major_tom's alpine '92 SW

[major_tom]

Hey guys! This thread is a less Legacy porn-oriented continuation of this thread in the photo forum.

OK, some basics. I picked up this Leg back in May for around $2k. EJ22 N/A, 218k miles when I bought it, L trim, AWD. This car's been in Colorado since it was built - I even have the original window sticker. This is what she looked like when we met:





First up were a set of turbo wheels with fresh(er) tires:



Kablam! Bye, steelies. See you again this winter!



I did notice while putting the wheels on that a fleck of paint surrounded by rust has flaked off, revealing a hole in the usual spot (drivers' side rear QP):



Do you guys think this is a Bondo job or am I gonna need a shop? I've never done any body work but have seen tutorials, though these usually deal with spot rust and not straight through rust. There's some more paint bubble near it, and I think it's probably time to cure the cancer soon before it gets worse.

The only other issue I've got right now is a rattle that sounds like it's coming from the valvetrain? I'll see if I can't get some video/audio of it. This sounds like a loud rattle or roar between 2.5 and 3k RPMs, usually (but not always) when the throttle is closed/closing; most prevalent during engine braking (ie: throttle off, car traveling downhill). I'm just fishing here...any thoughts? It previously had a bit of a tick when cold; fresh oil and filter at 220k service stopped that, but this worries me a little. My old BMW used to make the same noise occasionally

So far, this car rocks. I'm currently crossing high mountain passes off my list on a weekly basis!

[major_tom]

Did some work this week! I got rolled up on by a Sheriff in the mountains last week who informed my my passenger's brake light was out. Whaaa? I hopped out to take a look, and sure enough, dead.

I pulled a spare bulb out but when I opened the service panel to change it, I discovered this:



When the previous owner installed the bulb, it appears he forgot to lock the bulb in place. It bounced around for a few thousand miles, and by the time I got to the mountains, it had melted a third of the flange away.

Junkyard time. I picked up a replacement in pretty good shape, scraped some of the evil tarry gunk away, and wired up the internals from my car.



Blam! Legal again! I can't say I've ever seen a light bulb do that kind of damage, but it is what it is.

Also, I finally got my grille done! About two weeks on and off (mostly waiting for the paint to completely dry) and six coats later, it actually looks pretty good.



Unfortunately, when I went to mount it on my car, I found that the replacement grille (which I pulled from a junkyard Legacy) was at least an inch too wide! Did Subaru change widths on certain models? I thought the car I pulled it from (a sedan) was post-facelift (mine's a '92), but perhaps I was mistaken. D'oh!

On the other hand, if anyone wants a homemade custom grille, lemme know haha.

[xise]

Yeah you must have grabbed a pre-facelift legacy grille, i believe 92 is the year with the newer style front end.

[Legacy777]

Yeah, that looks like a pre-face lift grill.

As for the body work in the rear fender, I think that you need to replace that metal. That would be my recommendation.

[major_tom]

Last Friday night ended like this:



Not the view I like having...the Yeti on the back of a flatbed. My clutch pedal went straight to the floor in traffic and stayed there. Good thing I just got AAA haha!

I took a look the next morning at what I suspected was the issue, the clutch cable. When I went to remove the nuts on the engine side of the cable, the end simply pulled off in my hand. I think that'd be the problem, then! Here's what I was left with:



Luckily, my local dealer had one left in stock. The next day (after much profanity), the new cable was in, and the clutch feels nice and smooth now. The worst part was getting the f*cking retaining clip off of the pedal end...I advise using a pair of locking needlenose pliers to wiggle it and yank it out like a stubborn tooth. The clearances under the dash are minimal, so I had to experiment a bit but that's what did it in the end.

Also got some snow tyres I had put on new rims!





They're Nokian Hakka RSi's - the Finns know how to make a good winter tyre. Unfortunately, I only have two left, though both are almost pristine; only one season on them. I don't think they make the RSi anymore, so what I'm wondering is if I can buy two more new (but slightly different) tyres to complete the set? I know our cars are finicky about having all four changed out at once but it seems like a shame to get rid of these two as they have very little wear on them. If so, does anyone have any recommendations? I'd prefer to stay with the same brand as I can get them locally, but if it works, it works.

As for the body work in the rear fender, I think that you need to replace that metal. That would be my recommendation.

