Syonyk

Definitely give All Wheel Drive a call. I've got my Subaru in there now for a few things.

Thanks for all the advice. It turns out it's in slightly rougher shape than I'm really looking for. BUT... if any of you northwesterners are interested: Have at it. http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/ctd/3237884411.html Various notes: - Top of the windshield is caulked in. - Bottom of windshield has some rust. - Power windows are very slow - Driver's side outside door handle doesn't work, guy selling it said he'd fix it. - Turbo smokes a bit (just burning off oil?) - Shifter is a bit loose, but shifts fine, and I've driven *far* worse. - Center locking diff appears to work - clunks when toggled. - Brakes make a bit of metallic noise, probably a low pad warning somewhere. - Dashboard works fine! - Trip computer appears to work fine! - Sunroof works fine! - Body is straight except for some scrapes that have started to rust. - Check engine light is on. - Stop Lamp light is on. - AC compressor does not turn when engaged. Not sure if it has refrigerant or not. - Interior is a bit rough, but not awful. Overall, it seems like it's in good condition, and if someone had some time, it would be a great car fairly quickly. Just not for me.

Thanks! I'm going to jet out soon to look at it, since I'd rather not let this one get away. As long as it's cool & on stock boost, it's fairly reliable? I know the EA82s run forever. How easy is it to plumb in an intercooler?

I'll post pics if I buy it. And, yes, was aware of the coolant/overheating issue on them. Is there a good way to check for head gasket issues in a short test drive? I was planning to verify that the coolant levels looked sane, and look for bubbles in the coolant while idling.

I may be looking at an 88 GL10 Turbowagon in the next few hours. 200k miles or so, otherwise looks like a fairly straight Subaru. I'd be replacing an 02 Outback with it as a weekend driver/ski car, and am quite comfortable with the EA82 motors, to the point that rebuilding the engine isn't a huge concern. Any specific issues to look for on the 88s, or EA82Ts specifically? I've owned a few EA82s, just never a turbo one.

Man... makes me miss my '87 GL. The exhaust was garbage on it, so I rigged something up out of flexpipe & a glasspack, exiting out the side. Damn, it sounded good. *grins* And I set off more than one car alarm idling through lots.

Ah, thanks. That's a lot of information I hadn't found before! Looking at the teardown pictures someone posted, the only bearing that made sense was the one at the rear of the input shaft. I sort of expected there to be some closer to the engine side as well... The 1/8" is about right for what was on there. If that's normal, then I'm not too worried. I was under the impression there should not be any metal on the magnetic plug, and that metal there was a bad sign. As far as the clutch, it was done at a Subaru dealership, so I'd be surprised if the pins are missing. Where would I look to find them? It only had 100k on it, which seems to imply "driven like a madman" - I thought they usually would last 150-170k on the NA motors if driven sanely. What's the failure mode on this bearing? Does it just get louder and louder, and eventually put out such a din that you can't ignore it? Or does it suddenly fail and kill the transmission completely in the middle of the road? If nothing else, it sounds like babying the transmission should help it last longer.

Replaced the fluid, still sounds like crap. Also, I had a nice selection of metal on the magnet - some particles as large as 0.25x0.5mm (ish) and then a bunch of smaller stuff that was just sort of a metallic paste. Is that normal at 120k, or is that my bearings disassembling themselves into my transmission fluid? The noise is any time the input shaft is spinning - as soon as the clutch makes any sort of contact with the flywheel, it makes noise, and continues regardless of what else the clutch is doing. So I'm thinking it's something internal to the transmission, and it sounds like this transmission has input shaft bearing issues. Another question: What is normal clutch life for an EJ25 5MT driven in traffic? The car was a Chicago car, and when I got it at 99k miles, the clutch was fried - I had slippage on the highway trip home (drove fine when the clutch was cold...), took it in, and $1700 later I had a new clutch and flywheel (the old one was badly cracked from overheating, apparently). Is this normal clutch life for these, or does this indicate that the previous driver was hard on the transmission? And if they were hard on the transmission, would that have any impact on the bearings? Out of curiosity, what's the likely failure mode? Is this going to be something that lets go without warning and leaves me stranded in the middle of nowhere, or will it just get louder and louder? *sigh* And anyone know what full 5MT rebuilds are going for lately? Is it worth having the dealership do it, or can aftermarket shops do it decently? If I drop the transmission, I have no way to get it anywhere - I seriously, seriously doubt my gf would let me haul an oily transmission in her brand new Mazda2. Shouldn't have purchased this car... should have stuck with my Loyale. Gutless wonder, but at least it didn't have much wrong with it.

