dbenzmaine

Hi All, I purchased an 87 Brat two months ago that's been treating me very well. It has a factory original canopy that came with it and fits well, but the rubber gasket that fits around the edge and protects the car where contact is made is cracked and not fitting that well. I'm wondering if anyone knows where to buy more of that material to form a new one or has good ideas for repairing an old one. Thanks!

I just noticed that you're in Washington. I actually bought this BRAT in Seattle last month. It was up on craigslist for a while. I was shocked to find one in such good shape.

Thanks! I love tips like that. Anything to save effort and knuckle skin is much appreciated! I'm hoping to get it up to my garage tomorrow or monday to see what's going on.

Thanks for the reply. Glad to hear it's easy to pull off. I haven't had to do that job before. It's been cold here most of the winter, but it warmed up a few days ago, and on the day this happened it was probably in the high 30s. I had left it idling for a few minutes while shuffling cars around before starting to drive, and it was already starting to put out some heat when i pulled it out of the driveway. Not sure what the gauge was reading while it warmed up though.

So my '87 BRAT had an issue yesterday. I started to drive it into town, made it about a quarter mile before noticing that the oil pressure gauge read zero even driving up a hill. Pulled over and shut it off. Checked my oil, and it wasn't low. Started it up again, reved the engine a few times, but the gauge stayed pinned to the floor. I would have towed it home with my tractor, but my whole place is snowed in a couple feet deep, and getting the tractor out would have taken a week, so i drove it back to my driveway taking it really easy. Just as i pulled in, i started hearing a squealing noise that i've never heard before. The oil pressure dummy light never turned on. I only noticed that the gauge wasn't reading. I know the gauge is notoriously unreliable, and the engine was still running fine, but the squeal in the last hundred yards is concerning. I just bought the car about a month ago with 158k on it, and i've driven it about 2,000 miles so far. Engine has run great, and i've had to add about a quart of oil every 1,000 miles to keep it full. I haven't changed the oil or filters yet (i love winter, but the snow is really getting in the way of my projects). Not sure what the prior owner was running, but i've been putting Royal Purple in since i bought it. I'm wondering if the detergents have loosened up some gunk and blocked some of the oil passages. My plan is to get it into my garage somehow in the next few days (gotta clear 100 feet of driveway first), and do some tests on the oil pump and sender. The "How to Keep Your Subaru Alive" book talks about pulling out your oil pump and doing repeated sprays of carb cleaner into the case. Anyone ever tried that before? Any other ideas on what might be up? I've never had an oil pump actually fail for me on one of these, but i guess it's possible. During the month that i've had it, the gauge on the dash has generally read high, especially with highway driving. It'll peg at 75 for the first half an hour before settling in a bit lower. Maybe the system was gunked up and forcing a higher pressure? Anyway, i'd love to hear any ideas

Unrelated question, but another thing i noticed on initially looking the vehicle over is that the transmission oil is low. In my old GL i used 80-90 weight gear oil from the auto parts store. Is that cool, or should i be looking for something special to top it off with?

Thanks all! I'm guessing that pulling apart the alternator to try to remove a soldered on voltage regulator is probably not worth the effort when a whole new alternator doesn't cost much. Gonna order a part tonight and see if it solves the problem. I've been driving a rusty diesel Golf for the past ten years, and i'm looking forward to working on a salt-free and simpler vehicle!

Hi All, It's great to be able to post here again! I had an old EA-81 GL Hatch from the mid 90s until it finally rusted out from under me in 2007, and then i was subaru-less until the day before yesterday. I scored a beautiful 87 BRAT without any significant rust. I'm definitely excited about it. It's in great shape, but i did notice an issue on my drive home yesterday. The voltage bounces around while driving. Particularly at highway speeds it will often peg at 18 for a few minutes at a time. The fans blow harder, and the lights get brighter. It will then sometimes run low at around 12, and then other times it'll be right around 14 where it should be. I'm guessing my alternator is bad, but could it be the voltage regulator? I've seen posts with people mentioning that they put a Nissan Altima alternator in their older subie. If i need a new alternator, are there big advantages of going that route? Just availability? Would it be a bolt on swap, or would i need to adjust the pulleys and or belt length for fit? Once i get rims, snow tires, and the electric stuff fixed, the Oregon mountains are mine for the taking. Looking forward to it. Thanks in advance for any insights! Dave

