daeron

it might be worth it to go ahead and yank the radiator out so you can blast it with a garden hose... sometimes backflowing can help remove alot of crud, especially if you do it after running a chemical flushing solution through. Removing the radiator also gives you the chance to degrease and clean all the fins, and make sure they are in top-notch condition to radiate out all that heat. While you flush the radiator, may as well flush the heater core.. these are things I would do if I were concerned in your shoes. Yanking the radiator isnt really that major a task; in my opinion, the transmission lines are the biggest PITA. Put a large rag or some cardboard down under that corner of the car if you do it; you WILL drop some ATF out of those lines.

Well, I shall run another D check tomorrow, time permitting.. I cannot recall exactly what codes were thrown on the last one, but if memory serves there was nothing more significant than the neutral position and vehicle speed sensors, and any searching or asking I have ever done on them has yielded little response. It is also possible that I need an analog meter to check the resistance of either the TPS or the MAF.. but the checks I have made with my craftsman DMM have been OK and I cant recall having any code issue with either of them. I really wish I had a fuel pressure gauge, but I have no reason to doubt the pump or regulator.. is there any quick and dirty FPR check I can do without a vacuum pump handy?

best advice is to slowly and patiently test each little FI component (MAF, TPS, etc) for proper functioning.. run a D check to make sure you arent having any codes.. check the coil for proper resistance.. in short, read through the chapter on the FI system in the FSM and test all of that.. then make sure your ignition system is running right... then PCV/emissions stuff... maybe change on o2 sensor... but without a place to start, this is a cumbersome process. good luck, and have fun.

SERIOUSLY, please, GD is JUST PLAYING THE DEVILS FRIGGIN ADVOCATE!!!!!! let it DIE and let him say what he will, posting and posting like this is just a bloody pissing match. STOP DOING IT, and if you want to continue to discuss ideas for an EA82 build, dont let him derail it!!! you made your point, gloyale.. as did GD.. what does furhter disagreement do to help either of your cases?? you are both really smart guys, and guess what? you are BOTH really set in your opinions and its only making you both look childish to continue this sort of penis-showing game. please.. as you have both said, its been beaten like a dead horse.. why is it that you both say that, and then go back to beating the horse?? Can we maybe do some self-moderating here???

ALL of the fuel injection components have been tested and verified to be functioning as advertised, and rechecked, etc etc over the course of the last year to no avail... Plugs wires, filters etc all fresh, MAF is clean... I've gone over this in other threads, hence me saying "my alphabet is fine" in the first post. However, I was clue-less when it came to IGNITION systems, and I finally managed to read up on that. My first 20 minutes of testing in my newfound field of "expertise" (meaning something i have a clue about) yielded up a significantly bad reading; I was seeking to confirm that this reading would cause my symptoms, since I still have virtually no experience with ignition system problems.. I figure I should be able to pull my plugs and they should show some evidence that I am not burning all my fuel (black but dry-ish, carbon buildup??) IF I am correct in my diagnosis. I checked between the coil and battery to test the quality of the ground for the coil; should I have gotten something as high as 10 ohms??? is this UTTERLY irrelevant? FI systems I know, and have worked with others in the past.. ignition systems, (yes, im just talking distrubutor, coil, ballast resistor.. ) I have NEVER had to work on, and have NEVER gotten a good explanation or understanding of.

YA-HARRY-HOY!!!!!!!!!!!! Ignition coil primary circuit resistance is reading at 2.1-1.7 ohms!! FSM states 0.84-1.04 as acceptable range!! also, im getting about 10 ohms resistance between the (-) terminal on the coil and the battery... Does this mean I need a new coil!????? If so, would this cause the stumbling problem I have been having?????? I think I may have founded it, at LAST!! I *probably* could have fixed this and postponed my headgasket job to a point and time when I had $$$ to do that RIGHT (oil pump seals, oil seals, etc) PLEASE any feedback?? I have literally zero $$ right now so if I get get a JY replacement thats gonna be on a borrowed dime, and i do NOT want to do that if this is not likely my problem.. since I am posting, I may as well ask.. i do NOT need to disconnect the battery to properly read the resistance in the primary circuit, do I?? vehicle was off and I wasnt showing any voltage at the coil, but I figured I would ask

your tach was jumping around??? sounds like you arent getting sufficient current flowing through the coils primary circuit maybe? poor connection to the coil (-) wire..

for good mileage, you need.. Proper oils in their spots, well greased bearings on all hubs, driveshaft carrier, EVERYthing, Fairly well matched tires (at least) at their proper inflation proper wheel alignment properly functioning fuel injection/ignition system (filters, no codes, plugs wires cao and rotor, etc) You might see a difference in retrofitting a second electrical fan in place of your clutch fan... but I dont think it would be much.. Any of these things I mentioned, along with any others mentioned above, need to be inspected and working properly or they will contribute to loss of fuel mileage.

what kind of oil?? did you use heavier weight oil? Did you change tranny or diff fluid at the same time?? if you put heavier oils into any of those three cases (engine, gearbox, diff) than they had in them, you will experience mileage decrease..