I've got a fairly annoying 2002 Outback (2.5, 5MT) that's demanding yet more money from me. I don't drive it terribly often, and lately, when I do, it has a rather loud grinding bearing noise from the transmission when it's cold. Clutch in, no noise, clutch out in neutral, unhappy bearings. It usually shuts up after a few miles of driving when things warm up. I really don't want to pay the $3500+ to have the transmission rebuilt right now. Is it likely that this will last at least another 10k miles given that it's quiet when it warms up? And is there anything I can do to help it survive longer without rebuilding the transmission? Sadly, I use this car for long trips, so I'd rather my transmission not destroy itsself in the middle of nowhere. I'm going to try doing a fluid swap and see if it helps any, but I'm guessing the damage is already done. Ideas? Expected life?

Hm. I already have an appointment at the dealership for next Monday. I really don't want to drive it anywhere else, as I need enough clutch to get to the dealership, and I'm behind at work so I can't take a day or two (probably 2, knowing my luck with vehicles) to do a clutch swap. None of the independent shops I called were much cheaper. They were all in the same ballpark of $1200 or so, and that was without a flywheel. At some point I'd like to buy a vehicle that didn't require massive maintenance right after purchasing it.

So $1400 with a flywheel at a dealership sounds sane? There are a few other niggling issues I'd like dealt with while it's in as well. It just sounds like a /ton/ of work to do it myself. And I simply don't have the 15-20h to throw at it right now. Nor do I know any shop owners.

The *best* price I've gotten elsewhere was around $1000 without a flywheel. I haven't seen anyone offering to do it for $700 or so with new Subaru parts... As for "DIY," it's rated at 6-7h of Subaru labor, in a shop with lifts/the right tools/etc. I'd be doing it in a garage, without a lift, on my back. So, probably 20h to do it myself. I've pulled the engine on an EA82 before, but this engine seems to be a lot more crammed in & a lot heavier, with a ton more stuff attached to it. And, really, with my job, I just don't have much time anymore.

Just got an 02 Outback... red, manual, just under 100k miles, bit of body damage (dent & some scrapes/wear), but no rust, and seems to be in quite good shape. The clutch is slipping somewhat on the highway - once everything is warmed up, the clutch will slip if I give it too much gas. Not a big deal, I figured it would need one, but I've seen some reports that this can be from "not the clutch" - the slave cylinder hanging up or the hose collapsing. I also get shuddering when starting out, which implies hot spots on the flywheel from what I've seen. How would I go about troubleshooting this? I have a dealer service appointment in a week for a clutch/flywheel/etc, but I'd prefer to not pay $1400 if I didn't have to. With 100k miles, is it likely the clutch just getting worn out/the flywheel having hot spots, or is this more likely something else that would be cheaper to deal with? Thanks!

Sorry for the lack of updates... work swamped me. I ended up buying an 02 Outback I found for a good price (needs a clutch), and will head back & fix this when I have time. I ran out of time/energy and found what I've been looking for at a good price (99-02 Outbacks with a manual transmission are TOUGH to find).

I've got a '92 Loyale in West Chicagoland that needs a new lower ball joint installed & an axle replaced... $1500 if you come to help fix it?

Ah, excellent. Thanks, I'll try those tomorrow!

Bash *what* to bits? The directions I've seen on the forum involve "Bash it until it separates" - what am I hitting, specifically? The inner DOJ got pulled apart. I'm not sure how to put it back together - does it just slide, or is it more complex? I've also degreased most of the outer joint trying to figure out how to get it apart. Plus, without removing the old ball joint, I can't do anything anyway - the threads on the old one are too damaged to take a nut right now. So unless I find a way to get that out (I'm getting a chisel to try with), the axle is a non-issue. Most of the directions include "Put the nut back on, put it in the lower control arm, and whack on the control arm." I don't have a nut that can go on it, so I need a way to get it out without the benefit of the control arm whacking. And my maintenance manuals (plus my spare axle) are all back 350 miles away. The primary goal is to make it drivable so I can get it home. Fixing it "properly" the first time would be nice, but that requires an axle I can't get locally until the middle of next week, which is too late.

Ok, I got the axle out. "Bigger hammer" was pretty much what was needed (with the nut on the end of the threads). How the fsck does one disassemble an outer CV joint? I've got the boots off, staring at the grease filled area, and I'm a bit lost now

The DOJ came apart at some point (the boot is holding it together) - so I either need to replace the axle, reassemble the axle, or remove the center section of axle. All require getting the axle out. And I'm having trouble finding an axle locally. The ball joint is separated from the lower control arm - this is the failure that caused me to need a tow truck. I'm not sure how to get it out of the knuckle - I can't really get a good angle on it with the axle in the way. The boot is torn, but I suppose I could try to just stick it back in the lower control arm & put a bolt on it, to get home. Unfortunately, that still leaves the axle as an issue, since I'm pretty sure it's non-serviceable right now.

