badrasta

But is his EJ25 a DOHC Phase I or a SOHC Phase II? godwine, I've got a Canadian (from Minden Subaru) brochure showing the specs for your '99 Legacy. I also have the '98 brochure. Both say that the 2.5L engine was a 2.5 Litre DOHC 16-valve with sequential multi-point fuel injection. My past research on my own '99 Impreza has shown me that the Phase I engine was a DOHC, and the Phase II engine was the SOHC. I happen to have the SOHC Phase II in my 2.5 RS. I suspect you have the DOHC Phase I engine. Interesting to note in the Canadian brochure that although the Legacy and Impreza both list a 2.5L 165hp engine, the difference is DOHC and SOHC respectively. This would support other people's claims that the SOHC Phase II engine did first ship to Canada in '99 but only on the 2.5 RS Impreza models. Someone here may know more, but long story short, you've got the EJ25 Phase I DOHC boxer engine -- the one that people are always talking about having the head gasket problem. My 4 cents.

WJM, We had the exact same problem Monday on our '93 Loyale here in Toronto, Canada. Just like you, cold outside temperatures, especially with the wind chill (under 0F). I drove it all day yesterday and could bearly get any heat out of the blower in the cabin. It wasn't freezing air blowing in, but it certainly wasn't warm. More like 'cat breath' warm... good for nothin'! When I had a chance, I checked the coolant level (low coolant level is well known in our car to cause the heater core to blow cold air) -- coolant level was perfect. So we took it to our very trustworthy mechanic here in Markham (he's worked on all our Subarus, not a dealer) and he found it: it was the thermostat. It had probably been in there for 5+ years and I guess it was just old enough so as to open it's valve at too low a temp., and the engine never got a chance to fully warm up 'cause too much cold water was being allowed into the system from the radiator. We've had a lot of cold days up here lately, and non of them ever caused this problem. He put in a new stock thermostat, and wholla! Problem solved. The heater now pumps out the serious heat I've grown accustomed to expect from all our Subies, and my toes are warm once again. Subaru heater cores have always impressed me with the amount of heat they pump out, so I wouldn't settle for anything less than "ahhh, nice and warm!" even in the dead of winter at 0 degrees F. Hope that helps -- get your thermostat replaced. But first, make sure your coolant level is filled up to the brim, and make sure there's no air pockets in the upper and lower rad hoses (squeeze 'em with rad cap off, and engine running -- but do it when it's cold to prevent scalding!). Best of luck, -badrasta

lasyyah, We had this exact same problem on our '87 GL Wagon about 7 years ago... BTW, this was a great car, probably my most favourite Sub. I liked the manual hi/low shifter for 4WD. Anyways, the problem is likely your blower moto resistor pack. From memory, I remember it being a black plastic box buried somewhere in the dash I think it was near the glovebox on the passenger side, and it's about the size of a small pack of cigarettes, maybe a little more compact. You'll know you have it because you can see 3 resistors in it when you look inside it. To uninstall the resistor pack from the car was I think 2 screws and 1 4-pole plug to disconnect. Likely two of your resistors are fried, but the main one is OK that's why you can still use speed 4 of your fan. Unconfirmed p/n for resistor pack (might be part for newer Subs -- check with your dealer for p/n for the older Subs -- I think it cost us $50 or something): 72024AA000 blower motor resistor pack See here: http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=504873&goto=nextoldest If you're handy, you could take out the 2 broken resistors and replace them with new ones with equivalent resistance rating... ie: solder them into your old pack, but probably not worth the time. Just buy a new pack, that's what I did. -badrasta

bearbalu: when you say "failed dollar bill test", do you mean the bill was sucked right inside from 1" out? I did this same test on my MY99 2.5 RS with 178,000 kms and it didn't suck it in, however if I hold it close enough to the end of the pipe, the bill will flutter. Just wondering how bad your car failed the bill test to get an idea of how serious the exhaust valve problem is. -badrasta