Phaedras

Maybe it's just me, but switching on the 4WD seems like I can tear away from stoplights and go into sharp turns a lot easier. I've heard it's not a good idea to keep the drive in all the time or it could spell trouble for tires and axle. Any truth to this, or can I switch to 4WD at leisure? Does it also mean more fuel consumption and/or wear and tear on the rear differential? How often could/should I turn it on?

Lately my wipers are causing me some degree of frustration. From one day to the next, pulling on the lever would blow any fuse that I put in. The wiper fluid button works just fine. Where do I need to look for the short circuit causing this?

So putting this into practical terms means that I should not change acceleration at all depending on if the gears are about change or not? If I have an AT all I can do is just, well, live with the fact that I can't/shouldn't influence anything? I think I already know what the answer will be...

So you'd say that a hard shift is a good shift? It just seems to me that the faster the gears are turning at the moment they merge the more wear and tear will result.

I've never had the chance to actually drive a car with MT yet, but what I've been assuming is that in order to shift with a MT, you need to let off the gas for a split second while you change gears, to avoid unnecessary friction. Would this apply to an AT too? I have made the habit of noticing when my Sube shifts, so that right beforehand I can ease off the gas a little. Otherwise it seems to me that if I just floored it all the time, the tranny would shift really hard with a noticeable jerk. This is with all cars I've driven, and not specific to my tranny. Is this a feasible technique or am I doing myself no amount of good with this?

Yeah, I've been able to check the voltage and I get 14.20V when running. Still within standard operating parameters, or could this be it? I've also suddenly been having problems with the windshield wipers that seem to blow a fuse each time I try to activate them.

BAM! Found the motherfunker. Yes, one of the bypass hoses had come slightly loose, I had just freaked out because I saw coolant splattered all over the one side of the compartment. But that's no wonder when you're driving 65 at around 3000-4000 rpm, that you'll have stuff spraying all over the place in a case like this. But the coolant mixture, is that still going to cause problems?

Sorry that I am making a big deal of this, but my Subaru is my only and work car, and don't wish to blow it up before it's time, stranding me. Coming back from work this evening and turning off the engine I was greeted by big wafts of white smoke coming from underneath the hood. Closer inspection revealed a fine spray of coolant across the passenger side firewall and smaller puddles on top of the engine. I have a possible explanation for this: little less than a week ago I had done a partial radiator flush where I had removed the radiator drain plug but couldn't get the engine block drain bolts to budge, so I gave it a raincheck for a later date when I had the right tools. Then I refilled with a different type of coolant than I had used before. 2-3 days later I saw a small puddle on top of the engine but assumed it had come from when I had been refilling the reservoir with the new coolant. This morning I saw that the reservoir was empty, so I refilled again. Yet this time I actually mixed Ethylene with Propylene coolant. (Eth. already being in the engine and me adding Prop.) I realize now that this was incredibly stupid. Could this be the cause of the problem, or might it only be a leaking hose that can't stand the pressure? Should I immediatley do a complete drain & flush? Are there any locations to drain the coolant from>

My cars been acting weird lately: stereo cutting out, windshield wipers blowing fuses, CEL coming and going for no reason, oil gauge wandering into the negative PSI range, taillights acting like their at a techno raver party (well, not yet). Is my cars brain paranoid schizophrenic and needs to be replaced? Or could it just be the alternator giving out fuzzy voltage? I read 12.5V cold and 14ish while running. Obviously I can wield a multimeter without hurting myself, but where would I start to investigate the gremlins that plague my car?

34 - EGR circuit or solenoid

My Check Engine has at random intervals been turing itself off while I am driving the car. A quick glance at the ECU LED shows no activity when this happens. After a mile or two the light will then come on again. At first I thought, great, means that whatever it is is still working half the time, but apparently that light should only go away when the codes are officially cleared. Anyone know of this phenomenon?

Now if I HAVE to use NGK, does that also mean I need the exact OEM plugs or can I try their more exotic stuff, like platinum and iridium plugs?

Thanks, people, this is some really good stuff. No more trying to loosen the transmission fluid pan with a screw wrench from Walmart that has "chrome" flaking off after the first use... I'd like to know why the Bosch plugs are so bad, though. I realize the benefit of using plugs that the manufacturer specified, but that was 12 years ago. Don't you think newer plugs could have a more beneficial effect? I could have sworn my performance and idle both became much better, but that could just be because the old plugs were worn the hell out :-) Does this also effect the plug wires as well? I thought I'd splurge and got Bosch wires also. Oh, and so 4WD doesn't technically help with acceleration? Should I use it sparingly, for wear & tear and fuel economy reasons?

