replaced o2 wrx ac, serpentine, timng belt, spark plugs, uppipe, downpipe, and catback with exhaust. belts came first, afte painstakingly percise marking of belt and cam gears we replaced timgbelt. when tighting cam gears we skipped teeth on cam and belt. without removing belt we repulled tensioner and realigned camgears. then proceeded to remove, gap, and replace plugs. after replacing radiator and odd and ends we started her up to find an engine check light, along with bad idle vibration. assuming alignment of cam gears wasn't correct, we retore down all belts radiator and covers to once again alighn cam gears. under first inspection we saw that it may have still been off a tooth, one mark on one side was a tenth of an inch out of place. after then realigning gears and replacing everything else we continued to exhaust. after having the biggest all out war with a ridiculus amount of heat sheilding and a slight engine jack up we got the uppipe out and finally simpley replaced remainding exhaust (15 hours into it). when we proceeded to start her again, we recieve same bad idle vibration along with check engine light. we are despratley hoping ethier a plug got broke, closed, or a boot didnt go over a plug, in which case were short a cylinder. any opinions welcome, and theories appreciated. if u take anything away from this let it be to take ur subie back to the dealership for anything more than simple externals. thanx for ur time and this forum, if anyone can help it's this community. ps, going to check plugs again if no luck shes goin to the dealership.

 

Have you done a scan to find out what code was set? This may be very helpful in diagnosing the problem.

 

hasnt been on the computer yet, need to get it to the dealership, 40 miles away. theres a chevy dealship 2 miles away, they may be able to read the code, think i should take it there?

 

You can go to any Autozone, they will do a free scan. Just be sure to get the exact code (Pxxxx), don't let them tell you something vague like "it's a sensor", you want that numerical code. When you have it come back and post it here.
If there is no Autozone you can try other parts stores, but they may not offer the free service. Also you can try posting in your regional forum both here and on NASIOC as there may be someone nearby who has a scanner. I have one but I'm not nearby.

 

autozone around tha block, be back with code shortly.

 

code is P303, said it was misfire in cylinder 3, which is passenger rear right?

 

Ok well that will point you in the right direction but you still need to find the problem, unless you already have. Misfires can be from a number of different things (including incorrect valve timing).

 

dont bring me down, do you know which cylinder is 3? i know front passenger is 1.
being that we changed the plugs and never rechecked them im checkin that first, god willing its the coil, plug, or an off boot. dont you think that off timing would cause a slightlier violent reaction, such as back fires or clatter? i drove 16 miles as is. it does better at a steady rpm (2400), it's bad at idle and on its way to that rpm, real bad in 2nd.

 

If all easy things check out ok you will need to do a valve adjustment. It is not to terrible to do on them.

 

Assuming the car ran ok before the service it won't suddenly need a valve adjustment.
#3 is the rear passenger cylinder. Definitely check the plug and coil pack for that cylinder, both for physical condition and electrical connections.
It is possible for one cam to be off a tooth or two and cause this type of symptom. You can also do a compression test to see if you are getting full compression in that cylinder or not, if #3 shows low compression while all others are ok there may be an internal engine problem although it's unlikely it would just show up after you did this work (unless a valve got bent). Low compression on both #1 and #3 would point to valve timing on that side being off.

 

ok, to reset timing belt will we have to have #1 cylinder all the way up, if not how can we find tdc to rest belt?

 

I think you seriously got in over your head. Timing belts aren't terribly hard on a Subaru, but the concequence from doing them qrong can be really bad. since you have a code that points you to the #3cylinder misfiring, you can really narrow down your search. having the timing mark off a 10th of an inch isn't much...probably not even a tooth off. like stated above, check the plug on that cylinder (gap, condition, etc), check for anyhting in that corner that got misplaced or forgotten. with new up and down pipes right there, you could be looking at some serious heat buildup in that corner of the engine compartment...possibly melting through wires and connectors. personally, I wouldn't trouble myself with the timing belt, since your problem is (likely) just on one cylinder.
~Erik~
Subaru dealer tech

 

say thanx fer tha tips, and deffinatly fer yalls time. IT WAS THE DAMN PLUG BOOT, damn thing, wasn't slipped over tha plug, it slipped between, and cylinder 3 and 2 were the only ones we didnt recheck at tear down time. after the 15 hours we got impatient and just put at all back asap. we greased it with antisease, and noticed right away it hadnt gone over it. weather tha timing ever was off dunno, bein tha first time in we just second guessed our selfes. chalk it up to lessons learned. thanx again members. for my final step, sending ecu to vishnu next. watch for vids and photos.