jj421
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Everything posted by jj421
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So I went out and took a closer look at the IACV plug. It looked like the wires for the plug were stressed a little, so I looked and found this: How could I not have noticed this before????? I feel so stupid. Oh well, at least I'm 90% sure that's why the IACV doesn't function properly. I did a continuity test between the plug and exposed wire, and they're not making a contact. It looks even worse in person. I guess because of the wire's position, it got slowly pulled out of the plug socket over time. Kinda half-tempted to cut off the connectors and splice the wires together, but I'll just pick up a new harness next junkyard run. I tried jiggling the wires around, but it's been pulled so far out of the connector that it didn't make a difference. Also, I'll be picking up a cooling fan switch. I don't think that'll fix my idle issue, but that's most likely the reason why my cooling fan doesn't turn on. I applied 12 volts to the cooling fan, and it turned on. Unplugged the switch for it and bridged the contacts, and it turned on.
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I'm not sure on the thermostat. Don't think I've ever pulled/tested it before. Wonder, how can I test the harness to find that? Are you talking about the plug to the IACV, or the plug at the ECU? I suspect my harness could be the reason for the issue. I haven't done much testing on the harness, but what I have done insists that the wiring is fine. And yup, that fuse is still pulled, haha.
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I thought I said it somewhere, but I guess not. My oil pressure gauge doesn't do a full sweep. When I bought the car, the oil pressure gauge read below zero. I kinda opened up the instrument cluster, stuck a screwdriver in there, and moved it to about 45 psi, then back down to zero. From what I read (afterwards), you're supposed to move the needle all the way up to 85, then back down to zero in order to get an accurate reading. At least, that's what I believe to be true. I believe it had the same readings on my old engine as well. Highest I've seen it go is 45 psi, and it usually gets up that high when I start the car in the morning when temperatures are low. I don't know how old the oil pump is or anything. I received the long block when it had 116K miles on it. Could be original, but the timing belts have been changed at some point, so maybe they did the oil pump too. I use 10w-30 oil. I've been experimenting with various brands--O'Reilly brand, Chevron, Penzoil--trying to find the one it likes best. So far, Chevron is its favorite. I always change the oil and filter every 3000 miles. So far, I've been using nothing but Bosch filters. Next oil change (in 140 miles), I'm trying Castrol GTX high mileage 10w-30 with a K&N oil filter. The other cars in my family like GTX, so I'm gonna see how my Subaru likes it. When I do oil changes, the oil looks perfectly normal. Like at the end of the 3000 miles, it's slightly darker than new. Normal "wear & tear" for oil. I've never seen foamy oil, or anything abnormal about the oil. I was planning on pulling the engine and doing a new oil pump and new timing belts. But I have to get the money to do it, and I gotta spend quite a bit on exhaust work to pass emission in August. The other night, I checked all my grounds. I have the ground near the thermostat, the ground on the lower radiator hose bracket, and the ground on the transmission. All seem fine. I played with every single wire in the engine bay, and nothing changed. The engine came from another forum member on here, Subruise, who pulled it from a '90 Loyale RS. That's pretty much all I know about it. It is indeed the same distributor from the old engine. I've also been told something about the distributor, as he said my misfire sounds like a dead miss. I can't remember exactly what he said the problem could be. I just went out and tried yanking on the camshaft pulleys. A little tight down there, but I couldn't feel any play whatsoever. I'll play with the cooling fan tomorrow. I just installed a Nissan Maxima alternator today, so I'm done working on my car for today, haha. Even offroading, the coolant temp gauge has never gone above 1/3. The only time it's ever gotten hotter was when upper radiator hose ruptured a while ago, but even then it never read hotter than 1/2 way up on the gauge. I don't think it's an issue with the heads, valves, oil pump, camshafts, or any components listed as part of the long block to be the culprit for anything. Again, I swapped the long block and found no change with my idle issue. The only thing that I noticed that affected it was the water pump, which I don't see how that could affect it. The oil pressure gauge read the same on the old engine. I suspect the distributor for my misfire, but I don't think that's the culprit for the idle. While I believe I should replace the oil pump and rebuild the engine, I don't think that's the problem. And I don't even know if I'll rebuild the engine. I'll probably buy a Legacy with a blown transmission for $500 or something and swap in an EJ22.
