Wrenchin... Adventures under the hood... Put em here.

[jamal]

Might as well do coilpack, wires, plugs all together. Should be less than $200 from a parts store and is all straightforward to change. I just use ngk copper v-powers on those. Dohc/turbos get iridium.

Doesn't look so simple. Nurse it home? Take it to the mechanic that you have been bringing donuts to.

That video is not relevant to his engine.

The sohc 2.5 is really easy to change plugs on, they angle out upward. He'll have to take off the intake pipe and maybe washer reservoir. Or maybe none of that.

[AdironRider]

Question for the collective.

What could cause an intermittent issue where brake calipers lock up, but only temporarily? It also moves from caliper to caliper. I can only guess air in the lines but have bleed it twice and the problem persists.

[Obstruction]

in the brake lines? Sticky slide pins?

[bodywhomper]

thanks all. FWIW, my detection of the misfiring was in the middle of my drive last night.

the convective weather today is pretty intense, but it's supposed to lighten up tomorrow.

i'm planning to go down the hill to the car tomorrow to try to get it operational w/o a misfire while the kids are at school. i double checked my service records - no plug changes for over 60k miles. it's due. What's the maintenance interval for the coil packs? i am debating how much i should do at the amtrak parking lot versus in my muddy driveway at home, i.e. plug and wire (and coil pack?) in the single cylinder - assuming is the reason for the misfiring, of changing all 4 plugs and wires.

does this make sense?

i understand changing/replacing the ignition system may not resolve the problem.... i have a couple thousand feet of climbing and descending to get it home over about 30 miles. last night i bought the extended 100 mile towing distance for AAA. it goes into effect tomorrow night.

[jamal]

There's not really an interval for the coilpack, it's just one of those things that will eventually fail. A few years ago I had a slight hesitation go to an occasional miss go to stumbling and misfiring and misfire codes within the span of like a week. If you want to do something quickly in a parking lot I'd just start with the coilpack and inspect both ends of the wires, ie boot and make sure there are tears/exposed wire or a spark plug hole full of oil.

On your car there is just a single coilpack right on top. Turbos and newer stuff have coil on plug.

You can get an inline spark tester for cheap which will tell you for sure a cylinder isn't getting spark without like just pulling it off and trying not to shock yourself. Like $5 at harbor freight.

[uglymoney]

For the record my 02 is on original coil pack at 233k but I have been through a few sets of wires and plugs. These old school coils aren't as problematic as the coil on plugs.



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[bodywhomper]

drove the car home! thanks all! this thread is rad!

i changed the wire and plug for the cylinder sending the code along with the neighbor on the same side. SO simple. the plug in the culprit cylinder was much dirtier and worn at the electrode compared to the other used plug. i probably have the oil leak going on at the seal/gasket, which is something i doubt that i will fix (there are plenty of problems with the subi). I got lucky and did the work between downpours (lightly sprinkling).

looks like i'll catch a cream chez "powder" morning tomorrow.

other:
-i "modded" our '06 sienna yesterday, removing the cable that is part of the auto sliding door. the door stopped opening/closing because of issues with the cable, spool, and motor. a known problem for that van. we now have manual doors only, but they both open and close again. no wrenches involved. pliers and wire cutters only.
-ordering an aftermarket steel tjm front bumper for the land cruiser. will install it in a week or two after receipt. i think it's 4 bolts and no trimming or mods to the truck. hopefully it'll add some durability to the front end from bumps/rubs that the plastic bumper cover did not do. will have a new driver in the family in a few years.

[bodywhomper]

Finished replacing plugs and wires today on the old legacy. The car runs much better! One wire and plug (and the plug wrench) were covered in oil. Well that’s not great news, and will be added to the list of problems with the car.

Next week, I’m likely picking up an 06 awd matrix from a friend to drive around for a while and to likely buy. This would replace the subi. The matrix has 110k miles. Are there any specific known issues that I should be looking for? I’ve heard that those 4 cylinder 1zz-fe engines were known to burn a lot of oil at higher mileage, but that the newer versions had an improved reputation and the issue may have been resolved by Toyota....

[basinbeater]

I am working on the old bimmer again. Worn rear suspension bits, and new rear discs. Tomorrow more stuff.

[gravitylover]

^^ eek. I bet that's what the bushings look like on my Durango control arms judging by the noise it makes, terrible squeaking and the occasional clunk when it hits things just right.

I need to put new rear hub bearings in my BRZ, they're toast. I'm procrastinating because I'm afraid I'm gonna fuck it up and have a car on jack stands that I can't put the wheel back on to have it towed to a shop. Am I overreacting? Most shops want $100 more per bearing than I can buy them for and then they want at least $250 for labor. All the vids I've found make it look pretty simple.

Oh and I can't open the hood on our 06 Outback, the cable must be broken. How do I get in there and release it?

Fkn cars...

[Obstruction]

Not sure about the BRZ but I’ve done a few Subaru Wheel bearings. You chang out the entire hub assembly by unbolting it from the knuckle. The biggest bitch is getting the hub assembly to come out of the recess in the knuckle which is quite snug ordinarily and tight as fuck after it’s gotten rusty and corroded. I have spent hours trying to beat them out of the knuckles. But the last time while doing a rear hub/bearing assembly on the 07 outback I found a new method on the interwebs. After everything else is disassembled and the four hub bolts are loosened up and copious on blaster has been applied get underneath with a BFH (big fucking hammer) and a big drift punch and put a good whack on each of the wheel bearing retaining bolts. I was amazed at the difference it made came of in a couple of minutes. I’m

[gravitylover]

That's what I was thinking, loosen the bolts one or two turns then give 'em a whack to knock things loose. It seems that most people struggle with a bearing/hub puller and slide hammer after the bolts are removed.

