robledo Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 First time poster here, I'll try to make this messy essay length post as readable as possible. 95 subaru legacy brighton wagon, that overheated a couple months ago. At the time of the overheating, i put some of that radiator stop leak crap in, which was probably a bad idea; dumb, especially as it was a burst water pipe. I got it towed and a new radiator put in, and they did a hydrocarbon test and it came back negative, so I drove it home (100 miles to home from the breakdown). I noticed that the coolant reservoir was coffee colored the next day, but I figured it was the stop leak stuff, but conceded that it could also be a HG failure that manifested after a while of high temp use. The car was not worth the repair bill, so i decided to do it myself a couple weeks later the car started stalling so I figured it was going to go, so I decided to change out the HGs. I got the engine out and got the heads milled, and put em back on. Changed out the seals on everything save for hte rear seal as well. I got the engine back in with great difficulty without a hoist! but it's all tightened back in now. Got the Timing belt back on, and noticed that the passenger side sprocket TDC indicator is like half a tooth behind the rear TB case mark.. I turned the engine over a few times to see how it turned, and it seemed fine, so I figured it was correct. Put everything back together, and the engine started up, with a noticeable ticking sound, that still continues after about maybe 25-30 minutes of total operation. I'm assuming that the HLAs are making the noise, but I can't be certain of it because i'm no expert on the sound. In any case the car seemed to idle fine. I put water only in the coolant line to run it and try to flush out whatever's in the line, and I noticed that the reservior was looking mighty red and pungent, as if the transmission compartment of the radiator is breached. But later I've taken the radiator out and have blown on the transmission pipe and it seemed air tight. In any case I'm going to flush out the trans and get an aftermarket transmission cooler, and loop a hose on the radiator pipes, just to be safe. But that is the least of my problems, because the car from the start was misfiring on acceleration, and later stalled twice, and I was only just able to sputter home, this after the car having warmed up. The ATF temp light blinked on and off, but I could not count the times.. It seemed to idle ok back under the carport for the few remaining seconds before I turned it off. I've redone the timing belt, and again it seems half a tooth behind on passenger side, and dead center on driver side. Apart from that, i've hooked everything up that I can see, harness and vac pipe-wise. So What do you think? The engine was giving poor performance before I changed out the HGs, so there's a chance that it's carried over, and was not the HGs afterall. The two main culprets that I'm thinking are the trans and coolant temp sensor at this point.. -can the transmission sensor/solenoids cause the engine to die like this? -perhaps the stop leak stuff kill the coolant temp sensor? If it's not those, then what method would you propose for diagnosis? I'm pretty much at the end of my rope and current technical ability, so I'm obviously considering a new car.. anyway thanks for any help, and for reading Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 any check engine lights - if so, what codes? if you clear them, which ones come back? double check timing belt marks - make sure you're not a tooth off. do you have spark? do you have good fuel pressure? compression test? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robledo Posted June 20, 2011 Author Share Posted June 20, 2011 I'll take photos of the belt and pullies at TDC.. I guess I can rent a compression and fuel line gauge from oreilley's... again it seems to rev alright without a load, but upon locomotion it misfired and eventually started stalling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 sounds like the symptoms are nearly the same as before the headgasket job? (EJ22's do not blow headgaskets - but overheating will cause any headgasket to blow...) any check engine light? ***Misfires are generally caused by spark plugs or wires. These engines are notoriously unforgiving with spark plugs and usually folks stick with stock OEM NGK plugs and Subaru wires. Aftermarket wires are known to cause misfires (I've seen misfires with brand new aftermarket wires). how old are the plugs and wires? if they haven't been replaced any time soon they could be the culprit. you *typically* get a check engine light for misfires, but not 100% of the time. did you check for a vacuum leak yet? spray carb cleaner or some other spray around the engine bay and see if the idle/starting changes? the ATF light blinked 16 times - it will blink 16 times at start up (if there's a problem) - that tells you there's a stored code. you'll have to do the specific hand-shake routine to get it to spit the actual codes for you- it won't do it on it's own. get us as much *important* information as you can, like answering the question about the check engine light. we can't help if you don't answer questions. we're good but not magicians - without seeing, touching, hearing the car we're really limited. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Lifters can take all the time in the world to pump back up after having the head off. That will go away eventually. Like Gary said, misfiring under load is generally a symptom of poor spark. Bad wires or worn plugs are the common causes for that. I put water only in the coolant line to run it and try to flush out whatever's in the line, and I noticed that the reservior was looking mighty red and pungent, as if the transmission compartment of the radiator is breached. But later I've taken the radiator out and have blown on the transmission pipe and it seemed air tight. This is not a good sign. Blowing into the cooler will not reveal a small leak. Transmission fluid is under a fair amount of pressure as it moves through the cooler, it will push through something as small as a pinhole that you can't detect with air. Any water in the transmission will damage the clutches so you would be smart to change out the fluid asap and bypass the cooler for now until you can determine if it is leaking. You say the cam is of by a half tooth on the drivers side, but in which direction? Clockwise or counter-clockwise? Did you use Subaru head gaskets? If no, which brand did you buy? Did you follow the torque procedure to the letter? