Snowman

Just use the ratchet and it'll be fine.

Isn't that stuff really expensive?

Rallyruss: Although the whole synthetic=leaks is often considered a myth, there is some substantiation. I've had many discussions with my automotive and diesel professors on the subject, and they agree. Here's why: In dino oil, the molecules are all different lengths. The larger molecules plug up the tiny gaps that develop around seals, gaskets, etc over time. The increased detergent properties of synthetics clean out these large molecules, and since the synthetic oil molecules are all the same size, there are no large ones to fill those gaps again, and you get leaks.

http://photos.reuters.com/pictures/slideshow.aspx?id=0&name=632176283649218750&kw=Editor's%20Choice&dat=4%20Oct%202004 Can't tell what it is, but I know it's an EA series car that got blown up. It was the car of a chief military leader of a Palestinian group. I saw that and I was like, "That's....a....subaru, HOLY CRAP!" I know, I'm pathetic.

That's sick!

I would vote for doing it yourself. It's REALLY easy on soobs compared to others. All you have to do is unbolt the engine and move it forward a few inches. Radiator removal is necessary, but aside from that you should be able to leave everything hooked up. This would be a great project for you to learn about the car and pick up a little wrenching skill. Just get a cherry picker, a shop manual, and a friend (preferably one that knows a little bit about cars) and dive in one weekend.

Engine: Mobil 1 synthetic 10w-30 Gears: Quaker State synthetic 75w-90 I still testify that Mobil 1 is the only thing that kept one of my engines alive. Last year I had #1 lose all its rings. 75 psi compared to 150 in the others. I had to run it another 6000 miles, and it didn't complain one bit. It burned a quart every 400 miles or so. I'm positive that if I were running dino oil, it would have been much much worse and likely wouldn't have made it that long. I think it would have burned off faster, possibly running out of oil, and the reduced thermal stability of the dino oil wounldn't have been good for an engine like that. Just be very careful with switching to synthetics in an older engine. If it's got more than 20 or 30k after a rebuild, reseal, etc. it's most likely going to start leaking.

Probably about time for a new pump from what you describe. Check out the other active fuel pump thread for some info on cheaper alternatives to a factory replacement.

I know this is kind of cheating putting my guess in after looking at the others, but my money would be on rings at this point. I don't have the experience to say exactly WHAT is wrong with the rings, but I think that's where the problem lies. The suspense is killing me!

That's why I love Subarus. I've had two so far that I got for free that needed less than $100 in parts to get running.

Anybody shop out of the Northern Tool and Equipment catalog? In my sig, the four lights on top, which are 100 watters that are supposed to be spots but are more like floods cost $8 each! They also have some super-duper 55-watt driving lights that I used to have on the bumper for $12 a pair. They actually put out nearly as much as the 100 watters do because of their better reflector design. The square 55-watt lights on the bumper now are a set I bought at Wal-Mart (yeah, I know they're evil, I didn't have a choice) for $25. Even though they cost twice as much, they aren't as good of a light. My advice no matter where you shop: Buy cheap. Lights WILL get broken no matter how much they cost, and the expensive ones are more likely to get stolen. I REALLY depend on my lights, as I drive 800 miles each way to school and back, often with nearly the entire trip in pitch black with the possibility of a caribou herd running across the road, and the cheap ones have worked fine for me.

Couldn't be cams on the wrong side, as they physically can't be interchanged on the ea82. The drivers side one drives the disty so it's a lot longer. This is just wacky.

Wow! I gotta change my fuel filter! Mine does EXACTLY the same thing that you describe. I've got a new fuel pump and regulator set to 4 psi, and it pulls pretty well up to 4,000 then falls on its face. I actually felt it completely drain the bowl a few times on the last trip, in which case it would ping and miss all over the place until I went to a lower throttle setting. The other thing is that if I'm using a high throttle setting for long periods of time, it just starts to bog out, again like it's running out of gas in the carb. I changed the filter a year ago, but it's possible that it could have gotten clogged again. There is only one filter on the ea82 cars, isn't there? I haven't seen another like on the ea81's.

Dude, Numbchux, that pic is sweet! I really appreciate cool snow shots, as you might guess by my location:rolleyes: .