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Can't wait to see a picture of you rockin' the Generals!!
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Yes, I have a manual transmission. I'm pretty sure that kickdown solenoid is only on autos. I believe it says this in my Chilton. Unless it's under the dash somewhere, I haven't seen a relay for it. I understand what you're saying about maybe a bad ground (earth) or something. My only question about that is: if the IACV connection/wiring had a bad ground, wouldn't other systems be affected? The wiring harness to the IACV has the TPS, CTS, purge and EGR solenoids, and whatever else. If that whole harness isn't grounded very well, wouldn't those other components be affected as well? I do have a wire grounding my engine to the body, I believe. I'll have to take a look at it, but again, if that was bad, wouldn't other stuff be affected? Today, driving to work, it made it the whole drive idling fine. It idled a bit high, but it wasn't trying to die nor was it giving a CEL. What was different about today? It was sunny and warm outside. I had my eye on the temp gauge, and it stayed between 1/4 and 1/3 of the way up, like it normally does. I don't know if it's related, but I popped the hood when it was idling fine. I wanted to see if the cooling fan (the electric one) kicked on, as maybe it had to do something with that. But nope, my cooling fan wasn't running. Thinking about it, I have NEVER seen or heard my cooling fan turn on. Either my engine never gets hot enough, or the fan doesn't work. I mean, it doesn't really matter since it never overheats (I think deleting the A/C condenser allows a lot more airflow to the radiator). But I wanted to see if it had something to do with it, but it doesn't. My cooling fan doesn't turn on, whether it's idling or not. Coming home from work, it was colder out and it idled poorly the entire drive home. Really, outside air temperature is the only thing I have noticed that affects it. Could my MAF be an issue here, since it's getting readings off of the outside air? Also, if it's idling fine, it'll stay like that until I run at, say, 2500+ RPM for at least a minute or so. Then, if it wants to, it'll idle poorly and I'll notice next time I come to a stop. On the contrary, if it's idling poorly, sometimes it'll fix itself even when I'm idling.
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I didn't jiggle every inch of the wiring, but I did mess around with most of the wiring from the black plugs to all the intake components. From there, the wiring goes into the fender. Yeah, that all makes sense. Later on this week when I get some time in the daylight, I'll do some continuity and resistance tests. First that comes in mind is the IACV plug to black plug near battery, then black plug to the ECU plug. I'm not sure where there might be other connections, but I'll check out a wiring diagram before doing tests. I believe it's gotta be the IACV circuit, since that's what the CEL code is for. Only thing that doesn't make sense about it being a wiring problem: whether it works or not isn't random. My car will idle fine if it's warm outside. My car idles fine when I'm offroading and rock crawling. High RPMs, low speeds. Otherwise, it'll idle like garbage. If it's a damaged wire harness or something, I don't think it'd be temperature related. If it's cold outside, my car will never idle. If it's warm outside, sometimes it'll idle fine and sometimes it'll idle poorly. I can also sometimes feel my IACV working, or at least what I believe to be the IACV. The other day, it was idling fine for a bit. I came to a stop and it was idling at like 1200 RPM. Then you could feel/notice the IACV adjusting as the idle went down to like 900 RPM. In case anybody is wondering, here's a quick test on my coolant temp sensor that I just did. I used to have a CEL code for the CTS, but I no longer have that code since installing the new CTS. My coolant is sitting at ~74 degrees Fahrenheit, and the CTS had a resistance value of 1650 ohms. This is within tolerance as per the FSM. I am going to do some IACV testing, as per the FSM.
