i have a 97 subaru outback legacy with the 2.5l. I swapped water pumps and put the timing back together how i thought it was supposed to be. guess i missed and it wouldnt start, just crank crank crank. and the cranking sounded weird, no knocking or pinging like anything was getting hurt or hit though.

pulled the belt back off and took another look, realigned all the marks except the crankshaft. when the timing mark should be faceting up at 12oclock, it only moves between 3 and 6 then feels like its hitting something. any ideas?

 

New timing belts have all the marks on the you align the shafts to. If your reusing a belt you were suppose to mark the belt before removing it. the markings on the engine are not for timing it, but for setting everything in the right position before belt install.

And your hitting valve to piston btw, you need to position cams before crank. technically your were suppose to position it all before belt removal to avoid this but it not a big deal, do not force the cam of you damage the valve. Just most the position of the crank slightly to set cams

 

using new belt with timing marks. cams are set in their right place. crank wont move far enough to line up though.

 

Valves are hitting piston. It's as simple as moving one to move the other

 

Subaru engines are fairly unique and have quirks all their own, in particular, the 2.5 from the mid '90s to early '00s. When it is right, it is a reliable and strong engine. When something goes amiss, it can be a nightmare. Many mechanics have issues repairing internal problems effectively with the 2.5 as it requires a working knowledge of this particular engine to get it right. The timing sequence is set in stone and you should have reference material in front of you before trying it. There is good info online or in service manuals to help.

Be very careful in regard to the timing on this engine. The 2.5 is what is called an "interference" engine. Other examples of interference engines are the Honda 1.6 and 1.6 VTEC, just to name a couple. What that means is that in the event that the timing goes off, the valves can hit the pistons and cause damage to them which would necessitate a rebuild of the heads.

The late '90s 2.5 also has a couple issues that you should be aware of if you aren't already. One is the timing issue. Another is that the head gaskets are known to fail. Subaru specs for the gaskets on the original build were faulty. The problem is widespread from around '96 to '00 with a very large percentage of 2.5s suffering this problem and Subaru has refused to do a recall even though there has been much pressure over the past years to do just that and they are aware of the problems. It is advised by the Subaru gurus to use new original Subaru gaskets as they have been respeced and are much better than the originals even compared to new aftermarket ones.

A great place to find info and support on Subarus is www.ultimatesubaru.org. There will be articles and forum posts on how to exactly time the 2.5 to avoid the frustration and potential problems with this procedure.