jarl

I may be interested in one of those panels... as soon as I confirm the rest of the car is in good running order. Good to meet people outside the rust belt

Interesting... do you mean you have the actual piece of panel that normally rusts, but intact? I assume it's just the outer( visible) sheetmetal

Crap. That means I'll have to fight rust... The covers are about $30 each online. One is not too expensive, but given all the parts I need to buy I need to save a few bucks wherever possible Thanks!

This was a part of a post I made on another forum but the conversation took another direction... so here it is by itself: I need to replace the timing covers on a '95 EJ22, and my first option is to go to a junkyard to get them. Living in Michigan, I expect most engines from that era will have the same issue my engine had (rusted timing cover bolts), so I was wondering if the covers from newer SOHC engines are interchangeable. Experts?

Well... the hole pattern for the ignition coil is completely different to the ej25's, so i'll need one from a 2.2. Which other MY works? From a quick inspection to the manifolds it looks like the only other difference is in the two pipes to/from the canister- I assume... two pipes on the front, passenger side of the engine. Did I mmiss something else? Now.... the three gas pipes on the 2.2 were not plugged when I bought the engine. Is there any procedure to ensure I will not clog the injectors with who knows what on first start?

Crap... I had misunderstood someone then. Do you know if the connector pinout is the same? Somehow I'm afraid I know the answer This also means there are going to be some orphan vacuum lines and/or ports... The ignition coil isn't compatible either from what I can see. Someone wants to trade?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2kTv3GlLxyA O.O Now... If I could only find them... Edit: Cross that. I did find them, but they have a minimum order (12 inserts), and that amount to more than what a Time-sert set costs

Thanks for the reply Can you confirm the size of the helicoil? The exhaust studs are M10x1.25, but you say the helicoil would help for M12? To be honest I have read about helicoils failing on some of these repairs, probably because of a bad installation, but since I have never installed one of these nothing guarantees I won't screw up this. I found a similar kit slightly cheaper from a nearby ebay seller -no shipping, which makes them attractive- but I'd rather not have this thing failing in the near future. I saw other people suggesting GM 7/16" exhaust studs as well, but I couldn't find one long enough at Autozone (and was black oxide as well... will rust easily), and I have seen several different pitch mentioned. There are a few other options (time-serts, solid inserts, etc.) but a) timeserts are quite expensive and I have not seen any mention of the solid inserts (i.e. McMaster 97120A125) around here.

Hello Redbeard, Thank you for confirming the time the engine has sat unused didn't cause any major harm. The moving of the crankshaft on your car sounds scary, though So far the only problem I have seen from the engine sitting that long is a huge large of rust. One of the studs on the side with more rust has been impossible to take out... I didn't get the ignition coil either... I thought the mounting pattern was the same? I'm planning on using the whole intake manifold of the 2.5, so I hope there won't be that many problems with the harness. I didn't know about the number of bumps on the timing pulley either... can anyone confirm?

Well... the last one is a no-go. Actually the last one is no more... there are just some steel remnants still attached inside that hole So, what would you suggest: 7/16" GM stud, or ?

Sucker: I damaged about 1/3 rd of the threads (you can tell from the picture), but it's just on one side. I guess it will have to work like that. One more to go.

Uhm... I think I was too conservative with the torch. None of the studs bulged with the flame. However... two of them came out using Freeze Off The first one I tried still didn't move, but the other two I could actually grab with the vise grips did come out The two remaining studs will probably need to be drilled out, though. Stay tuned...

