bluesuby89

Ok so when I adjust it how do I know it is within specifications? Should I put a level on the rim to see if the camber is set right?

yeah that was my thinking too. I asked they guy at the alignment shop and he said shocks/struts only keep you on the road. But I think that a worn out shock would effect the geometry of the rear end and thus make weird *************** happen. Thanks for the imput

Had alignment checked today. Here are the results: LF 1.1 deg-Camber 1.7 deg-Caster .00 deg- Toe RF 0.6 deg-Camber 1.9 deg-Caster -.04 deg- Toe LR -1.6 deg-Camber -.09 deg- Toe RR -1.6 deg-Camber -.40 deg- Toe And the owner of the place said there is no adjustment for the rear and I would just have to keep replace the tires. Anyone know a place in colorado that might be willing to mess with it? Thanks.

Thanks guys. Took another look at it today and noticed the drivers side bump stop is hitting it's plate on drivers side rear and there is a good 1in to 1 1/2in clearance on passagener side rear. Thinking this might be more evidence that the rear struts might need replacement. Any thoughts? Thanks

I have a 89 gl with 285000 miles. The inside of the rear drivers tire is wears down fast. All other tires have even wear. Don't suspect the bearing no wobble when I jacked it up. The wear isn't totally consistant on the inside there is a spot that is a 12in band that is worn deeper than the rest. But the whole inside is worn considerably more than the outside. I'm thinking it could be the rear strut is bad. From what I understand there isn't any adjustment to the rear alignment. I do carry a fair amount of weight in my trunk at all times. Mainly a couple hundred pounds of tools. Any ideas? Thanks

Yeah mine does the same thing. When I first start it up it will idle at 750 but when i go down the road and stop at a light it will have a high idle.

Well, I went and pulled a IAC valve off another ea 82 in a junkyard on friday. I got it for 12 bucks. So far it seems to have solved the surging issue. But now the car doesn't consistently idle at the same speed. For example, on stop light it will be 1250 and another around 900. But at least it is smooth. Thanks for all the help. Just thought I would post what worked out.

Yeah, I tried cleaning the maf and it did make the car run smoother but didn't fix the problem. The answer might be just to stay in CO. It runs smooth and great there.

Well, I left KC and was back in CO for a few weeks and the surging went away. While I was in CO i cleaned the IAC valve. I then returned to KC last week and fond the car still surging at idle. This makes me think that what ever is broken is effected by altitude. There being less air in Colorado than here in Kansas City. So what are my choices? Could it be the IAC is simply faulty? My gut tells me it is something else. I'm just looking for other things to investigate. Thanks

Bummer. I was hoping that was it. A new one costs 180 bucks. So I'll keep thinking about it and see if I can come up with. I'm not sure what else it might be. Thanks for posting again.

Well I cleaned the MAF sensor today. Was really dirty and had stray hairs on it. There is no doubt the car runs better and has more power. I would recomend cleaning it on any car if it hasn't been done in a while. However, it does still surge. Was your engine cold when you unplugged the IAC ? Because there will be more of a drop in idle when cold (according the manual) thus it would make it drop too far and stall the engine. There is a method in my manual on how to check the IAC and mine passed their test. If you don't have it I could type it up. I too unpluged my MAF sensor with engine running and the idle picked up. I also unplugged the IAC but the idle dropped. I need to try to unplug the both when the idle is surging. One last question. What type of lube to use? I cleaned out my valve and removed the solenoid. I used throttle body cleaner which says it lubes too. Is there something better and safe to use? Thanks and good luck

I have been thinking about my problem today. Is this what yours has been doing? I am going to look into cleaning the maf sensor tomorrow. Just another thought I would try. Good luck

I looked it up in my manual and code 51 is the neutral switch. It says that the cel is tripped when the switch remains in the ON position during operation. Do you have an automatic?

Not yet. I cleaned out the Air Control Valve and it was running better for a couple of days. But now it has returned. When I first start up the car after sitting over night it idles fine. But then when i get to a stop light it surges or has a high idle 1250 rpm. Pretty random on which one occures. I'm going to look at it some more tomorrow. I'm not sure where to go next. I was thinking maybe the spring on the inside of the valve was worn out and wasn't setting in the right spot at idle. I do feel the problem is with the Air Control Valve. I looked up a new one and they are kinda pricey. Any luck with yours?

