ViceMan

I am Looking at a subaru outback, manual transmission ( https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/cto/5347060844.html ) I know in general what to look for and what to ask, but What specifically is requied to be done for a 2006 subaru outback at 160,000 miles? what do I need to specifically look for it, ask the owner about. I have some experience but it is all on a 1987 subaru gl. and when do you need to look at replacing the timing belt on it? I know it almost never needed, but I am wondering. Also is that a good price for that mileage? Thanks for your time. viceman.

I found this 1986 Syncro Vanagon in the parking lot of a grocery store near me. I was able to talk to the owner, who owns a shop that does nothing but vanagon syncro convertions (The shop is Called Tom's Syncro Shop, Tom Lengyel). Here is what it has; 2.5l subaru engine, lifted (not sure how much), rock sliders, full underbody skid plate, Independent suspension front and rear, original transfer case but with redone gearing of 6.17 and a creeper gear of 37 to 1, Vacuum activated front and rear lockers, front seats only, bed in the back, and on the side an extendable awning. Can Single point lift anywhere on the body.

I will try lossening the y pipe and see what happens. on the coolent leak there is a small puddle under the car on the drivers side just under the edge on that side of the raidator. but i did hear some stuff from the over fill tank so maybe its just more than that can handle so it is leaking from there? i have had that happen before. ViceMan

So I replaced the transmissions modulator that was taost and was sucking up transmission fluid through it. But I still have a problem, when i turn on my car it is ok then when i drive it, it sounds like it is blowing through a straw ( the sound, sounds like it comes from over by the raidator) and it shifts early, and will not let me go more than 25 mph or so like there is a lot of back pressure somewhere. also although i cannot find it there is a leak somewhere involving the raidator but it is not big and is it leaking on the drivers side somewhere. I have filled my raidator with water and water is what is leaking. I have no idea what is going on but i have fixed one thing but now there is another. my car is a ea 82 3at 3 door coupe/hatchback. ViceMan

ok so I Left cardboard out over night under my car and for some reason failed to catch anything but motor oil on it, however when I put my car into nuetral and mover it back i could see some leak spots, which from there location would seem to indicate where they meet the raidator. so do i need to replace the hose then? ViceMan

Ok, I have some problem with things staying in place under the car but I have weighed it down, so I should have something soon. Something I did do though was check the atf fluid level and it was near Full. I did put in most of a whole quart of ATF fluid in there when I stoped at the store i limped to on sunday. So I started it up, thinking maybe that the atf fluid need presure to start leaking and I did not hear the noise I did on Sunday even when I was not driving. I did see ATF fluid leak on sunday as a color was coming out from under my car, and I put a bit of atf fluid on the ground near my door and it was the same color as the stuff coming out from under my car. but now the atf fluid level is full and I don't see any leaks under my car. (It has been raining since sunday, so any leaks of the atf fluid should be easy to see.) So is it still a leak of ATF fluid that only leaks when driving? hope this info helps.

It is an 87 GL Coupe 3 speed automatic. it does however have a 4 door engine in it, if the upper raidator hose i replaced a while ago is any indication. ViceMan

I was coming home sunday when suddenly my car started making a very weird noise. I managed to limp into a store parking lot and apparently I had a transmission fluid leak. one that became evident on the wet pavement. I put more atf fluid in, the gear oil was fine, and limped home. any idea on where the leak is comeing from? hopefully it is a cheap fix ootherwise i am not sure if i could get the money to fix it. thanks in advance. ViceMan

Thanks for the advice Dee2, RustyBrat, bratman, and ShawnW. So I pulled a sparkplug , grounded it and and verified that it had spark. So replaced the spark plug, then got a jump from my dad and it started after a few tries, first with gas mashed down then without the gas pedal and it started up. after which I drove around for awhile so the battery would be good to go. again thanks for everything. ViceMan

I have not jump started my car, and the battery is is just 2 years old or so so it should still be good but I will jump start it and see what happens.

