Jump to content
Registrations ×
Ultimate Subaru Message Board
Registrations

1986Brat

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    51

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Everything posted by 1986Brat

  1. 1986Brat
    Hey guys, I just pulled the engine and did the head gaskets on my EJ251 legacy wagon. As I was about to install my new timing belt, I realized that I am entirely unable to get the left side cam sprocket timing marks to line up! The repair manual and multiple internet resources show that the mark should be going pretty much straight up towards a notch in the rear timing cover. My cover happens to be chipped, but I can see where the notch used to be. For some reason, the cam sprocket just won't stay where it *should* be, the tension whips the cam far to either side of it (YES, my crank timing mark is lined up properly, all pistons are recessed, I didn't just destroy my valves). These are the closest places to the timing mark that the cam will rest. Timing hash on cam is indicated with red line. Timing mark on timing cover is indicated with a yellow line. What is going on here?? I have read on multiple articles AND the manual that there should be no tension on cam when it is at proper point, this isn't some weird Audi that I should need special clamps for. Thanks for the help!
  2. 1986Brat
    Just found a pretty good resource for this swap, but once again deals with older legacys http://igotasubaru.com/showthread.php/18-DIY-Turbo-Swap-Info One thing i'm unclear about is whether or not my stock 5 speed trans/clutch is going to be okay with the 205, this guy says "probably." Any idea what the cost of a proper ECU plus tuning would be?
  3. 1986Brat
    I heard that someone in the local Subaru club is selling a nice EJ205 motor for a good price and I was going to pull the 2.5 out of my legacy anyways to change throw out bearing, head gasket, and timing belt... So I'm thinking I might just make myself a turbo wagon. Ive never dealt with any turbocharged motors before, and I was wondering if anyone knows what else I'll have to throw into my legacy to accommodate the 205? Most of the swap info I've found online involves 90s legacys so I was hoping y'all would help me figure out what I'm getting into, thanks!
  4. 1986Brat
    The radiator looks really good. It has no reserve coolant tank. I'm running it in my driveway and I can't get it to heat up like it does in traffic, it sits just a bit over halfway. I'm thinking my water pump impeller might be wearing out because it cools down when I rev it up.
  5. 1986Brat
    Fan runs nonstop when its hot in traffic, I'll have to check tomorrow if it cycles normally just sitting in my driveway. I don't have a laser thermometer but it would probably be a good investment, where would I check the temp and what should it be?
  6. 1986Brat
    i probably should have specified that in the original post, oops.
  7. 1986Brat
    temp guage normally sits at halfway at operating temp. In heavy traffic it slowly rises to 3/4 of the way to the red zone. I always just cut the vehicle off until the light changes when it starts to happen so I'm not sure if it will actually make it to the red zone, though it seems to me that it would. I'm hesitant to check. never happened last summer, never happened before the day that CV grease was thrown around (maybe just a coincidence). First time it happened was actually on a pretty cool night. Also, I just noticed that O2 sensor is completely covered in grease, not sure if that's relevant.
  8. 1986Brat
    So I decided to try burping the cooling system before doing anything else, and sure enough, lots of air had gotten into the system. I let the vehicle run for over an hour and found that every 10 minutes or so I was able to get more bubbles out by squeezing upper and lower rad hoses. When I stopped burping it and let it run, I found that the coolant level would very slowly rise as the air built up in the system. This explains why the coolant level in reservoir while cool gradually increased over the period of 2 weeks since coolant flush. oh and yes the thermostat clearly opens when fans kick on. Anyways the burping Temporarily solved the issue but I'm assuming those are combustion gases from failing head gasket slowly building up in radiator and I'll have to burp it every 2 weeks or so to keep it cooling properly.
  9. 1986Brat
    Well my fans are definitely working properly, and there's plenty of coolant, I flushed the coolant and replaced thermostat about 500 miles ago, guess I'll try to burp the cooling system and go from there. Damn I was really hoping to replace the CV and be done with it.
  10. 1986Brat
    So my front passenger CV boot pretty much isn't there (can't replace CV until this weekend) and a while back the brat started to overheat at idle, popped the hood and saw that CV grease was leaking on to the catalytic converter and burning off creating a truly wonderful smell... Anyways lately It has been running pretty hot when I'm stopped in traffic, not sure how much grease still leaks onto the cat (I can smell it sometimes) but there is definitely a lot of build up on the top of it. Am I safe in assuming that the reason it slowly overheats while I'm stopped is because of this? It cools down as soon as I get moving. Thanks
  11. 1986Brat
    Ah guess I'll pick up a test kit then.
  12. 1986Brat
    Yes, the coolant level in the reservoir becomes mostly full when it overheats...
  13. 1986Brat
    Well if the problem persists after I remove the thermostat, I think it would be safe to say that the water pump is the issue. Does this sound reasonable? Also, would it be fine to drive without the thermostat for a week or so (assuming it stops overheating)? It normally hits 90 degrees every day around here so I don't think I'd have an issue getting up to operating temperature.
  14. 1986Brat
    The Stant 48457 is the thermostat I have in it. It overheated again today, way faster than before... Waited for it to cool and blasted heat all the way home. Looks like I'll be driving the Brat this week. I think I'll just pull the thermostat out and see if the problem persists. Also, the radiator cap was perfectly clean, gaskets look good, seems to work fine. The coolant I put in roughly 2 weeks ago is still really clean, radiator looks okay.
  15. 1986Brat
