Brianmitchtay

Ha! just as I felt like I had it solved! Last night I was camped out by Kenai Lake on a rural road and it took me 45 minutes of cranking and playing with things to get it started this morning. Wah Wah. Conveniently I already had an appointment with a "Subaru Specialist" in Soldotna this morning, and they were very confident on the phone that they would have no trouble solving the problem. The "Specialist" says that he's confident that the problem is the CTS even though it puts out the correct resistance value at all temperatures, his reasoning was that everything else "looks good" he also said that the CTS for this model is no longer available. It's a black, round, two prong plug off a two blade sensor. I also haven't been able to find a sensor that looks the same in my brief search. It's worth noting that while having a friend turn the key to "on" I couldn't hear the fuel pump pressurizing the fuel system, it is supposed to do that, right? I can hear the pump running when the car is idling. If anyone has a spare Coolant Temperature sensor laying around that looks like mine, I'd be happy to buy it off you and pay for shipping just to give it a shot.

Nope, I believe this model only has one filter. I only see one and the Factory Service Manual only has one marked. This is the single point fuel injection, the fuel pump is by itself in front of the passenger side rear wheel, and the fuel filter is driver's side under the hood. I think the carbed model has a fuel filter by the pump but not one under the hood. Out of curiosity does anyone know what the recommended replacement interval is for these cartridge filters?

Alright guys, I got the car pulled into the parking lot at a lodge where some friends are working for the summer and it refused to start up again. Checked the CTS and the resistance was in spec so I ruled that out, next guess was the fuel pump or maybe a clogged filter. Swapped out the filter for a new one and she fired right up, the old filter was very very clogged and barely had any flow through it, so that's definitely part of it. The engine still stutters a little bit, so I'm going to check the pressure from the fuel pump as soon as I get a chance. I've also got 4000 miles on this oil with seafoam in it, so maybe that's part of it too. I'm left feeling like maybe I should time my seafoam treatments to be just before I change my oil and my fuel filter. Will post back if I find out anything else

That's exactly my plan Dave! You're always helping me out on here I'm gonna have to figure out a way to buy you a beer or something sometime.

Just finished getting my 87 GL wagon road trip ready for the summer in Alaska scouting places to live up here. A little rust work, some tinted windows, roof box. I hope it runs forever!

Hi Guys, the last two days in a row now I've had a really hard time starting my '87 GL. this morning it took me about 30 minutes of trying, and I finally got it after about 30 seconds with the starter going, and gently feathering the gas pedal juuuust right. It almost started and then stalled a few times before I finally got it. This is something that has happened VERY infrequently while I've owned this car, like four other times in the last 8 months, and now two days in a row. Right now I'm traveling around rural Alaska and so having the car start consistently and correctly is an absolute must. While I was trying to get it started this morning I took off the kick panel to look at the ECU and see if it was flashing a code that might help me diagnose what's going on here. It flashed a very short blip 6 times, then a pause, and 6 more blips, all very short. By my understanding this means the code is number 6, but my FSM doesn't have a code 6 listed. Anyone know what that might be? After looking through the forums for similar threads I think my culprit is probably the CTS. Or maybe the fuel injector? There's a very strong gas smell as I'm trying to start it up that makes me feel like it's getting flooded. Though once I get it up and running it runs perfectly fine, and I put a can of seafoam in the gas tank just a few tanks ago so I'm not sure if the injector would be stuck I'm debating putting in new spark plugs and replacing my fuel filter as well while I'm at it, any thoughts or suggestions on a reliable startup are welcome and appreciated.

Well, it took some effort to get the old system off because it was all essentially welded together as one piece, but I punched out the rear tube of the muffler with a screwdriver and got the muffler off, then had to buy a small hacksaw and cut the two bolts connecting the front pipe and midpide. Now I've got the new system on, but I can't get the old O2 sensor out of the old y pipe. I don't have a 22mm wrench so I'm trying with a 7/8 and it's just barely not the right size, starting the strip the hex. Anyway I've gone ahead and ordered a new sensor from a store in town (should have just got one from Rockauto and saved the $30 but hindsight is 20/20) Once the new sensor is installed I'll warm it up to break in the catalytic converters like this page says to do http://www.easterncatalytic.com/education/tech-tips/proper-break-in-can-prevent-future-problems/ And then hopefully she starts and runs smoothly and quietly! I have a nagging nervous feeling that there still might be something off, so if there is at that point I'll check the CTS. Also I plugged in the connectors to try and look for codes but couldn't figure it out, no lights were flashing anywhere. But maybe my test connectors are under the dash and not under the hood?

