4WD Low range, low power, valve clacking, and poor fuel economy = 1998 GL?

[Fairbanks]

I just picked up a 1988 Subaru GL fuel injected. It has some valve clicking that goes away when warm, and some grinding noise tied to tire rotation speed from the driver's side from wheel area I can't seem to isolate. Perhaps calipers since it does it with the wheel off, though much quieter. The real problems I've noticed however are:

 

- I can't seem to get it into 4WD Low (tried doing it stopped, in neutral, rolling in second gear with clutch in, and rolling in reverse with clutch in)

- It's hugely underpowered, like having to shift into 2nd gear to go up a hill I was able to accelerate up in 4th gear in my 1991 Legacy

- I'm only getting 20 mpg in mostly 55 mph highway driving in mild temperatures

 

Things I've checked out so far:

- New wires, plugs, and distributer

- Oil change to 10w/40 for valve noise (no difference)

- Tie rod ends and rack & pinion adjustment for grinding noise (eliminated noises while turning, but not while driving straight)

- Air filter replacement

- New battery

- Oil pressure is 55 psi under acceleration, 25 - 30 psi at idle

- Thermostat is good

 

Things I was told about the car:

- Car was sitting for three years, after which the following were installed:

- New timing belt

- New oil pan gaskets

- New fuel filter and pump

- New water pump and thermostat

 

Thanks for your help!

Edited May 5, 2015 by Fairbanks

[l75eya]

The valve clacking sounds like the famous "tick of death" that ea82 motors are prone to. It's not as ominous as it sounds though, it's due to an oil pressure situation that is typically remedied by replacing the oil pump gasket. I'd replace the pump itself as well in my opinion, considering you have to get in there anyway to change the seal.

 

Regarding the inability to get in to 4 lo, are you getting in to 4 hi no problem?

 

Regarding power, check your timing. Spfi should be at 20* but when you check it you have to connect two electrical connectors at the drivers side firewall so the engine runs at a set idle speed with no advance.

Your fuel filter is right there too, I would put a new one on while you're at it. Relieve the fuel system pressure before disconnecting the lines by disconnecting power from the fuel pump and then cranking the motor. Disconnect the battery before you work on any fuel lines.

 

You mean 1988, right? I've yet to see a 98 and I imagine you would have the only one in the world if that were true :-P

[l75eya]

Oh and the oil pressure readings will still read ok even with the tick of death problem you're having. That gauge isn't too accurate anyhow.

[TomRhere]

I would pull the outer timing covers and check that things are all as they should be with the cam timing.

[Fairbanks]

Thanks guys, I'll check it out. Any idea on the 4WD shifting?

[Subasaurus]

You mean 1988, right? I've yet to see a 98 and I imagine you would have the only one in the world if that were true :-P

i've got a 1888 Thomas Edison edition Subaru and a 1998, the 1888 seems to be horse power driven and the 1998 Loyale is a hybrid i picked up before they were discontinued.

 

but no really, the "grinding noise" your hearing is probably a wheel bearing, i had a bad one on the back passenger one i had to change. you've got good oil pressure, they aren't exact but are enough to somewhat see whats going on, but you should consider doing an oil flush to clean your lifters, they might not be inflating all the way cuz of gunk and stuff. note: when you do an oil flush, you spoil the oil and must change the oil and filter, so do it on your next oil change, it woun't hurt anything. also put "highmileage oil" on the next oil change, might help some. i went extreme with the lifters (drove me insane) i took it all apart and changed every lifter and rocker from a junkyard vehicle with 65,000miles.

and as I75eya said, change your fuel filter, or atleast blow some air through it (backwards) and see if that changes anything, if it does, replace it. should fix your power issue if its that, but also note, this is an EA engine, EJ's are more like a modern gasoline engine while the EA82 drives more like a diesel, your not going to break any speed records any time soon with 90ponies but its a very reliable engine.

Edited May 5, 2015 by Subasaurus

[Numbchux]

Technically, they are not lifters.....they are hydraulic lash adjusters. And in my experience, they prefer thinner oil. Your oil pressure readings sound good, so I wouldn't mess with the pump, for now. I would throw some sea foam in the oil for a hundred miles or so, and then do an oil change back to 10w30. That should clean things out quite a bit.