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I jiggled the wires before work and just now. Engine cold and engine hot. Made no difference. I couldn't find a sweet spot or anything. It does look like the wire harness is grounded to this bolt, which is located right next to the thermostat: This does appear to be a good ground. I unbolted it, and it's clean and free of corrosion. It also has continuity to the negative battery terminal. With the engine running, I put the positive lead on the positive battery terminal and the negative lead on this bolt/wire. Read 14.08 volts, so it's good. I disconnected the two black plugs and all the pins are in excellent shape. One thing that I found interesting was on the smaller black plug, there were six wires on the ECU side and only four wires on the engine side. I assume those two terminals are made for cars with cruise control or something else? But yeah, the connection of those plugs are really tight, and the connections are clean. Is there a way I could test the ECU at all? Are all EA82 SPFI ECUs interchangeable? Can I go to a junkyard, pick one up, install it in my car, and see if it changes anything? This probably isn't related, but in the past couple days, I have found these two wires in my engine bay. They're not plugged into anything, and just hanging out by the air box. The wires go into the harness that hosts the corner marker lights, passenger headlight, and cooling fan. They could easily plug into each other, but that wouldn't make sense, haha. What do these go to? I deleted my car's A/C and power steering, but I don't recall messing with these wires.
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Well that definitely sounds like a connection issue or something. I'll try that on my car. I'll try jiggling the harness around, especially around the two black plugs near the battery. Yes, I had the issue with my old engine as well. I swapped only the long block, so the intake manifold, throttle body, and everything else is still original to my car. I'm gonna check and play with the harness today. Oh, one thing I forgot to mention: when I swapped the long block, it had a brand new water pump on it. That new water pump only lasted 400 miles before it started leaking, but during those 400 miles, I had no problems with my idle. It was idling fine and I never once had to rev it to keep it alive. But once it started leaking, I installed my old, original water pump. The idle issue returned. That is the only thing that I've done that's affected the idle: swapping the water pump. Could just be a coincidence. but: new water pump=good idle. Old water pump=bad idle.
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I always find this interesting; it seems like a lot of people have the same issue, or at least a similar issue. But nobody posts the specifics of their problem or any solutions. Oh well; hopefully we can get your car fixed too.
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Here, I'll make a short list of the things that I've done, off the top of my head. Keep in mind, none of these things made a difference to the idle problem, how the car runs, or anything. Replaced CTS with a junkyard one Replaced CTS with a new one Replaced IACV with a junkyard one, cleaned it before installing Replaced IACV with a junkyard one again, cleaned it as well Tested CTS, IACV, MAF, TPS, and O2 sensor. All checked out fine according to the FSM New O2 sensor Cleaned MAF Replaced intake from airbox to throttle body with a spare one Cleaned throttle body Cleaned EGR valve Replaced PCV valve with new one from dealership Just played with the car a bit. Did some things that may or may not indicate stuff. With the engine running, I started disconnecting vacuum lines. IACV line causes the engine to wanna die. The hose going to the passenger valve cover causes the car to wanna die with detached. However, when I take off the vacuum line going to the driver side valve cover and PCV valve, nothing changes. I took the hose off, it's clear. The was some oil residue on the PCV valve and valve cover, where the hose attaches. I removed the PCV valve, and doing the shake test, I could hear it moving around in there. Wasn't exactly rattling, but it made noise when I shook it. Installed everything back again, started the engine, and no change. May sound like a stupid question, but how far is the PCV valve supposed to go in? I can still see some thread on the valve, but it's pretty tight. I'm pretty sure that's how it was before, but I cannot remember. I don't wanna over-tighten it, since it's pretty darn tight right now. However, I did notice a rapid clicking from the throttle body. I don't know if it was there before, but I hear it now. Can't tell exactly where it's coming from, but it's a rapid clicking from the throttle body. With the engine running, if I disconnect the vacuum line from the PCV valve, the engine will slow down and it won't run very well. I can put my finger over the PCV valve and it has suction. Reattach the vacuum line and the engine performance improves. I then disassembled the top of the throttle body, but didn't see anything out-of-the-ordinary. Put it back together, started the engine, and no change. I decided to pull the two small vacuum lines at the front of the throttle body that go to the canister, but pulling those lines didn't change the engine performance at all. I also disconnected the brake booster vacuum line with the engine running. Obvious vacuum leak. You could hear it and the engine just about died. So, there's that. Also, not sure if it could be relevant, but I'll throw every bit of info out there: my engine does tick when I start it up cold, but goes away after a few minutes. Not obviously related to the idle issue, but maybe that can give an idea to someone.
