grotto

Fantastic!! Read through the thread today as I am just getting started chasing my own gremlins. May be helpful to me. Thanks for posting.

Yes, that and filters is what I'm thinking right now.

OK, so I tapped on the fuel pump housing, hopped in the car, turned the key and the pump whirrs to life. Turn it over and she coughs, sputters and fires up!! Thank-you MilesFox. Fuel pump now working. Ran it for several minutes but it doesn't hold at the correct idle speed, it idles way down to just a two or three hundred RPM's. Ran it till she warmed up, let it idle way down and after several minutes it dies. Starts, runs dies, starts runs dies until no start. Tried the next day and again no start and no inidication of firing like before. Previously, when I added a gallon of fresh gas, the fuel gauge read empty. Now the gas gauge inducates 1/4 tank so I figure I still have bad gas. Pull the fuel line from the fuel pump to drain the gas tank and no gas comes out. Maybe that's the problem. Blow some air through the fuel line back into the tank to clear whatever is blocking and it now drains. Empty the tank, 5-gallons, add a couple gallons of fresh gas and again no start. Plan to change the fuel filters, and check the spark plugs next as I think that since it did run, the failure to start is still a fuel issue. Once I get it starting reliably again I'll address the low idle and any other issues that come up. My plan is to eventually pull the engine and re-seal all the oil leaks but I want to first get it running right. Any other ideas? Thanks for all the help.

Thanks for all the tips, many of them I would not have thought of. Much appreciated. Yes, ethanol here. Hope to carve out some time this weekend for it. Will report back.

I'd say it definitely wants to fire. Fuel was my initial thought as I cannot hear the fuel pump and it acts fuel starved. Have not tried to chase it down yet. Will check for fuel presssure and go from there. Thanks.

Hi all, long time since I've been on the boards and was hoping for some help. The car has sat for about 2 years under a shed. Charged the battery, fresh gas, turned the key and she fires for half a second then nothing. Tried again a week later and same thing. Car ran great before parking two years ago. Any tricks I should try? A bit of fuel down the throttle body? The reason she was parked is a bad oil leak from the timing cover area. Wanted to finally fix the leak but not much sense in doing that if it doesn't run.

I just went through this myself before picking up my 1992. As per above, in the U.S. market, the Loyale was only offered with the EA82 or EA82T (Turbo) engines. If I recall correctly, they were available with front wheel drive, selectable single range four wheel drive (which is what I chose) or full time all wheel drive. I don't recall if AWD was offered for all of the production years and I may be mistaken that it was available at all. If you come across a U.S. market car with an EJ engine, it has been swapped in. The EJ swap requires re-wiring the engine management system. Personally, I wouldn't necessarily avoid a particular engine just because it has a reputation for HG leaks. Heck, even the famed Toyota 2.4 liter engines are known for that. You just can't let the engine get excessively hot and start warping things or allow too much water into the crankcase. If buying a car that has had the HG's replaced already, (which is likely with an older EA82 engined car) you really don't know how hot it got or how long the previous owner put off getting it fixed so it is a bit more of a crap shoot. I find that many sellers are pretty ignorant about what they have so you can't very well rely on the information they provide being 100% accurate.

Me likes :cool: I'd love to find one of those, especially the color. Welcome to the board.

Thanks for the welcome Tom. That list helps a lot and doesn't seem long at all to me, especially with the engine removed. I've been searching to learn what seals and gaskets I should replace, which are the best ones to use and where to source them. It's been a little challenging as there are bits of good information scattered all over the place. Hoping to finish detailing the interior this weekend and pull the engine next.

That's quite a story Peerson, enjoyed reading it. Yeah I'd say you are definitely a certified Subaru nut.

You're much braver than me taking on a project like that. By now you must know that car like the back of your hand. Congrats on the results, now I know who to contact if I need to remove my dash.