 

How long has it been driven since it was sitting? Those HLAs tend to stick after sitting. I've had a few EA82s, and an ER27 that sat for awhile and made a nasty racket. After a few oil changes, they quieted down considerably.

 

 

Grinding noise from the wheel pretty much has to be either pads or wheel bearing. A caliper will cause issues, and may have killed one or both of the pads, but will not directly cause grinding. I couldn't believe how much better my first '88 drove once getting that bad wheel bearing out of it! That could be a major cause of your power/mileage issues.

 

 

While on paper, loosing 50hp but also 500 lbs or so going from the Legacy to the GL sounds like it shouldn't be that bad, but the way the EA82 delivers it's 90 hp is pathetic compared to the EJs. They are VERY slow. But, you should definitely be able to get better than 20mpg. I second pulling the outer timing belt covers and making sure the cam timing is spot on, and checking the ignition timing.

 

 

I'll second 175eya's question of whether you can get into 4WD Hi OK, and not Lo. Even though they are on the same control lever, the Hi/Lo and 4WD mechanisms are very different. I can see having an issue preventing shifting into 4WD. But if that works, I don't see a likely way that Hi/Lo wouldn't. There is an adjustment in the linkage between the 4WD part and the Lo range lever, but it shouldn't have to be adjusted except when initially assembling the transmission. It should shift just as smoothly and easily as any other gear.

[Fairbanks]

Thanks for all the awesome info! To answer some of the follow up questions:

 

- The car was sitting for a claimed 3 years before I picked it up. It bogs at 5200 rpm, which could be the fuel filter, or other cylinder buildup. I'll replace that this afternoon.

 

- I'll try the seafoam treatment. Driving around, it does remind me of a early 80's tercel I picked up 15 year ago which had significant carbon buildup from being run at low rpms only for years. That cleared up after a couple thousand open highway miles.

 

- 4WD high works great. I use it every day during thaw. I've seen motocross courses tamer than my driveway.

 

- I've given the wheel with the grinding noise the wiggle test to check the bearings. It seems tight. I'll check it periodically throughout the summer.

[Subasaurus]

Thanks for all the awesome info! To answer some of the follow up questions:

 

- It bogs at 5200 rpm, which could be the fuel filter, or other cylinder buildup. I'll replace that this afternoon.

 

- I've given the wheel with the grinding noise the wiggle test to check the bearings. It seems tight. I'll check it periodically throughout the summer.

if it keeps bogging down at 5,200 rpm after you replace the fuel filter, its probably your cats, mine would bog down after 4,500 and i couldn't understand why, 3 months later they finally gived when i floored it to get infront of someone on the highway and sounded like a bunch of rocks in my engine, went to a muffler shop and gutted (2 of them) for $60.

 

-check your laws if you go that route, in Texas a vehicle after 25years of age is exempt from emissions, not sure about Alaska.

 

make sure when you do the wiggle test you do it when the tire is floating in the air and wiggle the tire up and down if its the front ones since the steering ball joint will mess with you if that has wear (replaced both of mine a year ago), back ones you can do anyway. (Always lifted and in the air, this will give you an accurate test, only the real bad bearings you can do while the weight of the vehicle is on the tire)

Edited May 6, 2015 by Subasaurus

[Numbchux]

Thanks for all the awesome info! To answer some of the follow up questions:

 

- The car was sitting for a claimed 3 years before I picked it up. It bogs at 5200 rpm, which could be the fuel filter, or other cylinder buildup. I'll replace that this afternoon.

 

Yep, I saw that. I'm wondering how long it's been driven after you picked it up

 

EA82s do not use taper roller bearings in the front like most automotive wheel bearings. You can have noise without play. Good news is they're cheap to buy, and not terribly difficult to replace.

 

 

 

 

Low range thing is a problem, and I'm really not sure what exactly would cause that. Just brainstorming here....There's a rod coming straight from that shift lever to the back of the transmission. In the rear of the transmission it engages the rear driveline. Once moved through the 4WD position, it pushes on a second linkage that travels externally along the transmission to a lever near the bellhousing that shifts the low range. I actually have 2 D/Rs apart in my basement right now, and I just went and played with the mechanisms. The only place I see that it could bind is in the synchros for lo range.

