johndotsun Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 Hello everyone! I'm new to this forum, Subaru cars, and car mechanics in general! In 2010 I picked up an 83 GL 4WD for $500 and my plan is to drive it to Florida where I'll be moving (I live in Idaho currently). However, it has a few problems. I decided that one of my goals for the year would be to learn enough basic automotive mechanical repair skills to fix the various problems on my own and it's been very interesting! What I've done so far is to replace the starter (old one died on me) and I will be replacing the rear brake drums (the right rear makes a scraping sound and the brake pedal pulses in sync with the scraping, so I'm assuming the drum is worn out and the left side soon to follow) and the front rotors shortly. Currently the car idles very high, around 1700, but I've determined that the gasket on top of the engine (intake manifold?) and under the carburetor is sucking air so I've ordered a rebuild kit (might as well rebuild it if I'm going to replace the gasket I figure) for about 30 bucks. That should arrive in a couple of days. My main concern now is the front strut assembly thing...the tires on the car are old snow tires and I still haven't gotten around to replacing them (on my to do list before Florida though) and I hadn't realized how badly worn they were until I noticed extremely rough handling while taking it on my first long trip. I felt bad enough about the front right side to get it replaced asap (didn't have enough for all 4 at the time, and it will become my spare when I get a new set). At the tire shop, they lifted the car and that same wheel kind of flopped from being perpendicular to the ground to intersecting it diagonally. if that makes sense. I cancelled the trip and haven't driven it much since then, but I was told that it would be pretty dangerous to drive at high speed until I get it fixed. I'm pretty sure it is either the strut, the strut bearing, or the strut mount causing the problem. I intend to replace the entire assembly on the right and left side. So my question is this: are any specialized tools required to do this? Also, I think I've found the parts I need but I want to make sure before I order them: Strut: http://www.carpartswholesale.com/v5/details/Subaru/GL/KYB/Shock_Absorber_and_Strut_Assembly/1983/Base/4_Cyl_1-dot-8L/W0133-1615015.html/?location=Front&sc=Product+Listing+Page:6 Mount: http://www.carpartswholesale.com/v5/details/Subaru/GL/KYB/Shock_and_Strut_Mount/1983/Base/4_Cyl_1-dot-8L/KYSM5365.html/?location=Front&sc=Product+Listing+Page:1 Bearing: It seems that the bearing is incorporated into the mount, but I'm not completely sure. I would very much appreciate it if anyone could confirm that I have the right parts. A cheaper source would be awesome as well and I would certainly appreciate tips on how to perform the replacement! I can provide pictures of the car and possibly various components if anyone is interested! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jono Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 up the top, under the bonnet you wil see two bolts that hold the strut top in place. This has a rubber bushing, bearings were in L Series, with some slippery style washers. Not saf to drive at speed ? I'd say not safe to drive at all. The 83 4WD cam with renwable style strut inserts whereas 84 swapped to non serviceable struts buut definately they'd use sam strut top mount through all MY series, just before you pull apart note how the rubber bulk of the mount is visible to the rear of the egg shaped hole under the bonnet on 4WD, Van and PSteered 2 WD models the mounts metal not visible until out has markings and an arrow that faces forward to help. Spring compressor tols are a must for when you undo top bolt the spring has terrific force - enough to maim, or at least break you or something. Really find three are needed, sold in pairs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotsun Posted July 10, 2012 Author Share Posted July 10, 2012 Took me a second to figure out what you meant by "car bonnet"...according to Google it's the Australian term for "car hood"! Along with your explanation and a video I found online, I think I have a good idea of how to proceed from here. Thank you especially for the tip on the three spring compression tools. I'm debating buying them or just taking the struts to a shop to have them move the shocks for me much more safely... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
l75eya Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 I'm debating buying them or just taking the struts to a shop to have them move the shocks for me much more safely... You're probably going to want to get a shop to do it. I wound up just taking my struts off and bringing them to a garage for them to compress the springs after dealing with putzing around with the spring compressor tools I bought online. Granted, the tools I bought were cheap, so if you get a QUALITY spring compressor...you may be able to do it yourself.. But if you go through the trouble of taking the whole struts out of your car yourself, and just bring them to a garage, they shouldn't charge you more than like 20-50 max to compress and swap in the new shocks for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotsun Posted July 10, 2012 Author Share Posted July 10, 2012 (edited) I'll probably have them compress it themselves then. It seems like a decent tool is going to be more than 30 dollars and if I need multiple of them (which I will likely never use again) then it makes more sense for me to take them into the shop. Otherwise...I'm probably going to get them from Harbor Freight and I'm not sure it's worth the risk even though the guy in the video I saw of a strut change got his from there. What I really want to know now is if I've got the right parts. I think so...but I'm looking for much cheaper options as I'd rather not spend that much. Does anyone know of a good site to buy cheap but not