uniberp

Thanks all, blitz, gravityman for the encouragement. I've never burnt a valve (that way). These engines are new to me. The mechanic said there were no other codes, and he's very competent from our previous experience. I don't doubt he'll clear them (30 min, batt disconnect) and run a new scan. I'm waiting to hear the 'final' report. I still can't believe someone would pull a stunt like that, removing the 'check engine" bulb. My worst fears is that the new knock sensor will report knock to the ECU, even though I cannot hear it. Or that the distributor (do they have distributors) or ECU is whacked out (not likely, still runs). The engine seems strong, even with the retard. My girlfriend is an 'exuberant' driver, so I was grateful it was a little pokey. We're crazy about the car. When he calls (I hate to badger him since he took it as emergency), I'm going to ask him to pull the plugs, if just to make sure they come out (not 'fused' to the head). I want him to do a compression or leak-down test, also. Right now I'm entertaining in worst fears and feeling stupid for not seeing the obvious in front of my face. I'm trailing the previous owners (smilingly) and hope to tell whoever did that how bad a thing that was to do. Instructionallly.

I had to kick HARD the tops of the tires, even after I just took them of 10 minutes before. I think as long as you hit the tire, and not the rim, you should be able to use even a sledge hammer. Don't slip. Be very careful.

Thanks for a quick response, really. I hate these new (to me) car doubts. The mechanic reconnected it and ran a code scan that returned "bad knock sensor". I'm hoping it was an amateur hack and not really masking some serious problem. Can elevated EGT at 4degress retard burn the valves over extended running? I got 500 on it since purchase.

Ok, I'm pretty steamed now, in anticipation of bad news. Beware scam dealers. I'm new to subaru but a pretty fair mechanic. Car ran fine, kept cool, seemed to have plenty power. Bought it, replaced axle for torn boot. No big deal. Girlfriend complained about hesitation. I thought maybe O2 sensor. No dash light, can't be serious yet. Again, I only drove a few used ones, from dealers, os my basis for comparison and experience was limited. She took it to her mechanic, he's a good guy. Knock sensor is disconnected, and get this: Dashboard CHECK ENGINE LIGHTBULB WAS REMOVED. I am actually unholy pi**ed. Mechanic said there was only the knock sensor code coming up on his scan, so I told he to go ahead and replace the sensor. I bought it from a broker, so I'm being really friendly to him, to get my way, and he agreed to cover some expense in this, but that may not be good enough. He says he has a dealer service report, which I asked to see. What more might they have been hiding? Would the additional ignition retard from an open knocksensor circuit mask an overheating problem? Thanks all you gurus Mpergiel99foresterelmhurstil

Alignment to spec can result in terrible handling, ride and wear to the gear. Make sure you tell them that if it pulls during driving or braking, you will want your money back. They may tell you that they can only align it to factory specs, but that is a bullsh** excuse for not actually doing what is required to make the car drive right. Seriously, I would say that the ratio of alignment shops that DON't know what they are dong to those that do has to be nearly 100:1. Spec is not sufficient. See: http://www.familycar.com/alignment.htm Or if you are interested in performance alignment: http://www.hadamotorsport.com/tech/grm-alignment.html mpergiel99foresterlelmhurstil

I've been wondering about that seal. It's where a rotating part meets the differential case. Does anybody know if this should or shouuld not be a standard replacement when you replace an axle? Is there anything special about the procedure? Would there be serious falure of the seal with a new axle? I read some differential stub bearing replacement procedures for what were apparently older models, but another thread of mine got a reply that the bearing is not easily or normally replaceable. How about the seal? Mpergiel99foresterlelmhurstil

Joel, what was the outcome of this?

Gary, thanks for a quick response. It's an auto, and SOHC, so it's a later production. 2 q's. How about replacing the seal? And does the diff dispstick get locked in some how? It came out of a tight fit, and went back in a little loosely. That was the only thing I touched yesterday. It's at a good indie shop now, so I'll know in a few hours. Keeping fingers crossed. Maybe this is all nothing, however. I didn't knock off the blob of grease that was on the a-arm when I did the axles, so maybe it got knocked off with all the rain we've had.

99 Forester L Auto. 81K. Newly acquired, I'm not totally familar with the sounds yet. The cars a couple hundred miles away, so I'm doing a remote diagnostic. I replaced the passenger side axle assembly and balljoint after a grease drip showed a cracked boot. There was a slight howl from the front, after, so I suspected a wheel bearing was eventually needed, but didn't think it was related. Reported to me today that serious smoke (I'm assuming leakage on exhaust in same area) made the drive have it trucked to a shop. I'm thinking it was the stub axle bearing and seal that failed. That fits with the howl, which I thought was a little too inboard to be the wheel bearing. Is it a standard procedure to replace the differential-side "stub" axle bearing and seal when you do the axle itself?

