Mike W

Hey thanks that's a good idea! I kinda forgot that sender units can stick. So far I only directed verbal abuse at the oil sender unit. I'll give it some love taps and also do the same with the temp sender unit. I did recently install a new oil pump, reusing the old sender unit. The gauge worked fine then and the oil pressure was good. Pressure still seems good...hydraulic lifters pumped up and no valve clatter. Just seems odd that the temp, volt, and oil pressure gauges quit working almost at the same time. I'm thinking there must be a loose or dirty connection in the harness or something. That or a faulty ground. Anyone else had this happen? I'll be taking the dash apart again next weekend. After cleaning tons of dust out of the cluster last weekend, I noticed that one turn signal indicator bulb isn't working.

Hey there guys. Mike W here. Damn, I haven't been on USMB in a loooong time! So I recently brought the red Hatchback outa storage. I'm working out a few bugs and thinking I might finally sell this beastie if I get everything proper. But this minor electrical voodoo issue is having is driving me nuts and have the feeling I'm missing something very obvious! I sure hate to post on here but I'm a bit frustrated and could use help! '88 Hatchback (EA81) All the dash gauges used to work. But recently the Oil Pressure, Batt Voltage, and Temp gauges...all quit working. But not all at once! First the oil pressure quit working, then a few days later the temp guage quit, then the volt gauge just quit. WTF?!! The fuel gauge and the rest of the dash works just fine. I can't find any blown fuses. I've checked (and sprayed) all connections in the engine bay. All seem fine. I checked and sprayed connections behind the dash , they seem fine too. Is there some secret fuse I don't know about? Bad ground??? Where to look? Failing voltage regulator? Headlights etc brighten and dim a bit with RPMs and I'm seeing some voltage spikes in the 14.7 range. What am I missing here??? Any help would be appreciated!

Some years ago I was laying under the car pondering mutant t-bar suspension ideas. One concept involved mounting a Legacy/Imp style front cross member, a rear diff, and suspension stuff to where the read hubs normally go. Doesn't make sense but I was trying to come up with a way to increase wheel travel by allowing the diff to rotate or float like a solid axle multi link setup. I wanted to lock the torsion bar travel on the road and let it move on the trail. I don't know what I was thinking for struts or dampers. Too much beer that day I guess...just wacked junkyard war ideas flyin around.

That Car Bible link is the coolest thing I've seen in a long time. I too have brainstrormed ideas using the torsion bar up front but never got anywhere with it. My plan was to put the components up on blocks in the garage and stare at it and experiment until a design comes together or fails. Subaru junk yard wars...great winter entertainment.

Maybe. That is if I don't get another date with this hot babe I've been seeing. I'll try to get out and do some wrenching on the hatch this weekend. Don't think it needs much, it's just full of stuff and has been in storage for what is it, three or four years now?

Someone modified stock struts to take replacable strut inserts so if you find the right size hydraulic you should be able to do that too. But it still seems like to get more travel you need a different IFS setup. There's truck stuff but that's heavy. What about Audi stuff with 930 CV's?

Now I know there have been a lot of Subarus that ended their lives as farm work vehicles but that's by far the classiest and most useful one I've ever seen. My concern is the cage. Looks like enough for a minor tip over but I'm wondering if it'd hold tumbing down an embankment. I agree that it could go on a bit of a diet but for a first generation design I think he did a fine job. A second transfer case would be a nice addition and the rear wheel drive might make it even more fun for blasting around the back 40. The strut tower design is sort of innovative but could lose some weight. Looks like it has air shocks in the rear, nice for adjusting spring rate. It'd be nice if a different front suspension was used maybe with a-arms and t-bars for more travel but that'd add weight and then you might as well go solid axle. Heck I'd just like to have a shop like that, lots of time, all the skills, and hundred acres or so to play on!

I guess I could see that being the case if your Mom's Outback is a '95 or early '96. I have '97 OB struts with '93 springs on my '93 Legacy and I can barily cram Outback size tires under it. When I get time I'll be installing a set of 97' OB struts with OB springs. That'll raise it another inch or so and might stiffen the ride a little. I had good luck with the last set of reman axles so I'm not too worried about the extra angle.

Hey keep up the good work, er uh, side trip adventure drives! Your photos and story made for a nice five minute lunch break road trip. A month or so ago we did a club cruise around the Mountain Loop. Next time ya' oughta come on along. Those drainages north of Darrington toward Glacier Peak look rather inviting.

Ok I might be in. Not sure how the schedule will play out. I'm snorkled up to the firewall...basically good for water up to the windows. I haven't been to Tahuya since mountain biking...oh man what was that 1990'ish? Cool place, serious puddles. Funny the thing I remember most was riding right into the middle of a paint ball war crossfire.

Yeah something like that is what I should have done. If you're a fabricator you could probably find a sexier way to relocate the compressor up a couple of inches. I ended up tossing the A/C and putting a second battery there.

With a three inch front lift it takes a lot of bashing with BFH to make room for the compressor. I did it and kind of regretted it. Much better to move the compressor in my opinion. Or get a smaller compressor if you can manage that. There's a really small and light a/c compressor out there (from a toyota car I think) that works really well for onboard air systems as well as for making cold air.

Man we were lucky to be up there between storms. This rain today is amazing. Mother nature sure has some nasty mood swings and hot flashes!

Thanks to all contributing to the fun, most notably Zap and Qman. Also special thanks to Qman's wife for catering the event. I recon we got out of there just in time. When the party started breaking up I went out to the end of road 70 and explored some other roads. About the time it was getting dark the chinook wind started gusting and I decided it might be time leave. Trees were coming down and I had to clear a couple of smaller ones to get out. Would have been fun to stay to watch the storm but glad to get out when I did.