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Thanks for all the tips. The car: 1988 SPFI S/R PT4WD 5spd Wagon, White, 221k. I found another older post that details the process of going RWD. Front outer axle boots both torn/mostly gone, a little clicking but not too bad. Don't know if they are original, but I'd guess they are. Spent all it's life in SoCal then PNW so rubber was in good shape until I moved to the desert. I have decided to find some junked axles, pull off the outer part needed to keep the wheels on, then pull my axles clean/reboot/regrease them. That way I can always put them back in if I want to. I'll post results when it's done. Off-topic BTW, I have done a few things to free up ponies/mpg: Removed A/C system and Mechanical fan Removed Power steering pump and looped lines Removed leaky EGR vacuum lines and associated stuff and plugged holes Removed Bumpers (Saved 70lbs there) With 220k, oil leaks, dragging clutch, and old original Coil, the car is noticeably peppier, and I have gotten a best of 36mpg on a road trip loaded down with camping gear.

So after 220k of reliable service, my front cv axles are starting to die. My rears, however, have hardly been used at all. I have a S/R 5spd tranny and was thinking of trying RWD out for awhile as I really never use 4wd. Do I just remove the front axles and leave it in 4wd? Is there any benefit to doing this?

Bump anyone?

I have removed my power steering pump and the lines running back to where they connect with the metal lines on the passenger side of the engine bay- looped a piece of hose between the two lines. I am wondering if I can remove the metal lines where they come out of the box itself and plug them with the proper thread bolts. Or do they need to be looped to allow pressure to move in between them?

Who would do that to such a wonderful friend? It's like beating your dog!

So think I solved the problem. There is a thermosensor (?) that plugs in right in front of the EGR valve that I guessed was opening the EGR and causing a vacuum leak, then causing the high idle. I unplugged it and the problem went away. I also plan to bypass the Idle Air Control valve instead of taking my chances with a junkyard item. An old subaru mechanic showed me how. I'll post a description once I'm finished.

Bump

The vacuum source for the EGR came from the nipple where I plugged in the 4x4 vacuum line. There used to be a T there for both lines- I just pulled off the EGR stuff and plugged the 4x4 line into the intake manifold. Also, this problem is occurring on warmup only. Once the engine reaches temperature, everything's fine.

Canister came with 4 barbs, but only three were in use in my motor- the 4th was capped off from the factory. Where would the purge line be coming from? I'm planning to plug each solenoid back in one at a time and see if it makes any differerence, for lack of anything else to do.

My car is a 1988 DL S/R 5mt wagon, SPFI. So after reading many posts on here, I felt ready to remove my EGR system. It had many cracked/broken lines and the computer continuously throws a trouble code as not functioning. Not worth replacing/fixing. Here is what I did: removed vacuum canister, removed two lines going into throttle body and capped them. Removed EGR and EVAP solenoids- just unplugged from harness. Removed vacuum line from EGR. There is a vacuum line that as far as I can tell runs through a solenoid to the transmission for the 4x4 vacuum hubs. I plugged that line directly into the vacuum 'nipple' (whatever it's called) that comes off the intake manifold directly forward of the EGR valve. So now I have two plugged lines into the throttle body, vacuum pulling directly from the intake manifold to 4x4 solenoid, and all that's left is the gas tank vent which is just open for now. Now, after initial warmup or driving for a few minutes, the car idles really high, I would guess 3000 rpms or so (no tach yet). It only does this for about 5 minutes, then all is normal once the car reaches operating temperature. My Idle Air Control valve had malfunctioned in the past and doesn't work all that great, but this problem cropped up after removing the emissions stuff. Did I miss something or disconnect too many wires? Would appreciate any insight.

Ok thanks for the detailed help guys. I have some more things to check as far as wiring goes, but here are some things to rule out. Yes I put the proper amount of Ester oil in the compressor and lines after draining all the mineral oil out. I rented a vacuum pump and did it myself- have done so before. Vacuumed down to 20+ hg for several hours. I haven't overcharged the system as it only has about 16oz of 134a in it. When the system was apart, there were no blockages that I could detect- everything blew through good with compressed air. I jumped the pressure switch by the condenser with no effect. It does make an electrical sound somewhere when the A/C is turned on, and that same sound when the pressure switch is jumped, so I think those are both working. I thought it might be the expansion valve in the evaporator in the dash, but there is equal pressure on both high and low sides so that rules that out. 100 psi was while the compressor was NOT running- I didn't check when I jumped it- will have to do that. I was told by an A/C shop that a high pressure side reading of 2.5 times the ambient air temperature was appropriate- they didn't mention low pressure side max. The clutch on the compressor is working fine. I believe the compressor didn't blow cold air because there is not enough refrigerant in the system- about 16oz. So...next to check is the "belt protection system." Dogbone, can you just jump the wires from the relay where they plug in to the connector just behind the compressor? One more thing to throw in there: This system is from a carbed ea82, and mine is spfi- does this make a difference? All the connections were the same. Thanks!

So I now live here in Sunny Hot Southern Arizona and would like to have working A/C. I have done some a/c work before, and am familiar with the process to clean out an old r12 system, flush it, dry it out, and evacuate the system before putting in the new 134a. So I did all that on my 88dl, new 134a valves, vacuumed and checked for leaks. Everything good. Then I began to add the 134a into the system, and the compressor will not turn on. It will turn on if I run power directly from the battery. I did that for awhile and it pulled a little more refrigerant in, and now both high and low sides read about 100 PSI, but then it seemed like the compressor was having trouble turning. I checked each component individually for blockages before I put the system back together, and everything blew air through fine. My best guesses as to the problem are: bad low pressure switch, or expansion valve not working. Well, I can't FIND a low pressure switch! There is a switch on the high pressure side between the condenser and the drier, but nothing on the low pressure side. I do not know how to check the voltage for that high side switch. The expansion valve is up in the dash along with the Evaporator, and I'd rather not have to get at that if I don't have to. This would probably be better off posted on an A/C site, but no one seems to know much about the old subarus. Anyone have any ideas?

