i feel like the first penguin who's going to jump off the iceberg and maybe get eaten by a killer whale.

Hi, I've been looking into parts options for an EJ22 engine rebuild and have come across the Topline rebuild kits, which appear to include a comprehensive list of parts. I know many people would respond with suspicion of the kit and recommend Subaru Genuine parts only for internal engine components, but I was wondering if there's anyone here who has actually used one of them, and what their results were. Here's a link to a description of the kit... http://www.rpmmachine.com/enginetopsubaru.html

I don't think I would want to spend much more than a couple thousand on the entire rebuild/swap project, although the primary reason I bought the block is to have an engine to tinker with rebuilding and not have to put my car under in doing so. The 2.5 currently in my car doesn't have any problems, so I'm not looking to do a quick swap. I'm mainly just looking to get some hands-on practice and hopefully end up with a dependable engine at the ready. Does this sound sane?

Hey all, I just bought a '96 EJ22 short block on ebay. Here's the link to the auction. I got it for $99.99, which seemed attractive partly because I could avoid the $110 shipping cost by picking it up from the seller. Now I know that the block could have some surprises in store, but I was just wondering if (and hoping that) it was a decent bargain. I mainly bought it just to get some experience with working on the guts of a Subaru engine, which I've never done before...with any engine, actually. I'm planning on tearing it all down and having a machine shop go over it and what not, then building it back up possibly for a swap into my 97 Outback, which has a Phase I 2.5. (I understand that this would require an exhaust header swap as well to match the '96 EJ22). Not to mention all the parts I need that aren't there on the short block... Anyway, thanks!

Ingersoll-Rand 2135Ti 1/2" impact wrench. It's a bad mammer-jammer. Totally dominates anything I've thrown at it. Ain't cheap though...

Thanks for the insights. I'm now awaiting some more clarity on the engine's condition. After seeing the eBay auction was from an auto salvage yard, I went to their website to see if I could get any more information on the engine. Surprise, surprise, the inventory listing says "NO-RUN". I e-mailed them to find out what the trouble is and why it's not mentioned in their online auction. Thanks again.

Hi, I'm looking around for a used EJ22 and came across one that the seller lists as a 1996 EJ22E. Does anyone know what the E on the end might mean? The listing says it is from a 1996 Legacy. Any ideas?

Heck with it...the tool's on its way. Here's another question though: the left rear timing cover...is there some easy way to remove and install it that I haven't figured out? Jeez, what a PITA. Having to make it agree with the two cams, the oil dipstick and the weird mounting bracket it seems like someone designed the cover with the goal of making it incredibly difficult to deal with. Any tips?

Sorry for not specifying in the original post. I was a tired, hungry and broken man. Anyway, I ordered the special tool for adjusting and holding the left side cam sprockets. It's pictured in the EndWrench article mentioned before. I figured this would help, as the cams on the left side seem much more touchy on this engine than they did when I did the same operation on mine. I already have the tool for holding the right side sprockets and breaking loose both side's cam sprocket bolts, so if we aren't successful with BOTH special tools, then man will I be depressed. I'll let you know how it goes...

I've read that EndWrench article, and it did make the process easy when I did it on my car (also a 2.5 DOHC), but my friend's engine just does not seem to be behaving the same. We did not turn the crankshaft at all when working on the car, but now I'm wondering if it could be that the crankshaft sprocket is not quite in the right spot. The mark behind the sprocket teeth must be at 12:00, correct? I've also read that there's a mark on the engine block for alignment of the crankshaft sprocket mark. I've read some say that the mark is on the oil pump, and others say it's on the engine block. I could not seem to find it in either spot last night, but the hunger and exhaustion certainly made me delerious. Can someone confirm if the mark is on the oil pump or above the oil pump on the engine block? It seems strange that the crankshaft sprocket would be in the wrong spot, as we just slid it off to reseal the oil pump and slid it back on. It takes much more force than that to rotate the crankshaft, but any help locating the alignment mark would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Hi, My friend and I are in the middle of a project on his 99 Outback 2.5. We are currently reinstalling the timing belt and have hit a problem. The timing marks on the belt do not seem to line up when the cam sprockets have their notches aligned. The belt has the correct tooth count, but we cannot install the belt correctly. We have managed to get the belt on with its marks all lined up with the marks on the cam sprockets, but the cams are off in relation to each other and the rear timing cover. The best we can seem to manage is to get the belt in agreement with the cam sprockets, while marks on the belt are just shy of the notches in the tops of the timing cover. The double notches in the left side sprockets also do not seem to line up when the belt is installed with all marks matching between belt and sprockets. Here's where it gets interesting... The left side cam sprockets are not identical to each other, like the right side sprockets are. The bottom sprocket has a raised outer edge, while the top sprocket has just the teeth extending to the edge. Is this normal? There are white paint markings on both sprockets that line up almost exactly despite the discrepancy in the double notches. Could it be that a sprocket had been replaced and these white paint marks are there to signify correct timing? He bought the car with 4,000 miles on it, so it's hard to believe anything so strange could have happened. But could replacing sprockets be a solution? So we have hit a major snag and need some help. FWIW, the problem arises after we get the belt on both left side cam sprockets and go to put it on the top right side sprocket (as the Haynes manual suggests). The belt is much too tight for the mark to reach the 12:00 position. This is with the tensioner compressed and with a stopper in it. Again, all tooth counts are correct and I recently did this on my own Outback with no trouble. Any ideas? Please? Thanks for reading the long story. Andrew

