LuberJack

No, I drove it to work and back today with no overheating issues. It also didn't start rough, but that can be an on and off thing. The oil pressure and temperature both seemed pretty normal, oil is maybe a tiny bit low, but better than it usually is. The car had pretty substantial oil and coolant leaks before it actually started over heating, and I imagine both of those are still present. For now, the car is driving better than usual and isn't overheating, so that works for me. My buddy came down from portland so he brought my manual, and I'll start looking through things when I get a chance.

Well, got it all together and drove it around town. It's drivin like a champ, I think it appreciates having a thermostat in there. Thanks for the help, and GD, next time I'm up I might come by to give it all a look through.

The oil is fine, and yes, the heater blows warm, but the car needs to be driving for 10 minutes or so before it does. Just picked up the parts I need, hopefully I can have it all back together before work.

Actually, scratch that last question... I opened up the thermostat cover and found myself an interesting surprise... It would appear...unless I'm very confused about something...that my engine does not have a thermostat in it...and in fact, hasn't since I purchased the car nearly three years ago... Alllllllright...off to the dealership to get one.

Ok, thanks for everything so far guys! Though I fear there may be a bigger issue at hand, money and time as they are I'm going to start by poking around the temp gauge and the thermostat gasket. So General Disorder, would you recommend if I am opening up the thermostat housing and and removing the thermostat to put in a new gasket, should a just opt for a new t-stat too?

I would try to tackle this more on my own, but I moved to Corvallis, and I believe I left my haynes manual up in Portland... So, here is the problem; The car (an 88 GL, 4wd) has recently been having a couple issues that I fear are head gasket related...when the car is first turned on in the morning, it usually runs super rough for a minute or so, and especially in the cold will blow some white smoke out the back. The engine also runs hot, and the oil pressure runs low...the temperature usually rides barely below the red, and the the oil pressure varies from day to day, but generally halfway between the bottom of the gauge and the middle line of the gauge. The only reason I haven't really addressed any of these issues is because the car still drives everywhere I need it to go with no real noticeable problems, and I am super short on money right now. What has spurred me towards a more immediate fix happened last night. I had been driving for about an hour, and when I stopped the car noticed steam coming from the engine bay, and a hissing sound that carries on for several minutes after the engine is off. I went into the store I had parked at and came back out, turned the car on and it drove fine. I drove it around a little more, it was still steaming a bit, but looked to be from coolant on top of the engine. Eventually as I drove, the engine changed sound getting worse and worse, and the coolant reserve tank was making lots of noise from water boiling inside of it I imagine. I got the car home and finally could look at it with a flashlight...on top of the engine there is puddle of coolant that grows as the engine runs, and steam that blows out in the same place. There are two parts I think it could be coming from, but I know pretty much nothing about engines and don't have my manual, so I'm not sure what they are...so I took these pictures.. The piece on the right is connected to the large tube running out of the radiator And this is just a picture taken from a distance for orientation One of these two parts is spraying out coolant when the engine gets warm, not much, but enough to steam up the engine...but when this is happening, the temperature gauge also climbs up into the red, and the coolant reserve boils up... I turned the car on today and there were no issues...though, I imagine if I drive it around long enough it will all start up again. So what are these parts, and what would you guys recommend as a fix? I have work Wednesday, about a 25 minute drive from my house, so if I can get it fixed by then, that would be ideal... Thanks!

I'll see what I can see about getting out and doing anything myself, I work this Monday through Friday...I don't really know what it means when the cars are still up behind the fences, or how long it will take until I would have access to it. I was more posting for someone local who would have interest in going and buying the whole thing as a parts car or something, But, potentially I could be able to get out and take some parts and ship them out... I would have to look into it, give the yard a call I suppose.

Hey guys, swung by the Tigard u-pull-it today to grab some stuff for my ea82 wagon, but on the way in found a curious little guy behind the fences, not down into the main yard yet... It was behind the fence, so I couldn't get a good look at it, but on the window it was written that it was an 83, and I noticed the trunk had a "turbo" emblem. I snapped a few pics with my cell phone, they aren't great, and I couldn't see the engine at all...there was some rust around on the body, and it was missing one of the back mudflaps, and some of the tires were flat I believe. I know nothing else about it, but figured someone on here might take enough interest to give the u pull it a call or head out there and check it out. Hope this helps someone!

Ok, thanks guys! I'll just try and throw in a new bearing today and see if that fixes the problem, and if that is the issue, I'll just put a new boot on as well. If not, I'm sure I can get the other issues fixed. Thanks again.

Hello, I have a 1988 subaru GL 4x4 wagon, with 295,169 miles on the body...So, naturally, things like to go wrong. The car has recently (for a few weeks...maybe more?) Been making a pretty loud whiring sound from the drivers front side. I assumed it was a wheel bearing (and in fact took the car in to les schwab to have them swap some tires around for me, I asked them about the wheel bearing and the shook the wheel a bit and said it should be fine for a while, but might be on its way out) So, I figured I'd drive on it for a while, until it got worse, because I have limited funds right about now. Anyway, so the sound it makes is a sort of rumble or whir sound that pretty much shows up over 25 mph, it also sort of makes the steering wheel wobble around, the whole car in fact. But, on long right hand turns the noise and vibration pretty much disappear entirely. Well, yesterday the sound got a bit louder, and there was an additional metal on metal grindy sound I haven't heard before, so I figured I'd switch the wheel bearing out today. I got this far... When I noticed the boot at the end of the steering arm was totally torn open... Inside I noticed a metal cylinder that looked like it was totally eaten up...but, looking at it in the pictures, the grooves look maybe too clean to be something that is broken...maybe it is supposed to be like that? At any rate, I think it is hard to say my problems aren't related to this...but, what exactly am I looking at, and what parts should I get to replace it? It is sunday, so probably most places are closing up right about now anyway, but I want to get this fixed as quickly and cheaply as possible...I can bike to work for now, but, I am not a fan of having my lovely wagon out of commission...for now I'm just outside with my laptop, pretty much waiting for responses on here to get working on the car again. Thanks guys! ~Jake

