el_freddo

You’ll either find valves that “sit” lower than the rest (bent) or you’ll find nothing. I reckon two teeth out wouldn’t do anything nasty physically. But for engine operation it might just be enough to upset the apple cart. I can understand why you won’t sleep well tonight, but I reckon you’ll be fine. Cheers Bennie

Keep your current trans if you want the dual range 4wd. If it’s on road traction you’re after and not 4wd capability, then go the AWD gearbox. Read up on the EJ conversion document that’s floating around here. Really any EJ engine will do the trick. Pick one that does NOT have factory security where the ECU talks to the key fob (for the want of a better description). This will make the wiring cut down so much easier to do. You’ll love the EJ! Cheers Bennie

I see you’re in Bendigo. We should catch up and talk shop. You can check out Ruby Scoo too - once I get her back from my folks who are dailying it while they get a new vehicle. They’re “loving” it You don’t need the wrx box, it’s just as strong as every other box out there in the EJ series (except the 6 speed). Get the SG Foz box from a 2L - a good start to build on. Cheers Bennie

And any OEM L series parts are basically NLA - it’s believed that the tsunami that took out the Fukushima nuclear power plant also took out the warehouse that had all the MY and L series parts. A guy in our car club got a new facia for his Vortex, ex Japan. After the tsunami he’s had zero success in getting other trim pieces that were listed as available pre tsunami. I’ve also not come across this issue and our Aussie sun is pretty harsh on car components. Cheers Bennie

And for melting pistons. Hence why the rich mixture - helps cool the piston. Cheers Bennie

Please post in the correct forum. Yes your Subaru is a ‘90 model, but it’s an L series that came from factory with the EA82 engine. Not the EJ series engine that this forum is about. Cheers Bennie

Simply put, no. But if you could work out how to fit floating front hubs that are manually engaged, then yes. But you’ll always be powering the front diff. Once you’ve done the front end, you’ll need to stiffen up the rear end to make it go the distance and last for a long time. Cheers Bennie

Neat looking seats! I see what you mean about moving the seat towards the door a bit. It’d probably look better; the sides of your seat and your console would probably love you for it in the long run! Cheers Bennie

That flashing I believe IS the O2 reading. It will change the rate of flashing etc as engine load chages. I’m 99.99% sure the ECU is happy and all is working as it should. Happy days! Now, go pass the smog test! Cheers Bennie

There are uitsyou cagey to monitor the trans too. I wouldn’t bother with the engine oil temps as the idea of the metal sensor on the head is to alert you to high temps regardless of whether or not you have coolant. Find an in-used bolt hole on the head and use that. Cheers Bennie

Agreed about your towing comment. But if the centre diff is locked, there will not be any damage to the centre diff. I’ve done it for 70km due to necessity before. Ran the same, no noises etc. I fixed the issue once back at civilisation, unlocked the centre diff and continued as usual. Cheers Bennie

@divinicus - I’m sure you set the alarm to whatever temp you want. Find a bolt on one of the heads to use as the reference point, this is where the most heat is generated and where the coolant does most of its cooling transfer work (collecting heat). Cheers Bennie

Dunno about a light, but they system needs vacuum to operate the dog clutch in the centre diff. You may need to slip the clutch carefully at idle to get the dog clutch to engage as it may not be aligned properly to lock. The button doesn’t guarantee instant lock once pressed. It just activated the locking system. I would say there will be a diff lock light that illuminates once the centre diff is engaged. The centre diff lock is there for dirt road driving and those really odd times if you find yourself stuck in a pothole with one wheel that has little to no traction where all the engine power is going to. Subaru dropped this setup in the EJ AWD in favour of the centre diff LSD setup, much more user friendly and less parts to produce, so it was goodbye locking centre diff On the LHS strut tower, behind it actually, you should find some vacuum solenoids that have two lines running to the diaphragm, located just behind and below the starter motor. Make sure these are changing the direction of the vacuum and that the diaphragm is moving the cable. I hope this helps you out. Cheers Bennie

Or get one of these: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Engine-Block-Head-Temperature-Alarm-ENGINE-WATCHDOG-TM1/132987012774?hash=item1ef6a4c6a6:g:JJsAAOxyk99R3NSK can do Fahrenheit units too. Cheers Bennie

So does this mean the pick up tube was covered in crud and the priming of the tube pushed this blockage to the bottom of the sump? Cheers Bennie

If your diff lock system is working properly, you should be able to drive with the rear shaft removed, it will effectively be a front wheel drive. Cheers Bennie

Welcome to the forum. Sounds like some interesting living conditions and social “norms”. With your 2002 impreza, basically the 2002 forester will be your go to for parts. The EJ25 sensors will generally be interchangeable from the EJ20. The suspension will be taller but it will fit your impreza and provide you with a nice bit of lift. New or decent second hand items will do a lot to improve the handling of your impreza. I’m not sure that you need to run lift blocks with the forester struts, someone will know. Looking forward to a pic of your Nothing Special. Cheers Bennie

Wheel alignment all good? Have someone do the turn while you watch the wheel - see if it’s rolling the tyre wall hard then slipping it out again, or if there’s something else at play. Suspension bushes good? Cheers Bennie

All good mate, it can happen to the best of us! And an easy fix is best too! Cheers Bennie

All Subaru cotter pin/roll pins are the same Like Lego remember? Cheers Bennie

I read it on another forum and it made sense to us as mum’s corolla was using oil like no tomorrow but we couldn’t see it burning and it wasn’t dropping it - and it was running on full synthetic oil. We assume the oil rings were shot and it was burning it all off. And for those wondering how much, about a litre for every 400-500km (country driving, not start/stop city driving). Cheers Bennie EDIT: think about all these new cars running low friction rings, using oil between changes - you don’t see them burning oil! Not how they used to run them!

Correct. It’s an internal leak and a loss of oil pressure. @jeryst - you’re using synthetic oil? If so, you won’t see that burn like mineral oil. Cheers Bennie

Any 2wd (from 1984 onwards) or 4wd Leone (from 1985 onwards) will have the parts you’re chasing so long as it’s an L series model. Cheers Bennie

Those switches are known to be dicky. They’re easily pulled apart to be cleaned up, they are fiddly though! You need to get behind the switch as it’s held in by two screws Cheers Bennie

You could try pulling the spark plugs, overfilling it a bit with oil and cranking it over for 10 seconds at a time until the oil light goes out. Once the oil light goes out you can drain off some of the oil and top up as necessary, whack the spark plugs back in and fire her up - watching the oil pressure light! Otherwise I’d recommend pulling the oil pump and putting a seal kit through it. Remove the crank pulley to remove the oil pump, otherwise you’ll crack you pump housing (and no hitting it with a hammer, small or big!). Cheers Bennie