Subaru 2.5L knock?

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Jul 14, 2009
Messages
11,196
Location
NY Capital District
My dad brought his friend from work over to show him how to do his brakes. It was a 2002 Subaru Impreza 2.5/Auto/AWD with 126,000 miles on it. He bought it used, and the guy had bought it used so he is 3rd owner. I noticed when he pulled it in, and when it was running tehre was a very noticable knock. I listened, and it sounded like it was coming from the front passenger area, so I would guess that cylinder. Are these Subaru 2.5s known for knock? It wasn't very fast, pretty slow. I'm guessing something to do with the valvetrain. It increases proportionally in speed with the engine. Anyone have any idea what this could be?
 
piston slap? I have heard some subarus have this issue. I have only heard one first hand and it sounded horrible.
 
Last edited:
I was going to say piston slap with thoes miles on that car with that engine. Drive it. It is more of an annoyance than anything.
 
There are some engines with piston slap but usually only cold not all the time.

However a worn tensioner for the timing belt can make a noise similar.
 
I saw a Forester on Wednesday that was knocking pretty hard too. The lady driving it didn't seem concerned at all.... I would have been freaked if my vehicle was making that noise!
 
Hey guys.. It's not my car, lol. I've seen it exactly once, and it was to help show the guy how to change brake pads. I did check the oil, it was a tiny bit overfull.
 
Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL
I saw a Forester on Wednesday that was knocking pretty hard too. The lady driving it didn't seem concerned at all.... I would have been freaked if my vehicle was making that noise!

Is there a woman out there that is concerned about her car(s)?
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: Popinski
Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL
I saw a Forester on Wednesday that was knocking pretty hard too. The lady driving it didn't seem concerned at all.... I would have been freaked if my vehicle was making that noise!

Is there a woman out there that is concerned about her car(s)?


Actually, that reminds me of a story (groan) from the summer!

I was driving down one of our more major (4-lanes) roads and I come upon a couple girls in an Olds or Buick; something GM. This thing is making an INCREDIBLE racket, like it has NO OIL in it!

So, I put down my window and mention to her that she might want to check her oil, that the noise (which sounded like rod-knock) was NOT good, and that she should get it looked at ASAP. She replied that she was aware of the noise, and shrugged it off.

I just couldn't believe it. It sounded like it was going to let go any minute. Picture somebody with a good sized hammer wailing on a large aluminum pot rapidly and you'd have an idea of what this thing sounded like.
 
Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL
Originally Posted By: Popinski
Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL
I saw a Forester on Wednesday that was knocking pretty hard too. The lady driving it didn't seem concerned at all.... I would have been freaked if my vehicle was making that noise!

Is there a woman out there that is concerned about her car(s)?


Actually, that reminds me of a story (groan) from the summer!

I was driving down one of our more major (4-lanes) roads and I come upon a couple girls in an Olds or Buick; something GM. This thing is making an INCREDIBLE racket, like it has NO OIL in it!

So, I put down my window and mention to her that she might want to check her oil, that the noise (which sounded like rod-knock) was NOT good, and that she should get it looked at ASAP. She replied that she was aware of the noise, and shrugged it off.

I just couldn't believe it. It sounded like it was going to let go any minute. Picture somebody with a good sized hammer wailing on a large aluminum pot rapidly and you'd have an idea of what this thing sounded like.


I totally understand how you're feeling. Some chick co-worker had a Dodge Neon with the worst transmission wear-noise ever. 1 week later she complained about having a huge transmission replacement bill and blamed it 100% on the Neon. I asked her when she had her transmission fluid checked or changed..she said "never did anything except oil changes". The car had 120,000 miles. She said she was aware of the noise but didnt' know it was a big problem... sigh..
 
Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL

Actually, that reminds me of a story (groan) from the summer!

I was driving down one of our more major (4-lanes) roads and I come upon a couple girls in an Olds or Buick; something GM. This thing is making an INCREDIBLE racket, like it has NO OIL in it!

So, I put down my window and mention to her that she might want to check her oil, that the noise (which sounded like rod-knock) was NOT good, and that she should get it looked at ASAP. She replied that she was aware of the noise, and shrugged it off.

I just couldn't believe it. It sounded like it was going to let go any minute. Picture somebody with a good sized hammer wailing on a large aluminum pot rapidly and you'd have an idea of what this thing sounded like.


Sadly enough, some people simply don't want to be helped....
 
I had 2000 Subaru and had noise that sounded like knock but it was defective timing chain tensioner allowing the belt to knock against the cover at idle. If he is due for timing belt, replace the tensioner and pulleys (they go bad too).
Alternatively it could be also piston slap, very common in Subarus.
You need automotive stethoscope to tell the difference.
 
I had a 2002 Impreza 2.5RS. It wasn't a question of what noises the engine did make, it was more a question of what noises it didn't make.

Piston slap when cold. This went away pretty quickly as it warmed up, but made one heck of a racket when cold.
Valvetrain clatter. This would stick around much longer. Planned on adjusting the valvetrain when I did the timing belt, but I sold it before the belt needed replacement.
Injectors. They had to be the noisiest injectors I've ever heard.

I didn't have the common timing belt tensioner or idler noises, though they were also on the list for replacement with the timing belt.
 
any one who buys a subaru has bought a lemon due to impending head gasket failure. ours only needed 3 head gasket jobs during the 80k we drove it. it had piston slap after the 3rd head gasket blew and took out both heads
 
Originally Posted By: super20dan
any one who buys a subaru has bought a lemon due to impending head gasket failure. ours only needed 3 head gasket jobs during the 80k we drove it. it had piston slap after the 3rd head gasket blew and took out both heads



I've heard of the head gasket failures, but I think in general Subarus are very high quality, and above average in reliability.. Sounds like you had really bad luck.
 
You could replace the knock sensor, dirt cheap, and about 5 minutes of work. 1 bolt on top of the engine. That took care of my knock on my 02 Impreza 2.5 liter. It may take care of your issue, easy thing to try out first without any major work.
 
the rest of the car we loved -did everything well-quality built-perfect size-all wheel drive. this means nothing if the engine has a serious prod . ours was not just an isolated incedent. do a search for subaru head gasket failure and see the results. there should have been a recall bt subaru to replace these defective desighned engines-instead the chose to sweep it under the rug.
 
^^^^ Curious what Subaru you had that caused these issues for you...sounds like an older GL. Either way, that stinks man...sorry to hear it!

Subaru's are known for having overly loud piston slap fresh out of the box...especially the ej205 and ej257. Though, oddly enough not so much the ej255 which is nearly identical to the 257 with slightly diff internals.

Piston slap and rod knock, if you've ever heard both...really sound worlds apart. The rod knock would be more of an oscillating golf ball in a coffee can sound.

The easiest way to tell (I understand it's not your car and you may never see it again
wink.gif
) is to listen from the top of the car and then from under the oil pan. If it's the valves, you won't be able to hear the sound as clearly when you're under it. If it's knock..the sound will emanate through the bottom of the engine as well as the top and therefore will be nearly as loud underneath as it is on top.

Anyway, hope that helps!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top