Fairtax4me

Screwdriver in the flex plate always works for me. Or put the manual trans in 5th gear block the wheels and put the park brake on gutentight. Doesn't work if the clutch is shot though, in which case I jam a prybar into the pressure plate through the inspection hole. If you're goin to do the rope trick, make sure the piston is at TDC on the compression stroke, otherwise you may be replacing broken valves.

Probably run-off from a leaking power steering pump or oil pressure switch. Really should have at least pulled the oil pump to check the backing plate screws and reseal with Anaerobic. Only takes a few minutes and you already had the sealer. The o-ring is like $3.

Before you order a sleeve kit make sure you CLEAN the quill shaft to bare metal. The grey lubricant they use at the factory can look just like aluminum but will wipe off with brake cleaner. I actually go around them with a small plastic scraper tool to scrape the grey stuff off. That stuff can dry into globs that make the quill look like its all chewed up, when its really fine.

Timing is not set at TDC because the cams are loaded and it is very difficult to keep them in proper position. Timing is done with the crank 90 degrees off TDC and the cams 45 degrees off. This sets the cams in a position which they will stay without needing a special tool to hold them. It also sets the pistons at half stroke, which helps avoid piston to valve interference. The pushing up of the tape on the intake ports is normal due to the timing of the closing of the intake valves. The valves are still slightly open as the piston begins to move up on the compression stroke. When the engine is running this overlap improves efficiency by allowing more time for air to enter the cylinder.

The MAF element and electronics don't have to be in. The housing built by Subaru. Of you can carefully cut off the pipe section of the housing you can stick the element into any intake pipe in any place you want under the hood, You just have to make sure the element is facing the right direction. The MAF signal wire is shielded which makes extending it tricky, but doable. The Gorilla CAI is nice, I've thought about getting one of those myself to put under the Outback hood on my car. I figured I could fab a short, maybe 2", extension between the TB and the CAI to stick the MAF element into. I decided I needed something to act as a water separator though since I've had water rush over the hood a few times during creek crossings. Wouldn't work too well to have water dump into the hood scoop right into the CAI and straight down the TB. Honestly though, the stock airbox and water separator works very well, since it pulls cool air from behind the passenger headlight. Its hard to get better performance from an aftermarket setup. The stock setup just doesn't make noise.

What year and engine? I'd check the timing belt idlers and tensioner ASAP.

Did you check the calibration of the TPS? ECU has to see between .45 and .55v signal at the ECU connector with the throttle closed. If its out of spec it will throw codes. +1 check ECU ground on the manifold. Check the connectors on the bellhousing for clean connection as well.

If its OBD1 it Should be the same as reading codes on any other OBD1 Subaru. If its OBD2 and the scanner won't connect check ground connection for the diag plug under the dash.

You may soon have a recurrence of misfire problems due to the poor quality of the wires. Might want to order a set of NGK wires, or get a set from a dealer. Even if you just keep them around for future use, it would be a good idea to have them.

Get an STI 10mm oil pump. You can get them for a good price through Shawn, or order one from a dealer. The pressure limiting valve is supposed to open at around 70 psi, so its possible that pump was weak, the screws on the backing plate were loose, the pressure valve spring was weak, or the bearings were already on their way out. Hard to say, but bouncing off the rev limiter is not exactly good for an engine, oil pressure becomes a moot point.

Timing belt tensioner is on the drivers side. You can see it by removing the timing cover on the drivers side and looking in from the side with a flashlight. The tensioner should be still, or have very little movement. If it looks like its jumping around it is damaged and needs to be replaced. You should also check the crankshaft pulley for signs of looseness or wobbling around. The bolt in the center of the pulley can sometimes work loose and cause the crankshaft pulley to wobble around and cause a knocking type of noise.

That is RTV silicone. Just in a convenient spray can. Some engines that type of sealer is helpful. On Subarus it is not helpful, and it causes failure of the head gasket.

I haven't read far enough to find out what terminal 3 is for, but only terminal 6 needs to be pinned to read codes. That's odd that the light went out and did not blink. Even if there are no trouble codes the module should still give the code 11 to show it is in diagnostic mode.

Looks nice! Much better than the 3 foot bed on the Baja. Only issue I can see is that the rear can window is angled forward. This would limit head and leg room in the cab by keeping the seat from sliding back all the way, and doesn't do a thing to increase cargo space in the bed. Makes a good truck for someone short. But an extended wheelbase and another 4-6" of cab room would be necessary for someone like me, who's head, shoulders, and chest are literally next to the B pillar in the car, seat slid back as far as it will go, and my right leg still cramps after 20-30 minutes of driving because the gas pedal is still too close. I'd kinda like to see a version of the new Forester as a ute. I sat in a 2014 last weekend and was amazed that the seat went back far enough for me to sit comfortably, and actually had to extend my leg to put the gas pedal on the floor. With my leg at rest my foot was just sitting on the pedal. That's a rare thing for me to find in mid size vehicles. The only other cars I've ever been able to do that in are full size German vehicles. Even full size premium American cars don't have that kind of room.

