14 October 1998

TECH TIPS

Tech Tip winners

are selected

monthly by

the editors

of Import

Service and

the

NAPA Echlin

technical

staff.

Tech Tip winners

are selected

monthly by

the editors

of Import

Service and

the

NAPA Echlin

technical

staff.

Winning Tech Tip entrants will receive $100 from NAPA Echlin, except

for those Tech Tips appearing in the March Tech Tips Special. The

authors of Tech Tips appearing in the Tech Tips Special will receive a 12-

function collapsible pocket tool from NAPA Echlin. A cash prize of $2500

will be awarded to the entrant submitting the best 1998 Tech Tip. You

may also submit Tech Tips online at <http://www.gemini-comm.com>.

If you have ever replaced a clutch master cylinder on a late modelHonda Accord or Acura Legend, you will probably agree that the mostdifficult part of the job is removing the cotter pin from the pushrodassembly. To make the job of removing the pushrod much easier, trythe procedure listed below:

• Remove the fluid from the reservoir, then remove the steel brake line.• Next, loosen the pushrod lock nut from inside the vehicle.• Remove the nuts that hold the slave cylinder to the firewall, thenspin the pushrod all the way out until it is no longer attached to theclutch pedal.

Note: You may need to move the slave cylinder out slightly to gain enoughclearance to spin the pushrod out. Cover the pressure hole of the mastercylinder with a shop rag to prevent fluid from leaking.

Robert A. MacElderryKirkwood Auto CenterWilmington, Delaware

Pressurizing the inside of a vehicle is an excellent way to locate hard tofind wind noises. To hunt for noises:• Close the windows and doors, then set the blower motor to HIGH. • The air ventilation must be set to pull fresh air from outside the vehicle. • With all doors and windows closed, soak the exterior of the vehiclearound the door channels, window gasket area, sunroof and trunk usingsoap and water. • The pressure increase inside the vehicle will normally make the air leakobvious by creating bubbles in the soapy water.

Paul IsanskiSport ToyotaDevon, Pennsylvania

Easy Now!

Pressurized

15October 1998

To save lots of time when removing the axles froma Subaru Legacy:• Remove both ball joint nuts.• Attach a come-along to the lower control arm.• Remove the axle nuts and separate the struts fromthe spindle.• Anchor the come-along and use it to pull the lowercontrol arm down enough to clear the spindle.• Remove the axle spring lock pins, then remove theaxle from the transmission.

Thomas “TC” CrossTom’s Auto CenterKittredge, Colorado

1990 and later Volkswagen Cabriolets seem tohave more than their fair share of driver’s side powerwindow problems. Volkswagen uses a heavy gaugewire between the body and the door for the powerwindow circuit that has very little flexibility. Thepoor wire flexibility causes connection problems atboth the power window switch and the windowmotor, especially inside the driver’s door.

Allen Konen, Jr.Foreign Car ServiceMount Holly, New Jersey

Head lamp problems such as inoperative head-lamps and blown headlamp fuse might be the resultof wire damage behind the retractable headlamps on1986 to 1989 Honda Accords. It is common for theinsulation on the wires to separate approximately 8

to 10 inches behind the headlamp connector. Theexposed power wires to the headlamp will eventual-ly short to ground, blowing the fuse. The exposedwires occasionally corrode and break as well.

James HardawayHardaway AutomotiveJeffersonville, Indiana

Installing axle roll pins on the right side of aSubaru Loyale can be difficult due to the location ofthe catalytic converter. To make the job much easier,use a piece of electrical tape to tape the roll pin tothe end of an extra long 7/32” punch. Now the rollpin can be easily aligned and tapped into place.

Brody FullerOlston’s Import RepairLincoln, Nebraska

If you experience an intermittent A/C failure, loss ofradio memory or a shift interlock failure on a 1990-94Subaru Legacy, the problem may be caused by a poorconnection at the white or gray five pin connector(Connector F41) that’s plugged in below the fuse boxat the driver’s kickpanel. The female terminals insidethe connector may spread, causing the poor connec-tion, which results in a voltage drop. Using a smallpick to slightly tighten the female terminals inside theconnector normally fixes the problem.

Kevin CrossHawes Chrysler-SubaruGainesville, Florida

We couldn’t scare up a 1990-94 Legacy to illustrate thistip. However, this 1995 Legacy uses the same connectorand connector location (arrow), but slightly different wiresare routed through it.

Using a come-along to lower the control arm and hold it inposition saves up to 45 minutes when removing andreplacing both front axles on Subaru Legacy models.

Come Along Please

Losing It

Lights Out

Volkswagen Windows

Tape Roll