nvrsadie Posted September 16, 2004 Share Posted September 16, 2004 Hello all... I am new to the message board, but an old subaru enthusiat. My wife got me started on them with her 1983 GL 4wd wagon. It is still on the road with 197,000 miles and counting. Also just sold a 1991 Loyale wagon with 128,000 miles, and bought a 1999 forester with 25,000 miles. They are great cars. The main reason for the chat is the 1983 GL 4wd wagon. I love the car, it is an automatic with the 1.8 L carbureted engine. The problem is rust, and frequent, actually very frequent, right front wheel bearing and axle dust boot and CV joint failure. I spent 10 months worth of evenings and weekends repairing the rusted body in 1995, but since then our Pennsylvania winters have taken their toll again. I just refuse to stop driving it until I get 200,000 miles on it. The wheel bearing problem has me stumped, and I pride myself on being a decent mechanic. I have replaced the right front wheel bearings and seals no less than 3 times in the last 50,000 miles, and they need replacing again (yes, I am using good quality high temperature grease). Likewise with the axle assembly (CV joint). The balljoint was replaced also and needs it again. I have even changed the knuckle housing thinking it could have an unseen defect. I have used both a punch and a bearing press to install the wheel bearings. Bearing life was no different for either method. There has to be some kind of allignment and or structural problem with the car. I am open to any and all suggestions. Keep in mind that the left front wheel bearings and axle assembly have been relatively trouble free, requireing replacement only once so far in the life of the car. After you figure that one out, how about my no-crank problem? Occasionally, the car will not turn over at all, but if you hold the key in the crank position for 20 seconds or more sometimes the engine will turn over. It does not do this all the time, only occasionally, but always at the worst possible moment (Murphy's law). It seems to occur more frequently in the cold weather months. I have tried all the usual fixes, cleaned all terminals, replaced battery cable, replaced battery, changed starter, etc. Old vehicles are always fun. Hope I wasn't too long winded. Thanks for listening. I will try to take a picture of the car and post it in the forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roxtar Posted September 16, 2004 Share Posted September 16, 2004 wow another "low mileage" subie welcome to the board. no idea on your cold cranking problem other than the stuff you've already said you replaced. maybe its the ignition switch itself... metal gets cold, contracts, doesn't make good contact, your hand on the key warms it up enough to get it going, (physics... not mechanics) I am even more lost on your bearing problem. sounds like somethign might be SERIOUSLY out of alignment, but if it is on a front wheel, i'd think it would pull like mad one direction or another and you'd have significant abnormal wear on your tire. i'm pretty clueless but most of the guys on here really know their stuff, you came to the right place. they're helped me out plenty of times Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baccaruda Posted September 16, 2004 Share Posted September 16, 2004 your front end problem is either alignment or motor and/or transmission mounts, i'll bet. welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subiemech85 Posted September 16, 2004 Share Posted September 16, 2004 when it decides to NOT start, bypass the ignition switch with the key off, in park, run a hot wire to + coil and another wire to the male connecter on the back of the starter, it should work then Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nvrsadie Posted September 22, 2004 Author Share Posted September 22, 2004 your front end problem is either alignment or motor and/or transmission mounts, i'll bet. welcome! Thanks for the advice on the motor mounts/alignment. As the wheel bearings begin to fail, the car does start pulling to the right when you take your hands off of the wheel, and there is a pronounced vibration in the steering wheel at certain speeds. I have suspected for a while that this was a major contributor to the problem, but could never figure out a good way to check the mounts. I have both the Haynes manual and the Subaru factory repair manual to refer to, but they dont say much about the mounts. How much play are they supposed to have? I replaced one side of the transmission mount about 5 years ago, and I think there may be a problem in that area again. They are a major pain to change without a lift. Perhaps I should just replace all the mounts, and eliminate that as a possibility? The next question then becomes, can all of the mounts be replaced with the engine in the car? Are used mounts O.K. to put in? How much of a pain in the butt will this be for a guy without a lift. I am restricted to a floor jack, jackstands and blocks, and a come-along I can hang from a hook in the garage ceiling (strong enough to lift a V-8 engine however). Thanks again for the advice, and keep drivin' those subies! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted September 22, 2004 Share Posted September 22, 2004 Welcome to the forum. Good to have another Soob fanatic on board. I think some fixes are best left up to the pros and when it comes to wheel alignment I think this is one of those areas. They have the special tools needed for the job. The bearing problem may be due to a warped hub possibly and is putting excessive pressure on the bearing. I would speak to a shop mechanic and tell him what has gone on in the past. The starting problem may be due to a intermitant ignition switch as suggested. Also check the fuseable links for a loose connection problem. I would have a test light handy for when this problem happens again. You may want to keep it in the car. Study the circuit to power the starter solenoid and then check out some key test points that you can get to and check for power, like the switched 'start' side of the ignition switch. With the proper testing and tools you should be able to pin this down fairly fast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nvrsadie Posted September 22, 2004 Author Share Posted September 22, 2004 Welcome to the forum. Good to have another Soob fanatic on board. I think some fixes are best left up to the pros and when it comes to wheel alignment I think this is one of those areas. They have the special tools needed for the job. The bearing problem may be due to a warped hub possibly and is putting excessive pressure on the bearing. I would speak to a shop mechanic