Ughhh. That's what I was afraid of. Those quarter panels are welded to the frame, yes?

Thanks, guys!

[Legacy777]

All four tires need to be within 1/4" circumference of each other. If you can find two new tires that do that while the vehicle's weight is on them I suppose that'd be ok.

Yeah, those quarter panels are welced on.

[rallyak]

I've had mine quarter panels off a few times to kill the rust, I have some good (bad) pics with it all cut apart if you want to see what your up against.

[major_tom]

I've had mine quarter panels off a few times to kill the rust, I have some good (bad) pics with it all cut apart if you want to see what your up against.

That would be great! I'm sure it's going to be a pretty gnarly job, but I have a friend who welds, so hopefully putting it on won't be too difficult.

In the meantime...



Just cracked 225k, which means time for service! Fresh 10W-30 for the approaching winter, a rad flush, and some new NGKs for ignition. So fresh and so clean!

I assume you all have heard about the terrible flooding my state is experiencing recently...I volunteer for the American Red Cross, and in order to get to people in remote parts of the mountains, there's only one car for the job: mine.



Maybe Red Cross should look into a fleet? I know the Postal Service did.

[Legacy777]

I assume you all have heard about the terrible flooding my state is experiencing recently...I volunteer for the American Red Cross, and in order to get to people in remote parts of the mountains, there's only one car for the job: mine.

Nice!

[free5ty1e]

That's awesome man... they should seriously consider a fleet of 1st gen Legacies after the crisis

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 4

[jbclegacy]

Great work!
A nice reputation for the car and you to be gained. Good luck out there, looks like a lot of work to be done

[rallyak]

Heres some bad pics of my quarters.

[major_tom]

That new paint looks awesome. The rust grew a bit this winter so that's going to be a hump I'll need to cross in the next year or so.

Winter passed relatively uneventfully for the Legacy (four-wheel drifts notwithstanding), I've only had to do routine service: 2x oil and filter, new coolant, and a new air filter. I had considered a K&N panel filter, but after hearing some negative reviews of oiled filters and doing a little research, I ended up picking up one of these from Apexi for half of what the K&N cost:



Drops right in like a K&N, feels like it's built much more solidly than the no name brand the PO left in. Apparently one cleans it using only compressed air. I'll let you guys know how that goes in 15k miles. After that, I might consider a cold air style rig, though. Are any of you N/A guys using such a setup?

Also, after noticing my temp gauge reading about three quarters last night, I found the inevitable small crack in the plastic side tank. New, Koyo-branded OEM unit ordered from here, should be here in a week or so. I considered going with the Mishimoto unit, but after reading some threads on here about them bleeding out, I reconsidered. This one has plastic tanks as well, and so will inevitably suffer the same failure, but if I can get even 15 or 20k out of it, I'll be happy. It costs half of what the Mishimoto does and requires no modifications to my car - just drop it in.

Before I go, here's a shot from the mountains of Colorado. I checked out Coffee Pot Road near Glenwood Springs and found a sweet spot off the trail for a campsite! As long as the rocks on the trail stay small, the Yeti can climb them no problem!

[major_tom]

New parts! Radiator, thermostat and lower hose arrived this week, rad from Amazon and sundries from Partsgeek.



Radiator as shipped. Included were top and bottom mounts and burp plug. This Koyo-made model is a pretty close match to the Calsonic unit I removed from the car. It appears to be made from black-painted aluminum and has the AT cooler lines on the drivers side, which I am leaving plugged.



The end tanks appear to be made of either some kind of high-impact glossy plastic or the same black aluminum(!) as the rest. The finish of the radiator makes it difficult to tell.

Up onto the ramps goes the Yeti!



closer view of the bits going in, the stealthy looking rad and Gates hose and thermostat (always buy local!):



Replacing the rad was pretty easy. I drained the system, disconnected the upper and lower hoses, unplugged the leads to the engine fans, and unbolted and removed the two front supports. After that, it simply lifts out, fans and all. I found that removing two plastic access panels under the lip of the car made the job a lot easier. I don't have a photo of them, but they're the two pieces at the front corners of the car.

Once the old rad was out, I got a chance to inspect it more closely. Based on the condition of the unit, I wouldn't be surprised if it was the original!



Don't do crack! Crack is wack!