Yes, the goal is to get it "home" - so I can spend another few dozen hours cursing at it. Right now, I can't even get the axle out. I've replaced axles before & recall them being difficult, but not impossible. I can get maybe half an inch of movement with a puller pressing on the shaft before it sticks, and I'm not comfortable putting in excess of about 100 ft/lbs on the puller, as I don't recall it being this difficult, and it just sticks. There's plenty of space for the axle to come out on the back. If I don't get the axle out, I can't get a good angle to pound on the lower control arm to help pop out the ball joint. And, for that matter, it seems like I need a spring compressor to tighten the spring enough to get the knuckle back in the control arm - or I need to disconnect the control arm or something. AND, I noticed that the rest of the front suspension nuts aren't cotter pinned either! Not good... *sigh* Anyone in Chicagoland want to give me a hand? Or buy a 92 Subaru Loyale cheap? I'm getting really tired of dealing with this Is it possible that the wheel flopping around damaged the bearings or such? I really don't recall axles being this much of a bear to get out.

That wasn't fun... On a highway interchange, my front right lower ball joint failed. Where "failed" turns out to be "The nut backed off & the bottom stud bounced out of the control arm." Anyway, the expected drama occurred, I got it to the side in one piece, got it towed up on a flatbed, and now I need to fix it. The inner CV joint is torn apart, and I have no nut. The tire got bounced around in the wheel well on the way off the flatbed, so it probably stressed the upper strut mount a good bit. Still looking for a place locally (Downers Grove, IL - West Chicago suburbs) with halfshafts, but I have a replacement 350 miles away. Is there any problem with putting a new nut on the ball joint (or replacing the ball joint - the rubber is torn), removing the chunk of halfshaft, and running it back in 4WD? Or should I be replacing other things as a result of the wheel bouncing around? It probably means it's time to totally redo the suspension before winter, too... I may do this after I pull the engine & replace the rear main. Anyone around Chicagoland have a halfshaft they want to part with? Or want to get a beer? My current goal is making sure I can safely make it 350 miles at highway speeds, but if anything else is likely damaged, I want to replace it before I head out.

The problem there is that I strongly suspect I'll get *charged* for all the crap I remove. And removing $2000 of parts is just a bit out of my budget right now. And it's still raining. :-/ If I want stuff, looks like I'm going to be mucking about in mud. I'm actually pondering seeing if they've still got the title. If they haven't officially scrapped it, I may try to get some tires on it & drive it away, if it runs. Pull parts at my leisure, or, better, sell it and buy some parts for mine elsewhere. If it runs and drives, I could fetch $1000 for it around here easily, probably a lot more. -=Russ=-

Nah, runs fine, just leaks a lot of oil. I have to pull the engine to replace it, though. But, you're right, I should probably stay with what I know works. I've got a box of spare parts off my old '87 GL, with most of that stuff. Oh, how does cruise control work? The junkyard car has the cruise control buttons on the steering wheel - I poked around the engine bay a bit, and couldn't find anything that struck me as "Cruise control" - there was only one cable going to the throttle body. -=Russ=-

Thanks for posting updates on what you found! I've got a similar issue, but not nearly as bad. I also had some good help from people here figuring out that my lack of top end was related to my intake snorkel not having the Subaru badge, so it was collapsing on itsself at high flow rates and choking things off. -=Russ=-

I was wandering through the local junkyard, which seldom has anything interesting (no Subarus, no RX-7s, and definitely no Daihatsus). And found a Subaru! Fairly clean red EA82 GL wagon, 110k miles, automatic, and looks like it was sideswiped on the passenger's side (front & rear door have damage down low). Unfortunately, it's going to the crusher soon, so I need to snag stuff Monday (I was going to snag it today, but it was raining last night, and they said it was too busy today to be moving/crushing cars - hopefully he was right). I'm definitely snagging the rear driver's side door & front passenger fender, because those are both damaged on my car (rust/severe dents). I'm considering snagging the hatch, as mine suffered some interesting damage (a corner of it was bent in with a perfect line across it - NO idea what hits hard enough to do that, and it's in an area that will be difficult to fix), but they seem to want money for things. Engine looks clean as well - one of the cleaner EA82 engine bays I've ever seen. I'm definitely snagging a few pieces from in there - intake snorkel, probably the throttle body/fuel injector, power steering pump (mine leaks, badly), and whatever else looks interesting. I'm pondering the entire motor, but I'd want to know if it runs first. I need to pull my motor AGAIN because the *(#&(%ing rear main is still leaking, and I'm less than amused with it. But I'm hesitant to put a junkyard motor in without knowing it's condition. Though, being an EA82, it's probably just fine. My power windows are iffy, so I'm planning to snag the switches and motors, if possible. Are there relays somewhere, or are the windows driven straight off the switches? Any other "really useful parts" I should snag while I'm there? Thanks! -=Russ=-