Hi all, I’m new to USMB and thought I’d post up a couple pictures and start a thread about this 92 Loyale I picked up a few weeks ago. The car is nothing special, basically just a beater, but it’s my first Subaru. I know that EA82 cars are considered by many to be the low point in Subaru engineering, but I was more interested in just getting a decent test mule that I could do some wrenching on and learn a bit about these cars. I hope to have it sorted out enough for my daughter to drive this summer while home from school. After that, who knows? If it performs well and grows on me I may keep it, but then, I’m already eyeballing the early 80’s wagons and early Impreza wagons too. Here she is: It's a selectable 4WD, 5-speed car with 185K miles. As you can see it has a nice straight rust free body (except the hood has few wrinkles in it), the engine runs nice, quiet and smooth with no smoke or engine noises, the drive train feels nice and tight, the car tracks straight, the suspension feels good and the struts look good too, no exhaust leaks, CV axles all look good, newer tires. According to the seller the head gasket was replaced a couple years ago, couldn’t tell me if both were done but the coolant is nice and clean as well as the engine oil. It has new front brake pads and rotors, you can see that the right front CV axle is newer and it has a new O2 sensor, so there is at least evidence that some level of maintenance was performed. Picked it up locally for $1200, which I thought was a fair price. Of course the car needs a few things. The interior is very dirty and many of the plastic panels are a bit beat up. It looks like the car spent some time on a dusty ranch and was used for hauling hay and gear. However, the seats are in decent shape, no rips or tears, and everything is pretty much intact. Since I don’t like feeling like I need a hepatitis shot after every drive, the first thing the car will be getting is a good disinfecting and cleaning. The seat belt light in the dash stays lit up all the time, the right rear power window struggles, the clock lights up intermittently, the speakers are blown and there are a few other gremlins I’m forgetting right now that will reveal themselves soon enough. While inspecting the car before purchasing I noticed small pool of fresh oil on the rock guard under the drivers side of the engine. From what I’d learned about the EA82’s I was not surprised, nor was I put off by some oil leakage. After all, I’ve owned air cooled boxers and they all dripped oil. It doesn’t just drip though, it puddles, so the leaks will need to be located and fixed, which is probably the real reason the car was being sold. Looks like I may be pulling the engine and doing a re-seal. This is where you all come in, as I’ll need all the help I can get. It’s been awhile since I’ve taken on something like this. Looking forward to the project.

I love it, autoxing with the bike rack on top, I don't need no stinking aerodynamics. I'm really starting to develop an affinity for these early 80's wagons. Nicely done, very creative.

Hi Tom, I picked up my first Subaru (92 Loyale) a few weeks ago and promptly joined the forum. I have lots to learn and really appreciate these build documentations. Can't offer much more than an "atta boy", but I'll keep watching this thread.

Most excellent, thanks for the link and good luck with the car.

Rock on bonvo Just read the entire thread. To me, this is what being a car guy is all about, making the most of what you've got. While full on restorations are certainly cool, what you are doing here is within reach of just about anyone. Looking forward to seeing more.

Welcome O M O, Got a link to those tutorials? Need to study up myself. THX

Greetings Dennis, I'm newly registered as well and pretty much in the same boat, although my 92 Loyale is my first Suby. I'm already thinking a 1st gen. Legacy or Imprezza would have have been a better way for me to go. Oh well, good luck with the car.

:clap: Way to go!!! Hopefully mine will give me less grief.

Looks like you can get them here: http://www.capitalwheels.com/store/customer/product.php?productid=4816&cat=&page=1 Kinda spendy

Here's one I get to enjoy seeing at work every day.

I know this is an old post but had to reply as I recognize the location where the pictures were taken!! I got my first full time job at that station right out of High School when it was Westgate Chevron, back when service stations provided full service at the pumps. I remember one time, right where your car is parked, one of the senior mechanics was helping me out with a carb issue on my 1970 Ford LTD wagon. He was over there by himself when suddenly we hear this big explosion. We all go WTF and then He comes staggering around the corner in a deafened daze with his face covered in black soot. After we realized he was OK we all about peed our pants laughing ourselves silly. It was just like something out of a movie. Good times. Thanks for the memory and belated congrats on the selection.

Thanks for the welcome. That's what I thought. I've sold cars in worse shape for more.

Been lurking on the board for the last few weeks learning as much as I could about the older Subarus. I see a strong representation here from the PNW. Well, here's my story: Bought an 87 Benz 190e 2.3 for the youngest daughter a couple years ago. Without going into all the details, the car has reached a point where the repair costs vs. owner satisfaction ratio is upside down so the Benz will soon be gone. A few weeks ago one of the mechanics from the auto repair shop I use swung through the business park with an older Subaru 4WD wagon that caught my eye. I went so far as to stop him to say "I'd love to own one of those". Well, I couldn't let go of the idea and am now the owner of this 92 Loyale: It's a selectable 4WD, 5-speed with 185K miles. Straight rust free body (except the hood), runs and drives great, everything works. Picked it up locally for $1200. It's very dirty and needs a few things sorted out, but so far I'm satisfied with the purchase. Oh well, nothing ventured nothing gained, right? This is my first Subaru, they certainly have a different feel to them. First impressions: The 80's called and want their 90's model year car back. Has that 4-cyl. boxer sound not unlike my old 70 VW bug. Despite its anemic performance, it still has a little more giddyup than my 4x4 22RE Toyota PU. The shifter positioning will take some getting used to. I've killed the engine a few times thinking I was in neutral when I wasn't. I like the feel of the 4-wheel independent suspension. The steering is nice and tight and the car tracks straight and true. Shift on the fly 4WD is cool. My plan is to have it sorted out for my daughter to drive this summer while she is home from school. She digs it. That's about it. Looking forward to hanging out with you all here.