Suba9792

your just in Seattle, why don't you just let GD hook you up with a decent ride, at least you will know its in good shape and everything is mechanically sound. 97 imprezza turbo'd....yeah someone was attempting to be a rally driver:lol: stay clear of that one. OH and GD is only in the PDX area..... just an idea..

no, I was going to check that when I go to GD's place for some exhaust work. it's really odd I can turn the wheel about 1" either direction before it starts turning.

So I was on I205 north today, hit about 60mph and the car felt like it wanted to take off like a plane, I have noticed it before on US26 going 55. But this is starting to make me fairly uneasy. It will sway side to side like a boat(yes brand new KYB GR2s). My thought is either tie rods,sway bars and links. OR the Toyo observe stud-less snow tires with the extreme siping causing in the shimmy everywhere. Any ideas? I have a new ball joint on the pass side, it was replaced during a rather upsetting axle job(sorry rick:eek:). But i did not do the drivers side joint yet, the new joint is in the tool box.

My advise is simply the fact the its at a lot, it has miss matched tires... I mean really its probably had poor maintenance, but its up to you. How much are they asking and what year/model etc?

that sucks, I got a kit from them back in November and GD helped me put it on. Tensioners idlers etc GMB water pump, I haven't had any issue, what exactly did the noise sound like, so I can be aware JIC

destroyed front diff, I'd steer clear of that one. IMO if it has miss matched tires as in they could not afford a whole set. I would not trust the maintenance quality...if any has really been done.

To be honest I'm not sure if your trans will throw a code, but you could have bad duty c solenoid, get that CEL checked and find out the code, its good start.

start with the most simple first, when was the last time it had a full tune up, plugs,wires,fuel filter,air filter,oil change, how many miles, time for the t-belt job? O2 sensors? all of these I'd start with first. My guess is your having a miss fire, which would most likely be a faulty plug wire. How do the head gaskets look, if yours are leaking you will see oil on the head where is meets the block, usually drivers side on that year, flush the coolant and add two bottles of the conditioner from the dealer. These are the most simple things to do before tearing into your wallet and finding there is more.

Just flush the trans with some fresh fluid twice, its most likely torque bind and this will most likely cure it. DO NOT add ATF to the front diff, it is a separate entity to the trans and takes gear oil only not ATF. Do with the cheapest first. The Duty C isn't too far out there but it will still cost some cash.

What is your reasoning for not using synthetic? I'm running Redline with no problem. There is a few tricks to do to the trans to basically give it the ratio that you want. Look it up!

400+k miles from one trans?? you sure about that. The 4EAT is far more superior, and if you happen to look up a thread about locking it up then, you will have a much better trans than the 5MT. Its a decent tranny but as I have said they have significant bearing failure. Look it up maybe you'll figure it out. drop in the trans and rear diff from a Legacy GT, and yes its an auto, you be surprised at the power. But if that's what your looking for quit wasting time and money on a car that is nearing the 20 year mark. Find a WRX for that.

Are you sure you want to do this? it seems like a waste on such and old car. The 5MT is not as great as you may think, I have 145k on my 97 and I just had to replace it, granted it was from damage the previous shop did, but the are still not that great. They have a small input shaft bearing that has been known to fail. The 4EAT is by far the better of the two, I wish I had the 4EAT in mine.

NO STOP LEAK IN THE PUMP!! bad,bad. just get the kit! BTW the dealers have these kits now:banana: you need a bearing puller and a way of getting the new one on...carefully. A press or real precise tapping with something I guess.

Are you talking about the shaft while the axle is mounted? if so "yes" a little play is normal. Not sure about the stub its self, but it is a possibility. You say a shimmy in the steering? ball joints? tie rods? bad struts? I know mine did the same thing but after replacement of said items voila! gone. Recent axle replacement? there are a ton of things it could be,start with the easiest first.

Did you clean the IAC? like the others have said check the vac lines, and the MAF, or MAP what ever that year motor has.

be careful of the pinch joint. I screwed up that on mine, wasn't funny, but I improvised:lol:

you have too much money....

if they are leaking replace the seals. There should be a write up on here somewhere, or just ask GD, or Grossgary. They both know how to do it. Its a bit tricky.

they still throw rods . The EJ25d is a POS no matter if its new or not! I've been out to GDs place a few times, and almost every time he is doing a ej22 swap into a 25d car, because they have failed is some way, mostly rods and HGs. Oh and you can pick up an ej22 for less than it cost to rebuild and machine the heads from an over heated 2.5d. Once the 25d has been overheated to a serious degree you really don't know how much the internals have suffered. It was a poor design. If I'm correct a lot of the bearing failure is due to the stroke,the super thin walls of the block, head design, and a shady HG from the factory. Sure you get more power.....but you can do that with a ej22 swap and torque cams....just sayin:lol: . not really worth the head ache.

why waste your money on a JDM 25d, that motor is junk, your going to pay for a clean POS that will fail as well, why not just do the ej22 swap and call it a day. The ej25d is one of their BIG mistakes, along with the EA82,EA82T. IMO.

Otherwise your going to pay for a real shady job, which... I made the mistake of doing, and they left out one of the alignment pins. Short story, GD had to put in a new(used) tranny for me.

Get a hold of Rick Cropper here on the board, AKA GeneralDisorder, he will be your best bet for a fast job, plus he is one of the best mechanics on the board. And he is located in WestLinn OR. Not far from you.

no salt, no rust. Unless of course you don't wax your car then yeah rust will set in. People say cars on the coast get real rusty, but they still are not nearly as bad as ones in the rust belt.

you made a wise decision, bringing it to Rick. Wonder if that was your EJ22 on the stand a few days ago....

So whats the deal, are there just so many subie owners that have been screwed at the stealerships or "mechanics", just seem like a boom in member's all of a sudden. I hope there will be many donations this year. Or just folks who realize the little things can be answered here