As will become more and more apparent, the Haynes manual is kinda crappy for these cars. You do not need a puller of any sort for this job. Before taking anything apart, jack the car up and try to move that wheel to see if there is any bearing slop. If there isn't any, just repack. If there is, then use the procedure I'll describe later to change them. After removing the brake caliper and taking the brake line out of its holder that is attached to the strut(just cut the holder so that it can be bent outward, leaving a gap the line can fit through), use a 36mm socket or wrench to remove the castle nut, take off the washer, then use a small chisel to dislodge the cone washer that is now exposed. Now pull the hub/rotor off to expose the stub axle and bearings. Remove the ball joint and lower control arm at this point. Put the castle nut back on so that you have something to hit with a large deadblow hammer or similar implement of destruction. Loosen the three nuts that hold the strut to the strut tower, then pull out on the strut while smacking the axle/nut, and it should separate without much fuss. Remove the strut nuts and the strut. You should be able to do a decent job packing the bearings without removing them, just push grease in from the outside on both ends, and do the best you can to push the spacer aside and get some in that way too. You should probably replace both the inner and outer seals at this point. If you decide the bearings need to be replaced, you don't need a press. Be warned, the bearings will be destroyed by removing them in this fashion, so make sure you've got new ones. Push the spacer aside, and use a brass drift punch and hammer to tap the bearing out, reaching in from the opposite side. Do the same thing on the other bearing. To install, do the reverse, except make dead sure that you ONLY tap on the outer race, as hitting the inner race will deform the balls and they will last about 10,000 miles if that. Just tap in a star pattern like you're tightening lug nuts until the sound that the tapping makes gets solid, indicating that it's all the way in there. Just make sure you don't forget to put the spacer back in (it can be reused 99% of the time). Good luck, and don't be afraid to ask more questions.

Just make sure you get ALL the bolts out first! Both times I've had a block apart, I forgot one bolt, smacked the thing forever, then checked to see if there were still some bolts in there, took the bolt out, and it came apart nearly by hand.

Another faithful NGK user here. I tried some $8 Bosch platinum super-great spiffy plugs and they made no difference. ANYTHING BUT CHAMPION! The general rule of thumb from my experience and that of people I work with is Autolite for American cars and NGK for Japanese. I dunno about European. Bosch maybe?

Well, that depends on how much money you want to spend. If you've got a lot of time to tinker, you could swap in an EJ22T w/5speed transmision from a wrecked Legacy Turbo. That would give it some pickup, with the advantage of keeping the reliability of a stock engine. If you're looking for smaller mods, there is a wide variety of options out there for you. For aftermarket parts, check out: http://cobbtuning.com/legacy/. They make a bunch of stuff for the new-gen subarus. The first thing you should do is a full tune up, which for a DIYer on that car is basically changing the plugs and wires. After that, you should work on making the engine breathe more efficiently, which is where the most bang for your buck will come from. For instance, replacing your muffler with a $15 three-chamber one will net some gains in conjunction with either an aftermarket intake or removing the air intake snorkel. Remember, if you flow more air in, it won't do much good unless you flow more air out, and vice-versa. Another thing that I hear a lot about is power pulleys that reduce the load that the accessories put on the engine, which can free up around 5 horsepower. That's about all I've got to say since I have no personal experience with the Legacy and modifying it. Oh yeah, and some stickers will add 50 horsepower at the flywheel in neutral:lol: .

That's what I figured.

Try doing a search. The issue of performance comes up constantly, so that would be a good place to start.

Hey, sorry if this has been posted before, but I saw a soob today that just perplexed me. I thought it was a rare black RX at first, but then at closer inspection, the lettering on the sides and rear said that it was a loyale RS. The emblem on the back was the later one, indicating that the car must be newer than 1990 (if I remember correctly), there was no indication of it being turbocharged, and it had an automatic transmission. Oh yeah, it was a three-door. I've never seen one before, or if I did, I thought it was an RX. What's the story with this car?

Thanks for the replies. I figured the computer wouldn't care too much since it's a really simple system. Just wanted some verification, as I already sold the speedo stuff that came off of the SPFI car.

That kind of oil pressure is absolutely normal for the ea81/ea82 subarus. In the ea82 manual, it says that it's normal to drop to 0 on the factory gauge at idle. Fix the leaks and keep driving it!

Hey everybody, Getting ready to do the SPFI conversion on Roxanne in a couple months and I've got pretty much everything figured out except for one issue. In the schematic, it talks about a vehicle speed sensor. What is it, where does it go, and do I need it? My other thought is that maybe like the kickdown switch, it's exclusive to auto-tranny soobs. Um, let's see. The only other real concern I have is fuel delivery. I've got a fuel pump on the way, and I have the complete wiring harness from the SPFI donor car. Will the factory carbed fuel lines take the pressure, or do I need to run some new, stronger ones? The fuel pump wiring shouldn't be bad, as the relay is included in the harness and I'll just run new wires back to the pump. Any help would be great. Are there any other concerns that may come up? It seems pretty straightforward, at least from what I've found in the FSM. Any help would be great.