GeneralDisorder

If his budget for performance is at least $1000 then he could likely do a used 2.5 bottom end if he does it himself. But I'm guessing that's outside of his budget if he's rocking a 92. Probably outside his skill set also..... again - "if you have to ask.... you probably won't like the answer" Numbchux is dead on with that one. I get these questions all day long and I burst bubbles constantly. Every kid that walks through my door says he wants 500 WHP. Now I just LOL at them. They don't even understand what they are asking for - much less what it will cost. GD

Not necessarily - the coil bind will probably occur before the strut bottoms out (it should - from an engineering perspective - just like a valve spring), but not actually before the bump stop cushion hits - I suspect it's there to dampen the coil bind - which would be metal-on-metal and probably somewhat harsh. Either way I've never been able to bottom out a strut like that unless the strut is totally blown and has no dampening.... which I'm positive would destroy that little foam bugger anyway. I mean - look at the foam piece - you really think that little bit of foam has a chance against 3000lb of automobile bouncing on it? I call BS - that's a quarter-a$$ed attempt on engineering's part. That's not going to do $hit in the real world. GD

Oh it can absolutely be replaced. It cost's about $80 and is a dealer only part. And it takes a couple hours to do it. And probably several days for the fuel smell in your cabin to disappear. That said - we never do them. They really just don't get dirty. Don't ignore the cabin air filter. We change those out about every 15k depending on conditions - especially if you park under trees, etc. We spray the new filters with HVAC filter adhesive. Makes them smell like oranges. People love it. GD

There is nothing you can do to "sup" it up. Not on a budget anyway, and definitely not without swapping the engine. The most common method is to replace the engine block with a 2.5 from a later model Outback/GT (97 to 99). You can lift it using 97 to 99 Outback struts and springs. GD

What year that has only 60k has a replaceable fuel filter? Because if it's old enough to have that, then it's far past the scheduled maintenance on the timing belt (10 years). GD

Yeah but that foam isn't worth much as a bump stop..... you'll hit spring coil bind before you bottom out the strut cartridge anyway I suspect. At any rate I have never seen ANY adverse effect (noise or otherwise) from eliminating them. Heck half the cars we look at they are disintegrated so there's virtually nothing there already. GD

They aren't needed. Especially on a 2wd. Just throw them away. The original struts on some cars have these dust covers and piston wipers - my Trans Am had them originally. The KYB AGX's didn't have this provision. No issues. We routinely delete them if in that condition and have not had any complaints from doing so. Aftermarket struts often do not have these or they cannot be fitted. They are dust covers and wipers to protect the seal on the piston. I doubt they would be significantly useful on a 2WD. GD

80% cogged idler 15% water pump 5% broken belt GD

Pressure regulator could be bad. Or return line partially blocked. Pressure with key on, engine off, should not exceed 43.5 psi. You don't want a used cap - just buy the filter assembly for the newer model with the stronger cap. It's around $65 from Subaru. GD

That's leaking from everywhere. Need to just pull the engine and do a complete reseal. Just do everything one time and be done with it. Going rate on a proper head gasket job including all timing components, etc is around $2k. Varies greatly depending on region. Add in the radiator, hoses, possibly clutch if applicable... and on that engine we swap pistons for knurled 251's.... pretty easy to hit $4k. GD

Yes that is the correct pump for the EA81. Congratulations on finding one. GD

So you installed a new pump into the existing pump assembly? The pump assembly has a metal cap over a pressure chamber - this cap is a known failure point. The ears that hold it to the plastic housing will tear off and the pump pressure blows the o-ring out. There is later model that has a filter in that position on the assembly and you can buy the filter which comes with a new (larger, but it doesn't matter) cap with stronger ears. You use that cap and a new o-ring to fix this failure. Or you buy a new assembly. GD