    The thermostat I got cost around 25 bucks... They said it was "OEM" as is same temp as original but it is the German company whose name doesn't come to mind... Stant maybe? People before me used aftermarket thermo, the OE I got was much larger in size. radiator cap looks fine but I guess I'll change it, sure would be nice if that was the issue.
  16. 1986Brat
    Picked up this wagon with 215k miles a few months ago, I first noticed it would very slowly overheat at idle and cool back down as soon as it got moving. I did a coolant flush, changed the thermostat, and the issue was solved... For a couple weeks. Yesterday after an hour of driving I noticed it would very slowly overheat at idle when the AC was on. Turn AC off, temp creeps back down. Today the check engine light came on. The fans are both working. It does leak a little oil at drivers side rear part of the head gasket (maybe a quart between oil changes if that). I kind of expected I would end up changing a head gasket when I purchased a subie with 215k miles lol. It doesn't appear to leak any coolant, however. Any ideas? Has my head gasket job come sooner than anticipated? Thanks.
  17. 1986Brat
    I'm going to replace the carpet on my 86 Brat and I was wondering if anyone has had experience with ordering carpet kits online? Most of the carpet kit reviews are bad it seems. Would it be better to just take the original carpet out and use it to cut some out from new carpet (and take original velcro and buttons off the old ones) or have any if you ordered satisfying carpet kits for these things before? Thanks for the help with my boring questions.
  18. 1986Brat
    Thanks for the suggestions guys I've just gotten over the flu so I haven't solved the issue yet... I replaced the ignition coil which I've been meaning to do, it no longer stalls at stops but still idles low and messy. Power still sucks, mpg still sucks. I sprayed carb cleaner all over to find the possible vacuum leak, didn't notice any sort of rpm change. My progress on this vehicle is extremely slow due to my crappy schedule but I'll let you know when I figure it out.
  19. 1986Brat
    A few days ago, all of a sudden, I noticed a very low (400-600 rpm), shaky idling issue coupled with terrible gas mileage... Today it started stalling at every stop unless I give it gas. I believe cylinders 2 and 4 are missing, though it's hard to tell because the idle is constantly fluctuating and randomly stalling. When I get into gear the engine runs fine (still crappy MPG) and when the choke is on it runs fine. I have new Bosch spark plugs and NGK wires replaced less than 200 miles ago. New fuel filter. Cleaned the crap out of the carb. I pulled the plugs and they look normal. Wires are certainly carrying a charge. No random arcs. No visible crack in distributer cap, terminals look fine. Pretty sure there is no vacuum leak but I'm about to do a carburetor cleaner spray check. Head gaskets look fine, no coolant leak or anything. Could this be a problem with the ignition coil pack? I planned on picking up a better one anyways, hopefully tomorrow. Could this be a thermostat issue? I flushed the radiator not long ago, I'm sure the current thermostat is 166,000 miles old. PCV valve maybe? What other checks/cleaning should I do before I go on a random part-buying rampage with money I don't have?? I certainly won't be driving this thing until I figure it out. Thanks
  20. 1986Brat
    Thanks for the replies, I haven't been online lately. I used some SeaFoam in the gas, supposed to clean fuel lines, carburetor, etc. and that certainly made a small difference in the way it runs. I replaced the fuel filter (the previous one looked about 100k miles old) today and I could notice a small power difference as soon as I started it up. What worries me is that this stumbling happens randomly only once it is warmed up. I haven't driven more than 5 miles on this fuel filter so I'm not sure if the problem was solved. I'm hoping for the best, but I will let you know.
  21. 1986Brat
    Is seems I'll never run out of problems to ask you guys about... So it has been rather hard to start now that it's getting cold here in VA, I've actually had to use starting fluid a number of times. But yesterday I was running errands all day and while it ran fine most of the day, by the time it got dark the engine started stumbling at low rpms... sometimes I could have the pedal floored with no response and was forced to downshift...progressively got worse... and today, even though it was warmed up, it stalled at a stop sign, couldn't get it into gear for like 5 minutes without stalling. It idled at like 500 rpms (usually its between 700-1000). It would rev better in neutral than when driving (still crappy though). I ended up just coating the air filter in starting fluid and I got home just fine, as much as i hate resorting to starting fluid. Oil is slightly low, but not to where it should hamper performance. Coolant is fine and relatively young. Spark plugs were replaced last night, didn't help. My small oil leak has been getting worse, mostly from the oil pan gasket and valve cover gaskets which I will replace today, a little bit seems to come from the sender, which was recently replaced so I'm hesitant to replace it again. Maybe it just needs some teflon. Not sure if this increased oil leakage could have anything to do with it running like crap... Any suggestions?
  22. 1986Brat
    I used the clutch trick, but how does this help? I haven't read up much on this hill holder thing, but sometimes when I back down my driveway (which is at a slight slope), if I push the clutch in while slightly braking the hill holder will kick in and jerk me to a stop. Any info on this?
  23. 1986Brat
    Well I found out the bleeding sequence in the repair manual was wrong, thanks MilesFox. I just used a clear siphon hose to the brakes in that order since I didn't have a partner and the brakes are working perfectly again. There was still a ton of air in the primary lines. Didn't even need to mess with the master cylinder, I'm pretty relieved. Thanks guys
  24. 1986Brat
    BoxerRebellion, Yes the left pulling started after all this
  25. 1986Brat
    I didn't have much daylight yesterday so it was admittedly a "that should probably do" bleeding job with a state inspector friend of mine who has done this more than I have. He just let me know that a book at his shop has a different bleeding sequence than the one my repair manual specified yesterday, even though they are for the same vehicle... Today I will bleed it again more carefully after I figure out the correct bleeding sequence... Thanks for the suggestions
×
×
  • Create New...