I really like this lever type, and this is the source I got it from, believe it or not: http://www.jcwhitney.com/autoparts/ProductDisplay/s-10101/p-3140/c-10101 I had to grind out the inside of the fork just a little to get a better purchase around the balljoint, and it sure beats hammering away on you control arm.

Anticipating a wheel bearing failure in a '99 Forester L Auto 81K , I think I might like to have a ready replacement, and deal with the alignment as required. I saw a reference to a Federal-Mogul pre-built rebuilt knuckle-bearing-hub assembly in the archives, but I can't find a source anywhere. Any known sources? Thanks Mpergielelmhurstil

Check the passenger side inner cv boot for cracking. It can drip grease onto the exhaust, and that smells like burning oil.

I'm a committed Volvo nut who just got a '99 Forester L (N/A). Having been through all the series of Volvos, I gave up on all the FWD Volvos and returned to the original pushrod models from my youth. The Subaru is for my girl, who is crazy about it, and I'm pretty sure I take complete care of it, without devoting a year's coursework to learning it. I looked at the new ones, but the drive-by-wire throttle just didn't do it for me in any sense. The brand news ones seem to have inserted another level of abstraction into working with the car. I'm hoping the SOHC, EFI, standard AWD, rear drum setup will prove reliable. It certainly performs more than adequately. I did the first repair, the right driveaxle and balljoint, and it went quite easily and inexpensively. My smart eccentric uncle had a early 70's Sub when it was new, and drove it relentlessly and endlessly. I was very impressed, but only now have actually tried one.

Common repair, just my experience yesterday. 1999 Forester L 80k miles, right inner driveaxle boot split above catalytic convertor, spun grease onto exhaust, caused oily smell in car, especially at idle after running on highway. Drive axle readily available at local discount parts. $70+$50 core. Got a $30 ball joint and a $12 driveshaft nut socket while I was at it. The trick is to have the correct balljoint separator tool, that and a 19mm (3/4") socket, and a 14mm pinch bolt socket. (floor jack, jackstands, wire brushes, sockets, etc.) Separating the balljoint is the critical procedure in getting this repair done. Replacing the balljoint is optional, but probably a good idea anyhow. Securely jack and support the car. Safety absolutely first. The ball joint separator I used is the lever type, like this: The inside of the fork had to be ground away a bit (with angle grinder) to get enough purchase grip on the upper side of the control arm. Loosen the nut, get the separator in place. Since I was going to replace the balljoint I pretty freely hammered it into position. Screw it tight and wait a few minutes; mine popped off pretty quickly. (I hate pickle forks) This allows you to pull out the lower end of the strut assembly and lets you grab the axle and pull it out. Check that the circlip came out with the axle. A 2.5 foot rebar fits perfectly over the control arm, into a hole above the control arm pivot, lets you step on the bar and pull the strut free of the lower arm. The order of operations is not critical. I was able to remove the drive axle nut after I separated the balljoint. Replacing the ball joint was a little more involved for me. Rust had built up a little and the pinch bolt was very tight. I was worried about breaking the bolt. Liberal use of PBlaster and patience. I cleaned and marked the opposite end of the bolt (paint markers are great) so I could see if it was twisting. (ed 1/2015 There are a number of separate threads about drilling a .125 hole down the center of the bolt from the thread end to relieve pressure on the threads. If you break the bolt off you're gonna have to drill outhte bolt anyhow, so you may as well do it up front and possibly avoid snapping the bolt.) With the bolt out, tapped a scredriver into the slot to spread it a little. There enough rim on the cup to grab with a visegrip and twist, rock, loosen. It took some minutes to get the cup out of the insert, tappin on the vise grip with a hammer, alternately twisting and spraying with lube to to wash the interfering rust out. Cleaned the cup with wire rotary brush, ground a slot in the old pinchbolt and chased the thread backwards. Reassembly reverse of opposite, as the manuals are wont to say. The stub axle on the removed driveaxle must be moved to the new driveaxle. There is a 5 mm pin the must be punched through to remove the stub. New pin comes with replacement. Stub hole lines up with axle hole only at one position, not at 180 degrees. Locktite on pinch bolt, liberal grease on splines, torque pinch bolt and ball joint nut 40 lbs. each, driveaxle nut 140 lbs. Oil smell gone, also a slight judder at 45 no-downshift acceleration gone. Think I did okay on this one. Total cost just over $100. Ready to do the others as required. MPergiel Elmhurst, IL