SHUT UP!!! I am aware of this possibility, but am considering it remote until I have ruled out the entire ignition system. "Swapping ECUs" is NOT on my list of "things that are easy to do without income." If I lived in Soobieland, Washington or Loyalesville, Oregon I might have a buddy with a spare I could try.. but alas, I live in Southernmost, Florida, miles away from any other STATE. The nearest board member is on the west coast of florida to the best of my knowledge. I did not think that a few degrees of timing change would make such a big difference, myself. thanks mike. From what I have gathered, it is not so much "servicing" the optical wheel in the disty; more like, making sure it is clean and free of debris/gunk that might be interfering with the optical signal. Basically all I want to do in that regard would be to eyeball the thing, and make sure it isnt crudded up, maybe hit it with some carb cleaner or QD Electronics cleaner, etc. Time to break out the multimeter and the FSM, I guess.

Okay, for starters, is a brief video of my car running somewhat poorly. (it gets much worse; apparently just not in front of the camera) I am stumped; I haven't managed to get a fuel pressure gauge on it yet because I do not have one, but I am beginning to move away from the idea of a fuel problem. CTS, TPS, MAF, and IAC have all been tested.. my alphabet is fine. I am beginning to think that it may be... .. a high voltage leak in my ignition system (wires, coil) .. an intermittent bad connection to the coil .. a bad coil .. dirty optical sensor wheel in the disty .. incorrect base timing. The first three, I believe i can proceed testing on my own, but my soobie-sense is telling me i probably won't find a problem there. Now, regarding ignition advance.. I FINALLY read the relevant chapters in an auto shop textbook I have, and actually understand how ignition systems work soup to nuts now. However, I am still a complete novice when it comes to ignition tuning/diagnosis. A board member (subaru_mechanic) told me that he thought I needed to advance my ignition more; but I set it with a light, per FSM procedure. I am a little confused, since the book seems to say to always set idle speed before checking timing, and to always set base timing before changing idle speed... chicken and the egg, anyone? Anyhow, I set it to 20* with the connectors plugged and all, but maybe I need a little more?? the timing light isnt incredibly easy to access (drive to uncles, wake him up, find it, etc) so I have been hesitant to fiddle with it since I DO know it is spot on right now. Regarding the optical wheel, how do I proceed in checking that?? where IS the optical wheel, inside the disty somewhere?? if thats the case, then obviously I play with timing settings before I even get into checking that.. My fuel mileage has gotten HORRIBLE, and sometimes it takes me moving the gas pedal back and forth before it finally finds itself and gets up and goes. I have gone through a bad TPS before; it is NOT behaving like that. only RELATIVE throttle position changes make a difference; ABSOLUTE throttle position has no bearing on anything. (ie it is NOT just "bad" in one spot or range, nor is it consistently "bad" in any spot or range) Help!!!! I am utterly clueless, at my wit's end!

..so, was this good enough to make the transfer into the USRM?? (that was kinda why I wrote it..) any tweaks/corrections to make before it goes there? Mods?

it isnt who it used to be.... look at the similar threads feature, i cant remember tha name of the guy who it USED to be, but apparently (this is all hearsay) the old dealership was better, friendlier, and cheaper than the people who now run that website.....

Good thoughts. I also second the idea of mellowing out; not all shops are "out to get you," but they ARE all out to make money, that is NATURAL... and you have no right to be offended by it. Chances are, because this is a 20 year old subaru, they overlooked something. Test drive the car; find out why they think it "needs a tranny" and go from there. Above all, just relax. He CANNOT take you for any more of a ride than he already has; he said so himself. Find out the parts they installed (it seems to good to be true that they had a pair of axles on hand ready for you) and come back and update us with the situation.

it is SIMPLE once you have a socket; without using a socket, it is nearly impossible. Period. My favorite method is to remove one spark plug, stuff that cylinder full of rope, and slowly rotate the engine until that piston bumps up against the rope. Then, get a nice, long thick pipe, fit it over the end of my breaker bar* and push. *A breaker bar is preferable; I have broken ratchets in the past when trying to relieve highly torqued bolts. If you do this, and get a long enough piece of pipe, its a simple thing. The "rope trick" is also perfectly harmless to your engine. Some people have luck putting the car in top gear, setting the parking brake, and doing the same thing with the wheels on the ground. Alot of people have luck doing that; I do not. However, once you get a socket on the bolt, it becomes MUCH easier than trying to use an open end wrench, crescent wrench, pipe wrench, or anything else of the sort. Proper tool for the job