The 25D has head gasket issues for one reason only - the bore diameter caused a reduction in the thickness of the cylinder liner support walls where the HG fire ring seats on the block. Due to the thickness of the composition graphite gaskets they started with in 1996 (because of piston height above the deck at TDC) there is insufficient rigidity provided by the cylinder head to prevent the cylinders from moving around due to thermal expansion and contraction and combustion chamber pressure.This movement abrades the fire ring against the block and head leading to pitting, which ultimately leads to failure. Number of heat cycles is the primary indicator of lifespan coupled with any overheating events that add further thermal stress loading. It is easy to see this because Subaru solved the problem - you only need to look at what they did to effect a solution. They changed the piston to allow a thinner head gasket, and they beefed up the block around the liners to make them more rigid. For turbocharged applications they incorporated liner gussets to help stop them from moving under high cylinder pressure and temperature. Also the open deck 1.8 and 2.2 engines do not have this problem despite having the same thickness HG as the earl 25D. Why? Because the cylinder liner support walls are WAY thicker due to smaller bore size. The engineers that designed the EJ never envisioned a 2.5 liter displacement when they modeled in on early computer systems in the mid 1980's. When new engineers were asked to increase the displacement they inadvertently caused a HG issue by the bore size change without considering what that would do to the rigidity of the cylinder. It was an engineering design mistake. Nothing more. Nothing you do or do not do as regards the thermostat location will have ANY effect on the HG "problem" associated with this engine. Want to solve it permanently? Resurface the block and the heads, Install 251 pistons, and use the 642 turbo head gasket. They will never blow again. GD

I can't tell you why. I don't have that answer. I can only tell you that it doesn't work. Just like compression tests don't show gasket leaks, and block/HG sealer products don't work on Subaru HG leaks either. They JUST DONT. Honestly those coolant CO2 tester kits really require a TON of CO2 to work at all, and I haven't personally seen one work on any application - many of which had confirmed HG failures after tear down. GD

The CO2 color changing liquid kits NEVER work for Subaru's. Waste of time. Pull the heads - that's how you find the gasket leak on an EJ. If you have burped it, and it has a factory thermostat and radiator cap - and then you drive it and it overheats - the head gaskets are bad. GD

Yeah I work on thousands of these cars and I can't remember EVER having to replace a rear diff stub seal. I have replaced them when I had the diff apart on principle due to changing the differential carrier, etc. But never due to failure. GD

The HG's are bad because the heads and block were not properly prepped and surfaced and/or the head bolt threads were not dressed and torqued correctly. GD

Actually the cavitation will damage the block. I've seen it (and had to repair it) a couple times. Always on modified turbo cars from running water due to track requirements, etc. Not properly warming up the engine, insufficient bypass..... blown HG's also can contribute. If the system is properly assembled and proper antifreeze is used it isn't a problem. We build 600+ HP engines and run STOCK thermostats and water pumps without any issues whatsoever. So no you don't need to relocate the thermostat - that's not going to do anything useful on a 165 HP 25D. GD

If you have overheating on a 25D after doing all that work and burping the system, then you need HG's. Changing the location of the thermostat isn't going to change that. Subaru uses a cold side control on the EJ's. It works just fine. Cavitation is not a problem unless you have no flow through the heater bypass, or you run straight water that has too low of a boiling point. Cavitation is the formation of vapor pockets due to the pressure behind the impeller blade being too low (insufficient flow through the pump). I have only seen cavitation damage a few times in many years and it's always due to running straight water with insufficient bypass flow. GD

Funny thing about the clutch system is that as the pressure plate fingers release due to a worn disc, the fluid level would rise in the reservoir. Check the hose from the master to the slave for wetness. They sometimes leak. GD

She should take the 3-4 hundered. That's WAY more than the yards around here would give. $75 tops. GD

Not really any need for the dust shield. Just send it. GD

Check out DC Power Engineering in CA. Really happy with their products for our high performance customers. About $650 for a high amp unit. GD

Some dealers just do that. They are free to markup the parts to as much as they like. But you can always see the MSRP from Subaru at parts.subaru.com GD

Anecdotal. How many have you done? I've done an average of 1-2 per week for about 9 years now..... Motor oil, more often than not, results in creaking of one or more bolts. Assembly lube does not. GD