man on the moon

May have fried a relay and/or circuit. The fuel pump relay and ignition relay are both 'on top' of the ECU. They connect to a thingie that's screwed down, though they themselves are free. Pull the ECU and look for two small plastic 'boxes' just on the uphill side of the ECU spot. You said the motor turns over, do you get spark at the plugs? Do the headlights turn on? Heater blower fan? Interior lights other than the dash? Do the gauges on the dash work, even if the lights don't? (Voltage meter, tach while cranking, etc).

I swapped out the thermostat bypass hose a day or two ago. In direct sun, stop-and-go traffic, and hot (90+ degrees), it still got way warm; however, yesterday was overcast and it stayed closer to where it should be. And coming home after dark it stays just below the middle, which is awesome. I think I'll check the hose clamps and adjust/tighten a bit. I may still take it in for a test or two, but it's most of the way to solved. That said, I do feel like a bit of an idiot. "Where are my glasses?!?"..."They're on top of your head!"..."Oh..." Thanks for all the ideas and prompting me to check things I missed. I'll holler either way if I need more or if it's all good.

Did you unplug any other sensors in doing the MAF? Did you reconnect the battery if you disconnected it? Not trying to be condescending, just getting the two most obvious things out of the way before we rack our brains on other possibilities.

Seized as in it won't turn, even by hand? Hard to tell from the pic what the crud is, can you describe it? As long as it's seized I'll egg you on to pull it apart and figure out why. This makes absolutely no sense unless it threw a rod and the rod jammed the whole thing up somehow. That and/or it ate a valve and THAT somehow jammed her up. Or he didn't add oil until after the fact...but...any good mechanic could hear the sound of a motor sans oil...speaking of oil, does it smell like fuel as reported by third parties? I'd also suggest dropping the oil and using a magnet to see if any debris is in it. Ditto with the oil filter. Eyeballs and a magnet. Even if you don't split the block, at least pull the oil pan off and see if anything is amiss up in the innards.

Bump. Curious if things are working out or what the progress is??? I'm uncertain on the survey, still. As long as everyone has to bring their own tools, and signs a hold harmless/release of liability...you may stand a chance. And the right neighborhood and/or niche. Mostly just curious if the last few months have produced any news, though

I poked a little further today, with a flashlight. The thermostat bypass hose I had forgotten about (with it being completely BURIED under stuff) has a little buildup around the motor end, mostly on the flat surface of the block. I'll replace that in the morning, thanks to an exceptionally good parts guy at O'reillys. Thanks awesome parts guy . I now have TWO parts stores I enjoy visiting, at least as long as he's still there. If it still has issues, I have reached my capacity in terms of equipment and would have to take it to someone who can do either a tailpipe test, or a pressure test, or an emission gas chemical color changey test.

I did something that never EVER happens to me. I went to O'reillys to get stuff for an oil change. Well, I do that frequently. What never happens is I got a really competent parts guy. The book in by the filters didn't list what I needed, so I went to inquire. He asked what car, I explained the motor is not stock and told him what car it came from, and he found the filter without 10 minutes of telling me the car said Loyale on the bumper...it was great. AND when I asked for a length of coolant hose to be thrown in he asked what size ID and how long. Then...he brought me exactly what I needed on the first try. If I go to that O'reilly's again I'm asking for that guy to help me. So in the morning I'm replacing the hose at the thermostat bypass with a smiley face .

Rack doesn't have to be on a Subie, just has to be the same type of tower that can fit into a rain gutter type thing on the car, like this: http://www.rackattack.com/product-pages/yakima-1a-raingutter-towers.asp They come on lots of cars, and I think Thule makes something similar. Thin rubber 'wedge' toward the inside of the vehicle, and a thin hook/L-shaped metal piece that slips underneath the flashing/trim above the window.

1. The two issues are (most likely) unrelated. 2. If the lever still won't move after lifting the rear end and spinning the wheels a bit, lift the skirt and check that the bolt(s) holding the shifter to the linkage are in place. I had mine once--while I was driving, mind you--slide partway out of its housing; the bolt ended up at a 45 degree angle, jamming the lever so I couldn't get out of 4-lo. Got half way home (30 miles) before I realized what was wrong. Good thing I wasn't in a rush . 3. Need more info on the no-start! Could be a few things from a ground issue, to a fuel issue, to a sensor...

Sniffed the exhaust today, no obvious coolant smell. Will do some more poking tomorrow and see where it takes me.

Craigslist is your best bet, or wander around the junkyard and look for racks attached to cars with a gutter system like your 'roo has.

We're going to need more specifics than that in order to help you. Lots of ways a cooling system can fail!