Alright guys, parts are here, but I've got a maybe stupid question. See the metal post coming out the middle of the CAT in the Y pipe section? My current Y pipe and Catalytic converter doesn't have that. The FSM says there should be an "Air duct" there, what is that supposed to connect to on the other end?? The plan is to buy a pair of nuts and bolts to connect the midpipe to the muffler, and then try to replace this thing tomorrow. If I can't figure out what to do with the air duct, do you think I could just cover it and be ok? Thoughts?

I'm not too worried about the seafoam having ruined the engine, the old owner was pretty meticulous in his maintenance of the car, he had a few 3x5 cards in the glove box stating the mileage intervals of every fluid change, tire rotation, etc, and he was putting a can of sea foam in the tank every 20k miles. The car itself has 230k miles on it, but the engine was rebuilt by Colorado Custom Rebuilds just over 100k ago, so there's probably not anything too frightening going on in there. I just figured the catalytic converters might be near the end of their useful life and so a bit more crud and then getting flooded with water might have pushed them to kick the bucket. I'm really pretty confident that it's an exhaust issue, the most noticeable symptom is a super loud clunky rattle that's obviously coming from the muffler. Honestly I could probably just put a new muffler on it and it would be A-ok, but since the cats probably aren't so efficient anymore anyway, and I'm not too fond of the idea that my car is hurting the environment, new catalytic converters seem appropriate. (plus to do the muffler I've got to do the midpipe because someone welded them together, and if I'm gonna do the midpipe I may as well do the whole damn thing for just an extra $100 while I'm in there) It's SPFI Dave

Alright, I haven't had a chance to check for codes, but I did find a disconnected vacuum hose so hopefully that'll help the idle a bit. Spark plugs look pretty normal according to how the FSM says they should be. Forgive my ignorance, but what's the CTS?

So I've been reading around and trying to figure exactly what could have happened here so I don't go through replacing all this stuff only to still have an issue and I'm seeing other people who've had problems with O2 sensors going awry after a seafoam treatment in the gas tank to clean the fuel injectors. I happen to have put a can of seafoam in about a tank or two before all this trouble began. Maybe they're related? I'm definitely going to pull the O2 sensor now and see how it looks, should probably pull my sparkplugs too and see how they look. Anyone have any experience with this? If the sensor is dirty can it just be cleaned or would I have to replace it? Edit: I put about 12 oz in a full fuel tank and 4 oz in the crankcase. Also the car sputtered and ran like crap for the next tank and a half of fuel, I also got 8mpg less on that first tank. I was left feeling like it was obviously a pretty bad idea. Maybe it let loose a bunch of gunk and clogged my first CAT down the line? or maybe just gunked up the O2 sensor?

Well I just ordered everything gaskets and all to just put on a whole new exhaust pipe from front to back. $450 USD including shipping to Canada. Here's hoping the 1990 Loyale mid section fits!

Yup I read you loud and clear there Jono, I'm putting together an order on Rockauto with all the parts to just redo the whole exhaust with OE shaped pipes (and the mid pipe/cat from a 1990 Loyale) then gonna compare that to what a shop would charge for a custom setup here and go with the better option. I like the idea of a whole new setup because then no detritus from a broken catalytic converter or anything else could possibly be in there.

Oh Yeah? A rear exhaust pipe/cat from a 1990 Loyale would fit? That's super good to know because I've called a few parts shops now and they've basically just said tough luck guy, have a muffler shop build you something custom.

