Steven Romero
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Posts posted by Steven Romero
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My '86 EA82t with 145k leaks oil, but I haven't had it long enough to know how much yet. The leak appears to be coming from the front seal or the oil pump. I suspect it is the pump though as the valve train is noisy (at least it was last time my car was running...it's dead right now).
From what I can tell very little oil is being burnt (yea!) as I just changed the plugs about 3 weeks ago, and they weren't fouled. Also no smoke out the rear...just a little steam from what I suspect to be a cracked exhaust after the turbo.
./steve
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For comparison my '86 GL-10 is a Hitachi electronic. Make sure you get the right one.
./steve
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I just did this, and experienced great difficulty in getting the bolts off. I was afraid I would shear them so I was very careful about the whole process. Here is what I did:
1) spray liberally with PB Blaster each 17mm bolt in the upper shock mounting bracket
2) use a 1/2 drive extension (about 10" at a minimum), and a breaker bar to turn the bolt. If you have difficulty getting the nut to turn initially you can strike the breaker bar with a ball-peen hammer very lightly, more like a tap. This will break free any corrosion that has built up on the bolt inside the threads. I have also been told that you can heat the bolts with a torch for a minute or two, and then apply a cold water-soaked rag to the bolt head to rapidly cool it off. This has the effect of expanding (heat), and contracting (cold) the bolt inside the threads thus breaking it loose.
3) after you break the nut loose spray more PB Blaster on it, and let soak for a few minutes
4) if you encounter resistance after breaking the bolt free, and turning it a bit, spray more PB blaster on the bolt, and ratchet the bolt all the way back into the bracket. Then ratchet it back out to the point where you were stuck. Repeat this process until you don't experience a lot of resistance. Be patient. The temptation to remove the bolt at this point will be very great because of your success at breaking it free from the mount initially, but if you proceed too quickly here you will shear the bolt.
Remember the greatest tools to help you in this process are patience and PB Blaster.
Good luck.
./steve
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I'm "working" late tonight, so I haven't had time to get the covers off. I only just got the car back into my garage this afternoon.
I'll let you guys know as soon as I get them off, and have a chance to tell what is going on with the timing belts, etc..
Thanks!
EDIT:
I did try to remove the timing belt covers right after the car broke down before I called for a tow, but I wasn't able to get them off because as was mentioned the brass screws are spinning in the plastic...bother.
./steve
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What are the stats on your engine and how much would you want for it? Also would you be willing to ship it to me? On my dime of sourse.
Mike
I'm not there yet man. I'll let you know if it gets that bad though.
Thanks.
./steve
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good thing you got out of that shop, and fast. Payment plan is the tool of the wallet rapist. Another thing to consider is the keyway on the camshaft. If the key sheared, the pullly could have rotated on the cam. Definiatly an issue beween the distributor rotor and the crank pully, so left side of the engine.
Take off the top end cover on the timing belt left side, and start from there.
Can you explain a bit more about the keyway. I'm not sure what that is. If someone has a picture, that would help.
Thanks.
./steve
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When I pulled the engine out of my wagon I just moved all the ac suff out of the way. The only thing you should need to do is unbolt the compressor.
SWEET!
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As long as someone is on this topic I'd like to ask how do you go about de-pressurizing the A/C system on the car as it would seem you need to remove the A/C components, hoses, etc. when doing an engine pull...
Thanks.
./steve
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The first time I attempted to do belts on an ea 82 engine ,I had no idea what I was dealing with.The people on this board made it very easy for me.I agree with Miles Fox,do it yourself ,ask the questions here,and throw the plastic covers away.I have a spare new unused set of Pirelli belts,some used but servicable tensioners and and even a complete engine going very reasonable. If you need anything Let me know.
Regards
Jude
Jude thanks for the input. I may be PM'ing you about those belts and tensioners (and maybe the engine).
./steve
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i have had belts strip teeth in my car. turned the otor and the belt did not spin ,although the belt was not broken
i suggest doing the tim ing belts yourself and run them no covers(for future maintenance)
http://www.economysuperstar.com/milesfox/subaru/service/timingbelt.htm
You've got an interesting website there Miles....
Thanks for the tip!
./steve
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My '85 GL-10 Turbo was losing coolant, but I couldn't find the leak. Finally, after much searching I found the culprit. There is a short piece of heater hose on the passenger side under the turbo which goes from an outlet to the turbo. It was bulging and spongy. I replaced it and never had to top up the radiator since.
Thanks for the tip Dean. I'll check there after I get my car running again. It broke down Suunday. See my new thread "subie broke down, need input".
Hehe. That's life I guess.
./steve
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SHE STARTED... AND RAN!
