1 Lucky Texan

Just remember, the system will try to make changes, and can be fooled by mis-information. Either from air/vacuum/exhaust leaks or from bad/marginal sensors/parts. for example, if worn spark plugs are missing, then unburned fuel leaves the combustion chamber, the front O2 sensor may signal a 'rich' condition, then the ECU leans out the injectors. Then that may lead to high nox, more misfires or ??????? Is there year or model in common? are they all PZEV cars? H4 and H6es?

is there anyway the - uh - Province or government could test gasoline samples from several of the affected cars?

I still wonder if there is some way to just bypass that chamber. Some kinda alternate plumbing routing . Might be tricky finding hose or pipe materials we could be certain would survive the environment. Also, have we really pinned down the size and material for the o-ring? That new, larger, filter cap doesn't come with one. and, wondering if all that extra mass of the larger cap might make failures MORE frequent/likely?

was it the tab with the ground connection?

AH - gotcha, very important that the valve is working on all cars - imperative it does on a turbo vehicle. Hadn't considered the backwards path but would be really bad for the intercoole and - well, everything downstream from the breather connections.

good point, there is a product promoted around here called RXP that 'seems' helpful for some individuals. Others seem to use it prentatively/regularly every 6 months or w'ever.. I haven't needed to try it out, but it seems highly regarded. But, I live in a non-attaiment area an we have had 10% ethanol for a long time and I have not noticed, nor are there 'rumors' or 'local legends' of it being the cause of emissions failures GENERALLY. But the situation does the beg the question if something has JUST changed. I I wonder if Ivan can check with other local shops to confirm a rash of issues across years/models of cars. There has been some noise made about us going to a 15% ethanol - folks are really concerned about that. OH - I just remembered! I wonder if the warm temeratures is causing some phase separation or other problems with the gas/ethanol? Ed Wallace is the local 'car talk' guy and he may have some info on the ethanol phase separation. I wonder if the cars Ivan is seeing sit in the heat unused for some period of time, then throw codes? There must be some common factor here if he has noticed a drastic increase. **********Later-model cars and trucks were supposed to have been re-engineered to mitigate the corrosive properties of the E-10 ethanol-laced fuel. Ed Wallace, writing in Business Week, finds that this is not necessarily true. “Not only is ethanol proving to be a dud as a fuel substitute, but there is increasing evidence that it is destroying engines in large numbers.” He goes on: “It now appears that in just a few years since the government forced ethanol use on the country, engine and fuel system failures caused by ethanol are causing major damage to more and more new and used vehicles.” Wallace concludes: “Sadly, when a truly bad idea is exposed today, Washington’s answer is to double-down on the bet, mandate more of the same, and make the problem worse. Only this time around motorists will be able to gauge the real cost of ethanol when it comes time to fix their personal cars.” Ethanol has two other properties that further complicate the process. Ethanol and gasoline do not bond chemically. They simply coexist in the fuel system in an “oil and vinegar” relationship. While ethanol may hate gasoline, it loves water. The term to describe this is “hygroscopic,” or “water soluble.” Ethanol attracts and absorbs water. As long as the amount of water in the fuel system is small, this can be a good thing: In the winter it limits the possibility of a fuel line freeze-up. However, as the water content gets higher, the new ethanol/water compound sinks to the bottom of the fuel tank. This process is called “phase separation.” If we continually drive our cars (or cut our grass every week or so) these ethanol-unique characteristics will not normally be an issue. But after about 90 days (the shelf life of E-10 gasoline), problems begin to manifest. The result: “bad gas.” The engine won’t start or there will be “missing” or “sputtering” problems. This is the reason you don’t want to leave gas containing ethanol in the lawn mower over the winter. Because of the separation and corrosion problems, ethanol cannot be transported through pipelines. It requires its own separate and costly distribution channel dominated by rail and trucks to keep it apart from the gasoline as long as possible before retail. *************************************** from; http://www.thefreemanonline.org/features/government-moonshine/ **

I'm no expert about this stuff for certain. Maybe other scanners use a different term. On my old Innova 3100a scanner, if I get a single code, FF shows in the display and I push the FF button, then scroll through the listings. It shows stuff like the speed when the that code was set, the coolant temp, etc. and the Short Term and LOng Term fuel trims. If there's 2-3 codes, FF is only avail;able for one of the codes. mine looks like the one on the left in this pic - you can see the term FreezeFrame in the display and the FF button on the panel;

then we had 2 separate incidents posted at nearly the same time. we really need a source of replacement caps. Plus, this issue needs to be a sticky I think.

this would be an extremely helpful development if it works. Kinda concerned that separate part number isn't shown. I once emailed Airtex to find out if the cap/o-ring for their replacement assembly was available to purchase separately. Got a response that they were not. maybe someone should email Bosch.

isn't the PCV 'downstream' from the IC and throttle body - into the intake mani ?

second or 3rd one for me - definitely more reports from the H6es though.

got a link? I couldn't find it at B-A's website. the Airtex and Bosch assemblies are twice that price fro RockAuto.

this; http://opposedforces.com/parts/legacy/us_b13/type_32/intake_and_supply_system_turbocharger/fuel_tank/illustration_2/ doesn't show any separate part numbers. ebay has helped some folks out that need this part. Supposedly, beck-arnley has an entire assembly that isn't 'too' expensive. someone could probably sell a kit with a cap and o-ring them for $39.95 and clean up. I always wonder how many soobs have been towed to a dealer/shop and owners sold an entire pump. Probably charged $500-$750 for that stupid cap - plus the hassle of a tow!

is 7wayne7 your buddy?

