Fairtax4me

There's a click in there that's too fast for rod knock. Sounds like a collapsed hydraulic lifter, but that engine doesn't have any. But there's also a much deeper knock going on which could certainly be a rod. What does it do if you rev it up some? Still worth it to pull the timing cover and check the tensioner.

Might make sure the terminals are clean in the big connector on the bellhousing. And make sure its plugged in all the way. Another thought is a chafed wire under the intake manifold. Could be grounding the signal only when the engine moves in a certain way. Try the wiggle test!

I was thinking that, but I wasn't gonna go there!

Does it crank smooth and fast or does it chug like normal? Fast cranking would mean timing belt. Crank and cam sensors will prevent starting. Those will also usually set a CEL so if you can check it for codes.

Did the RMS come from Subaru? Did you replace the o-ring behind the wrist pin access plate?

The term gets tossed around kinda loosely. Generally its fine to use, until there's a conversation like this, then it just gets confusing IMO. There are many kinds of knuckles. Steering knuckle, hub knuckle, spindle knuckle, busted knuckle...

Lets try to get the terminology straight. Knuckle is what's bolted to the strut. Wheel bearing is pressed into the knuckle. The Hub (round part with the lug studs sticking out of it) is pressed into the center of the wheel bearing. The axle sticks through the center of the hub. There is no spindle. Spindles are for front wheel drive, and for front wheels on old RWD vehicles. The question was about interchangeability of ABS hubs. An ABS hub has 5 holes drilled in it for the ABS tone ring to bolt to. The ABS tone ring bolts to the back side of the hub (the side toward the knuckle). A non-ABS hub doesn't have the holes drilled in it. The ABS tone ring can not be mounted to a non-ABS hub. Physically they're the same dimensions. Either one fits in the same knuckle, whether its disc, drum, ABS or non. But if you need the ABS tone ring, you need the ABS hub with the holes in it for the tone ring to mount to.

Backing plate isn't as easy to swap as it sounds. Have to pull the hub out, or cut the plate. The sensor does no good without the tone ring, which is bolted to the hub. And again, have to either pull the hub out of the knuckle which destroys the wheel bearing, or cut the tone ring which can cause an ABS light if done wrong.

There are several different types. FWD means plain old front wheel drive, as in no rear drive parts (axles, diff, driveshaft). AWD Front axles for manual or automatic trans will have different inner cv joints. Manual trans has a double offset joint. Auto has a tripod style joint. I'm not sure how much difference it makes, but Subaru decided the difference was necessary. Aftermarket axles have a notorious failure rate. I've heard several times that EMPI axles are good, but Ive never used them on a Subaru. The best quality axles are original subaru green, but they're very expensive new. A good option if you don't mind doing some work is to get junkyard axles and put new boots on them. FWE rebuilds Subaru axles exclusively. They are the best quality rebuilt axle you can get, but cost around $100 per.

If you NEED the ABS you will need to find an ABS hub since the ABS parts can not be mounted to a non-ABS hub. If you don't need ABS then either one will work. The ABS tone ring will not be in the way. The sensor can be unbolted and removed. Watch out for drum vs disc brakes. The knuckles are not interchangable. The caliper brackets may differ from Legacy to Impreza, but the knuckles are the same and the brackets will swap if needed.

An impact driver is usually what is needed to remove those. I wouldn't worry about it if it isn't loose.

Proper mounting and proper grounding will go a long way. Zip-tied to the bottom of the glove box just doesn't cut it.

I've done exactly that for years. And many times I've added a single spark plug or a small pack of brake grease ($1.99ish) or such to an order to get above a certain amount to save another $10 or more with discount codes.

Possibly the wiring for the TCC solenoid inside the trans is chafed or pinched and is shorting. Very little clearance between the pan and the valve body and there are several wires and solenoids in there that can be damaged if something pushes against the pan. I would unplug the large connector for the trans wire harness up by the firewall and check for corrosion there first. Then check the harness where it runs down the side of the trans for chafed wires. If that's clean the pan will probably need to be dropped to check the wiring inside the trans.

