Reinstalling 2.2L Engine. Starts, Runs, and DIES... Help!

[J_S]

My 2.2 (95 Legacy L, MT) was leaking oil from the usual spots so I finally decided to pull it. I took it to a trusted mechanic and had him replace all the seals (except head gasket... it was not leaking), timing belt, and water pump. I reinstalled the engine last night, hooked everything up. I took pictures and color taped hoses and wires to keep the connections straight. I thought I had them correct but something must be wrong... he's what happened: (I'm new to this so feel free to laugh and bear with me..)

 

First try - CLICK. Nothing. Hmm... Some sleuthing revealed that I connected the starter groundwire to the solenoid terminal. Oops. Reconnected starter groundwire to the engine block.

 

Second try - Cranks, starts then VRRRMMMM all the way to red line. I quickly kill the ignition. Throttle body was stuck wide open. ************. Readjust the accelerator cable to ensure the throttle opens and closes freely.

 

Third try - Cranks, starts, squeals like hell (very very loud), moves to high idle then stalls. No sputtering, just dies. Try again. Same thing. Try this time but give it some gas. This I'm able to bring the RPMs up for a few seconds then it stalls again.

 

So two problems maybe? The squealing and the stalling. Or are they related? I examine the belts (they were reused since they were in good condition) to check for tension and notice the alternator pulley is hotter than hell! All the other pulleys are cool. The alternator itself feels cool. The alternator is brand new from O'Reilly's. Could it be the new alternator has bad bearings? I pulled the alternator off and I'm going to exchange it for another one today since it's new. I won't even mess with testing it, just ask for a new one. But I'm not so sure this will solve the problem.

 

A friend said he observed a sucking sound (but he's not positive b/c the squealing was so loud) in the vicinity of the PCV valve (the valve was replaced with the engine reinstall), so I hooked a vacuum gauge up to it. Vacuum gauage read about 17mmHg and steady from the time the engine cranks until it dies so I'm guessing there isn't a vacuum leak. Just to be sure I reinstalled the PCV valve with teflon tape and screw clamped all the hoses in this area. Tried it again. Same thing.

 

 

FYI - I did install a new fuel filter but I'm pretty sure I reconnected all the fuel lines correctly. Anyone have any ideas what can be causing this???? I'm fresh out of ideas and very frustrated! There is no CEL. Is it worth trying to borrow a scanner to see if I'm getting trouble codes from one of the sensors?

 

Thanks so much for any feedback!!!!

 

P.S.- Transmission is in neutral, doesn't seem to matter whether I keep the clutch depressed or not after startup. Yes, there's oil in it. There's coolant too, but it still needs to be topped off after the thermostat opens. Etc.

[ShawnW]

Hose to the idle air control valve disconnected. Its a larger 1" hose that goes from the top center of the intake to the left of the throttle body to the black intake hose.

[Gloyale]

Did you plug the MAF back in?

 

Is the IAC hose connected?

 

All the PCV hoses?

 

I'll bet it's an intake thing and you've got an unmetered air leak.

[Mugs]

Also check to make sure the coolant temp sensor wire is connected. It is an easy one to miss because it is buried and tucked up under the intake.

[johnceggleston]

if the belts are making noise, you should be able to run it for a little while with out the belts. too long and you will drain the battery, but if the lights, fan, radio are all off you'll be ok for a while. maybe enough to hear the other sounds.

 

ditto on the open hose somewhere.

[J_S]

ShawnW you were right on! Thanks to all for the replies. The 1" IACV hose was disconnected from the airduct. That's a good idea about running it with the belts off to hear the other noises, I'll have to use that one in the future. Turns out in my case the alternator belt was too loose, as suggested. Curious if anyone knows what the specified belt tension in pounds (not deflection) is? Are there even specs for this or does Subaru only measure deflection?

 

Anyways, the car was doing great until I dropped a tool across the alternator terminal and intake manifold and fried the fusible link. D'oh! I guess that's what it's there for though. Starts fine with a pair of alligator clips and wire to complete the circuit. I'm picking up a new fusible link today. Heat's not working yet, but I've only taken it through two cooling and heating cycles. Probably still an air bubble trapped in there. But the engine is running smooooth!

[bstone]

The IACV hose is easy to miss and totally will cause the car to stall right after turning it on. Good find!