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Tips on passing SMOG? (78 wagon, with issues)


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Well I found the spark plug instructions online... Confusing, especially since I have aparently two sets of distributor ends I can install on these wires. Hmm...

 

Oh, and ya, right now the car when you get it in gear and give it gas, or give it gas in general, it bogs for awhile before reving. I cant get it anywhere right now without it dying :(

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I would say it sounds like ignition. Misfire problems often show up under load. do the wires ect. mabey a coil problem?

what do you mean by instructions for wires? take old wire off install new one repeat.:D sorry I had to. if you dont have them already NGK makes great wire sets for our cars. they fit good and are very high quality.

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The wires I gave him were the leftover wires from a custom V8 set of 8mm Accell wires. Sorry Steve, I didnt realize you needed instructions, its pretty basic. But to make it easier on yourself, just goto autozone and get a set of wires. Also double check the connections on the coil. My '83 wouldnt run on anything but 2 cylinders when the coil died. And everytime you put it in gear it would studder and die. Got progressivly worse, until it wouldnt run. You can test the coil by removing the coil wire from your distributor cap and hold it a few inches from a solid ground. Have your father or someone crank the engine over and pay attention to the spark it creates. You should get a nice solid arc, not sure what color arc your looking for but you should be able to find more detailed instructions in that Haynes or online.

 

It honestly sounds like very weak spark, or bad gas. Could also be the timing, i never did have a chance to set the timing.

 

-Brian

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Ok, ill have to try for a new coil pack then. Maybe try to run it temporarily with the other pack I have.

 

The problem with the wires is that there needs to be a bend in them, at least I think there needs to be a bend... I got the clip on one with the wire in the proper position, but the after-that part is the problem. These are not stock plug wires.

 

Brian if you want you can stop by saturday, im going to work on the car then.

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There's no bend in the wires - There usually isn't on any set I've used. Push the end of the wire out of the boot and insert it into the cap, or onto the plug. Spray the wire and boot with WD40 and slide the boot down over the cap connection or the plug. The WD40 makes it much easier to slide the boot around on the wire. It's also non-conductive, and displaces water. All of us off-roaders use it to dry out our distributors when they get wet. Totally safe to use it on ignition parts.

 

As for the coil - you can test it with a ohmeter.

 

Sounds like carb problems to me - something stuck in the primary jet perhaps.

 

To check spark, remove a wire from a plug and insert a straightened paper clip. hold it near a good ground and crank. A good hot spark will be a bright blue color. A weak spark will generally be orange and not very "thick". If you have a bright blue spark then don't worry about the ignition system.

 

GD

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Well I fiddled more with the idle/throttle screws, I wasnt sure exactly how they were operating, but I found out my uncle had a old scoob once upon a time and he gave me some insight. I tried it out both running lean and running rich, and no matter what I did even if it was idling great, i'd shift into second and give it gas when i was starting to test drive it it would just totally die... Ug...

I also checked the fuel pump and fuel lines (ran it to see if it would pump, and it is pumping just fine).

 

Ill check the coil pack tommorow, then I guess ill know if its going to be something more serious after that...

 

As for the curved spark plug wires, these caps that connect to the distrubutor are 90 degree bend ones, if I dont tweak the wire somehow to make it with a 90 degree bend, it wont fit in the cap correctly.

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Steve. When i bought that set of wires it came with eight 90 degree bends and 8 straight bends. There should be four 90 degree bends left, but a couple might have gotten lost. I bought that set like 8 or 9 months ago, and the left overs have been sitting in the garage since.

 

Saturday I'll be wrenching in my garage on the legacy. I gotta get the rear lateral bars in, drop links replaced, and then take it to Clarks Frame for its alignment. I'd love to stop by and take a look at the car, it sounds to me like a simple electronic problem. The carb was showing no signs of failure when i had it, other than the leaks that I fixed. Might be a good idea to locate a 1 piece EA71 intake with a Carter/Weber. Those carbs run about as clean as any carb made.

 

Saturday evening I should have some time, hopefully before the poker game starts.

 

-Brian

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Ug, another unsuccessful day...

