Snowman

Dealing with the temp gauge issue, I would check the connection to the sending unit. It may be corroded, or just falling off as happened on one of my cars. It screws in right next to the thermostat housing. It's also possible that the wire is partially broken as well, so I'd trace that back a ways and make sure it's in good shape.

Hey there!! Yes, this is still in the works. I apologize for the slow going, but I'm taking 22 credits at UAA right now, so I'm planning on undertaking this operation once Christmas break starts, which is now in less than two weeks. I recieved your email, AK-Brando. Thanks for the interest! If others could follow suit, it would make my work much easier.

The timing belt should be doable by a "casual mechanic" if you pick up a service manual. No special tools should be needed. Others can fill in information regarding the seals. I haven't done any on newer soobs (I'm a bit of an old-gen diehard). If they are similar to the EA-series engines, they're relatively easy to replace as well. CV axles on subarus hold up about as well as on any other car that uses them.

(Your alternator has an internal regulator) Do you have a digital Ohm-meter or know somebody that does? If so, start checking resistance in all the cables, wires, and connections that appear to relate to the battery and alternator. If you don't have a DVOM, check the physical appearance of them. It's quite likely that there is high resistance in one of the ground cables, or in the connection between the alternator and the battery. I worked on a Ford last summer that had a ground cable that looked okay but had THIRTY SEVEN Ohms of resistance. No wonder why nothing worked. Now, I can't picture in my head how the alternator is connected, but I'm pretty sure it goes through a fusible link before connecting to the battery or anywhere else. You might pull the cover off of the fusible link box and give each one a good tug to see if they're burned out. Like I said, I can't remember how all that goes together, but it's something to check.

Wow, that's really strange. You might try jacking up the rear end, turning the driveshaft by hand and counting the revolutions of the shaft per revolution of the wheels to verify the ratio. I suppose it's possible that the diff was swapped at some point. Is this a new problem or has it been going on for a while? The only other thing I could think of that would be causing such a condition is that something in the rear driveline/CV's is binding up. Make sure that everything turns freely. Aside from that, I really don't know. I'd be happy to come out and go for a ride in it this weekend (not much that I have to get done, amazingly) and see what I think.

Timing belt for sure, probably time for the cam, oil pump and crank seals. Change the oil and filter, change the air filter, change ALL the coolant hoses and accessory drive belts, flush the cooling system and refill with new coolant, change the PCV valve and inspect its hoses, inspect the brakes and probably flush the brake fluid, change the gear oil in the transmission and rear differential, inspect all the CV axles and boots for defects.... that's all I can think of right now. Edit: As for prices, the T-belt will run you like $100, and the other stuff is a $5 here and $10 there sort of thing. CV axles, if they need replacement, are also in the same price range as a timing belt. Best of luck!

Why do you have to be so darn far away?! I wish we had guys up here with huge stashes to give away! (I'm working on one, but nothing of that magnitude).

Is your check engine light on? How's the performance? Have you changed all the ignition parts and run some fuel system cleaner recently? Is it leaking gas (actually not terribly uncommon on older soobs)?

It's really pretty intuitive. Just look over the instructions, lay out all the blocks in front of the car where the directions say, take a couple looks at the car to see where they go, and jump in. Do it when you aren't in a hurry so there is plenty of time to figure everything out, and don't be afraid to ask questions here.

Interesting...... Seems that it's some sort of regulator for the PCV (positive crankcase ventilation) system. Does the vacuum line go to the carburetor or to the intake manifold? (This is mostly for educational value for those of us who haven't seen one.) If it is part of the PCV system, I would leave it alone, as the factory setup works well and generally doesn't like being tampered with.

Dunno the specific part numbers, but I would go with 1stsubaruparts.com. You might be able to find them through a search of their online parts database, but I would call them to order. Good people, better prices.

If you got a gasket kit, it probably has all the gaskets for carbed, SPFI, MPFI and turbo engines.

Hrm... The thing might be creeping up on timing belt time too. Finally looked at the picture and that was very helpful. I'll look into that more.

I've NEVER seen anything like that. Where do each of the lines go to?

