Stevo F

The 2005 Impreza Outback Sport , automatic transmission, just started making this whine at highway speeds as soon as we put new tires on it and had it aligned and inspected. It is intermittent and kind of fluctuates, and is mainly heard on acceleration so it doesn’t really sound like it would be a bad tire. I believe it’s coming from the front of the car. The other possibly is that the front CV joints are likely toast since the inside boots were split when I bought the car for who knows how long and have thrown a lot of grease already. Please check out the video at the link below and let me know what you think

Would it be better off to reuse the rails from the Impreza (which includes the seat belt) and of so, would the Legacy seats bolt up to the rails the same way the Impreza seats do?

My '98 Legacy with EJ22 engine is pretty regular throwing a P0325 code for knock sensor. Any recommendations good brand of knock sensor to buy? Also, what is the best way to replace it without removing the intake manifold, since it looks pretty hard to get to?

Update- so i bought it and drove it over the mountain home tonight. Car runs and drives well on the road. I do sense a little vibration at highway speeds (at first in the wheel) and a little bit in the whole body after the mountain (when the brakes were undoubtedly hotter). The brake rotors are a bit warped and could use replacing. Once at home I examined the tires and found the front two are a matched pair and there are two altogether different tires on the back. All are the same size and tread depth ranges from 3/32" to 4.5/32" so that may have saved it from developing torque bind (I tested it again on my cul-de-sac and no torque bind at all). I was already planning on a set of new tires and a four wheel alignment anyway. I do notice the steering wheel is a bit off center and and some of the tires are wearing on the inside. I'm hoping the new tires and alignment will give it a smoother ride on the highway. I put the front of the car up on stands and took a look under there. Some minor oil seepage from the headgaskets but not bad yet. Unfortunately I found that both inner CV boots are split (they are the original axles and i assume the outer CV boots were replaced at some point). The other concern I have is that it doesn't appear anything but the timing belt was replaced when the engine was swapped in, so apparently the tensioner and idlers have 139K miles on them. Since I know of someone who can do headgaskets and complete timing belt job for around $800, I might just that route and not worry about the engine after that.

Relating to my other thread about considering buying a 2005 Impreza, I'm curious if 2nd gen ('95- '99) Legacy seats would interchange with that car, both physically and with any wiring.. I know most people go the opposite way (putting 2000's Impreza/ WRX seats in '90's Legacy's) The seats in the car I looked at well worn and I've never liked that style of bucket seat, personally, since our previous Impreza Outback Sport. I also have a set of very nice seats from our old '97 Legacy GT sitting in the basement that I'd love to repurpose (although there is not way the BD sedan rear seat would ever work in a GG wagon unfortunately)

True was no FWD light on the dash so I didn’t look at the fuse. However the driving and handling felt every bit like every other old Subaru I’ve driven. I did test drive an Outback once where the seller has put in the fuse and the car felt really squirrelly with just front wheel drive (I really drive anything with front wheel drive anymore) and it felt normal once the guy pulled the fuse out. Of course I didn’t buy that one when the EJ25D overheated at the end of the second test drive. Still pondering whether to get it. My son doesn’t really want it any more than he wants my beloved ‘98 Legacy wagon that he’s had since last year.

Update- so I drove out over the mountain to see the car. Body is solid with a small rust spot on each side of the rocker panels. I crawled under and there was minimal surface rust on the rear subframe. Quarter panels were rust free. The rest of the body had a few dents and dings but the paint still looks good. The interior was fair, with a lot of wear on the drivers seat. the paperwork on the engine showed a used 119K engine was installed 3 years ago with a new timing belt (idlers, tensioner??) and approximately 20K miles have been put on it since. The engine runs very smoothly. I crawled underneath and did find oily residue on the bottom of both heads which I attributed to headgasket seepage, and I know that is the common headgasket leakage type on the EJ253 engines. But perhaps valve cover gaskets? I took it for a short test drive and the transmission shifted smoothly and it handled pretty well. I drove on tight circles where I could find a spot on the backroads and didn’t feel any noticeable torque bind. The gas tank was about empty so I didn’t drive too far. My 18 year old son drove it and said it felt fine to him (he may be getting this car). I didn’t feel torque bind but it has a crazy mismatch of tires so I assume if I replace them immediately with a new set that I will avert any issues with it. I told the seller it seems like a good running car but fear the headgaskets will need replacing soon and needs tires immediately and told him I couldn’t pay more than $2,000 and he agreed to it. I have a couple more days to think about it since he needs to still get it titled from his parents to him. So does this sound like a good deal? Not pouring out oil yet (but I could smell a little that dropped on the exhaust) so if the headgaskets are going I may have some time before they need to be replaced (which I will need pay to have done). This will either go to my youngest son to hopefully last through college or my oldest who is getting married soon and will need a reliable AWD where he plans to live.

