Subaru_dude

I need a heater hose (apparently an internal component), anti back fire valve, accelerator valve, basic tune-up, coolant system flush, carburetor adjustment, transmission crossmember braces or something... all for $1,050. How much if this can I do myself within an hour or 2? I'm running out of money.... lol.

I did a search but didn't really find anything... what's the biggest size tires I can fit on a stock GL without having to do any modifications? won't be able to afford a lift for a while, and I don't even know if I want one cuz after thinking a while..... I do a fair amount of highway driving and I don't want my already boxy wagon to catch anymore air.. so I thought a viable alternative would be to get bigger wheels and/or tires. and I may be willing to do a few mods..... like maybe some cutting around the fenderwells... I want at least 8 inches of clearance with the suspension adjusted all the way up. Thanks in advance... sorry if a similar thread has already been posted elsewhere.

I had an idea like that once..... I thought about somehow creating an axle that could be very easily disconnected from the diff without having to worry about taking everything apart. Maybe an axle that had a clip in the middle of it and could be removed..... DAMN it.. if only I would have patented it, I could be one rich son of a b!tch by now... lol. If such a product becomes available for Subarus, it's mine.

Thanks guys. I won't worry about the dist then.... i'll just change the other stuff.

Was the EA82 the last of the non-interference engines? And what makes it non-interference? Maybe it's a dumb question...... but that's been bugging me since I heard they were non-interference. How can I tell if a dist. is new? Mine's pretty dirty.... but i haven't even taken the cap off to check it on the inside, but once I do I'd like to know what I'm looking for. Is it okay to mix synthetic and non-synthetic oils? I added a little synthetic gear oil to my diff cuz it was a little low... I don't really see how it would be a problem but I wanna be sure. I'll ask some more questions later, I'm gonna go to bed now... lol. Thanks to anybody who can answer my dumb questions.. lol

one dash is digital... which one is yours? That's basically the only difference in the 2.

Thanks, I'll definitely check into that before thinking about replacing it.

This morning, my car started runing crappy. Taking off in first... it just died and i had to restart it. After that, it would jump alot when accelerating and backfired quite a bit... there's usually just a puut puut when changing gears, but when it's cold it does it throughout most of the rev range. Constantly feels like it's gonna die... idles a little rough too. Not REALLY rough, it just sorda floats around 900 rpm more than it usually does. It almost feels like it's not running on every cylinder... but I dunno. It runs just fine once it's warmed up, but it has to be completely warmed up for all the symptoms to disappear. I'm thinking bad carb. Any of you guys have any idea what the hell is going on? I have an off road video I need to make this weekend..... I don't want to put my car in the shop. Thanks guys.

let's say you find a good 88 gl, not much rust... $1500, if even that. Plus $500-$600 in mods, if even that... I'd say it could range from $1400-$2000 total cost. And yeah, they're a very practical daily driver as well. Better on gas than the Tacoma, but it's no Honda Civic. It's no big deal if the timing belt breaks either, as the EA82 engines are non-interference. Jut put another one one and set the timing. Try to find a fuel injected one too... the carburetors get annoying. good luck finding one!! You might need it... lol.

the axle definitely shouldn't be loose..... I have a feeling whoever put your axle in definitely didn't know what they were doing.. or just didn't care. I'm not sure about the vibration though, but it does seem like a loose axle would do that. Get somebody who you know for a fact can do the job to replace it for you.

Go with a mid to late 80's Subaru GL. You could find one without too much rust and put about $600-$700 of extras into it, (3 inch lift, bigger rims and tires, skid plates) and you would have an extremely capable off-road vehicle. Mine averages around 29 mpg... but I've heard most average around the low 20's. They are very VERY slow... but the versatility, capability, and handling will make up for it. I think you'd be happier with the Subaru if you just modify it a bit... but I think you can still make it stock through the kind of terrain you described. You'd beat the hell out of the undercarriage, but it would still make it:grin: . -Jordan

That is the most awesome station wagon I have ever seen in my life. The ULTIMATE sleeper. My car's slow..... lol. but it's good on gas..... If I still had my 1993 Loyale.... you would have some major air footage, lol.

Update: Put a new bulb in right front turn signal, still didn't work. Turned on the parking lights on to see if the light on the side of the headlight worked on that same side, it didn't work either. That leaves me with basically one option left.... wiring. I checked all the wiring just behind the headlight next to the evaporative emissions canister, and it all looks okay... but I only looked at it for about 5 mins. Can I find the problem by simply following the wiring until I find a chewed-threw spot? Thanks in advance.

I have the same problem with my 87 GL... I have no idea why it does that though, sorry I can't help.

I'll check it as soon as it stops raining, lol. One more question, my lights that are supposed to come on in the rear when I have my headlights on don't come on. I checked all the fuses and they were all fine. My right front turn signal doesn't have a bulb though... do you think that might be the problem? Thanks for the info about the MAF.

You were referring to the throttle body, but it's carbureted. Is it only the fuel injected versions that have this MAF sensor? I'll look for it anyway and if I can't find it I'll assume it doesn't have one I guess, lol. And I only thrashed it around that once, lol... now I try to stick with just mud and not so much seriously gnarly terrain. Thanks for the info.