Oh! I completely forgot to post the other problem up. The car has always had a bit of a squeak from the front left wheel. A few months ago it had gotten to the point that I thought my break pads were worn down. I took it to Les Schwab for a free check, and they said everything was fine. For one reason or the other I didn't really believe that, so I took off the wheel and the brake caliper. What I found was that the break pad was indeed fine on the top, but the bottom was almost worn out. (the brake pad on the outside part of the car). Anyway, when I took out the brake pads one of the anti-rattle clips fell out. It had snapped and the broken part of it was rubbing against the rotor, making the squeaking noise. I put on new pads and some anti-rattle clips I got from u-pull-it, and the sound was gone for a day or two if I remember correctly. Well, the squeaking started back up, and I assume it broke the clip again. I haven't taken it back off yet to double check, but I was wondering if the fact that it breaks these clips is a sign of something worse being broken, or if I just had bad luck with the clips.

88 GL 4wd wagon, last time I checked was a couple weeks ago. 6-7 hour drive down to Lakeview Oregon, pedal to the metal basically the whole time trying to keep up with another car we went down with, 4 people inside, and throwing gas out the window everytime I passed a semi-truck, it got 25 mpg on the first fill up. When in lakeview we did a touch of running through some mud, and explored (quickly) a very steep gravel loop road up to a radio tower. We than crammed 6 people in it (not very safe I know, but the other car had to leave early) and began driving north again at the same speed as before. On the next fill up it got 28. This car is a mystery to me. When I first got it it was getting about 22.

Haha, well, silly me putting power steering fluid in the power steering fluid reservoir. I will switch over to ATF. Should I just remove all the power steering fluid with a turkey baster or something similar and fill it up with ATF, or is it more complicated than that? As for switching the whole door, the entire back of the car where the hatch closes is bent in, so a new door wouldn't be able to close. I would've uploaded pictures but I can't find the cable to the camera... Anyway, this is why I am left with the option of just using the bent up door, because it is bent perfectly so that it still opens and closes, haha. Thanks for the responses. ~Jake

So I had a few questions a while back that GeneralDisorder helped me with, for which I am very grateful. Last year at the tigard U-Pull-It everything was half off and they served hot dogs and soda, I assume it is the same deal this year, but I need to call to make sure. Anyway, I had a list of things I was already planning on getting (Front grille, rear disk breaks, a window switch, some hoses for the engine, and a pulley and belt for the AC), unfortunately the other night my car picked a fight with a tree while I looked on in horror. I had stopped on a hill and pulled my e-brake up, I ran across the street to grab something from a friend and was planning on being back in the car within a matter of seconds. When I turned around however, the car had rolled down the hill and rear-ended a tree. :mad: Sooo...the tree was the obvious winner in the fight, blowing up my back window, denting the rear hatch up (all the way to where the window goes, so I don't think a new one will fit) and pinching the bumper in half. I hoped at first that the damage was just to the door and bumper, but no such luck. I opened the hatch up and looked around, the secret compartment under the carpet had it's door ripped off it's hinges, and the body of the car is very obviously pushed in. That being said, the hatch still opens and closes (though the dashboard indicator says it is constantly open), and it wouldn't actually look SO bad if it weren't for the bumper. Soo, my new U-Pull-It list now also includes a rear bumper. The tricky thing is the window. I was thinking of just pulling a window, and sticking it on, but have since learned that isn't actually so easy. The other thing is that where the bottom of the window goes is all bent up from the tree, so I don't think that a new window would even fit in. I was thinking of using plexi-glass? Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated. The other thing is a bit of a steering issue. This has happened before the accident, but always fixes itself. What happens is that the car is driving fine one minute, but when you start it up next, the steering is extremely hard to turn. You can turn right or left fine for a few degrees, but then it almost seems to stick, and you have to really work to yank it through a small spot, then it turns fine again for a few degrees, and gets stuck again. It wasn't doing this right after the accident, but then started again, then it was fine for a day, now it is back to doing it. I don't really have any idea what could be causing it (it was low on power steering fluid, but I filled it up and nothing changed). Could it be that a pump somewhere isn't quite working, or something worse? Anyway, I Was just wondering if there was anything I would need to grab from the u-pull-it to remedy this, or anything else I may need. Sorry for the long post, and happy pulling! ~Jake

Alright, thanks a lot. Though, I'm not entirely sure it's the mounts that are the problem. One did look pretty bad, but, when I jacked the engine up to check them the whole engine shifted over to the point that the bolts coming out of the engine mounts no longer lined up with the holes they came out of in the cross member. The passenger side still lined up, but the driver's side was too far towards the front of the engine, and a bit to the left. I have always had issues with this (my oil filter rubs against some fan housing and the main fan you can see wear on tips of the fan where it rubbed against the radiator). I dunno what the previous owner did when he put this engine in, but something isn't right. I wound up just pushing in on the bolt with a crowbar as hard as I could while I had someone else lower the jack. It fit back in, and when I tightened the engine mounts back in (one was loose) it definitely made everything smoother. Anyway, somethings funky, maybe I'll figure more out this weekend.