Fairtax4me

Good deal!

That would probably be the Fram filter. No point running synthetic oil if you run a junk filter. A plain Purolator is a huge upgrade over the best Fram. The PureOne filters are better. Wix is the best you can buy, and they're only like $8. Do you live in the desert? In most climates 10w-40 oil is too thick on start-up and takes longer for the pump to push through the oil passages in the engine. You run the bearings dry before fresh oil gets there. If you want the high temp protection of a 40 weight oil get 0(zero)w-40 synthetic. Usually doesn't cost any more than any other synthetic. But 5w-30 works just fine. I run both my ej22s (95 and 96) on 5w-30. 95 just rolled 235k. 96 is just shy of 230k miles.

They can't clear it because its an Immediate at fault recognition code, meaning its a code that sets the MIL immediately when the fault occurs. If you clear it and the light comes right back its because the fault is still present. My guess, mice have been chewing the wires on top of your fuel tank.

Larry that's a pretty common problem on the EJ engines and is because of a faulty ECT sensor for the computer. The computer thinks the engine is cold all the time and floods it with fuel when its warm. If holding the theottle open slightly allows it to start, probably the ECT sensor.

Depending on how warm it is you should have between 30-35 psi on the low side. This alone doesn't tell you much though. It seems you have an issue on the high pressure side. Either at the expansion valve or the drier. The expansion valve could be clogged or is frozen due to moisture in the system. You say there was no other service done besides adding a sealer and filling with refrigerant, so I'm assuming the system was not evacuated and vacuumed to remove moisture. Depending on how long the system was empty before, the drier could be saturated and is not able to retain the moisture that may have got in. You'll have to find the source of the leak (check the bottom corners of the condenser). You can buy leak detection kits at the parts store that come with UV dye and a UV light, but usually just looking for traces of oil (appears green) is enough to pinpoint a leak on these. Then I would recommend replacing the drier along with any o-rings that may be leaking, and the o-rings on the compressor. Then have the system vacuumed before refilling.

25 is a little low. The system is probably still leaking. The low charge can cause the expansion valve to make noise. Also possible that the sealer they put in may have clogged the expansion valve. The expansion valve is at the end of the high pressure line right where it goes into the AC box at the firewall. Do you feel the vibration on the low pressure line (the large one) or the high pressure line(the small one)?

It's pretty much impossible to over tighten those with a 10mm wrench. Unless you're He-man. Then maybe. Tighten them up about as tight as you can by twisting your wrist and they won't come loose.

I've replaced at least 5 MAF sensors that would cause random stalling. I've not seen one cause high/hanging idle problems, or constant misfiring but its possible. Generally its caused by a cracked solder joint inside the MAF, when the ECU loses MAF signal it kills the engine. No stumble no fuss, just quits. If it happens while driving it'll feel like you put the brakes on. A couple seconds later you'll get power back and continue as if nothing happened. It seems to be repairable if you are adventurous enough to cut the top off the MAF and have some experience with a soldering iron.

You need the MAF because that's what tells the ECU how much fuel the engine needs. Without it the ECU will run in Limp mode with the CEL on all the time, and you'll still have no power. As Texan said, the stock intake tube IS a COLD air intake tube. It draws cold air from behind the headlamp and pulls it through a water separator in the fender before going to the filter box. If you just want more sound, pull the water separator out of the fender. Takes all of 10 minutes. If youre dead set on using the aftermarket kit for looks. All of the little hoses that attached to the stock intake tube need to be attached to the "cold air" tube that you put on. They need to be attached somewhere between the MAF sensor and the throttle body. ALL of the air the engine consumes has to flow through the MAF first. If any of the breather or PCV tubes are disconnected the MAF will command a lean fuel mixture and you'll get no power.

Which O2 sensor code? This can certainly cause rough running and misfiring. The ECU could be adding/pulling fuel to compensate for false reading from the sensor. Another option is the painfully simple vacuum leak.

No adhesive on these cars. Pull the seats out, center console, pull the door sill trims up, b-pillar trim off. A couple clips on the sides and some screw clips up under the dash and the carpet lifts out. You can get carpet, seats, pretty much the entire interior from any Impreza (including all sub models; wrx, STI, obw, rs, ts, etc.) 93~06/07ish.

Which one? There are at least 7. Does it matter if the trans is in gear? Put it in neutral and keep engine speed up, does it still make the noise? What about if you rev the engine up when sitting still?

Transmissions don't shudder unless something is broken inside. Nothing inside the transmission is turning when the car is sitting still. All of the engines rotation is absorbed by the torque converter. So unless there's a clutch slipping in the trans, there is nothing moving to cause a shudder. Two things happen when you put the trans in Nuetral. 1 it takes load off the engine. When the engine is under in gear at idle any roughness is amplified because the engine is trying to turn against the torque converter. 2 it takes load off of the drivetrain, mainly the front axles. Due to the way the auto transmission works, there is no transfer of motion to the rear wheels unless the front output shaft is turning. Front output shaft turns the front pinion gear, front diff and thus the front axles. There is also stress on the engine and transmission mounts when in gear which is released when put into park/neutral so be sure to check those as well, though its not common for any of those to go bad.