Inaccurate guages are common. Sometimes a bottle of Techron helps clean the sender unit. Mostly you just learn to deal with it. My 95 hits the E after 240-250 miles and I drive it another 50 before I fill up. Still only takes about 10 gallons to fill it. I put 400 miles on the trip odo once and it only needed 12.5 gallons. The needle was pegged below E for a LONG time! It's FWD though. Possibly the plugs causing incomplete burn. O2 sensors don't read fuel. Just oxygen. If the AF mixture doesn't burn all the way (oxygen has to burn with the fuel) there's still a lot of oxygen in the exhaust which can cause a lean reading. I'm not sure if it would be enough to run fuel trims off by 20%, but it may be possible.

Then it seems to me that its working normally. There shouldn't be pressure pushing anything up through the breather tubes. There will be oily residue in the PCV tubing because that's the cruddy oil vapor that the PCV system is supposed to suck out of the crankcase. There will normally be some push out of the PCV hoses with the engine running. If you open the oil cap you'll usually feel a little pulsing there. Just because the PCV valve rattles doesnt mean kts workin properly. Part of the PCV valves job is to limit how much flows through the PCV tubing. Too much and it starts sucking clean oil up into the intake. Too little and it leads to sludge formation in the crankcase. Varnish will build in the pistons rings and more oil will get pished past the rings and burned off in the combustion chamber. If the PCV valve is old, replace it. I recommend Genuine Subaru.

I really wish there were an IPD equivalent for Subaru. There are lots of sources out there for quality parts, but where to go kinda depends on what part you need. For some there is still no better, or no other, option than the dealer. FCPImport carries a lot of Subaru parts, good quality aftermarket and many Genuine Subaru. Rockauto is popular because they carry lots of parts, and usually at a good price. Just have to watch very carefully when they calculate that shipping cost at the end. They tried to charge me an extra $9 shipping to add two donut gaskets to an exhaust pipe order. I placed a separate order for the gaskets and they shipped for $1.35.

Yeah, All 2.5s in that era had EGR. Get an intake manifold off a 2.2 automatic w/EGR and just run a tube from the valve over to the intake tube. T it into the IAC hose or directly to the intake tube. The ECU swap may work, but alot of times a computer costs more than an intake manifold at a junkyard.

Its possible the vent chambers in the valve covers are clogged. Did you blow through the tubes with them still attached?

Does it differ in shape from the original? They can be a pain to get lined up when installing. Does it have the valve thing at the top, or does it have the small metal tube? That's the biggest difference I know of.

Can you blow air through the breather tubes?

02 still has the filter under the hood as far as I know. How old are spark plugs and wires? Air filter? PCV valve?

Pretty sure they just moulded plastic on these. Probably cracked and filled with fluid.

Old plugs won't help anything, that's for sure. The timing mark onnthe crank pulley can only be trusted so much. It's a two peice pulley and the outside section can slip. Also, the pulley will like the crank up at TDC, which is useful for adjusting valves, but these are not timed at TDC. The crank timing sprocket has a separate mark for timing which puts the crank at half stroke. Line up the dash marks on the front edge of the cam sprockets with the notches in the covers.

Bug spray? I've seen this "fixed" before on several vehicles by finding the canister vent hose and sticking one of these trim clips in the end of it: http://www.itw-fastex.com/catalog/index.php/dw/op/a/7/c/17/p/14?m=no Just need the right size to grab inside the hose so it wont fall out, without being so large to obstruct it. Sounds cheesy, but it does work. If one doesn't work well enough, put a large Y or T on the end of the hose and use two. The vent hose is usually pretty obvious right by the canister. The end of the hose usually sticks into a hole in the frame. Hopefully a 2010 won't have much rust back there yet and you can remove the canister without much trouble to find any hoses that may be above it. For a real diagram, a factory service manual will be the only source. There are links floating around here to a website that has loads of FSMs. Not sure if they have up to 2010, I haven't looked there recently.