 

Now the car whenever I give it a good amount of throttle and let off, it will die. Sometimes now it even dies under throttle. Its very inconsistant though. Fuel is definatly getting in there, I just dont know why its not working right.

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Man! a 78 has to be smogged in CA! Whats the cut off year? Its 80 for us as of this year. Sorry for going slightly off topic...

 

I had to have my 78 smogged. I don't know what the cut off is but it might be around 1975!

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My 81 subaru suddenly started dying on me one night. I would turn it over, it would run for a few seconds, then die. The car kept turning over then it would die.

 

I then had the carburetor rebuilt by roo builders and the problem completely disappeared. Carburetor rebuild kits won't solve your problem. Check your throttle shaft for play, and if there is play in it, then that probably means as you try and accelerate, the carb's throttle shaft has so much play in it isn't working properly.

 

Originally I had my carburetor rebuilt locally in Southern Ca. It worked pretty good for about a month. There was one slight hesitation spot at around 30-40 mph. After a few months the just rebuilt carb's performance just went downhill. I was shocked to find out I was a gross polluter just one year after having the carb rebuilt locally with the standard carb rebuild kit.

 

Then I sent the carb to Roo Builders (gosh this sounds like a commercial) and the car started right up when I got my carb back, and then I passed smog. One little problem is the choke isn't set right when the car first warms up, but overall I am very happy that the car passed smog quite easily and there is no hesitation when I accelerate.

 

My Subaru has 256,000 mile on the original engine. I bought the car from the original owner at 81,000 miles, and around 100,000 miles I switched to 20-50 oil. I have only used premium gas in it and the car has never overheated. (once the fan was accidentally disconnected for a few days but luckily I the radiator was full and the subaru never complained even when I was idling in traffic during the summer, although I don't recommend this!)

 

I had the car's transmission rebuilt at 190,000 miles and ever since then the car has run as peppy as the day I bought it.

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I'm not sure if non California Subaru Carburetors don't go out of adjustment as much as California Subaru Carburetors. I suppose if there are less elements attached to the throttle shaft, it may remain truer than a Carburertor with more "stuff" attached to it.

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Well I replaced the coil and the "transistor" attached to it, and its still doing the dying out thing when you give it gas. It is backfiring alot now though. I guess its the carb, but man I dont know what im doing when it comes to carbs! I did pick up a carb at the junkyard off of a 1400 (with the intake manifold too, but its a little different but not alot... the recirculator that bolts into the heads is on the other side, and it doesnt have the big vacume regulator on the front which is what I wanted to get rid of anyhow) Otherwise its basically the same carb.

 

Suggestions?

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It always surprises me how much we don't support the few remaining craftsmen that keep our old cars alive even as they support us with their willingness to do the job at a reasonable price.

 

Unless you are willing to machine out the base of the carburetor and add brass fittings you're probably wasting your time.

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mabey I could take a peak at it and we could work a deal on the other items we have been discussing? only if can get it going good for you of course. hit me up.

I have a good deal of tools for trouble shooting.

Really? Thats cool. I could use another opinion of what might be wrong. I have someone else coming up next week to check it out.
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I dont think that 1400 Manifold will work. You shoulda looked for a single barrel CW or another Hitachi off a newer model. Like a '86 Hatch. A 1400 carb is probably going to have the same problem. Thats probably the reason why that 1400 was in the junkyard. And if you go the weber route the car will never pass emissions. If I can find some time I'd love to stop by and take a look at it. Its odd how these problems developed, I never had any trouble when i had it.

 

Message me if you see me online.

 

-Brian

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As far as I can tell, the 1400 carb is nearly identicle but it doesnt have that crazy vacume regulator. The other EA71 newer carbs I saw wouldnt work because they were set up almost completely different, it would have required basically taking everything in the engine bay minus the block to run it.

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I'm sure the price is reasonable, but my smog deadline is like 2 weeks and $200 is alot for me right now.

 

Im still wondering if anyone has had a simular experience with this problem and can give me a more precise solution.

 

I understand.

 

Sometimes it's better to spend your time making money and then passing the money onto to an expert who will fix your carb right then spending the time you could be working making money trying to fix the problem that may not be easily fixable.

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