Bushwick

If the smell returns, check the hard lines under the back seat area, above the tank. I have a 95' wagon, and mine were accessible after pulling the seat bottom forward. I have roughly the same mileage as yours and it's seen plenty of Ohio winters. The actual hard lines (for the fuel return on mine IIRC) can rot around this area, and are hard to see unless under the car or a heavy drip starts ahead of the driver's rear tire.

Well, pulled cover and the solenoid for the lock-out seems to have failed (plunger is loose and doesn't respond). Shifter is moving smoothly now, but still can't get it to start in Park? The actual shifter appears to be fully seated in the Park gate. The tiny switch on the right-side of the shifter at the base (looks like it has 2 tiny copper arms on it) appears to be working. Does the failed solenoid double as a start/no start switch?

If you changed pistons and/or ran thicker HG, and could get it closer to 10:1, that'd be a great street ratio. Would need premium gas 24/7. Don't pick cams at random or off a shelf. Everything from curb weight, usable powerband, gearing, cr, etc. need to be factored for optimum benefits + driver expectations (i.e. talk with the rep and go custom grind). If it was a V8, I'd say favor a torque cam and sacrifice redline for excellent acceleration; for a 4 banger, you'll want more rpm, which needs decent valvesprings, etc. and might be an obese dog for DD unless you like winding it out constantly.

The noise could be the timing belt tensioner. They are hydraulic and transmit a knocking to the block. I run 10w30 full synthetic in my 95' 2.2 and it doesn't use oil @190k+ miles nor tick or make noise. Lifter tick (only the 95') would be louder if fully collapsed, but it still sounds like it's in the head vs. the block. If you unbolt the rocker assembly, you can pull each lifter out (they are tiny) and press it with your finger. If it's not firm, you can try hand-cleaning it. I had to do this with mine at 170k~ some were unable to be corrected, and were replaced. If you prime them in a small cup of oil or a large cap filled with fresh oil, every time you prime it you'll see black gunk exit the hole. Keep priming until only clear. Also, inspect all the rocker assembly oil holes for blockage. If you put a small amount of oil into the lifter cavity on the rocker, then insert the lifter, that will force oil through the feed hole for a reference.

Is the rear defrost switch on these only 2 wire? I know when I retrofitted a seat heater from a 98' Outback, the switch was only 2 wire i.e. (+) and (-) and everything from the switch lighting up to the temp timer in the seat was handled through those 2 wires. If the rear defrost switch is more than 2 wires (going into it at it's connector), it might actually be defective i.e. it's lighting up but not sending the initial signal to turn on. If it's actually working OK, then start tracing the line from the switch -> forward until you stop getting power.

Buy a decent multi-meter that can test diodes. With engine running, check the volts at the battery. Should be around what msmithmmx posted WHEN running. If 12v or lower (when running), alt is bad. If voltage checks out OK, disconnect battery neg (1st) then set it aside so it won't accidentally touch the post. At the top of the alternator is a single, large gauge wire with a rubber boot protector. Pull that boot back carefully (they can rip) and use a 10mm wrench/socket and unhook the cable. Set it aside briefly w/o letting it touch anything. Set multimeter to the diode setting. Attach (+) probe to that stud the cable was attached to, and (-) directly to the case of the alt. Should see something like 0.5v. Now, reverse the leads (-) to the post and (+) to the casing. Should see no voltage or OL or whatever the meter designates. If you see something like "1.7" or any kind of actual voltage, one or more diodes are bad.

I know FWD cars in general won't move if they drop an axle (assuming that's an open diff, dunno about LSD, etc.) as I've run into that before. If car won't move as-is, replace the cv axle(s) up front and see if it'll move again. Not sure when Subaru started with it, but my 95' has a "FWD" fuse holder. Sticking any fuse in there forces FWD operation (for towing the car, etc.). If yours has something like that, make sure there's no fuse stuck in there from a previous owner.

You mean under the actual P-R-N-D-2-1 cover, right? I'll check that too then.

Cool. I'll have at it and see if that helps. Thanks!

I was going to say you could booby-trap your yard by digging a shallow hole and placing them in it, then put a thin piece of wood over that and cover with grass Be a great way to keep pesky teenagers or a stray cat away....(had a stray cat get in my Legacy via an open rear hatch and it hid when I was closing it; was in there for 24 hours..... it ripped the tops of 3 door cards and defecated in an empty box, so no love there).

You think it's not going fully into park then? By linkage, you mean the cable? Or a physical arm that the linkage moves?