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I tested the coolant temp sensor when I got to work today. With the engine running, I unplugged the CTS and the idle increased in RPMs for like 10 seconds, then it went back down again. Plugging it back in changed nothing. This was with the engine warm. I'll try it when I leave work today. Also, with the engine running, I plugged in the test connectors, but it did nothing. I'll try again when the engine is cold.
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Well, replaced my O2 sensor and haven't noticed any change whatsoever. Still can't idle, still has the cyclic idle, still misfiring, same performance. Tested the O2 plug with my multimeter and it's fluctuating like it should.
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Hmm, I'll check the IACV lines and stuff, but I'm pretty sure they're clear and free. Could be wrong about the PCV lines, since I haven't touched those much. And don't ask about the toilet bowl gasket; I honestly don't know. I went to install a new gasket, but I couldn't find an old one. There were witness marks from one, but I couldn't feel it. Keep in mind I didn't fully take apart the throttle body; I just undid it enough to change out that gasket. I installed a new gasket, started adding coolant, and the coolant level wasn't staying steady. Next thing I know, the engine is hydrolocked. I removed the gasket and viola, it was fine. Unless it was stuck on the top part of the TB and I couldn't feel it, but I ran my fingernails on it and it felt like flat metal. I'm just putting the toilet bowl gasket thing on the list of, "It's a Subaru thing." It works, and I ain't complaining. I've been meaning to take apart a junkyard throttle body to see if I missed something, but I keep forgetting. When you say engine temp sensor, you mean the coolant temp sensor, right? Unless there's an engine temp sensor that I've never heard of before, haha. I've replaced my CTS twice, and am currently running a brand new one. Resistance readings are within tolerances as per the FSM at all temperatures, ergo it's working fine. Currently uploading a short video to YouTube. Maybe it'll give you guys another view on the issue. One thing to note that I didn't really notice: the car won't start without playing with the gas pedal. If you don't touch the gas, it won't start. It'll just crank and crank, as you'll see on the video. Also, when it's idling poorly, disconnecting the electrical connection to the IACV does nothing. However, disconnecting the vacuum line will cause the engine to die. I'm hoping to get a new O2 sensor from O'Reilly tomorrow, if I wake up early enough to go before work. It'd probably help to pass emissions in August, but my exhaust leak is probably the biggest issue for that. I really wanna believe it's something to do with the IACV. If I start the engine and it idles fine, I have no CEL. Then, once it decides to idle like garbage, the CEL comes on with the "air control valve or circuit" code. But so far, all the tests I've done to my IACV have proven it to be working, as far as I know. Resistances are within tolerances as per the FSM. With key on engine off, you can unplug it and plug it back in and hear it actuating. Got voltage going to the IACV plug and I believe I tested the big round black plugs near the battery, and that checked out fine as well. I truly appreciate you guys helping me with this. I never got any responses on my previous posts that I've done on this problem. I would like to put this issue to bed once and for all. I'm trying to give you all as much info as I can, and hopefully you guys will stick with me to the solution. Okay, here's the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AS4sJPCvA3Q
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It is SPFI. I changed out the PCV valve with a brand new one from the dealership about a year and a half ago. the PCV valve fixed my white smoke on right turns, and haven't seen that problem since. If I unplug or remove the IACV hose with the engine idling poorly, nothing changes. However, if I do that when the engine is idling fine, the car will bog down and it wants to die. I can explain more when I get home and get on my computer. Before I drove to work today, I unplugged the O2 sensor. I noticed no difference whatsoever. Drove perfectly normal. No difference at high RPMs, full throttle, up hills, and no obvious change in the fuel consumption. My drive to work is about 30 minutes. This leads me to believe that my O2 sensor is bad. So I'm gonna replace that anyways, though I don't think that will fix my idle.
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That's what I was originally thinking when I did the test. But I looked up online and the general consensus is that a bad O2 sensor won't really affect your idle much if it's bad. Rather, you'd get poor performance and poor gas mileage. My performance isn't that bad, neither is my gas mileage. Still, I don't think it would hurt to change out the sensor, although I would like to know of some tests that I could do beforehand. Yes, I'm still running without the toilet bowl gasket. Not leaking there currently. I'm losing a bit of coolant, but not much. Maybe 0.5 cups of water/coolant every two weeks. Well, maybe not even that much. Not enough to where it'd cause such an issue. Not to mention that when I bought the car, it idled fine. Over time, it developed an issue. It has had this issue before I messed with that gasket, swapped the engine, and even before I swapped the transmission. I'm pretty sure it's gotta be something electrical. It either idles fine or can't idle at all, as if a switch was being flipped between the two. If it were a mechanical problem or a leak, it wouldn't be so, "one way or the other." I've also cleaned the EGR valve quite a bit, but that made no difference whatsoever.