...but not for long.
the idler pulley bearing broke, but fortunately didnt break the belts...
what was the reason it didnt start? god only knows... my friend thinks its because of the bearing and the fact that my disty rotor was bent
so i'm off to buy a new cap and rotor.but what do i do to fix the idler pulley? what part should i be looking for? i still have the pulley itself... and a shaft type lookin thing is still there where the pulley was.
any input would be appreciated... i know i got this thread going long but it was well worth it, i learned a lot, and SHE RUNS!
That's awesome dude! I hope I share your success very soon as I am experiencing a very similar problem to yours, and am probably quite a bit more ignorant about old subarus.
Congratulations!
./steve
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Wow you guys are awesome for giving me such confident support. Thanks.
I think I've decided to have the car towed to my house where I will try to find out what is wrong and go from there. I'm almost positive, as are you all, that the belt is the problem.
I guess I'm out the $78 bucks, and the towing fee (good thing I have Sprint Roadside service), but it's better than paying $300 for a simple diagnostic. That's just crazy.
You know I wish there were some non-dealer Subaru experts around, but the Subaru hasn't really caught on in the South like it has where you guys are, so there really aren't any specialty shops that I know of in Houston that deal with Subaru. I enjoy the warm weather here in Texas, but when it comes to the Subaru I wish I was up north where there was a bit more local support.
Any subaru mechanic worth his salt and a little capital would make a killing by coming to Houston and opening his own specialty shop. If you are out there consider the risk because the newer Subaru's are getting very popular here, and there really isn't a lot of expert knowledge to go around.
Thanks again. I'll update this thread in a few days when I have time to look at the car.
./steve
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Ok so I got in contact with the mechanic, and told him I was going to back out.
Even though the bill is only up to $78 now, he said that they think that the timing belt slipped, and that there is some sort of noise coming from the drivers side which makes him think that the cam is broken or that a "valve may be bent or broken", and thus the noise.
Now he's offering the initial diagnostic fee of $300, and he told me that I could make payment arrangements to make it easier to pay.
I'm very split on what to do from this point. I could have it towed all the way back, and then try to fix it myself, but if I have to pull the engine to do some sort of valve or head job, I'm screwed. I have no room or time for that, and my fiance would kill me if I told her I was going to do that.
So my choices now are:
1) have them tell me what is wrong with the car for $300, and then go from there :-\
2) have the car towed, and try to find out what is wrong with it myself, and maybe repair it
3) tell the mechanic to find a salvage yard that wants to buy it :-\
4) offer it up for sale on this board
I'm sorry I'm dumping here guys/gals, but I'm really confused about what to do now, and need to use you as a sounding board...
Damn, and this car was running great only 2 nights ago...
thanks.
./steve
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I agree. I think this is starting to get dumb real quick. $300.00 to look. That's frickin' nuts. I'm really pissed about this.
I know it would only cost me around $100 in parts to do the same job, and it would probably only take me a day considering I've never done it before, but I'm familiar with the procedure and know that it cannot be that hard.
I can't believe this.
./steve
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Things are going great now....the mechanic says he won't know anything until he takes of the cam covers, and that will only cost $300.00
. He says that they have to do this in order to find out what is wrong because they can't tell, but they think it may be a broken cam ????This is starting to get too expensive...
On top of that great news I just found out that someone opened a credit card account in my name and made an 8,500.00 balance transfer
./steve
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Either the little screw that holds the rotor in place fell out and the rotor is spinning on the shaft, or you are missing some teeth on the drivers side timing belt. If the rotor isn't turning, the plugs won't fire, because the rotor isn't connecting them to the wires. This sounds exactly like what mine did when the belt went -- looked fine still, till I took it off, and found about 2 inch of teeth missing where it went around the crankshaft pully. Try cranking it with the timing covers off, and I'll bet the drivers side timing belt doesn't move. Zeke
Thanks for the input. The mechanic said they eliminated the possibility of fuel issues, and that the spark plugs are getting spark now. In my frustration I might have had the dizzy cap off when I tested this initially, hence no spark...duh!
The rotor is missing a screw, but it was before, and the rotor shaft is notched where the rotor fits into place, so it will turn without it. I know this isn't optimal, but its the best I could do, and it did run before without said screw.
I think you are right about the timing belt, although from looking at it from under car after prying open the cam cover on the driver's side it looks to be moving, but it is awfully loose, and it appears to have moved off-center from the cam gears/idler pully. It probably is missing a tooth or something, or maybe it just got really loose.
Man I really would have liked to get my hands on this problem. I know I could have fixed it myself, and I could have learned so much, but the fiance is already starting to get a little p-o'd that I'm spending time with this car. She's actually started referring the car as another woman...bother. :-\
I hope it doesn't give me too many problems in the future because I won't be able to work on it near as much as I would like, and paying somebody else to is just dumb when I know I can fix it myself.