Yeah it's looking like I'll either cut it and wait until I get to Alaska, or just have a shop cut it and weld on a new muffler. My two concerns with driving it as is are the drop in fuel econ - gas isn't cheap on the Alaska-Canada highway - and the potential for damage to more components - I don't want anything getting any worse

Here's a few more photos from the rear exhaust pipe back to the muffler, I guess whoever replaced it last just welded them together because there's no gasket or bolts, just a welded pipe. Chatting with the folks at the Subaru Dealership it looks like I'll probably have a hard time finding parts for this one. If I can I think I'll just do the whole exhaust just to have it done in case the front Cat goes bad someday (I mean heck it might be already)

Job's all finished up guys, sorry for letting this sit. I don't have much of a routine schedule in my life so things like this tend to get away from me. I ended up being able to just remove the 3 bolts and take out each strut pretty easily with an air tool. The hardest part was rebuilding the new strut assemblies because the old foam strut cushions (or as the FSM calls them "Helpers") had all but disintegrated so I had to drive 2 hours north to buy some new ones - not sure if they're totally necessary but I'm trying really hard to make this car last at all costs so I spent the $50. If you're so lucky as to own your own FSM "Bible" you can find the section I was looking at in section 4-1, page 35. Or check out the pictures below. Turns out the section I was looking at was rear suspension assembly, not just rear strut. It has another section for "Rear Coil Spring" on page 37 and the step 1 of removal is just "Remove coil spring as a part of shock absorber ASSY" It really doesn't need more description than that I suppose. And I realize this is the front suspension blow apart diagram but maybe it'll help someone in the future.

This GL is the single point fuel injected,

Well you guys were right about the bolts being rusty. I almost got the self locking nuts to break but the they just stripped. I could probably rent an angle grinder and cut them though. Looking at the catalytic converters they both have little metal flakes coming out the holes in the bottom, and they both say Subaru on them so they're probably the originals and if not broken, very tired at least. The muffler looks to have been replaced before and I guess they must have just welded it straight to the rear exhaust pipe rather than bolting it with a gasket because from the connection just before the second catalytic converter all the way to the tail pipe it's just one piece, not two like the FSM says it should be. So now the real question is if I can even get parts.. the hunt begins! I think if I can find all the pieces I'll probably just take it all off and replace it all at once rather than renting an angle grinder and chopping the bolts to just do the rear and the muffler. This should be interesting and fun! hope I don't go too broke. Here's looking at the muffler from below, then trying to take a peek inside. it's obviously not functioning even close to as it should be now.

Hi Guys, I'm currently in Vancouver BC, Canada. On a migratory road trip from Utah to Alaska in my trusty 87 GL Wagon. Before I took off I worked on and fixed everything I could think of to try and make it a solid and dependable ride for the trip, I noticed I had a rusted out hole in the seam of my muffler, but it didn't seem to be effecting performance and basically just made the car sound like it had a glass pack muffler on it so I let it slide. I've never done any exhaust work before aside from replacing manifolds, and accidentally pulling one of my studs out of the cylinder head when I re-sealed the engine (Still gotta helicoil that or something) Then on my way through Grand Forks, British Columbia, they just so happened to be in the middle of a 200 year flood, but the road was still open, so I drove through ~2-3 feet of water on their main drag downtown. (Here's a video I shot if you're interested to see what that looked like) When I arrived in Vancouver, and was idling at the stoplights on my way to a friend's place, the exhaust started rattling so loudly that I thought it had come loose and was somehow smacking the body of the car. That rattle comes and goes now, only when I'm idling. The engine idles at about 1000rpm when it's warm now instead of 700 like it used to, I've got a sort of noticeable power loss, and my gas mileage has dropped 4-6MPG. I'm pretty well assuming the muffler needs to be replaced, it sounds like there's something loose in there that knocks loudly at idle and is partially blocking airflow. So here's what I'm wondering as I'm thinking about getting this fixed and moving on towards Alaska: -It looks like the exhaust essentially has a front and a rear section, so provided I can get a new rear section here, is this something I would be able to do in someone's driveway (assuming someone will loan me their driveway) with a pretty basic socket and wrench toolbox? That's what I've got. -Anything weird I should keep an eye out for while looking for parts?(gaskets, springs?, bolts, Junkyards maybe?) I've never bought parts in Canada before. -If I do too much running around with my exhaust a little messed up like this is there some potential engine damage in my future? I imagine this can't be too good for it. -In the meantime would I be better off just cutting off the muffler and running a straight pipe? Since I'll be replacing it anyway? It's late so I'll probably post some photos tomorrow, any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated. Thanks a million, as always guys

