Just purchasad a Legacy and I have a few questions...

[Kilroy]

I just put a deposit on a 1990 Subaru Legacy Wagon with 165,000 km (about 100,00 miles) which I plan to use as a daily runner to get me to work and back (50 miles highway round trip) and I will be picking it up tomorrow. It fired right up nicely and I took it for a quick test drive (wasn't insured, so I couldn't take it on the highway) and everything seemed fine and pretty much as it should be (except for the squishy brakes, probably needs bleeding). I am quite mechanically inclined and have done most of the maintenance work on my vehicles in the past, so I will be thoroughly inspecting the engine and drivetrain this weekend. I have a few questions about it that I am hoping previous Subaru owners can help me with.

 

The tilt on the steering wheel won't stay up, it always rests on the bottom and almost touches my legs (I'm 6'1"). Is there an easy way to fix this?

 

The ABS light stays on. It there some way to reset it, should I be inspecting something in particular or is this a common problem?

 

The seller says that when you start the engine when it is cold, it will run for a few minutes and then dies. He says it fires right back up again with no troubles. Anyone have some insight on what this could be?

 

The seller states that the mechanic told him it needs a new 'heat' sensor. I've done a couple hours of reading on the internet (Google is your friend!) and found references to a 'temp' sensor. Anyone know what he is referring to?

 

Are there any tweaks or mods that can be utilized to get the most out of this engine (I am assuming it is the EJ22)? I'll be doing the basics such as oil/air/fuel filter change right away and checking the timing.

 

 

Any insight/tips/advice you could give me would be much appreciated! THANKS!

[Tolerance02]

I just put a deposit on a 1990 Subaru Legacy Wagon with 165,000 km (about 100,00 miles) which I plan to use as a daily runner to get me to work and back (50 miles highway round trip) and I will be picking it up tomorrow. It fired right up nicely and I took it for a quick test drive (wasn't insured, so I couldn't take it on the highway) and everything seemed fine and pretty much as it should be (except for the squishy brakes, probably needs bleeding). I am quite mechanically inclined and have done most of the maintenance work on my vehicles in the past, so I will be thoroughly inspecting the engine and drivetrain this weekend. I have a few questions about it that I am hoping previous Subaru owners can help me with.

 

The tilt on the steering wheel won't stay up, it always rests on the bottom and almost touches my legs (I'm 6'1"). Is there an easy way to fix this?

 

The ABS light stays on. It there some way to reset it, should I be inspecting something in particular or is this a common problem?

 

The seller says that when you start the engine when it is cold, it will run for a few minutes and then dies. He says it fires right back up again with no troubles. Anyone have some insight on what this could be?

 

The seller states that the mechanic told him it needs a new 'heat' sensor. I've done a couple hours of reading on the internet (Google is your friend!) and found references to a 'temp' sensor. Anyone know what he is referring to?

 

Are there any tweaks or mods that can be utilized to get the most out of this engine (I am assuming it is the EJ22)? I'll be doing the basics such as oil/air/fuel filter change right away and checking the timing.

 

 

Any insight/tips/advice you could give me would be much appreciated! THANKS!

 

I may be able to answer a few of Your questions.

Tilt on steering wheel; there is a second handle under the steering columm that is used as a basic adjustment, maebe that is in the lowest position.

 

Heat sensor; must be temp sensor i guess; You can find it on the right side (driving direction) on the intake manifold (look good! it's not easy to find). It is a brass plug with a brown, two wire connector, near the temp gauge who is smaller and has only one wire on it. If it failes it results mostely in problems with restart a hot (warm) engine.

 

Hope this helps a little.

 

Urban.

[Suzam]

If the ABS light is on, it could mean a major problem. That light does not come on and stay on unless the ABS is not functioning. You will need to find the cause and fix the problem. Could be big $ or a simple fix.

[timpappas]

I just sold a '97 Legacy GT that had an ABS problem. The brakes were changed and the tech lopped off a piece of the RF ABS sensor. So, upon startup and beginning a trip the light would be off. Then step on the brakes...feel pulsation, then the light would come on. Then No ABS. Was not a problem for me. Just be careful in the snow. We lived years w/o ABS, so i wasnt losing sleep over it.

