ccrinc

I literally cannot tell you how many 2.5 turbo engines we have rebuilt specifically for the 2005 model year, none of them STi models. They had/have a horrible problem with oiling to the bearings, owners don't check or change the oil often enough, etc. etc. It was just a particularly bad year for turbo engines. If any debris gets into the turbo (like filings from disintegrating bearings) or the oil is not changed faithfully, or the oil runs low (which you have already verified), the turbocharger is also affected because it is lubricated by the engine oil. Also affected are the cam phasers on the intake cam gears. They are not designed to be serviceable in any way. If the O2 sensors are gone or not hooked up, I'm thinking it would run like crap, if it would even run. Bad ones/missing ones can also create a run rich condition which will thin out the oil, causing bearing wear and inadequate lubrication. (Incidentally, so will a bad coolant temperature sensor, located on the coolant crossover pipe.) It's quite possible that the car never overheated, but if the previous owner said it did, that compromises the bearings even more. From what you're saying, I'm not getting any sense that happened, but the new coolant is rather suspicious. It could be as simple as blowing that turbo cooling line I mentioned before. However, in this case, I would dump the car for whatever you have into it (plus $200 ) because it's (IMHO) about to become a money pit. Emily

There's a company called Blouch Turbo in PA. Very reliable, good quality rebuilt turbochargers. (New ones are hideously expensive.) We've used their products many times and never had a single problem. Emily (...waves...)

Those are the same tires I put on my old 2001 Forester. (Size may have been different.) I like them, a lot.

What...are you opening a used car lot now, Bill? If the "smoke" is as white as you say (and it appears), coolant has gotten into the catalytic converter(s). My guess is the coolant line to the turbocharger. (Sometimes, it's the little, simple things that get overlooked.)

I think you should be looking at around a 2000-2004 model depending on where you live. There were only 2 variants then, the L and the LS. I had an L (base model) and it was quite nice. In 1999, the Forester went to the 2.5 SOHC engine, but since that was the first year, they were a bit problematic. In '05, things started getting complicated. Unfortunately, the the EJ25 SOHC, eventually everyone has to do the head gaskets. So, go older and use the money you save on either a new engine or a head gasket job. Emily

Hey! We little old ladies HAD to learn to drive manual transmissions: automatics weren't very common 50+ years ago. Bill, it's nice to see a pic of someone I've talked to! And she looks like she could take on the world, bless her heart. ps; nice car! Emily

NAPA's brand or GMB which are sold by many other places. These are fine for your application.

Short answer: No.

My first question would be "how much metal is in the pan?"

Anybody who lives in Colorado, and who has owned a carbureted car knows that one had to have the carb adjusted for high altitude. My first one here wouldn't go over 10K ft even though I had it done for "mile high". It's more of a "less gas, more air" thing. Today's EFI systems don't need mechanical fixes: they're all controlled by computers. An '82 Brat had no ECU or any other kind of computer. Is it a Weber or Hitachi? http://www.autozone.com/repairguides/Subaru-ff-1-1300-1400-1600-1800-Brat-1970-1984-Repair-Guide/Carbureted-Fuel-System/Carburetor/_/P-0900c15280065ae8

What ^^^He^^^ said. Except that I would figure a way to check the condition of the bearings too. Repeated overheating isn't good for them. Emily

Carburetor is a French word meaning "Leave it alone". (Sorry. I couldn't resist)

Yeah, they're basically sales clerks. I asked Autonation's main parts guy about cam phasers on an EJ25 turbo engine yesterday and he had no idea what I was talking about! Pretty sad.

The STi is not an FB engine.

With that kind of mileage, 10-14psi at idle is normal. So are your other readings. If the engine was borked, it would be making "Bork! Bork! Bork! (think Swedish Chef) noises. You should be all good. That said, eventually the front main seal will lose flexibility and suck air. This reduces oil pressure. The backing screws loosening up reduces oil circulation. Emily

You all do know that the new FB engines (all of them except turbo) since last year are running chains, not belts? Kind of a scaled down version of the EZ30.

That may have been to keep them out of the shop! Most mechanics hate for people to look over their shoulder, even when the looker is quiet or not stupid.

SnapOn used to give away those calendars and clocks as perks for spending money with them. In fact, they're quite valuable now especially since they quit producing them in the mid-'90's. Whether or not they were in poor taste is/was in the eye of the beholder but they were never really meant to be seen by clientele. (It's a good thing I have pretty thick skin because I've seen some that made even me raise my eyebrows and that's not easy to do.) I know many shops which have a "beer fridge" for after hours, but we have never allowed alcohol or any kind of drugs on the property at all, or at any time. Yes, things which are or are not deemed acceptable have definitely changed over the years.

We had one last week from a customer who's also a vendor. They use the vehicle for deliveries. I don't know how many rpms it got up to, but one wrist pin broke, all 4 rods were bent/broken, there's a 4" hole in the top of the block and something I've never seen before: a 1" hole in a cylinder sleeve! I think that might be where the wrist pin broke. We managed to "salvage" one head, valve covers and oil pan. Honestly, in over 20 years, I have never seen an engine this thoroughly demolished. Un-freakin'-believable!

1) Second guy is a nut case. Plain and simple. (We get more than you could imagine.) I'm ignoring him because he's also an idiot and apparently a full bubble off center. 2) First case: still waiting for him to take it to have it diagnosed. Haven't heard anything from him for several weeks now since my last reply to him. As I told him, both here and in BBB communications, IF it is our issue, we will stand behind our work. BBB closed the case because he didn't bother to respond to them the last time. I sincerely do not believe it is our fault, because it is electronic and intermittent, not mechanical. I'll update that IF he ever gets back to me. (Thanks for asking!)

Thermostat definitely. But Mikaleda has a point: Subaru radiators have a tendency to corrode from the inside>out. If that radiator is the original, it's definitely due to be thoroughly checked out. Do the other maintenance items need to be addressed? Yes. Way past time for all that. BUT, the original question was about the temperature issues. Emily

Maybe I'm dense, but I don't quite get it.

I know, right?

Our warranty states that off-roading is considered abuse and voids the warranty since we (obviously) can't tell who will be responsible about it and who won't. Now, driving up a dirt road is not "off roading", of course. That's still a road. But that's not the main point. This main thing is that, out of the blue, more than FOUR YEARS after his purchase, he called, left really odd messages demanding full refunds and made off-the-wall threats without even talking to anybody. Somebody needs to get him back on his meds!

And, another crazy comes out of the woodwork! A guy we sold an EA81 engine to over 4 years ago - the warranty is 3 years - called the shop last night and said we sold him a bad engine. If we don't refund his money, he's going to ruin us on the internet. We have 24 hours "Tick. Tick. Tick." (Yes, he actually said this in his message.) Today, he called and he was bitching about a transmission he bought at the same time (back in 2011). Oh, he also said for us "to get our computer guy out of his computer and stop spying on him". He's going to file a class action lawsuit, go on every Subaru forum and put us out of business if we don't give him his money back. His mechanic friend (who accepts shipments for him) says he does all his own work, beats the heck out of his cars, offroads and 4 wheels them, etc. I thought you guys might be entertained by this.