aba4430

Folks, Yesterday, I noticed some coolant on the driveway just below where the heater hoses connect to the fittings on the firewall. The two brass (or copper?) fittings are quite thin and weak, so I have not clamped down on the hose clamps, but just tightened the clamps moderately. I can tighten more and stop the leak, but am worried that I will cause the fittings to collapse. I am thinking of putting a couple of short copper tubes (smaller OD than the ID of the heater hose fittings) within the OEM fittings to ensure that they will not collapse when tightening the hoses. Looking for some feedback on this. Are the fittings replaceable from outside the cabin. There is a rubber grommet that goes through the firewall and to the heater core hoses. Is there any slack that will allow me to pull the grommet and hose sections out and allow me to replace the filltings? Thx, aba4430

If it is no miles, then the milk shake could be (residual) from the earlier failure - not sure though. Did you drain the head/block also prior to replacing the gaskets. I just did my head gaskets and used the Beck & Arnley ones. These looked just as the original ones I took out. So I am following the retorque regimen for the original gaskets (if you follow the procedure, it is quite arduous and inconvenient; basically between the initial oil/filter change and torque, you complete the process again at 0 miles (after idling to warm up and cool), 300 miles and 1300 miles after the head gasket replacement). Which gaskets did you use - Felpro permatorques? Did you use OEM intake manifold gaskets, or at least torque those to 15 ft-lbs. If your engine did not heat up after replacing the gaskets, try and retorque the bolts again after draining the engine oil (and block/heads also if necessary). Not too much information to go on here as yet. Hopefully you can sort this out. Good luck.

Check and see if you have grease spewed on the heater hoses also. The axle grease will soften the rubber (if you have plain rubber hoses) and eventually lead to failure. This is what caused one of the heater hoses to fail on my 87 Brat, leading to HG failure one day. It takes a while though. Wipe off as much grease as you can.

Folks, Put everything back together and all is well. However, had to take the L side head back to the machine shop as the outer spring for cylinder number 2 was installed backwards (you can see it in the picture in the earlier post). Am glad I caught this prior to the install. The most nerve wracking part of this project was getting the push rods positioned correctly. Took my time with this and after the first couple, the installation became natural. Started the truck up yesterday and idled it to operating temperature. Left just DI water in the cooling system. Brought it back in the garage and let it sit overnight. Today, drained oil and filter and redid the torque on the head and intake manifold bolts, and adjusted the valves again - following the regimen laid out in HTKYSA. Will torque the head bolts after 300 miles again and once more after another 1000 miles. The valves are good after today's adjustment. Probably overkill, but I don't intend to do this anytime soon again (I hope). Also installed a new hill holder cable, Denso PW20TT plugs and a new battery. Feel bad as the gas in the tank (1/4 full) was at least 2.5 years old. However, after a few tries, it fired up. Drove around the sub-division for a couple of rounds and then took it on the road. After a gas fill-up, went for a 15 mile spin around town, keeping below 50 mph (no more than 3000 rpms). The engine does feel a bit tight. Now to replace the water with coolant tomorrow, and to source some 185/70-13 tires. Thx, aba

Update: Got the heads back from the machine shop yesterday. Hydro test was good. New valves, new exhaust valve guides (intake guides were fine according to the shop and they did not replace; and 4 intake valve seals. They said the exhaust valves did not use a seal. This stumps me, as the parts manual clearly indicates a total of 8 seals for the engine. However the B&A gasket kit included only 4 seals, so I had ordered 4 extra ones. Is it true that the engine uses only intake seals? Also replaced the valve spring keeper keys. Am attaching a few pictures of the completed heads. Will clean all remaining parts today and start assembling tomorrow.

May want to check whether your wheels are dragging.

Are those Hella micro DEs? How do you like them? My Brat has old school Bosch fogs; the glass on both lamps is dulled out. I am deciding between the DE's, 550's (closer to what I have, but a tad larger), FF50's or the FF75's. Will not need the wiring harness; should almost be plug and play.

Thanks folks. I obtained a T-47 yesterday. Will get a T-50 in the next couple of days. Hopefully, the Brat will be up and running in the next two weeks.