./steve
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A slipped timing belt will cause the plugs to fire at the wrong time (the sequence doesn't change). If you're missing a tooth or two, it will get worse with every revolution. It's really hard to diagnose a timing belt through the tiny inspection hole- you need to remove the cover and see what the belt looks like and if the cam is in time.
Yeah I was sort of afraid that would be the answer. I just replaced the plugs, wires, distributor cap, so I don't think those components have failed. Could this be a bad rotor.
I hope my distributor isn't fried. What else could cause the spark plugs not to fire.
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At least yours stayed with the car. Mine self distructed going 55 and shot right out the front of the car.
Here I drew a picture:
That rocks! Thanks for the laughs...
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Experts,
I need some input.
My subaru was finally on the road after some minor maitenance, and now she's dead in the water. She was running great, and I had just given her a nice SeaFoam treatment. The only problem I had with her was a coolant leak, and a slightly rough idle while the car was in gear.
Then yesterday I was sitting at a light, and she died.
I couldn't get her started, but I managed to push her into a paved lot, and started troubleshooting. I tried the coil and that was good. I then removed a plug, and there was no spark. Hmmmm...so I pulled the disty cap, and saw that the rotor was moving very erratically while a friend tried to crank her. This prompted me to think it may be a timing belt issue, but after prying the bottom of the cam covers open I could not see any broken belts. The top drivers side belt was really loose, but the bottom of the belt (under the tensioner) felt tight. Is this normal? I'm thinking the belts must have slipped because they were loose. Would bad timing cause a spark plug not to fire? My thinking is it would fire regardless of timing as long as the distributor was good, but just not in right sequence.
I started running out of daylight (and tools and knowledge), so I had it towed to my mechanic.
Can anyone share their loose/broken timing belt experiences with me, so I can make a comparison with my situation. I'm really worried this is going to cost me quite a bit.
Could this be a problem with:
1) the belts
2) the distributor
or
3) the starter
Thanks.
./steve
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Well, I promptly snapped the pinch bolt on the strut now. Pulled the whole strut/knuckle/CV assembly now and started the drill-out process. Only have a battery drill (DeWalt 18V) and it's dead for now (spare battery cooked a while back). EZ out didn't work out either.
NOTE: Anyone trying this for themselves, I suggest taking out the whole strut assembly... you don't even have to crack open the brake system! Live and learn I guess.
Do have someone on the site asking if it's the same on all EA82s... is it? Let me know 'cause I may take him up on the offer!
You certainly seem to be maintaining a cheery attitude despite all your troubles. That's good. I don't think I'd be handling it as well as you.
Let me tell you, if you ever need to replace the back shocks make sure you PB blast the hell out of the mounting bolts, and then work them in and out over and over again, or you'll break those off too. I just did a replacement of my rear shocks, and almost broke the bolts. They just didn't want to come off.
Did you ever get the pinch bolt out of the steering knuckle, and remove the ball joint?
./steve
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Experts,
I'm doing a SeaFoam treatment to my GL-10 this weekend, and want to avoid hyrdo-locking my motor.
What's your experience with this? How sensitive are the GL-10s to this. Should I worry?
Thanks.
./steve
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There is a screw to set minimum idle, look by the throttle arm. 750 sounds fine, isn't the spec 800 for AT?
I didn't realize there was a throttle adjustment for MPFI.
I wouldn't be worried about the 750 RPM - as you said 800 is the spec - but the engine really chugs when things are going this slow...it sounds like my subie is really gasping...
./steve
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The 1985 FSM listing for the COMPLETE transmission capacity is 7.2-7.6 quarts for a 4WD car, and 6.3-6.8 quarts for a FWD car - I don't know why there is a range for capacity, but there is
be sure to change the filter/screen too - you have to remove the pan to access it - I don't know about the Redline Dexron IV fluid, but Dexrons are backwards-compatible, so it should be fine
I do know that there is a Mobil 1 Synthetic ATF, but I have never used it (don't have an auto soob)
be careful with "flushes" - I don't have an auto soob, but I have had some "flushes" damage trannies in other brands of car because they force the fluid durring the change at a higher pressure than the tranny can handle, and it damages seals - have had this happen in several of my friend's cars - I think one was a honda, and the other a mitsubishi - don't know if it could damage the subaru tranny, just be sure to check and make sure a good shop is doing it
good luck
btw - if you want to be really good about the job, change the front diff oil to - 75W90 Mobil 1 for me - the capacity is 1.3 quarts, and you have two socket drive-style bolts on the driver's side behind the CV axle - one for fill/check, one for draining
Yeah I've been warned about the flush, but I how else do I get all the old fluid out of the torque converter?
Ignorance is grand...please enlighten me.
./steve
Anyone here from Houston?
in Meet n' Greet. Your USMB Welcome Center
Posted
Ennio you out there?
./steve