variant13

Huh, what? I love old owner's manuals, just got one for my 84 GL, and it goes into such detail. Tells me how to adjust valves... It's just crazy. BUT - do I really have vehicle posture adjustments? This seems extremely useful to me, as I had been thinking of seeing if I could juuuust squeeze a titch more clearance out of Sadie... Thoughts?

Oi, MotM, ask not, for I can toss my tools in the back and shuggle on down to the Low Country and take you up on that! Probably have to wait till after December 2 at this point, have to hand in and defend. NO STRESS!!! J

2001 Forester: * Rear seat cupholder (hey, it's really cool IMO to get a new part from subaruparts.com or wherever and fix something like that) * Fake wood trim kit from Subaru for front area * Replaced shift boot and leather shift knob from Subaru * Installed the retractable package shelf over the cargo area, and Subaru package netting * Scored a set of 2007 steel wheels in the box from Freecycle.org for when its salt season (the Forester is an S, and my alloys are PERFECT) * New Goodyear blah-blah-blah tyres... they were expensive, supposed to be the best on the market for ASRs. * Fixed 7 chips in the windshield * Tuneup, changed hoses and drive belts, alignment, chap at the shop said the axles and seals were all in premium shape. Due: *Timing belt. I'm dreading doing it, makes me nervous with the opposing heads. I've changed a lot of Toyota timing belts, but all 4-cylinders, in line. 1984 GL Wagon (this year) * Intake manifold gaskets, some of the snake-basket vacuum leads - gods, I need a Weber * Radiator, belts, hoses * Front rotors/pads * Passenger front axle (needed the car, couldn't be arsed to rebuild) * Repeated attempts to change the muffler, finally went with running a weld up the seam, and still looking for someone nearby qualified to swap out extension pipes onto my Bosal muffler * Ignition switch * Installed a Clarion cassette player that came with the car (Subaru option, apparently, says Subaru right on it). The FM that came with it was also Clarion, and sounds honestly slightly more clear. * Just picked up a brushguard and EA-82 5-speed from ShawnW (thanks!), but the 5-speed is going to have to wait till spring, I'm still driving the GL * Started in on the rust on the rockers and quarters. No holes, except in the quarters, but I didn't want the rust to get any farther. Decided that the quarters needed to be replaced, and I don't have the time before snow flies, so I ground and sanded and POR-15d everything and I filled the fist-sized holes in my quarters with bondo to keep the snow and salt out for now. DUE: * I have lost current to the fan switch. I'm afraid that the PO's idea of wiring repair (I don't have the heart to go to the 'What Stupid Sh*t Did the PO do to YOUR Suby?' thread) may have effed the fuse block. Probably going to have to take that somewhere and have someone just fix it, I've doinked with it repeatedly to no avail. * Front driver's side wheel bearing - probably just have to nut-up and take it somewhere, I don't have a press. * Rear axle boots are very dry, one is torn * Looking for a set of Impreza seats * Intend to try and find one of those turbo EA-82 wagons and kype the rear discs off it * Some chap on the board from the Netherlands had put, I think, an XT instrument cluster in his 83? euro GL. I'm still thinking about that. * Still infrequently burning A/F and losing coolant... but not always. So, eventually I'm going to toss another mill in there. Probably stick with the EA-81, with a Weber. MIGHT consider SPFI, if I wind up near one of the real wizards from the boards. The list goes on, for the GL. If anyone is in southern Wyoming and feeling like they want to shoot a chilly afternoon, I'll buy the beer and the timing belt kit, if someone's willing to hold my hand while I work.

And straight from Bosal's website, they no longer make a muffler for wagons, 80-84. Seems pretty random, but who am I?

Thanks Miles, I had been kicking that idea around, becuase it doesn't look like there are any other options for a Bosal muffler. J

Fantastic! I swear I've searched and searched for these links. Thanks Twitch

Super n00b question: Are the rear axles as tetchy as the fronts? I have just discovered a fresh tear in a rear axle boot (while replacing the muffler), and I am wondering if I should just nut up and get new rears and be done with it?

OK, so this is a Bosal muffler, made in Canada, from NAPA. It's the only muffler they list, and it's 1-2" too short from the flange to the muffler, and the rear hanger is wrong. Anyone have any alternate sources for such a muffler? I already bent the extant muffler back into a cylinder shape, and had a friend tack-weld the burst seam (not very successful), I suppose I can buy some PC-7 Hi-Temp and wing it, but I kinda want a real muffler...

