idosubaru

In reference to my last post - the first ECU I found on car-part.com was $50 for your car. Better than the prices it looks like you're getting elsewhere. It was also from Colorado which has some plusses to it as I mentioned.

Ahhh - Looking at Subaru part numbers explains your confusion! Don't even look at ECU part numbers for Subaru! It's a hot mess - for some unknown reason Subaru has always changed ECU part numbers every 46 seconds even back to the 1980's vehicles, when those ECU's are identical, from the same vehicles, and interchange with no discernable difference at all. No immobilizer or canbus issues until 2005+ Use www.car-part.com and you should find some $20-$50 ECU's. their database is distorted by Subaru's part number systems as well, you just have to ignore it and work with the system a little. Buy from an automatic and tell the person you call it's for an automatic so they don't get confused. car-part is far superior to ebay - much more product options and better pricing usually. I've ordered probably a triple digit number of parts from various stores all over the US on car-part.com, they're all very accustomed to shipping parts. I have two boxes on my porch right now found through car-part.com. You can also order from preferable areas - like maybe buying an ECU from a less humid environment like Colorado or the SW is ideal for electrical components? Colorado is one of my favorites because they're usually very familiar with Subaru's, no rust, and almost never over priced.

The comment "rear passengers side" suggests (but doesn't confirm) it's isolated to something side specific. Driveshaft is usually notably center/not side specific. Riding/listening from the back while someone else drives can help confirm.

Is it leaking? I can read your post two different ways….”I can’t fix this exhaust leak…” or “I thought it was an exhaust leak but maybe it’s something else ….” which one is it? Use hands or paper immediately after starting a cold engine and you have a short time to run hands or paper around the entire circumference of the exhaust and work front to back of the vehicle to look for leaks. Might have to try a couple times. Y pipe donut gaskets are troublesome. Grind the exhaust housing where the gasket sits down to remove rust and make smooth with die grinder. Use new bolt and spring hardware from Subaru. Heat shields vibrating? Axles. Inner joints are the typical source if it’s doing it under load. Often just repacking with fresh grease will fix it. The old grease may be gone or pour out of the boot like soup.

Sorry you're on a road trip. Brus offfered to help me on a 1,500 mile road trip 2 years ago and here he is again! Did it randomly start happening or has it been getting progressively louder? If it starts getting worse quickly then that's a bad sign. I would guess it's the tire or the wheel bearing is aftermarket and noisy. The good news is that it'll come apart very easily if it was just done recently. I would replace with a Subaru unit. I'm not recommending anything since I can't see or experience it or know it's history but I'll drive failing OEM bearings thousands of miles until I can combine replacement with brakes or tire rotation/swap. In my experience if the noise isn't getting worse quickly and I don't have any *actual drivability symptoms* I'm not worried about OEM bearings. Symptoms - If the car has momentary walking (feels like a really brief slide on ice/snow in the rear) or loose steering feel, or the ABS light comes on (reduced clearances on the internal ABS parts will trigger the ABS light - those are signs the wheel bearing is actually failing verses just making noise. I've seen and driven Subarus with all of those symptoms before. Check for noise/feel, temp, or play - but they don't always exhibit symptoms at all. Noise/feel you can try to do by just rotating the tire by hand but works best with tire and brake pads removed - rotate and listen for noise or feel for a lumpy/lagging/dragging part of the rotation. Subaru's exhibit play so rarely, or the symptoms are so bad by the time they do exhibit play that this is the least effective test).

Okay. That works too. But there's no need to guess or research. I have swapped MT and AT ECU's, and done engine/trans swaps. There's one pin on the car side connector that determines automatic or manual: *without* that pin the ECU expects and runs as an automatic ECU *with* the pin, it runs manual All ECU's are the same, with no automatic or manual distinction, and the ECU adjusts accordingly based on that pin/wiring. The manual trans ECU you buy will be the same ECU as an automatic. The *only* difference is your body side ECU connector has one extra pin "telling" the ECU what it is. So when you convert an automatic transmission subaru to manual - you swap the transmission and then just address that one pinout, by grounding that one pin - to "tell" the ECU it's now a manual. It's that simple. And so is buying a manual trans ECU!

