New to me 96 OBW with EJ22, 5MT is leaking a bit. Not enough to leave any drips when sitting, not sure if it's using any oil as I've only had it for a few days.

 

It's at 120k miles so I've already ordered OE TB, front main & cam seals, etc... Just wondering if I should check out anything else while I'm in there or if there's a good chance something else is leaking I can order the parts for.

 

The dealer degreased the topside, so not much to see there...

 

Any opinions are appreciated. Thanks

 

Pics of the oil leakage...

 

Josh

You are on the right track with the cam seals.

 

The other common places EJ22's leak are the seperator plate on the back of the engine under the flywheel, the O-ring on the cam plug at the rear of the pass side head and the valve cover gaskets.

 

Subaru has an updated seperator plate that is supposed to seal better.

Hmm, I'm guessing that the rear passenger cam plug o-ring is leaking as well then... I'll replace that, clean it up and see if I'm still seeing significant leakage before pulling the trans and flywheel...

 

Thanks!

Here are the most common Subaru oil leak locations with pics:

 

Front cam seals (especially the earlier black colored seals; the newer brownish colored ones hold up better) (pics from an EJ22):

 

Front crank seal (esp the mid 90's 2.2L's and some others where the screws on the rear case of the oil pump tended to loosen, letting oil out the front crank seal and sometimes even pushing the seal right out)

 

Also there is an o-ring between the oil pump discharge and block

 

The valve cover gaskets, and for engines where the spark plug tubes penetrate the valve cover, the spark plug hole seals.

 

EJ22's also have an o-ring at the LH rear and RH front of the cam's:

 

Also rear main seal, especially if the vehicle had a plastic rear main seal retainer/oil separator (an OEM upgrade to a metal retainer is available).

Dang, porc, you do take nice pictures!

I would do the valve covers and plug seals also. Less to leak for the next 100k+ miles

I like the fact that porcupine shows the subaru part #'s in the pics too! I can't promise my pics will be as nice as his, but I'll try to take some as I go along...

 

Water pump is already on the list, so a couple more seals are going on it now.

 

No plug seals on mine, doesn't appear that the valve covers are leaking yet, so I'll leave that for another day at the moment. TB and these seals should keep me busy next weekend.

Great photos, thanks a lot:banana:

They are no plug seals on the 2.2L

 

So, just do the valve covers...along with the other stuff

Here are the most common Subaru oil leak locations with pics:

 

Front cam seals (especially the earlier black colored seals; the newer brownish colored ones hold up better) (pics from an EJ22):

 

Front crank seal (esp the mid 90's 2.2L's and some others where the screws on the rear case of the oil pump tended to loosen, letting oil out the front crank seal and sometimes even pushing the seal right out)

 

Also there is an o-ring between the oil pump discharge and block

 

The valve cover gaskets, and for engines where the spark plug tubes penetrate the valve cover, the spark plug hole seals.

 

EJ22's also have an o-ring at the LH rear and RH front of the cam's:

 

Also rear main seal, especially if the vehicle had a plastic rear main seal retainer/oil separator (an OEM upgrade to a metal retainer is available).

96 2.2L going into a 97GT with bad head gaskets, questions:

 

what kind of sealant do i use to remount the oil pump after replacing the o-ring and tightening the screws?

 

......EDIT: found this answer:

I'm assuming you're talking about resealing the oil pump. The Subaru alternative is Permatex Ultra Grey RTV. Anaerobic sealant is a great product but is harder to use successfully than RTV; hence I think why Subaru says RTV.

 

 

i bought the replacement metal seperator plate for the rear of the engine, but not the new screws, is this a problem?

i'm planning on using lock tite on the one screw, how about the rest? (the big arrow is really helpful.) what kind of sealant / gasket needed for this?

 

thanks for the help, more ??? as i find them.

 

i'm replacing the rear main seal & seperator plate, t-belt, all idlers, water pump, cam seals & o-rings, crank seal, valve cover gaskets, oil pump o-ring and drive belts - alt & a/c . one of the kits on ebay mentioned a "mouse head" oil pump sela / o-ring, what is that??

 

what am it missing.

