Fix this 1979 Subaru Leone
October 30, 2022 11:45 AM Subscribe
In the story I'm writing set in the 90s, there's a 1979 Subaru Leone. I chose this car for no reason other than that I liked the sound of it. I want to convey that the car is nearing the end of its life and that all sorts of things are gong wrong with it. The owner fixes one thing and something else needs fixing. I know very little about cars. What are the sorts of repairs an old car would have needed back then?
A 1979 Subaru Leone would've had a carburetor, and it seems like people were always tinkering with those.
posted by box at 11:58 AM on October 30, 2022
posted by box at 11:58 AM on October 30, 2022
My radiator hoses are always busting. And windshield washer fluid only comes out of one side, requiring a choreography of squirting and wiping to get the windshield even semi-clear. Agreed about rust. Not sure if there is much plastic on that car, but especially in hot sunny areas plastic cracks and breaks.
posted by snofoam at 12:32 PM on October 30, 2022
posted by snofoam at 12:32 PM on October 30, 2022
On a car that age you will find that nuts have rusted stuck onto the thread of their bolts/studs, requiring excessive force, power tools and strong invective to get them off (or break the bolt), after which you need to get a fresh bolt in. This requires you to remove part of the body work to gain sufficient access. Body work is spot-welded in place, which then requires drilling out the welds, and afterwards riveting it back. Rather un-nice parts that may need replacing are the exhaust and in particular the exhaust manifold (the part between the engine block and the start of the exhaust pipe).
Carburetor. The needle and the jet wear, causing the fuel mixture to get richer: worsening mileage and higher exhaust pollutant levels.
Coolant hoses get stiff and brittle. Fair chance that when taking them out or fitting new ones some silly part bends or breaks, necessitating more replacement (see above under 'stuck nut'). Similar for the heater and aircon hoses.
Wheel bearings running out.
Drive shaft U-joints (if it's a rear-drive car) going bad.
Brake discs and pads worn and needing replacement; stuck nuts/bolts again. Brake calipers and discs are notorious for requiring ginormous force to loosen the bolts of, even if they're not rusted in place. I've actually twisted a professional hex key trying to undo a caliper bolt.
And of course the common problem of some small but essential part dropping into an inaccessible spot, again requiring major body work disassembly or the assistance of a genetically engineered kid with excessively thin, quad-jointed arms and magnetically-tipped fingers.
posted by Stoneshop at 12:45 PM on October 30, 2022
Carburetor. The needle and the jet wear, causing the fuel mixture to get richer: worsening mileage and higher exhaust pollutant levels.
Coolant hoses get stiff and brittle. Fair chance that when taking them out or fitting new ones some silly part bends or breaks, necessitating more replacement (see above under 'stuck nut'). Similar for the heater and aircon hoses.
Wheel bearings running out.
Drive shaft U-joints (if it's a rear-drive car) going bad.
Brake discs and pads worn and needing replacement; stuck nuts/bolts again. Brake calipers and discs are notorious for requiring ginormous force to loosen the bolts of, even if they're not rusted in place. I've actually twisted a professional hex key trying to undo a caliper bolt.
And of course the common problem of some small but essential part dropping into an inaccessible spot, again requiring major body work disassembly or the assistance of a genetically engineered kid with excessively thin, quad-jointed arms and magnetically-tipped fingers.
posted by Stoneshop at 12:45 PM on October 30, 2022
I haven't owned this particular car, but as a serial Subaru owner? Head gasket
posted by Ardnamurchan at 12:58 PM on October 30, 2022 [4 favorites]
posted by Ardnamurchan at 12:58 PM on October 30, 2022 [4 favorites]
Yup, head gasket, serpentine belt, and timing belt. Also it probably eats oil and has a major internal oil leak where it still runs fine except you have to put in a quart of oil every day and it smokes a little. It's what makes a Subaru, a Subaru.
posted by blnkfrnk at 1:12 PM on October 30, 2022
posted by blnkfrnk at 1:12 PM on October 30, 2022
After the third time someone broke into it to steal the radio, you didn't bother replacing it, so it's just got a hole in the dash now.
posted by offog at 1:41 PM on October 30, 2022
posted by offog at 1:41 PM on October 30, 2022
Radiator could go bad, all the little metal fins rot and crumble and fall off when you touch the thing; it doesn’t cool well anymore and needs to be replaced.