[nipper]

I just put a deposit on a 1990 Subaru Legacy Wagon with 165,000 km (about 100,00 miles) which I plan to use as a daily runner to get me to work and back (50 miles highway round trip) and I will be picking it up tomorrow. It fired right up nicely and I took it for a quick test drive (wasn't insured, so I couldn't take it on the highway) and everything seemed fine and pretty much as it should be (except for the squishy brakes, probably needs bleeding). I am quite mechanically inclined and have done most of the maintenance work on my vehicles in the past, so I will be thoroughly inspecting the engine and drivetrain this weekend. I have a few questions about it that I am hoping previous Subaru owners can help me with.

 

The tilt on the steering wheel won't stay up, it always rests on the bottom and almost touches my legs (I'm 6'1"). Is there an easy way to fix this?

 

The ABS light stays on. It there some way to reset it, should I be inspecting something in particular or is this a common problem?

 

The seller says that when you start the engine when it is cold, it will run for a few minutes and then dies. He says it fires right back up again with no troubles. Anyone have some insight on what this could be?

 

The seller states that the mechanic told him it needs a new 'heat' sensor. I've done a couple hours of reading on the internet (Google is your friend!) and found references to a 'temp' sensor. Anyone know what he is referring to?

 

Are there any tweaks or mods that can be utilized to get the most out of this engine (I am assuming it is the EJ22)? I'll be doing the basics such as oil/air/fuel filter change right away and checking the timing.

 

 

Any insight/tips/advice you could give me would be much appreciated! THANKS!

 

somone always has to be difficult

The engine needs a new (acoreding to the mechanic) ECU temp sensor.

The ABS light may be as simple as a dirty speed sensor at one of the wheels, or a broken wire or bad sensor.

The steering wheel (trouble maker) its just a simple clamp type mechanisim. Is the handle there at all, hagning down, or just flopping around. When you raise the handle it should feel like your applying pressure and clamping it in place.

 

nipper

[Kilroy]

Thanks for the replies! It looks like I have been spoiled with my other vehicles as they all have power adjustment on the steering column. I'll have a look for that lever when I pick it up in about an hour.

[nipper]

Thanks for the replies! It looks like I have been spoiled with my other vehicles as they all have power adjustment on the steering column. I'll have a look for that lever when I pick it up in about an hour.

 

the lever is on the bottom of the steering column on the left side.

 

nipper

[Kilroy]

I picked up the car this afternoon from the seller and found the lever quite quickly once I took a little better look, it locked the steering wheel in place quite nicely. THANK YOU!! That's the good news...

 

The bad news is that I drove the car away and 8-10 minutes later it died at a stop light. It started right up again and I got to the next light, where it once again died. This time, it would not start right away although I tried several times. I waited about 30 seconds until the light turned green and tried it again, it fired right up like there was nothing wrong (computer reset itself perhaps?). At this point, I just wanted to make it to work, which was another 5 minutes away and about 4 more lights. I ducked into a residential area to avoid the lights and did some rolling stops at the stop signs. I made it with no more stalls.

 

I headed home from work about 4 hours ago, bearing in mind the stopping problem. I managed to avoid all the lights except for one, which was about 5 minutes from work. The car died right away. I waited for the green, fired it up and proceeded across the intersection where the car started to hesitate and buck and I pulled over where it finally died once again. I waited about 3 minutes, fired it up and drove the remaining 20 minutes home on the highway. The only time it seemed to hesitate and stutter again was when I had to slow down to about 30 MPH for an offramp and a 270 degree turn to the final highway home. The car ran beautifully on the highway.

 

I immediately pulled the car into the garage and up onto a couple of ramps so I could do some looking underneath. The car makes a rattling sound non-stop and it seemed to be coming from underneath to the rear of engine. I was expecting it to be a loose heat sheild on the exhaust. This was the first time I had been able to pop the hood and see the engine under some really good light. It looked good, I mean REALLY good. Very clean and well laid out without a drop of oil or any other fluid anywhere. Upon sliding underneath on the creeper, I saw ATF fluid from the rear of the engine all the way to the rear differential. It had been raining for a couple hours while I was at work and the roads were still wet, so it may not all be ATF, but there was a distinct red tinge to the liquid wherever I put my finger. Alas, there was no loose heat shield either and I'll be damned if I can figure what the noise was.

