Bushwick

Thank you for the tips Fairtax. I'll try and get a volt reading at the connector tomorrow and go from there. The ABS sensors in the rear don't happen to run along the same area, do they? I've had a sensor issue I've been putting off (I can sometimes hear the ABS unit kicking in on first braking after starting the engine and moving along with the pedal pulsing and noticed the ABS light went out after installing the knock sensor- not sure if it's coincidence or not)

I'm still somewhat "new" to Subarus and only visit this site, and know basically nothing about the SVX. After you mentioned the EG33, I searched too and saw loads of swaps from the 2.5L to that. Given the engine is older, and in an oddball car they no longer make, that should keep the prices lower. Be SURE to inspect the bellhousing for cracking. Although it's FWD, the force from an impact can do crazy things to the trans. While not a deal breaker, if it cracked while the engine was turning higher RPMS, it *could* have put a significant load on the crank, especially if it went from running to a forced stall. I looked at an 88' GT Mustang (it was also in a junk yard) that the yard was looking to sell it's running engine out of and it was T-boned by a police cruiser more towards the rear of the driver-side door. It completely broke the tail section of the still connected trans which deterred me enough I passed on it. It was a T5 trans (manual) and the fear was the flywheel might have put an unbalanced load on the engine when the bellhousing cracked. They had the cats pulled and rigged up a portable fuel pump off a gas container and the engine did run, but with essentially open headers, it could have been masking engine noises and and making unwanted vibrations hard to detect. If they can get it running, try and sit in the car and see if you can feel any rough vibrations that increase with engine speed. That could point to an issue with the flywheel balance. If it seems OK in the car, get out and put your hands on the fender and try revving it from the TB cable. Should be fairly smooth. If it feels like a "thump thump thump thump thump" vibration, be wary. W/O coolant and a portable fuel pump, it could be run for a good 15-30 seconds to get an idea. If they can't/won't run it, a 6 month warranty is fairly typical. Get it in writing though. Also, do NOT say you are looking to swap the engine. If asked, you restoring an SVX that spun a rod or something. Reason being they might actually try and deny the warranty stating YOU did something to it. If you already said the intended purpose, I wouldn't bring it up again. Also, don't forget you'll need a new fuel pump as that engine makes considerably more power + 2 extra pistons. Yours might be OK with it just to run, but if it LPH rating is too low, you'll end up with issues. Try and get as much from the donor as possible.

-The immediate area of where the old sensor sat was clean, but there was a lip on the outer edge of that. Suppose it's possible it could be on that lip. It was raining today and had to drape a giant tarp over the engine area with hood up to keep from getting soaked, so cleaning with power tools was out of the question. -The connector clicked into place and was very snug. Double-checked it twice so don't think that's it. -Can you be more specific on where they pass through and need inspected? Is it engine-side or under the dash? Is the connector clustered together with other wires? Or does it remain on it's own? The singular wire goes right into a protector case after it exits the bellhousing clip, so it'll be difficult for me to trace it otherwise w/o tearing into that protective sleeve.

If you have a drill, you can drill out anything the locksmith would have drilled out. I suggest buying a replacement key lock assembly, and inspecting it VERY carefully. It'll tell you exactly what you need to drill out on the damaged unit to get it removed. Also, since the car was stolen before and this was a 2nd attempt (probably different people) I strongly recommend adding your own fuel pump kill switch or similar, and mounting the switch out of sight and NOT in a spot a would be thief would look for loose change. This way, you shut car off to park it, flip the switch, and it won't start even if they break the key lock out and could have started it otherwise. Also, if the car is insured, it might be covered as that's vandalism.

That EG33 would be a decent swap if it ran OK to begin with. That's 100 hp more that the EJ22. In a 3k pound car, it should still be fairly quick. Seems there's a bunch of documentation on the swap too, although I never seem to see it mentioned here. I still think you'd be better off with a NA 6 swap vs. turboing a car, or rather swapping all the turbo components over IF you've never done it before. It helps greatly if you have a turbo car to start with and at a minimum learn everything about it, from the turbo it's running to thicker, better quality FMIC, to upgrading to a 3" race cat, down pipe, 3" back, etc. IF you go with a WRX swap, you MUST inspect the turbo for play. Remove the inlet and grab the center nut on the compressor-side wheel (engine off obviously and COLD or you'll loose your tips :/) and lift up on it. It should NOT make contact with the housing. Then try spinning it while lifting up/pressing down. Is it binding? Are the blade edges rubbing? Next test is check lateral loading. There really shouldn't be any play there either. If talking a small Garrett GT25xx series, they are known to have weak thrust washers that break. Having movement there means it needs rebuilt and upgraded. TD04, 5, etc. are fairly similar. What people often mistakenly think is "well, the turbo is still making boost, it must be OK" or "that movement won't hurt anything" then 150 miles later while tromping it, it loads enough and clips itself then start howling at certain RPM. "well, it's still making boost so it must be OK".... and 75 miles later it's puking oil and needs a complete rebuild + new wheels. Now, had they been proactive when the excess movement was initially detected, it would have cost $35 for a bearing kit and another $60-80 to have it balanced. Anyways, if you go with a turbo'd car, have EVERYTHING inspected from the donor. Do some googling on "turbo shaft play" and get well versed with the turbo you'll be running.

