Syonyk

A friend of mine out here in Iowa City is a fellow Subaru nut (new gen stuff), and has pointed out that an old gen wagon could, with a bit of work, be one heck of a sleeper. ("bit of work" involves a turbo EJ20 or such, with a full standalone ECU) I'm pondering this, and had some thoughts/questions on making it work. To start with, I'd get a clean GL or GL-10, dual range. Fitting the motor would be a bit of a challenge, most likely, but I'm not too concerned about it - I know people who can fabricate things, and a good challenge is always fun. Controlling it wouldn't be a problem, I'd be running with a standalone & full set of gauges. Getting power to the ground will be a bit tougher. 250-300HP through an open front differential... won't work very well. First question: When do the dual range transmissions break? They seem to be pretty strong, but I don't know how much power they've been tested to. Will they hold 250-300HP without shattering pieces? Putting the power to the ground through 4WD would be great, except for the whole "dry pavement" thing. I was thinking of getting a custom driveshaft built with a viscous coupling in it, similar to how I believe the Honda CRV & such handle AWD. That, plus a limited slip in the rear, and I believe I should be able to hook up all the power, fast, and go like stink off the line. Finish with some suspension work, nice brake pads, and some window tint for one heck of an old Subaru. Am I nuts, or does this stand a chance of working? I'd be budgeting around $5000-$7000 for the entire project (including the clean base car). -=Russ=-

That's normal. They should come on when the key is turned but the car isn't running - sort of a "test mode" so you can make sure they're working. -=Russ=-

I'm debating cam options for a bit more pep up high on my '87 GL, and I was wondering, for those who have Delta cams, how much difference it makes. I'd be putting them into a stock SPFI EA82 with a freer flowing exhaust than usual (Y-pipe into a glasspack then out). I'm interested in how it affects low end power, but more how it affects the higher end power - I've just learned that if I need to get anywhere in a hurry, 3000-5000 RPM is where I need to be. The loss of a bit of low end power if I gain a significant bit up high is a tradeoff I'm willing to make. Also, have you noticed an effect on fuel economy with it? I searched, but couldn't find much other than, "For performance, put in a set of Delta cams." -=Russ=-

I've spent more time and energy this winter fighting with my distributor... I'm planning to make a 1stSubaruParts order soon, and I think I'll throw an OEM cap & rotor on. -=Russ=-

Pull the distributor cap & take a look at it. If it's old, it could have just worn out, or the center button could have fallen out (I've had that happen before). Every time my Subaru won't start, it's been distributor related. -=Russ=-

*nods* Thanks. I think I'll look at replacing the water pump this week. -=Russ=-

I've been trying to track down a small coolant leak in my '87 GL (EA82, SPFI). There's occasionally a small puddle of coolant under the car, but when I get it good and hot, it doesn't leak at all (no steam, no drips... well, coolant drips). I don't see any obvious hose issues, so... could it be the water pump starting to go? I've got almost 150k miles on it. -=Russ=-

My thoughts: On a clean, well sealed engine, they're good. They keep crap off the belts. On pretty much any of our Subarus, they're bad. They just serve to keep oil/coolant/etc puddled up for the belts to snake through. My old DL is without covers, and when I get around to pulling the engine in my GL to seal all the leaks up, it'll go back in without covers. -=Russ=-

I ran mine for a bit without the Y-pipe on it when working on some stuff, and the exhaust sounded exactly like that - "bloop blub bloop" etc. I'm not sure why it happens, but that may very well just be the exhaust sound. -=Russ=-

Definitely look at the master cylinder. If you haven't done so, "bench bleed" it (can be done on the car, basically loop little hoses from the outputs back to the fluid tank, get all the air out). If this doesn't help, you may have a bad master cylinder. If it was totally empty, the insides could have built up some rust, and chewed up the seals when it was used again. Or, you could have a bad vacuum booster. -=Russ=-

NGK, and whatever the store has. I will suggest taking the old cap/rotor in to the store with you - there are 4 or 5 different options that will be listed, and it's nearly impossible to get the right one unless you have the old one with you. -=Russ=-

