RavenTBK

Looks sweet. I'd like to get something like that made up for my 79...one of these days.

Interesting... I wouldnt have thought the balljoints could cause the feeling of free play in the driveline. There isnt much in line of steering play, which is what would make me immediately think balljoint.. but I'll check it out. I'm a veteran of older Z cars.. and Subaru front wheel drive is new to me. Tonight I'll take the weight off the front end and try to wiggle my wheels. I dont think I've checked my balls yet, so guess nows a good time to do so. I already checked the motor and transmission mounts.. that was one of the first things I thought of. Any other thoughts or additions? Everything seems cheap and simple so far; I'd figured the first thing I'd see is "transmission shot" or something similar.

Okay... recently, my new-to-me-soon-to-be-oil-leak-free 79 has developed some (feels like) hefty play in the driveline somewhere. In the higher gears especially, when on and off the throttle, there seems to be a lot of movement in there accompanied with some torque steer off to the left. On a side note, I've noted that my left outboard CV is soon to be replaced, as it makes some nifty dolphin style clicks and clacks when turned hard. I dont perceive this as to be the cause of the excessive play, as I would figure a worn out axle would cause torque steer to the opposite side, as the worn out side would move the most. This free play isnt as noticable when in 4x, but can still be felt slightly. Any heads up on what could be in the process of failing; so I can get my wallet ready for another blow? Oh yes..on the other side of things, possibly unrelated to the driveline play.. how long is the dipstick supposed to be that goes in the differential tube hole? I cant find one to save my life, so I have it plugged; but I figure I could use a wire or something to measure the level if I knew how long the dipstick is supposed to be from the top of the tube down. I've got some GL4 ready if need be.

The common spots that I've learned about in the short time I've owned by Sub are the oil pump gasket, and the front crank seal. I know of those cause thats what I'm going to be replacing tomorrow.

cam covers... aka valve cover gaskets, right?

Right. I've decided that even though I'm broke and almost homeless, it is time to make the oil leaks go away. Hell, if I end up getting evicted, I can live in the newly leak free roo right? Kay.. got me an oil pump install kit on order.. $4.88 from Advance. Supposedly includes new gasket and some random o-rings. Hopefully will be just what I need to kill the slow leak from the gasket and two of the bolt holes there. Putting in for a front main seal tonight.. $12.25 from AutoZone. Both the install kit and main seal should arrive by tomorrow, and should have it all put in and operational by Friday at the latest. The question is this: is changing this thing out as easy as I think its gonna be? 22mm crank bolt; pull pulleys; use small flathead screwdriver to pry out old seal; lube, and press new seal in place; replace pulleys; and 22mm back on till its nice and tight. Sound about right? Is there anything else important I should know about or check while I'm curled up underneath the front end doing this stuff? Cheers Raven --- 1979 GL Wagon... stock and slow.... wow.

<--- 80s wagon. But I've got a handful more than 10 zipties on the car. ~30ish

Interesting... reason why I figured it was factory was the metal plate affixed to the compressor.. saying Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd, like it does on top of the air cleaner... that and with the dash controls looking rather "official" if you can understand what I mean. --- With oil leaking from the bottom of the pump; would there be any real way for oil to be slung about the engine compartment? Took my fiance for a ride in it last night, a ride which involved a short run on I-10.. well after the get-off ramp, I was smoking big time, and upon further inspection, found oil slung all about the engine compartment... inside of the hood... everywhere. From the rate I saw oil coming from the pump yesterday, I think there may be something else that I couldnt see from the underside yesterday afternoon. On one hand, I really like the little car.. I definately can see why there "little troopers" as they've got heart...and driving an older, classic car in itself is fun. But on the other hand.. I need something that will run without major issues. Fiance says to get rid of it. :\ I'm sorta caught in the middle. I like the car, but if theres plenty more than the oil pump leaking... I'm not sure what I'll do..... but for the right price.. everythings for sale. I wont part it out; as I'm an old Z guy.. and seeing good solid running cars parted out is an awful sight. Theres only minimal surface rust on this puppy.. it runs, and drives. Unless it gets hit by a large truck or something, this roo will go out in one piece. Since NAPA, Autozone, and Discount are without a gasket or kit here locally, I guess I'll clean it up nice and hi-temp RTV it to see if thats all thats leaking. Theres only the two bolts holding the pump on right? Raven

Yep.. its the factory AC compressor. Okay.. back to my leak... is the oil pump the device that the oil filter is spun onto? I dropped the skidplate just now, and let it idle while I crawled underneath, and found a small, but very steady flow from the device the oil filter is spun onto.. right at that gasket. Oil is also coming out at just as steady of a rate from whatever sending unit is on the backside of the mystery device. Any gasket overhaul kit or similar available? Or should I just use orange (hitemp) RTV to seal that puppy up?

Okie...missing piece is a dipstick. I'll scour the local yards this weekend... I guess until I locate one, I'll pop in a rubber plug to keep any more junk from getting in there. Any advice on the leak? With the amount of oil I've put in it just today, I can already see this could quickly turn into a large drain on my budget.

lol, no. I live in the woods, only access is a long clay-impregnated dirt road, and my dirt driveway is almost as long as the road. When it rains, nothing 2wd can pass on the front road (having to pull out stuck cars is a regular occurrence), and unless you're lifted, or are sure you can pass deep water (30-38" worth on rainy days, 12-24" worth every other day), there is no access in my driveway. On the side.. my bossman left early, so heres some pics of the Roo.. Clicky Clicky. They're not dialup friendly; unless you've got a lot of time to kill. If someone could look at the last pic in that series and let me know what goes there I'd appreciate it. Raven

Thanks for all the replies... compared to some of the other specialty boards I'm a member of, this has got to be the best welcome I've received. Back to the topic... I included the VIN in the initial post... here it is again A67L518180. From my inspections this morning after driving it to work, it all seems to be in order. Only issues I found were a handful of missing/broken vac lines which were all replaced before I came in to work. Only outstanding issue is theres a rather large oil leak somewhere.. after topping it off this morning, the oil light came on once I arrived at work. Fortunately, I was at m destination, so I didnt run it much longer. The level dropped from H to the bottom tip of the dipstick along my 30 mile commute, so I topped it off before I went in. I found a puddle underneath the car about 10 minutes ago, and the oil level is down about a quart. What are the common places for one of these small beasts to leak? I intend on crawling underneath to investigate this evening.. just would like to know if there is anywhere particular I should start. Once the bossman leaves for the afternoon, I'll run out and snap some pics for yall to see. Cheers Raven

Last night at the local dealers auction, I came across this ugly as sin Subaru, and was sucked into bidding on it just cause it was so cheap and nobody else wanted it. I know its a 1979 4wd wagon, but know not much else about it. I bought it not only for its attractive price, but also for the fact that I know it will get better mileage than my current daily driver, a 1989 full size Ford Bronco, and still have 4wd to get me in and out of my driveway. Anywho, here we go.. can anybody analyze my VIN to give me some more information on exactly what I've got sitting on my car trailer right now? A67L518180 It has quad headlights, manual transmission (cant count the gears till I get new shifter bushings), is rusted blue in colour, and amazingly enough, the 4wd appears to work as well as I believe it was designed to...compared to most 4x4 trucks where theres usually something wrong somewhere. Also, could someone point me in the direction to where I might find a supply of parts for this new toy? AutoZone and the like are not much help from what I've seen so far... Thanks! I'm looking forward to participating much more in the future! Cheers Raven