There is no adjustment for idle speed. The ECU handles that 100%. If you've been messing with the throttle stop screw on the side of the throttle body you have probably moved the TPS out of adjustment and will need to reset the throttle stop and recalibrate the TPS.

Because of nothing else but this, those gaskets are doomed to failure. Sealers are absolutely unacceptable on Subaru head gaskets. They are guaranteed to fail if you put RTV silicone sealer on them.

http://www.main.experiencetherave.com/subaru_manual_scans/ Check there for downloadable manuals. The one for 97 is missing a few things, But has all of the wire diagrams, troubleshooting and diagnostic codes. The section for the SOHC engine is missing, but you have the DOHC a way so it shouldn't matter much to you.

Might try cleaning the idle control valve first. And look for any loose or broken vacuum hoses that could cause a leak. I don't know the nitty gritty details but I seem to remember there being some issues with the 90-91? Idle control valves. There's a common swap to a newer style valve. I'm sure you can find info on LegacyCentral. Maybe Legacy777 will post. I'm 99.999997% positive he'll know the deal.

Ah, the MAP filter. I had one that plugged up solid as well. I don't remember it causing any wierd running issues but I'm sure it's possible. The filter is there because of the solenoid by the MAP sensor. It has a port thanks open to the atmosphere because the ECU uses it to switch the pressure source to the MAP sensor. It does this so it can use the same MAP sensor to read both manifold and atmospheric pressure. Just for a split second the engine is able to pull vacuum through the open air port on the switching solenoid. There is a dust cover there, but no filter. So Subaru put a filter inline to the engine vacuum to catch any dust that gets sucked in when the solenoid switches. It's only for a very brief period of time, but its long enough that if there is any dirt or dust in the dust cap of the solenoid it can get sucked in. Eventually, this causes the filter to clog. The clogged filter lowers the amount of vacuum on the sensor side of the filter. Since the ECU uses the MAP sensor to determine air density, it thinks engine vacuum is low and will alter the fuel /air ratio some to try to compensate. With the right combination of conditions this can lead to lower power output from the engine. You use more throttle to do the same work as before, which you may not notice, but the TCU is getting a higher TPS opening percentage than is normal, which causes it to alter shift points. Domino effect.

Edit: FSM says ABS control unit is under the dash passenger side to the right of the glove box. But since we're on the topic. Checking ABS codes is actually very easy, and its possible your mechanic doesn't know the procedure or is using a code scanner which is not capable of reading Subaru ABS codes. I know there are some aftermarket scanners out there that read Ford GM and Chrysler codes, but not many for Japanese or European cars, at least not on the US market. Under the dash on the drivers side to the right of the steering column you'll find a small black 6pin plug(kinda has a U shape with the pins), and two small black wires with pins on the ends taped to the wire harness. Looking at the plug with the lock tab pointing up, stick one of the black wire pins into the lower right socket. Turn the ignition switch to ON, and the ABS computer will be in diagnostic mode. The ABS light in the instrument cluster will start to blink any stored codes. The first blinks will be a code 11, (blink, pause, blink) to indicate diagnostic mode. Any stored codes will be blinked out after that. When the light blinks code 11 again that is the end of stored codes. The code blinking will repeat for about 5 minutes, or until you turn the key off. Count the blinks and post what codes you get here and I or someone else can look them up and let you know what they mean and what to do to fix them. Usually ABS light is on because of a dirty tone ring or wheel speed sensor, or damaged wiring to one of the wheel speed sensors. Occasionally the G sensor under the center console will go bad because someone spilled a drink on the console.

Could have just been something that got spilled, or a leak that was repaired and the covers were cleaned off. Either way, lucky catch! Thanks for the props!

Agreed. Possibly front O2 sensor is bad. Engine coolant temp sensor is another possibility. There are two sensors, one for the gauge, one for the ECU. Did you calibrate the TPS when it was installed? ECU can get confused if it thinks the throttle is open all the time because the TPS is slightly out of range.

You can probably sell the shift solenoids, C solenoid and transfer clutches. Strip the case of anything steel or plastic and you can get between 50 and 70 cents per pound for clean aluminum at a scrap yard. Maybe more depending on your local market for scrap.

Makes no sense atall. Sounds like maybe the cat is plugged?! But it could be any number of things. Maybe the pipe just got crushed?

Some cars have a switch in the glove box, others you have to do a rain dance and secret handshake which should be outlined in the owners manual.