 

That said, I had a '94 Legacy that we could not get into 2nd gear when we first drove it (was a flood salvage...couldn't test drive initially). 3 Quarts of Castrol HypoyC 80w90 and one quart of Rislone Engine Treatment (yes, you read that right, engine treatment), and we got another 100k miles out of that car (280k total, death by rust). I would try that, and see if that helps. The low range gearset is in a place that it would be dry while sitting, so it might have some corrosion on it, and a good fluid change could help drastically.

Edited May 6, 2015 by Numbchux

[Fairbanks]

Yep, I saw that. I'm wondering how long it's been driven after you picked it up

 

EA82s do not use taper roller bearings in the front like most automotive wheel bearings. You can have noise without play. Good news is they're cheap to buy, and not terribly difficult to replace.

 

Gotcha. I misread your last post. 20 - 30 miles every day for the past three weeks. I think low end torque (2nd and 3rd gear) is improving, but hard saying without any way to quantify it besides reckoning.

 

Clogged cats also crossed my mind. You can do just about anything in Alaska. I'll check around to see if I can get away with a cat clean out.

[Subasaurus]

Clogged cats also crossed my mind. You can do just about anything in Alaska. I'll check around to see if I can get away with a cat clean out.

you will notice the amount of power by alot if it is the cats, will feel like a compleately different engine, also since you live in alaska are these old gen subarus common up there?

 

quick fact-as numbchux stated, front bearings are way cheaper than the rear splined bearings, about $20 each for fronts and theres 4, 2 on each tire, (very easy to change). The rears are $60-$80 but 2 things, one you need a press to get the race out or if you have a good garage then you can do it at home and two, when you buy the rear bearings it comes as 3 pieces, the race and the "sandwich" of the 2 bearings that hug the race. so technically one bearing in the rear (in a way since thats how it comes in the box).

Edited May 6, 2015 by Subasaurus

[Fairbanks]

There are tons of older Subaru's up here. People love them. I'll look into doing the bearings. $28 per bearing and $7.99 and $6.99 for the seals. Alaska prices.

 

- I seafoamed the intake, fuel, and oil with no noticeable changes in performance.

 

- 4WD low range could be a syncro thing, but if that's the case I should be able to grind it into gear. I've messed around with it quite a bit now. The shifter has a noticeable stop point for 4WD high range which works fine. It also has a noticeable stop point for low range, but upon releasing the clutch, the transfer case is in neutral position. The low range light is illuminated in this position. The lever can be pushed further forward - about 2 inches - with very little resistance. At full forward position, the transfer case grinds in all gears and neutral with no engagement, almost as though I've extended the gear set past the appropriate position.

 

- I'm picking up the fuel filter today

 

- The exhaust is mostly rust free with the exception of the muffler. I'm thinking of pulling the cats myself and installing a new muffler, but this car is becoming somewhat of a time / money sink. On the other hand, when isn't a car a time and money sink?

[Subasaurus]

There are tons of older Subaru's up here. People love them. I'll look into doing the bearings. $28 per bearing and $7.99 and $6.99 for the seals.

this car is becoming somewhat of a time / money sink. On the other hand, when isn't a car a time and money sink?

$5-6 here for seals,

and what motivated me on fixing my vehicle was that i still havent seen a 3rd gen 1984-1994 in the 2 years ive owned my vehicle. its quite nice driving a rare unique car down here in Texas instead of a corolla.

you have it easy, i had a bearing issue, poor oil pressure (new oil pump) new fuel pump, fuel filter, all semi new hydraulic lifters/lash adjusters and rockers from a 60,xxx mile vehicle, new headgaskets, new belts, water pump and timing belts with the tensioners, seals on the cams to new radiator, radiator hoses and heater hoses to ball joints and 4new tires, did i mention a check engine light? that was a new MAF which was well over $100 i can't remember anymore since it was one of my first projects, new electric fan to no radio in the vehicle and the bushing on my shifter, alignment since steering wheel was 3/4 crooked, spedometer didn't work and my KIKI air conditioner was seized up so had to get a whole new compressor, alternator diodes were dying, many many other things like 3 new CV axles and boots for the rack and pinion as they were torn, plus a new power steering system since there was sand in there since those boots were torn.

 

so trust me your vehicle is far from being a money pit.

Edited May 7, 2015 by Subasaurus