The $1 sube shake-down

[professor]

I've forked over a wad of cash to my insurer and have taken the wagon out on a few maiden (to me) voyages. Any comments on the engine vibration in particular ???

Some nits and picks:

Picks:

-EVERYTHING works on this car, even the seatbelts. I've paid 10k for cars and never has every single item worked

-The handling is damn good for 165k miles. I suspect the struts have been replaced. Once the wheels/tires are changed, I'll be in pretty good shape

-I'm VERY impressed with the torque of this engine. The gearing is awful low for a 4-banger, but the engine pulls it pretty well. I can see why higher rear end ratios are desirable. The car is obviously fairly light weight.

-I'm impressed that the interior looks so good at this mileage. The driver's seat back is about to rip, but hasn't yet. That's about it for flaws, save for cracked speaker housings. It is my opinion that early 90's Jap interiors were better than a few years later, when some companies (Honda) cheaped out on materials.


Nits:

-WTF is with the right side windshield wiper being right in my face every swipe ? first car I've seen that does that

-Due to my body proportions best described as Toulous-Lautrec, my head ends up right up against the headliner. Must lower seats

-185/70/14 tires sure feel quaint after driving on 225/45zr17's for 7 years. I've seen stiffer sidewalls on condoms.

-The engine seems rough with vibration at higher RPM. Maybe I'm spoiled with straight-6 bliss but it is much worse than my Honda 4-banger, especially felt through the shifter, all gears

-The shifter bushings are history

-The front brake pads feel like soap bars. Glazed rotors ??

[evolutionmovement]

Subaru uses no vibration dampers or balance shafts so they do vibrate more than most cars, though tired motor mounts will exacerbate the issue. I personally like it.

[tris91ricer]

yeah, i think some of us enthusiasts would call that a certain.. "i don't know what", but it's an excuse for a car that's too loud, and falling apart in places we can't yet reach.. hehe, good to know you bought it for just $1. On that note, did you get this at an auction? did your friend get a divorce? how? how? I thought i bought a running car for cheap, but geez, --$1??? you beat us all.. did you post the story somewhere? Would you mind telling us how you got for $1? I'd like to know.. sounds like a good story to me, mmmm-huh..

-=tristan

[BAC5.2]

Shit, my car makes so many different and interesting noises, I barely notice the engine vibration anymore.

I've got noise coming from every direction and location. It's sweet

It's said that Subaru uses the pulleys as a harmonic balancer. It would reason to me, that our engines are naturally balanced (as the cylinders are offset 180 degrees), but that doesn't seem ENTIRELY true.

Part of our good handling has to do with the engine. Open the bay of a Honda, next to yours. Where their valve covers are, our intake manifold is. All the engine weight is down low, as opposed to being up high. It's like with RX7's, the engine is just so far down in the bay, your CG is really low. Probably why our cars respond well to suspension inputs.

[Legacy777]

The wiper issue....I think I got used to it....that or you sit more centered then me.

Get a set of wrx rims & tires cheap. Throw some better tires on, also match the overall diameter of the old tires, and you handle a hell of a lot better then the stock 14" crappers.

Look at the struts too....unless they're a name brand....they're probably original....and probably should be changed.

Yeah there's a little more vibration....but it's not too bad.

shifter linkage is poop. Get an sti short throw, and the joint to make it all work. night and day difference.

Do the rotors have a blue hue to them? If so, yeah they're probably glazed. Again...since 14" rims were stock...the rotors are undersized IMO. You can upgrade to larger brakes off of another subie if you want.....or get another set of rotors that are cryo treated, and get some good pads.

[professor]

Thanks guys. Yes the wheels and tires will go, but I personally don't care for the WRX wheels, that split-spoke thing is played out (like the expression "played out"). I do like the multi-spoke 2000 Legacy 16" wheels a great deal, and also the flat 5-spokes aren't too bad either.

Subaru is full of baloney about the "perfect dynamic balance" thing in a flat-4. Definitely false. Staright-6, 90 degree v-8, and v-12 are your choices there, and no others (save for radials). I noted a fair amount of grousing on the web about it when I ws searching for similar complaints.

I got the car from a friend of mine who just got divorced and moved to Boston area from Reno / California. She just didn't want to trust a car this old, and went out and bought a near-new Golf. She figured maybe $1000 on the open market, with the associated hassle, had no place to park the car, and they wouldn't take it for trade (that sounded strange to me). I also don't think she paid for the car originally, so easy come, easy go.

This car may become a candidate for an engine swap at some point, the body has a few minor dings but no accident and no corrosion, not even on fasteners. or I may just drive it winters for 5-6 years and give my BMW a break.

I just took a hard look at the front suspension and the stabilzer links are tired, and the left lower control arm ain't all that, either. I can get some free play just manually pulling on the left wheel (toe in and out), but the tie rods seem OK. There must be a bushing on the inner end of the control arm, probably weak.


Who sells OEM parts at a discount versus the dealer ? No cheap China parts, please.

What parts would I arm myself with for a "minor" front end rebuild, to stock standards ?

[scottzg]

www.subaruparts.com



flat engines are inherently balanced, but i suspect mush motor mounts and 160k of life will make things a little unbalanced. V8's are not inherently balanced- either their counterweighted or they have that flat crankshaft design that shakes.

as for responding well to suspension work- its a well balanced car with a low cg and a soft suspension setup. It's practically begging for suspension work. I wish the chassis was stiffer.

What bmw ya got prof?

[BAC5.2]

Yea, I have a LOT less vibration now that I have my Group N engine mounts, than I did on the stock mounts, and the stockers only had 96k on them. The only time it vibrates is when it's not idling right (always). I've stopped noticing it.

[evolutionmovement]

The ideal angle for V12s is 60 degrees (like a V6). But there are primary and secondary forces that need to be balanced - I don't know of any engine configuration that is balances inherently for primary AND secondary forces - only one or the other. Anything that is is using balance shafts or something. Rotaries excepted as they're a different animal.

Piston steam engines can be smooth too, but that's 'cause they barely rev. Any roughness is from the individual power strokes. Mmm maximum torque (usually over 750 lbs/ft) at throttle tip in ...

Steve

[scottzg]

all flat engines, inline 6s, and v12s are inherently balanced for primary and secondary forces. They don't need balance shafts, which are used to combat secondary vibration. I think inline 5's have no secondary vibration, but i cant remeber, there's something remarkable about them though.

[evolutionmovement]

Sorry, mixed up forces and moments.

Our engines have balanced forces, but imbalanced moments.

Steve