Viking_Steel

I've now removed the engine and transf the nut, and I couldn't find a suitable chisel., still within our 48 hour hire on the hoist. It was pretty satisfying finally getting it out. I didn't quite have enough clearance to pry the inboard CV joints off the output shafts, and there wasn't enough play that I could see a way to seperate the joints without removing that driveshaft nut. The design of the hub prevented me from being able to get in close enough to grind of I just got sick of it and turned the 800W grinder to the axleshafts instead, much more satisfying. Once that was out everything followed. It was my first engine pull, so I was pretty pleased that we hadn't left any wires and hoses in place before removing it. Nothing moved unexpectedly, and it came out nice and smooth once the mounts were undone. A pretty satisfying morning. The main reason for the job was that my friend Paul smashed his Subaru with an almost brand new tranny in it. He bought another car the same, but it has the original trans which is long past it's use by date. It's weird seeing what used to be a very nice car get completely gutted. I've pulled a lot of bits off wrecks, but never from a car that I'd actually driven when it was intact. I convinced Paul to buy a Subaru wagon in the first place and I always enjoyed driving it when I got the chance. Now it's got the whole front missing, no bonnet, just about nothing left in the engine bay. no lights, no wheels, pretty much no interior, seats missing. I feel kind of strange cutting up an old friend.

I took the rollpin out of the inboard end of the axle, which allows it to move out from the transmission, but I still can't figure out how to seperate either of the joints, so now I just have a driveshaft with more free play in it. I've never pulled apart a FWD car before, so CV joints are a mystery to me. The Haynes says I should be able to seperate the inboard joint after removing the retaining ring. Buggered if I can figure that one out from their illustration. I almost got through one of the driveshafts before I wore away my last grinding wheel. 800W in a 4" grinder packs a punch, just goes through wheels pretty quick. Can anyone make it a little clearer for me how these joints are going to seperate. Otherwise I have to get new griding wheels at 8AM tommorow, then have the engine hoist back by midday, which may be a tall order. I suppose if I undo all the mounts tonight, then cut the shafts last I could do it in time. I don't like the idea of cutting through something that's just suspended by the hoist though.

G'day, just wondering if anyone could spare some time for a backyard mechanic from Australia with an EJ22 motor and trans that just doesn't want to come out. I'm finally getting around to pulling the engine and trans from a 92 Subaru wagon that my friends and I have been stripping for a couple of months now. I've removed the bonnet, most of the engine bay components, and any other bits of body that were in the way. I got a rented hydraulic lift, chained it to the motor, and then went to start removing the crossmembers and axleshafts so I could lift it out. And here's where the easiest step suddenly blocks my way. Cracking the tension on the driveshaft nut so I can remove the halfshafts from the wheelhub. Peel back the crimped edge of the nut where it locks onto the shaft. So far so good. Then the problem. It doesn't move. Now I don't use or own air tools, but seriously you'd think that a 3' long breaker bar being smacked with a hammer would move something. I managed to get a 1/4 turn out of one of them by removing the wheels, bracing the breaker extension against the cement floor, then hammering the wheel studs to turn the hub. After granting me this small rotation, it then returned to mocking me with Japanese precision. I'm leaving them to soak in more penetrant overnight, and hopefully I can find someone to lend me a rattle gun and compressor in the morning. The service manual says to use a breaker bar, and doesn't mention that this particular nut will hold up to treatment that no bolt on a 30 year old Volvo has ever stood up to. I went and borrowed my housemate's impact driver, but this was laughed off too. I feel really stupid, I'm supposed to be the backyard mechanic that my friends come to for help, and I can't even get a wheel bearing undone. Is it possible to detach the shaft at the inboard end and leave it done up at the wheel? This car's on it's way to the crusher as it is. The transmission is a priority part to salvage, but I won't lose any sleep if I have to take a cutter to the driveshaft, although I think I'd need a bit more than the 9" grinder to get through it. Any suggestions?