REALLY? I'll be buggered. OK, at least one of the studs is quasi-bonded to a nut, so I guess I'll go buy new studs. Do you recommend stainless? J

Is there any magic bullet for an EA-81 exhaust manifold gasket? I blow them out in ~1,000 miles, and obviously it's not hard to replace, but crikey, I'm at it again. The NAPA exhaust-gasket-bonded O-rings didn't even really fit, IMO, and blew out in a few days. The one thing that has had some limited success (though now blown out at 1,100 miles) was hi-temp gasket material, and Perma-Glue hi-temp 'gasket maker.' I'm tempted to try and find a real donut, with bevelled edges on both sides, I'll just have to remember to dig out my caliper to measure the ID of the pipe. Ideers? J

OK. So, the fan blower blows when I jump direct power. So, I guess I need to find out if any of you guys have a heater switch?

Nope, the fan does not turn at any speed on the dial, and it worked until 15 minutes or so before I began taking the ignition switch apart; this is why I feared that the two things were somehow connected (that I'd knocked a wire loose, yoinking on the steering column). I've run down all of the connexions and wires from the switch to the fan, I suppose I need to get jumpers now and see if the fan spins with direct power. They sure didn't make it easy to get to, did they?

OK, I did a large amount of work on replacing my ignition switch and so on, and after getting everything all bolted back together, horn works, clock works, blinkers work, ignition works a treat! And suddenly, the blower motor doesn't work. I have torn 90% of the dash out of my GL, and all wires are properly connected, I've traced all the leads throughout the Flying-Spaghetti-Monster style snakebasket under my dash, and everything seems to be attached and intact. All fuses are good, I have switched them out with brand new, and switched those with fuses that do work in other sockets So. What's the over-mind think about that? Did the switch just pop? Blower motor, which always worked flawlessly and without any squealing... Ideas?

So, after being quiet for months, it's finally warm enough to work on the GL (1984, EA81, DR-4spd). I did a bunch of underhood stuff including a new HD radiator (4-core, I believe), and I finally got the ignition switch replaced. It's like magic. Driving a new car, even. Then, when I got into her this AM, the fan blower isn't working a bit. Fuses all check, but I was running late and didn't have time to investigate fully. I didn't take out the dashboard or remove the console, are there wires around the steering column that I could have easily banged loose? Or am I on the "Test Light and Torment" plan for next weekend? Thanks in advance J

So, finally got the 84 GL going dependably every day, again (still using coolant, still needs rotors, still needs D/S front axle...). In 4-High, once you begin to approach, say, 25-30 mph it begins to make a pretty identifiable howl from the rear that does change in pitch with speed. Possibly marginally louder on deceleration, and shift back into 2WD and the car is again silent (except for that bloody axle). Two secondary questions: 1) How fast should one go in 4-High? Roads here, when snow-covered could easily be taken at 40-45, providing visibility, and the brakes seem unbelievably good... Thoughts? 2) I have never actually seen the owner's manual on this, is the 4WD shift-on-the-fly, or should you stop before changing? I have been waiting till I'm either stopped or very nearly stopped before switching, but when making a turn onto a snow-and-ice-covered mess, just being able to yank her on up into 4WD would be nice. Thanks again for all the help. James

No worries at all. I use satellite radio if I have to drive any distance anyway, and my dash is blue, to boot. I don't know what there is to do about the distro but carry on. With any luck at all, someone will need a Hitachi distro, and we'll be apples.

Gorgeous! If you are interested, I have the under-radio cassette player with beige housing, if it would work in that car (then you could get a MP3 player adapter and not have to cut a modern radio in there). Just a thought. Gorgeous car.

OK. So, I had to fly back to NJ to deal with a death in the family, clean out the barn, the basement and a two-car garage (if anyone is interested in a very clean 1965 Mustang convertible or a 1946 Ford Club Coupe - the 46 is a frame-off restoration with a Lebaron-Bonney interior, gorgeous car - let me know, I'll forward you details and such). I got a distributor from a thread member (I can't remember his USMB handle and I don't want to use his real name if he likes anonymity), he believed it was a ND distro, so I bought it off him and months later I've finally gotten a brand new ND coil (which set me back $69.95), and a very clean Hitachi(?) distro. Anyone have an ND distro for an EA81 I could trade for or buy or give you wampum or whatever?