Automatic ECU should swap fine. Subaru used the same ECU between auto's and manuals for a loooong time. That's why when converting an automatic to manuals trans you don't need to swap the ECU.

That cars future issues will be if the headgaskets weren’t done well and having the original or aftermarket timing belt and pulleys. All of which are far more problematic than Subaru 4EAT auto transmissions. I’d install new subaru/AISIN timing kit. $300-$400 in parts. If you don’t want to put the money in it, install a new Subaru belt and Subaru lower cogged idler. inspect the tensioner and other pulleys (just spin them and see how much grease is still in them). If you can DIY small things you can do those two items in an hour. they cost $100 and are the most likely items to fail due to being aftermarket or never replaced which that low idler rarely is.

Use AISINs online catalog to look up the kit number you need. edit - I just did and they only listed one for turbo-charged?! Odd. Ive never tried but maybe you can contact them and ask? I’ve heard of people getting responses from them about timing belts before That’s wild 2006 has a one year water pump. Still an EJ so it must be the same with a minor difference .

No surprise - “Recently acquired” often means prior owner sold at the sign of ominous repairs. Correct MLS Subaru gaskets. Resurface the heads. Clean and lube bolt and threads. “Checking” to see if they’re warped is a waste of time. You don’t need the full valve job many machine shops say you need for a warranty. I tell them I don’t need the machine shop head warranty on a Subaru. Id install a complete Subaru or AISIN timing kit while it’s apart. They’re likely original or aftermarket pulleys both of which are failure prone and lead to bent valves which means redoing the headgaskets again to repair. The timing belts have to come off to replace the HGs anyway so it’s essentially no labor. Water pump, reseal oil pump, tighten the oil pump backing plate screws, cam seals and reseal rear separator would cover most other major items easily accessible with the engine out and engine apart. Although timing belt oil pump and water pump are not hard to do in the vehicle either if you want to DIY that later The oil pressure switches Leak all the time too and are only like $15 or something cheap. I sometimes replace those preventively if I expect a lot of miles/years/long trips out of the car.

What he said - check timing belt. pull the front cover and check the belt, tensioner and all idlers. Install new subaru or AISIN timing kit only. The original pulleys probably still in there are in poor condition gauranteed. list *all* codes that were present. What brand wires and plugs? Subaru/NGK plugs and wires only. Though if there are additional issues (other codes and both misfires on the same side this probably isn’t the issue.

Nice, thanks for posting. Used or an alternate option is the only source I guess.

Do some have a policy that they warranty DIY installs? I’ve never seen a JDM engine supplier that, as an official policy, will warranty a DIY install. If an employee says it via email or phone that they will, that adhoc comment for expediency to make the sale may not stand in the event a warranty claim if it’s counter to policy. And if you have a some kind of repoire with them, you may get warranty replacement without proof of their requirements. But usually their *official policy* (though it’s not always followed) is no warranty for DIY install. Ive seen various damaged connectors due to their exposure during shipping. Newer engines are worse with all their oil solenoids, vacuum pumps, etc. I just splice in from engine being replaced. Easy. I’d look for it like you said but I wouldnt rule every engine out without a compression test. Def worth doing but statistically it’s a low enough chance I would still buy it if there’s other compelling reasons to do so.

You’re right - not likely axles and outer joint symptoms are more common amd typically noisy. But inner joints are more symptomatically varied than outers and can exhibit symptoms without noise and before outers. It happens. I’ve seen it. And If they’re after market - they don’t need wear to be garbage they just need to be installed !! lol bad inner joints, or inners with old liquified or low grease (one common issue with new aftermarket axles) can cause shaking at specific speeds, driving straight, and no noise. “steering wheel shaking” can be ambiguous in terms of being more the drivers experience or the axle/wheel or vehicle chassis. not a bad idea to consider given they’ve been chasing this already and our incomplete history/feeedback about the car.