Any time I buy a car that runs great with mileage on it and people can't give specifics on maintenance items other than they were done at some point, I go ahead and do them anyways. So if it's running a rubber timing belt, it'll get changed, oil will get changed with synthetic unless it's really fresh, plugs, air and fuel filter get changed, plug wires if it has them get changed too. This way a couple hundred spent removes a ton of doubt. Plus, since most of these parts affect fuel mileage, it's actually saving me in running costs + removing doubt.

Yeah, those look like really ugly casting marks. If you wanted to inspect further and even clean them up a bit, buy a couple cans of generic "Oven Cleaner". Can get them at Giant Eagle for roughly $2 a can. Stuff has lye in it and works 10x better than a $6 can of "degreaser". Shake can, spray on, let it foam 4-5 minutes, then rinse with water. It'll eat all remnants of oil, sludge, etc. and make cast iron or rough aluminum look like it did when new. From here, you can carefully sand the markings back if you were so inclined, making sure no shavings or grit entered anywhere it shouldn't. Oven cleaner works excellent on the exterior of the engine too. Like say you had a leaking valve cover and years worth of oil sludge coating the pan, block, head, etc. It'll take it off to bare metal. Be warned, polished aluminum will dull. Also, if you see any actual aluminum flashing hanging on, that's definitely worth removing.

I have no idea with these. If you see copper shavings, that's definitely bearing material. Aluminum could be cap material if the bearing actually spun; piston shavings (like say you broke a piston ring and the piston is rubbing on the wall). Only way you'll know for sure is to tear the engine down. Pull the oil pump cover and inspect there too. The cog is steel IIRC, but the cover is aluminum. For all you know, there was aluminum flashing from a poor inspection that broke free and blocked an oil passage or ended up in the oil pump rotor and got crushed.

Have you re-checked the oil since? It might have needed to settle back. I took mine in for new valve stems after getting it and the place did a complimentary inspection. Guy came out and shouted at me "there's no oil in it". I was like, "I just checked it a day ago and it was on the line". He started saying it wasn't even showing on the stick and showed me. I stated I'd look at it when I got home. Got home, parked on level ground, let it sit a few hours and like magic it was back on the line vs. before not being on the stick. Not sure exactly what the deal is as I've checked it other times since after running 5-10 minutes prior and it'll be on the stick.

Current code is also a P0325. I compared the new with old, and their numbers were different, but were otherwise identical. Also, the factory unit had no visible defects or cracking. Maybe an issue with the wiring instead? Are they known to corrode over time? When the factory knock sensor was still in, it cleared a couple times, briefly. Any thoughts?

Ended up with Auto Zone as they price matched and offered a limited life warranty, AND it's the Unisia brand. Anyways installed new and pulled battery cable to be safe and check engine light still on. Tried restarting numerous times, pulled cable again, etc. and still on. Does this take some driving to clear? Tried wiggling the wires and no change. Gonna run back to AZ and have the current code pulled just be sure it's not something else.

Yes, looking for taupe if possible as it'll be less of an ordeal. If it's not possible, then have to be open to whatever is available.

Excellent. Thanks for all the tips. Sounds fairly painless. It's seems so rare to have a car that's just so easy to work on w/o proprietary bolts and such. Wish more cars were this easy to tackle.

Was wondering if I needed any special hex heads to get the caliper off? Also, to compress the piston, is it threaded or just push back in?

I seem to remember that if you do/did a kerosene treatment, you were NOT supposed to place any type of load on the engine i.e. no driving, just idle it. But this was back when US cars were considered "tired" at 80k and 100k+ was ready to be junked. Either way, there's a bunch of risk involved any time you add something like that. Even after draining it, it's still dilute the next oil added as it's on all the bearings and coating the walls of everything. If you do have a bunch of sludge, it's always possible it'll loosen that up while still attached to a harder chunk, which like a clog in a drain will block oil passages. Just isn't worth the risk. I'd be extremely reluctant to buy a car that's had something like that added to it.

No, not yet. Was hoping to possibly get more hits here while condensing 2 posts since not everyone visits other areas.

So am I limited to only 95-96? Can you clarify why you split 95-96 from 97 to 99? Is the door paneling that's different? Does the rear door glass then have a different angle to it? I have the lower roof line wagon.

