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nickbalcombe99

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Posts posted by nickbalcombe99

  1. Hi guys,

     

    $100 later and it came back with an idle control motor fault (and other other downstream issue). What I overlooked mentioning last post was that the car was wavering in revs when just started and was occasionally stalling because the idle motor wasn't doing its job. They 'cleaned it up' and the car is running MUCH more smoothly now... however, last night, the engine light came back on!

     

    Mechanic said if it happened again, replacement is necessary. My question to you guys is - can I do it myself? Or how much labour is involved cos if it's cheap I'll just let them do it.

     

    Cheers,

     

    Nick :)

  2. G'day guys,

     

    Long time no post, hope all is well in the world of your subie :)

     

    I have had a Forester X for about 18 months. 140k's, reg serviced, runs well as far as I can tell.

     

    Every now and then the engine light comes on (it has happened well over 20 times), doesn't flash, just stays on for a day or two then goes off again. It happens more regularly after visiting my girlfriend's place which is a steep uphill trip and then down hill coming back (heavier driving).

     

    I haven't taken it to a mechanic to get the codes checked yet. I am planning on selling it and don't want a potential buyer to have to worry about it.

     

    Any ideas about common causes and simple fixes?

     

    Thanks heaps,

     

    Nick :)

  3. if the battery will only crank for 20 seconds, i would get a new one, your voltage is probably dropping as soon as you crank it causing a weak spark, if the plugs are old you may not even see a spark, you could man up and check it on your hand if your elbow jumps a foot or more you have good spark... ...ar ar ar

     

    Yeah I imagine a new battery is in order regardless... I'll get some photos of the poor bloody car to show you how badly my mongrel brother treated it, and also to show you improvements in coming months :headbang:

  4. just change the timing belts they are 20-30 bucks and it takes about an hour

    to change them even your dog could do it the 1.8 is like the easiest engine to work on and even if its not the problem at least u will have the peace of mind that they wont break in the middle of nowhere:banana: :banana:

     

    How do I find out if it's the timing belts for sure? Where can I find instructions on replacing them etc?

  5. Hi all,

     

    Long time no post! The past five years my younger brother has been using my '92 GL (Loyale) wagon and has pretty much ruined it completely. Body is trashed, multiple crashes, interior a mess. The time has come to clean it up and get it running (!!) again.

     

    I am told that when the battery had charge, it was turning over but no sparks we being generated. That's all I have for you now - not a car genius but willing to learn - coil / distributor issue? If so how easy are they to test / replace and what will I need?

     

    Thanks, looking forward to some Subie revival!

     

    Nick

  6. Hi Guys,

     

    Long time no post, sadly I have given the Subaru to my little brother who is currently looking to mod the hell out of it, like his brother before him and ....etc etc...

     

    Anyway we took it for a drive, next thing you know we hear this consistent noise coming from rear left wheel arch - changes with speed and when you go really slow it is actually three - six separate 'click's as though metal is grindingn on metal. It got a hell of a lot worse very quickly, and only does it when there is pressure on this side - i.e. turning right. There is no sound while turning left and no sound while rotating the wheel on a jack.

     

    I assume it's a driveshaft / CV issue - any ideas on how to narrow that down?

     

    Thanks,

     

    Nick

  7. Hi All,

     

    Thanks for your advice, I wento Repco and picked up some oil additive (Slick 50 was $52.99 (ripoff) so I went for cheaper alternative) and carbie cleaner, both of which have given the Soob a new lease on life! She's idling more nicely and running more smoothly.

     

    I also found out what vibrating noise was - just the exhaust pipe a little way back from the cat! Which is good news!

     

    It is still back firing a bit when I let her drop speed while still in 2nd or 3rd, but not sure whether there's an easy way to fix that...

     

    Thanks again :)

  8. The grinding is not evident when Idle, only when I give it some throttle. It's sounds sorta like something is vibrating off balance, v hard to explain without hearing it. Like when you spin a worn bearing and it rattles instead of actually spinning, like bounces around its axis. That kinda noise on a bigger scale!

     

    Yeah I prob need to get it checked out but I dont wanna spend any more money on it yet!

  9. Hi All,

     

    I have a '92 L series wagon. 1.8 EA82 Carbie. It is sounding like it needs some tender loving care. Spluttering, gasping for air, struggling to start in the mornings, etc etc. I have recently had it serviced and can't afford a tune up so I am looking for some cheap options to keep my baby running...are there fuel additives that can clean her up or would carbie cleaner help my cause?

     

    Another issue is this dodgy "grinding" noise coming from engine. Changes with revs, and comes in and out. If anyone knows how a lawn mower sounds (like it is off balance or something?) then that is probably the closest description I can give you. Maybe we can suss it out with the right q and a's!

     

    Any help would be appreciated. I need to keep her running til I buy the '03 REX wagon in October!! :):)

     

    Thanks,

     

    Nick:)

  10. It could indeed be the auto choke, ive seen them do that on other cars before, but ive never had/seen a subie with one.

     

    Yeh, pretty sure auto choke is problem now that I think about it - car was idling at "choke speed" constantly for a while there. Now will generally drop to normal warm idle speed after it has warmed up - engine may have been flooding - could have been combination of hot air / flooding...

     

    I know this is a big question but what are my options with regard to choke. Easily fixed?

     

    Thanks again,

     

    N.

  11. nsane']Sounds like the computer is having a hard time going into closed-loop..

     

    Might check out the o2 sensor?

     

    Are you getting any codes?

     

    Codes / O2 sensor are probably a little above my head :confused: ...

     

    Car has been running a lot better since I disconnected the hot air tube from cat converter through to air intake. When I gave some revs there was a weird sucking noise from the thermostatically controlled intake gate on the air filter intake (where it changes from plastic to metal prior to air filter). So disconnected pipe from intake, so no hot air could be sucked in.

     

    Remember this is carb engine so does it still have a computer as such?

     

    Could be auto choke - or the car was sucking hot air the whole time.

     

    Any other ideas?

     

    Thanks,

     

    Nick

  12. No, the muffler could fall off and your car will still run fine (if a little loud!). I don't know much about those late ea82s, is it fuel injected? Someone more familiar with these later engines may be able to help further........

     

    Nah carbie! I drove it about 15km last night, and after a while idle speed dropped to "normal". This morning again it was high on the way to work. Will have another look tonight - could it be fuel system?

     

    Thanks again,

     

    N.

  13. Checked all vacuum hoses - all fine. My muffler is pretty severely worn out, could that be the cause? Also, the sucking noise I refered to in the first post is coming from the temperature switch on the air intake (the thing that changes from hot to cold air intake once the car has warmed up). If muffler worn, would lack of back pressure be the problem?

     

    Thanks again,

     

    Nick

  14. Hi All,

     

    Long time since I have made a post - had forgotten my old details so had to recreate account (think it was deleted on change over to new server??).

     

    Anyway, I still have the '92 L series wagon. Has just passed its 10,000km service mark, and is idling very high (don't have tacho so not sure exactly) and I am experiencing a real lack of power - it burbles heavily above about 2500 rpm.

     

    Nearly didn't make it up the hill yesterday. Checked oil, a little low so topped up. Seems to be breathing ok. Some kind of sucking noise when I give it some throttle in neutral but can't find it.

     

    It probably just needs the service, but can't afford it until at least next week.

     

    Any help / tips would be GREAT :)

     

    Thanks,

     

    Nick

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