derburger

I had this exact issue with my 86 XT with the fuel cutting out etc, the fuel pump seized due to rust.I solved it by replacing the gas tank on Sunday. Drove 200 miles yesterday and the previous problems are all gone. I had no trouble with bolts, the hose clamps were a PITA though. The tank was $200 shipped from rockauto. I had quotes from radiator shops for $80-120 to clean and seal the tank. But there are only 2 moderate size access holes for them to clean it out... After I pulled the tank (after draining it with the fuel pump) I turned it on it's side and drained the rustiest gas ever from the tank. Again, my car was sitting for years as well as a project car with little gas in the tank. You say there wasn't shiny metal in the tank when you looked... that was my problem and is most likely yours as well. You can call around to radiator shops and see what they do to fuel tanks, I had a quote of $80 to clean & seal the tank, but there's always the possibility of their work failing down the line... I bit the bullet and ordered a new tank. Dropping the tank isn't awful. Spray all bolts and clamps with pb blaster beforehand, I had no trouble with bolts and my XT is from the midwest. There are 6 12mm bolts that hold the tank on, use a 10mm 1/4 socket ratchet to remove the gas filler hose, use a good philips head screwdriver on the hose clamps, use dull vice grips to break hoses free from fittings. If your xt is 4wd you'll need to drop the rear diff to get the tank out. To do this, loosen the two 17mm nuts on either side from the "moustache bar" and the diff will drop so you can get the tank out. Have new hose clamps handy because I wasted too much time re-using the old ones. Feel free to ask questions while the job is still on my mind, it took me 5 hours from taking the old tank out & putting the new one in, most of the time was struggling with hose clamps.

Going 70+ mph highway my ea82t MPFI turbo XT with a 5 speed manual got 25mpg. That's the only reading I have from it, since it broke down at school, lol. It should be better with the new ignition parts I put in. I expected the car to get 30+ mpg with the light weight, aerodynamics, and 5 speed. I'll have to take many more mileage readings.

Got the gas tank removed & replaced without too much hassle. The bolts were no trouble, the rusty hose clamps took up the most time. Since my XT is 4wd I had to remove the "moustache bar", two 17mm nuts on either side, to get the tank out. I didn't have trouble with the gas filler hose, I held the clamp still with pliers while loosening it with a 10mm socket 1/4 ratchet. Dull vice grips helped taking off hoses after the clamps were loosened. The rustiest gas ever came out when I put the tank on it's side to drain the rest of it into a bucket! Now I have squeeky drive belts when the engine is cold. I did spill some antifreeze on them and cleaned them off. Is there a rule of thumb for belt tension? I think they're too loose or tight. Very little powersteering assistance at idle when cold and squealing. I left the timing belt covers off; the brass fittings fell out with the screws. Does that harm anything? When moving there isn't much heat coming from the vents. Better than it was before the flush & thermostat, I believe that could be loose insulation in the heater box. I'll save that for a later project. The good thing is that I took care of the car's major issues and it's daily drivable again.

Almost done with coolant stuff, I have the thermostat to replace, then fill the block through the thermostat hole, put on the thermostat housing, fill radiator and overflow bottle, run the car on an incline with the heater on to get rid of air pockets. Should I do this with the radiator cap off or on? I flushed the heater core and radiator, replaced the water pump, 90 degree hose (the gates worked fine), replaced o-ring on water pipe which was bulged and leaking. The passenger side coolant block drain was the turbo bolt hose too... I didn't attempt find the drivers side. I needed to use the breaker bar frequently, but thankfully no broken bolts or stripped threads. The Subaru thermostat I bought looks 100x better built than the McParts generic thermostat I pulled out of the car. I should have heat at highway speeds now. Then tomorrow I have to replace the gas tank. The bolts holding it on shouldn't be too bad to remove, and if the hose clamps give trouble I'll just cut the hoses to get the tank out and put in new ones.

Cooling system fun update: I have the radiator drained, belts and covers removed. What I have left to do is remove the A/C compressor on the bracket so I can reach the top of the water pump to replace the 90 degree hose and O-ring when I take it out. The O-ring on the water pipe had gone bad, that's the leak. I found the passenger's side coolant block plug, a 14mm recessed hex plug. With a hex socket on a breaker bar it wouldn't budge. It's soaking in PB blaster overnight and I'll try again with the breaker bar tomorrow. Is the driver's side coolant block plug a normal 14mm bolt and not a huge recessed plug? What I guess is the plug was near the motor mount. What should I do to get more coolant out if I can't get these plugs broken loose? I'll replace the radiator before the summer. It has many bent fins like someone beat it with a wrench. I imagine that happened when the engine was replaced. So I have to take out the block plugs, flush out the cooling system with a garden hose, replace water pump, hoses and o-ring, replace thermostat, refill & burp cooling system. Any other pratfalls with these jobs? After all that is done I have to drain and replace the gas tank & fuel pump due to rust inside the tank I'll open the tank later with a cut off wheel and see if I really needed to.