So, I've had rear disks for my Subaru sitting in my garage for... about 4 months now. I finally got around to swapping them in. Other than a broken hard line in the rear (the flare nut was frozen onto the line, so it twisted the line and broke it) which was an easy job to replace, it was very straightforward & simple. Then, I bled all the corners, because I can't remember bleeding the fronts before - I don't think I ever did. Man, does it stop now! It's a high fairly firm pedal, and has MUCH more confident braking. Just thought I'd share. The coolant leak seems to have fixed itsself, and the odd handling (for those who read my other thread) I suspect is just due to warm Blizzaks bending & shifting & basically being soft rubber in the warmer weather. They're leaving soon. -=Russ=-

http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=52525&highlight=bad+ball+joint That thread covers a lot of the stuff. I suppose I'll go checking some of that out tomorrow. -=Russ=-

Agreed. There's a gap between 4LO & 4HI that's a total disconnect. It sounds like you found that gap (it's easy to do). Try pushing down a bit on the lever & see if it engages something. There's also a slight chance that something in the transmission is really messed up, but... that's not very likely. -=Russ=-

Not that I'm too immediately worried, because while trying to troubleshoot it I noticed some bright green fluid dripping from the underside, confirmed a low level in the radiator, and will have to find out WTF that's coming from here before I go anywhere too far. Yes, I am starting to get tired of this car... Anyway, the past few nights on the way to the gym (I haven't been driving it during the day, roads have been dry enough to motorcycle), I've noticed that the steering feels... off. If I do a quick swerve, it feels like the steering doesn't respond for the first 10-15 degrees of turning the wheel, then it wants to DIVE into the swerve. I know my handling impressions may be off from driving the motorcycle & RX-7, but I've driven the Subaru hard before, and don't recall anything bizzare like this. I checked the normal things (it's dark, so I wasn't able to do a complete inspection). The swaybar links are intact, swaybar mounts seem fine, the lug nuts are tight, the axle nuts are on, and the suspension doesn't seem *too* bad - it overshoots a bit, but nothing like a totally blown strut would do. I was wondering if driving on Blizzaks in warmer (30-35F) weather would be enough to cause some oddities - the tires are very soft, but I don't think that would cause what I'm feeling. I'm... not too familiar with front suspension bits, unfortunately. I know the basic concepts, but troubleshooting them is something I know very little about. Any suggestions on things to check/replace? Thanks! -=Russ=-

Have a good time? Absolutely. Win a race or two? Eh, depends. Remember, skill of the driver counts as much if not more than the car :-) -=Russ=-

Finding an old gen with a clean body is the hard part. Fixing the leaks is the easy part. :-) -=Russ=-

Just pondering some ways to eek a few more miles per gallon... I've got my timing (EA82 SPFI) advanced ~8-10 degrees - it pulls better, but where is the best timing position for optimal fuel economy? Stock, or somewhat advanced from that? -=Russ=-

Have you tried half a can of seafoam in the oil & some 5000+ RPM love? That's cheap & easy. -=Russ=-

So... download it. Links early on in the thread. http://wombat.sevarg.net/Subaru/HTKYSA.PDF for the lazy. -=Russ=-

I'm pondering ways to cram a bit more air into my engine, and with it a bit more fuel. How close to "pegged" is the NA ECU & such on a stock EA82? I'm debating a small supercharger. If I don't run more than a few pounds of boost, I shouldn't need much in the way of ignition tweaking. If it's a matter of the stock ECU being close to pegged out, I could always add a small injector that comes on under boost. -=Russ=-

Aah... I totally forgot there are parts of the country where you can't be stopped on the side of the road in 15 seconds or so. :-) -=Russ=-

Gauges matter. Scan them. Regularly. I've stopped before because the temperature gauge was too low on the highway. I think my thermostat is sticking a bit, but it was maybe 10-15 degrees below where it should be. No offense, but you should catch a broken accessory belt immediately, due to the alternator failure. All the idiot lights go on, the voltmeter drops, etc. I try to carry spares of important things with me, as well as a tool kit customized to each car (I need to finish setting up the permanent kits). -=Russ=-

... and a 1.8L engine is, as far as engines go, tiny. What's the problem? I don't think the stock airflow sensor is a major restriction in the intake. Also, if there is a larger airflow meter, it probably needs a different ECU to match with it - I don't know for sure if the EA82T AFM is larger, but if it is, you'd need the turbo ECU as well. -=Russ=-

Yes, but "a few minutes" is NOT a good use of 730 meg. :-) -=Russ=-