Thats gonna be changing the entire throw of the piston. It changes the BDC location as well as the TDC location; might you not wind up not losing any static compression ratio due to the increase in swept volume from the shortened rod? I can't think of the formulas and everything now.. but I think adding material to the dish and moving it might be more viable than playing with the rods. Have at it, though; if you feel you can forge new ground it would be fresh air to be sure.

head gasket, intake manifold gasket, radiator cap, pinhole leak in a hose somewhere, water pump shaft seal, water pump gasket, water pump inlet O ring. If you arent getting anything in the cabin it PROBABLY isnt the heater core but it may be and you just arent noticing it. Check your oil filler cap to see whitish, milkshake looking nasty.. could be a sign of a bad headgasket. check for oil in coolant, coolant in oil.. steam/antifreeze smell in your exhaust? thats a strong indicator of either headgasket or intake manifold gasket... Get a laser pointer or a flashlight and next time you pull into your driveway at night, pop the hood, leave the engine running, and see if you cant find any steam coming from any potential holes in hoses..... theres ALOT this could be. these are SOME ideas. good luck

I dont see how this helps anything, because "backpressure" is nothing deisrable in the slightest.. all that is desirbale from an exhaust system is pulse scavenging, and pulse scavenging is NOT the same as backpressure... I say you get more power from: Water injecting pre combustion, which allows you to run more ignition advance without pinging, which opens up more power for you, and just leaving your exhaust at a more conventional size. than you do from: whatever slightly larger exhaust you can run without losing your scavenging qualities by injecting into the exhaust. I also say: HOLY OLD THREAD, BATMAN!! but this one is actually kinda interesting :-p

and a damn old thread to boot.. we can say damn, too! w00t :-p

resident hippy here to tell the two of you to drip the bloody pissing contest and step back a moment.... doug, don't worry, the forces of logic are our friends here and i think that most anyone reading would agree that the helicoil route is the "better" fix, even if it is a couple more bucks and requires some precision work. bob, relax, doug is right and he never tried to be a jerk; mellow out a little, he was kinda right; what he was saying IS a better way to fix it. He never said anything beyond that, outside of an honest comment, accompannied (like he said) by the stupid friggin smiley that is THE ONLY chance we have to put any tone of conciliation in our "voices" here. Just because a statement COULD be construed to be insulting does not make it insulting. he was jiving you, turkey, you just gotta sass it!!

without a socket, there is no creative solution. an auto parts store should stock the socket you need.... and you pretty much need it. Once you have the socket, the "creative solution" is to jack the car as high as you can get it, support it on jackstands, fit a breaker bar onto the socket, and put the longest, heaviest pipe you can find/fit onto the end of the breaker bar. Then turn the engine over, smacking the pipe into the ground, and breaking loose the bolt. DO take precautions not to let the engine start, however... (spark plug wire pulled, or something....) Ditto grossgary's comments on drilling things out.

hrmmm.. sounds like we might have a member who can go to some extremes, given your fuel situation.. and I take it that you are not unfamiliar to turbo engines (skyline R33?) Check the "similar threadS" listed at the bottom of the page, and search around, there are alot of ea turbo opinions that are well formed at this point, so youre definitely going to hear people say that its a waste of time playing in EA land when EJs are easier cheaper and better.... BUT you don't need to let that discourage you. your fuel can help make a significant difference.. but if you are not familiar with these engines in particular, be forwarned that they EAT HEADGASKETS for lunch if you dont keep them well cooled, and do NOT let it go lean!!! good luck finding what you want, I personally kinda like the idea of reshaping the combustion chamber, maybe a thick headgasket, and using NA pistons. reshaping the combustion chamber attracts me because with better swirl patterns, you just might be able to help the detonation THAT way.. and improving combustion qualities of the chamber as a whole. giving you more advance to play with, and more power.

before you go buying a new one, by ALL means please test it. The CTS should have a certain resistance when the engine is cold, and a different resistance when it has reached operating temperature. All you need is a multimeter to check it, and five minutes. these are often wiring problems, and NOT sensor issues... its a very common problem with fuel injected vehicles, responsible for many a check engine light.

the possibilities already discussed should be investigated first; but might it not be a differential issue?? just a thought, maybe youre just low on diff oil.. EDIT Allright, just had to mention it.

Good point; Alot of these relays are rated in amps right on the top of them, but I failed to mention that!!! they also frequently have little wiring diagrams.. and there are many other relays (beyond just the four- and five- prong ones I mentioned) that will fit into these plugs, if you use the right wires in the right holes... Edit made!