ok so yesterday my engine would not start, and apparently it was the coil. so I go to pull the spark plug and ground it to see if the sprk plug was making spark. but before that i tried to start it again just to see what would happen, since this problem started right after cold weather and a few inches of snow. but when i went to start it the starter sounded sick, lick an electronic device thats running out of batteries. is the starter going bad or is it somthing else? Thanks again, ViceMan

ok thanks guys I will try that in the morning when I can see. ViceMan

how much is a coil? and where is it located?

oh for anyone out there that's curious, the fuel pump works great, and it even passed DEQ within a month of it being installed. It is louder than the oem pump but you don't even hear after a while. Edit #1: I just remembered that the fuel pump from the f-150 you need is the frame mounted fuel pump not the low presure fuel pump inside the fuel tank. ViceMan

it ran last tuesday(febuary 4th), and it ran pretty well. it is not driven daily but it does get used most times twice a week or more and this is something new that happened this morning. the fuel pump was replaces in november, and I replaced the power steering pump lines and bracket after the bracket broke this past summer and bent the hard lines while doing it. but other than that and putting in oil on a regular basis nothing else major has been replaced. oh the fuel pump is from a 1986 f-150 ford pickup, since it has about the same specs as the oem subaru pump but is a lot cheaper since their is more supply, and its been working well ( thanks to generaldisorder and his subie repair shop, a great person to go to get your subbie repaired). the only other thing is a new upper radiator hose, but other than that its been running well. although apparently the engine is from a 4 door subbie and mine is a 2 door so the engine got swapped somewhere along the line, I know this becuase the 2 door raidator hose did not fit but the 4 door hose did. that is all i can think of.

So my lights come on, engine turns over, starter sounds fine, fuel pump comes on, but the engine refuses to catch. after tring to start it up the first couple of times, I checked my oil and put some more in since it was really low, topped off my raidator fluid, let it sit for a bit then tried again but it still would not start, The fuel pump just got installed at the end of november, otherwise i would think gas is not getting to the engine, though i suppose it could be a gas line. Anybody with any idea why my engine wont start? thanks ViceMan

really? I thought that when fuel pump failed I would not be able to turn on my car and run my engine. ViceMan

I have a gas leak in my 1987 subaru gl coupe/hatchback. the leak is above a plate with three bolts, just in front of the rear passenger tire. what could be leaking, gas tank? fuel filter? gas lines? it is a rather significant leak. I would apreaciate any help on this I could get. thanks. ViceMan

After a fashion yes. Factory five racing is holding a design competition to design the outside appearance of their new Subaru powered kit car. So you buy a used Subaru WRX, they are aiming for a price under 9900 dollars so it looks like a 2002 to a 2004 WRX, as a donor car, then used the parts of it, especially engine to complete the kit you buy from them. There aim is for people to be able to complete it for 15,000. Anyway the point is that you can submit a design for the look of the new kit sports car. They already have the chassis and frame design and being built, so the wheel base, 95 inches, and the width, 58.5 inches I believe, so the thing you design as I said is the outward look of it. If you win you get 5,000 dollars. the web page is http://www.factoryfive.com/whatsnew/update/nextcar/designcomp.html , so go over download the pdf documents and show them what a real Subaru power sports car should look like. ViceMan P.S. Did I put this in the right area of the forum? please let me know. Thanks.

Well No insurance money for me. I am majority responsible for the accident, which means in Oregon, I can't claim against the other driver, so sol for me. Here are 4 pictures of the inside of the engine bay, the hood would not raise all the way up so I took what pictures I could. good news is that the passenger side door opens. If you guys need more pictures of the area just tell what you need to see and I will do my best to get them. Thanks again for everyone's help. ViceMan

Ok, so my car got hit a glancing blow by another car. she managed to avoid t-boning me in the drivers side is amazing, but the passenger side of her car hit the passenger side front bumper of my car. Just to clarify, it was a T junction and I was turning left, the car came from the left but she swerved and managed to avoid t boning me. for the record she had no lights on on a overcast rainy day near sunset in a Grey or brown car is not a recipe for being seen. So any way I am going to post some pictures, And I need some opinions on things like how much it may take to fix, whether or not I can sell it for parts, new front tires, 60% to 70% on the rear. Anyway since I puller out and Oregon is a majority responsibility state, i get nothing. Basically because I pulled out even though I could not see her, I still have majority responsible for the accident. So I have some money, read less than 1000 dollars, I need to know what options I have at this point. Refer to pictures below for how bad it is. Amazingly the engine still starts. Thanks to everyone in advance. ViceMan

