1 Lucky Texan

That''s a good point - for short term use around the farm, in CT, how about just bypassing the rad altogether and looping the oil?

would a condition or instance of high oil presure blow that seal out? maybe a stuck oil pressure relief valve? I had a sticking OPV on a Honda that I had pulled the pan off of and I guess being exposed for a while, the valve stuck. Didn't know until it was reassembled and I started it - blew a bunch of oil up against the garage door - popped the oil filter gasket.

on rereading, it's clear you know what you're doing. I dunno, maybe try a battery disconnect reset? did something else happen to this car that could have damaged the ECU? (just BTW - my WRX has FIVE of those belt guards , 1 over each sprocket)

did you consider buying it back from the insurance company? maybe some family member or friend coulda used it. A kid's school car or a reserve grocery-getter....

1. trust the crank and cam sprocket marks - make you use the dashed line/groove on the tab at the rear of the crank sprocket and NOT the arrow/dot/triangle on the front. Find the tooth count for the engine on-line as a triple check. 2. Seems unlikely but, maybe there is a mix-up on cam and crank sprockets? Or, a tab had been broken off the crank sprocket?(read of that happening twice before)

exhaust system intact?

could the car, or at least the engine, be from Canada?

an oil analysis from Blackstone or Polaris labs, etc. can tell you how far you can stretch the oil change (and also offer you a heads-up on 3-4 kinds of 'trouble'.) Blackstone is quite popular. To read more about oil than you ever wanted to, you could also visit www.bobistheoilguy.com Otherwise, it's just a guess. personally, I think synthetic is good for 5K miles or 1 year, w'ever comes first. But, only an analysis could give you actual data. Your car, climate, and driving might be good for 8500 miles??? who knows? certainly extreme use like racing, towing, offroad, etc. could change that.

maybe try quizzing him some more about what has been done to the car - swapped engines/heads/cams/etc. Even a broken tab on the rear of the crank sprocket can cause ignition problems. or maybe a swapped ECU from an incompatible model??? I dunno, but the fact it was purchased in this condition makes it very unlikely it was running 'correctly' when it was parked.....Or, maybe God is trying to tell you to buy a Tesla.

ouch the weakest link breaks first. From all my reading over the years, it is quite clear rear CV axles are VERY durable on our cars.

seems like the car has NEVER work normally for you? I'm suspicious some parts swapping was done, and then the car 'abandoned'.

noob!

oh, yeah. Well, if it works like I think, it's easy to try. But, everything now is pointing more to a bad ECU or maybe some odd issue with cam/crank sensor....say, any idea if the engine has had cam or crank sprockets changed? Differences in those from year-to-year can cause problems because the ECU is expecting certain signal 'trains' from cam and crank sprockets. That is, ECU and cam/crank signals must match.

I asked because some cars will revert to 'base' parameters stored in the ECU's memeory if the MAF is unplugged. The idea was this, if the car runs better on the base map, it kinda points to a sensor or sensor wiring/grounding type of problem. if not, then it could be something more 'physical' like a burned valve or .....? GD could explain better.

does this car have a MAF ? how does it run with the MAF unplugged?

The 03 has developed an oil leak. Brief look underneath doesn't really point to the oil cooler which was recently replaced. (I also recently replaced the front w'shield washer pump, again) This car has never had valve cover gaskets done. I dunno if I'm up to doing them myself - certainly not until better weather and my MIL moves out. I really can't risk having the car out of service if I screw something up..... probably need to drive the WRX again, we have been very vigilant with the whole covid thing, plus, I got fired so, decided to go ahead and retire, and the cars just sit.

could need a wider plug gap too.

is this car also prone to having the fuel lines reversed like some folks accidentally do in newer cars? I dunno, I'm really out of my element here lol!

IF you can get it to misbehave while stationary, when it is stumbling, try squirting some starting fluid, brake cleaner or even a stream of propane from unlit hand torch into the intake. If it gets better, there's some kind of fueling problem. If worse....maybe some ignition issue?

seems weird...maybe broken clutch fork/lever or ???? broken front axle....? make sure they show you the any bad parts they replace. They should be able to produce them quickly without any forewarning.

hmmmm....seems like I have read of the starter's commutator needing cleaning? quick search found this;

my first guess is, they may be reversed. Diodes are polarized. and, not really sure they can be used in alt. field excite circuit???? (hope someone smarter will respond)

except for the rpm weirdness, I'd suggest checking trans fluid level (while idling of course)..... maybe a vacuum gauge test? you can find info online of the old-school use and all the stuff it can find

Did the battery die or was used until completely discharged at any time? Or maybe the car was jump-started? possible the ECU has lost its 'zero calibration' from the throttle I guess. There is a zero re-learn procedure. maybe someone more familiar with the newer cars will respond.

just pointing out also, that due to MTs sharing lube with front diffs, fluid choice can matter in 'feel'/smooth-shifting. many folks experience clashing when using synthetic fluids. NON-synth, name brand lubes seem best. There is a Walmart semi-synth blend that some folks claim is a good value.