Numbchux

The EJ engine-EA transmission combination leaves a ~12mm (IIRC, because 1/2" is close enough at about 13mm) gap between the 2 bellhousings, which is perfect, as only the bottom studs line up, so the adapter plate to change bolt patterns also takes up the missing bellhousing depth. The opposite combination would have the factory bellhousings hitting each other (not bolted up, because different bolt pattern), and the input shaft would be 12mm short of the flywheel. If you used a standard adapter plate, you'd need a 1" thick spacer for the flywheel. BUT, he's already EJ engine swapped. The EJ transmission is absolutely the way to go. The dual range in the RX transmission is a neat pub fact, but in practice, the ratios suck for just about anything (it was designed and built when the national speed limit was 55). Ditto with the lockable center diff (locked center is good for intense offroading, but nothing else). Get a phase 2 EJ transmission. I'd be looking for something with 4.111 axle ratios and a .738 5th gear will pull harder from a stop, and cruise better on the highway. The phase 2 VLSD center diff will handle better on the pavement, ice, snow and dirt. Keep your clutch type LSD, and swap it into the matching EJ case with matching ring gear. I put phase 1 EJ internals with the above ratios into my XT6 single range case and put it in my '88 XT6 about 10-12 years ago, it drove SOOOOOOOO much better!

Well, I've used an Impreza pedal box on a Forester..... I did some googling for the ones I was thinking of, which have a little dam on the front edge, but I found many other designs. Our GC rally car had a JDM aluminum hood, but just stock OBS/RS vents (I don't remember if was had the plates under them or not) and scoop. But we also had a big aluminum radiator, FMIC, and didn't really ever have any cooling issues.

I don't think that style vent would offer much in the way of cooling. Maybe at slow speed....but that's probably it. There are many factory and aftermarket options that fit there that are more shaped to help create some negative pressure above the vent while moving that would likely have a bigger effect. Then again, reversing the scoop would likely have a much bigger effect, if you don't have a TMIC or intake right below it.

I always bought 6 qts, and saved the receipt. Seems to me I usually returned 1, but the last time I used them all.

We stuck the fork in it. The codes haven't come back, but it slips and lurches from a stop (especially uphill), and makes an awful noise. We just put a deposit on a 2018 Impreza hatch with 17k miles and a salvage title due to hail damage. I tried to get her out of a Subaru, but a comparable Toyota (Rav4, AWD Camry, Corolla Cross, etc.) is at least $10k more.

We aimed for a drain-and-fill every 60k miles or so on my Mom's 2012 Impreza, Subaru fluid. It lasted about 220k. I guess that's good for an early TR580

It's not hard to pop those out when replacing a ball joint or even strut. So if anything like that was done recently, that's likely the answer. I don't think I've seen one pop out on their own. I would recommend replacing both the front differential gear oil (as it likely has some metal shavings from the slipping splines, and the spider gears likely got hot from spinning with only one axle connected), and ATF (as the transfer clutches got abused) after driving it like that.

I only run Duralast pads on my vehicles. They have a lifetime warranty (including wear), so you never have to buy them again. Golds come with hardware, so that's usually my preference. The Gold rotors are ok, but I've had a couple sets, and the coating that they come with flakes off super easy, and I wasn't terribly impressed with how they held up. They're not bad, but I don't think they're worth the premium (OE rotors are cheaper, in some applications). Most standard Duralast rotors have a coated hat now, anyway.

No, Subarus have constant flow through the heater core, and divert the air around it to adjust the temperature.

@bratsrus1is Jerry, although he hasn't been on here in years Here's a post where he lists his phone number, But I think I saw a post on Facebook that he wasn't going to make the kits anymore....

Just start a new thread, instead of digging up a 5+ year old one. And list your exact symptoms and what you've tried. Lots of good FSMs on www.jdmfsm.info

Any OBDII reader capable of reading live data. The Bluetooth dongles tethered to a smart phone offer quite a bit of functionality. I've used FreeSSM on several Subarus, but I don't think it's designed for anything that old.

Most cars in the last 20-30 years do that from the factory, using a controller to vary pump duty. And actually take it further, to vary it based on engine load. I'm in the middle of swapping a 1994 Lexus 4.0 V8 into my 4Runner, and in one of my test runs, I pulled the return hose out of my fuel bucket, and it was just a dribble coming out, even at idle. This helps fight overheating of the fuel, and probably reduced wear on the fuel filters, as it cuts down on the volume of fuel going through them. When I worked at AutoZone, the fuel pump companies said (grain of salt....but it makes sense) that the vast majority of fuel pump warranty claims were caused by debris, which is why you should always replace the prefilter when replacing a pump. I don't believe such a thing exists on the EA Subarus, so it might be worth putting an inline filter between the tank and pump. The nice thing about the inline filter design on the EAs, is that you can get one anywhere. I've used ones for Ford trucks, and several other things. Can't get a $40 fuel pump for anything I drive, now.

Yep, paper gaskets seem to leak. Stamped metal ones generally do not. Many aftermarket companies have figured this out, and supply a metal gasket, but not all. I'm assuming that since the incorrect water pump gasket was used, that the incorrect head gaskets were used as well....so just assume those will fail, and they may leave you stranded (OEM coated gaskets tend to just leak oil, OEM MLS gaskets tend to outlast the vehicle). It sounds like the water pump is getting air in it and cavatating, that easily could just be from your external leak, or it could be a head gasket.

This is SOP when building a rally car. THICK steel plate on the top of all 4 struts, and tied into the cage.