 

I took the car off the ramps and checked all my fluids (all were full and looked very clean), I had to check the manual to find where the tranny dipstick was hidden. The transmission was still warm, but the vehicle was not running. The manual instructs you to have the vehicle running and the transmission fluid warm when checking the fluid. Well, even without having the engine running I am pretty sure the ATF should not measure on the dipstick 5 INCHES ABOVE THE FULL MARK! I had to check 3 times, I couldn't believe someone would fill it so much. At first I thought that perhaps the fluid was just running up and over the dipstick tube and down the underside of the car, but a close inspection of the tube found it to be dry. Now I am thinking the seller knew about a fluid leak and topped it right up so that I would be many miles away before I found out about it. Hard to say for sure...

 

ANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNYWAYS.....

 

Could the temperature sensor that the seller said needs to be replaced be the reason the car dies when coming to a stop?

 

Any idea what the rattling noise could be?

 

Where would be the best place to look for the ATF leak (other than the bottom gasket)?

 

The car was such a good deal and in such good shape (body and interior, still not so sure about the engine!) that I could toss another $1000 at it and still be ahead. I'll be cleaning the ATF off tomorrow (well, today actually as it's now 4AM!!) to try and track down the leak as well as trying to get it into the local Subaru service center this Saturday to have the engine checked out.

[nipper]

yes the temp sessor can make weird things happe.

If tou are positive the transmission is over filed, what color is the fluid. there are two ways for it to be over filled. the first is, well, somone over filled it. The second is that the coller inside the radiator is leaking. Usually the fluid gets pumped into the radiator since the tranny pressure is higher then the radiator pressure.

My bet is that it was overfilled, and all the fluid you see under the car is the excess fluid being puished out. Have the tranny oil changed and the temp sensor replaced and we will see what happens. Soobys dont usually leak fluuid by the seals. It is also possible you have a pan leak.

 

nipper

[Kilroy]

The ATF fluid is the proper red color, I don't think there is a leak to the rad. I've got my fingers crossed that it was just an overfill by mistake.

[Kilroy]

I just installed the new sensor and it didn't make a damned bit of difference. The car died at a light and then again about a minute later doing 30 MPH. It runs fine at highway speeds though.

 

 

I drained the ATF fluid and got over 2 litres of it and it is still a little above the full line!

 

It's still making a damned racket as soon as I start the engine. It sounds like something is spinning and not quite engaging. I originally thought it was a loose heat shield on the muffler, but they are all fine. I slid under the car while it was running and up on ramps to try and track it down. It seems to be coming from the lower rear of the engine (the lower firewall area) and it is internal. The sound doesn't get any louder or quieter at difference speeds, either. I can't get the car into a Subaru service center until at least the 27th, so I am concerned as to whether I should be driving it at all until that time.

[nipper]

I just installed the new sensor and it didn't make a damned bit of difference. The car died at a light and then again about a minute later doing 30 MPH. It runs fine at highway speeds though.

 

 

I drained the ATF fluid and got over 2 litres of it and it is still a little above the full line!

 

It's still making a damned racket as soon as I start the engine. It sounds like something is spinning and not quite engaging. I originally thought it was a loose heat shield on the muffler, but they are all fine. I slid under the car while it was running and up on ramps to try and track it down. It seems to be coming from the lower rear of the engine (the lower firewall area) and it is internal. The sound doesn't get any louder or quieter at difference speeds, either. I can't get the car into a Subaru service center until at least the 27th, so I am concerned as to whether I should be driving it at all until that time.

 

well thats progress. Does this noise change with engine rpm ?

It can be the starter isnt fully disenaging from the flywheel, but thats just a guess since i cant hear the car.

The car can go to any mechanic, they are just simple cars. The dying does it do it regularly? a ignitor comes to mind. does it just cut out or sputter.

 

nipper

[Kilroy]

The noise sounds the same at all RPMs, but seems to die down a little and then come back at random times. The starter theory sounds about right and the positioning is correct, but over time I would expect the gear to wear and the sound to eventually go away, perhaps until the point that the gear was fully worn away.

 

The car just dies, no sputtering at all. It will do it pretty much any time after it is warmed up and when you are at speeds slower than 30MPH. It will idle for a short time at the light and then die and once it has done it the first time after initial startup will continue to do so every time you are under 30 MPH.