I found a 2005 Impreza Outback Sport with an automatic for sale about an hour away. It has high miles (250K) but a new engine was installed 50K miles ago (owner has the paperwork for it). It looks in good condition in the pics and the owner says the only rust is some rust on the rockers. Tires are matched and at 50% wear. Everything works, including the A/C. After owning 8 Subaru's I am pretty sure I know what to look for, but want to make sure I'm not overlooking anything. I actually owned the same year and old model previously, but it was a northern rustbucket so I will be looking underneath to look for rusted subframes and the like. Here in Virginia, I see a mix of rust free and rusty Subaru's and have owned both. Also will drive in tight circles to check for torque bind. I hope the fact that it will be wet pavement doesn't mask any torque bind issues. Also will make sure the transmission is shifting smoothly and the if car handles well or if the struts and suspension have seen better days. The seller is asking $3,000 for it- not sure if that's too high given the newer engine and hopefully it's been well maintained. What would be a fair price to pay for this car assuming it seems in good shape?

I just changed the PCV valve on my 2003 and it was in the same spot as the 2009 in the You Tube video (I believe that was the first year it was located there). Super easy to replace, but plan on replacing the PCV hose as well as it will get brittle over time. Mine snapped off when replacing the PCV valve.

I was cleaning the ‘98 Legacy GT Limited today and noticed some very small cracks starting in the leather upholstery. What is a good product to use on older Subaru leather seats to keep them from drying out. This is my first car with leather seats

Update- Bought the complete Aisin timing kit from Rock Auto and had my mechanic install it. Everything was a little under $700 including labor. The car runs great and I know it's got decent quality parts in there. The way it's going we'll likely need to replace the belt again from age instead of miles.

Does this kit look like a good one? https://www.amazon.com/AISIN-TKF-009-Engine-Timing-Water/dp/B0171KSFV2

As for new timing belt kits/ water pumps- what the recommendations for good quality parts- I've always sworn by Gates, but I hear their quality has slipped recently.

Thank you all for the advice. The previous owner told me that they did the complete timing belt/ tensioner/ water pump at 92K miles when the headgaskets were done (it has 103K miles now). I'm thinking when I get it over to my mechanic to make sure he looks over the timing belt assembly as well makes sure there are no leaky crank or cam seals while he's in there. Not sure it woulds be worth replacing any of it when there's hopefully 90K miles left before it needs another timing belt. I will definitely try filling the engine from the upper hose next time. I had no issues with trapped air at all when changing coolant on my 2003 Forester (also replaced heater hoses and thermostat at the time) as well as my EJ22 '97 GT

I set out to replace the coolant in our '98 GT today. I drained the system, filled back up with distilled water, repeated and then filled with concentrated coolant. I was having more trouble than with my other 2nd gen Legacy's in bleeding the air out of the system (my '98 wagon with an EJ22 usually also takes some effort to bleed the system as well).. Raced the motor a few times, opened the valve on the top of the radiator to burp the system, etc... Finally got good heat from it and the temp went from slightly above normal back to normal. Thought all was good until the temp went back up and the heat went cool again. Added more coolant and repeated the steps to rid the air from the system. I never had one that gave me this much trouble. When I shut it off, I then heard the sound of fluid pouring out on the ground and saw lots of coolant coming from the front of the engine. Soooo, I'm guessing there was enough pressure buildup in the cooling system to cause the water pump to blow a seal? Any other thoughts? I'm assuming the worst that it needs a new water pump, at this point. Here's a video of the leak:

You're correct that the FB series engines had the widespread oil consumption issues.The first FB engines were used in 2011, I believe. My '03 has been using a quart every 1500 miles or so. Just replaced the PCV valve- hoping that was it. I am running the recommended 5W-30 oil.