No way to know how long it will last. Might be 50k, might be 50. New fluid will help, but obviously it won't solve the problem. And it will still be a gamble every time you drive it. Make sure your never outside the towing range of your AAA membership.... Whatever you think it's worth (I won't get into that, the market is crazy right now), it will be worth a LOT less with a known major problem like that. Look at Impreza transmissions. 3.9 is a very common ratio for the Impreza/OBS in that vintage. They will likely have a slightly taller 5th gear than the heavier Legacy, but it's a pretty small change. Facebook marketplace and brand-specific groups are a great place to buy a transmission. I bought 2 Turbo (FXT and OBXT) 4.444 manual transmissions for $150 through a local group. One has completely unknown history, but still! I bet with a little digging, you could find a nice local transmission for 300 or less. Sure, it's a pain of a job, but if the car is in otherwise good condition, you will add thousands of dollars to its resale value. That's easy math if you ask me. You could probably find a shadetree mechanic doing side work in his garage and pay him to do it, and still come out way ahead.

No small project to split the cases and replace the bearings, and there's a lot of "while your in there" things to consider on a 235k mile trans. I've had many manuals apart, and put a couple back together and used them. I would definitely not bother, not with how easily a good used transmission can be sourced.

Could be throwout, but also absolutely could be internal to the transmission. I would get the car up in the air, running in neutral and poke around with a stethoscope. See if the noise is coming from in the bellhousing (listen right on the clutch fork), or from the case itself. Change the fluid and see what the drain plug looks like.

Well, small update. She had the fluid changed at a local-to-her independent shop that she frequents, she brought in Subaru CVTF A few days later, she was driving, and noticed a loss of power on the highway, and when she pulled over, the engine had stalled. She had to navigate across a lane of traffic and an entrance ramp, so she's not sure if it stalled on the move, or when she stopped (like a stuck torque converter). But, after cycling the key, it started back up, and drove normally. My dad read the codes later that day, and found P0700 (AT abnormal) and P0841 again. She's visiting me again this week. First thing I found out, none of my scan tools will read the live data for that sensor. I have a Carista ELM327 bluetooth adapter that I use with my phone, I have a couple basic apps, but ActiveOBD is a Subaru specific one, with which I can read torque converter lockup, AWD transfer, transmission temp and more. I also have an Innova 3170RS, and FreeSSM. So, then I was left with the options to buy a better tool to test it. Pay the dealership to test it. Or, just throw the $150 sensor in. The local dealership had it on the shelf, and said they use them in the shop about once a month. If it were my car, and only driven locally, I'd drive it and wait for symptoms to worsen. But it's my mom's, and she drives all over the state, a breakdown in the middle of nowhere would be far more costly. So, I did what I hate to do, and loaded up the parts cannon. Yesterday I put 5 more quarts of Subaru CVT fluid in (what came out was still pretty brown) and the secondary pressure sensor. With such intermittent symptoms, only time will tell if that was the chicken or the egg. I drove it to work today, and it's showing it's age. Not sure what the future is for this car, it seems like a pretty nice car, but with a salvage title, considerable oil consumption, and a failing CVT, it's probably not worth much, and not worth fixing.

small clarification In the late '90s, they transitioned to a single 3-wire sensor, which still performed like 2 separate sensors (2 wires for the ECU, single wire resistance-to-ground for the gauge). And then around 2008, they transitioned to a single 2-wire sensor only feeding the ECU, which then outputted a signal via CAN to the gauge cluster. Yep, you can use your EA81 sending unit with a little modification. Or you can wire a resistor in to modify the EJ signal for the EA dash (I know this works on the EA82s, I think the EA81s as well). That's in my write-up. Or, just wire the EJ sensor to the EA gauge, and it will read about 1/2 what it used to, but will still give you some information.

http://opposedforces.com/parts/info/11044AA483/ https://www.ebay.com/itm/192453951693 both list SOHC non turbo and turbo 2.0 applications. That's what I would use. USDM source, lists WRX EJ205 https://www.subarupartsdeal.com/parts/subaru-gasket-cylinder-head~11044aa483.html

I know STi turbo head gaskets are used on the SOHC 2.5 all the time, I would think WRX would be the same. Timing change would be negligible, compression might be noticeable.

WRX 2.0 head gasket should work just fine. Everything else is the same as SOHC 2.5. Very easy to get parts with that little bit of information.

use your VIN on the parts site, it'll only give you one option. Or, look at the plate on the LH strut tower in the engine bay for the original complete engine code.

If anyone has any insight, or, I'll just document what I find in case someone is looking in the future. My mom's 2012 Impreza 2.0i Premium. 216k miles, original engine and CVT. Had the torque converter solenoid fail last summer, and the fluid was a bit brown, so I did a drain and fill then (probably 190k miles), and we did another at about 80k, when I was working at a dealership. The AT Oil Temp light was flashing one day, I scanned it about 2 days later (no lights on) and it had a stored P0841, as well as a U0100 (CAN signal error), C1431 (AT abnormal), and C1422 (VDC Interrupted). From the Subaru FSM: First 2 steps in the diagnostic procedure is to check the condition and level of the CVT fluid. I think she's going to have another drain and fill done (she does not live locally to me, so I probably won't see the car for another couple weeks). And then there are a few tests using the SSM to check the pressure readings from the sensor under a few conditions (Idle in park, 3k rpm in park, torque convert stall at WOT). Beyond a fluid related issue, the procedure basically ends with the sensor, wiring, or transmission causing the fault. The secondary pressure sensor is externally mounted, threaded in towards the rear of the left side of the transmission. By her VIN, part #31878AA020, with an MSRP of $148.17