@Miles: the engine doesn't have the headers on it, just the remnants of the studs and a lot of rust. And I was happy because all the studs on the EJ25 came out allright. Sigh... @General: Unfortunately, I don't have access to any welding equipment, and the quotes I got were from $20 per bolt "if everything went fine". So I think I'll try to tackle this myself. I just bought the cheapest propane torch from a hardware store, but I have never done this before... I assume I need to heat the aluminum around the broken stud, but I have seen some people say too much heat may distort the head. So: how should I do this? For future visitors: I found the right way to weld a new head to a broken bolt is to first weld a thick washer to it and then weld a nut to both the washer and bolt... you'll have a lot more welding area I'm thinking about replacing most, if not all, the parts mentioned in the post with the long quote (from the LegacyGT forum) before installing the engine. For now I just need those [] studs out

Uhm... those [explicit] exhaust bolts are going nowhere. The exhaust gaskets (and I guess the manifolds as well) were badly rusted, so now there's a nice rusty mess where the new exhaust gaskets will go. The rust is also holding the bolts (some of them broken) firmly in place. I have applied loads of PB blaster and hit some of them with an impact screwdriver (after slotting them with my Dremel)... until I broke the tip of the screwdriver. Any idea of how I can improve my chances of getting those out without ruining the heads? I'm thinking of dissolving the rust (evaporust) and applying CRC Freeze-Off and/or just heating the whole thing out with a plumber's propane torch. The torch is very tempting, but I wonder if I may damage the aluminum/something in the process. The least attractive option is drilling and risking damaging the threads. Ideas?

#4 in the diagram (from the FSM, in this case '99 OBW)

Thank you people! It looks like it covers everything I'm still trying to make my mind around the ultra-grey (isn't ultra-black better?) vs anaerobic. Is the anaerobic (50 ml) enough for oil pan, water pump and oil separator plate? Doesn't it require the surfaces to be in *very* good condition? John, that was the post I've read where it said not to touch the rear seal, but I misplaced it @Heartless: do you remember the name of the ebay seller you bought your kit from? Was it theimportexperts?

Uhmm... I had totally forgot these engines came with HLAs, and that those may actually drain and stop behaving correctly On my defense, those HLAs are so ridiculously small in this engine I totally missed them. I'll try to put together the list of stuff to order. So far in my list: - Timing kit w/ water pump (ebay) - Cam seals (?) - Valve cover gaskets (?) - Oil pump seal(s) (?) - Spark plugs (autozone or something) and cables (?) - [added] Intake and exhaust manifold gaskets (?) Anything else? I remember reading not to touch the rear main seal unless it really needs to be replaced, so I'll leave it alone. Besides this, the car needs both interior axle boots replaced. Is there any replacement boot with*really* good reputation?

OK... you convinced me already. I'll start changing parts (I.e. flexplate) as soon as I have the chance. the main thing preventing me to plug and THEN play are the broken & rusted exhaust bolts... out of the six one is out ok, one is still there ( intact) and the rest are just a rusty mess... I need to transfer the oil separator and oil pan as well. Next search is going to be for" sealants"...

Hello people... I started a thread before on the transplants section (here), and I got some comforting answers by some great people. Now my questions are more engine-oriented, so this may be the right place to ask them. The short story is that I bought a '99 OBW needing an engine, and I bought a salvage EJ22 with 90k miles that -as I learned after getting it home- had been probably sitting for 5 years or so. According to the VIN it came from a '95 Impreza that was involved in a front-right collision... in 2006. The guy at the salvage yard where I bought it said it was "tested before removing it", but I don't expect that to mean much. My main concerns have to do with the kind of damage that sitting for that long would produce. The engine turns smoothly, and tonight I removed one of the engine covers and was greeted by the nice sight of no rust/crap whatsoever. The inside of the cover is just golden in color, with no caked or burned oil (= no abuse/forgotten oil changes). One of the camshaft lobes seems to have a slight scratch, but it's not clear for me how that would happen with roller cam followers. The not-so-good: when turning the engine by hand, it's evident the resistance from the compression is not the same in all the cylinders. Where #1 produces a loud noise when the exhaust valves open, #2 and #4 produce a softer one and #3 doesn't produce much noise at all. Given the story of the engine, can I assume the difference in performance is due to stuck rings (and that re-ringing would be the solution)? Is there any way to get enough information about the health of the engine (i.e. bearings) without tearing it apart? Should I be worried about this at all (given what I saw under the valve cover)? Thanks!