crap parts? Edit: Or I could just learn to scroll down... Strut: http://www.carpartswholesale.com/v5/details/Subaru/GL/Gabriel/Shock_Absorber_and_Strut_Assembly/1983/Base/4_Cyl_1-dot-8L/GABG55726.html/?location=Front&sc=Product+Listing+Page:9 Mount: http://www.carpartswholesale.com/v5/details/Subaru/GL/Monroe/Shock_and_Strut_Mount/1983/Base/4_Cyl_1-dot-8L/TS902931.html/?location=Front&sc=Product+Listing+Page:2 Which is what I'll go with unless anyone knows of some major reason not to. It's cheap enough that I might even do the back as well. Of course if someone knows of something cheaper but still okay then I would be glad to hear about it! Edited July 10, 2012 by johndotsun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djellum Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 I don't know what compressors your looking at but there are specific strut spring compressors that are different than coil spring compressors. Just mentioning it in case. also you can rent the compressors from auto parts stores for free or cheap. you put a deposit down of the cost of the tool, and you get it back when you bring back the compressor. make sure you check the ball joints, lower arm, and the mounts where the strut bolts to the spindle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikaleda Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 I'll probably have them compress it themselves then. It seems like a decent tool is going to be more than 30 dollars and if I need multiple of them (which I will likely never use again) then it makes more sense for me to take them into the shop. Otherwise...I'm probably going to get them from Harbor Freight and I'm not sure it's worth the risk even though the guy in the video I saw of a strut change got his from there. What I really want to know now is if I've got the right parts. I think so...but I'm looking for much cheaper options as I'd rather not spend that much. Does anyone know of a good site to buy cheap but not crap parts? Edit: Or I could just learn to scroll down... Strut: http://www.carpartswholesale.com/v5/details/Subaru/GL/Gabriel/Shock_Absorber_and_Strut_Assembly/1983/Base/4_Cyl_1-dot-8L/GABG55726.html/?location=Front&sc=Product+Listing+Page:9 Mount: http://www.carpartswholesale.com/v5/details/Subaru/GL/Monroe/Shock_and_Strut_Mount/1983/Base/4_Cyl_1-dot-8L/TS902931.html/?location=Front&sc=Product+Listing+Page:2 Which is what I'll go with unless anyone knows of some major reason not to. It's cheap enough that I might even do the back as well. Of course if someone knows of something cheaper but still okay then I would be glad to hear about it! wow thats cheap i am looking at struts for my 80 and they want $80 a piece and they are the only store i could find that sell them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotsun Posted July 11, 2012 Author Share Posted July 11, 2012 I know what you mean. The only local place I could even get a quote on the front struts was $90 a piece at autozone for the same Gabriel units. I wasn't sure on the quality so I looked around online for reviews. I couldn't find much on the struts, but a lot of people have used their shocks and the consensus seems to be that although they're not insta-break crap, it's unlikely that you'll get more than 40k miles out of them. If I had more money I'd go with the KYBs but I'm pretty tight on money and hopefully in a couple of years when I need to replace them I'll have enough then to get much higher quality parts that I won't have to worry about ever again. I'm going to pass on doing the back for now. If I'm just going to need to replace the front in a couple of years then I might as well do the back with KYB or better at the same time so I have a decent matching set. They feel fine anyways. Just ordered. With shipping it came down to $149.66. They should be emailing me soon with an ETA on the parts. My carb kit gets here tomorrow morning and I'm hoping that replacing the base gasket will be all I need to fix my high idle issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikaleda Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 (edited) wow sounds like you have the same problems i'm having on my 80. i just ordered a rebuild kit for my carb and back shocks (their only $12 a piece from rock auto) mine basically disintegrated except the bolts that hold them in they decided to stay permanently. let us know how the struts work out i need some really bad. i'm in the same situation right at the moment Edited July 11, 2012 by mikaleda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aba4430 Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 FYI: This is another good source with decent prices. Good luck with your repairs. Try and read the "How To Keep Your Subaru Alive" manual prior to trying repairs. It is an excellent guide and explains repairs well. http://www.amazon.com/gp/part-finder/slide-show/1983/Subaru/GL?ie=UTF8&brand=KYB&carId=011&partsNode=2286889011 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bratman2 Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 I ordered the Gabriel struts for my 87 Brat some 10-12 years ago. They have been fine and still are. I did all the work myself and got the spring compression tool from Autozone if my memory is correct. Put down a deposit and got my money back when I brought it back to them. Not that hard to do it all yourself with the proper tools. No way would I pay nearly $50.00 to install springs on a strut. They can also be found on Ebay fairly cheap. I thought everything from 83-89 on the four wheel hatch EA81 hatches was the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotsun Posted July 12, 2012 Author Share Posted July 12, 2012 Wish I'd thought of amazon earlier! It didn't occur to me to check them for car parts. They're return policy is amazing and I'd much rather have gone through them. Good suggestion on the guide. Glad to hear that the Gabriel struts have worked out for you! Hopefully I have the same experience. I