Folks, I need to remove the ASV adaptor sandwiches so my heads can be turned in to the machine shop tomorrow. I have tried to get the two bolts per side off with a 14 mm wrench and was only able to get one loose. Trying PBB, letting it soak etc., and will try again. However, question is what is the torx/star bit size for the bolts? I have a T-45, but it is small. Do I need a T-47 or T-50 for the bolts? Thx, aba PS. I will need new ASV sandwich adapter gaskets also. These did not come in the B&A head gasket set. Are these dealer only items?

Here are a few standard size options. This might turn out a tad more money with shipping/handling and installation, but worth it. Discount does include shipping. http://www.tirerack.com/tires/TireSearchResults.jsp?skipOver=true&width=185%2F&ratio=70&diameter=13&x=14&y=14 http://www.discounttiredirect.com/direct/searchTiresBySize.do?sw=false&cs=185&ar=70&rd=13

Last purchase was 5 quarts on 12/22/10 from Pence Subaru at Richmond (Midlothian), VA. P/N SOA868V9241, ATF-HP/PS; List $7.31/quart. With NASIOC discount, worked out to $5.56/quart. The list may have gone up, or the dealership may have inflated prices.

Subaru ATF-HP is <$6 a quart. We use it in our 08 OBS.

One option is to get heavy duty L-brackets from Lowes (or HD) and mount them under the Brat bumper. If you put your hands behind the bumper and feel along the inside channel, you will note a hole close to each end. These holes are not through the bumper plastic, so you will have to drill holes through the plastic on each side. You should not mount the lamps directly on the plastic cover due to definite potential for damage/deformation. The HD L-brackets will protect the plastic cover and is good support for a secure mounting. The verticle of the L-bracket goes behind the bumper. It has been several years since I did mine, so my memory is a bit hazy. If the relay is a standard Bosch type, here is a link to typical wiring schemes (see page 14). http://www.tune-town.com/relays.pdf

Yes you can. Use good quality Gates or Goodyear hoses. Make sure they do not rub on the steering components. Also see the following link for options: http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/raframecatalog.php

http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/OrderItemDisplay?updatePrices=1&calculationUsageId=-1&catalogId=10051&langId=-1&orderId=7645451&storeId=10151 BIG35 is an active coupon. Did you try it. It works for me.

Is it still under the powertrain 60K warranty? If so, take it to the dealer and have it looked at. This is from the Subaru web-site. "Powertrain Limited Warranty Coverage: 5 Years / 60,000 Miles The components in your Subaru that are part of the powertrain are covered for a period of 5 years or 60,000 miles, whichever comes first. Defective parts will be repaired, or, at the option of SOA or your authorized Subaru dealer, replaced with a new or remanufactured part without charge to you for labor or materials. The powertrain components include the major parts of the engine, transaxle and differential. A complete list of the covered parts, along with important details concerning coverages, limitations and your responsibilities under this warranty can be found in your Subaru Warranty and Maintenance Booklet. Please read your booklet carefully. If you're not sure about whether a specific failure on your Subaru is covered, your Subaru dealer will be able to inspect your vehicle and answer any questions you have."

http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_Shock-Strut---Rear-KYB_19171008-P_50_R%7CGRPSHOCAMS____ Put two of these in your cart and apply BIG35 coupon during checkout, and you can have these shocks for <$60 for the pair. Great shocks for the back of the Brat. Might also get free shipping. They have several active coupon codes. Do a search and you might save big bucks. http://www.edealinfo.com/coupons/merchants/advanceautoparts.php Use a trial and error approach to see which others work for you.

If you are speaking of removing the main crankshaft pulley, you do not have to when working on the EA81 oil pump. The oil pump does need to be removed when replacing seals, o-rings, springs and balls.

Another perspective: I am doing my head gaskets now (little stalled effort, but will move along soon), and I removed the drain plugs from both heads to find quite a bit of crud inside. This is on an engine with 129K miles. If you use PB Blaster, and let it soak, you should be OK. The right side is easy. The left side, you might need a special offset wrench, due to ASV clearance issues. The bolts were on with only a washer. If you run radiator cleaner, you might get some crud out.

Excel G's are the same (new name) for GR2's. I have the gas-a-just's (KG4183A) in the rear of the 87 Brat (though it is undergoing HG replacement now), and found that it rides fine, not harsh, hard or jarring by any means. The tire pressures also play a big part in the ride (and handling) characteristics.

