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Just for another noise note the Havoline 5-30 I'm running in my Forester now has changed the piston slap sound when cold. It still slaps but the noise is deeper and less irritating. According to oil tests the Mobil 1 was fine but it did not muffle noise quite as well as the Havoline. On the other hand I seem to be using a bit more of the Havoline, but it is pretty cheap. folks on Bobistheoilguy said the Havoline was quieter and they were right. No idea why.

Rotten eggs means the converter got too much fuel and got too hot at some point. That may mean the oxegen sensor and plugs should have been changed a while ago. The good part is that you are bound to see a lot of improvement from this.

should have gone just for the sensor if it is not too late. That's what they told me for the same code a couple years ago and a $60 sensor fixed it.

Andy, Is there still a Potsdam College? My family was round for the founding of that and my grandfather taught there.

If things continue the way they are going you guys may be lucky to have a 1.5 in a few years. I have had a Ford Anglia Van in Kiwi that i had a 1300cc Escort engine in it that climbed every mountain I threw at it. When I was a kid 1200 cc VWs were very common here sharing the roads with 455 cube monsters. I bet that 1.5 Impreza is good transportation and gets pretty good mileage. With fuel climbing like it is we are bound to see smaller engines and cars here too. I bet the size of the average US engine is half what is was in 1975.

It is getting about time for a new radiator anyway. If it were my car that is what it would get. On the plus side winter's coming.

Anybody live near you with a similar car? You have checked most of the usuals but tires can also have a big effect. If you can switch with a freind for a bit you can easily see if that makes a difference.

We are glad you made it Nip. There will be plenty of places in portland to quench your thirst!

Next time you are at a thrift store look for a non serrated butter knife. I have a couple and they are much better at not scratching plastic trim than a screwdriver. I think I paid about 50 cents apiece for them. Wife kind of frowned about my using the ones from the kitchen.

that's the optional ventilated EJ25 huh?

Not a worry, it might spill out on the paint though. Get a turkey baster and remove the excess, don't let your wife catch you. Better yet keep an old one in the garage for brake work.

And temperature makes a big difference on my car. It shows more hot if Ilet it drain down to the pan. That oil on the plug could certainly make it skip though, but it is a fairly easy fix.

sounds like you need valve cover gaskets and plug seals.

I wonder if air boosters are available that would work with this car?

Looks like we really have you and nipper covering ground. I just remember Ithica from when I was a little kid vising my uncle who taught at Cornell. Sure seemed cold to me!

It is all minor stuff and if you have a local mechanic you can develop a good relationship with you can keep the car a few years more. If you have more money than time you may want to consider trading up to a couple of years old car and letting this one go to a young person who enjoys tinkering with it. I keep my cars maintained but I let them go when they start to feel like more hassle when they are worth. It was 17 years for my last one.

Ithaca sure can give ya the 20 below days. If you think of the tremendous forces involved in the contraction and expansion of alloy blocks and heads at those temps it's a wonder any work. At least on the phase 2s more failures have happened in cold temps when the engines shrink. It is always common to see hoses and such shrink in the winter and leak too. On those engines the goop works well to plug them up. With unsupported liners and the thin sealing surface of a 2.5 sealing was really a challenge for Subaru. This is one more reason that Nipper has a lot of guts to run his cross country. He is going to get that engine up to temps that it has probably never seen before.

Keep in mind Duralast means company who bid the lowest. If plug wires happen to make a good connection on your car more power to you. The problem is that if you install them every day you need consistant top quality and you rarely get that from inexpensive auto parts house brands. I have had to spend more time fixing the wires poor connections before installation and having to test them to see if they are too loose. If you do a job twice you make no profit. On my Subaru I use factory wires and NGK stock plugs becuse there is no time in my life to screw around with something like this. If you have a lot of time and enjoy trying new stuff more power to you. When my car reecently went in for a third party smog inspection the mechanic remarked on how well maintained it was and what low emissions it puts out. It's all stock equipment on this car and it works very well. I don't sy you have to use everything stock but these cars are sensitive to plugs and wires, frankly the ox sensors are also a pain to use aftermarket with. After market thermostats are also trouble. I do have a non stock air cleaner, brakes, shocks, oil and filter, fuel filter, etc., but these items are not that picky on brand.

I have changed Toyota head gaskets as well on thier excellent fours. Lets, see I have also done a couple of Nissans, a couple Mazdas, Fords, and even a spate of Chevies in the 70s. It is a shame that the 2.5 has smudged Subaru's excellent reputation a bit.

A vise and air tools make it a lot easier too. When you install the compressor be very carefull and spend extra couple of minutes lubing and aligning the device. You don't want to have to go back and repeat the process. If you are a beginner it is money well spent to take the struts off and have a pro change the springs.

That ought to be a sweet motor now.

The stock springs are about right for a car that is as high as a Forester. When you stiffen the shocks and swaybars it makes a lot of difference. I'm dusting cars on corners with mine that are rpobalby getting a bit of a surprise. Frankly when I got it with worn struts and stiock swaybars it was dismal. I added the KYBs and it helped but the WRX rear sway bar made alll the difference. I tested in a parking lot with cones until I had what I wanted.

that's the same word I got locally on my Forester. I asked here and folks told me no problem with the double DIN, just use a pocket to fill the hole. somebody even offered me a spare pocket!

Considering that we use big wire ties to hold down electric cables on our trains I don't think you have to bother cutting off and welding brackets.

Sure , they sell gennie subie bits. It really is a piece of cake to install in about 10 minutes. I changed mine last year and it seems like I just removed one hose and uscrewed the valve and screwed in the new one. I'll leave the explaantion to some of these folks who have done a dozen aas I've only done one on a subie.