lostinthe202

Wheel bearings, I hadn't thought of that. But now that you mention it, I remember this night a few weeks back when I got this whistling from the right side. nothing I could do with the car would make it go away except for a soft left turn. It only lasted about 15 minutes. I was sure the noise was present, and I could make it show or not by veering the car to the left. But it went way and never reappeared so I didn't think much of it. Sounds like wheel bearings are a likely culprit. I forget, you can check those by jacking up the suspect wheel and giving her a shake eh?

Especially since I'm still rocking the stock equipment all around, no extra lights or stereo amp or anything like that. Hell, I still have the stock speakers!

Ah yeah, I saw that in the searches. The only reason I'm temped by this one is that it's brand new and I can get it for 20 bucks. But I suppose I could scope out the Nissans first. Thanks! Will-

Hmm, I noticed something else this evening. There's a kind of growl/whine/clicking that seems to come and go in intensity. It's a bit hard to hear or identify since the tires that are on the car currently have a lot of road noise to them. It reminds me of how bad u-joints in driveshafts sound. I know there is a drive shaft on this with a couple of u-joints, but they hardly ever see any load so I'm not inclined to suspect them. I'm happy to replace the axles, but I can't do it until I get paid and they will have to be shipped to me, so we're talking two weeks that I'll need to drive this to and from work (70 miles round trip) I've driven on plenty a worn CV that clicked in the turns but didn't going straight. Here's the opposite situation, they don't click in the turns (maybe sometimes, lightly) but will going straight. And then there's the growlish noise. Thoughts? Thanks! Will-

'83 GL wagon .34 million miles, manual trans I've got a CV sounding click coming from up front when decent torque is applied such as starting on a steep hill. I don't see any torn boots. Is there a way to figure out which axle is bad? I'd rather not replace both if I don't have to. Thanks! Will-

Will an alternator from an 88 GL (ea82) fit on an 83 GL (ea81)? I was at the JY today looking for some parts and I came across a nearly new bosch alternator. I was going to grab it, but didn't want to in case it didn't fit. Any thoughts?

Yes, complain to the BBB as already suggested. Also write bad Yelp and Cartalk reviews. Good luck getting your money back, I hope it works out.

Answer this question first right?

If you'd be purchasing another backup vehicle to replace the outback, I say fix it. The pillars don't look like they were damaged and, as long as aesthetics aren't an issue, the rest can be persuaded to cooperate. If you'd be keeping it just for the sake of not letting an otherwise good car go to waste, then it becomes a matter of how much time you're willing to put into it. As others have mentioned. there are several options if you keep the car and they all involve time on your end and only you know how much your time costs to you. So it might be worth it to take the insurance payout (assuming you're OK with the rise in your premium.) On the other hand, you're an autoshop teacher, so this sounds like a great project for the kids. Free labor to do whatever you want basically right? Good luck! Will-

So some dirt-bag lowlife stole my catalytic converter last night. I don't have the money for another one right now, so I was thinking of welding in a piece of straight pipe to act as stop gap measure until I have the money to replace it. Can anyone tell me what this is going to do to the performance of the truck? Will I hurt anything by doing this? Thanks! Will-

5spd or auto? How many miles?

Judging your screen name, I'm going to guess that you have a 1990 Legacy with over 280k miles. As for the trans, I'll qualify the next question with the statement that I know nothing about Subs with auto trans. That said, you report 691 rpm at idle during your test, do subarus with an auto bring the rpm that low in park? I dunno, but if not, then a 5 speed. Sorry I can't clarify further on your smog numbers. but some basic questions: Do you have a check engine light? How has your fuel economy been? Noticed any "rotten egg" smell when sitting at idle such as at a stop sign? Will-

typed like a true west coaster This is a good point though. If they beat up the rest of the car, what are the chances that it's been well maintained.

When it comes to older cars, it really comes down to what you are willing to pay. You might not think it's worth 2k given all the other problems, but maybe someone down the street does. There's no way I'd pay 2k for an ea82 wagon unless it was in much better shape all around. No rust is one thing, but if you have to sink a bunch more in just to have a reliable car, well that's not worth it to me. In short, there isn't a good answer to your question as it changes from person to person and state to state. I'd say, decide on what it's worth to you, then give 'em an offer which will either be accepted or not. good luck!