Mine's an 86 XT with a manual trans and A/C. This is the Koyo GA631 radiator, for 89-91 XT's and 1990-1994 Loyales. Maybe the $31 koyo radiator is similar to this one? For $20 more I would probably get the 2 row OEM subaru radiator. But if the koyo is brass/copper I would get it instead.

Here are radiator options: NOS Oem radiator, $49 2 row aluminum/plastic http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SUBARU-XT-COUPE-1985-TO-1991-NEW-RADIATOR-PART-2233_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ33602QQihZ007QQitemZ170264489486QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW Koyo radiator aluminum/plastic $32 (!) http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/85-88-Subaru-XT-Koyo-Radiator_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1638Q2em118Q2el1247QQcategoryZ33602QQihZ019QQitemZ290298267052QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWD1V Refurbished copper/brass 2 row radiator $86 http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/RADIATOR-1099-85-91-SUBARU-XT_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ33602QQihZ012QQitemZ220170951818QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW Which of these would be the best one to get? I don't want to work again on the PITA cooling system or have the car overheat.

I too have a 1986 XT that was sitting for a few years with not much gas in the tank. I drove it 200 miles to school and the fuel pump died and it wouldn't restart. It was having trouble at 3-4k rpm but fine otherwise. I drained the tank and the first gallon came out rusty. I replaced the pump and drove home, I'm installing a new gas tank this weekend due to the original one rusted on the inside. I found a suitable gas tank at pick and pull, unfortunately I couldn't use it because they punch holes in gas tanks to remove gas. New tanks are under $200 shipped from rock auto. I came to the conclusion the tank was rusted inside by peeling off the fuel gauge sender cover (metal plate under trunk pad, sealed with goop) removing the 5 or 6 10mm nuts and the sender, and carefully shining a flashlight into the tank. After I replace the tank I'll open up the old one with a grinder and see how bad it was. Not saying this is your problem but I had a similar issue.

I should replace the radiator as well. There's a NOS radiator for 1.8 turbo 5-speed XT's on eBay. I assume that would be the factory 2 row aluminum radiator. Would that be a better one to buy over the other radiators at rockauto? The aluminum and plastic tank radiator MB used on 80's diesels get so bad that the neck eventually snaps off when people take off the cap.

On friday I'm going to get the XT's cooling system in order. Previously I had a no start condition with this car which eventually was fixed with a junkyard fuel pump to limp home. I have a new gas tank to replace the rusted out original one, which I'll also replace this weekend. The gas tank nuts & clamps have been soaking in PB blaster for 2 weeks so they shouldn't be awful. If I successfully replace the gas tank and do cooling system work the subaru gets daily driver duty again. After driving the XT home I quickly discovered a coolant leak from around the water pump/coolant pipe area under the alternator. Very little coolant was lost and the coolant gauge never went above normal levels. I'm going to replace the water pump (the car came with a spare new Japan pump) the thermostat(subaru), the big water pipe o-ring, and hoses such as the turbo coolant hose. To get all the coolant out, there are two block plugs on the drivers and passenger's side, correct? I'll at least flush the heater core out. As for coolant, 50/50 green antifreeze and distilled water is what I'll use. I have a half gallon of Subaru coolant left from other Subarus in the family I work on, from what I read that coolant isn't much different from the regular green glycol antifreeze, so the XT gets the regular coolant. Any tips or tricks to replacing the water pump and the thermostat? The DIY guides for these on this board are great. I know I'll struggle with the plastic timing belt covers, it took me more than an hour just to put the driver's side outer panel back on. This time I'll use ratcheting wrenches. I'll use loctite and a torque wrench wherever applicable. Thanks for everyone's previous help. After this is done I should be set for a while.

Very nice xt6! Beats my $750 XT that needed tires and a gas tank. Some damp-rid should help take the moisture out of the car. You can find it at hardware stores, probably wally world too.