Yesterday I was able to pull over when it was surging and look at the code and it was 24 (IAC Valve). So I started by cleaning it off and dumping some seafoam down it let it sit then started it up. That didn't fix it. I'm going to take it off this weekend and clean it out real good. If that doesn't work then buy another one. I'll probably have to make a new gasket for it if i screw up the old one. I'll tell you guys what ends up working. So azsubaru was right. Thanks

I checked the timing last week before i left for KC and it was fine. The Idle speed was fine last week as well and not is a little high when it does idle. I was going to look into getting a new exhaust while i was out here and get a new o2 sensor. But i'll disconnect it and see what it is doing. And was reading about how to adujust the TPS in the manual I have. Will look at that too. The whole code thing is bothering me. I don't understand why it didn't store the code. Thanks for the reply, bluesuby89

So the GL was surging again today and I plugged in the green connectors and the surging went away immediatly. So what do the green connectors disable? Because I think this is where my problem is. I also checked and cleared the codes today. There were no codes. But when as a stop light when the car was surging the check engine light would come on. When I reved up to take off the light went off. After all of this i checked to codes agian. Nothing. So whatever turned the light off didn't store a code. Any ideas? Thanks, bluesuby89

I checked all the vacuum lines and they all looked intact and fine. Then I plugged the egr solenoid lines and went for a drive. No change still surging. So i'm thinking it is not an egr problem. So i decided to check the codes and this time there were none stored i got the 6 blinks. So I know don't know what to do. I'm going to clear the codes to get the light to shut off and see if anything new registers.

Have another possiblity. The TPS. It runs at normal idle when i first start it up. Then when i come to a stop the idle remains high and then knocks down and surges. Any thoughts? Will check it out more tomorrow. Thanks

Drove my 89 GL to Kansas City from hight elevation 7500 feet yesterday. When I got here the engine was surging at idle. First off it would idle at 1500 rpm not 750. Then drop abruptly to 1250. Once there for a second it would surge between 1250 and 1000. Prior to leaving I had code 34 (EGR selonoid), which i did not fix. So here was what I was thinking. 1.) O2 sensor is being slow to react to the lower altitude. 2.) The egr selonoid is the problem 3.) Vacume leak 4.) Distributor issues. But the tach was surging with the engine not just floating on it's own. Also, the car seems to high but fine until it warms up a little. Then when at a stop light it surges. Was wondering what anyone else thought? Where should I start? Should I keep driving it and see if it adjusts itself to life with more O2? Thanks, bluesuby89

Wow!! I didn't expect this question would bring this many replies. I was just wondering if anyone out there had run the stuff in their older subarus. More curiosity than anything else. I too have trouble with the idea of burning gas that could have fed the hungry. But from what I gather one can make ethonal out of the stalks and not just the cob of corn. I like the idea of using what otherwise would be waste for another purpose. If fact my subaru was headed for the junkyard before I took it and nursed it back to life. Personally, I think the future of energy will require some creative thinking. You know like Doc on Back to the future, with his bannana peel and beer delorean. Who knows what is next?

I was wondering if anyone has tried to run their subaru on E-85 with or without any modifications? If with modifications what did you need to do to make it work? I ask becuase I drove by a station that has some this weekend and it was $2.29/gal. thanks

I just got the car a few months ago for free. Of corse there is no such thing as a free car $500 and who knows how man hours later. Anyway it is running a lot better than it did a month ago and it's been alot of fun. I'll air up the tires and look into getting in O2 sensor hopefully mine will come out without too much trouble. I know that exhaust bolts can be a pain. Thanks for all the suggestions it has been very helpfull.

Thanks. The mileage is about 24 mpg so it isn't too bad. But I have noticed that it does smell like it is running a little rich if that helps. Thanks again.

Hey. I have a 1989 Subaru GL SPFI. The CEL came on and I checked the codes got 11, 13 and 34. I know that it 11 and 13 are the crank angle sensor and 34 is the EGR Solenoid. I'm not too concerend about the EGR solenoid and have read some other treads about it. But the crank angle sensor concerns me. My question is if this was really a problem would the car be running still? Is it on the way out? One more piece to the puzzle. I have had a hard time starting the car a few times seems like it floods out. I step on the gas and it starts up. Is this related to any of the codes i was getting? Also I live at 7500 ft and was wondering if i need to adjust to compensate. Do I advance or retard the timing? Thanks for you help.