Where does the heated mirror switch sit at? Yeah, I got my heated seat element from a 98' IIRC along with it's switch cluster that sits in the center console. Is your heated seat switch in the same switch cluster as your heated mirrors? If so, I already have the switch. Thought it might have been for the rear window, but it seems like it could be for the mirrors instead.

That's not overkill, especially if they are running conventional. If you baby the car, it can go longer. If it's turbo'd, you should do it anyways as the turbo bearings are TINY and need constantly fresh oil or they can mar, plus the added heat from the exhaust housing is constantly heating the oil and the possibility of oil coking exists within, which is why so many run oil coolers. If the engine is driven hard, top shelf synthetic can darken by 3k miles. When it comes to the engine, there's no such thing as too many oil changes

I think the Outbacks have the heated mirrors? Any idea what years and what's direct fit for 95' Legacy wagon? I sorely miss having heated mirrors and my back windows are blacked-out, so having the ability to keep the mirrors clean is important for winter. Since the rear defrost isn't needed due to the window treatment, was thinking of wiring the mirrors into the heated defrost. Anyone else do this with success? Don't need anything fancy, just the ability to have heated mirrors that fit and work. Any other models a direct fit i.e. Forester or Impreza?

My 95' Legacy wagon is "Taupe" in color, which is rather scarce (it's a grey with a hint of redish-brown but looks grey) I've seen one wagon virtually identical to it, and one sedan that seemed near identical in the 2 years having owned this, but most seem to be that dark green. Anyways, need to know if sedan doors, fenders, and hood are direct fit to wagon? I'm guessing hood and fenders yes, but unsure on doors. Will give a larger pool to check out if sedans are a direct fit. Also, does anyone in or around Ohio (PA, MI, KY, IN, WV, etc.) have a taupe Legacy w/o rust on the aforementioned parts and looking to part it out? I really need the driver-side fender, both rear doors, and passenger door. Driver-side door has some rust starting but could be held off til next spring. Prefer matching color at this point, though if cheap enough (rust-free) would consider other colors as I can always buy a factory-matched can and do a quick spray. Really looking to preserve what's still there as the under body is surprisingly solid still and the rust is getting bad on those parts, especially driver-side fender which is missing the entire bottom. Everything works on mine and the door panels are good, so a bare shell with electric window would be best unless it's easy to swap the guts from mine in. Thanks.

I'm in the US. Last time I went to Auto Zone (to replace the power steering fluid) they only had IV and higher in quantity. I think they had one off-brand bottle in III. They were saying the newer stuff supersedes III hence the poor selection of it. Back in the mid/late 90's I worked at a trans shop during a summer yanking trans for the techs to do the rebuilds. Something like 75% to almost 80% of the "newer" cars coming in were GM with 65k-100k (most were around 80K miles) and completely wrecked trans with disgusting smelling fluid. Anyways, I'm betting this why they "upgraded" the fluid so many times. III "works", but for better longevity might as well go with the newer stuff.

If you are changing at 3k mile intervals and preferably running synthetic, just run what it calls for. If the WRX has a turbo, some filters have an anti drainback valve at the back of the filter (pretty sure it's called an anti-drainback). If you use the wrong filter, it might be problematic in the long run. I've switched to larger filters in other cars before (space permitting) and a couple times the short filter had the valve and others the larger filter did, so I did NOT swap. Get the filter it requires in one hand, then get your larger filter in the other. Look down through the center threaded hole, and look all way to the back. If you see a disc with a spring on one end, that's what I'm referring to. Whatever the filter the car is required to have, is what you observe. So if the factory style filter doesn't, then make sure the larger one doesn't have it and vice versa. I think the valve is typically on turbo'd cars (pretty sure my Saab has one) and NA engines lack it.

It takes about an hour to pull them and manually prime each. The point I was making is if the car is driven on a regular basis and they are noisy, some are most likely "bad" and no amount of cleaning will restore them. In that case, you should just replace them. I've heard of people using kerosene before, but unless you have say a Toyota engine with 1/2" of sludge in the head and it's an emergency point of total engine failure, it's NOT worth ruining bearings, rings, etc. to avoid an hour's worth of risk. If you truly respect your engine, pull yours and inspect. If they, after cleaning them by pumping in fresh oil they won't hold 100% after the air is bled out, you can still reassemble, use your old gaskets, order replacements and a set of valve cover gaskets, do the repair and they'll be so quiet you won't be embarrassed to the point you are turning the radio up.....

If power steering effort gets harder over time, change that fluid too. It uses the exact same Dexron III, which degrades heavily over time. So if your trans' Dexron was bad, power steering won't be far behind (verify it's Dexron in power steering 1st). Chances are the power steering effort is already degraded. Should be fairly light steering wheel effort when correct. It also helps avoid more costly PS pump and rack issues later. JFYI....