Once the pipe is down, ask them to let you look in it. The cat substrate looks like the screen on house window, though the holes are several inches deep. Most cats have two separate stacks like so: If the front stack is damaged, it'll stay put until the back stack goes, hence you need to look at both sides of the cat (inlet/exit). I've seen the substrate melt on one half (looks like stretched taffy) and remain intact on other, and sometimes it'll break free, etc. Several things to be aware of: 1. Your engine oil is probably heavily contaminated. Should change it after the new cat. 2. If the guy you bought it from replaced the cat once before, that suggests something isn't right. A full tune-up (plugs, wires, filters, etc. and maybe look into the ignition coil as it might have a weak output) is a must and be sure to do the timing belt. Any codes that eventually appear, be SURE to investigate, as they might point to the neglected issue if a tune up doesn't solve it. 3. IF the cat(s) substrate broke out, it'll either end up in the muffler or possibly get lodged in the actual exhaust pipe somewhere. This can actually cause excessive back pressure and again, down on power. 4. Universal cats are OK. Just be sure to use the correct one meant for the engine. 5. TAKE YOUR OLD CAT WITH YOU!!! IF IT'S STILL IN ONE PIECE, A JUNK YARD WILL GIVE YOU CASH FOR IT. A METAL CORE YARD WILL GIVE YOU MORE.

Car has been sitting a bit, and initially it started w/o issue. When I pulled it out of Park though, the shifter was extremely tight, so I immediately put it back into park, and there it stayed. I can hear the solenoid clicking when I press the brake pedal and press the shifter button, but it won't leave park and won't start in park. Only way it'll start atm is if I insert something into the upper left hole on the floor shifter cover and put shifter into Neutral. I did try and run the shifter back and forth a bunch of times and it feels a bit looser, but still won't exit park or start in park. All the gears are matching with indents on the selector, so dunno where to look next?

Thanks for the .img Heartless. Yeah, the 15amp fuse underhood was the one that went. I'll try and see if setting the locks it's causing power to stay "on" or maybe the door switch is sticking "on".

My Lincoln had rodent chew on the COP harness for one side of the engine, and it was run (enough) before I bought it, like that. After the harness repair and replacing 2 failing COPS later, I noticed raw exhaust fumes at warm idle. I originally suspected a cat problem earlier on, but noticed the 3rd cat was removed, and attributed it to that, seeing as no CEL was coming on. Now a P0420 appears on occasion during light cruising. Kicked the mufflers and it sounds like a rattle can (substrate most likely in muffler). Also, engine is down on power if you try and step on it. w/o pulling the exhaust, those are *some* things that can trigger a P0420. A vacuum test is helpful assuming obstruction. A visual of the cat substrate (both sides) will tell you if if it's deformed or broken.

What's behind the door panel? The key once inserted in the door, will either lock-all or unlock. Pretty much the same thing the actual door lock nub switch does. When the fuse underhood was blown, all locks reverted to a manual-lock only.

Make sure you solve whatever the PO did before swapping in a new one, or it'll happen again. Random misfires that are ignored too long often destroy cats for example, as do rodents chewing through sensor looms, ignition coil looms, O2 sensors looms, etc.

Assuming it's an actual bulb and not an LED, best bet is to verify the bulb is actually dead. M-D means what, manual-Drive? If it's some sort of newer manual-shift auto or something, and the switch is in the console, maybe check if it's sticking. A previous owner might have had a coffee spill or something, or maybe a connector is loose, etc.

OK, I've had an intermittent drain that I think might be from the power door locks. While gutting the car's radio (everything was run through connectors; no hard wire connections) and then parking the car (until it snows), I noticed the next time trying to enter, the auto-lock/open via the actual key in the door lock wasn't working. Checked under dash fuse, and it was OK. Started checking fuses under the hood, and found a 15 amp blown. Replaced it, and locks started working again. Owner's manual for that fuse was no help (didn't point to door locks). So I'm thinking the fuse was for the door lock relay? If the relay is/was sticking, would this most likely be a physical fault with the actual relay? If so, where exactly is it so I can test/replace?

Do yourself a favor, and install all new oem-style spark plugs. Hand gap them (they are not pre-gapped). If the wires are old, replace those as well (it matters). If there is nothing wrong with the factory ignition coil, reinstall it or get another oem. Reset the battery. Drive it 50 miles. Engines with weak spark (whether that's from the coil, the wires, or old plugs) will usually idle low. Misfires are usually bad/old spark plugs or coil related. After the engine is at normal operating temp (middle of temp gauge is where my 95' ej22 sits), if the exhaust still smells like raw gas (like a car without a catalytic converter or an old 60's car), chances are there is a weak spark or something funky with ignition. I ran into an issue with a DOHC Ford V8 where one COP was failing, and it caused the engine to sound like it had a knock, idled nearly 200 rpm too low, had a misfire, and would stall when coming to a stop. One coil with weak spark on V8 can cause that. And for whatever reason, it never threw a code for the coil. The lifters on these are notorious for getting noisy and collapsing and even staying collapsed. When I got my 95', all but I think one lifter was bad. After hand cleaning and priming, there were still some that wouldn't hold firm. I ended up finding another ej22 with about 20k less miles, and ALL of it's lifters (after hand-cleaning then priming) held firm, and they haven't made noise in 4 years, even with car sitting for last several months and only started twice, still quiet. Yours sounds like some are staying flat (like a diesel tick). The rumble sounds like incoming air in air intake when the idled surged briefly @0:22 in the video. If the engine swap was done by someone else, then go over everything; all vacuum lines, whatever they did/didn't do to the EGR, check for vacuum leaks, etc. A full tune up is a must unless you watched someone do it. Fuel filter, plugs, wires, air filter, and FRESH oil. If it's been run for some time with weak spark, etc. it'll contaminate the oil.