forgot about renting the tools...still not sure what I want to do though. The parts should arrive sometime on the 17th or later, so I have until then to decide. If it's going to cost me more than 20 bucks to get the shocks changed safely then I'll probably just buy or rent the tools. Speaking of the parts, an oddity: I ordered them through carpartswholesale.com However, my tracking for them seems to be through autopartswharehouse.com The parts are exactly the same price on both sites...but even though I can log in to autopartswharehouse (but not capartswholesale) to check the status of my order, I still have yet to receive a confirmation email for my order. I'm going to have to call them tomorrow morning and find out what's up (I could just be crazy...). I put the rear of the car on jackstands last night and attempted to get the rear brake drums off. I need to see if they're significantly grooved or not before I place my order for new shoes. The drums are expensive and I'd rather not buy new ones. However, the castellated retaining nut is proving to be a bother. It's larger than any of the sockets and wrenches that I have. Looks like tomorrow morning I'll need to buy a much larger adjustable wrench to get it off (and return the much larger but still not large enough sockets that I bought..). Carb kit got here this morning but I haven't had time to do anything with it. I'll try to post some pictures in a couple of days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djellum Posted July 12, 2012 Share Posted July 12, 2012 you will want a torque wrench for the axle nut, so pick up the appropriate socket. Mine was 36mm, but I have heard some are 32mm, so you will want to check with someone who knows your model for sure. as torqued as it needs to be, it is not a good idea to use an adjustable imo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aba4430 Posted July 12, 2012 Share Posted July 12, 2012 ... I put the rear of the car on jackstands last night and attempted to get the rear brake drums off. I need to see if they're significantly grooved or not before I place my order for new shoes. The drums are expensive and I'd rather not buy new ones. However, the castellated retaining nut is proving to be a bother. It's larger than any of the sockets and wrenches that I have. Looks like tomorrow morning I'll need to buy a much larger adjustable wrench to get it off (and return the much larger but still not large enough sockets that I bought..).... For the price of two drums, you could convert to rear disc brakes. Kits do pop up in the sale section here from time to time. Just an idea. RockAuto has some decent prices on BA rear drums at closeout prices. However, when ordering more than a single closeout item from RA, you have to keep your fingers crossed and hope you get matched items. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotsun Posted July 13, 2012 Author Share Posted July 13, 2012 Thank you for the tip on the size of the axel nut. Turns out mine is 36mm. I purchased a torque wrench from Harbor Freight (cheap and lifetime warranty even if/when they do break = awesome) for about $20 and I was able to rent a 36mm socket from autozone for the same. How much torque am I supposed to apply when I finally do get to putting it back on? And to get them off...I'm thinking re-attach one wheel and lower the car on the stands enough so that the wheel on the opposite side that I need to take off stays put? Only one of the drums is pulsing/making scraping noises and the other side hasn't been having any problems. I know I need to replace the shoes on both sides anyways, but what about the drums? If I end up needing to replace the passenger side drum, do I also need to replace the driver's side if it's still in good condition? If I end up needing to replace both drums then I'll consider the switch to disc if I can get the parts in time. I'm rapidly approaching my departure time of around the 13th of next month and I don't have much time left to put everything together. As it is I'm hoping that I won't have to do anything to fix my vacuum leak besides rebuild the carb/replace the base gasket and maybe replace some tubes. The car has difficulty accelerating beyond 60 on flat highway even when floored and I'm hoping that's a symptom of the severe vacuum leak (which is so bad that it's nearly as loud as the engine itself, I just never knew before that it wasn't a part of a car's normal operating noise). Thanks for the help so far guys. I really appreciate it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djellum Posted July 13, 2012 Share Posted July 13, 2012 145 ft/lb is what the service manual suggests. many other people here tighten them more, but I would say 145 at a min. you should check if you can get your drums turned. some are too thin and some can get too thin from wear, but worth it to check. probably under $20 at a machine shop or ask at the auto parts store. basic drum brake job to me is replace pads and wheel cylinders, turn drums, and clean all springs and adjusters. if anything is actually wore out like drums or springs replace them. i would do both sides at the same time if you can. if your in high gear its not going to throw you back when your over 60mph. between the power and the gear ratios the car just won't have a lot of oomph at that speed. it should still have a little left, but if your brakes are dragging, tires are low, etc, then it might not be the motor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotsun Posted July 13, 2012 Author Share Posted July 13, 2012 Well what I meant was that it has trouble attaining speeds over that amount. I had a hard time even maintaining an acceptable speed for the highway. But yes, that brake was dragging. The tires were more than likely pretty low, and they're severely degraded snow tires so I'm sure that didn't help. I was told by the extremely meticulous previous owner (he had record of all gassing ups for nearly the past ten years...not to mention all