 

Simple engine? This is the weirdest damned setup I have seen for an engine and I'm still trying to figure out what is going on. I'll probably need to see a full schematic to actually get my head around it. I must admit I was pleasantly surprise when I took it out on the highway and mashed it to the floor. It tached all the way to 6500 RPM (redline) and shifted smoothly to the next gear where it went to 6500 RPM again before switching to 3rd. With the exception of that rattling noise, the engine sounded excellent and it picked up very well for such a small motor.

[nipper]

The noise sounds the same at all RPMs, but seems to die down a little and then come back at random times. The starter theory sounds about right and the positioning is correct, but over time I would expect the gear to wear and the sound to eventually go away, perhaps until the point that the gear was fully worn away.

 

The car just dies, no sputtering at all. It will do it pretty much any time after it is warmed up and when you are at speeds slower than 30MPH. It will idle for a short time at the light and then die and once it has done it the first time after initial startup will continue to do so every time you are under 30 MPH.

 

Simple engine? This is the weirdest damned setup I have seen for an engine and I'm still trying to figure out what is going on. I'll probably need to see a full schematic to actually get my head around it. I must admit I was pleasantly surprise when I took it out on the highway and mashed it to the floor. It tached all the way to 6500 RPM (redline) and shifted smoothly to the next gear where it went to 6500 RPM again before switching to 3rd. With the exception of that rattling noise, the engine sounded excellent and it picked up very well for such a small motor.

 

ok its the starter. I bet the return sprong on the starter drive is busted. You can see this by removing the starter.

 

The ignition im betting is a ignitor. Get a few from a junkyard to find out.

 

The engine is very basic, and older then the in line engines. Boxer engines (VW Porsche Airplanes) date back to Otto Benz in 1896 (not to be confused with an opposed piston engine).

The beauty of these engines is that the layout allows for all the opposing forces on the pistons and cranks to cancel each other out. This is why they can run almost for ever without the bearing wearing out (as long as they dont overheat and have oil changes). They have low centers of gravitiy, and are compact in size. They run smoother also then a regular 4 cylinder engine. If you look at the typical mileage on these cars, its not unusal to have them aproach the 200K mark and stil run like champs (including vw, corvairs, porsches, airplanes and other application). This is partially the reason they never caught on in detroit where planned obsolence is the norm.

Subaru electronics are fairly simple (untill recently) compared to others.

 

nipper

[Kilroy]

You read my mind. I passed a wrecking yard on my way to work today and thought they must have a few there due to the fact the vehicle is 16 years old.

 

I'll put it up on the ramps a little later and pull the starter. I imagine it will be like any other starter and just be a few bolts to remove.

 

Where would I find the ignitor? I need to get my hands on a repair manual soon, been working so much I just haven't had the time!

 

I'm really hoping the engine lasts as long as 200k miles, that would mean it is only halfway there now! The body has not a spot of rust and the interior is great, so the engine is the only thing out of my control at this time. I always do an oil change on my vehicles in the spring and the fall, regardless of whether they require it at that time. An oil change is by far the cheapest thing you can do to maintain the life of your engine.

 

nipper, you are the equivalent of a guy named 'jinny' that is on the Acura RL forums that I frequent. He seems to have some good advice or answer for anything as well. Thanks a bunch for all your help!

[nipper]

You read my mind. I passed a wrecking yard on my way to work today and thought they must have a few there due to the fact the vehicle is 16 years old.

 

I'll put it up on the ramps a little later and pull the starter. I imagine it will be like any other starter and just be a few bolts to remove.

 

Where would I find the ignitor? I need to get my hands on a repair manual soon, been working so much I just haven't had the time!

 

I'm really hoping the engine lasts as long as 200k miles, that would mean it is only halfway there now! The body has not a spot of rust and the interior is great, so the engine is the only thing out of my control at this time. I always do an oil change on my vehicles in the spring and the fall, regardless of whether they require it at that time. An oil change is by far the cheapest thing you can do to maintain the life of your engine.

 

nipper, you are the equivalent of a guy named 'jinny' that is on the Acura RL forums that I frequent. He seems to have some good advice or answer for anything as well. Thanks a bunch for all your help!

 

Starter is accessable from the top of the car, no need for ramps unless your really tall.

 

Get yourself a haynes manual if your keeping the car past break in (100,00 miles). It will show you where the ignitor is and alot of other goodies. Its on a bracket near the for/aft engine strut under the hood i think (im not sure). the manual shows you a pic of it.

