L1's Garage

Alright all you Subaru fanatics.

A buddy of mine has a N/A 07 Impreza Sport auto that’s idling at around 100 - 200 RPMs. Any ideas off the top of your guyses heads?

wtf… How on earth is a gas engine managing that?

Only thing I can imagine is if the ECU has somehow decided to try running it that low. I can set target idle speed on mine, but you shouldn’t be able to do that without an access port, so I don’t see that being the cause.

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Idle control valve, crank/cam sensor, ignition coils, fuel injectors/fuel filter.

There’s a lot that can be going wrong, but I’d really start with the idle control valve. They can get gummed up, and it can cause idle problems.

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So, my E39 535i (Manual 3.5 V8 - one of only 2 manuals of this model in Australia) M-sport is gone (after purchasing it in 2010).

It was a beautiful car, that was sadly neglected in recent years by myself due to being the wrong car for my needs at this time (I need something that can carry motorcycles and stuff, hence my ute posted earlier).

It will, i am sure at some point, be missed.

:beer:

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When switching to WD40 on my chain on the CBR1000RR, i noticed an improvement in fuel economy (maybe only 5-10%, but it was noticeable).

On a bicycle that will likely mean less effort pedalling :smiley:

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This isn’t subaru specific, but i’d be looking for either

  • a sensor failure (MAF/MAP/Temp sensor)
  • a vacuum leak

MAF/MAP test is easy. unplug it and see if anything changes. If nothing changes, the sensor is probably not working and the engine is in limp mode.

Vaccum leak may be harder to diagnose.

In addition to what @SgtAwesomesauce said…

All piston engines need fuel/air/spark. Air needs to be measured properly (hence - check the sensors). Fuel needs to be delivered properly (hence check pressure/injectors/etc.). Spark needs to be strong enough (check coils/plugs, crank angle sensor, etc.).

It’s simply a case of ruling all the things out one by one, start with the most common things to fail on that model :slight_smile:

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As a note. WD40 is not great for your chain at all and is not a lube if you are talking seriously here. Proper chain lubes only run 5$ anyways, they are cheaper in most cases. Better then nothing I suppose. ¯_(ツ)_/¯

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Buying pads and rotors off of ebay, yes or no?

Ehh, depends on the situation. I’m a bit skeptical of ebay.

We talking new parts, or salvage replacements? For new, I’d side with @SgtAwesomesauce

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Well, I figure you wouldn’t buy salvage rotors (or pads) for a car, period.

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LOL I hadnt considered these were wear items.

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They’re super cheap so I’m pretty skeptical about the quality, thought I’d ask before ordering. Only reason I was shopping on ebay was because I was going to replace a couple of fluid caps and I saw them while searching.

WTB salvage petrol.

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Buying used engine oil

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Hmm, if you’re skeptical, you’re going to be disappointed in them.

Especially at that price. That’s what I pay for front rotors for the miata.

Well they’re marked 50% off so that makes sense, but with the pads included even the full price seems too good.

That is what I would pay for pads alone for my bike. And I only have three calipers, that are a fraction of the size. lolol
Maybe closer to 110-120

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Yeah, I’m gonna go ahead and recommend against these.

Solenoid - Relay same thing? Go.

Srsly, though, I am trying to find the fuel pump relay to my bike. Mine is going bad, and starting to give me some trouble. I cant find this part anywhere. OEM sites dont have it in the diagrams anywhere. Seeing the blinkers are all “relays” like I would expect, and the starter relay is always referred to as a “solenoid relay”. I thought they were all a sort of solenoid.