kayakertom

RDwiniger and GD, There is a mpfi non turbo wagon in the PnP on Columbia Blvd in N. Portland; isn't this the same engine as in the 85-91 non turbo XT? "That is a very rare engine - one year only - and hard to find parts for."

Posted last week... http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=128936

If you are in the PDX area, I think I have a spare (or two) carbed distributor that you can try; if it works, I'll sell it for a good price.

Whenever I get a project subaru, I clean up all the ground connections, disconnect and clean / wire brush sensor connections and disconnect and spray electrical contact cleaner onto wire harness connections in the engine bay.

From the "Subaru Attic" in NJ: http://drive.subaru.com/Image-Gallery.aspx?tag=xt_coupe See also: http://drive.subaru.com/sum11_attic.aspx?page=1#sub

From the "Subaru Attic" in NJ: http://drive.subaru.com/sum06_attic.aspx?page=3 links also for the FF-1 and 360.

It's running now; took apart all the main electrical connectors and cleaned the contacts, loosened and cleaned / wire brushed most of the electrical grounds. There was lots of water in the exhaust from sitting so long; now gone. Clutch feels strong. To top it off, the gas tank reads full. The dl xt without power steering and air conditioning is so easy to work on - lots of engine room.

Well, it's almost running now. Redid the timing belts, roughly reset the timing and corrected the spark plug wiring. New plugs, better cap and rotor. Motor turns over, can smell fuel when I pull a plug and the timing light shows flashes but no engine start. Code 12 is the only code flashing: starter switch constantly on or off. Looked at wiring by ignition switch and see 3 clipped wires. Out of time for today; to be continued...

The alternator bracket looks like the same as the spfi dl bracket.

Zukira, I'll save the delete plate for you; my driver's side mirror is black, so I'll want to match it. This dl xt does have a rear seat, but it may have been added by an earlier owner. The lack of power steering and no air conditioning really will make working on the engine easy - lots of access compared to my previous 89 xt gl with an auto trans. The guy who sold the car put a new water pump in, with new radiator hoses and then messed up the driver's side timing belt - looks like the tensioner was loosened, but not retightened before the car was started and the belt jumped some teeth. Guess I'll find out soon if the reason for the new water pump was overheating and head gaskets...

Have to redo the timing belts as a start; looking for a passenger side mirror, rear center reflector, possibly a better driver's seat. Know more next weekend. It's just fwd with the 5-speed, 140K.

Tell us where you are; I'm sure someone nearby would help.

Let's see the rest of your "OMEGA GT coupe"; is that the same as a 3-door?

My recent suspected clutch noise turned out to be coming from the power steering pump - the noise change when the clutch was pushed in was from the rpm change the power steering pump experienced.

Update: The noise actually was coming from the power steering pump and not the clutch bearings. Had a spare power steering pump and now the noise is gone. Anyone ever rebuild a power steering pump?

Yes, more noise when the clutch pedal is pushed. Guess this points more towards the release bearing.

My 88 dr wagon has recently developed a bearing noise at low rpm that goes away when driving; no noise at idle. I think it is either the pilot bearing or the release bearing. Having just switched the motor in early August, I'm not too enthused about pulling the motor again. If the noise is from either of these two bearings, what's the worst case for a failure? Any other possibility for the noise?

Have you done the basics lately: check air filter, check timing, check color of spark plugs, check distributor cap? Other possibilities - fuel starvation due to partially clogged fuel filter and a throttle position sensor that needs the connector contacts cleaned.

Good find; looks like it didn't come with factory ac, which helps keep the engine from running hot and eases access for maintenance. Too bad no factory roof rack. I'd second the hitch mounted bike rack - too easy to scratch up the tailgate with the clip on bike racks.

Helped a friend do a head gasket on his '90 Loyale and was surprised when after 3 weeks he got the milkshake back. At the time, I was a little bothered by the antifreeze he used and it appears that his use of the red - RV antifreeze for water tanks was the cause of the brand new Felpro head gasket disintegrating; we also took the 2nd head off and that head gasket was also mush. Lot of wasted time and cost because of someone going cheap on antifreeze.

Great job on rescuing that 3-door; I like the color and interior. The 3-door is my favorite of the ea82 series - still looks modern, great economy, plenty of cargo space. My 87 gl 3-door is the 4wd and I converted from auto to manual d/r. You have given me some ideas on upgrades, thanks a lot. BTW, is your You-tube video #20 on your 3-door on the web?

Swapped out my problematic gl wagon motor for a lower mileage one that I had resealed last year; took off all the air conditioning parts in the engine bay and put on dl alternator brackets. Could be time for a new project now that the 88 gl wagon and 87 gl 3-door are running well.

Yes, 14mm.

Sorry, but I can't follow your logic about not disconnecting the green connector. You have missed my point about using sealant around your temperature sensor - ask yourself how a sensor with one wire might not be able to work properly if it is insulated where it is supposed to be grounded...

You say "the green plug is plugged to green plug with eachother" and people have told you twice to disconnect them. (When they are connected, you are disabling the electronic vacuum advance.) Are you using NGK plugs? Do you have good ground connections from your engine to frame? Did you use some sealant when you installed your throttle body temperature sensor? How did you correctly set your timing?