Heads are out. Cannot tell which gasket failed, the intake and head gaskets appear intact visually. However, the right side most likely was problematic based on some milkshake liquid and gunk visible in cylinder number 3. Am ordering intake/exhaust valves for replacement as well, and will drop the heads off for cleaning machining, once received.

Folks, Will be removing the heads tomorrow. Advance cancelled the Felpro gaskets and I ordered a Beck & Arnley set (032-2580). It has the following components: 2X cylinder head gaskets 1X exhaust pipe?? 2X exhaust manifold 2X intake manifold 2X valve cover 4X valve cover grommets 4X valve stem seals 1 water outlet The Felpro kit appears to have a few additional parts. Since I am doing the head gaskets for the first time, do I need only 4 valve seals? Thx, aba

http://www.worldpartsexpress.com/partlocator/index.cfm?action=getJointLocator&siteid=214078&chapter=&sectionids=0,51959&groupid=15185&subgroupid=2581&componentid=52766&make=32&model=Loyale&year=1990&catalogid=2&displayCatalogid=0 Another link for you.

Hello Folks, I have not posted in a while, but to make a long story short, my head gaskets have not been replaced as yet. The Brat sat for months, then I moved to Pensacola, FL (new job) in July, 2010. Moved my family and the Brat to Pace, FL less than 2 months ago, after living in PNS for a year. Am ready to tackle the HG's now. Have ordered a Felpro kit from Advance, but might stay with my new enough OEM exhaust gaskets. Based on advice here, will order new intake and exhaust manifold gaskets from Subaru, rather than use the Felpro's in the kit. Just a couple of (more) points/questions towards a sanity check: Initially, I noted a lot of gurgling etc., due to possibly exhaust gases blowing into the cooling passages. As part of towing my Brat (Penske car carrier), I topped the radiator with coolant, checked the oil level (was good and clean with no traces of coolant) and started it. Noticed no bubbles in the coolant due to exhaust gases. Also drove a round the driveway (less than a minute, a few times) to let the movers pack, load our goods. However, checked the oil level one time and noted that coolant had mixed with the oil, giving the oil a milk shake appearance. Anyway, drove up the car carrier etc., and made the trip safely to Pace, FL. The truck has been sitting in the garage since we arrived. As before, the engine sounded excellent, when I started and moved the truck around a bit. Could the truck not have any HG issues, i.e. could it be just the IM gaskets? Is it possible for coolant to get into the engine oil through the IM gaskets? Is it possible for exhaust gases (?) to blow into the cooling passages without the HG blown? Not trying to take a short cut as I already have the gaskets on order. Am wondering, whether I should drain the coolant and oil (need to do this anyway), check the compression on each cylinder after changing the IM gaskets. If the compression checks out OK, may not be head gaskets?? Thx, aba4430

Folks, Notwithstanding the fact that the 2008 OBS that I own has an aluminum intake, it is true that many manufacturer's have switched over to composite intake manifolds. I have no issues with composite intakes. Our two Ford Expedition's (1998 (sold) and current 2000) with 5.4 have it and we are at >107K miles on the 2000 without issues. I believe BMW has been using composite intake manifiolds for at least a decade or more. I have a 1998 z3, 2.8 with me this weekend that I am looking at getting. I think the intake is composite. In 1984, I got to sit in a friend's DL coupe (almost new at the time) and was quite impressed. I believe Subaru was ranked #2 in customer satisfaction, right behind MB, then. However, Subaru failed to keep up with times and eventually fell behind other manufacturer's. Sales slipped and the company was in deep financial trouble. As we all know the company turned around in the mid to late 90's and during the past several years has enjoyed success (actually done well even despite the market shortfalls the past 18 to 20 months), while continuing to provide reliable and safe AWD cars. The legacy and impreza (and the Forester as well) are primarily responsible for the turnaround of Subaru. Subaru's also maintain their resale values better then many other respected makes. I like my new OBS (currently at >8K miles; bought in 05/09) - no issues at all. It is quite, decent power and with high utility; and just as easy to maintain. I like the styling as well. In my opinion Subaru is doing great with the changes, which are helping it be successful. They are being successful because their cars are selling. The professional reviews on the new 2010 models have generally been positive. My two cents. Regards, aba4430:)