July 14, 20178 yr Some do, usually off road people. Easy to poke a branch up into the belt, or fill it full of snow. Easier to just leave the covers off. Almost always it is the early 2.2 non interference motor.
July 14, 20178 yr i tried it once, on a non-interference 2.2, and that winter it got stuffed full of hard packed snow & it jumped time... wont ever do it again. Not much fun redoing the timing, outside, in the dead of winter. Definitely do not recommend it on an interference engine - would cause major internal damage if it jumped time.
July 15, 20178 yr Author Thank you for the info. Is there anywhere good to get replacements? I need to find the backing plates for a phase 1 engine Edited July 15, 20178 yr by Evil02outback
July 15, 20178 yr Dealer? I've gotten EA82T timing covers from my dealer. NOS If not junk yards? Someone on here who has a spare set?
July 15, 20178 yr Author I've looked on Subaruparts.com and didn't show an option to buy. I'll have to check the dealer next
July 16, 20178 yr Just install the covers with zip ties. Ask for covers here, eBay, Subaru - not hard to find. I've run without covers 100's of thousands of miles on many Subarus. But Choose wisely. If you're going to be plowing through stuff or a little reckless (raises hand) then yeah skip it or only do it if it's non interference. Ive seen objects, external and in the engine bay, push covers into belts. Loose belt covers riding on the belt. objects underneath (traffic cone and trash can) push covers into the belt. Maybe all would have happened anyway but I think not all of them. They hide oil leaks - most oil leaks are benign and ignored for some time on old leaky Subarus. but the rare one can saturate and break the belt quickly. But still the benefits outweigh the risks. I'll run without them for the zero labor bearing, seal and tensioner inspections and easy belt changes but I'm okay with the risks, no big deal to me.
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