1.added 6 ounces to the overflow or the radiator? 2. Did any spray out and how low was the radiator (not the overflow tank) after the overheating event? 3. Was it bubbling or boiling and do you know the difference? 4. what brand headgaskets and were the heads resurfaced? 5. Does it have a new Subaru thermostat and radiator cap? This is unlikely but you indicate “no issues” and then experience overheating 9 miles after working on the cooling system. The only thing you did was (maybe - see question #1) remove the radiator cap. So maybe the radiator cap is suspect. Though I’ve found Subaru radiator caps fairly robust even when they’ve deteriorated and they’re symptoms usually obvious but when all we have is text to go on…. Heres the two diagnosis's you’re looking at: A: It was low due to a slow external leak, tstat, or rad cap failure. Pressure test is the next step. It overheated due to being low and you saw boiling, not “bubbling” in the EJ25 exhaust gas sense. B. head gaskets. A liquid test was used for hydrocarbons and those are notoriously inaccurate. If he used a $$$$$$$$ exhaust gas analyzer then he should test it again The bubbles are very damning evidence but pressure testing for leaks is excellent move on the mechanics part due to the ambiguity of “bubbles and boiling” and unknowns about how quickly it’s loosing coolant or not and wether that is a causation or correlation to Overheating. 6 ounces low isn’t enough to overheat but again answer question #1.

If you see FB25 then it's an FB25. US market 2012 Outbacks have EJ25, 2013 is the first year for FB25 outbacks. If you see a belt visually - it's just the serpentine belt - for the A/C and power steering. That's not a timing belt. The timing belt itself is not visible by looking at engines for sale or popping the hood. Early FB25's have oil consumption issues which is a much larger/more expensive repair than headgaskets/timing belts. (EJ25's have never had water pump issues). You also can't diagnose wether a new to you FB25 is consuming oil or not. You'll know after a few months of driving. Looking up engines for 2012's is confusing for a variety of reasons: 1. 2012 US is timing belt, 2013 is timing chains 2. Juggling different markets: Japanese engines and availability across model years varies from US market. The JDM suppliers generally keep track of which JDM engines fit which US market, so I assume that'll be the case for you as well. 3. A 2012 Outback with 6 cylinder engine does have a timing chain. 4. model year and manufacturer year can sometimes cause confusion too.

Get a new Subaru short block with 36,000 mile warranty for $2k: https://www.subarupartwholesale.com/p/Subaru_2009_Outback/Engine-Short-Block/49223018/10103AB820.html Or rebuild the heads with new headgaskets. If you do that you shouldn't have head gasket worries and end up with a warranty. But yes JDM engines and transmissions are used all the time, I've bought a few as well as many other folks. That's why there's multiple sellers of them around the US selling a bunch of them. No particular supplier has any secret sources for "better" JDM's - they're all sourced similarly from Japan, so focus on which supplier is easiest to work with regarding distance/potential returns/etc.

This - that experience is very common, and not rare. Take his advice seriously, it's not anecdotal.