I would like to thank Everyone who helped on my transmission questions and selflessly gave their time to answer my questions. A special shout out to two members in particular. 91Loyale for making the observation that the transmission was fine but that something else was wrong, like No ATF in the transmission and that there are indeed two dipsticks for the transmission for my car. And to GeneralDisorder Who despite being busy with his own projects came out to help me this afternoon to find the second dipstick but also put in the new thermostat and removed the air bubbles from my radiator system. Also told me how to drain the differential and put gear oil in. The one thing I learned from all this. I really love that little Subaru I have. ViceMan

There are? Um no I did not know that. Just to be Clear on this, I have no freaking idea other than what the Haynes manual I bought and what you all tell me. This is my First time working on a car problem like that by myself. Sure I can put in oil and anti-freeze and stuff like that, I can even read And follow directions when taking out something or putting it back in. But anything more I have no idea about. Not that I haven't done research as much as possible like read the owners manual, Haynes book and the Ultimate Subaru Repair guide but It's that I don't know enough to know that I don't know, or even to ask the right questions or anything. Heck I may have even Checked the dipstick before because I check all the fluid levels I know about regularly. the one I check was directly under the full sized spare tire, which I guess is the wrong one. The only other one I can think of is one the says like power steering fluid( I think it does anyways, Will check tomorrow) in a small black box type thing up near the radiator, Which reminds me I need to replace the thermostat. Anyways This is a learning experience for me, and its because I simply do not have the money to take it anywhere. I like to learn new things, but I am starting from like the bottom. I once disassembled a small engine(read lawnmower engine) and resurrected it from the dead, so spark plugs wires crankshafts, and those parts i know but that to a whole car engine and stuff is a steep learning curve. Although I do know how to replace drum and disc brake pads from doing it myself with lots a guidance from a person who knew how. Sorry, I am rambling. anyways so if anyone can give me detailed instructions or like come and help me out I would be very appreciative. Man Talk about a Roller coaster ride with this transmission. Thanks for everyone's help and support. Sincerely, ViceMan

ok, my transmission had a slight problem switching gears and while that was going on two others where happening 1. white smoke out of my tailpipe, 2. idle revs where a lot higher than normal. No problems going into reverse. So I did what a said above. So after I replaced the vacuum Regulator and the previously mentioned idle revs are now normal but won't reverse and normal forward driving up to like 1200-1400 then just over rev instead of forward speed. So there it is. and the atf fluid shows normal, even after taking out the vacuum regulator and having it drain. so i need to add a bit more? Just wanted to give you more info should it change anything. also should i just run my car for a bit to let the new part get working or does it matter? Hatchsub, can you give me more info on the metal lines and where they are located? thanks. Thanks again. ViceMan

ok here is what i have done. Checked the governor gear, it was fine, no coring and the plunger was working well so i put it back in with a new gasket and gasket sealer on clean surface and tightened the bolts. Then I remembered that I had white smoke coming out my tail pipe. discovered that this could be due to a faulty vacuum regulator (by the way, when I went to get the part it was labeled as a transmission module, the part number FM-2324 will work but if you call it a vacuum regulator you are liable to get a different part). so got a replacement and installed it. is there anything i need to do after i install that? like prime it? and the transmission fluid reads that it is full. Ok so I did all that and test drove it. I can now drive forward like normal and the idle rate is back to where it was before. but now when I put my foot on the gas to speed up it just revs up the engine instead of speeding my car up. Also I put it into reverse and it will not back up just rev the engine. so is there anything I am missing or anything more I can do to see if its just failed parts or my whole transmission? And just to remind you all, my car is a 1988 subaru gl, spfi, nonturbo, with an automatic trans and an ea 82 engine. I would like to thank everyone who has helped me with advice and other nuggets of info that has gotten me this far. Also thanks to the Ultimate Subaru Repair manual ( http://www.indysworld.com/80s/general/USRM/subrepair.htm ) and the Haynes DIY repair manual. Sincerely ViceMan