GeneralDisorder

There are variations but they will all work the same once installed. There are three peice, and single peice units out there. They all come out the back of the trailing arm once the ring nut is removed. The longer sealed one that NAPA gave you the first time is probably the one you want. GD

Don't use loctite on the axle nut . It's a taper lock - you need to make sure the cone washer and conical mating surface on the hub is in good condition. That is what leads to this type of failure. The axle nut doesn't move (it's pinned in place with a cotter pin afterall ) - the cone washer wears down and no longer lock's the axle. This eventually leads to stripped splines. If you don't fix the cone washer problem then this will keep happening loctite be damned. Clean cone washer, clean hub, 150 Ft/lbs. NO LOCTITE. GD

Hhhhmmmm - they generally don't make ticking noises. I will have to hear it to make my judgement. GD

Just knock the ring loose with a punch - you don't need the pin socket unless you do this all the time. The bearings are an assembly - there is no inner and outer. They come as a set. There is no difference between any of the EA rear wheel bearings on 4WD's. All of them use the same system - disc or drum does not matter. GD

If you don't have a weekend and can't ask for help from some board members then that's just admitting you are helpless IMO. If you truly can't spare a couple days to save $1000 then you must make a hell of a lot more than me. This board can provide the know how. Time is just something you have to make. GD

The 1.8/2.2 intake won't work on the EJ25D or any of the phase-II engines (including the phase-II 2.2). Ports are entirely different. You would have to use the whole engine and swap in it's harness and ECU as well. GD

I've had the opposite experience - the '97s I've worked on have all been the piston style tensioner. Even the '97 EJ25D in my garage right now is the older style.... engine swaps happen though and there's no for-sure way to tell unless you know the car's history. It *should* be the old style but we'll find out..... I agree with the piston slap diagnosis. Could also probably use a valve adjustment - '97 will have solid lifters. Just the fact that it has solid lifters will tend to make them noisy when cold. The factory gap is 8 thou/10 thou on the intake/exhaust and when cold you can get a tapping - especially if they want adjustment and a few are looser than the spec. Solid lifters are always noisier than the '96 and older hydro stuff. Rod knock would only show up under load and would get worse when warm (thinner oil). GD

Probably not. It would be overheating if it was a head gasket. Fix your coolant leak. The gurgling sound is from air bubbles in the heater core, and the popping noise the expansion and contraction of the exhaust headers. Normal. GD

First you tell us what you are working on - then we tell you if it's likely or not. Then if it is you take the heads and have them pressure tested after you remove them. It's a head gasket job either way - most of the time the gasket's blow rather than the heads actually cracking. GD

They are designed to read exactly half under a wide range of temps - so that the driver isn't uneccesarily concerned as the gauge fluctuates. Unless it's seriously overheating it will not move. GD

The conditioner works quite well actually. I have a Forester with 240k on it and two bottles of the conditioner stopped the leaks dead. It's not ideal that they leak in the first place but the conditioner really does work and helps prolong the life. GD

Head gaskets aren't really that big of a deal - arrange alternate transportation, rent a cherry picker, borrow a garage, pull the engine, replace the head gaskets, and reinstall. Adjust your valves while it's out, etc. You are talking less than $500 if you do all the maintenance stuff (timing belt, water pump, idlers, cam/crank seals, etc), the head gaskets, and intake/exhaust gaskets. GD

I could fix you up for less than $5k. I just sold a '99 OBW with a 135k drivetrain (212k on the body) for that. I currently have a '97 OBW that I'm going to sell for $4500 or so - one owner, auto, 169k, rebuilt heads, new head gaskets/complete reseal, and all new maintenance items, etc. Short block looked excelent and has had good maintenence - just missed the 105k valve adjustment and burned an exhaust valve. I get non-Outback Legacy's from time to time as well. Just depends on what I find. I don't turn down the OB's though as they are desireable so I grab them when I see them. GD

Power valve failure on the Webers is pretty rare. Glad you found it. GD

Well - if this respected shop says head gaskets...... I would assume they are familair with what a bad intake manifold gasket looks like but you never know. These cars are getting pretty old so a mis-diagnosis is certainly possible simply due to mechanic's that are not familair with the details of the EA82. The intake gaskets are much easier than head gaskets - just pull the intake manifold off, clean the gasket surfaces, chase the threads, and reinstall with new (dealer only) gaskets. Corrosion can be a factor with the intake bolts though. It's important to be very careful and patient when removing them as they have a bad tendancy to break off either in the manifold or flush with the head. GD