Any thoughts on getting the hood latch to release on the OB?

[Obstruction]

Haven’t had a can’t open on the outback yet but it can be a butch to close some times. I disk it w/ pb blaste to loosen it and then slather it with lithium grease. I’ll open mine and look at it see if I can figure out how to spring it while it’s down,

[gravitylover]

Haven’t had a can’t open on the outback yet but it can be a butch to close some times. I disk it w/ pb blaste to loosen it and then slather it with lithium grease. I’ll open mine and look at it see if I can figure out how to spring it while it’s down,

Any luck?

I've got the bearings on the way. Wish me luck I don't know why I'm so apprehensive about this other than the worry that the old ones are seized in there and it's going to be an east coast rusty mess pain in the ass job. Ehh, I'll take some pics, drink some beer, throw a few tools around and it'll be fine.

[Rideski]

^ It's always a commitment for this particular shade tree mechanic to disable a functioning vehicle.
Beer speed good man.

[Obstruction]

I know what you mean about diving into what can be a multi day knuckle buster. Having a spare beater around has lessened that anxiety for me. When I have had all I can stands on any given day I can just pack it in (being retired helps too.)

On the hood I couldn’t find an easy way to spring it from under the hood. Are you sure the cable is broken? If it is that’s gonna be a whore. If it’s just seized up here’s Two ideas. Have a helper pull the release while you apply a little downward force on the latch area of the hood. May help free latch mechanism. Or detach the cable from the plastic handle inside the car grab the interior metal part of the cable with some vice grips and try pulling it while holding the plastic sheathing, they get stuck that way sometimes.

Good luck!

[gravitylover]

Haha the beater is pretty beat up at the moment, the muffler is actually falling apart. 4 cars in the driveway and they all need something. Rough winter... I have to get that hood open because that car has been sitting for a few months and the battery is dead so I need to get a charger on it so I can move it and use the spot where it is to do those bearings on the BRZ. It's sunny and will be in the 40's today so it looks like I know what I'm doing. Next project will be the muffler and fuel tank vent solenoid on the Durango then rear (soft) brake lines on the OB to get that back up to snuff then front pads and rotors on the Forester. All of that in between doing ~1500+ miles a week selling bike stuff to bike shops. Woot

Hey Obstruction you're retired, I have an idea

[Obstruction]

Lot of the same rides in our driveways. Outback, Forester, Dakota/Durango. Good thing about them is they always provide plenty of projects.

Good thing about me as a mechanic is that I’m free, bad thing is that I move at a glacial pace.

[detrusor]

Can you not trip the latch w a thin butter knife etc? Thats how I got into my legacy.....


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[bobz]

Finished replacing plugs and wires today on the old legacy. The car runs much better! One wire and plug (and the plug wrench) were covered in oil. Well that’s not great news, and will be added to the list of problems with the car.

Maybe you don't care because you're getting another car, but, clearly, the valve cover gaskets need to be replaced (or, more specifically, the plug tube gaskets that are part of the valve cover gasket kit). Subarus need new valve cover gaskets quite frequently because the boxer engine has the valves and plugs wallowing in more oil more often than if the heads were more upright. Valve cover gaskets are reasonably easy on Subarus (caveats: flexible ratcheting 10mm box-end wrench is pretty much required, and I don't know if the most recent generations are more difficult).

Replace them all if you can. Get platinum at least so they hold up.

The first sentence of that post (not in the quote) was very true: Standard plugs are good for 30K or so; at 60K+ they're way past bad. But don't replace them with platinum. If the engine is spec'd for cheap plugs (Four Subaru OEM plugs can be had for $10-$15), then cheap plugs are what the engine wants firing in it.

[gravitylover]

Can you not trip the latch w a thin butter knife etc? Thats how I got into my legacy.....

Actually going out to the driveway again now to fiddle with it and see what I come up with.

The bearings in my car truly gave up today, the rear end is starting to wiggle just a bit so it has gone beyond the roar and I don't want to trash brand new tires. It's done and parked until the new parts get here. I picked up a new jack, stands and impact wrench today so I'm just waiting on parts now. Driving the beater for a while, hopefully the muffler doesn't fall off before I get the other car done

[highangle]

[bodywhomper]

Maybe you don't care because you're getting another car, but, clearly, the valve cover gaskets need to be replaced (or, more specifically, the plug tube gaskets that are part of the valve cover gasket kit). Subarus need new valve cover gaskets quite frequently because the boxer engine has the valves and plugs wallowing in more oil more often than if the heads were more upright. Valve cover gaskets are reasonably easy on Subarus (caveats: flexible ratcheting 10mm box-end wrench is pretty much required, and I don't know if the most recent generations are more difficult).


The first sentence of that post (not in the quote) was very true: Standard plugs are good for 30K or so; at 60K+ they're way past bad. But don't replace them with platinum. If the engine is spec'd for cheap plugs (Four Subaru OEM plugs can be had for $10-$15), then cheap plugs are what the engine wants firing in it.

Thanks. I installed cheap plugs and wires specced by autozone.

I don’t have that flex ratcheting tool. I might look into the fix. Drove my possible new car home last night.

The subi has head gasket leak and pretty bad wrist pin slap. No A/C. Wiper gear problems. And a few other nicks and nacks.

[bobz]

It’s a cheap tool, that will come in handy for other things.

[bodywhomper]

Thanks. The tool that I really need is a torque wrench. Looking for recommendations. Don’t wanna break the bank. Car wrenching and would probably use on my bike. I grew up with the kind that’s similar/same as what I also used on the old vermont binding tester. Thx!