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robledo Posted July 4, 2011 Author Share Posted July 4, 2011 well, engine seems to run decent enough now after changing the plugs and wires,,,, but the transmission now is fully slipping after about a minute or so of operation when warmed up, making a strange airy noise at first from the Torque Converter area, Before full slippage there is some sort of noise akin to a muffled sound of running my finger over a comb. Once it fully slips, the noise disappears. I can turn the car off and it will imediately catch again, but only for a short period of time before it goes out again. R,D,3,2,1 will not move upon accelleration. No check engine light or anything comes on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robledo Posted July 4, 2011 Author Share Posted July 4, 2011 btw I bypassed the radiator and drained the ATF fluid..I don't see any water coming out of the trans pipes from the radiator Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted July 4, 2011 Share Posted July 4, 2011 (edited) Are you absolutely sure the torque converter was fully seated into the transmission prior to installing the engine? These are notoriously hard to install properly and improper installation can damage the transmission fluid pump that is driven by the TC..... GD Edited July 4, 2011 by GeneralDisorder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robledo Posted July 4, 2011 Author Share Posted July 4, 2011 I know next to nothing about the transmission, but is definitely a possilibilty From what I can remember, I unbolted the flex plate completely from the TC before removing the trans case bolts and nuts when i removed the block, then secured the flex plate back on to the TC after tightening down the case bolts. The TC just stayed in place. I suppose there was a possibility that the TC got pulled or pushed, but I dont recall any instance of that happening. It just got spun in order to line up the holes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted July 4, 2011 Share Posted July 4, 2011 Well if you just kept the TC attached to the transmission that makes it much less likely that something went wrong. When you were installing the bolts from the flex-plate to the TC did it pull the TC up to meet the flex plate or was the TC pushing on the flex-plate? Typically the TC has to be drawn up to the flex-plate about 1/8" or so..... after the engine and transmission are fully bolted together. Did you bolt the engine and tranny together first and then put the flex-plate bolts in or the other way around? There should have been no resistance to mating the engine and tranny other than the friction of the alignment pins..... GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robledo Posted July 4, 2011 Author Share Posted July 4, 2011 (edited) I bolted the engine to to the trans first.. I honestly can't remember about the 1/8" offset.. I think it was offset a little. Once i got the first bolt on, the rest were easy. After a minute or so of operation, the sound seems to emanate from the transmission, behind the TC area., then the trans will only creep in gear, despite increasing throttle, then shortly after it will be stuck in neutral, regardless of gear. I turn off, wait a minute or so, and it cathes again, and problem repeats BTW the toe on the wheels are terrible.. they are both toed inward Edited July 4, 2011 by robledo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted July 4, 2011 Share Posted July 4, 2011 I assume you made sure the trans fluid is topped up? AT fluid level should be checked w/ engine running. Small amounts of coolant in the trans you may not be able to see visually. With the cooler disconnected you can pressurize the cooling system (just run the engine to operating temp), and watch for coolant to leak out of the lower port on the cooler. A small leak may take some time to run out but there should be evidence of steam or coolant smell from the cooler if it is leaking. Another thought just occurred to me. You had to hold the transmission up somehow to pull the engine out. You didn't by chance put a jack under the transmission pan did you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robledo Posted July 4, 2011 Author Share Posted July 4, 2011 Hi nah I jacked it up under the differential with a block of wood. I did jack it up high to get the engine to slip on right, and it came out of its rear mounts (had them unbolted).. I was able to get it back on however The oil on the dipstick is very clear, so it's hard to get a good reading.. About 5 qts came out, and around 5 qts have gone in. As for the radiator, I have it completely disconnected from the radiator, and running to an aftermarket cooler exclusively. So far I have not seen anything leaking out of the pipes for the trans lines.. no noticeable leaks anywhere else for that matter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted July 4, 2011 Share Posted July 4, 2011 Ok - you do realize there are two dipsticks for the transmission right? One for the front diff (gear oil) and another for the actual transmission fluid (Dexron III)..... just checking that you are aware of this.... If fluid level isn't the issue - I would say the transmission is shot. Odd since they are quite reliable and doubly odd that it would happen right after major engine work. Very strange indeed. GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robledo Posted July 5, 2011 Author Share Posted July 5, 2011 yeah i used the correct dipstick... harnesses are all connected correctly as far as I can see. I suppose the oil pump got damaged, unless something got clogged, which is highly unlikely. Perhaps coolant got into it, but I am not seeing anything coming out the pipes on the radiator after bypassing it I guess i'm just going to sell it and get another sub, which sucks because I spent a couple months tinkering with this thing.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 5, 2011 Share Posted July 5, 2011 trans pump sounds buffooned. if you did the HG's - you can defintely just have another transmission put in it. 4EAT transmissions don't fail that often and are therefore cheap (because there's low demand) and reliable. at least worth a shot to look, sometimes you can get an EJ trans for $200 bucks. helps to know your vehicle, engine, trans, and location and we could help you more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robledo Posted July 5, 2011 Author Share Posted July 5, 2011 thanks for the info, it's a 95 sub legacy brighton edition.. so an EJ22 w/ 150k i'm in laurinburg north carolina.. sortof in the middle of nowhere. I think i'm going to park it and get another car, and wait on it for a few weeks before deciding what to do. If i can source a trans for a cheap price then it might be worth the trouble. Thanks for the help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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