 

thanks, john

not sure if this has been mentioned yet, but the oil pan itself might be leaking. If you aren't sure exactly what is leaking and you're already tearing things apart, it can be real difficult to isolate the source. The best bet would be to steam clean the underside and watch it afterwards.

For those who where curious as to the problem causing the leak,

The biggest offender was the "O" ring under the oil pump. It was no longer in the shape of a circle, looked more like a heart.

 

Ordered all the parts I hoped I was going to need... But, once I pulled it apart and checked idler bearings, the toothed idler is going bad and I didn't get that one. Anyone have one in the Chicago area they don't need right now? Otherwise have to wait for the dealership to open Monday...

 

Josh

Glad to hear you are replacing all that stuff. I got my 94 because some used car dealership didn't replace the water pump when they did the second timing belt at 117k. Best to do as much as you can while it's accesible.

 

And glad to hear you are getting dealership parts. The cost savings aren't worth the hassle of aftermarket. Next time call these guys:

 

http://www.discountimportparts.com/

 

Their parts are almost exclusively OEM brand or better, and their prices are fantastic.

 

I second the use of Anaerobic sealant for the oil pump. It won't harden and potentially block an oil passage. You just have to be careful about using it. I personally don't like RTV except for a very, very few applications - older engines with poorly designed cork gaskets, etc. I've never used a drop of the stuff on an EJ.

 

GD

be sure to replace both cam o-rings (not just the seals). rear passengers side and front drivers side (behind the cam cap that holds the cam seal).

 

if you have a grease gun and want to repack the grease in that toothed pulley you can look up my thread in the USRM and have it done tomorrow for the cost of grease. notes here:

http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=49443&highlight=timing+pulley+grease

i've done that pulley on EJ motors before, it's an easy one. it's also the most common pulley to get noisey in my experience. it'll be $50-$100 from the dealer.

And glad to hear you are getting dealership parts. The cost savings aren't worth the hassle of aftermarket.

the only exception to this in my oppinion is the timing belt pulleys. i go with the ebay kits on those. dealer runs a few hundred dollars to replace all the pulleys. i'd rather install new ones than leave 10+ year old high mileage pulleys in there, even if they sound "okay".

I second the use of Anaerobic sealant for the oil pump.

ditto that.

be sure to replace both cam o-rings (not just the seals). rear passengers side and front drivers side (behind the cam cap that holds the cam seal).

 

Yup, the rear one is already replaced, it was leaking a bit. This morning I'll be replacing cam seals and the other o-ring.

 

 

if you have a grease gun and want to repack the grease in that toothed pulley you can look up my thread in the USRM and have it done tomorrow for the cost of grease. notes here:

http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=49443&highlight=timing+pulley+grease

i've done that pulley on EJ motors before, it's an easy one. it's also the most common pulley to get noisey in my experience. it'll be $50-$100 from the dealer.

the only exception to this in my oppinion is the timing belt pulleys. i go with the ebay kits on those. dealer runs a few hundred dollars to replace all the pulleys. i'd rather install new ones than leave 10+ year old high mileage pulleys in there, even if they sound "okay".

ditto that.

 

Hmm, the other pulleys spin freely, but smooth. I'll do this to help keep them in good condition. The toothed pulley wobbles off balance and feels like sandpaper so I'm a little late to save that one.

The toothed pulley wobbles off balance and feels like sandpaper so I'm a little late to save that one.

yeah, just a tad! you are correct, avoid that one. i have a couple extras, for $100 in gas i'll come bring it to you, har, har.

Finally, after a month of parts that kept getting lost in transit by the local dealer... At least I have another car that I could drive while this one was down.

 

I'm DONE! Subaru's timing belt has timing marks on it so it made re-installing it extremely easy. Started right up with no problems and runs nicely... Now to take it to the car wash and get a good underside wash.

 

Thanks for all the help!

 

Josh

 

PS: Link to a couple pics I took while doing it.

http://s114.photobucket.com/albums/n268/snarfattack/Subie/

I'm DONE! Josh

 

CONGRATS! What a great feeling, huh?

 

Hope you got the oil leaks all sealed up. Give us an update down the road.