The car is now home. It turned out one of the slide pins on the passenger's side front brake caliper had locked up and subsequently the brakes overheated o the point of smoking, so I went up and replaced the entire caliper and brake line with the one form the '97. I've warmed it up on two different cold mornings and the steam I saw before is nowhere to be found. Everything else is normal- engine temp and coolant level is still full. No sign of any leaks at all. Since the coolant has been in there 3 years, I plan to replace it anyway, so maybe I'll find something else then, but no signs of anything leaking from anywhere at this point.

I tried finding Philips Crystal Vision Plus, but found Philips Crystal Vision Ultra- however a lot of Amazon reviews said these weren't any brighter than OEM and don't last long, so the Ultra's don't sound that great. If the "Plus" are brighter and longer lasting, I'd love to find a set of 9003's for my Forester.

Actually I had no idea what the separator plate looks like- I don't think the mechanic was familiar with the term either. Actually the flex plate/ flywheel is still installed on the engine, so you can't tell what type is installed right now anyway.

I asked the mechanic who had pulled the engine what type of separator plate was installed (since the engine was a swap, maybe it had been replaced by the metal one). He said there wasn't one at all- hmmm... maybe that's where the oil leak was coming from.

My 2003 Forester XS with 225K miles has a bit of tap/ light knock when the engine is warm that I only hear under load/ acceleration. When starting up it has quite a bit of clatter which I assume is piston slap. It's been there since I bought it in October, or at least I noticed it since I changed the oil right after buying it. I don't remember it when we test droive it ewhich makes me think there might have been some pretty thick oil in there.

I'm looking at a '99 Outback- E25D with bad headgaskets. Car looks rust free and clean, 180K miles. Customer brought it in for service and decided not to fix it and give it to the shop so they are selling it for $500. They say the steering rack leaks a bit, needs a CVT boot/ axle and will need a wheel bearing eventually. Trying to work out a deal with the shop to swap my engine in. I've read somewhere where you should use the EJ25D flywheel on the EJ22? As for my engine, pretty sure it has EGR (looks like it has an EGR valve) and did not throw a CEL in the '97 Legacy GT either.

My mechanic just pulled the '95 EJ22 out of the '97 GT where it had been swapped since the GT had run into an embankment, so the EJ22 needs another new home. Per the previous owner, the engine only has about 100K miles on it. I found a clean '99 Outback that needs headgaskets that I'd like to have this engine swapped into. How easy is this swap? I've read where EJ22's (especially '95's with dual port exhaust) directly swap into '97- '98 Outbacks/ GT's that came with EJ25D's, but is this also true for a '99?

Actually it's not overheating at all and the coolant level really hasn't even dropped. We're having to part out our '97 GT so I'll likely use the radiator from that assuming my son can drive the car the distance back home at some point.

I went out and checked out the car. No sign of leaks, transmission fluid full, no burnt smell, drove it around his neighborhood and drove fine. Upon returning I did notice a little bit of steam wafting up from the driver's side of the radiator. I couldn't see a leak or where it was coming from, but I'm sure this was the "smoke" my son saw when it was 20 degrees out. I told him to drive it for a couple of short drives and if everything else is OK, drive it back home and swap cars so I can look at the radiator. I'm hoping the radiator I have out of a '96 Outback will work in his car, or else we may be parting out our '97 GT in the next couple of weeks so that one should work. The only other thing that I looked at was the recently replaced A/C compressor (thinking it may have locked up when he was driving it). The compressor clutch was fine but the compressor didn't kick in except for a few seconds when I turned on A/C or defrost. Something for the mechanic who installed the compressor last summer to look at I guess.