Rooster2

My testimonial...........when I had a 2.2 from a 1995 transplanted into my 1998 with a 2.5, my trusted mechanic had never heard of doing this. He has spent a life time as a mechanic, owning his own shop, specializing in working on foreign cars. I delivered the 2.2 motor to his shop, and said "put this motor in, it will be fit, and be "plug and play.".............and so he did it, with no issues, except maybe a bracket needed to be moved from the 2.5 to the 2.2 to mount the A/C compressor. On my return to pick up the car, he was installing in a customer's car a 2.2 in a 1997 OBW that had a bad 2.5. I think my mechanic learned a thing or two.

2.2 motors for 1995-1999, I think are the ones to look for. They are compatible from a computer and transmission stand point. The 2.2 from 1990-1994 use a different computer system that is not compatible. Others here can tell you more precisely then I can. Trust us.........the main point is that ...............you can transplant a 2.2 to replace a 2.5 motor. The wrecking yard guys are just not aware of this.

+1 on installing a 2.2 motor. That is what I did on my 98 OBW to replace the 2.5 motor. Mine came out of a 95 Subie, so it was a direct replacement , plug and play. 2 years ago, I paid $400 inc. tax, out the door. I was told there was about 154K on the donor's car odo. Wrecking yard will often deliver the motor to your mechanic's shop for installation. The transplant has worked really well. I got a sweet running 2.2, in my car. Other year Subie 2.2 motors will work as well, but need to swap the exhaust header pipe to make it work. I had a new timing belt kit installed at the time of transplant. Lots written on this forum about swapping in a 2.2 motor. Just use "search" on the forum to check the archives. Let us know how you come out. We are here to help with advise.

A 96, 5 speed is likely to have the 2.2 motor, which is desirable over the 2.5 motor. If so, then good, as the 2.2 is most reliable. Ask owner, or check under the hood to see if it is a 2.2 motor. If reasonably maintained, the motor is good for 300k+ miles before rebuild. Ask when last time the timing belt was replaced, hopefully see written proof by bill receipt that the T/B was replaced. The 96 has an "interference" head design, so if T/B breaks, there will be damage to the heads & valves. $1400 seems a reasonable price, depending on over all condition.

What vehicle do you want to put them on??

Great indeed that you changed the T-belt when you did. Nice looking grill & bumper treatment on your Subie in NZ. Not sure what year, or model the car is, but it is definitely different then what we have here in the USA. I suspect it may be a Liberty, which is named the Legacy here in the US.

I agree with grossgary's response. It is an old Subaru trick to remove the thermostat when over heating is caused by bad head gaskets. Once done you are able to keep on driving the car without over heating.. The fans may not be coming on, if the engine temperature is low in cold weather, because of no thermostat. Did you get a guarantee, when you purchased this car?

Your car owner's manual should show you where the flasher is located.

I don't think it would be a good idea to drive home with that problem, If it were me, Just can't be safe to drive like that, or know what additional damage to the car driving would do.I would have the car towed home on a flat bed wrecker. Many times your car insurance, or a AAA membership will pay for the tow.

I agree with the above post. Just too much wrong with this car, let alone additional problems that you would find after purchase. I don't think there was an OBW in model year 1994, but maybe the year is off a year or two as presented to you. You could do a lot better spending 1K to 1.5K dollars for a car.

Be sure to keep the oil level up near full. Running out of oil is a sure fire way to ruin the motor.

What indication is there that there are bad wheel bearings? Do you hear noise, especially when turning? When road wheel is off the ground, moving road wheel up and down, and right to left, is there any "loose play?" A bad wheel bearing gives you plenty of notice that it is going bad, and lets you drive for a long time before needing replacement. Wheel bearings are replaced when they go bad, not as a precaution against future failure.

If the spare tire needs to be stored in the "well" un-inflated or low inflated to fit the well space, then carry in your car one of those small tire pumps that is powered by plugging it into the cigarette lighter socket. The pump is an easy way to inflate the spare if needed. Cost is less then $20. I carry one all the time, and check, and fill all my tires at the beginning of each calendar month. That way, my tires are well inflated.