Engine mounts get weaker and then crack, so the car always vibrates a little and sometimes vibrates a LOT.
Internal seals inside the engine rot and disappear, thus causing the car to eat oil, and you have to check / add oil every week
Some electronic connection breaks and the car thinks you are not wearing your seatbelt and it dings ALL THE TIME
Speakers rot and break, sound quality is highly variable.
Cable from hood release switch to hood stretches out, so when you pull it it doesn’t release the hood
Fabric on the ceiling falls off, when you crane your head up there to look at it you realize the foam behind it has rotted into powder and falls gently into your eyes at the tiniest touch.
Exhaust pipe is rusted, hook holding it to the car is rusted, entire thing falls off the car while you are driving, making a shocking loud clanging noise while you drive
Spring that pulls the clutch back up fails, clutch stays engaged unless you drive with the clutch pedal held up with your foot
Hole develops in brake lines, brake fluid leaves, brakes do nothing.
Car is designed such that water rolls off the trunk into the back light assembly, socket rusts out and back lights stop working. (Drill a hole in light assembly to stop this one)
Car heat stops working, passengers freeze and car overheats
Throttle gets stuck, engine idles SUPER fast for no reason, have to tap accelerator in neutral to bring it down.
… that’s all I can remember off the top of my head. I loved my old cars :(
posted by Vatnesine at 1:44 PM on October 30, 2022 [4 favorites]
Engine mounts get weaker and then crack, so the car always vibrates a little and sometimes vibrates a LOT.
Internal seals inside the engine rot and disappear, thus causing the car to eat oil, and you have to check / add oil every week
Some electronic connection breaks and the car thinks you are not wearing your seatbelt and it dings ALL THE TIME
Speakers rot and break, sound quality is highly variable.
Cable from hood release switch to hood stretches out, so when you pull it it doesn’t release the hood
Fabric on the ceiling falls off, when you crane your head up there to look at it you realize the foam behind it has rotted into powder and falls gently into your eyes at the tiniest touch.
Exhaust pipe is rusted, hook holding it to the car is rusted, entire thing falls off the car while you are driving, making a shocking loud clanging noise while you drive
Spring that pulls the clutch back up fails, clutch stays engaged unless you drive with the clutch pedal held up with your foot
Hole develops in brake lines, brake fluid leaves, brakes do nothing.
Car is designed such that water rolls off the trunk into the back light assembly, socket rusts out and back lights stop working. (Drill a hole in light assembly to stop this one)
Car heat stops working, passengers freeze and car overheats
Throttle gets stuck, engine idles SUPER fast for no reason, have to tap accelerator in neutral to bring it down.
… that’s all I can remember off the top of my head. I loved my old cars :(
posted by Vatnesine at 1:44 PM on October 30, 2022 [4 favorites]
Interior: a door panel may have come loose at a corner, AC busted or only works feebly, glove box door won't close, upholstery of driver's seat worn through or torn in places. The sound system is a hole in the dash where the radio used to be.
posted by Rash at 1:47 PM on October 30, 2022
posted by Rash at 1:47 PM on October 30, 2022
When buying 15-20 year old cars in the 90s universally they needed tires (lucky to get half the life of a modern tire and needed puncture repairs more often), battery, exhaust (muffler places were common before emission laws defacto required the change to stainless systems), and windshields (rock chips).
You'd be changing assorted light bulbs on the regular.
On the Leone specifically there were numerous checks that were supposed to be done on every fill up or 1000 kms. Sparkplugs had to be changed annually. Wheel bearings repacked every 24k kms. Valve lash adjusted on ohv engines biannually. Timing adjusted biannually usually when doing plugs. Points, condensor, and cap would probably get changed every couple years.
Rear brakes were drum and would need adjustment. If it had an automatic choke you'd have to mess with it annually at least. Drive belts were v style and would need replacement every few years though at least the Leone had an electric cooling fan. The manual has instructions for adjusting mechanical voltage regulators but I don't know if the Leone had them specifically or just diode style.