Picked up an SPFI loyale fuel pump and one from a fuel injected brick volvo at pick and pull. I have the volvo pump wired in, the car runs off a gas can and runs great finally. To drive home 175 miles I'll wire the volvo pump into the stock fuel system since a gas can in front of the radiator isn't the safest. Then I'll replace the gas tank with a new one from Rockauto, and put in the Loyale fuel pump. I'll also do a coolant flush, new Subaru thermostat, and I should be good to go for a while. I think I'll want an aftermarket coolant gauge, though, I don't trust the factory digidash one. Thanks everyone for your help, the car tricked me into thinking it was getting fuel.

IT WAS THE FUEL PUMP, rust killed it. So apparently a fuel pump can sound fine and create suction but not do anything! After I got all the hoses and wires hooked up to run the car off a gas can I find this pump is trashed. Maybe a dribble or fumes got past the filter since the engine would sputter but not stay running again. At least I for sure know what's wrong now. Well, I have to get the car home this weekend. There is a junkyard or two in town that might have any old 12v EFI fuel pump I could wire in to get home. Most fuel pumps are in the tank though, right? Or, I could get AAA premier and see if they'll tow me 175 miles, max of 200 miles. I doubt they would even show up for that call. This car is kicking my butt :x The fuel pump was on switched ignition so the key was the switch to shut it off.

I figured a gas can closed under the hood between the radiator and bumper would be "safer" than having it in the static filled interior. (I.E the ea82t roasts instead of me!!) A bit brazen but I need to get the car home to my heated garage to pull the gas tank and reline or replace it and blow out the lines. 175 mile tow would be $$$, probably half what I paid for the car. The fuel pump is secured to the bumper in front of the radiator, safer than in the engine bay as well IMHO. I'll hook everything up today and see if it runs. It should, because the engine would catch but not stay running.

Great info, I'll try that, thanks. I see where that check connector is on my 1985 electrical system FSM supplement. Now to go buy some hose and zipties, heh Edit: The pump is now wired and working in the engine bay, I'll connect hoses tomorrow and limp the car home if it'll finally start. I'll have a gas can in front of the radiator secured, fuel pump mounted nearby, a supply, return and a vent line running into the gas can.

Today I went to drain the tank again, nothing came out of the tank this time when I unhooked the supply line to the fuel pump! I took off the fuel sender and looked inside the tank, saw gas and that's about it. I found the fuel pump sock in the inlet hose. I sprayed it with a carb cleaner and cleaned it a little. I plugged in the green connectors to get the fuel pump to cycle, it sounded like normal, it would make suction on my thumb. I connected it to a cup of gas, it sucked up half the cup, but then wouldn't suck any more without the gas draining back into the cup. So now, the gas in the tank (2 gallons now) won't get to the inlet hose at the fuel pump, and the pump can't pump gas very far through the lines. I believe the lines are frozen (car sitting for 3 weeks with temps below 20*f and further) or, the pump is weak/bad? I want to see if the car will run off a gas can in front of the radiator. My last question before giving up and towing the car is where can I get switched +12v and -12v for the fuel pump relocated to the engine bay. I know there's a keyed +12v at the wipers, but I need to know specific wires or areas and if there is cutting involved so I don't mess something up. Thanks for your help so far.

The pump sounds like it's sucking sand, I put 2 gallons in the empty fuel tank, still not getting fuel to the fuel rail. I didn't pull the pump because I would have broken all the bolts. I'll pull the pump (and break every single bolt) and try to clean the "sock" on the inlet side of the pump, it's likely clogged with rust, or the fuel lines are frozen. If that's the case, then I'll just have to shell out $$$ getting it towed home. 175 miles. I could get AAA premier but they would probably balk at towing that far. Unfortunately I didn't bring m(any) spare parts and I likely have a spare pump at home, but I need to get the car home somehow. How do I clean the "sock" at the inlet side of the pump?

Quick question, I drained the tank and the first gallon or so that came out had lots of rust in it and looked like crap. I took off the line from the tank to the fuel pump since the fuel pump bolts didn't want to co-operate. Where is the sock, I didn't see it on the line I pulled that led from the tank to the pump. Is it in the pump?

