MY 1988 SUBARU GL WAGON WON'T START. WE WERE DRIVING IT ONE DAY AND IT JUST DIED AND WOULD NOT START BACK UP.WE HAVE HAD THE CAR FOR ABOUT SIX MONTHS AND NEVER HAD A PROBLEM UNTIL THIS. WE TOWED IT HOME AND LOOKED FOR A PROBLEM. THIS IS ABOUT ALL I KNOW, IT HAS OIL, THE BATTERRY IS GOOD,THE ENGINE IS GETTING FUEL, THE FUSES AND FUSEBLE LINKS SEEM OK. BUT IT DOES NOT HAVE SPARK. ANY SUGGESTIONS?

try taking the distributer cap off and cranking it over. If the rotor does not spin, you broke a timing belt. That's my initial thought at least.

 

if that is it, you can find the procedure to fix them under the USRM in the title bar above.

 

good luck.

+1 for timing belt. These old cars need them changed regularly. When the driver side T-belt breaks, the distributor stops spinning and you no longer get spark. Popo the cap off, crank it over and see if the disty is spinning.

 

+1 for fixing that broken caps lock button as well;)

Yes, sounds like broken timing belt could be the problem. If distributor is turning then at least one of the belts is not broken. If that's the case, and the other belt is broken, I think you won't see any movement on your oil pressure gauge while cranking the engine, as that belt drives the oil pump. Maybe I'm wrong here, though, in my recollection. [As I've gotten older, I seem to recall less and less!] calebz, Skip, moosens, Turbone, and others know this for sure. Search this forum, as this problem has been discussed and diagnosed many times before - lots of good insights on troubleshooting the timing belts and replacing them. If you determine the timing belts are intact, be sure to check the coil and the coil wire. If you aren't getting voltage to the distributor, you won't be able to distribute that voltage to the plugs! 8-) And I seem to recall that a loose starter or alternator connection can cause a similar symptom... or if either of these connections is shorting to ground. Just some additional ideas to think about. I'm starting to ramble again... sorry about that. 8-) Rick

Oh, and if you decide you'd rather sell your car than get it fixed, let me know how much you want. I could always use another project. Especially if it's working on an old Subaru! 8-) Take care and good luck, Rick

If the rotor is turning fine, another possibility could be the ignitor or the coil failed.

OK I CHECKED THE ROTAR UNDER THE DISTRIBUTER CAP. IT WAS NOT SPINNING. SO THE TIMING BELT IS BROKEN RIGHT? IS THAT HARD TO REPLACE? AND DOES IT COST ALOT?

 

P.S.HOW OFTEN SHOULD THE TIMING BELT BE REPLACED?

AND NO I DO NOT WANT TO SELL MY CAR. I LOVE THAT CAR.

gah, fuzzy monitor + Caps = hurting eyes

 

Most likely the driver side belt had some of the teeth strip off*. So when you get the covers off it'll look like it's fine, but it isn't.

 

here's a link from the USRM to the timing belt replacement procedure http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/article.php?a=24

 

When I did my belts for the first time in a similar situation, it took maybe 4 or 5 hours.

 

Now that I've done it I could probably get it done in a couple hours

 

for a shop to do it, I'd guess you'd be looking at $300-400 for it. Just a guess though.

 

 

 

*sidenote: I saw a car in the JY with a stripped belt once... I really hope that isn't why it showed up there

Thanks for the info and sorry about the caps. Do you have to take the engine out to replace the belts and how many timing belts are there?

 

p.s. How often should the timing belts be replaced

Belts should be replaced every 60,000miles. No, you shouldn't have to take the engine out.

This is really helpful Timing Belt Check and Adjustment

Good luck.

Go to subaru and buy your belts there. I have heard that they can last up to 100k miles before breaking.

 

If you read the threads, plenty of people who have never changed timing belts have done so with success and satisfaction.

I have never changed one but the previos owner said she had it replaced 3 times. the car has aprox 257,000 miles on it she told me it hasent been replaced in 90,000 miles. but i didn't know that would cause this problem. so now i can fix it.

 

 

 

thanks for the help

I took it apart and the drivers side timing belt was broken. thanks for the help.