after i replaced my timing belt recently, i had a bit of a squeaking noise coming from the engine that i was pretty sure was timing belt-related. upong opening the hood, i noticed that the power steering pump pulley was deflecting like crazy. turns out i put the sucker on backwards:banghead:. i think i was just assuming i had made a mistake with the timing belt because of my nervousness about the task, which i had never done before. i would recommend looking over everything you've done, even the minor things that are not as difficult, like accessory belts. besides, they're the easiest place to start anyway.

here's to the pipe idea...i used a crowbar to get the balljoints out when i replaced the front axles on my 97 outback. it was a terrible job that would have been much easier with some more leverage.

Sorry, I suppose I should have included the part numbers. There are two shorter bulbs: #72351AC061 And one longer bulb: #72351AC051

Today I went into the dash to replace a burnt out bulb for heating and a/c controls on my 97 Outback, and had a little trouble finding the right one. As it turns out, Subaru had problems with these little bulbs burning out all the time and therefore switched to a significantly bigger one. It still fits fine, of course, but it threw they guy at the parts counter for a loop when comparing my original one and the new one. It wasn't until another employee came along and knew of this change in spec. Just thought I would give everyone a heads-up if they run into this.

Hi, I'm getting ready to do a water pump along with a number of other things on my friend's 1999 Outback Limited wagon. I replaced the water pump on my 1997 Outback not too long ago, and I remember the original water pump having an L-shaped rubber seal on the side. The problem is that I cannot seem to recall if the new pump came with one, or if I ordered it separately. It doesn't seem to be a seal responsible for anything too serious like keeping coolant in, but I would like to have a fresh one on hand because I do remember that the one on my pump had developed a tear in it. Anyone familiar with this seal? Thanks, Andrew

bump so i don't screw up and get the wrong engine?

Hi everybody... I'm looking into buying a '95 ej22 engine, mainly for the interest of getting experience with working on them and then maybe eventually swapping it into my '97 Outback with the phase I ej25. I've noticed on car-part.com's search engine that many engine listings specify auto or manual trans. Does it actually make a difference whether the donor car was a manual or automatic? Would there be extra conversion work necessary? My Outback is an automatic. Oh, and I think I've got the compatability issues straight, but I would like to be extra sure....a '95 ej22 will have dual port exhaust AND the EGR port on the left head, while using anything more recent than a '95 will just require a single port header swap as well. Is this right? Thanks a ton, Andrew

That file will be a sweet reference, thanks! Andrew

There are usually a few JDM (Japanese Domestic Market) EJ25's on eBay. These are engines that are imported from Japan. Whether or not the JDM option is a good idea, I don't know...I've heard that the JDM engines do not have the capability for OBDII scanning and wiring may be a hassle. Anyway, it's an option. I think they tend to go for around $1200 with pretty low mileage. You could also check car-part.com. There seems to be a decent selection of suby engines available, although nowhere near new. Then there's the option of replacing with an EJ22 2.2L, which is reputed by some to be Subaru's most reliable engine. You will need to make sure you find one with dual port exhaust, however. The swap is apparently very easy.

I believe the lug nuts are tightened to somewhere around 75 ft-lbs. I have heard that blasting the lug nuts with an impact wrench, as some shops do (sometimes not even following an alternating sequence) can lead to warped rotors, possibly causing your pulsing. I recently replaced rotors with a friend who suspected this problem. The lug nuts took some serious force on a breaker bar to remove, and once new rotors were installed the pulsing was gone.

You can do it with the engine in the car, no problem. You may want to find a ratcheting wrench for the bolts, as clearance is likely to be too tight for a ratchet and socket. You'll also need to remove a couple items like the air filter housing and I think maybe the windshield washer fluid reservoir. Minor items like that. Remember to replace the sealing bolt washers and spark plug seals, and don't over torque the bolts upon reinstallation. I think maximum is something to the tune of 48 in-lbs.

As I understand it, the bulk of the work here is removing the dash to access the heater core. Besides that, it's a matter of disconnecting the two hoses from the old and connecting them to the new. Or probably replacing the hoses while you're in there. I haven't done it, but I don't see why it wold take a long time. However, I have said this my share of times and wound up with my car occupying my mom's garage for longer than expected....much longer.