hankosolder2

Well, I got impatient and decided to just disconnect the battery. Turns out the keyless entry system holds its programming with the battery disconnected, CEL is off now, it's all good. Plan "B" was to unplug the actual ECM, but at that point, driving to Autozone starts seeming like a better idea. Nathan

Greetings, I was wondering if there was a way of resetting the CEL without disconnecting the battery or using a scanner. (I don't want to disconnect the battery b/c I have an aftermarket keyless entry that's a PAIN to configure.) I've been looking for a fuse which supplies the ECM backup and can't find anything. TIA, Nathan EDIT: It's a '98 Legacy Outback

I discovered something interesting when I bought a used EJ22 motor...Subaru put the VIN on it, so I was able to run a Carfax on the motor to see what the last recorded mileage was! I wonder if Subaru VIN identifies transmissions as well? Nathan

One dipstick is for the ATF, one dipstick is for the gear oil for the front differential. Nathan

I'm not a huge green freak or anything, but this rustproofing technique is good for the car, but not so good for the environment, humans, etc. It contains carcinogens, heavy metals, all kinds of mean and nasty stuff etc. Why not use new motor oil? It's the perfect application for that low-bid discount stuff you'd worry about putting in your crankcase. At $1 a quart or less, it's worth doing things the better way. Cheers, Nathan

Well, the ratio of the front differental must match the ratio of the rear differential or the transmission will self destruct. So, if they put in a used trans from a different year or model with a different ratio, the rear end has to be changed to match. I think changing the front diff and trans as a unit makes sense; many shops have the skill level to swap out a complete transaxle assembly, but don't have the skill to tear down a transaxle and repair the diff to component level. IMHO, there's a better chance of a good outcome changing the whole deal. Good luck, Nathan

Ben, I did a 2.2 swap and have never looked back. As you noted, make sure you get the right spec engine, and remember that you will also need an intake manifold- a JDM one may not have the right fittings. I bought a junkyard engine so I got the proper US spec manifold, etc. Also, the 2.5 coil pack will not work...it has different ends for the plug wires than the 2.2 pack (However, I see that you're -international- so perhaps some of the USDM stuff doesn't apply to you.) Best of luck. Oh, replace the oil separator plate on the back of the block with the new metal type when you're installing the new motor. Also think about seals. Nathan

If you need the car for a daily driver, and are planning on replacing the engine anyway, why not just weld the pulley onto the crank? (assuming water pump and T belt are OK.) I bet you could do that with the engine in place...could last for years that way. Well, that's just my .02 of butchery advice. Nathan

I believe that the '96 was the only 2.5 with hydraulic lifters. There were a number of revisions to the cams, lifters, combustion chamber shape etc. in '97. I could be wrong about this, but I think '96 2.5 DOHC may have required premium fuel as well. Joe Spitz 's site has some info on this if I recall correctly. Nathan

Well, I think the others are forgetting the obvious. All early Legacy Outbacks (except '96 manual trans cars) were equipped with the 2.5 DOHC engine with the HG issues. "Regular" Legacy L's and such came with the 2.2 SOHC "no worries" engine. I think that's what a lot of the discrepancy is about. It's also possible that "Outback" purchasers are rougher on their cars due to the pseduo SUV marketing angle...one might see more wheel bearing problems, trans failures and such in a car that's used for light off-roading compared to the grocery getter Legacy L. Cheers, Nathan

>Long story short, my 96 outback (Subaru number 10) had some major >airbag issues. (blew up without a wreck) Am I the only one who is a little curious what the story was here? Do you have any explanation for what happened with the unintended airbag deployment? Nathan

Oil pressure switches are normally closed. (i.e. the connector on the oil pressure switch has continuity to ground when there is no oil pressure, completing the circuit and turning on the dash light. The other lead of the dash light is connected to switched +12.) When oil pressure is present, the switch opens and the circuit is broken (no warning light.) Thus, if the wire to the switch is disconnected, the light will never come on. Best way to check is to turn the key to the "ON" position without starting the car. The light should illuminate, then go off when you start the car and it develops oil pressure. The ECU does not monitor oil pressure in subies. Cheers, Nathan

It sounds like you have the known Subaru problem of a sheared/chewed up woodruff key/front pulley keyway/ crankshaft. You'll have to take it apart and see what the deal is. There are some folks who have come up with a solution if the keyway is stripped out- it involves securing the pulley to the timing belt sprocket behind it. Do some searches and you'll find the info. If you really are just going to get rid of the car, you could have the pulley welded to the crank. It's a very bad fix, as there's no way to change the water pump/timing belt & seals after that-- but it will work. Cheers, Nathan

Matt, You could monitor the voltage going to the primary of the coil pack to narrow down the problem. Attach a voltmeter between the center terminal (of the three pin connector) and an end terminal, watch for voltage pulses while cranking the car. Repeat the procedure checking the other end terminal. If you are missing voltage on one of the pairs, the problem is your ignitor, ECU/ECM or one of the sensors (cam, crank, etc.) If both voltages are OK, but you have no spark out of one section of the coil pack= bad coil pack! Also, wiring or connectors anywhere in the primary circuit or to any of the sensors in question could cause your issues. If everything checks OK, you may have to start doing continuity tests. FYI, I also believe that faulty crank/cam sensors will throw codes even if you can't get the car started. Let us know what you find. Best of luck, Nathan

Well, I went ahead and cleaned the throttle body. It's all good now. I was concerned about cleaning it, as I know some cars have a special coating in the TB which solvents can screw up. It appears that the only coating in my TB was gunk! regards, Nathan

