Old Subaru GL Coupe AWD...

[Hachiroku $B%O%A%m%/(B]

This is the vehicle that started the long-winded Fram filter discussion.

I have since changed to a Wix, and the oil pressure is up very slightly on
the gauge. But that's not what I came here to talk about today. I came to
talk about the draft.

Ooops...wrong song...

At any rate, it was running so well I decided to take it on a 70 mile
round trip up into Vermont. I was running a little behind for an
appointment, so I took the highway. Well, Saturday morning on a ski
weekend, if you dont' MOVE IT the weekend skiiers from NY and CT will run
you right off the road. So, I kept the speed to 60-62 MPH all the way up.

Thing ran GREAT until I went to get off the exit. When I took my foot off
the throttle and let it idle down going down the ramp, that HORRIBLE
clacking noise started again! It clacked and clattered all the rest of
the way (about 5 miles) and ALL the way home on the 'old' road, and then
for the next two weeks.

Last week it actually got up to 45 degrees, and I took it out for a spin,
and the clacking STOPPED. It does this...once it starts clacking, until
the temp gets above ~ 35 degrees or more it will keep clacking...

It finally stopped the day after Christmas and hasn't done it since. It's
running quite well.

Well, I usually keep the tanks in my cars full, or damn close to it, but
this time I let it run way, way down...it took 14 gallons to fill it. When
I ran the numbers I came up with 35.45 MPG!!!!

I have noticed this before...it usually gets about 27-30 MPG (overall)
until the clacking starts, then the economy goes UP!

Why?

 

[Hachiroku $B%O%A%m%/(B]

Beats me. Maybe Alice knows.

I'll go ask her tomorrow (my band plays "White Rabbit"...)

 

[johninky]

Beats me. Maybe Alice knows.

 

[1 Lucky Texan]

This is the vehicle that started the long-winded Fram filter discussion.

I have since changed to a Wix, and the oil pressure is up very slightly on
the gauge. But that's not what I came here to talk about today. I came to
talk about the draft.

Ooops...wrong song...

At any rate, it was running so well I decided to take it on a 70 mile
round trip up into Vermont. I was running a little behind for an
appointment, so I took the highway. Well, Saturday morning on a ski
weekend, if you dont' MOVE IT the weekend skiiers from NY and CT will run
you right off the road. So, I kept the speed to 60-62 MPH all the way up.

Thing ran GREAT until I went to get off the exit. When I took my foot off
the throttle and let it idle down going down the ramp, that HORRIBLE
clacking noise started again! It clacked and clattered all the rest of
the way (about 5 miles) and ALL the way home on the 'old' road, and then
for the next two weeks.

Last week it actually got up to 45 degrees, and I took it out for a spin,
and the clacking STOPPED. It does this...once it starts clacking, until
the temp gets above ~ 35 degrees or more it will keep clacking...

It finally stopped the day after Christmas and hasn't done it since. It's
running quite well.

Well, I usually keep the tanks in my cars full, or damn close to it, but
this time I let it run way, way down...it took 14 gallons to fill it. When
I ran the numbers I came up with 35.45 MPG!!!!

I have noticed this before...it usually gets about 27-30 MPG (overall)
until the clacking starts, then the economy goes UP!

Why?

Could this be 'knocking' going on? maybe the timing is off or ???

 

[AB]

Running lean and 'pinging' ??

 

[Hachiroku $B%O%A%m%/(B]

Find out where the noise is coming from. My guess is that it's the
catalytic converter.

Oh, no. This is deep in the bowels of the engine. A few here and at home,
locally have suggested it has something to do with hydraulic lash
adjusters.

I wish it were the cat. That's EASY!

 

[Hachiroku $B%O%A%m%/(B]

It is quite astounding how quickly the "HORRIBLE clacking noise" in your
engine
turned from a bad thing to a good thing by simply changing the brand of
filter.

-jim

Gonna start that again?

BTW, oil pressure is a little higher than it was.

 

[Hachiroku $B%O%A%m%/(B]

Running lean and 'pinging' ??

No, it does that as well.

This has something to do with the valvetrain...