Mounts look just fine. The car still does that little stop-go thingy at least once every couple days... other than that running GREAT. Still thinking it's the MAF sensor.... and oh yeah, I got pulled over by a cop a little while ago, I had no night-light tail lights. Just the brake lights. It turns out it was the same cop that harassed my friend (who was riding with me) on his 18th birthday for being out past "curfew" which is bs cuz he's 18 and can do whatever he pleases as long as it doesn't break the law... and I'm pretty sure walking home from work doesn't break the law. The cop had a fellow officer sitting in the passenger seat in the car with him, my friend talked to him about cerfew and the officer told him that it doesn't apply to him because he's 18 and the cop that did that was just harassing him. He gave the other cop a very cold look and got in the car, obviously very VERY pissed or acting so to intimidate the cop. they left and we went home with our emergency flashers on. They said that would be a good idea. Wierd thing is, I had a big time tendancy to speed in my sisters Honda cuz that was just about all it was good for, yet I never got pulled over. I've had 2 Subarus, just about the slowest cars on the road, and I've gotten pulled over in both of them. At least the 2nd time wasn't a ticket or anything.

I'll take a look at the mounts. The 4WD words fine now...... took it to the lake and tried it out in the gravel Hi and Lo, seemed just fine. BTW, not to make anybody jealous, but I'm getting PHENOMENAL gas mileage.... 31 mpg. Amazing. 9 gallons of gas got me 281 miles. WOW. I haven't been keeping up on the gas mileage until now cuz I figured I'd get disappointed, but hell no. That's way better than I ever could have imagined I would be getting. I wonder if changing the spark plugs, plug wires, dist. cap would make it any better:D . Anywayzz... back to the subject. I also got 2 new tires not long ago... getting a wheel alignment Thursday. Oh yeah, the brake fluid light keeps coming on but the brake fluid level seems fine. I'm supposed to check it while the car is just sitting there, right? Do I have to disengage the E-brake to check the fluid? Thanks for the help... I'm aiming for about 400,000 miles with this baby, lol.

yeah, i think it could be the CV joint. it definitely sounds like it's coming from the passenger front.

after a little research..... my oil pressure is fine. my 4WD is back to normal too.... dunno what was up with it that day. I still hear knocking going up steep hills though.... and I hear a slight squeaking that sorda follows the rpms of the engine.... sounds like some kinda drive bearing to me. And I was cruising down the highway yesterday and it suddenly felt like my foot was taken completely off the gas and then 2 seconds later put back on. MAF sensor? fuel pump? Where's the MAF sensor?

I want my Subaru to be an effective knockout punch to the local rednecks in their Fords and Chevy's. What do I need to do to make my Subaru an efficient redneck killing machine? I know I want a 3" lift and better skid plates too.... where can I find durable, inexpensive skid plates? And what kind of tires would be best for both on-road and muddy coniditions? I don't want tires that make too much noise on the pavement. thanks to anybody who responds. Looking forward to showin 'em up.

I got stuck in Rogersville (about 50 miles from here)... about 2 years ago I was driving around in a "neighborhood" with nothing but dirt roads looking for a 4WD Subaru for sale by owner somewhere around there, and driving up what I thought was just a fairly steep gravel road was actually something like quicksand, I was in my 1993 2wd Loyale and well, I got stuck. Turns out it was the guys driveway too. Decided not to buy the car cuz it was pretty rusty and it sounded like crap. Anyway, he pulled me out with his 1998 Subaru Forester and I made sure not to slow down when I got stuck.

I could shift in and out of 4WD just fine, but it wouldn't move in first gear while in 4WD. didn't try 2nd, and I don't think I tried putting it in 4WD low either, but I can't quite remember. and I fixed the fan guard thingy.... the fan was scraping the bottom of the fan guard so I got under the car with a pry-bar and just pulled down on the bottom to pull the dent out..... and that worked (how the dent got there I have no idea). But it was still scraping the edge of the radiator so I just unbolted the top of it and put a couple washers between the actual radiator and the fan guard assembly. Worked out fine, no more noise. I'll get under the car and check out what's up with the 4WD...... and I'll take it to the lake sometime in the next few days and drive around in the gravel in 4WD and let you know if there's anything strange. And the knocking noise is only really noticeable when climbing a steep hill or giving it alot of gas. And what's the normal oil pressure at idle? When I first start it, it stays around 45 psi... but when it's warmed up, it's about at 25-30 psi. Thanks for the help guys. P.S. I don't think the knocking could be because of the oil pan getting bashed because there's a skid plate there. But it does have some fist-sized holes in it to change oil, access oil filter etc.

after more inspection... the fan is actually scraping the edge of the radiator. I suspect that it has just slipped off the motor a bit, but right now I'm letting it cool off so I can get in there without much worry about getting too warm. :cool: And when I was trying to remove the skid plate earlier to change the oil, the front bolt that is attached to the underskirt (one is missing) would turn and turn, but wouldn't loosen. Is there another nut on the other side? And I know this is probably normal, but after all that abuse I'm hearing "knock knock knocking" noises coming from the.. what sounds like the engine compartment, while I'm moving. Sorta sounds like it's coming from the passenger side just on the other side of the firewall. Normal or should I find out where it's coming from?

I was mudding today and I hit a big dip, and i immediatly heard a loud grinding noise. I found out after some inspection that the noise was coming from the electric fan... it was scraping against the metal cover. Would it be okay if I simply removed this cover? and after I pulled out of the hole, I suddenly couldn't move in 4wd high or low... I couldn't move until I took it out of 4wd. It seems fine now.... I just moved it from my lower driveway to my upper in 4wd and nothing seemed wrong. Could this become a problem later on? thanks, Jordan