johnceggleston

ihad mine replaced and then read that some else, with more hands on, found his valve cover bolts LOOSE. you might check before you just spend.

i have heard rumors that they put the vin# on the engines. i recently asked , online, some one who had torn down a 99. the responnse was that they put it on the right side in the back near the trans joint. i ASSUME this means passenger side, i'm not sure this means 96 97 model years. 96 vin will have an 'T' in it , 97 = 'V' 98 = 'W, 99 = 'X'. i know 97 & 99 trans have the vin# but they mat not have started doing this until late.

FYI i priced the 'duty c' valve assembly at my local dealer yesterday, $94. and that's just the solenoid, not any clutch parts. then 250$ labor to put it in.

call the dealer with the vin# ask which ECU/TCU it has.

hey, at least he didn't sat it was a ford!!!

there was a discussion a while back about how nice this feature would be in the heated mirror circuits of the 95 - 98(?). the were a couple of reports of the drivers heated mirror is suspected of causing a fire in the door.

i'm pretty sure i know the answer to this but with only a few years of subaru experience i'll ask any way. when i swapped the 96 leg 4eat into the 95 leg i didn't swap the TCU, amy chance this is causing my TB on the 96 trans. or more importantly, whe ni make the repair, will it do it again? everything worked great for 3000 miles now duty c and TB. like i said i think i know the answer.

the flickering , i don't know. what worries me is the low voltage at the solenoid when the car on but you are NOT trying to start it. 2 things come to mind, one you have a short sending power when it's not supposed to, and two, that continuous power is cooking your starter contacts. i don't really have enough experience to know if either of these are valid concerns, but they seem on target. maybe there is a short in the steering column or the ignition switch.

the solenoid on the starter (the clicking thing) has 2 terminals. one has the large hot wire direct from the positive battery terminal. this should have the same voltage as the battery. you might check continuity betwen this terminal and the battery + post. the other treminal on the solenoid is the power from the ignition switch. this terminal only has voltage when the key is turned to start. if this terminal isn't getting the voltage/amperage it needs, your car will never start, it may click. if the solenoid is clicking, it is getting some power but not enough. you can test this with a piece of wire and a 1/4" female tab connector. with the key switched to the on position, run the wire from the smaller solenoid connector (1/4" male tab) and run it to the battery + post. you only have to touch the wire to the positive post long enough to see if the starter turns the engine. BE VERY CAREFUL, THE CAR COULD START, make sure it is in park with the brake on. keep hands and tools clear. if it starts (or turns over), the problem may be your ignition relay or wiring. if it doesn't, it could be your starter contacts. you can search for directions for adding another starter relay under the hood. this worked great for me. also directions for replacing starter contacts. of course neither of these solutions takes in to consideration the flickering dash lights. if youhave question be sure to ask. good luck, john

if you are worried about used not lasting and time and nmaone are a majoer consideration try one of thses. buy a used hub / knuckle and a new bearing find a shop that will press it in, and install that on you car in about 2 hrs. buy the used hub/knuckle install it, and save the original one untill the used fails and then go get the new bearing and install it. 2hrs twice. i'll bet either of these is cheaper than new bearing/hub combination and both are quicker than replacing the bearing in the existing hub.

at least you got to drive home, imagine if you had flipped over and landed on your roof and hood ..... never mind.:lol:

my 95 had a 'little bit' of torque bind when i bought it . it was my first AWD 4WD car and thought it was standard. it ran that way a long time from 73k to 167k, amazing, until it blew out a rear main seal on the tranny, then reverse went when the seal replacing idiot didn't add any fluid. mine would only bind at full lock, back off just a little no problem. but i think, and this is just my opinion, that regular fluid changes will reduce the TB amount if not eliminate, lengthen the time you have before it fails and in the long run cost way less. change the fliud in the trans, check the fluid in the steering. ( i know ,you've already done this, but it always amazes me when i read that some light has come on and they ask for advice before they look at the car. i've done it, probably will again) did you say you had done some work on the steering?

he should ask for the switch too.

done let me ask this, doesn't down shifting into 2 or 1 also transfer power equally to front and rear, 50/50? isn't that the factory provided 'switch'?

i meant to ask this last month but i never got around to it. when the torque converter locks up and the rpms drop a couple of hundred , is this what is generally reffered to as 'over drive'. or is OD something else? i understand how the lock up works, and how it saves fuel etc., but i'm just now putting 2 and 2 together.

i meant to ask this last month but i never got around to it. when the torque converter locks up and the rpms drop a couple of hundred , is this what is generally reffered to as 'over drive'. or is OD something else? i understand how the lock up works, and how it saves fuel etc., but i'm just now putting 2 and 2 together.

look out, here it comes... all those responses for and against. only a very few people have had success with this modification. it has caused ONE PERSON had trans damage, BECAUSE IT WAS LEFT ON ALL THE TIME, in the form of burned out AWD units = $850 - $950 repair, you have been warned. see below.

i bought a used motor for my dad's explorer. the car was 11 years old and had 115k miles. ford wanted 4500$ for rebuild. i bought one from a nearby salavage yard for 850$, they deliverd it to the mechanic, (500$ or 600$ to install), and warrantied parts and LABOR, for some period, i don't remember how long. well the engine was good so we never had to find out if the warranty was good. apparently good used parts eliminates the need for a good warranty. we sold truck the next year, when my dad died. i wish i'd kept it.

this is the guy nipper warn about the OWOWOWOWOW factor when checking spark. http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showpost.php?p=560385&postcount=31

there are 2 speed sensors on the trans. one on the front differentils and one one the rear output to drive shaft/rear differential. the TCU or ECU detects the speed difference it sends more power to the rear wheels. the flow of A/T fluid is metered by the 'duty c' solenoid. when the duty c fails the trans goes to locked 50/50 slpit which gives you torgue bind. when the FWD fuse is installed, under the hood, the duty c is 'always' on and you get power to front wheels only (FWD). i don't know the crv or rav4, but this is all wheel drive all the time not part time. if you install the FWD fuse and drive the car you can feel a distinctive differenc in the way the car handles and drives. therefore even with a 90/10 split it makse a huge difference in how the car drives. the few times i have tried this it makes the car feel 'squirrely' or 'lose'. but this is only because it's then FWD only and how great it drives with AWD.

yhese new wheels /tires will be about 3/4" wider and 1" bigger radius, thats 2" taller. i bet not. i might lose the bet, but i bet against then fitting.

this great information. thanks!! question: it doesn't matter what part of the cycle cylinder 1 is on? if the crank puley is on the mark, belt is on the crank mark and the cam pulleys are on the belt marks, then it's all ok? that is simple. i think i can do that. now about the DOHC's ....... thanks, john

if this is a manual trans, isn't the AWD unit different than the auto. i thought it was a viscous something and not controled by the computer.??? i 'm suprised that you got 2 speedos that have the same problem. i would guess that it is something else. i'd try the sending unit before i tried another speedo. i'm not familiar with manual trannys, but on a/t it's the VSS#2 or the front one that sends to the speedo. good luck.

what size are they? are the tires on them?

if you have any doubts about the honesty of the seller, get the vin# and run a carfax. it may not tell you any thing but if it says last reported mileage 215,000, well then you'll know. at least some of the trannys have the vin etched on to the driver side. john