Does it have a MAF sensor? If so I would check all of the hoses that attach to the intake tube behind the MAF. And make sure all the clamps are tight. Possible the ECT sensor is borked and is telling the ECU the engine is warm all the time. This would allow warm starts but would not give enough fuel to start when very cold. If you know anyone with a scanner you can check the temperature reading and compare that to outside air temp. If not you can check the resistance of the sensor (stick it in the freezer) when cold and see if it differs once warm. There are charts online that give an estimated resistance at certain temperatures.

You don't want to go synthetic with an old transmission. Modern synthetic fluids may not play nice with the seals. It could do more harm than good. Just stick with a regular Dexron III spec fluid. I use the Walmart Supertech Stuff and it works great. The 4eat shifts a little hard anyway, especially when its cold since it seems to hold out the gears a little longer. Pretty normal. As for the shudder, do both axles have the Subaru green cv joints? If not, probably the source of the shudder. Strange as it may sound, using aftermarket axles DOES make the car shudder. Other than that, you'll want to make sure the maintenance is up to date, good plugs and wires, filters, PCV valve, and make sure there are no vacuum leaks, and the breather and PCV hoses are attached where they should be. Run a half can of Seafoam in the intake to clean out intake and combustion chamber deposits and that will help smooth out the idle.

Poke under the dash in the drivers side and disconnect the bright green plugs. That's the "test mode" plug for the ECU and it makes all the relays and solenoids cycle. This may affect operation of the AC, not sure though. Most commonly the pressure is too low in the system. There is a pressure switch which keeps the compressor clutch from engaging if the pressure is too low or too high. Leaks at the o-rings on the compressor are common. Look for greenish oil on top of the compressor.

Odd they don't carry them in the store anymore. I first saw it in the store and went searching online to see if I could find it cheaper. The best I could find was a few dollars cheaper and the shipping cost made that back up. I think I did finally order it online but purchased a few other things at the same time. Certainly one of the best tools I've ever bought. Needed it to do a cam seal on a Camry because there was very limited room between the head and the strut tower. Have used it dozens of times since then and love the way it works.

Start by looking at engine coolant temp. See that it's within about 10-15 degrees of outside air temp on the first start of the day. It should climb steadily as the engine warms up. Once the engine is warm, again make sure engine coolant temp reaches at least 170°. This should be between 190-200°F when completely warm. MAP value, this is manifold pressure and should be a reflection of how much vacuum the engine is drawing at idle. This same sensor may also measure boost pressure, or there could be a separate sensor. Compare the MAP value with the engine off to atmospheric pressure that day this should be within about 5%. Start the engine and the value should fall. This should correspond to the engine pulling between 17-21" of vacuum at idle. Throttle position should show 0% with the throttle closed, and should climb steadily with slow depression of the gas pedal to 100%. Short term and long term fuel trims. Once the engine is up to operating temp, these should be no more than +/-5%. Engine timing at idle is not a concern, when driving and when the engine is under load is when this is important. You kind of need to know what the timing is supposed to be at certain load values and engine speeds in order to know that something is wrong. If you have a display for timing correction this will show you when the engine is pulling timing back to avoid pinging. Pinging is generally caused by low octane fuel or a lean air/fuel ratio.

What color is the car? Can you get a picture of the spot? I know its hard to see depth in a picture but if the clearcoat is gone that's usually pretty obvious. Depending on how fine the "orange peel" of the clearcoat was before you may just have a shiny spot where the orange peel is smoothed down and there are no longer swirls from previous washings and waxing. There could also have been a light layer of oxidation which was taken off, and now the rest of the paint appears slightly dull compared to that spot.

Clutch problems will not be affected by moving the shifter or gear position. Mainshaft bearing is bad. It can be replaced, but the trans has to be removed and taken apart to get to it, and it requires a press or very large puller.

Generally spark or compression related misfires occur at low RPM. When was the last time it got air and fuel filters? Timing belt?

Don't need a scanner. It won't tell you anything if the Check Engine Light isn't on. Start with a tune-up. New spark plugs and wires, air and fuel filters, new PCV valve. Look for any split vacuum hoses and make sure all of the breather and PCV hoses that attach to the intake tube are attached correctly and not split or cracked.

How long since the rebuild? Have the plugs been changed since then? I would pull the plugs first and see how they look. If the car has COPs make sure the boots are ok, and look for evidence of burns (white powerdery markings). Also check the springs that clip onto the top of the plugs for any corrosion or burning. If it has plug wires and a coil pack move the wires around and see if the misfire follows. Also check the ends for corrosion or burning at the plug and the coil.

Sounds like you just need a new center diff unit. You don't even have to remove the trans from the car to put that in. Just pull the tail housing off and the center diff comes out with the transfer gears. Center diffs for that year can be had for around $50-100. Post in the parts wanted section here and I'm sure somebody will have one.

Knock sensor codes are usually because of corrosion on the sensor or the housing of the sensor is split and the element inside has corroded. Easy to check, and only about $15 on eBay for a replacement. Is the whistle from the front or back? If you have the big box intake make sure the halves are fitted together properly. Alot of these have a whistle sound from the muffler. I'm not sure if anyone really knows what causes it. My 96 does it, my girlfriends 95 does it. I've heard countless others make the same sound. My old 95 wagon had three different pitches depending on engine speed and throttle opening.