Thanks to everyone who posted advice on removing the engine and trans from the 92 Liberty, I'm getting the engine hoist this weekend and it's definately coming out. As well as the wreck we're stripping, Paul has a '92 wagon in very good condition, everything works bar the heater. All I've been able to figure out so far is that the return hose stays cool, even with the dash switch turned to fulll. I haven't pulled the dash out of the new one to see what gives yet (still kind of busy gutting the old one) but the switch does still feel like it's opening and closing something, it still moves smoothly with the same resistance as the other car. The car was immaculately serviced apart from this one problem (dealer serviced for 14 years) so it seems to me that they wouldn't have let a problem go unless it was really expensive to fix. I don't think I'm going to get away with just replacing the control valve. If it is the core, I obviously have a spare on the wreck. Are Subaru heaters just as much of a PITA to get at as, like, every other vehicle?

Can I still put the car back on it's wheels once the half axle's removed? I'm kind of picturing the wheels being bolted to the ends of the axle. Sorry, I must sound like a complete moron here but like I said I'm learning very fast about FWD cars. Of course the quickest way to learn something is to take it apart and see how it works. I've really enjoyed gutting the Liberty so far, seeing the differences between 90's Jap engineering, and something designed in Sweden in the early 70's. The subaru seems to have been designed by an electrical engineer. Every problem has been solved with a nice electrical solution. I was pleased to see that all the wiring was still accessable, albeit very complicated. I can trace the wiring back and still figure out what most things do. I even found a mechanical speedo cable on the back of the cluster, which surprised me. The Volvo on the other hand was clearly designed by some guys whose day job was building bridges. They didn't half overspecify the structural intergirty of the beast. Little things like mudflaps are held in place by bolts which look brand new after 30 years under the car. I use 1/2" drive sockets for every bolt on the car, I wonder if you can even say 6mm head in Swedish. Wow, that was a digression and a half. Yes, I was supposed to be asking about half axles. Can you take those CVs out and still re-attach the wheels? Remember I'm used to the idea that the hub is the end of the axleshaft.

91 Loyale, I think we may be on a similar wavelength. I've already removed the punched in radiator support, bumper and spoiler, and I'm about to take out the condenser and radiator so I can pull the heads off the motor. With all that crap out of the way, all I need to do is borrow my housemate's 9" grinder and cut through the front tiebar, and I can take the engine straight out through the front. That's if I can't get an engine hoist for the weekend. Just a thought. I still haven't figured out how you remove the inner CV joint ends, like I said I'm something of a virgin with front wheel drive cars.

Thanks for the downloads. What is exactly is the problem when you slide the trans back off the studs? Where does it catch? The donor car is getting crushed into a cube pretty soon anyway, so I'm perfectly happy to remove or cut anything that's giving trouble. Is it possible to just slide it back a bit then cut through the studs?

Hello from Australia. I'm on a very sharp learning curve with Subarus, having just taken on the job of removing the autobox from a '92 Liberty (legacy I think they call them in the rest of the world. A friend of mine was in an accident a few months ago with a '92 Liberty wagon which pushed the front rails out by almost a foot. Short of cutting it forward of the strut towers and welding up the front of a donor car, there wasn't much that could be done for the Scooby Doo, so it's a parts car now. Since I'm the guy with a vanload of tools and enthusiasm for cars in our group, I got the job of stripping it. Now Paul just got himself an even nicer '92 (body and interior look brand new) which goes better than the last one, but we don't know how many miles are on the notoriously unreliable auto box. The parts car had a recently rebuilt box when it was smashed, which obviously is a valuable spare to have if we can get it out. I have very little experience crawling under FWD cars, I'm used to just being able to unbolt the driveshaft (or find the driveshaft) on 30 year old iron. My resto project is a 1977 Volvo 245 panel van, so a very different design philosopy. I'm quite liking taking the Liberty apart though, It seems very well put together, and it's the first time I've found a FWD car I can actually find my way around the engine bay of. Usually on a japanese car there's an inline engine in sideways, and god knows where all the ancilaries are, with the Subaru I had the starter and alternator out more easily than on my old Volvo. The flat 4 is such a neat install, it looks very cool. I'm thinking of buying one when I need a newer car. Does anyone have any advice on removing the transmission from the Liberty? It seems to be an axle, diff and trans all stuck together, and it's all a bit confusing. I'm having trouble locating a service manual for this model, so any instructions are very welcome.