Idiot and thermostat housing problem

Tl;dr- how can i plumb a thermostat in-line on my subaru?

I have a 90 legacy that had a leaky head gasket. Ok, change head gaskets, no problem. Change thermostat while i've got the coolant out and it's original. Strip housing mount on engine block. Drill, retap. Break tap inside block. Drill. Drill out corner of flange. Get punch and start tapping on bit. Break flange off engine block. Go inside and get drunk.

2 weeks later, and i've got to do something about this old car. I don't really want to pitch it, although the car has no real value, i just put a bunch of time in to the engine, and it's a toot to drive. It seems my options are to weld the flange back on (i have an oxy-acetylene kit but have never done anything but braze steel) or cut the whole flange off and run an in-line thermostat, if such a thing exists. I'd love some input!

The thermostat housing should bolt to the water pump on that car. The good news is you'll just need to replace the water pump to solve the fastener problem, the bad news is you'll need to remove the timing belt to change the water pump.

It's not a bad job really, pull the radiator to gain some access, put a breaker bar on the crank pulley bolt and bump the starter to get it loose. This is obviously a good time to replace the belt while you're there.

ansonivan wrote: The thermostat housing should bolt to the water pump on that car. The good news is you'll just need to replace the water pump to solve the fastener problem, the bad news is you'll need to remove the timing belt to change the water pump. It's not a bad job really, pull the radiator to gain some access, put a breaker bar on the crank pulley bolt and bump the starter to get it loose. This is obviously a good time to replace the belt while you're there.

I wish you were right, but the thermostat bolts to the drivers side half of the crank case. I'm not gonna split the engine to deal with it. As implied by my initial post, i just pulled the heads, which involves pulling the timing belt.

Anson is correct, the thermostat housing bolts to the waterpump on the EJ-22 (and all EJ engines)

Well if the belt is that new as in you've not run it yet no fear on reusing it. All the pictures on Rock auto show T-stat in water pump. for a 90 legacy. I'd question why you did heads with out doing the pump? Any time you pull the T-belt you should do the water pump.

Well, there's always JBWeld. You can try reinstalling the broken off ear, or making a new one with it.

There's also Indianhead Gasket Shellac. Slather it on the cover edges and housing, skip the gasket, and bolt it on with the one bolt. Let it harden.

Neither are guaranteed, but both might work. Don't discount the bonding power of that Indianhead Gasket Shellac, I held on the cover of a hydraulic pump with that stuff before.

Chilton book says to remove the water pump to change the stat.

edit

well...crap, i did the t-belt/water pump about 2 years ago and don't remember it being set up like that.... I think I'm losing my mind.

Thanks for beating some sense in to me.

iceracer wrote: Chilton book says to remove the water pump to change the stat.

Chilton is not always correct.

When viewed with the t-belt covers in place the water pump will appear to be part of the engine case, I can see how you threw up your hands in despair. What your hands were doing in your stomach... that I don't understand.