 

"have an answer for everything" sometimes thats not a good thing

 

nipper

[Kilroy]

Had one heck of a night working on the subby. Took out the starter and the spring is working fine. About an hour after that I had a brain fart and realized that there was no seal or gasket (I imagine there should be a rubber seal) between the starter and the engine. Even another 1/8" away from the flywheel would make the difference. I can see a tiny bit of wear on the very edge of the starter gear as well as the flywheel and upon a closer examination of where the sound is originating it really sounds like that is the problem. Is there supposed to be a rubber seal there?

 

I took the car for a run and I was almost back to the garage when the steering started to get tougher. Up until this point it hadn't died yet and I was feeling rather good. I pulled it into the garage, popped the hood, then jumped back as a cloud of fumes came at me. There was power steering fluid EVERYWHERE! After 20 minutes of cleaning, I topped up the fluid again and cringed while I had my wife start the car. I couldn't find any leaks or blown hoses anywhere, so I was prepared for the worst. With a sigh of relief, I saw that the blot on the steel hose connected directly to the side of the power steering pump was leaking. It was so loose I could turn it with my fingers. I cranked that down and everything was fine.

 

I had to go to the in-law's house for a few minutes about 12 blocks away and on the way back home the car died 3 times. I'm starting to think it may be the fuel pump as it did give a little sputter before dying and I managed to keep it running another time by pumping the gas pedal on and off quickly. I took off the fuel filter and blew it out and there was no resistance, the fuel came through very easily. I'm hoping the fuel pump isn't mounted in the gas tank as I want to check on it tomorrow.

[nipper]

Had one heck of a night working on the subby. Took out the starter and the spring is working fine. About an hour after that I had a brain fart and realized that there was no seal or gasket (I imagine there should be a rubber seal) between the starter and the engine. Even another 1/8" away from the flywheel would make the difference. I can see a tiny bit of wear on the very edge of the starter gear as well as the flywheel and upon a closer examination of where the sound is originating it really sounds like that is the problem. Is there supposed to be a rubber seal there?

 

I took the car for a run and I was almost back to the garage when the steering started to get tougher. Up until this point it hadn't died yet and I was feeling rather good. I pulled it into the garage, popped the hood, then jumped back as a cloud of fumes came at me. There was power steering fluid EVERYWHERE! After 20 minutes of cleaning, I topped up the fluid again and cringed while I had my wife start the car. I couldn't find any leaks or blown hoses anywhere, so I was prepared for the worst. With a sigh of relief, I saw that the blot on the steel hose connected directly to the side of the power steering pump was leaking. It was so loose I could turn it with my fingers. I cranked that down and everything was fine.

 

I had to go to the in-law's house for a few minutes about 12 blocks away and on the way back home the car died 3 times. I'm starting to think it may be the fuel pump as it did give a little sputter before dying and I managed to keep it running another time by pumping the gas pedal on and off quickly. I took off the fuel filter and blew it out and there was no resistance, the fuel came through very easily. I'm hoping the fuel pump isn't mounted in the gas tank as I want to check on it tomorrow.

 

1- chewed up start teeth means the drive is rubbing against the flywheel. It can be a tired or worn drive or tired solenoid not allowing the drive to come all the way back in.

 

Fuel pump is in the tank, but it is SO easy to get at. I would look at the fuel pump relay first (hrmmmmm). The pumps are fairly bullit proof, and you cant tell anything without a pressure gauge.

 

nipper

[Kilroy]

I pulled the starter gear out with a pair of pliers to check how it went back in (it was way too hard to pull with my fingers) and it has plenty of tension in it. I seats right back as far as it can very firmly. Is there a gasket of some type required between the engine and starter?

 

I'll check out the relay in the morning after I track down where it's at.

 

Another thing I found that was a little peculiar was 2 small hoses right next to each other coming out of the top of the front diff right at the rear of the engine. They didn't plug into anything. Drain hoses?

[nipper]

I pulled the starter gear out with a pair of pliers to check how it went back in (it was way too hard to pull with my fingers) and it has plenty of tension in it. I seats right back as far as it can very firmly. Is there a gasket of some type required between the engine and starter?

 

I'll check out the relay in the morning after I track down where it's at.

 

Another thing I found that was a little peculiar was 2 small hoses right next to each other coming out of the top of the front diff right at the rear of the engine. They didn't plug into anything. Drain hoses?