 

[jim]

This is the vehicle that started the long-winded Fram filter discussion.

I have since changed to a Wix, ......

When I took my foot off
the throttle and let it idle down going down the ramp, that HORRIBLE
clacking noise started again! It clacked and clattered all the rest of
the way.......


I have noticed this before...it usually gets about 27-30 MPG (overall)
until the clacking starts, then the economy goes UP!

It is quite astounding how quickly the "HORRIBLE clacking noise" in your engine
turned from a bad thing to a good thing by simply changing the brand of filter.

-jim

 

[dsi1]

This is the vehicle that started the long-winded Fram filter discussion.

I have since changed to a Wix, and the oil pressure is up very slightly on
the gauge. But that's not what I came here to talk about today. I came to
talk about the draft.

Ooops...wrong song...

At any rate, it was running so well I decided to take it on a 70 mile
round trip up into Vermont. I was running a little behind for an
appointment, so I took the highway. Well, Saturday morning on a ski
weekend, if you dont' MOVE IT the weekend skiiers from NY and CT will run
you right off the road. So, I kept the speed to 60-62 MPH all the way up.

Thing ran GREAT until I went to get off the exit. When I took my foot off
the throttle and let it idle down going down the ramp, that HORRIBLE
clacking noise started again! It clacked and clattered all the rest of
the way (about 5 miles) and ALL the way home on the 'old' road, and then
for the next two weeks.

Last week it actually got up to 45 degrees, and I took it out for a spin,
and the clacking STOPPED. It does this...once it starts clacking, until
the temp gets above ~ 35 degrees or more it will keep clacking...

It finally stopped the day after Christmas and hasn't done it since. It's
running quite well.

Find out where the noise is coming from. My guess is that it's the
catalytic converter. Check for an external component that my be loose on
the engine. I once had a Dodge Colt that had a disturbing rapping noise
that turned out to be from the oil filler cap losing it's gasket. If you
have the clacking noise without any loss in performance, my guess is
that your MPG calculations are probably mistaken.

 

[Hachiroku $B%O%A%m%/(B]

To those who have never heard of it and thought I was being a smartarse.

Not at all. It's a 'mechanic's stethoscope' and they actually make a piece
called that...

http://ukiahcommunityblog.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/get-smart.jpg


ooops....wrong pic!

http://ed-thelen.org/1401Project/CT-1403Stethoscope-01-.jpg

that's a little better...

The real deal isn't much more...

http://toolmonger.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/AutomotiveStethoscope-450.jpg

But, you don't need a stethoscope to hear this noise! I have a simialr
problem with a Mazda 626 I have, where the hydraulic lash adjusters
collapse after sitting a while and make a similar noise. I bought 4 HLA's
and was not looking forward to doing this job, when I changed the oil
using QS Hi-mileage oil with Slick 50...and it STOPPED.

That didn't work on the Subaru. Once it starts, the temp has to get above
35 degrees...

 

[Hachiroku $B%O%A%m%/(B]

Sounds like you already know what the problem is. My guess is that you
don't want to spend the money to fix it. I wouldn't. I disliked the Subaru
wagon I used to have. That engine on that one was a dog. Every time I
would turn on the weak AC, the engine felt like it was losing half it's
power. Come to think of it, it probably was. Fortunately the AC system
went south soon after bringing an end to that little problem. My gas
mileage was something like 21 MPG tops. That sucks!

It broke one of the timing belts at 61K miles which was quite a remarkable
feat of engineering considering that they recommend that the belts be
changed at 60K. BTW, if your engine makes a funny scrapping noise, my bet
is that it's a frayed timing belt giving you some warning. The later
models probably have chains. Good idea.

I was in a 'rush' to put it on the road November 31 last year (er, 2008
that is...). Everything that went wrong, could. The insurance co sent the
wrong form, so naturally RMV would't accept it. A phone call to the ins co
got the right form, with the wrong town. It was a PDF, and a biotch to
edit. When I finally got the editing done, the printer kept jamming the
paper. After about 1.5 hours editing and printing, I went back to the RMV
and got the reg transferred. Something told me not to drive the car, but
what the hell?!?!