Fuses could blow or the main fusible link could burn out.
It was prudent to check oil level every day and tire pressure every fill up.
Old subarus were terrible for rusting. This included radiators which would corrode and leak.
It wasn't uncommon in that era to spend at least a couple hours a month fixing something or doing preventative maintenance on a 70s car.
posted by Mitheral at 1:54 PM on October 30, 2022
You'd be changing assorted light bulbs on the regular.
On the Leone specifically there were numerous checks that were supposed to be done on every fill up or 1000 kms. Sparkplugs had to be changed annually. Wheel bearings repacked every 24k kms. Valve lash adjusted on ohv engines biannually. Timing adjusted biannually usually when doing plugs. Points, condensor, and cap would probably get changed every couple years.
Rear brakes were drum and would need adjustment. If it had an automatic choke you'd have to mess with it annually at least. Drive belts were v style and would need replacement every few years though at least the Leone had an electric cooling fan. The manual has instructions for adjusting mechanical voltage regulators but I don't know if the Leone had them specifically or just diode style.
Fuses could blow or the main fusible link could burn out.
It was prudent to check oil level every day and tire pressure every fill up.
Old subarus were terrible for rusting. This included radiators which would corrode and leak.
It wasn't uncommon in that era to spend at least a couple hours a month fixing something or doing preventative maintenance on a 70s car.
posted by Mitheral at 1:54 PM on October 30, 2022
Examples: Bad wheel bearings begin by a humming sound, then progress to full nails on chalkboard. Bad carbs begin by engine missing a bit, then progress to galloping in stop n go motion. Engine leaks oil from crankcase and finally runs out completely causing engine to seize in full skidding stop.
posted by artdrectr at 2:35 PM on October 30, 2022
posted by artdrectr at 2:35 PM on October 30, 2022
The battery will stop charging properly so that you need a jump start to get going on cold mornings.
posted by Lanark at 3:09 PM on October 30, 2022
posted by Lanark at 3:09 PM on October 30, 2022
That era of Subaru engines have a decent reputation for reliability - it looks like a rats nest but it's easy to work on. It's a flat four so it doesn't make heaps of power, and it's tied to an all wheel drive system so it's slowwww. They sucked going uphill. But it was notable for bringing all wheel drive systems to the masses.
It was available as a station wagon with a manual, making it a legitimacy cool car in the 90's in my circle. It's boxy look remained in style through the first part of the 80's, and some folks (cough) remain fans of their general look. This was in the mountains, and Subarus were pretty popular all over the rockies. A 79 would have been sold in 80, so in the early 90's it would have only been an average aged ride - not even exceptionally old. But a decade of no maintenance would be catastrophic, and so your average mechanical issues are certainly a possibility.
It was primarily a front wheel drive, and you could switch to 4 wheel drive with hi/lo to engage the 4 wheel drive. Just like a truck. But with a button. Fancy! Fragile! That stuff would fail and you would just have just low gear, which is super super slow. like 15 Mph. Or end up with just a front wheel drive as the whole system failed. But with terrible gas milage, and the threat that the rear dif could get totally cooked or some other total catastrophe. Like total lockup or disassembly. People would intentionally disconnect the 4 wheel drive system.
Ride height was also adjustable, and that would fail over time and you then you could hit the bump stops - the physical limit of the suspension system. I ridden in other old cars where that sort of system had failed and the effect is that small bumps were fine and then a bigger bomb when just hammer the car - you would bounce up and hit the ceiling. With a very horrible noise. Glass could break, stuff could shake off.
The bumper system was a total horror show - they would leak into back of the vehicle, and get your stuff wet. It was just a bodge that stuck the anchors points well into the car and took up lots space - so the floor wasn't even flat to put your stuff. Just the worst.
In my experience they did not suffer from electrical issues, and the carbs were Japanese and generally worked well. The slow death of transmission failure would lead to repairs that simply weren't worth the vehicle. Overheating was another failure mode, and every small overheating would further destroy the engine seals, or it's fluids. Eventually a major oil leak, which could lead to total engine failure. Or a fire. I have actually put out a small engine fire, replaced the distributer cap and some spark plug lines and was back on the road with a car that smelled like melted plastic.