Yeah I think I want to keep my 4lug rims for now, at least until I do the 2.2 swap. Guess I'm looking for EA82T rear disc setup.

found a complete xt6, but the guy's not sure if he wants to part it out or not. Then I gotta get new wheels and tires too. Any thoughts/help? Bump.

So the rear drums on my 88 DL S/R 4x4 are toast. Since I'm planning an EJ swap soon anyway, can I get a disc brake setup from a legacy? The local U-Pull-it has a few legacys but no GLs. I want to do a 5 lug swap anyway. What exactly do I need to pull from the donor car to do this? OR, can I get parts from the local auto shop for GL rear discs instead? Which would be cheaper/easier/lighter/better? I have space to work but no specialty tools.

Yeah the problem is, when I tried to loosen the nut on the end it just turned the whole long bolt, so maybe that's already happened. But I can't see the other end...

I'm trying to replace my clutch cable in my 88 DL S/R 5spd. The book says I can remove a clamp and then a cotter pin to remove the clevis pin attached to the clutch pedal. Mine is not setup that way. I have a small bracket that attaches to the main pedal mounting rod and then holds the cable in place. The Clevis and pin are lodged in between the bracket and the clutch pedal in a way I cannot remove the clevis without removing the bracket entirely. I removed the two bracket bolts that attach directly to the clutch pedal, but the other end of the bracket is behind the end bolt on the main pedal mounting rod. Do I have to remove the whole clutch pedal to get the clevis out? I will try to post pictures later. Stuck here.

Radiator's in great shape on the outside. No bent fins, no leaks, etc. My car has the A/C removed, so no clutch fan, just the electric. I could always add it back, but that creates drag and robs hp/mpg. It makes a noticeable difference without it. I'll try checking for hotspots, and look into a cooler t-stat. Not too much of a problem right now as it's winter.

The thermostat is stock, or was replaced by the previous owner with a stock one. I did the old pot-o'-water boiling trick when I did the t-belts/water pmp, and it opened as it should have. Don't know about the radiator. When I flushed it I thought the amount of coolant that came out seemed a bit low...It doesn't have any leaks. Got the air bubbles out when I put it all back together. But yeah, desert wheeling at under 10mph is where I got the hottest temp too. How exactly does one feel for hot spots? It's a little tight in there, what with the fan and the belt and all. What about a 160 or 170 t-stat? I don't want to throw money at this motor, as I'm planning to do a swap in the next year.

I'm getting ready to begin to start thinking about maybe doing an engine swap into my 88 wagon. I have a few goals, therefore a few questions on what would be the best route to take. Goals: 1. Low budget 2. 30mpg at least highway 3. Reasonably simple, as I have not done a swap before. Questions: 1. What would I get for a 0-60 time with just an ej22 swap, keeping the EA S/R 4wd trans? 2. Would mpg suffer much if I went with an ej awd trans? How much more work is that? 3. Are there some cheap, easy hp upgrades to the ej22 I can do while the motor is out? 4. Is an ej22t that much faster, and worth the premium fuel/ lower mpg? I would love to drive a wrx, but...$$$

I have an '88 DL S/R 5spd 4wd with 211k. Just did timing belts, water pump, flushed radiator and put in new coolant. Thermostat seems to be functioning properly, fan comes on as it should. When I'm doing light 'wheeling, or stop-go traffic for periods of time, the temp gauge runs up near the Red mark but never quite gets there. Is this bad? I've heard the gauges aren't that accurate.

1988 EA82 SPFI Wagon, s/r 5spd My muffler crapped, so I took it off. Well, had to sawzall the mounting bolts actually. Besides being bloody loudness, am I hurting my engine by driving around for awhile without a muffler? I've heard you can hurt exhaust valves with too little backpressure. I'm saving up for an EJ swap, my motor has 211k and leaks, but I need it to run well for another half a year or so. What should I do? Leave it be? Get another muffler? Is this affecting fuel economy?

So how does one successfully go about taking out the purge solenoid? I want to make sure I don't have any vacuum issues when finished. Can the IAC be cleaned and/or refurbished? I am currently in Arizona and can't seem to locate any wrecking yards with old Subarus; more of a PNW car. All they seem to drive down here is old air-cooled VWs- funny since it gets really hot If I can't fix the IAC right away, it should be fine until I get back to Washington in a few months right?

Checked Codes and I get Air Control Valve and Purge Solenoid Valve. Do I have to replace these things, or can I bypass them? I had the TPS adjusted and solved the problem with dying when pushing the clutch in. Now it just needs to be given gas at startup and warmed up like an old carburetor. Seems very low on power, but maybe that's because it only has 90hp:lol:

OK so I want to tag onto this purge solenoid question. I just checked codes on my 88 DL and it said 35-purge solenoid valve, and 24- air control valve. I've read posts about not idling properly, expecially at startup, and I have that problem. I have to punch the gas like on an old carbureted car and rev it a bit at startup, then it idles fine. I was told you can bypass these systems and the car will run fine. My car is old, has over 200k and will probably die soon anyway, so I don't want to throw a bunch of money at emissions systems. If, as GD said, you take the whole purge solenoid, hoses, charcoal canister, etc. out, will the car still run fine? How do you bypass the IAC, and is that okay?