Yep... I know... The main issue with these engines is that in order to check the main bearings you need to take the whole thing apart... or so I think. If I decide to open this thing up, what would I need to buy (gaskets and stuff like that)? It looks like the engine is potentially really good, but it's the unknowns that worry me... [Edit] let's blame it on the wine I had tonight,but: would it be idiotic on my part to open up the engine to make sure things are fine? I don't expect things to be particularly bad, so I don't think there would be too much machining to do... probably polishing the crankshaft and replacing bearings and maybe rings. What could I expect to find in a 90k engine that has not been run in years? [Edit 2] Started a new thread specifically for technical questions related with the engine (as opposed to engine swap questions), here

That's even better... Now... I mounted the engine on the stand and turned it on it's side. The bottom-left (driver's side) of this engine is VERY rusty. The oil pan is a goner, and the exhaust studs broken on both sides.... ARGHH!. One of the exhaust ports (#2 cyl) is damp with oil as well (I guess the cylinder filled with oil from being in an awkward position) Is the 2.5 oil pan compatible with the 2.2 engine? If so, what's the best way of cleaning it to remove every single piece of bearing residue from it?

Thank you Gary, I guess I need to go over the whole thing with a loupe and see if there's any sign of the engine being compromised in the crash. My main concern is with how long the car has been out of circulation. The engine turns fine with a breaker bar, but I'm scared pitting in the wrong place will lead to another spun bearing... Giving the junkyard the benefit of the doubt, the car probably sat under a tree for those years. When I picked it up It had a some oil on it, but I don't know how much oil it has had for the last few years.

Well, that's good news... I had seen a message somewhere suggesting to drill/tap a hole in the bellhousing, but saying it would be very hard t get an acceptable result. Now, let me share the story of how I learned a little more about the human race and it's (my) stupidity: I've been checking car-part.com the last few days, and identified a low-ish miles '95 Impreza EJ22 engine at a local "salvage parts dealer" (euphemism for junkyard with a database). Asked the guy the story of the engine, whether it was tested or not ("tested before being pulled", he said), etc. The "dealer" (I'm starting to get nauseated by that word) said the car was around 90K miles when it was hit on the right side. The engine has been pulled already when I got it and the car wasn't there to see it. Being a newbie at buying used engines, it never occurred to me they will actually have, much less share, the VIN of the car... But the bill included a VIN that I just Auto-checked. The last entry on the autocheck is a "right front impact with a utility pole"... in 2006!!! WTF ??? There are no title registrations or renewals after january 2006, so this car/engine have been in limbo for the last 5 years ! No surprise it has relatively low miles (to be fair, it had low miles even in 2003: 60K miles in 8 years) The engine has a 90 day warranty (for what it's worth), but that just means I would have to go and get another engine from the same place. Therefore, I'd like to pretend I know nothing about the history of the car, as long as the engine is in working order. The question is what should I be looking at to make sure the engine is fine, before mounting it in the car and *maybe* discovering it's little more than a paperweight? How can I confirm the condition of the engine without mounting it, or taking it apart to the last piece? Furthermore, I was planning on replacing the timing belt/idlers/tensioner and water pump even before learning about this BS. Knowing what I know now, what else should I consider replacing?

Thank you for the information. It really make things easier I'm not interested in racing this car, so a little less power doesn't bother me too much. I'm thinking more on stop-and-go traffic, where moving the extra mass may make a difference. But it's probably not that bad. I think I found an EJ22 and I'll go and check it tomorrow. One question, though: I understand the EJ22 have just 4 engine-to-transmission bolts, while my EJ25 has 8. I read somewhere that the 4 holes line up, but there's a problem with the starter motor (one of the bolts is missing). How do you mount the starter motor, then?