I still have a fire extinguisher in my car.
posted by zenon at 3:36 PM on October 30, 2022
It was available as a station wagon with a manual, making it a legitimacy cool car in the 90's in my circle. It's boxy look remained in style through the first part of the 80's, and some folks (cough) remain fans of their general look. This was in the mountains, and Subarus were pretty popular all over the rockies. A 79 would have been sold in 80, so in the early 90's it would have only been an average aged ride - not even exceptionally old. But a decade of no maintenance would be catastrophic, and so your average mechanical issues are certainly a possibility.
It was primarily a front wheel drive, and you could switch to 4 wheel drive with hi/lo to engage the 4 wheel drive. Just like a truck. But with a button. Fancy! Fragile! That stuff would fail and you would just have just low gear, which is super super slow. like 15 Mph. Or end up with just a front wheel drive as the whole system failed. But with terrible gas milage, and the threat that the rear dif could get totally cooked or some other total catastrophe. Like total lockup or disassembly. People would intentionally disconnect the 4 wheel drive system.
Ride height was also adjustable, and that would fail over time and you then you could hit the bump stops - the physical limit of the suspension system. I ridden in other old cars where that sort of system had failed and the effect is that small bumps were fine and then a bigger bomb when just hammer the car - you would bounce up and hit the ceiling. With a very horrible noise. Glass could break, stuff could shake off.
The bumper system was a total horror show - they would leak into back of the vehicle, and get your stuff wet. It was just a bodge that stuck the anchors points well into the car and took up lots space - so the floor wasn't even flat to put your stuff. Just the worst.
In my experience they did not suffer from electrical issues, and the carbs were Japanese and generally worked well. The slow death of transmission failure would lead to repairs that simply weren't worth the vehicle. Overheating was another failure mode, and every small overheating would further destroy the engine seals, or it's fluids. Eventually a major oil leak, which could lead to total engine failure. Or a fire. I have actually put out a small engine fire, replaced the distributer cap and some spark plug lines and was back on the road with a car that smelled like melted plastic.
I still have a fire extinguisher in my car.
posted by zenon at 3:36 PM on October 30, 2022
FYI, I'm not sure where the story you're writing is set or if this matters to you, but the car known in Japan as the "Leone" was not sold under that name in many other countries (including the USA) it was sold as a "Subaru DL" "GL" etc. For some reason they thought we couldn't handle that name. Nthing the propensity of '70s Subarus to rust. The owner could be repeatedly patching holes with Bondo body filler.
Looking up thread, cars of that era generally did not have serpentine belts (which didn't become common until the 80s) they had V-belts.
posted by Larry David Syndrome at 4:09 PM on October 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
Looking up thread, cars of that era generally did not have serpentine belts (which didn't become common until the 80s) they had V-belts.
posted by Larry David Syndrome at 4:09 PM on October 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
I had a car from this era, but not a Subaru. In addition to the carbeurator, did this car have power brakes or steering? Because that's also a thing that you had to maintain back then. Lo, if your car stalled your steering and brakes went to shit.
posted by fiercekitten at 5:18 PM on October 30, 2022
posted by fiercekitten at 5:18 PM on October 30, 2022
Timing belt. I had one fail in a Mercury Zephyr about then. Disables the car immediately, but not as expensive to fix as you might fear.
posted by SemiSalt at 5:26 AM on October 31, 2022
posted by SemiSalt at 5:26 AM on October 31, 2022
Head gaskets. Exhaust leaks. CV joints & front axles. Wiring harness and general electrical gremlins. Clutch and throttle cables break. Dim headlight because the reflector bowls get burned up from the wrong lamps being installed because the correct ones are impossible to source. Weird mid-year random spec changes affecting parts interchangeability that make finding the correct parts difficult. When ordering parts, not only does one have to provide the year, model and engine size, but also the production date of the car.
posted by bz at 2:18 PM on October 31, 2022
posted by bz at 2:18 PM on October 31, 2022
This thread is closed to new comments.
It might billow steam from the exhaust b/c the head gasket needs to be replaced.
In 1979, on a Subaru, rust. It could have major body rust, including holes in the floor.
posted by theora55 at 11:51 AM on October 30, 2022