capecove

Well folks, thank you all for your help on this. After a harrowing experience on the side of a very busy 4 lane high speed roadway on a blind corner, I was able to tow the Subaru to a safer parking lot area, used my pickup to jump her and she fired up after a few cranks. Since then, she has been driving like a dream again. Hooray! I think this fuel pump priming idea may have been what was happening, thank you all for your help, I appreciate it greatly. Jason

Hello folks... My wife has made what I hope is not a considerable, serious mistake. She didn't get gas for our Loyale this morning, and ended up out of fuel on the side of the road. She went and got gas, put it in the tank and now she calls me to tell me she has run the battery dead trying to start the dang thing. It just cranks, with nothing firing. I am assuming that there could have been a blown fuse or some sort of relay issue that occurred at the time the engine ran out of gas. Is this normal for this type of Subaru? I need to run out there and help her, just waiting for a ride (we carpool everyday, and yes, I reminded her to get gas this morning when I got out of the car). Thanks for all your help, please tell me she didn't burn up the fuel pump...

Well, thanks guys. I guess off to the shop she will go eventually. There is a sticker under the hood reading R-134 (right next to the original R-12 sticker), it is an aftermarket sticker. Also, there are two what look like adapters screwed on the high and low pressure ports. I was able to use my gauge set for my F-150, they fit fine and the low side pressure read 30 PSI, like I said before. I am unsure about when the conversion was done exactly. Oh well, so we just go spend some money to have cold/warm dry air... LOL... Thanks for your assistance all!

Hello there folks! I need your advice once again, if you wouldn't mind. I have the most bizarre situation with our R-134 based A/C in the 1992 Loyale. It works great for the first few minutes you turn it on and slowly goes downhill into just vent air shortly after that. Turn off the A/C switch (push bi-level for instance), drive for a few minutes, press A/C again and presto, you get cold air again. Then the whole cycle starts again. Somebody had converted it to R-134 according to the sticker. I checked the pressure of the system and it is around 30 PSI, which seems good enough by me (and my gauge). Any advice out there for us? Thanks! Jason

Excellent, thanks...

SORRY... I meant OIL FILTER wrenches, not OIL PUMP wrenches, I had o-ring's on the brain. Hello again folks... I was wondering if any of you know the right sized Rite Fit wrench to fit the Napa (Wix) Oil Filters for my 1992 Loyale. I think it would be this one: A260 82mm 15 Wix But I want to be sure. Of course, the Napa here doesn't sell Right Fit wrenches so I couldn't size it while I was at the shop. I want to be sure if I order one over the Internet that it is the right unit. Thanks... Jason

Thanks Tuner... I appreciate the insight. After purchasing the vehicle I made sure the rear diff fluid and transaxle fluid were good, which they were. I believe that it is possible the previous owners just had the fluids drained and refilled less than a month or two ago, both fluids were so clean that I was shocked. When I did my oil change, I did put in a pint bottle of Seafoam, like you folks had suggested. It hasn't made any difference thus far, a least it is not noticeable. But, we will see what happens over the next couple thousand miles. Thank you again, a great description and it makes perfect sense. I was a bit horrified at the thought that it could be rocker arm noise, like in my old Volvo PRV V-6 engines (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PRV_engine), spelling a short simple end to the engine. I am really interested in seeing this Subaru last to double its mileage. Here's to hoping! Jason

Sounds good, we can easily live with it as long as it is normal.

Good morning all... I have a quick question for you regarding the proper care and feeding of my 1992 Loyale Wagon. We bought it last Thursday and have since put almost 900 miles on the vehicle. We love it and it has been a great vehicle thus far. A little underpowered, but that has been good for a lead footer like my wife... Regardless, it seems to have no strange issues save one really, and it may be perfectly normal. In the morning, after a full 12-16 hours off, the car starts right up and after a short period of time idling, say around 20-30 seconds, it begins a small tapping sound that increases in volume over the period of, say, 60 seconds, then completely stops. We can no longer hear the sound at that point. Then, a few minutes later the cycle beings anew. After driving down the road, for the rest of the day the sound is not noticeable, we do not hear any strange sounds. I know there is an automatic hydraulic lifter adjustment and wonder if that is what is taking place. Anyhow, I just want to make sure there is no significant damage being done to the engine while it warms up and idles with it's tapping stuff. Thanks folks!

Morning folks... The hill holder on our 92 Loyale works excellently thus far and my wife loves it. We have some pretty serious hills here and she is finally free to work the clutch without fear. Personally, it is a fun little gadget that I was amazed to discover. Imagine our surprise when we wouldn't roll backwards on a uphill, we didn't know it even existed. LOL...

I love that X-Files work. Keep it up Mulder...

Well, sorry, not trying to brag about it. You guys requested pics, so I added those two. I suppose for a 92 model year vehicle it looks pretty good. The front bumper appears to be slanted down somewhat, across the entire front of the car, but I don't think it's worth trying to get resolved. So far, it appears to have been babied. It was a trade in vehicle at a local dealership just a couple weeks ago, was purchased by a friend of the dealer and then sold on the side of the street, near his sons radiator shop. They really don't have any information on the vehicle. But, I have done a little investigation. First, the car came complete with the owners manual and other original paperwork, including a small plastic card in a paper insert which describes it as not being a credit card but another type of card dealing with service requests. Next, that the car was purchased new in Bend, Oregon in January of 1992. The lot which sold the car didn't even have the name Subaru in it, something like Thomas Service and Welding, Inc. (I don't remember the exact name). Finally, that the previous owners must have loved the car because they kept immaculate records of the fuel purchases. We have years and years of mileage records in little spiral bound notebooks. They denote odometer, trip, gallons purchased, mpg and price per gallon. At the top of most entries it reads "ministry miles" so it was evidently owned by a clergyman of some kind (a bit ironic, considering I am currently attending seminary). Anyhow, the wife and I have spend some time babying it and hope that it continues on without issue. I went down to NAPA last night and bought two filters. Since oil didn't seem to be a big deal I didn't make it one. I got 10w30. Well, my journal entry is done now. Thanks again folks...

Well, I have two photos here, let me know what you think.

Excellent, so change the gearbox oil, synthetic is okay for that. Engine Oil, maybe Castrol GTX and Wix filters from Napa?

Excellent, so far. Thanks! So, not trying to start a riot, but would any/all of you suggest synthetic fluids in the engine and gearbox? Maybe just the engine? Maybe neither? I want this thing to last and am willing to put synthetic into it if it means the tranny and engine will be happier because of it. Also, do they require diff services like my pickup (and should those be with synthetic fluids as well?)? Should I have them serviced since I am unsure of their last service? Jason