Ok so I finally got the opportunity to really take a good look at things down under and I believe what I have going on is a combination of some exhaust shield rattle(is that common on these?) And a uni joint that's right on the edge of going out, it has the tiniest bit of play in it, is pretty rusted all around, and has been replaced before, as evidenced by the grease port and the snap rings. First I'm going to try just greasing it to see how that serves, and if things don't get significantly better I'll just pull the prop shaft and replace the joint since I found one on Rockauto for $4 anyway; should be easier to do since the original stakes have already been milled out!

I'll have to snap some photos of the Factory Service Manual that I'm looking at, technically the topic I'm looking at in the book is "Rear Suspension", but the end result is just pulling the strut, disassembling it, inspecting it, and reassembling. Maybe if I had any bushings that I wanted to change or if I was doing a full overhaul it would be necessary to pull the whole rear crossmember, but yeah, for just the rear strut it seemed like a lot of unnecessary work. Thanks for confirming my suspicion, guys! I'll throw the FSM pictures up here shortly so you can see I'm not crazy.

Hi Guys, I'm planning to replace my rear struts this coming weekend and much to my surprise and chagrin, the FSM says that in order to change the rear struts, you have to pull the rear axles, pull the driveshaft - err, prop shaft, then drop the entire crossmember and rear differential, just to remove the strut! If I wasn't reading the manual I would have just thought it'd be possible to jack up the car, compress the spring, then undo the two upper mount bolts and the lower bolt, pull the strut, and replace. Bam. A quick search doesn't bring anything up in the forums here. Although I'm now confident that lots of people have done this (and that one person is convinced the factory struts are so great they never need to be replaced). Any insights? It's a dual range 4wd if that matters. Hopefully they can be changed without having to get into the rear diff or driveline at all, it'd be nice to save a few hours on this one.

Hi there Bennie, this is a 5 Spd manual dual range 4x4 1987 GL Wagon with the 1.8L SPFI EA82 engine. I appreciate you having fun with the diagnosis guessing game! I'll for sure post back here with pictures and updates as it comes along and I figure things out. So far I know one of my front wheel bearings is going so I'll have to tear the out soon and I'll take a better look at it all then. I took it to a mechanic today to get some thoughts on what it might be and his best guess was it might be the rear U joint on my driveline coming out the back of the tranny, which sounds about right for the intermittent rotary ticking, (which I failed to mention at all in my OP, ha) I'm not really familiar with the ins and outs of those joints, so I'm looking forward to a weekend when I can get down to my storage unit to pull out the factory service manuals and have a look to see if that makes sense. Cheers from Utah

Hi all, I've been trying to figure out the source of a new rattle coming from my Ol' wagon and I'm stumped, hoping maybe someone here might be more experienced and have a better idea. My guess is the transmission but I'm not sure how or what about it. I get a sort of rotary metallic rattling that happens mostly in the first three gears, barely audible in 4th and fifth. It almost sounds like an exhaust shield vibrating but it stops immediately if I pull it out of gear or even just push in the clutch. (So I'm pretty sure it's the transmission) It's at its very loudest when the car is cold, going up a hill in second gear, downhill it reduces to a gentle whine, it also gets less noticeable after the car has been running a while. It sounds like it's coming almost directly from below the shifter, and my first thought was "Gee, I must be low on transmission oil" but taking a look it shows to be ever so slightly over full. I'm trying to think of anything it could possibly be that isn't the transmission (Mostly because if it's the transmission I won't even know where to start fixing it) and the only thing I can come up with is maybe the cv axle? When I bought the car the guy selling it offered me a spare transmission and I didn't take it because I don't have a garage and didn't want to be running around with a spare tranny in the back all the time!! Ooof, feeling pretty stupid about that now. Any thoughts are appreciated, I'm hoping to be able to get some free days here to tear it apart sometime in the next few weeks, here's hoping it's not such a serious issue that my subie blows up on me before then. Doesn't seem to be, as it doesn't effect performance at all. Cheers, Brian