I unbolted the top mount (with the rubber supports) and fans from the old rad and swapped them to the new. Here's the new radiator with the fans cleaned up a bit and mounted, ready to drop in to the car.



Replacing the radiator in the car is the opposite of removal. Once all the parts were back in, I swapped out the thermostat before reattaching the lower hose. I took a photo of the orientation of the thermostat, as I've heard the direction it points has an impact on its function. Once the new one was bolted up and the lower hose reattached, I filled and purged the cooling system again. No leaks!!

It was late by the time I was done; I'll try and get a few shots of the installed radiator this week. I know this is probably a pretty boring read for some of you more advanced guys, but I had fun doing it. Til next service!

[Legacy777]

That is a very common failure point on these radiators. All the hot coolant exits and hits that point...making the plastic more brittle. I replaced mine due to the same crack back 2002-2003 time frame.

Regarding your thermostat; was it physically the same dimension as the one being removed? Subarus are very finicky about the thermostat. Most aftermarket thermostats don't work well.

[major_tom]

Regarding your thermostat; was it physically the same dimension as the one being removed? Subarus are very finicky about the thermostat. Most aftermarket thermostats don't work well.

Yep! Identical. Gates part no. 34012, 172° w/ seal.

My front brakes began making an awful grinding noise earlier this week, so I ordered up some EBC Green Stuff pads from Amazon. When I pulled the pads, the driver's side looked okay, but the passenger's side had one very worn pad. Here's a shot of the pad that was the source of the noise. Below it is its brother from the driver's side.



Ouch! The rotors have some marking where the metal backing of the pad clamped down, but nothing deep. I think they'll stay in until I can upgrade them. I cleaned up the clips with some brake cleaner and put everything back together. I'm pleasantly surprised that replacing the pads was so easy. One bolt!



All done! Now all I have to do is remember to be gentle for the first 3-500 miles or so to bed them in properly.

[kimokalihi]

Gentle? I go hard on mine when they're new to bed them in. Harder than I've ever had to use them before.

[major_tom]

I'm referring to EBC's page on breaking in their brakes here. I'm definitely still in the first 100 miles.

[SILINC3R]

That is weird. Never heard of doing it like that either but they design those pads so I am sure they know what they are talking about.

[major_tom]

Well, at nearly 240k, the time has finally come. After getting hot last week, I had the motor compression tested, and the results came back head gaskets. I suspect the gaskets in the car may indeed be the original ones. Not bad for longevity, these engines.

I'd rate myself a reasonably good DIY mechanic but that's a job that's a bit over my head. I also need my Soob for work (daily driven!) so downtime would be a real problem. This means I'd have a guy do it - and it would be co$$$tly. Also, even with the heads done, there's still a few other things leaky and rattly in there. My best option at this point is to swap.

I've found a low-mileage (~130k) motor at a shop in Boulder with new seals and gaskets (!!!), all wrapped up for $800. It's out of a '95 Legacy, so my question for the forum at large is will it fit? I know this motor is SOHC, but aside from that I'm not sure of the differences.

[mike-tracy]

The '95 engine will work, but you'll need to swap your intake manifold and sensors over. Also, the 95 could have either single or dual exhaust port heads. If it has single port heads, you'll need the exhaust manifold and (I believe) catalytic converter section.

[86BRATMAN]

The 95 will be dual port, 96 was when they started phasing in single port exhaust heads. The other thing to look at is if the motor is from an automatic car it will have egr, not a big problem as you can plug the hole in the head after you swap your manifold on with an m16x1.5 oil drain plug from any parts store for a couple bucks.

[mike-tracy]

I've had both type heads in 95. Hell, I've seen 2 OBD-I 95's. It was a wierd year. Are you sure there was egr in 95? . Maybe on california emissions vehicles models, because my buddy's dual port 95 4eat didn't have it. And yes, it was the verified original engine. Or maybe his was a late 95.

[major_tom]

Not sure about ports on the new motor, I'll be sure to check before I head up tomorrow. What is my current '92 motor, for reference? And will that require more work on the install end?

Also, is it normal to be this irrationally excited for a new motor? The car still pulls fairly hard up a hill with 22-year-old gaskets and bad compression...I can't wait for even a little more POWAAAR

[mike-tracy]

Your current motor is a dual port exhaust head. I like engine swaps myself, so I def get the excitement