If you are worried then pull the engine and replace the head gaskets. GD

Keep it topped off and watch the level closely. There's no telling exactly how long it has if it's losing coolant. Cold weather might indeed increase the deterioration - I haven't a lot of first-hand experience as ~25* F is the coldest we ever see here in the NW but it makes sense - larger gradient between hot/cold. I could see that. I would start a seperate post asking specifically for people in your area that could help. It's really not that bad of a job. Certainly - I can see how that would be the case. I've heard that Subie's are real popular up there and people do almost anything to keep them on the road just a little longer. Just PM me before your trip and let me know your price range etc and I'll get something lined up for you. We have lots to choose from. GD

You can heli-coil it. The studs should be 11mm x 1.25 You will have to use multiple heli-coil's (stacked) to get enough thread engagement. Do not use loctite. And definitely replace the head gasket. GD

While both of them do have filter elements inside, the front filter is actually a "vapor seperator" and the rear is the actual filter. The front filters rarely fail from being clogged, though age can sometimes soften the glue and plastic they are put together with and cause problems..... it's the rear that is usually the bad one and you CAN get the correct replacement two-line filter for it. I've bought tons of them - go to a different parts store. Or just replace it with a generic in-line filter. That's all it is. I like to use the glass one's with the replaceable elements in them - EMPI makes them for old VW's, etc. They are nice because you can see what's going on inside them and clean the filter element with compressed air, etc. GD

If you are interested in a trip to the NW - I could find you a nice deal on a Legacy. It's what I do these days - find people cars and get them all straightened out. I would question the diagnosis - what indicators are they using to tell them the HG is the culprit? Who are these guys and what is their background in EA engine diagnostics? EA82's do blow head gaskets but it's usually related to an overheat or a serious amount of miles (250k+) causing the heads to chafe against the HG fire ring from a lot of hot/cold cycling. A head gasket job should be no more than $1000. If you find a board member or someone that's familair with these engines to do it then possibly much less. The parts will run about $200 give or take and then the heads will need surfaceing ($60 for the pair) and if the miles are high a valve grind and stem seal job wouldn't be a bad idea ($100 for the pair). If you were near me I would be able to do the whole job for around $750 with labor.... give or take. It's not actually that hard to do it and the only "special" tool you need is a torque wrench and on these engines the $20 special at Harbor Frieght, etc will do the job. You can easily do the head gaskets without pulling the engine although it's a bit more comfortable to pull it - you can rent a cherry picker and borrow a garage.... this doesn't have to be the end of the line for the car. You *can* do the job yourself with the help of the people on this board, maybe some local members in your area, and a garage plus a weekend to do it in. If you do it yourself you could easily come in under $400 - maybe closer to $300 depending on what you opt to replace while you are in there. GD

Right - like a 3" diameter bend is about what I use. It's soft stuff - just bend it by hand. GD

Most of us just bend the hard line into a "pig-tail" (loop) and connect the rubber line. That's what I've done multiple times and it's been just fine. GD

Very useful! I have never seen that info before. Could be very useful for MegaSquirt type work. Good to know the D21 injector is not an upgrade - strange though - aren't those engines larger? GD

Coolant sensor is a good place to start, but there's a couple problems with your method... 1. The CTS (responsible for telling the ECU the engine temp) is not the only thing that causes the fans to run - having the defrost or AC turned on will kick them on all the time, etc. So the fans running with the engine cold is NOT an indication of a problem with the CTS in and of itself. 2. The CTS is a seperate sensor from the temp guage sending unit. They are right next to each other - which one did you replace? 3. It is possible to TEST these sensors with a DMM. They are resistive temperature elements of some kind and that resistance can be measured and determined to be accurate or not. Replacing them just to see (throwing parts at the problem) is not the answer. GD

Pull the seats out, wire wheel the rust off, and paint them. It's likely just surface rust and is not going to affect the strength of the rails or brackets to any significant degree. Don't worry - your floor will rot out long before those rails rust through GD