Hi All, I've got a '98 Legacy Outback- just finished swapping in an EJ22 from a '95 Legacy. (Using the '95 Legacy throttle body.) ANYWAY, the throttle has a really stiff hitch in it around the idle position- worse if the car sits for a bit. Action is smooth beyond that point. I lubed the external parts of the linkage and the problem seems like the throttle body is binding internally. I'm assuming there's carbon build up inside. My questions are: 1.) Is this a known problem? and 2.) is it safe to clean the inside of the throttle body with carb cleaner, or is there some kind of coating in there which will get screwed up? thanks in advance, Nathan

Good points. Yeah, I guess it's just the usual "I like the ej22, nice power to weight ratio, what else could I use it in?" There are a few cars which originally were supposed to have boxer engines (the Morris Minor, for example) but received inline fours due to parts-bin engineering compromises. So I was thinking it might be fun to play around along those lines. The Subaru manual transaxle (IMHO) is not particularly slick-shifting, so I was wondering if there were other possibilities which had been explored. Guess that other than a 2-speed powerglide, or a possible Nissan hoge-podge, the answer is no! Nathan

I have a '98 Legacy Outback 5mt...the master cylinder is connected directly through a hose to the slave cylinder- no delay valve. Production date on the car is 6/97. I know there were clutch changes made between '97 and '98; the '98 master cylinder costs about half as much as the '97. cheers, Nathan

Hi, I was wondering if anyone had heard of anybody swapping a subaru engine into any sort of rear wheel drive car? (I guess I should say "front engine rear wheel drive car" to exclude VWs, Porsches, etc.) I've looked around a bit and haven't come up with a thing! I don't have anything specific in mind just now, I'm just wondering if anybody's ever bolted some sort of exclusively RWD manual trans to an EJ series engine... thanks, Nathan

The only place I've seen weld-in bungs sold is with aftermarket air/fuel ratio meters-- if you're installing an AFM in a car which originally did not come with an 02 sensor (say, a older carburated car) - they sell an o2 sensor and a bung to weld into the manifold for you to thread the 02 sensor into. The threaded hole will likely be too large for your EGR application, but you could use a combination of threaded reducers or something. I think if you look around at air fuel ratio meters, you will probably find a place to buy a bung. Perhaps some of the suby tuners would have something you could use? Also, the same bung type setup is used for add on EGT (exhaust gas temp sensors) in turbo applications... bet you can find something there from the WRX boys. Alternately, you might be able to take a large nut, grind the corners smooth, grind a curve into it to match the profile of your exhaust and weld that on... Good luck- let us know how (if!) this EGR kludge ends up working out for you! nathan

I had (sort of) the same problem. The only heads which will work are those from a '95 ej22 with an auto trans. (post '95 ej22s had single exhaust ports on each head and will not fit the ej25 exhaust. Also, for whatever reason, manual trans '95 2.2s did not have egr.) I have heard that drilling and tapping the earlier non EGR heads does not work due to the proximity of a water passage, but I don't personally know that to be a fact. Anyway, when I was dealing with the same issue (in the end I just bought a complete '95 motor with EGR) and brain stormed a few ways of dealing with it- the question is "how does the ECM know that EGR is functioning?" I _believe_ it checks for two things: the presence of continuity in the EGR control solenoid, and it also looks for a change in the mixture via the 02 sensor when the EGR control solenoid is engaged to verify actual gas flow through the EGR valve. So, it's going to be pretty hard to fake out. You might be able to (and I know this is goofy) install the USDM intake manifold, all the EGR hardware and run a tube from the left side of the Y exhaust pipe (weld in a threaded bung) up to the EGR valve. The only reason that this might not work is if the back pressure is wrong...let us know if you try it and if it works. cheers, Nathan

I think that's because it's resting solidly on the bump stops. Heh! Nathan

I just did an ej22>ej25 swap in my '98 Outback (thanks to the help and advice from various folks on this board!) The exhaust _should_ bolt up OK, as the '95 and earlier Legacy have dual port exhausts (two ports on each head.) The '94 Legacy engine does _not_ have an EGR port, so you will not be able to use your 2.5 EGR valve and will get a check engine light- something to bear in mind if you live in an area where they scan your car for codes during emission inspection. The best donor engine for this swap is a '95 legacy automatic- it has an EGR port and the dual exhaust port heads. The wiring harness for the '94 Legacy is incompatible with the later cars, and the 2.5 intake manifold will NOT bolt up to the 2.2. Seems like you're doing things the hard way! You might be able to use the intake manifold, engine wiring harness, sensors, throttle body, coil pack from a '95 2.2 legacy, and bolt that up to your '94 block. You'd still have the EGR issue. I can't guarantee that any of my advice will work, as I have never tried this -w- a '94 legacy block. good luck, Nathan

Well, it is hard to second-guess people who have actually looked at the vehicle, and I'm hardly an expert, but I think doing a compression test on the number 2 cylinder with the engine fully warmed up would be a good starting point. If the valve clearance has become too tight, it could cause missing once the engine is warmed up. Perhaps this relates to the Subaru dealer suggesting a head assembly (if they suspect a burned valve due to overly tight valve clearance.) I would be interested to know WHEN the misfire occurrs, and if it is intermittent. Someone who knows more than me may correct me on this, but I think the injectors on this car might be "batch fired" (meaning that two injectors squirt fuel at the same time and the two pairs alternate.) If that is the case, it is unlikely that it is the ECM, as the paired injectors would be wired in parallel and any problem in the ECM would take out two cylinders at once. I could be wrong about this though...and it's also possible the ECM has current limiting resistors inside it for each injector, even if it is batch fired. You would have to look at a wiring diagram and see if each injector is individually wired back to the ECM or not. If it is the ECM, you can probably find a used, junkyard ECM inexpensively and it shouldn't be that hard to replace. Do a search on car-part.com and see if anything comes up. cheers, Nathan