You're right - most new car dealerships are not set up well to maintain 20 year old vehicles at all. For a whole host of reasons - not always because they're unfair/unsavory/cheating people - but the supply side of that maintenance demand (customers) is part of the issue too. so I don't fully blame dealers any more than I blame my business owner friends for their relationships and business with high end clients either. 1. Were the axles and brake work *ALL DONE* because of the vibration issue? 2. Were the vibrations *ALWAYS* present, and the same, before all of that work and now? Did they check the inner and outer tie rods, ball joint, and control arm bushings really well? It's easy to miss those for a variety of reasons that I wouldn't necessarily blame a mechanic for, although I think it unwise to guess on axles/rotors but I don't kknow the full story/context either. Ask the mechanic to check the bushings by the front control arm- the LARGE SILVER thing in this picture. It has a bushing inside that is by far the most common bushing to fail and be problematic in a 99 forester: https://www.carparts.com/details/Subaru/Forester/TrueDrive/Control_Arm/1999/REPS281505.html?TID=gglpla&origin=&utm_source=google&utm_medium=pla&utm_campaign=9649693653&gclid=Cj0KCQjwspKUBhCvARIsAB2IYuvPIoJEl4xtNOr4APgM6YDkzDdt7xs32tg7gSboLqpVwGFiaU5D6fEaAiosEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds Those other bushings and ball joint in that photo should be checked to but the one I indicated fails frequently with age/miles which clearly you have. I've also seen aftermarket ones fail in 1-2 years so even if it's been replaced that's not a definitive check. Axles - particularly the inner joints could be problematic. If the mechanic feels compelled to address this as a warranty concern and the symptom *did change some* after the axle replacement - then you could address the axles in 1 of 3 ways: 1. swap them side to side - this changes the loading areas inside the housing and can reduce symptoms 2. regrease the inner joints - aftermarket axles have notoroiusly poor grease quality and quantity. Some subaru shops routinely regrease even brand new axles before installing 3. replace the axles - under warranty, used Subaru with fresh grease/boots, or new Subaru axles if available. Aftermarket axles have so many issues they could definitely be the issue. Although I would expect issues under hard acceleration up a hill, not just coasting down.

You're welcome. It's confusing. AISIN kit designations have changed over time while listings through 3rd party suppliers and internet searches haven't tracked those changes very well.

It's totally normal for the cruise control to turn off when the check engine light comes on - yes it's dumb but that's what they do. "Shaking abnormally and power steering" - are not related to the check engine lights. Start another thread asking about those and give better details. Take note: Neither of those is a big deal - meaning they aren't going to leave you stranded (very unlikely anyway, I am making some assumptions with limited info). Very briefly: a. shaking during braking (like exiting a highway) is just a front rotor that's warped. Very common and benign but annoying. Have the front rotor(s) turned if you can find a place to do it. Shop across the street from my office does it for $15 if I take them the rotor. You absolutely don't need new rotors and if your current ones are stock they'll be higher quality metal and less prone to rust than generic replacements. Power steering - 05-09 power steering systems in Subarus have issues. Describe your specific symptoms and start annother thread. P0420: 1. If you have any exhaust leaks - fix them first. 2. General tune up - ideally you get new NGK spark plugs, Subaru or NGK spark plug wires, new PVC and see if you get lucky and the code goes away. Usually it doesn't. You're better off ignoring the P0420, check engine light, and just get used to not having cruise control. You can drive 100,000 miles all day long with a P0420 code. It's All but meaningless on a nearly 20 year old vehicle. Unless you're getting horrible gas mileage but you didn't say that. You can sometimes diagnose it and end up with a simpler solution - but you're highly unlikely to find the technical expertise to do this so usually it's just simpler to install a new converter. 99% of shops are just going to install a new converter. If you need it fixed you'll need a new catalytic converter and preferrably a Subaru one as aftermarkets are prone to early failure. If you get aftermarket which might be your only reasonble choice get a Wagner or other well known brand.

When there’s confusion check with manufacturer. AISIN says: TKF010 https://aisinaftermarket.com/english/onlineparts.html

Search for the AISIN part number: TKF-001 https://www.rockauto.com/en/parts/aisin,TKF001,timing+belt%2C+water+pump+&+component+kit,16088

Outback strut assemblies with new KYB struts and 16” Subaru wheels of your choice will give good lift results, larger wheels/tires and it’s easy. sometimes very early 90s legacys and/or Imprezas have slight suspension variations. Make sure that’s not the case for whatever approach you take. Scott builds lifts and is a long time member here. A 2” lift would be easiest to install.but then you’re stuck with legacy fender /tire clearance. https://www.sjrlift.com/

That's great, nice find! It's got a full bed and rear facing seat it's more than a "trim level" of what is otherwise the same vehicle - but yes there are lots of cross over parts as you've found out in researching. Godo job. It's sometimes easier/more efficient to look up parts for other year/models depending which site you're using on these older Subarus. I'll leave the EA81 specifics to others more familiar with them.