Compare the tires you are looking at on tirerack for a general reference, and aim for some type of touring tire or whatever has an excellent noise rating, and decide if it's something you can run. One benefit to TR is people comment on the tires they purchase/use and they'll be brutally honest. Pay attention to the tread life expectancy, summer/winter/all season, etc.

I bought a 5 quart container of full synthetic Valvoline 5w 30 (another car, not a Subaru) and it was $25 for the jug at Walmart. Has all the modern ratings. Car actually needs 6 quarts, so bought a 1qt for $7. So $32 for enough oil for a V8. That's a bargain and giant piece of mind knowing it has good oil running through it. FWIW, there was an exposé years ago about motor oil that was ending up in I think Dollar General stores or something similar (conventional oil at very cheap prices), and it's was actually meant for either farm vehicles or cars from 40 years ago and it had NON of the modern ratings of approval seals or whatever nor were there warnings NOT to run it in modern engines. And I believe people were using it in newer cars and it was killing their engines. Even if you are on a budget, there's no reason not to run the full synthetic oils. @3k miles, conventional oil will almost always be black. Synthetic? Most likely will still be caramel until 4-5k unless you red line the thing constantly and are doing stop sign drags at every chance.

If it's a valve, you'd have to pull the head. Since the heads on these are like baby inline 4 heads, it's pretty straightforward to remove a head. However, before doing that, connect a vacuum gauge to the engine and see what's it's doing or if points at a valve. Can try reading this: https://www.motor.com/magazine-summary/mastering-the-basics-reading-a-vacuum-gauge/ or google "engine vacuum testing". Lots of sites have tips on how to read. Gauges cost $15 roughly. You can T into a proper vacuum source, and rest the gauge on the windshield (slip under hood gap with hood up) and watch from in the car. FWIW, I bought a 99' Continental with running issues (it barely ran) @84k miles. Guy I got it from was in over his head with it and bought it at auction. It had one CEL code (forget what atm) and the guy kept saying something was wrong with cylinder 3. After a quick inspection, I found the wires going to the coils (V8 engine, so entire side i.e. 4 cyl. had a lump of wires going to coils) had been chewed on; the rodent was thorough, as every single wire in the bunch had a 3/4" section where the rubber was completely stripped from EACH wire! I cut each wire and soldered back and had heat shrink on each. Car ran better, but still had a misfire (it wasn't throwing a code though). This time, I removed each coil out of circuit and took my ohm meter and probed the center (output going to spark plug) and then carefully probed a connector pin on the coil. I checked both pins separately while leaving other probe on center output. 7 of the coils had virtually identical readings. The last one was 2 ohms too low. Got a new coil and have a great running car I got for nearly nothing. Anyhow, the point of that anecdote was there was code, but the underlying issue was the wires had been tampered with (stupid rodent, found it's nest under the intake upper) and many were touching each other, and even after fixing that, it took checking each coil to verify a secondary fault was there as well. I'd check each coil. If they all check out with identical readings (mind you, my good coils read 4.5 ohms, and the bad one read 2.4 ohms, so that's enough of a difference) , try swapping coils around, reset the code, and see if it appears on a different cylinder i.e. P0302 (cylinder 2), etc. Trace the wiring to that coil back as far as you can (if it's wrapped or under plastic sleeves, probably OK, anywhere the actual wires might be exposed i.e. you see the color of the wire, is where you wanna see if there's copper showing. Also look closely for burns or melted sections.

I use dremel with the high speed cut-off attachment. About $5 for a 5-pack of the discs. Depending on the bolt and the location of the bolt, along with it's size, dictates how it gets tackled. Large bolts are better off getting heat and not cut, as it'll be harder to grab the threaded stud left behind. I bought a $50 MAPP/Propane torch tip year back. Large bolts, the mapp gas is better as puts out more heat, and will get it warm faster. http://www.homedepot.com/p/Bernzomatic-TS4000KC-Trigger-Start-Torch-Kit-TS4000KC/203368730 I was even able to get a very stuck turbo exhaust housing off a CHRA with the mapp. Stuff has been a life saver at times. No extra tanks needed (no oxygen, etc.) and the tip (in the link) can use propane as well. I bought mine at Lowes, and it might be a slightly different model than the link. Be sure you have something ready to grab the bolt with and turn while it's hot. Try 30 sec of heat, then turn. If still stuck, try a minute, then turn. Careful, as mapp gas will heat everything. Have a garden hose nearby for safety.

You actually did mention "steam out the exhaust pipe" and it's quoted below from your 1st post. If radiator cracked when it was being driven, it would have had coolant evaporating everywhere (steam, smoke, combination of both, whatever you want to call it) and been a mess. Check engine light should have been on at this point, and temp gauge would have spiked. Being "women" has no bearing on being safe in a car. If they know how to put gas in it, should know to pull over. Sorry, I'm being blunt here. Was trying to get an idea if it was burning coolant or not. Since GD said what you wanted to hear, nvm.