I love everyone's loyalty to the subie. Yes, you're all correct in that this car is totally driveable and solid. If i hadn't been caught, i'd be driving it to Wisconsin this weekend. Unfortunately, the violation may have gone beyond rust, and it is best that this car stays off the road for a while. My other problem is that i live in NYC most of the time, and my ability to do my own work while i'm there is severely restricted. Sadly, i am actually thinking of going with a newer car that won't require any love or attention. I realize this also means that it will have no soul, it won't be able to do anything worthwhile offroad, it won't have as useful cargo capacity, and it won't feel like it's actually "mine". How do people feel about the EJ-22 Imprezas? Do they really only get 28 MPG on the highway??? My GL would get low 30's if i took it easy... I figure if i'm going newer, i should at least be able to find something that's more efficient than my old carbed 81!!

Thanks for the input everyone. Craigslist rocks, and i hadn't thought about looking at other cities. The bookmarking thing sounds like a good idea too.

Disorder - Yeah, it's definitely tempting to try something like that. Is there any decent classified add source that's available over the internet though? It's tough to scout used cars from far away, especially if they're more than 8 or 10 years old. I'm wary of trying to do that, and i also have limited schedule flexibility for traveling...

Hi Welder, Funny stuff. I grew up in Waterville, but my parents actually live in China now. Small world. The AZ reference is just my idealized version of where to buy rust-free cars. 89thorn Let's just say that i'm not revealing everything that was wrong with the situation and that i may have been in very significant violation of Maine's inspection law... My GL is definitely off the road for a while (super-sad given that it's mechanically a very solid car that i was planning to drive to Wisconsin this weekend and that i've actually driven as far as Costa Rica and back in within the last year and a half), so i pretty much have to come up with a different car. While i'd love to do a similar GL, the reality of the situation is that i live in NYC most of the time, and i wouldn't be able to do any of the inevitable work that would familiarize me with the car and make it my own. I will get another one, but i'm thinking that it's a few years down the road at the moment.

So the inevitable finally happened. I got pulled over for a loud exhaust this evening on my way back up to Maine (i was going to have a friend weld it tomorrow!), and the officer made official note of the amount of rust on my car. I have my orders to get it fixed, but it's really beyond repair. I've had this 4wd 89 EA-81 GL Hatch since January of 1997, and i'm completely addicted to the beautiful simplicity, excellent cargo capacity, totally solid fuel economy, and ability to have enormous amounts of fun taking my car places that Jeep owners fear to tread. I don't want to be driving any other car. Unfortunately, i live in the northeast. Finding another one up here that doesn't have major rust problems is next to impossible. I'm leaning towards doing the unthinkable and buying a different car. The plan would be to get myself something practical and reliable for the next few years and then spend some time finding myself a beautiful rust-free GL as my replacement fun vehicle over the long term. So here's the question: if you're a GL addict and need to switch to a more modern vehicle (i'm thinking late 90's is the oldest i'd go), what do you buy? I refuse to go with something like an Xterra or Wrangler, so i'm basically resigning myself to giving up some offroad ability. I also really really like hatchbacks and their inherant usefulness. I'd like something that gets good mileage and is environmentally friendly. Stuff that's crossed my mind so far: EJ-22 Impreza, late 90's Civic hatch, early 00's Civic hatch, possibility of Corolla (but have they made a hatchback recently?), i'd take a Jetta Diesel (but they're unbelievably hard to find), possibly late model Golf (but they've got reliability issues and aren't actually all that efficient...). I'm really not coming up with anything that excites me. They don't make em like they used to! Anybody have ideas on what car i should get as my daily driver until some beautiful day in the future when i can scoure Arizona for a spotless GL? Thanks for any tips you've got! Also for reading this crazy-long post! Dave

Hey everyone, Thanks for the tips. The cable should be coming in in the next few days, and the vice-grip repair has held so far. I hadn't thought of just driving it without. Now i kinda want to give it a try just to see how it feels! Anyway, i appreciate the advice, and i'll be back on here if i have trouble installing stuff! Dave

Thanks Torxxx! It's definitely nice to have some idea of what things should cost before looking for places to do the work. I've heard that pulling the engines in EA-81s is a pretty easy job. I've pulled engines from VW beetles and Karman Ghias before, and it seems like it should be pretty simple. Do you think it'd be a lot tougher though given that it's been through 17 New England winters without being pulled?