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Nope, not when I lifted it. I've wondered about that as well. I believe at some point, I tried unplugging the O2 sensor with the engine running, both hot and cold. I don't think it made a difference, either way. But I also read that the O2 sensor doesn't do much at idle, so unplugging it shouldn't do anything. I tried revving the engine with it plugged in and unplugged; engine acted about the same on both tests. Looks like an O2 sensor is only like $20 at O'Reilly. Might be worth replacing it anyways, since my current one looks a little worse for wear. Gotta by a socket too, since I don't have a wrench big enough to take it off. I do remember that Marcus had stated that my car smelled lean when I started it cold. I don't have the greatest sense of smell, so I can't really say otherwise. But that could be a thing too. I've also looked into the timing as well. I plugged in the green connectors and put a timing light to the flywheel. Seems to be where it should be. Although my idle problem wasn't as bad with the green connectors plugged in.
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I am so tired of dealing with my car's idle problem. If I can get it fixed once and for all, I'll be the happiest man alive. Now my car has developed a new idle issue. I still have my other idle issue, where I have to rev it to keep it from stalling. However, this issue has started appearing more and more often over the past few weeks. Basically what happens is the idle goes up, cuts out, goes up, cuts out, goes up, cuts out, etc. Much like "cyclic idles" that you see on tuned cars. It does then when it's supposed to be idling (obviously). If it's idling and the car is moving (like if I'm coasting in neutral to a stop sign), it'll do this cyclic idle. However, once I come to a stop, the idle will return to normal. Very recently, it is now doing it all the time though. Here's a video of what's happening: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xBu3RJIZrk&feature=youtu.be It's like it's trying to rev up to a kinda high idle, but then it get cut off. I don't really know how to explain it. The only CEL code I have is for "air control valve or circuit". I have replaced and cleaned the IACV twice now using junkyard units. Whatever I've done has made absolutely no difference. I've thought about replacing the wiring harness that goes to the IACV, but my testing says I might not need to. I've got power going to the IACV plug and resistances are within tolerances. The only thing I haven't tested is the ECU. Again, my previous idle issue is still there. It kinda feels like if there's water in the intake or something, since I've driven into deep mud before. However, I have sprayed every little and big vacuum hose in the engine bay with carb cleaner and haven't noticed any leaks. Sprayed the intake manifold gaskets, TBI, intake, PCV, and I didn't notice anything. My car has an exhaust leak and a misfire when idling, although it drives fine. Also, I have replaced my CTS twice. Currently have a brand new one in there, and it reads correct resistance at all temperatures. 1990 Subaru Loyale, EA82 N/A So, I'd like some help with this. I'm hoping that this new issue could be a possible fix for my other idle issue. My other idle issue seems to be OAT related: when it's warm outside, it'll idle fine. When it's cold outside, it won't want to idle and I have to rev it to keep it from dying. Has nothing to do with engine temperature; just outside air temperature. Any ideas? I can't stand this idle issue. My main issue is just plain dangerous, and this cyclic idle is annoying (and embarrassing, really).
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The Awesome Older Generation Picture Thread
jj421 replied to 6 Star's topic in Old Gen.: 80's GL/DL/XT/Loyales...
Glad to hear that! I was surprised by the depth too. These tires have a lot of grip in all conditions. I managed to pull a 0.5 g's in a turn before the rear tires started to rub (from body roll). I still had plenty of grip left. These tires have a lot of grip in rain and snow, for sure. You'll be happy with 'em. I plan on rotating my tires every 3000 miles (every oil change), so they wear down evenly. The front end has quite a bit of camber with the lift, haha. -
The Awesome Older Generation Picture Thread
jj421 replied to 6 Star's topic in Old Gen.: 80's GL/DL/XT/Loyales...
