shoebee2

Seized steel in alum is a pain in the butt. You put a1/2 impact or ratchet on those and you might pull the threads out along with the studs. That would be, as we say, bad. Ttry heating the nut with a map torch. Get it hot. Let it cool down a bit, 5 - 10 min. Try to get it loose. If it still won't break free heat it again, try to isolate the flame to the nut. Keep working it, it'll break free eventually.

if you switch the ignition to acc, do you have cabin lights and accessories, ie....radio fans etc?

Clutch is ready, oil leaks at the seperator cover and possibly the rear main (not unlikely with high mileage) at least one cam seal leaking. I hear ya on wanting to do things the easy way and a lot of times the easy way is good-nuff. It's seldom the best way though. For my money I'd be pulling the engine, re-seal everything. While your at it and the engine and tranny are out, timing belt, water pump etc. cost you a few extra days and 3 hundred bucks.

As stated if it works on defrost then the compressor is good. Defrost runs the air even if the air is off, seperate circuit. So you can be confident the big parts are fine. Correct me if im wrong here but there is no hi /lo relay in modern subies. Its all done in the ecm. Theres only one switch relay pair unless you have climate control.

Point well taken. Wont the EGR work around cancle out the cel for the egr?

I read through some posts and it looks like I don't HAVE to swap intakes. The EGR work around sounds like just the ticket. Honestly a cel doesn't bother me as long as I know it's not a problem. Anything else I should be looking fore? Opinions welcome.

do not use vice grips. there can be undesirable consequences.

its not aftermarket, at least I don't think it is. Got Subaru stamped all over it. Maybe the exhaust is from a turbo engine, no idea myself, but the engine has no turbo or plumbing for a turbo.

I picked up a really nice 98-99 lob limited last week for the cost of moving it outa the guys yard. I was told it had rod knock and sure enough it went bang bang. Pulled the engine, short version is the block is junk, heads are marginal. Looks like done material for future projects. Bought a JDM 2.5 for my year and model from JDM-Alliance for 950. Less than cost of rebuilding a core. Compression is good at 142 across the board, plugs are clean. Pulled front covers and timing belt looks new, idlers are all bright and sparkly. the engine is SUPPOSED to have less than 40k on it and by looking at it I would agree its possible. Upgraded head gaskets and upgraded rear oil cover installed. Im going to run it. The swap engine is not egr equiped so I "should" swap out the intake, drill and tap right head yada yada yada. Questions: Do I have to swap out the intake at all? Will it work without an erg system? The exhaust was left on. The down pipes wrap around the front of the block tucking under the front with an exit pipe to the rear on left. Way different than my lob which drop and go directly to the "Y" pipe. Clearly I won't use that exhaust but does it indicate anything I should be aware of? Any gotchas I should look out for? Cover me Hoss, Im goin in.

They look good to me. No pits or heat scars. Crosshatch is still visible and evenly degraded. Run it.

The other question is does it make sense to rebuild a 2.5 with leaky head gaskets or to replace with a 2.2 or later 2.5; providing the issues have been addressed.

Keep in mind the sti is not a runner. Also keep in mind I am a total Subaru newbie so I could just be buying a pos yard ornament. Case in point, I did not buy the other 97 outback. after looking around, under and over it was clear that the car had been wrecked at some point in the past and the odometer wasn't the original so there is no record of the vehicle mileage. That isn't common is it? Legal?

1997 Outback #1, 168.000 miles, blown right side head gasket. We'll call er "shoebee1". 800 american dollars plus gas to pull it to my house on his dolly. Just a note, I could have drove it. gasket dosent look THAT bad but didn't want to break anything I might need later. Going back for the other 97 outback this afternoon and the sti on sat.

I dont know if I should be happy or very very afraid and make an appt with a shrink

SO I saw an add in the local trader for an ea82 gasket set. Guy wanted 10 bux, never opened. Ok great. I call, set up a meet go out to his house. Sitting in the yard are 3 1998 legacy outback limiteds. all navy on silver. one thing leads to another and I buy all three of them for 1800 bucks. Interriors are clean and no rips tears or trashing. Everything works electrically. One had blown head gasket, one no spark or engine elect one has broken axle. Plus there is a 2000 impreza limited. 4 door, leather yada yada, no engine cuz it has a rod through the pan after an engine compartment fire. I did not ask how that happened. He took 200 for it. So suddenly I have 5 Subarus and all I was going after is a gasket set. Man, is my wife going to be pissed! Pics of all to follow

WOW, thanks for the warm welcome. Dinky26, check.....make sure things fit before welding. I will eventually have the original seats recovered but........ Heated power seats man! I like old cars but I try to be civilized! 175eya...there will be pictures and in quantity. rdweninger.....240k is ...like....breakin for these things. And yes Billy Idol rox. SO a little vehicle Definition. Totally stock 1985 4x4 DR EA82 wagon (gl?)white on black, its a runner. Comes with a spare ea82 and dr trans that were sitting in the garage. The original engine/trans are in the car. Functional A/C heat is not so good. Rear defog actually works. Dash and interior wiring are a bit funky but everything works. Whats with the headlights on these things? They don't produce....ummmmmm.....light! Car had not been started in 2 years. Put in a new battery, got in, pumped the gas, started right up. A little smoke, a few stutters and then purred like a kitten. Drove it from Seattle to Ames Iowa. Slow......god awful slow......but steady. DR shifts as it should. Main shifter is a bit sloppy but I see from the forums that's common. Car runs a bit hot but not bad. Small coolant leak looks like the w/pump. Shocks and struts are gone man. Darn thing bounced all the way to Iowa. I think I read that the engine is 85-90 hp? Doesn't feel that strong! No low end acceleration to speak of. Will know more after I tear the engine down. I did have an opportunity to do a little off-roading on my trip home. Nothing radical, didn't want to walk.....but that thing is a beast. 45 deg incline in soft rough ground was nothing. Not fast, but it just felt like it could pull for days like that. Ok, gota work a little or I wont have any cash to put into what is now the scoobydo.

Total newb here as far as subarus go. My dad left me an 85 gl wagon with 245.000 on the odo. He loved that car and drove it for 25 years. I used to kid him about being stuck in 85 with billy idol. He had a sense of humor and wrote that I was the only one of his sons who would appreciate that car. lol. She is in pretty good shape considering the miles. I have been crawling the forums and reading the manuals for about 2 weeks now. Its amazing how much knowledge and good advice is stored in here. Ive got my subie torn down and ready for rebuilding. Body is sharp and solid. Good paint, rust free and never dented. Interior is pretty decent ......again....considering the miles. The exception is the front seats. Looks like a squirrel or t-rex got inside and chewed a home for the winter. I was browsing the local craigslist and ran across 2 brand new seats for an 05 forester a guy was selling for 100 bucks. Elect, leather heated seats with airbags. LLBean edition I think. So I snapped em up. Still had dust covers on them. They are 3 inches longer in the seat and 2 inches taller. Width is the same as far as I can tell. Rails are quite different as one would expect. will post some pics soon. I am thinking that I need to replace the rails off the new seats with the ones off the old seats. Has anyone done this before? Any advice? Better ideas?