I'll wager money it's not on the hot end of your wiring, but the ground end. If memory serves, the starter grounds to a spot on the motor head, same side (driver side) as the starter. It's a big, thick cable that is black with a red stripe. Bolted to the motor with a 12 or 14mm bolt that is about half-inch long, or so. I moved mine to the spot where the heater core pipe is bolted in the back there for easier access. When you jump it from the battery, you are providing a secondary ground that closes the circuit (and you can do it without jumping the hot part of the circuit, even). I don't know if you just need to tighten the bolt or replace the end of the cable, but I think that your problem lies somewhere in that connection.

I've driven all over the country and made the same joke, no worries! Wondering if I could afford the cash plus the gas and find someone to drive it back...

Actually, the intake manifold gaskets were new last summer, too. Could be those, but I wonder if I shouldn't check the TB gasket again (or re-install???). I'll smell the exhaust regardless, and whatever else was recommended above (writing them down). This better not get me, or I'll be unhappy.

I like the point you make about the intake, that matches my symptoms much more closely, and could explain the lack of leakage on top of the motor and inside the TB (due to recent gasket replacement) if the leak is to the inside of the intake. Aside from sniffing the exhaust, is there anything I can do to check for it? I can pull the valve covers pretty easy.

You don't need to remove the clutch in order to turn the motor over by hand. Just park it so the hand-brake is set and your shifter is out of gear/in neutral... I apologize if I misread that last post.

I checked (and replaced) the little hose off the back of the intake. New hose between the heater core pipe and water pump. Both rad hoses new last summer, and a new radiator. I just remembered there is a vent hose at the thermostat, but there is no sign of a leak there, I could replace that hose too, though. I'd forgotten about that one. Pretty sure the TB gasket is holding, no sign of drippage or spray, I even stand and watch it while the motor is at temp, because I've had hoses and gaskets leak, but dry up before I can spot them. I see no sign of leakage inside the TB either. Coolant is cloudy but I'm 99% sure it's a little bit of leftover detergent (it isn't bubbly, just cloudy I flushed and backflushed the radiator through both hose connections. The heater core. Did the motor flush from both heater lines and the water pump. I bled the system, and check it regularly. I'll smell the coolant in the morning. Oil looked good last time I checked a few days ago (this has been going on a few weeks now). I'm off Thursday, so I'll unplug the coil from the disty and plug in my pressure gauge to each cylinder, see if I have any leaks. If it isn't that or the hose I forgot, I'm going to really be miffed. At that point I think I'd take it in and have Shawn check it out with equipment I don't own.

Casper is a long way from Denver

My oil looks ok, and I don't have bubbling coolant aside from the random trapped air bubble when I top it off (a cup a week, or so). It's a bit dark, but that could be due to the recent flush and not all the detergent flushing out. Doesn't look oily, to speak of. What would I be smelling for? It's worth a shot.

So I'm having a minor frustration with the Loyale. It is overheating. I've replaced all the hoses (or they were replaced last summer). I've replaced the radiator cap. I've done a flush and fill. The thermostat works (I think), as the upper rad hose gets HOT once I'm up to operating temp. New radiator last summer. Radiator doesn't seem to have any cool or hot spots, just the expected temperature gradient. It doesn't seem to be as likely to overheat if the temperature is lower (in the 70s), but it still creeps up quite high if I drive long enough. On 100 degree days it gets close to red about 20 minutes after I start driving. Fan is running, etc. Driving on the highway delays the creep-up factor significantly, but still gets there eventually, especially if I slow down below 50 or so. The only thing I can think of is this: the overflow bottle is missing that little green cap, and most of my problems have started since then. Can that little overflow cap really make that much difference??? I also replaced the horseshoe gasket in the throttle area, but there are no external leaks (there were before). I lose very little fluid, it is small enough amount I can blame the loss on boiling out of the overflow container, but the question is why is it getting that hot to start with? If it IS that small green cap, well, I'll be a monkey's uncle, I guess, just wanted to inquire to other minds if I need to look at anything else before I make a trip to the junkyard for...a bottle cap. *ETA: I lost the green cap while doing the gasket replace and coolant flush (was over the course of three days or so last month, and did the hoses at the same time, not sure which factor I screwed up on ).

I have no idea why these old things grow on us so, but you are now officially in the club. I can't imagine getting rid of mine, and even hesitate to let others drive it in case they wreck it!

Sounds like the car is in about average condition . It will grow on you. Ask questions and tear into it!

If there is fuel in the oil, why is it there? Did a piston lose its rings, or is a valve shot? Both of those could keep a car from starting, especially if a valve failed catastrophically while the car was driving. If you have the car at home, try a simple pressure test on each cylinder (I'm assuming the motor will turn over here). Or a valve/ring piece got caught and jammed, which could keep the motor from turning over easily. Just brainstorming, not diagnosing. If you are ok rebuilding a motor, you could replace a piston and/or valve yourself (I assume) as long as the cylinder wall isn't gouged too badly.

And if there are still issues, then we can address the fuel delivery. (Oh, with the air...check the air filter, and make sure the delivery hose between the filter and injector is snug on both ends).