General Grabber AT2; 27x8.5R14. -
The Awesome Older Generation Picture Thread
jj421 replied to 6 Star's topic in Old Gen.: 80's GL/DL/XT/Loyales...
Went to the mountains today, and wow, these tires do amazing! Their performance in snow is like nothing I've had before. Best purchase I've made to my car so far. However, during the run, I somehow ripped off and lost my skid plate and one fog light. Not sure how or where, but the damage done to the body suggests the I was reversing and hit a rock. I don't recall when I did that, but oh well; I couldn't find my light and skid plate. Anybody wanna make a custom skid plate for me? -
3. I'm pretty sure those are plugs for the A/C compressor. Looks like you don't have A/C, so that's why. I deleted my A/C, and I have those two plugs. Can't recall if they were plugged into the compressor or not though. 4. That plug looks like one of the CEL checking plugs. You plug it in when you wanna check the check engine light.
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Got my Australian corner markers installed.
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Hmm, that's a tough one. I'm not super familiar with Brats, but if I were choosing between these two, here's my pros and cons list. Keep in mind, these are all my opinions and personal tastes. Also, on vehicles this old, I consider high miles to be a good thing. First Brat: Pros: -Cheaper -New brakes & clutch -Has the canopy -Has jump seats installed Cons: -I'm not a fan of the color -Headlights (I prefer the quad headlights) -Is it 4WD? Dual range? -Low miles (seals in the engine might have never been replaced, and might have degraded over time) Second Brat: Pros: -Higher miles (car has been used and maintained) -Dual range 4WD -Better color (in my opinion) -Quad headlights -Looks to be in a bit better cosmetic shape Cons: -More expensive -Jump seats are not installed (although they are included) This really is a difficult choice. For me, I'd really have to drive them to decide, as they are about equal in other aspects (in my opinion). I like the looks of the second one better, for sure. But maybe if you got rid of canopy on the first one (I don't like the looks of 'em), I might like that one a bit better. Plus you could sell the canopy and make a bit of money (which is why it was on the pros list). Yeah, I don't know. It's tough to decide between them. Prices are about the same, so that doesn't lean one way or the other. I'd probably go with the second, silver one though.
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You're probably okay. I have a hitch on my Loyale wagon, and have towed a few times. To me, I don't notice the weight on a trailer as much as I notice weight in the car. Like, I've towed an EA82 transmission on my trailer before. I'd imagine the transmission weighs a couple hundred pounds, followed by the 150 lbs of the trailer. I didn't even notice the trailer behind. Also loaded up my trailer when we moved. Probably had a good 500 lbs on it, at least. I've also hooked up a 1700 lb pop-up camper to my car. That, I could feel. But it towed it alright, but stopping was kinda sketchy. All in all, if the combined weight of the load and trailer are under 1300 lbs, you're probably okay. Maybe a little more weight if you had rear disc brakes. But since you have a DL, you have rear drums. Also, keep in mind tongue weight too. I wouldn't go much more tongue weight than say, 150 lbs. Otherwise the rear suspension will be really compressed, and handling will be off. Besides, most of the hitches available are only rated for 200 lb max tongue weight. Again, this is just my experience. I've noticed that towing 400 lbs is about the same as throwing a 180 lb passenger in the front. At least in terms of performance/handling differences.
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dual range swap into loyale?
jj421 replied to Tman1058's topic in Old Gen.: 80's GL/DL/XT/Loyales...
"...or from further back on the transmission and just swap the wiring in from the other car?" This. Follow the wires on the transmission back, and there will be like two or three separate small two-pin plugs or whatever. Unplug it there, and swap the wiring harness from the push button to the D/R tranny. That's what I did. The 4WD Lo connector on the D/R tranny will just hang, since there's nothing to plug it into. Try and test to make sure the reverse lights work before putting everything back together. I didn't do this, but luckily I connected them correctly, haha. I see you're in Seattle. If you'd like, I can drive to your place and help you. Give me a couple buck for gas, and I'll help you put everything back together. I can come over as soon as tomorrow. I'm replacing a fuel pump on a GMC Jimmy in the morning, but I can drive over after I'm finished with that.