other work done on the car) hat the engine is "new". So it's not the original engine, or it was rebuilt or whatever. I not thinking it likely that a "new" engine would be having severe problems so soon after installation. The clutch is also new; I know that's not related, I'm just happy about that. I think I have a handle of pretty much all of the mechanical problems with the car. I can fix everything well enough to get me to Florida safely and be a useable car for at least a few years after that. But if it's the engine...then I'm screwed. I simply don't have both the money for a new engine and getting to Florida in time for the Fall semester. I would have to ditch the car.. I hope it doesn't come to that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bratman2 Posted July 13, 2012 Share Posted July 13, 2012 You get your vacuum leaks fixed you will probably be fine engine wise. From the sound of it you are lucky to get 60mph out of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djellum Posted July 13, 2012 Share Posted July 13, 2012 Id find out where your leak is or why it idles so high. once that is done, and the brakes/tires, then take a look at the top speed. it shouldnt struggle to do 60, I was just saying that they really arent built for 100 mph, so dont expect too much pull over 60. my first suby would do 75-80 with a tail wind, but didnt have much beyond that unless you had a long downhill slope. I was struggling to hit 65 on mine till I got the tires in order and inflated properly. now it hits 65 easy, though my clutch started slipping today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotsun Posted July 13, 2012 Author Share Posted July 13, 2012 I used the carburetor fluid trick (with small amounts of fluid on a cold engine to reduce fire risk) to find the biggest (only, hopefully) leak...the base gasket in between the carburetor and the engine. The sound of the leak is rather loud and obvious now that I know to look for it. My rebuild kit got here a few days ago so I'll be able to take care of that leak at least. I just got off of work and I'm going to go and take off the brake drums now. Then I'll head down to O' Reilly's and order the shoes. If I need the drum I'll get them online as I found a few places cheaper than $70 bucks each. After that I'll take the carb off and start working on that. I have all of tomorrow to work on it and I just wish my struts were here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djellum Posted July 14, 2012 Share Posted July 14, 2012 O'rielys should be able to turn the drums for you, bring them along. that may have been what you meant, but just in case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotsun Posted July 14, 2012 Author Share Posted July 14, 2012 Just got the drums and shoes off. The setups is considerably less complicated then the setup in the modern Honda that I was able to watch being done online. There's no grooving at all in the drums, even the problem one. In fact, the brake metal portion of the shoes seems to be still as thick as the the interior circle of the drum itself. They don't seem worn at all...which makes me a bit confused as I'm wondering where the pulsing is coming from. I ran the shoes along the inside of each drum and I didn't see any point where they didn't fit perfectly. I'm not completely sure, but I think the scraping, and possibly the pulsing, is coming from a slightly bent portion of the much smaller plate/shallow bowl portion that's firmly attached to the car behind the drum. It's only slightly bent and I'm going to see if I can't just bend it back a little to stop the scraping. Eitherway, I've got both drums off so I'm going to clean and lightly sand what I need to and replace the shoes as well as get the drums turned. The shoes will take a couple of days to get here, so I'm going to use that time to work on the carb! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikaleda Posted July 14, 2012 Share Posted July 14, 2012 pulsating could be caused if you lose the anti rattle spring it will do that but that would be the front calipers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndotsun Posted July 15, 2012 Author Share Posted July 15, 2012 I just got the carburetor off. It took a lot of moving back and forth on the bolts to get it lose. The 3 base gaskets have rotted pretty badly. The very bottom one came off cleanly on some portions but about 70% of it is stuck on so badly that I'm having a difficult time scraping it all off. I also have a problem with my rebuild kit. The model number on the on the carb was pretty worn, but it was either: DCP 506-21 305 or DCP 306-21 305 I'm leaning towards DCP 506, but I don't know enough about Sub carburetors to know if that is even possible. The 3 could just have been so worn that I mistook it for a 5. The kit that I got is for: "DCP 306-11 thru 27" Will the kit still work even if it is DCP 506? Also, on my engine there were three gaskets. A paper one on the bottom, a plastic/metal? one in the middle, and another paper one on the top. The kit only came with one paper one. Do I actually need two of them? Is there a material I can buy to just cut out another one with a razor? The plastic one is still in what I'm assuming is perfect shape, so I'm not worried about that one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djellum Posted July 15, 2012 Share Posted July 15, 2012 check and see if the metal plate has all the same holes as the gaskets. theres a water jacket that runs through the intake, and I have heard that people block it off when they put webers on. someone may have blocked it off with the plate and thus needed 2 gaskets. I did the same thing with my EGR until I can go get a block off plate at the JY. you can get rolls of gasket material at the parts store. just check with them on application, but im sure they have something that will work on carbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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