I recently had the same situation, when my daughter wrecked her car. Probably the best advise, I got on a price to sell "as is," is to figure the amount the insurance company will pay you as a totaled vehicle, add your accident insurance deductible amount, then deduct the estimated repair cost. The final number is prolly a reasonable retail figure to sell the car unrepaired "as is." Suggest selling on Craig's list, or in the for sale section of the USMB forum. I wouldn't try selling to a wrecking yard, as they will pay you very little. Another approach, the insurance company will offer you $4,500 as a settlement for a "totaled" car, but will also let you "buy back" the car, so you keep the car, and they pay you something like $2,500 as a buy back. So then you have the car and the money. With the money, you can repair the car however you want to. The car will be re-titled by your insurance company as "salvage" or "rebuilt." This is what my daughter did with her car, as structurally the car is fine and safe. She had the body, and unibody frame straightening repair work done at a family owned collision repair shop at a lower price. They did quality work. Car looks, and drives like new. Retail price on the car is now based on amount the insurance paid out on the buy back, plus insurance deductible, plus amount paid to the collision shop. Hope this advise helps.............Rooster2

Just another indicator that the fan blower motor unit is filled up with old tree leaves and gunk. Just takes more power to rotate the squirrel cage with all that gunk in there.

Will it hurt to jump it and get it home after the alternator is in and then charge it with the charger? No, it won't hurt anything. Depending on how far you drive, your replacement alternator may sufficiently charge the battery enough, that you don't need to further charge the battery.

If like my Legacy, then it is behind the glove box. To access, remove the glove box, and glove box door. I think there are a few screws on the cover of the fan motor box. When I removed my cover, I found a lot of tree leaves, dirt, and crud build up, that had fallen down from the base of the windshield. I removed all the crap, and fan motor worked perfectly afterwards. Before, my fan motor had stopped working. That build up of crud could be your problem. More likely the problem, and not bad motor brushes. It is really a pretty easy do it yourself project. I hope you know what the heater fan motor looks like. If not...........ask us.

Are you saying the heater fan motor is not working??

I had a hub that ate up 2 sets of bearings in short order. Hub looked good, but was not. I replaced hub with one from a w yard, and all is well.

Bearing seals are not expensive. I would use new ones.

Lug nuts hot to the touch...........I think you could have a brake problem, maybe a seized caliper slide pin, that results in the brake constantly riding on the rotor. That can generate heat, that perhaps has warped the rotor slightly to cause the vibration. I have had this happen with no accompanying noise. Does your mechanic know about the hot lug nuts? If not, advise.......

The SVX is a unique cool car, but I don't think it would be a good idea to buy one to use as a daily drive, no matter how good a shape it is in. Any SVX is old, and hard to find parts for. It would not be fun hunting and waiting for parts that would be time consuming, meanwhile the car may not be driveable during a potential long wait. Best to think of an SVX as a back up car, or a "date car."

I am thinking that you may be having a problem with your slide pins at individual brake cylinder(s). On my wife's 98 OBW last year, the brake pedal action seemed normal, but the car just wouldn't stop well. Upon inspection, on the left front, one of the caliper slide pins was frozen, so not much pressure was being exerted by the brake pad on the rotor. I fixed that problem, and all is well. Upon further thought...................since you replaced the master cylinder, and are sure there is no air in the lines, then I could understand there could be a problem with the vacuum booster. Having to push the brake pedal near full travel to the floor, is a sign that it is something more then a stuck caliper slide pin.

You could still use the donut if need be. Just put the donut on the rear axle, and insert a fuse into the FWD fuse holder under the hood. Inserting the fuse, changes the car to front wheel drive only. Once tire is repaired, and all 4 tires are the same size again, then pull the fuse to have all wheel drive operational again.

stay with the 5W-30 weight oil, it will work just fine.