Neat wagon. Funny, I just drove through La Pine on Friday on my way from Hood River down to the SF bay area. How's them wild fires:-\ Will-

I wouldn't worry about the off-highway, off-road use. It's not like you're wheelin' the thing. You'll be going slow (right?) and being careful (right?) and not generally being sane, you'll be fine. You'll want to keep an eye on the air filter as that will clog up quicker with the dusty driving you'll be doing. Will-

You'll find most people around here believe a Subaru can go 300k with no problem. I'm not saying this isn't true of the average Subaru, but I can say it's not true of ANY car that hasn't been maintained well. Do you change your oil regularly? How about your tires, have you been diligent about keeping the tread wear even? Not doing so could lead to torque bind, something you wouldn't want if you're depending on the car's off-road abilities. If you're not sure what that is, use the search and you'll find pages upon pages about it. That said, how long are you going to need to be out in the sticks at any one time? at 3500 miles a month, you've got about 8 months before your timing belt will be due again. Maybe it's worth doing the T-belt (and all the pulleys) before you head out? And with That being said, have fun and don't forget your campbell's soup can, duct tape, and vice grips in case you have any exhaust trouble Will-

I should be picking up my '83 wagon from Rick that Thursday. I may already be in Hood River Thr. night, but if not, I'm in. Will-

Thanks for the replies everybody, yes it's good to be back (almost) I look forward to meeting both of you, Rick and Dave! Will-

Hello All, After about a year's hiatus from Subarus, I'll soon be in possession of a 1983 GL wagon. Many of you will recognize this car, last owned by NVZeno It was involved in a car vs. deer awhile back and Rick (GD) did an incredible job putting it back together. I gather he painstakingly removed all the damaged body parts and straitened them out again over several sessions with an iron and steam press... ...Or maybe he got lucky and scored replacement parts from a same color wagon at the JY. Either way, it looks fantastic and I can't wait to drive it home! I'll be coordinating picking it up with going to WCSS which I understand this wagon has been to every single one. No plans to do anything to it except drive it and try and hit the half million mark on the odo (currently at 330xxx) without any major issues. Without further adieu.... Before, and after, Thanks again Rick, fantastic job and see you all in a few weeks! Will-

You might consider starting a thread for your questions. You've obviously been searching since you found this three year old thread. Good luck Will-

Okie Dokie, Last year I offered up some replacement window latches for the rear side windows for EA81 hatches and Justys. Sherman, set the wabac machine for 2010.... http://ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=113869 I did a few runs of these, but stopped because I moved 3k miles across the country leaving behind the machines I used to make them. I'm now setup in my new local and think I'm close to be able to produce these again. So, any interest? The price this time around will probably be $60 per set with $6 of each set going to the USMB. The final price will depend on a few factors and I'll give a firm figure after I see some interest. I'm not posting this in the Vendor forum since I won't be offering this on a regular basis, this is an offer for some number of units for people who really want this. Should it take off, I'll def move it over to the Vendor forum, but for now I figured Old Gen is the place to be. As always, I'm happy to corrected So what says you? Who wants 'em? Will-

Funny, with the oil filter being on the bottom of the engine facing upwards, it holds oil like a glass on a table and I think wouldn't really need an ADB valve. Everytime I changed my oil I used whatever was on sale and it always had oil in it when I pulled it off.

I've got two theories for you, First: My pop had a similar occurrence on his '00 Legacy wagon. A noise he described as a rubbing/squeaking sound. Did the brakes, checked the axles. After the brake job he thought it went away but it didn't. He finally gave up and took it to a shop to have them take a look. They saw nothing out of the ordinary except for a worn tie-rod end (had a good amount of play in it) which they replaced. Noise was gone. The theory is that the tie-rod end was completely dry of grease and was making the noise only under certain stress conditions. Second: This doesn't happen much anymore with the improvements in tire technology over the years, but tires can make a squeaking sound when the plys have separated from each other inside the tire. There is no visual clue of this on the outside and you can't tell by the way the car drives. The noise isn't always loud, it can be drowned out by regular road noise at speed. If this is the case it can lead to blowout if not replaced, so if your car is close to needing new tires anyway you might consider it. To check the first theory, unlock the steering (but don't turn the car on) and have somebody move the wheel back and forth while you're under that car and see if any of the steering components behave out of the ordinary. Do this while the car is on the ground, you want all the components to be under load so you can see if there is excessive play. Check for torn boots on all the ball joints, tie-rod ends etc (basically check anything that has a rubber boot.) You might do some searching on checking steering/suspension components as this is not my strong suit. To check the second theory, rotate your tires. Put the fronts in back and see if the noise moves along with the rotation. As for your theories, I'm no expert on the Subaru power steering setup so I can't really advise there except to say that I can't remember ever reading a thread about power steering trouble in a car as new as yours so take that for what it's worth. I doubt it's the wheel bearing, I've never heard of one that would make an audible noise that loud at 5mph or under but not at speed. Good luck! Will-

Read your other thread and this sounds like a real blast! I wish I could convince my honey to do this. Have a great time! Will-