Where do you go ice racing at? That sounds like way too much fun! Maybe I'll have to make a little detour up that way at Christmas time after I get my LSD in...

Mine got somewhere between 22 and 24 on the trip back to Anchorage after installing the SPFI. Doing 75 through a few inches of snow sucks up a little extra gas, and the cold temps certainly don't help anything. I expect she'll get up around 27-28 once I play with the timing a little bit (seems a bit retarded right now, and I have no baseline to start from since the Delta cams want WAY different timing that the factory setup). Not too bad for a lifted wagon I suppose, and WAAAY better than the 17-18 I was getting with the Weber.

OK, thanks everybody! I figured that a genuine valve was in order. Definitely clean out the hoses too and maybe replace them if they're old and crusty. (I put in a clear section of hose on my 86 so I can see if it's sucking oil in.) I parked the car inside overnight to see if it dripped any and nothing appeared. I also glanced underneath and there wasn't any appreciable oil on the exhaust pipe, but I'll jack the car up and look some more when I go home in two weeks. I suppose that 2 quarts in a couple months isn't TOOO bad, but with all the older soobs I've owned, they didn't use ANY oil if there wasn't something seriously wrong (or if the PCV valve sucked it in). Also, my mom is the slowest driver EVER. She probably goes 50-55 TOPS on the highway, with no high revs or hard acceleration. I guess I'm just really anal with my cars and oil leaks annoy me to no end:rolleyes: . Thanks!

Whoah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I want those sweeeeeeet portal axles from that volvo! That's sick!

Very nice indeed! Where did you get that sticker in the middle of your passenger side rear window?

Hey everybody, I came home for Thanksgiving and had to drive my mom's outback to the store for parts, so I checked the oil and it was 2 quarts low. Yes, 2 quarts. After I calmed down, I looked around and it doesn't look like it's leaking any oil. The PCV hose had a bit of oil residue in it, and I suspect that it might be getting sucked into the intake through there, especially since I was told that the car "smells hot" after highway driving. So my question is whether the newer-gen cars have the same issues with PCV valves as the older-gen cars do (i.e.: not uncommon to suck in 2 quarts over a month or two if they go bad)? Are they as finicky about keeping a genuine subaru valve in there? Any insight would be greatly appreciated, as I'm the only one in my family that checks the oil, and I'm gone most of the time.

If we could see the pictures, it would probably be easy to identify.

I would generally agree with the "hands-off" approach to carb work if you aren't experienced, as they can be screwed up. However, there are a couple of things you can do that are pretty hard to screw up (no offense to you, this is about all I would feel safe doing as well). Go buy a top gasket and accelerator pump for your carburetor, a couple cans of good carb cleaner, and a can of spray lubricant. After disconnecting the required hoses and linkages, emove the carb top, which is held on by several screws and set it aside, being careful not to lose any of the bits attached to it. Carefully peel/scrape the old gasket off and remove the acclerator pump as well as its boot and check ball (DON'T drop the ball down the carb!). Use a rag and cleaner to remove any sediment from the float bowl, making sure not to accidentally push bits into any orifii. Next, spray carb cleaner into any jets, venturi, or other holes that fuel is supposed to go through in both the carb body and top. After doing that, reassemble the carb. Stick the new acclerator pump check ball and plunger into its hole and install the new boot in the carb top. Put the new gasket on and stick the top of the carburetor back on. Reconnect any hoses and linkage, pour a bottle of fuel system cleaner into the gas tank, fire it up, and adjust your idle speed and mixture settings.

I would go with the factory gaskets just like WJM said. Maybe it's just me, but recently I've been hearing about more failures with aftermarket gaskets than factory ones. One thing that I've been told may be tied to this is that the subaru gaskets have a special coating (if that's the word for it) that bonds to the mating surfaces after it heats up once or twice, whereas most of the aftermarket ones don't. If you do use a gasket with any sort of metal face, coat it with one of those special HG sealants or it will leak (that happened to me this summer and sucked a lot).

That thing's gonna be scary when it's done! Nice work.

I agree, the regular car handles better because of lower center of gravity and lower profile tires.