Now, this isn't my first post, I've already asked advice on a few things before, but I thought I'd formally introduce myself (or rather my car). I just got around to buying my first car (at 21, no less), since I'd been living in Germany for the last decade (driving age 18, license costs 'round $2000). I currently go to college in Orlando, FL (more necessity than will) and I finally bowed to Orlando's utter lack of public transport. I picked up this funky looking car (1992 Loyale Sedan 4WD - Blue/Metallic) at a small used car dealership for $800. Sounded alright to me and BAM, I had a Subaru. Did a Carfax on it and had had only two owners to date, at 70000 miles. Spent most of it's life in Pennsylvania, then came down here a year ago. From the information I could gather from the dealer, Carfax and my own two eyes, the first driver was the classic old lady, who obviously kept it in a garage, or else the paint would never look this good after 12 years. Yet she also knew nothing about cars, since the fuel filter looked either stock or very old (had Sube logo on it) plus distributor cap was Hitachi and plugs were NGK. Plugs had definetley been in for a WHILE since the electrode was almost worn away. Next owner was apparently a younger lady who had stashed a small bag of weed behind the lower console (Sadly, completely dried out) and (thank Jebus) installed a Pioneer stereo and 4 aftermarket Pioneer speakers with which I can blast Heavy Metal all day long :-) I have now just finished up the basics, like Bosch plugs/wires plus new fuel/air filter plus oil/filter change, etc. I'm intent on letting this car at least last me through college, which at my 20 miles a day looks very likely. I will be taking it on a road trip to Boston eventually (where I will be moving in 6 months), where I'm going to try to transport my meager possessions in a small UHaul trailer. (I wonder if 4WD helps any with that) I am also wondering if you as a whole could give me any advice on what sort of tools I should be buying (what brands are also durable). I am also trying to get a good working knowledge of my car and others in general, so I'd like to know if there are parts of the car that are good for newbies to work on, or other ways in which I can start to know my cars mechanics inside and out. Also, does 4WD mode do anything for me on roads and level ground? Florida has no hills :-)

Where would I test for voltage, somewhere directly on the alternator or farther down the line?

The funny thing is, if it were a bad ground, then other stuff would suffer too. But I actually bypassed the ground (while putting in my new stereo) that leads off from the wiring harness into the darkness and just hooked it up to a nut 'n washer underneath the console. Ya'know I've try to install one of those cold cathode tubes that one can mod your PC with, yknow, with the 4pin Molex connector that has a +5v and +12v and a ground for each. I snipped off all except for the two leading into the inverter which seems to be the 12v ones, but I dont even get it flicker when I splice it into a 12v source. Any fix for this, or is there another way to hook up these sorts of things without having to use a cig lighter plug?

The weirdest thing has happened since I got this car: The old aftermarket Pioneer in my Loyale would cut out very frequently, especially after having been on for a awhile, when it was hot, etc. So obviously it was overheating. Circuit City fixed it up for me, saying the speakers were sharing a common ground which aftermarkets hate with a passion. So, problem 98% solved. Still cuts out every once and a while, but works well enough...sort off. Then I buy a new Pioneer MP3-CD player (by the way, Pioneer lighting looks awesome in Loyale's, fits right in) and the problem goes away...so I think. The radio almost never cuts out anymore, but every once in a while it will just shut itself off, not respond for 3-4 minutes, and afterward the clock is reset and all my stations are gone. You may understand how f**cking frustrating this is. SO. Is this a problem that has occurred in other Subes of the era, or does my car have a funky electrical system? Nothing else seems to be effected, then again, nothing in the car is as sensitive electronically as the stereo. My car battery doesn't have a support mount anymore, so it has leeway back and forth. Could the battery receiving a small knock effect the radio? Even while driving?

But wouldn't all that crap just hit the filter and stick? And isn't it important to get that stuff cleared out eventually?

I'm seriously considering a car with manual transmission sometime in the near future, being sick and tired of these accursed automatics (rampant here in Florida) but I don't feel like giving up this Suby just yet. She in way to good of a shape to do that. Now I know how a motor works and I've done my own basic tune-ups and I know how to use a wrench. But when it comes to full-scale transmission conversion all I can do is shake my head. Is this affordable, i.e. does it not cost several thousand dollars? Could a shop mechanic do this and what might the labor costs be? What type of tranny should I be looking for, same year and model, or older/newer? There's no real hope to find parts here, but I'm going to be moving to Massachusetts later next year, does that seem like a good place to find older subarus? What could the cost of said parts be once I lay my hands on them?

After recently purchasing a 92 Loyale for a song (800$) at 71K, I did the most common tune-ups, including a new fuel filter, and promptly wanted to do an accurate estimate of my mileage by running the engine dry, refueling, and then running it dry again. Seems though that I will never run out of fuel, since my low fuel light has been on for the last 50 miles. Needle does not seem to be stuck, though, since the mileage-to-needle-movement seems reasonable from what I can gather. Is it common for these old Subarus to give you a extremely premature heads-up, or is mine just funky?