OK, did you install a new pump assembly? Or just a pump motor. There's a known issue with the metal cap on the assembly. Usually a tab cracks allowing an o-ring to push out. http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/110-gen-2-2000-2004/41182-symptoms-fuel-pump-o-ring-problem.html

if you can get freezeframe data (that's what my Innova scanner call it), look at fuel trims, you may see that the ECU is pulling the fuel. large negative, maybe 2 digit negative, LTFTs. I dunno, but it seems to me a marginal front O2 or maybe a marginal MAF could 'fool' the ecu into thinking it needs to pull fuel.

yep, for the diagram shown, that allows the adjuster to have a RH thread and be adjusted by pushing up on the star wheel from 'inside' (behind the backing plate) still, that same assembly will work fine on the other side IF the stud faces the rear of the vehicle. ugh - my head hurts.

looked at some pics of hardware kits for the rear tiny drum parking brakes for a '95. By zooming in (ctrl +) it seems fairly clear there are no left-hand thread adjusters or parts. And I see no reason the assembly can't be installed 'reversed' from the other side. There's no advantage to creating a left-hand and right hand assembly. You'd have to remember which goes where. Just as easy to install the same assembly reversed and fewer 'special' parts. So, I'm calling any manual for a soob after about 1994 that says the 'stud' must be installed the same way is likely wrong(for the parking brakes in the disc rotor system) Again, other, older, year models may be different. And for models with rear DRUM brakes , there ARE LH and RH parts as shown at opposed forces (see below) interesting. Legacy Oct. '93 to '99 tiny drum in disc rotor (adjuster is number 19 - no LH or RH shown) Rear DRUM brakes (note LH and RH for adjuster)

maybe email the suppliers. Or search/ask over at NASIOC. There's no end to the mods those guys have tried.

hmmm, if that's what the manual says, then you are correct. hell, I think I'll just take a flashlight and a rag and see what the arrows look like on my wife's car - BRB back! obvious and without doubt, embossed arrows at the side of the adjustment slots BOTH point UP on my wife's 03 H6 OBW. (got my shirt dirty - dang!)

I just don't know, sorry. If it is, 80mm should be good (figuring in wall thickness)

I would say it isn't mirror image. if there were LH and RH parts, they would be labeled that way (as in other places in diagrams - like suspension parts; http://opposedforces.com/parts/legacy/us_b11/type_30/brake_system/rear_brake/illustration_3/ HOWEVER, if the adjuster 'assembly' is simply installed facing the opposite way, (say - front to back on the right/back to front on the left) they could both be made to operate in such a way that moving the star wheel upwards will tighten the shoes. This how I would design a system so I had fewer specialized parts. maybe try to take a rubbing with paper and pencil/crayon to see if the arrows are there. But if the system is original, or it was rebuilt and put together correctly, the adjusters should both tighten with upwards adjustment. there's pic in this thread of what appears to be the left rear; http://www.subaruforester.org/vbulletin/f68/parking-brake-adjustment-100178/ (I'm calling 'inside' meaning working from between the wheels - behind the backing plate OK?) as you can see, moving the star wheel 'nut' upwards from the inside (thru the slot) would expand the distance. Notice the threaded 'stud' portion is facing the front of the car. If, on the other (right side) of the car, the threaded stud part of the assembly were installed facing the rear of the car, then an upwards movement of the star, from inside of the backing plate, will still expand the assembly. Of course, I assume that most soobs with this system are built the same way.

I just think; if there's a car that was working, lost a heat shield, and started throwing 420 codes immediately - then was repaired with some heat wrap or a replacement shield - and afterwards started NOT throwing 420 codes, that that car is likely going to have another problem related to A/F within weeks. Maybe I just need more education but I doubt the heat shields are a significant part of the cat function. There must be 100s of thousands of cars that have had various heat shields rust away/fall off on the roads with no significant reduction in exhaust system emissions function.

yeah, pretty unlikely, just trying to dream up some way the exhaust would be too cool. IIRC in the 'old days' there was a cadillac that pumped fresh air in the with the exhaust to dilute the pollutant concentration to pass tailpipe tests. cheaters lol!

how does the catalyst reaction get shut down? too lean? too rich? Seems like it's an a/f thing more than ambient air temps. Don't' these cars work at -30F as well as 113F? Not saying some control of the system to normalize temps wouldn't be ideal, but it seems it would be much too sensitive if the loss of a heat shield caused a problem. I'd think you'd pop 420 codes on every rainy day with cool water splashing up on the exhaust.