RossMasson Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 My son decided to drive his 88 GL wagon from Boise to LA. He is now sort of broke down in Hawthorne Nevada. He says the soob is losing power as he tries to accelerate. He is unable to keep speed in 5th gear. Anybody have an idea as to what to check? He said the spark plugs look good. I think the fuel filter is new. We just bought the car in early January. The previous owner maintained it well. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Know any soob mechanics in or near Hawthorne NV would really help. Thanks! Ross Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dude Abides Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 Ok just simple things, Pop off the line going to the fuel filter. Does the gas flow good, then pop off the line after the fuel filter is it still going good. Then spark, maybe his disty is on the fritz. If hes getting good spark from the sparkplugs then the disty should be good. Buy the way we need exact info on the car. Is he looseing any oil or coolant. When have the timeing belts changed (though i dont think thats the problem.) Others will chime in as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caramanos2000 Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 Try cleaning the TPS contacts and all the fusible link contacts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
torxxx Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 Cat is plugged up... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank B Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 Is the parking brake on? Change the fuel filter anyway, you never know. If it idles good and pulls well untill he gets up to a certain rpm or throttle position, it may very well be fuel related. Is he losing coolant? Is it running hot? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RossMasson Posted February 6, 2009 Author Share Posted February 6, 2009 He told me it would lose power/speed while in 5th gear and climbing a "very small hill". These engines only have about 80 hp right? I would think it couldn't climb any sort of grade in 5th gear. what do you guys think? Mebbe it needs the timing adjusted? Anyways he is back on the road, not stranded, we will see what happens. Thanks for the help! Ross Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank B Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 My 92 loyales spfi is a powerfull little engine, but I have to downshift out of fifth if I want to maintain any speed up hills. How fast is he going in fifth up these hills? If he's out on the interstate doing 70 or so, it would be fine in fifth gear. But if he's going 45-55 on a by-way in fifth, he would need to drop it down to forth to get up a hill. Is this car new to him? Is he used to driving more powerfull cars? Check the vitals, oil loss, coolant loss, condition of both(milky or normal),fuel pressure, engine temp, voltage from alternator, etc. It could be as simple as a tank of bad gas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hooziewhatsit Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 Cat is plugged up... That was my first thought as well. When my plugged, I was having trouble maintaining 40mph, let alone going up hills. If he has a whistling noise under the hood he can't quite pinpoint.... -Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
torxxx Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 (edited) reason why I suggested cat is 5th gear you are loading the hell out of these little engines and exhaust restriction will be felt more in 5th gear than in first gear because you arent getting revs up very fast. All though since his buddy mentioned about the losing speed in 5th on a hill.. LOL its a subaru they do that Timing being too advanced will cause it to lose power, but he should hear pinging if its up too high. Edited February 6, 2009 by torxxx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monstaru Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 all car stuff aside,i feel inclined to say that you were young once too.don't revel in your "gut feeling " to much.let him have his adventure,sometimes it is not always about being right. like it or not,he is obviously going to do what he wants.:grin:cheers, brian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indrid cold Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 (edited) all car stuff aside.......let him have his adventure................ I think everyone has a good mix here..... Probably hill climb and altitude mix kind of thing in 5th gear... my 88 would easily stumble on long hills... if he is still able to climb in 4th and have a good run down the other side in 5th... all's well.... possible timing etc.. but sounds like he's running again and he is just a little paniky realizing it is a big world out there.... I strongly agree with Monstaru... let him run, learn to bond with the car and the experience.. these minor excitements in life will build him up even if the car goes up in flames :Flame:and cost's you a bit. All's good. He will always remember his first road trip... Yes there are Subie members all over the northwest... If the car finaly dies... then that is a good place to start asking the board for a local. Now take a breath and smile at his strike for independance! My thought is I would rather see a young man be adventurous then sit in front of a stupid computer playing games.... he's out, he's doing ... *yes, even if it cost you a rescue.. Edited February 6, 2009 by Indrid cold Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s'ko Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 I assume he's headed towards Los Angeles? There are a handful of locals, I am going to VA for today, and will be back om Friday. If he needs to car looked at send me a PM. I have minimal experience w/the EA82s but I can check the basics. BW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigAl Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 Glad he made it home. Looks like a really good clean find Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RossMasson Posted February 6, 2009 Author Share Posted February 6, 2009 Well, he made it to LA. He is on the beach, its raining. He said the car ran fine, (just not enough power apparently). I don't think anything was wrong with it but we will have it looked at anyways. Thanks for all the help / advice! Ross PS here's my daily driver: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dude Abides Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 LOL were glad he made it and again it sounds like hes just used to haveing more powerful cars. Sadly these are not, but he does have a nice rust free looking GL. Yes on inclines, large ones you need to downshift. But like others said on here he needs to bond with the car. Hell figure out all the quirks and whatnot. Have him get his own screenname and join the board. We can help him along the way. I like his wheel setup it looks like mine. Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4x4_Welder Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Ross PS here's my daily driver: Not bad, I've always been an X 1/9 fan. Is that a European model, or did you ditch the safety bumper/ lead weights? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NV Zeno Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Wow, a Fiat..you're brave. Haven't seen one of those in years, yours is lookin' good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RossMasson Posted February 8, 2009 Author Share Posted February 8, 2009 4x4- I ditched the bumpers/leadweights and did a few simple mods to make a good appearance. The unmodified X only has about 80hp as well. The less weight the better. Jerome? you wouldn't be the guy that had a red X for sale in Gooding about 5 years ago? Zeno - the x 1/9 got a bad rap. Namely they rusted quickly and had horrible electrical problems. I can't speak for the rust, other british / european cars of that era have rust problems no different than the fiat. As far as electrical issues go, it is grounding. I cleaned all the ground points and ran redundant ground wire from all the ground points, most importantly from the engine block to the chassis. Not only for me but for many other X owners this has solved all electrical issues. Never the less, if you were to witness the rats nest of wires under the fuse box panel you would recoil in absolute fear. Just like the older Soobs there is a fanatical apprectiation for the X. If you want one you have to enjoy working on cars. I frequent an X 1/9 web site whos members are as friendly and helpful as this site appears to be. If you ever care to check it out go here: http://www.xwebforums.org/ Thanks for the interest. Ross Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RossMasson Posted February 8, 2009 Author Share Posted February 8, 2009 Aa Ha! I just remembered. On the xweb forum month or so back, I can't find it. There was discussion of building a 4wd X. Not an offroad version mind you, just 4wd / awd. Anyways the idea of a subaru drive train installation came up. Seems simple but the X is a mid engine, we need to keep it that way. So, can you install a Sooby drive train backwards? BuuWaahaahaa. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scoobywagon Posted February 8, 2009 Share Posted February 8, 2009 Yes, you can, but you have to go through some STRANGE circumlocutions to make it work. Portals from a VW microbus spring immediately to mind. The problem there is that they provide gear reduction as well as torque reversal. That'd be counterproductive for you. Saw a rock buggy once that had the 5-spd D/R trans. They mounted engine and trans, facing forward, over the back axle and then used a weird sort of chain drive to turn a drive shaft that ran back up to the front. If I was gonna try this, I think I might go with a sort of hybrid AWD system. You'd have to do a bunch of math to make it work right, but I think its probably doable. You'd add a diff to the front end to drive the wheels. Fit up an electric motor to that diff. Add on a secondary alternator and battery just for the front motor. Fab up a speed controller and there you are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4x4_Welder Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 4x4- I ditched the bumpers/leadweights and did a few simple mods to make a good appearance. The unmodified X only has about 80hp as well. The less weight the better. Jerome? you wouldn't be the guy that had a red X for sale in Gooding about 5 years ago? Nope, not me. I've only been here for a few months. As far as AWD, you'd be better off using a VW Synchro transaxle, and adapt whatever you to that for an engine. The Subaru can't have it's rotation direction changed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uncle Don Clark Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 Having similar trouble with my 90 Loyale. Runs fine for a while then, as I accelerate to 3000 rpm to shift, the rpm drops and I have to slow down for the engine to catch up with itself. Occasionally, in neutral on the 5spd, I can depress the accelerator and the engine will rev to 3000 and drop repeatedly at precise intervals. I just bought this thing two days ago. I changed the fuel filter immediately, filled the tank with premium and a bottle of Gumout water treatment. Still does it. Anyone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crash321 Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 Uncle Don, you should post this as a new thread in the newer generation section as its own post, you will get more response, also you are kind of hijacking this thread. But I see your new so welcome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank B Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 Namely they rusted quickly and had horrible electrical problems. I can't speak for the rust, other british / european cars of that era have rust problems no different than the fiat. As far as electrical issues go, it is grounding. I cleaned all the ground points and ran redundant ground wire from all the ground points, most importantly from the engine block to the chassis. Sounds like you have the proper experience to work on Subarus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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