In further defence of the old-timers, after posting my whine about coils, there was a section down at the bottom that listed similar posts that gave essentially the same info you have given. SO what that means is I will, in future, search before whining.

GD - Hey mate, I'm a fair smart guy. Next time someone has wisdom like 'don't mismatch x & y,' don't just end it there. For all I know you're just an OEM Nazi, and you like your underhood to look tidy. Now, armed with the knowledge that mismatched coil & distro can fry expensive things, I can make the educated decision. The morons at my FLAPS read the box: 'use with external/internal regulator/resistor,' and they just grunted. I asked 'which do I need?' And they grunted again. I don't even have a NAPA here in Opeyland; my choices are Carquest (blarg) and O'Reilly (for people who think parts stores only need to carry hooker-scented car fresheners and sun shades). O'Reilly USED to be Checker, and at least Checker listed the parts; O'Reilly = bubkiss. I had to order the ND coil online. Waiting to hear back from Rugby, hopefully this will get her rolling, snow flies in six weeks or so, and my 2WD Nissan pup is just not on for it.

I said to myself, 'bugger it, how much can a distributor be?' NAPA: $320, Subaru: $611; and the NAPA unit is remanned. So. All suggestions and offers of help are being entertained.

OK, this has been driving me insane, and I just don't have the scratch to pay bubba $60 an hour to doink around with my car for two weeks, hand me a bill for $700 and say 'Iunno...' In June my 1984 GL wagon was difficult to start cold (not winter cold, just 8-10 hours cold). Crankcranksputtercrankcranksputtersputterfirestumblestumble catch. Run like crap for 45-90 seconds, zoom. I says to myself, 'sounds like the coil is preparing for that long, dark sleep.' I go buy a new generic coil at my FLAPS. Pop it on, doesn't even turn a full rev and it's running like new. Whew. Well, then four or so days later, it won't start, no spark; I check underhood, and the negative terminal is snapped off my coil. WTF, O? Replace coil, under warranty. Starts like new again. Go to drive to work in the am, car starts, drive off, get 3/4 of a mile down the road, engine dies, stone cold dead, no spark. Get towed back to the house. Folks here recommend buying the Hitachi coil, this isn't readily available here, but they have a 'top of the line' coil somethingsomething, I upgrade to that, and that never gets spark, period. This coil turned out to be a coil for a turbo, so for safety's sake, I replace with a Nippondenso coil (distributor is Nippondenso) that is unusually cheap. Now, still no spark. I'm starting to think it's something else. The wires look fine, newish, even. Cap, rotor and plugs are new, and gapped correctly (the best available here in the sticks, NGK plugs, junk off-the-shelf cap and rotor, but it ran GREAT with this combo for those first four days after changing the coil). Plugs are gapped to whatever it said in the book. Inspection reveals that the plugs look dry, with no dirt, oil or fouling. It's getting plenty of gas, though the accelerator pump may be getting ready to join the fishes it's still spraying gas. I could understand one bad coil. I could believe two bad coils, if fed enough beer. Four coils is just not possible. Does this have some sort of ignition computer that may have pooped the bed? Almost seems like a bad ballast resistor from my 1966 Belvidere? Thoughts?

My loyal little 84 GL wagon has had a few issues since purchase. The car has always started VERY poorly when cold. It would finally catch after grinding and trying to go maybe on the fifth or sixth go (accelerator pump = OK, new cap, rotor, plugs, wires), would run like utter ************e for 30-90 seconds and then something seemed to 'catch,' and zoom, running like a sewing machine. I thought that it kinda felt like the primary winding on the coil was shot, so I put on a new coil, and magic, it worked. I didn't drive it for a few weeks (in Europe on work), and came back and it cranked like it had no spark. I pop the hood, check cap/wires, and the negative lead on the coil has snapped off. 'Weird,' I think, and go exchange the coil. Back to perfect, and I go to drive it to work yesterday, and it just plain dies on me on the road, no spark. One thing I have noticed is that there is a condenser/type thing that is attached to the negative lead of the coil, bolted to the fender well, and grounds to the block. This ground was stripped out of the head, and I haven't been able to find a place to attach it w/o tapping the old hole and using a 10mm bolt. Suggestions? I'm confused as to why it is now suddenly seemingly eating coils... ?

I'm so sorry I've been out of touch! I just spent two weeks in Flanders, it would have been a hoot to meet up with you and check out the Rad Roo! J PS - probably my favourite factory colour, too!