 

could be vent hoses

 

Pulling it out it may seat properly but when activated electrically it may not. Does the starter look new?

 

nipper

[Kilroy]

Hit a wrecking yard today, but they only had 5 Subarus and none of them were even close. Going to have to find another yard tomorrow that will let me pull parts myself, I want to get my hands on a bunch of sensors. I found the ignitor today (directly in the center mounted on the firewall) and it has been punctured in the middle by something, probably a screwdriver. Any moisture at all in there would definitely effect it's operation.

 

The starter is not new, but the wear marks do not look shiny and fresh on the teeth of either the starter or the flywheel. I just took off the starter and put a 2mm washer between the starter and engine and tightened it up. This allowed a little more clearance for the starter. I started it and the sound was still there, it hadn't changed at all. Remove starter, remove washers, retighten. Starting to worry the sound may be coming from below/behind the flywheel.

[nipper]

Could be the flexplate then. There sint alot there to make that noise, starter drive, flex plate, heat sheild.

 

Never take a sensor with a hole in it:)

 

I think they mean the red light on the ecu.

 

nipper

[Kilroy]

I found the sticky from Legacy777 on how to check error codes. Good news, no ECU error codes. I'm resetting the ECU/TCU codes now and will take the car for a drive in a little bit to see if they come back. I'm hoping the TCU errors stay away.

 

Doing a look for the flex plate now, not too sure what that is.

 

EDIT: I tried to reset the ECU/TCU, but it states you have to let the engine idle for about 10-15 minutes without hitting the gas pedal to get it up to operating temperature after you have the battery disconnected for 30-45 minutes. I can't get it to idle that long, it goes about 3 minutes then dies. I can restart it if I wait about 15 seconds, but will have to hit the gas to keep it going longer than about another minute.

I checked and the TCU code was still there.

[Kilroy]

Heheh, I was doing some reading and came across a good description for the sound I am hearing: engine marbles!

 

Hey nipper, take a look at this and tell me what you think:

 

http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:PysSN4MnVAUJ:bbs.legacycentral.org/viewtopic.php%3Fp%3D115180%26sid%3D649f455717111c4a6f6187112261ece7+ej22+flexplate&hl=en&gl=ca&ct=clnk&cd=5

 

From what I am seeing on my schematics, the flexplate mounts to the rear of the flywheel and just before the front diff (either that, or this picture is showing both AT and MT all in one)? Is that correct, a flywheel AND a flexplate? Perhaps it was just the flexplate that I was seeing in the bellhousing all along and I thought it was a flywheel? It sure looked thick/heavy enought to be a flywheel. I am finding many references to the flexplate being the culprit here, is there any way to inspect it without tearing apart the tranny?

 

 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Flywheel failures. Members of the Automotive Engine Rebuilders Association report seeing an inordinate number of flywheel/flexplate failures when rebuilding some of today's modern powerplants. Typically, the failures take the form of cracks around the crankshaft or torque converter bolt mounting holes. In extreme cases, the outer portions of the flywheel or flexplate can completely separate from the mounting area. Following are some key causes of flywheel/flexplate damage, courtesy of AERA:

 

*Installing a flywheel or flexplate when it's not absolutely perpendicular to the rear crankshaft flange.

 

*An out-of-balance engine or torque converter

 

*Too much crankshaft end play due to excessive thrust bearing wear.

 

*A bad starter drive, which can cause the teeth on the flywheel or flexplate to wear rapidly. Tooth damage can also result when the vehicle owner repeatedly engages the starter with the engine running.

 

*An excessively worn automatic transmission front pump bushing.

 

*Failure to torque the flywheel or flexplate retaining bolts to the proper specs and in the correct sequence during installation.

 

*Failure to install starter shims, where those shims were previously used to ensure proper engagement between the starter drive and flywheel or flexplate teeth.

[nipper]

Differnt mfgs call difernt things flexplates, but they are all closely related. Some flexplates have the starter ring gear on them. Others are just a plate that the troque converter bolts to, and the torwue converter has the ring gear.

Manual trannies dont have a flexplate, they have a flywheel.

This sounds like the culprit, and its not all that rare thing to go (on any car). Usually just the fact of starting a car a zillion times will cause it to go. And since you have some unusual starter drive marks, i think we found our cause and effect.

 

 

nipper