and tell him what has gone on in the past. The starting problem may be due to a intermitant ignition switch as suggested. Also check the fuseable links for a loose connection problem. I would have a test light handy for when this problem happens again. You may want to keep it in the car. Study the circuit to power the starter solenoid and then check out some key test points that you can get to and check for power, like the switched 'start' side of the ignition switch. With the proper testing and tools you should be able to pin this down fairly fast. Cougar, This is good commonsense advice for sure. I never thought of the warped hub possibility. I guess a dial indicator with a magnetic base would check that one out pretty quick. I will be working on the car in the next couple of months, and I will post my results and/or conclusions. Thanks again! Nvrsadie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hush777 Posted September 22, 2004 Share Posted September 22, 2004 Welcome to the board. Just a thought here, About the wheel bearings. Chrysler had problems with their k-car series eating wheel bearings and axles. They did extensive testing and found out there was pitting in the bearing, and that it was cause by a lack of ground from the engine to the body. The system was using the axle bearing for the ground, causing arcing on the bearing. Might add an extra ground cable from the engine to the body. Hush Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bajavwnsoobnut Posted September 22, 2004 Share Posted September 22, 2004 as for the Starting problem sounds like a problem I had with my 86 GL 4wd and it was traced down to old wiring from the shifter sensors for the neutral safety switch so I made a bypass by getting a relay and attaching the power wire from the actuation side of the relay and ran it to ground while having a wire from the battery going to the switch side then to the solenoid where that power wire was disconnected the power wire I am talking about is the one that is about 18ga wire that actualy actuates the solenoid and starts the starter and another thing you can do is take the starter out and disect the solenoid and clean the 2 copper contacts that are inside and also inspect them for excessive amounts of erosion as for the wheel bearings if you want to try this it has worked on my 83 so far for 6000 miles is get sealed bearings IIRC the generic bearing # is 6702 or something like that (if you have a bearing floating around look on the outer race for a 4 digit # etched into the sidewall that starts with a 6 or if need be if I remember to look tonight at work I can get the exact # cause I found them there) and you can find them at bearing stores and Grangers they are a lil spendy but they are hermeticaly sealed so no moisture can get inside if that is the case your having (rusty colored grease compared to slate grey color) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subiemech85 Posted September 22, 2004 Share Posted September 22, 2004 just think, NEVER repack wheel bearings after "swimming lessons" # please! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RallyKeith Posted September 22, 2004 Share Posted September 22, 2004 So, where in PA are you located? We get together once, twice, sometimes 3-4 times a year somewhere either in or near PA. Welcome Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomRhere Posted September 22, 2004 Share Posted September 22, 2004 On the wheel-bearings... The ground problem found in the Chrysler K cars, wasn't the only make of FWD cars to have that, they just got the Head-lines out of it. Everybody was down on Chrysler at the time. But it is a good point to look into. Also, I have found that no matter the reason I have to pull the axle nut off, I've had to re-torque the nut after about 100 miles or so of driving after initial torquing of said nut.. Maybe you need to check on that possibility. Gotten strange/wierd noises from the front wheels myself after pull/install axle(s), be they new, or be they used ones. One good clue on looseness, is car wants to dive one-way or the other when letting off of the go-pedal. On the no want to crank over problem... Pull the panel under the steering column, and find the main power feed connector to the switch. Believe it to be Pink in color, but could be wrong there. Check for dis-coloration of the connector. If present, that could be your problem. Loose fitting tabs inside said connector, causing high current draw. That don't do the connection any good. Sometimes it'll work, sometimes it won't. Thinking it was McBrat that mentioned that connector a while back on another no-crank issue. Just some thoughts on problem(s) is alll..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bajavwnsoobnut Posted September 23, 2004 Share Posted September 23, 2004 I goofed it's 6207 is the correct bearing # and just look through graingers catalog and you will find it but to warn you they are a lil spendy at like 20 bucks a pop but they are worth it to me that is lol even though I went through other means to get mine but they are being tested pretty good and I didn't pack any grease in the cavity between bearings so it is a ultimate test for sure but also look around for a bearing supply house cause there are quite a few out there the reason why I know about this is cause it was mentioned on the old board a long long time ago and I tried it first with the 76 when I found out my work has them in stock and have had good luck so far with them on just one side and the 83 has them on both sides now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Partsman Posted September 24, 2004 Share Posted September 24, 2004 6207 is the base number for the bearing. You add a suffix to show what seals it has. NAPA's supplier also adds a "J" at the end, which means it has a steel cage to hold the bearings. 6207-zj = one metal shield 6207-2zj = two metal shields 6207-rsj = one rubber seal 6207-2rsj = two rubber seals The first line bearings are pretty expensive - if you're on a budget, add a "P" to the beginning of the part number for second line bearings. We sell them for under $9 a bearing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subiemech85 Posted September 26, 2004 Share Posted September 26, 2004 The first line bearings are pretty expensive - if you're on a budget, add a "P" to the beginning of the part number for second line bearings. We sell them for under $9 a bearing. does first line mean JAPAN, or USA, and the second line mean :-\ CHINA, BRAZIL, MEXICO, or BFE? or is it some other difference? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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