GEE-OTTO

This^^^^^ Cost you about $7.00 at a local parts store and 10 min of time

Ever considered a XT-16G (Ball Bearing) over the 39/48/52?

Tube seals leaking on the EJ253 are common but not 1qt btwn gas tank fillups common. If you are burning that much oil check the oil pan and head gasket area, if dry drop the manifold. If the manifold is wet that's the problem (Bad HG). Also check the PC Valve and intake tract, you may be suffering from excessive blow-by. If the intake box is wet with caked oil clean it up along with the PC Valve and inspect when you fill up again.

Check the Speed sensor wire and/or probe into the wheel hub assembly. If the sensor was working but outside what the ECU likes, you would get a meaningful code such as P0501/2/3/4/0. That code indicates that the CAN isn't responsive.

Will they budge on price at all?

Does the position of the passenger seat affect the light? In my 08 2.5i i would move the seat the light would go off, that worked for a while then i solder the OEM light module the problem went away for good. Others have removed the seat from to replace the sensor that detects weight in the seat to enable/disable the status of the light.

What intake do you have, is it the filter tube or the whole intake tract from the throttle body to the filter (Kakimoto style) ? If you moved the MAF around that could be a culprit also have you ever changed out the AFR sensors? O2 sensors? MAF sensor?

Is there any record of that LGT getting a new windshield? If not, check the windshield seals all around. Also check the mat liquid for any noticeable smell, which could indicate some other system leaking.

If you dont have a good solution for tight space nut and bolt turning, pick up one of these. You will quickly find that you only need a handful of tools to practically tear the whole engine down. I have the above tool in my box, I use it more than most my geared boxend wrenches. For example I blew a turbo when I bought my 08 LGT pretty much same scenario as you. I picked up a used turbo and set out to swap it, the pivot head and low engagement angle and overall length help a lot for stubborn fasteners. I would say pull the engine and tear it down to inspect what you actually need to buy new/replace so that you can nail your budget down! And you can send out the heads to have them gone over/rebuilt. From a motivation perspective it can get you down as you wait on parts or money for parts so having little task to complete helps. Are you going to assemble the longblock once you have everything or have a shop assemble and time it and all youll have to do is mount the accessories?

We all are on the same path it never hurts to suggest to any member to examine the less popular alternatives. If that was offensive my bad, I wasn’t trying to upset you or denounce your choice and experiences. So I hope you can forgive that post and we can move on to more exciting things like rebuilding a EJ255. The PO did a decent amount of maintenance so don’t get caught up buying it all new, reuse and replace the good bits as they fail. While the engine is out you’ll replace all the critical gaskets, buy OEM timing and cooling components Turbo wise that’s is tricky I blew my VF46 at 165K but it was an oil seal so I replaced it with a VF46. I’m now at 184k miles and starting to plan out my inevitable engine overhaul. It’s tempting to go with a different turbo but considering what is needed to make it function effectively you might want to phase that in after break in and returning to a baseline reliable daily driver Like you I’m a “stay stock stay happy” owner you can make 245 at the wheels reliably rebuilding 100% and having a reputable tuner iron out the tune. I will say this if you can find an aftermarket turbo inlet buy it the OEM is very good but it’s a PITA to replace while the engine and/or intake are in place. I’ve done two I’d rather do a clutch and spark plugs :shrugs: also you can better route the various connections to the inlet. I run a catless shorty DP matted to a stock mid-pipe catted section on a stage 2 tune it’s not a full DP but it frees up the turbo and is stock looking. Fluids wise since you’ll have the gearbox out replace what was in there with Motul Gear 300 75w90 or Redline and if the trunion or shifter bushings are shot replace them also as doing it with the trans in the car is just harder. Suspension wise you hit the nail on the head in the other thread. I would stay stock and add sway bars front and rear I have 22mm up front and 20mm rear and my LGT is very flat in the turns. One last thing, for now at least, think about upgrading the radio. I think Subaru dropped the ball on that for our generation Legacy/OB but if you swing it, it really modernizes the car.

You've spent ~$10.5k(towing, title, gas, bus ticket, etc.) maybe more, on a car that wasn't worth $8.5k to start. Fallacy or not, fiscally is that really they best choice for you? If you had mentioned to us earlier that you were considering paying that much for that OBXT we would have saved you at least 4k miles worth for commuting.

I wasnt trying to be the negative LGTer to tell you to not do this, seems I should have stuck with my gut feeling.

COBB has a grip on the tuning market, a very expensive grip. You want to disable a P0420 code with OS it'll cost you a Tactrix 2.0 cable and 20 mins to set up the software. You want to do that with COBB its $600 (new AP cost) + the additional fee to learn about the full universe of functionality in AccessRaceTuner ~$850 and maybe a software license on top. Then you have a well built, well defined, well supported and generally bug free method to ensure your car is tuned properly. I love OS but the AP is easy and yes you can make OS as easy as the AP with some ingenuity but most owners don't want to deal with all that. Tuners like COBB and some tuners will deal with you in either standard but COBB has amassed the knowledge to define a lot more than what is available with ECUFlash and RR. Find a used AP to reduce the cost and spend the savings on the class and the higher tier software (unlocked software) to learn just how much power is at your disposal.

At that age a clean LGT is rare so that is a plus! LGTs are nice cars until they aren't If you have it checked by a shop see if they can do a compression test, its not invasive but is very helpful at making the choice to buy or not. Avg low compression isn't terrible on a higher mileage LGT but grossly mismatched compression is i.e 130,133,139,81 that car has a problem

Is it notchy as in once at the gate it grinds going into gear or notchy as in the travel btwn gear gates? I guess is the problem with engagement or the throw? The BM series Legacy MT is cable shifted vs the previous generation direct linkage shifted units. Ive driven both and I feel the cable shifted BM legacy, the 2.5i at least, is very bland but smooth in engagement. Not sure if the shifter can be adjusted but if so that could be a start, if you are grinding it could be time for a fluid change. Keep in mind fluid can't fix wear If a synchro is worn it isn't spinning the idling gear fast enough for smooth engagement and eventually will need to be replaced. Given the age of the car that isn't too far fetched, my LGT has 181K on a refreshed 5MT (done 81K miles ago ) it was rebuilt with quality internals and I run Motul Gear 300 75w90, it should last me until the car implodes.

Very Clean!!!!!^^^^^^^^^

You could but you would have to swap the hvac assemblies as the blend door and vent doors are manually operated. It would suck to have to pull all that with the dash in the car but if you took the time to go thru all that then yes you would be following the 2.5i path.

Skip that wrap and buy yourself some VHT 2000F Flame Proof paint and clear coat (~$25 total) I have coated my 08 2.5i, 08 and 09 LGTs exhaust parts (Manifold and DPs) with it and added the DEI gold tape to the adjacent areas ( firewall near DP, under/around cylinder head near UP, oil cooler, etc). Make sure you are in a well ventilated area upon first start up, there will be smoke, but after a couple of drive it is cured solid.

This is what I did in both my 08 and 09 LGTs problem solved

I read all your posts related to this and other topics always in awe. Then i fire up various applications and find the tables discussed like "oh ahhh, I see"

You ever consider a Killer B oil pickup tube vs OEM? Brazed points of failure suck (or dont in this case )

Yes have them grease the blend door servo/mechanism!

True but that year 2.5i isnt coil-on-plug could be a bad injector, bad AFR, bad plug, jumped timing, MAF issue etc..

Post in the 2.5i section so we (other 2.5i owners) can chime in. Your problem isnt associated to this problem as your is completely different.

Looks nice.