edrach

Aba4430 is correct, you should fuse the line from the battery to the fan. In the event anything downsteam of the battery should ground out (including the fan), you would smoke the wires (and maybe more) in that circuit. Also, if you're drawing power from underneath the dash for the lamp and relay coil, the line you use is likely already fused so you wouldn't need that fuse once you verify that fact.

Just to clarify McDave's comments. There are two full lines on the overflow bottle. The lower line is the proper level when the engine has had overnight to cool down. The upper line is the full mark for when the engine is fully warmed up. Now let's try to keep everything simple and not suspect the worst. First, replace the radiator cap with a new, OEM cap. The radiator cap is actually a two way valve. When the engine is warming up the coolant expands and the cap opens up when the pressure reaches 13 psi and allows the coolant to flow into the overflow bottle. When the drive is over and the car is parked, the return valve in the radiator cap allows the coolant back into the radiator. All this works fine as long as the plastic tubing is tight at both ends and has no cracks, holes or anything that will impede the siphon action of the coolant flow (flow out is by pressure; flow back is by siphon action). The other culprit is if there is an air bubble in the coolant large enough to disrupt the flow of coolant driven by the water pump. If the bubble lodges in the water pump, it stops pumping coolant and the temp guage suddenly shoots up; often momentarily. Plus if the air bubble gets to the overflow line, it allows coolant into the overflow bottle but disrupts the siphon return of coolant into the radiator. Now you have too much in the overflow tank and not quite enough in the radiator. A sticky radiator cap can impede this flow in either, or both, directions with similar results. The technique that McDave described to you is a way to insure that there are no longer any air bubbles in the coolant large enough to screw up the system. Air in the system has all the ugly symptoms of a bad head gasket: intermittant overheating and excess coolant in the overflow tank. All this being said (sorry), an experienced mechanic can eliminate the air bubble if it's there as well as run a hydro carbon test on the coolant to see if there is an actual head gasket issue. So have the car checked and put your mind at ease........and let us know how you made out. I wish you the best outcome; I love every Subaru I've ever owned and wouldn't trade any of them in prematurely (even the "naughty" ones that gave me some grief).

85K is pretty early to have HG issues but it's certainly possible. A friend has a '99 Legacy GT and managed to get 150K out of his 2.5L engine so you are probably okay. But it should get checked out by a reputable shop.

The coolant was blue??? Sounds like windshield washer fluid to me. Washer reservoir is pretty close to the firewall. Overflow for the coolant is mounted just to the right of the radiator and pretty close to the front of the car. I've never heard of blue coolant; green or orange, yes but not blue. Doesn't mean it can't be blue but it would be unusual.

Just curious, but the garage wasn't Suburb (on Lake City Way), or was it?

None of the previous answers are incorrect; the symptom you see could be thermostat, the fan not coming on when stopped, the water pump or other things. Worst case: imminent head gasket failure; Best case, an air bubble in the coolant that needs to be purged. In any event, unless you're a home mechanic I'd suggest taking it to someone you can trust who won't charge you for a head gasket you don't need but will diagnose the problem and fix it. Your good fortune is you live in Seattle. You won't find a better shop than Smart Service (http://www.smart-service.com/) in Shoreline or Mukilteo. Tell them someone from the USMB sent you. It's not that I don't trust dealers, but I've always searched for the independent shop that has quality mechanics. Besides they are generally less expensive.

One last thought, if the timing cover wasn't properly installed, it will certainly rub on the harmonic balancer. Make sure thefront covers are all evenly seated on the rear parts.

Interesting, looking at the Addco rear bar on another member's Brat, I saw how the Whiteline swaybar needed to be mounted. They are virtually identical (if I remembered the name correctly).

Is the bolt tight? Get that checked fast because if it chews up the woodruff key and crank it is a very expensive repair. When the engine is idling, does the crank pulley (harmonic balancer) wobble. It will wobble for one of two reasons: Bolt has loosened or the rubber insert between the inner and outer portion is compromised. Either fault should be corrected sooner rather than later. Worst case for the repair (BEFORE anything gets worse), is a new harmonic balancer and the labor to put it in (less than 1/2 hour).

I think that's what GD said. Just be sure that you'll be able to weld in the portion that he said. If I remember correctly you have to cut a part of the original bar off to get it to fit. I have neither the welding stuff for that install so I opted for the Whiteline; more expensive but do-able for me.

Ben T. recently posted they will re-schedule if they find a venue. Sadly, I think that the Hillsboro site might by going away.

Sometimes..... Happy Birthday; I hope you have many more.

Check the upper heater hose and look for the round mound attached to the engine; two bolts and the theremostat is inside the round dome. Use an OEM replacement; they do work better.

I don't think we had to weld the Whiteline version. Worst part was figuring out how it needed to be mounted since the generic instructions had it pointed in the wrong direction for the Brat.

Google is my friend:http://www.whiteline.com.au/default.asp?page=/swaybars.htm Local supplier is Rallitek in Portland. I'm sure there are others. http://www.rallitek.com/ Tell them edrach at the USMB sent you.

It overheats in town at low speeds or idling. Check the fan which doesn't sound like it's coming on. Problem could be the fan, the thermoswitch mounted on the radiator, or a missing ground wire (not replaced with the new radiator). Check the thermoswitch; if it has only one terminal, the ground return goes through the ground wire; if that's missing, it's the cause of your problem.

Whiteline makes a rear swaybar for the brat. I installed one on my '84 and it improved handling quite a bit. Only downside is that Whiteline's instructions are generic and totally useless for the Brat. I believe I posted our installation on the USRM a while back. Here's the thread: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=76011

Fog lights: Use a relay to activate them. A fused 12V line to the relay contacts and then to the foglights. Coil activation can go to either the low or high beam, whichever you wish.

Are you removing the engine or the transmission? If I remember correctly, it's 5. Two around the starter motor, one more on top and two nuts on the bottem.

Our "work" Brat was due for its emissions test this month. I cleaned up the air filter, set the mixture halfway between rich and lean, adjusted the idle to around 975 and took it down to emissions. Passed with flying colors. Gotta love that weber! Since it's an '84 this will be the last emissions test this car will have to undergo unless it moves out of state.

Standard stuff here: when was the last time the air filter was changed? Plugs? Ignition wires? Is the car an automatic or 5MT? AWD or FWD? Need more input.

Another tip for your aging tranny. I had a '91 Legacy wagon which I bought with 93K miles on it which had a slight crunch going into 2nd. I changed the gearoil at that time with Redline 75W-90NS; after 5K of use the crunch when away. At 195K, I changed the gearoil again (a little past the 30K interval:eek: ) and used Lucas 75W-90 gearoil; the crunch came back big time in almost all shifting. Three thousand miles later, I drained the Lucas gear oil and put in the Redline 75W-90NS gearoil. No more shifting difficulties. Sold the car to a friend at 200K. Transmission is still working fine at 210K.

I hate to rub salt in the wounds, but didn't I offer you a used, working MAF for $50 shipped? If nothing else, now I may ask more for the next one. Glad to hear your car is fixed.

I have some used rockers that I cut out of a "donor" brat a while back. Not perfect but if you're interested, drop me an email address and I'll send some pics. It'll certainly be less expensive than new (if they're available) even with the shipping.

Unless you have the beginning of rust in the area where you'd like to have the carrier. But your other points are excellent.