Well, I took off the fuel filter, no gas came out... I then connected the green plugs in the trunk to have the fuel pump turn on and off, no gas came from the supply hose in the engine bay. The fuel pump still works. I had put 2 gallons in the tank after driving 200 miles to the school lot, thinking I had run out of fuel and the gauge was inaccurate, so there is gas in the tank. Since there was some old gas in the tank when I bought the car, and I had put a few gallons of lawnmower gas in the tank(that can had been rained on before, also it has a vent hole!!), I assume there is water in the tank and now the lines are frozen, or crud is blocking something. I assume the car was getting some fuel a few days ago since it would sputter but not stay running, and before that I changed the filter and gas came out. Not sure what I can do here without blowing myself up, like a "cummins engine heater" (charcoal on fire in a tray under the tank) since the car is at the school parking lot and not my heated garage. :-\

The subaru is kicking my butt! I spent too much time leaning over the engine bay yesterday, and I woke up today with a horrible back ache. So I can't check the driver side timing belt or do anything for that matter today. I did take pictures of question areas. A problem that was found was that when I took off the cap and cranked the car (to see if the rotor would turn) everything electrical died. All the fuses and links were good, I disconnected and reconnected the battery, and the electrical was fine again. The wires from the coil to the disty: There is a one wire connector hanging down, not connected to anything. Again, this car has a swapped engine. Ugh, there are just so many possible causes for a no start condition. Ignition coil wire to disty, hanging connector Disty wiring. This had gotten wet and was encased in ice. It's dry now Pass. Side timingbelt. Note oily on the inside. If I could take off the drivers side cover, would the sprocket also have marks pointing up? If not, slipped belt? Hopefully I can get to this tomorrow...

The screw is in there, but 3/4ths in since it stripped on the way in. When I took off the cap to see if the rotor would turn when the car cranks, everything electrical such as the digidash quit, no blown fuses or links, I disconnected and reconnected the battery and everything worked again. The rotor didn't turn then but I haven't tried again. I can move the rotor back and forth about 1/2 an inch, seems like horizontal play in the distributor shaft, in the same way a steering wheel would have play or slack. Is that normal? The cap, rotor, plugs, wires, fuel filter are all new. I'll check the timing belt to see if it jumped teeth. I'll try to take off the rotor and see if I can get the screw in all the way.

Well, the car "almost" started again. I cleaned the maf connector, coolant temp sensor/connector, relays and grounds near the MAF, any ground connection in the engine bay, ground wire in the trunk. Then when I tried to start the car, I plugged in the green test connectors again. It had the same code, Long blink, two quick blinks, it repeated that code. I cranked the car, it got to 750 rpm but wouldn't stay running. I think the timing belt might have slipped by a few teeth. When I backed the car into it's parking spot, I missed reverse gear and ground the clutch once or twice. Then the car was running rough at idle, I shortly shut it off. Would that be a possible scenario for messing up the Timing belt? I just took off the passenger side cover and looked in, that's the extent of what I know. Tomorrow I'll pull plugs for spark, pull driver side timing cover and check if the belt skipped teeth or something, clean MAF (How?) and if all else fails drain the tank, I replaced the fuel filter and bad looking gas came out. Anything else to try??

Nope, no fresh gas, just drove 200 miles, parked in the lot, never restarted. Currently, I'm cleaning grounds and brackets that ground... The relays inbetween the passenger shock tower/ airbox had a dirty ground bracket, when I opened the connections, they were dirty and corroded on the inside. So right now I'm cleaning all the connections and grounds I find. I'll clean the coolant temp sensor connections again to be sure. I cleaned the idle air control valve out too, it was sticky. I don't know how to clean the MAF. I'll clean the connections, but I've read that the inside of the MAF requires a MAF-safe solvent, all I have on hand is carb cleaner and a weak degreaser. What should I do to the MAF? I checked the timing belt on the pass. side, no weirdness there, I'll take off the driver side cover and see if the belt skipped a few notches or something.

Progress! I cleaned more grounds, all of which were corroded. I took the timing cover off to check the belt, it was fine. Cleaned a ground near the battery NEG post, then the wire that led near the ALT bracket, both shock tower grounds, a ground on the firewall, cleaned up the ground by the fuel injectors again. When I crank the car, the engine will catch and the RPM meter will say 250 or so but it won't stay running. Where is the ground on the drivers or passenger's seat, the ground for the rear defrost, one under the steering column? Those ones I didn't clean or couldn't find. I think I should drain the fuel tonight and put new gas in. Need to find more grounds to clean, though, that's part of the problem. If all goes well I should have this running tonight!

It has a screw in rotor. When I replaced the rotor I stripped the screw head because I couldn't get a screwdriver in at a good angle to take it out. When I put in the screw with the new rotor, I could get the screw in about 3/4th the way in before the resistance was too much and the screw strips. But, the rotor is held on tight. I can't post much at the moment but next I'll see if the timing belt broke, spark from all wires/plugs, rotor and drain gas if necessary.