I went down to pick up the parts for the day's jobs (I'm a field tech for
Dell), and 2 blocks from the place the car coasts to a stop. I call the
DHL office to find out...NONE of my parts came in. I sat for 45 minutes
waiting in 38 degree cloudy weather for AAA to tow the thing. Luckily the
next three days were above 50 degrees and sunny, so I did my first timing
belt change. And marked the mileage so I know 50,000 miles later (if the
car LASTS that long) to change them BEFORE getting stuck!

And I know just the niose you're talking about!

I like the car. I wish it had the 4 speed AT, because on the highway...UGH!
But the tranny is the BEST thing in the car! The engine's good when it's
not clacking, but the body is going pretty quickly. I'm debating whether
to fix it or just let it go in the spring...when my Supra goes back on the
road...

 

[Hachiroku $B%O%A%m%/(B]

Might be time to try some "snake oil" and see if it's gunk in the lifters.
Marvel Mystery Oil, ATF, or maybe try Auto-RX. The guys on BITOG seem to
think the latter is one of the few snake oil type products that is
actually worthwhile.

nate

Done all that... MMO was the first thing, ATF next, and then something
like Oilzum or something was the last resort. Then I flushed all that crap
out and just put oil in...and the clacking went away for a while...

The only snake oil that worked on this car was the "head gasket in the
bottle" stuff. One gasket was leaking, and it sealed it up! I was amazed...

DIDN'T work on my 97 2.2 Legacy, though...

 

[Hachiroku $B%O%A%m%/(B]

What, Rislone is no longer on the menu?!

THAT'S what I used!

 

[bugalugs]

Find out where the noise is coming from. My guess is that it's the
catalytic converter. Check for an external component that my be loose on
the engine. I once had a Dodge Colt that had a disturbing rapping noise
that turned out to be from the oil filler cap losing it's gasket. If you
have the clacking noise without any loss in performance, my guess is
that your MPG calculations are probably mistaken.

This noise, is it there at idle ? If so do the old screwdriver (or piece
of wood) in the ear trick to identify exactly where it is coming from.

 

[dsi1]

Oh, no. This is deep in the bowels of the engine. A few here and at home,
locally have suggested it has something to do with hydraulic lash
adjusters.

Sounds like you already know what the problem is. My guess is that you
don't want to spend the money to fix it. I wouldn't. I disliked the
Subaru wagon I used to have. That engine on that one was a dog. Every
time I would turn on the weak AC, the engine felt like it was losing
half it's power. Come to think of it, it probably was. Fortunately the
AC system went south soon after bringing an end to that little problem.
My gas mileage was something like 21 MPG tops. That sucks!

It broke one of the timing belts at 61K miles which was quite a
remarkable feat of engineering considering that they recommend that the
belts be changed at 60K. BTW, if your engine makes a funny scrapping
noise, my bet is that it's a frayed timing belt giving you some warning.
The later models probably have chains. Good idea.

 

[bugalugs]

This noise, is it there at idle ? If so do the old screwdriver (or piece
of wood) in the ear trick to identify exactly where it is coming from.

To those who have never heard of it and thought I was being a smartarse.

Take one large screwdriver. (preferably wooden handled) Place the handle
end 'against' your ear. Place the blade end against the engine block
where you 'think' the problem is. Move the blade to other places on the
engine to check you've isolated the right faulty component.

Take the usual precautions...hair and fanbelts don't mix.



(works effectively in other areas. Used it to fine tune the Ajax valve
on the hot water system)

 

[jim]

Gonna start that again?

BTW, oil pressure is a little higher than it was.

Try another dose of Slick 50 it should take care of that.

 

[Nate Nagel]

No, it does that as well.

This has something to do with the valvetrain...

Might be time to try some "snake oil" and see if it's gunk in the
lifters. Marvel Mystery Oil, ATF, or maybe try Auto-RX. The guys on
BITOG seem to think the latter is one of the few snake oil type products
that is actually worthwhile.

nate

 

[Hachiroku $B%O%A%m%/(B]

Which engine is it - and what year?

'89 1.8...um, EA82?