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It's back together and works. The key cylinder engages with the ignition switch; two separate parts held together with a small phillps screw. Took the ignition switch apart and found that one end of the spring that makes the key cylinder go back from 'START' to 'RUN' was broken off so the starter stayed engaged until I turned it back to 'RUN'.

Those 2 top bolts can be unscrewed, which I did using a small chisel to loosen them. I still had to smack down on it with a hammer to get it to come free. There are 2 pins at 9:00 and 3:00 that are flush with the part that holds the cylinder lock part that have to be drilled out. I used my cordless to drill out the pins. The pins are much harder than the cast housing resulting in the drill bit wobbling off the pin and taking out part of the casing too. Most of the pins were drilled out and I was able to get a hold of the remainder with a needle nose pliers. I probably would have been better of using my drill press but I didn't think of it at the time. So, lesson learned: the cylinder lock was not the problem. I didn't need to take it apart. But hopefully someone with a stuck or broken key can use this. My problem was a had-it ignition switch which you can remove without taking the ignition assembly off the steering column. I was able to put the thing back together and used a couple flat ended screws to replace the pins. I found a replacement unit including 2 keys on Ebay for just a bit more money than the cost of just the ignition switch so that's the way I went. I'll update when it's all back together.

I got it out. The cylinder is held in by two pins on either side of the switch assembly that have to be drilled out. Unfortunately the pins are much harder than the case so the drill bit wobbled off the pins. Anyone have an ignition switch assembly. with keys for my 1986 GL they'd like to sell?

The ignition cylinder key lock, it'sa broke! Started the car and found that it stayed in start rather than springing back to run. The starter wouldn't disengage until I turned the key off. If I start it and turn the key back a bit it worked so I was able to get home. Took off the plastic covers and got the two bolts out and the top bracket off but it appears that the assembly won't come off until the key cylinder is removed and I can't figure out how to get the key cylinder out. I don't see anything else to remove to free the cylinder or assembly. I suspect that the steering wheel lock goes through the lower assembly piece so it won't come off until the cylinder lock is removed. Stuff on YouTube shows a specific key position and a button to push and it should slide out. Not on an '86' GL.If I do get it out but can't fix it, Is there a compatible cylinder lock or assembly that will work in this car? If I have to use a universal ignition switch that only has three connections, what wires go where? Can anyone help?

Back again. Since I started this blog I've swapped 3 different pairs of struts, swapped springs from side to side thinking that if it was the springs the car would crab the other way but nothing has changed. It still remains a mystery. My next experiment will be to replace the rear struts with new ones that I.have. Maybe instead of the front crabbing to the right it;s the rear crabbing to the left. I'm running out of things to try.

Put the old struts back in. Not much difference. The KYB shocks self extended when I took the struts apart so they're probably still good. Guess I'll have to find different front Subaru GL springs. I'm not trying to stiffen the front suspension, just stabilize it. Thanks for the suggestions.

Found the old ones. I'll reinstall them and see if that solves the problem. If not, this will be my last Subaru.

Well, if anyone is still following this thread, it's June 1, 2023 and one of my replaced front struts is 'Had it', I think. When driving at freeway speed the car jumps to the right when I hit a divit or rough spot on the road and replacement struts are no longer available. This will be my last Subaru if I can no longer get the parts I need. Sad. Fare thee well USMB.

If it's the struts, they're no longer available. I replaced the struts in 2019 and they were hard to find then. I couldn't find the struts for a 4wd and had to use 2wd struts instead. KYB no longer lists them. There was another outfit that sold them too but they say, "Out of stock" and they probably got theirs from KYB. If I'm lucky the old ones my still be in my scrap metal pile. They were a little spongy but they didn't try to kill me. The car only has about 131,000 mi. on it. It was a rare find even years ago when I bought it.

My 1986 Subaru GL 4wd wagon. When driving on the freeway, when I hit a rough spot or divit in the road my car feels like it takes a bit of a dive on the driver's side and jerks to the right. A bit scary. I don't notice it on surface streets at lower speeds. It tracks fine when I let go of the steering wheel and the road is smooth. I tried doing the string alignment as described in the forums but there was no change. I checked the wheel bearings on the driver side and they were OK. With the car on the ground and jacked up I grabbed the top of each front tire and shook it vigorously. Everything seemed tight. I grabbed each side of the tires trying to feel for any play. Nothing. I've been led to believe that there is no caster or camber adjustment on these old guys, just toe in or out. Is that right? Is it possible that I screwed up with my string alignment? Was shooting for a1/16 toe in. So the only other thing I can think of is maybe ball joints? Anyone got any other ideas? Do I need to get a real wheel alignment?

Thanks guys. Now, what to do about it?

My '86' Subaru GL has been sitting for several months. When I got it running and moved it I found this where it had been parked, sort of in the middle Anyone know what is? It's about 3.5" diam. and 1" wide and broke

You don't have to be rich, you just have to be able to afford the monthly payments: like buying a house, except a house is going to appreciate over time.

The situation was that oncoming traffic was backed up for a mile because of an accident There was a small break in the traffic where a side road intersected and the guy darted through it. I didn't see him until it was too late and I couldn't stop in time even though I swerved to miss him. I have no idea how long the guy had been waiting to get through the line of traffic to go in the direction I was going.. Had I been a few feet farther up the road he probably would have seen me and stopped in time to avoid the collision. Timing is everything. And, Crazyeights, I wish more EA82 Subaru owners felt the way you do so more vintage Subaru's would be for sale or in wrecking yards. If I can fix it I'm going to need a front left GL fender, headlight, turn signal and bumper with driving lights. I have a DL fender that will probably work and a radiator but the turn signals between the DL and GL are different. The car was picked up yesterday so I 'spect I won't hear anything for several days. I emailed the insurance company and asked why they didn't just send out an appeaser. Person said they just don't. Guess they're not local.

Thanks for the responses. I've never been in this situation before. Haven't been in an auto accident in 62 years.What I am aware of is how insurance companies deal with people who lose their homes to fire and need to replace their appliances. They're told that the appliances were used/old and only given minimal compensation. The insurance company's minions are supposed to pick up my car sometime today. If they won't fix it I'll buy it back and work on it myself. AS far as a later model goes, one of the main reasons I've stuck with these vintage models is because I can work on them. The only thing I see in a later model is more electrical (computer, fuel injection) stuff that I can't work on and no better fuel mileage. If I had my druthers, I'd have an '84' with timing chain instead of those stinking belts. And lastly, I used to be able to go down to 'You Pull It'1 and have several old Subaru's to get parts from. No more. Just late '90's' and newer. Then there's the head gasket and cracked head problem with the 2.2 and 2.5 engines. What's a mother to do? Punt!

Done

I checked the bushing. Only a wiggles worth of play. The oil was about halfway down the stick and I topped it off . Tell me about this 3.9 /3.7 ratio and is there a way to tell them apart. I've got 2 other duel range transmissions that I've pulled from other Subaru's. One is in my '87' and the other is in the barn. I'm not sure of the year's of the transmissions but the one in my '87' works fine. It came with the push button 4wd so no low range. That low range was saved my beutox on several occasions.

I've done nothing with the transmission and there's only one clutch cable and it's on top under the spare tire,

Interesting happenstance on my '86' 4wd wagon. Some times when I try to shift, it stops and won't go into gear. I'll stop at a stop sign or signal, shift into neutral, then try to shift into first but it doesn't just slide into gear. It just stops, like someone moved the hole. I have to go back to neutral and fiddle around with it before it will go into gear. Same thing happens in second gear. And it's not consistent. On some shifting sequences it works fine but about every other time, I now have this problem. The other thing I think I noticed is that when just sitting, car not running, I can shift into any gear with no resistance. Normally it's not uncommon for me to have to shift into a different gear first before I can shift into the gear I want ( lining gears up). I'll pull into the garage in first but sometimes have to shift around to line up a gear to shift into reverse. Seems that's not happening now. The dash cluster shows 140.000 miles so seems a bit soon to have transmission problems. I've never experienced this in my other Subaru's. I haven't taken anything apart yet. Thought I'd run it by you first.

Why can't I cancel my post?

I'm assuming you have a spring compressor to take the strut apart and didn't just remove the nut and let everything fly. It was a process getting the spring compressor on but my rattle gun sped it up.

I used a spring compressor to compress the spring enough to get the strut mount on and as many turns of the nut that I could get by hand to hold everything together. The strut rod is fixed to the bottom of the strut, so holding the bottom of the strut I snugged the nut with a deep socket and then took off the strut compressor. Once the strut is mounted top and bottom you can torque the strut nut . That's how I did my rig.

My suggestion: If you have a NAPA or other parts place near you, ask them. If you can take yous off and take them to the parts store to compare them to what they have, that would be the best because some are side specific like mine and some aren't. But don't just buy them off Ebay just because the seller's compatibility chart says they'll work. I bought a set of front axles that way because the seller's compatibility showed they would fit my '87' DL. Now I have a set of 25 spline axles that don't fit because my axles are 23 splines and it was too expensive to ship them back. The (233023 and 233022) are fwd and side specific and worked on my 4wd. It rides a bit lower. Inconsequential. So to be specific, I don't know for sure if these struts will work on your Brat but I can give you a hell of a good deal on a set of 25 spline axles if you happen to have a rig that they'll fir..........

Looking online for compatibility, one seller indicated that the Dorman #W37418 was not compatible for my rig. I called and talked to a Dorman rep and he assured me that these are the proper replacement rear wheel cylinders for my 4wd wagon. I took a chance and bought 2 online. They are 3/4" bore and are not side specific One of the things I noticed when looking at pictures online was that some had 2 studs and nuts to hold the cylinder to the backing plate while others had 2 bolts. I crawled under my rig and found that mine has 2 bolts. So there's still the question as to whether the cylinders with the 2 studs and nuts would work as long as it had the 3/4"' bore and wasn't side specific since they otherwise look the same, at least in the pictures. So next week when it warms up around here I'll take thing apart.

I need to replace the rear brake cylinders on my 1987 4wd wagon. Sounds like one or both are dragging. Can't find anything online that says specifically for 4wd wagon, only sedan. Will the sedan cylinders work? I hate to have to take it apart to get a part number until I have the right cylinders to replace them with.