edrach

That was an issue on our Datsun rally car with the 120amp alternator. Luckily, I had a double pulley on the crank, so the upgraded alternator was made with a double pulley to prevent problems. Size will be your biggest problem since a 200+ amp alternator with any reliability at all will be very large. Also, reconsider your needs. Just because your sound system is 2200 watts max (just under 200 amps max) doesn't mean you will always be drawing the full current out of the alternator. For peak load times, the battery is a fine back-up (upgrade the wiring) and you should be able to get away with a 120amp version which will be much more do-able. Also, don't expect much of a warranty. You're exceeding most reasonable demands and if you find someone to build you this special unit, it's not likely he'll warranty it. I didn't get one with the 120amp unit I had built for the rally car, but I knew what I needed and a 120amp unit is not so unusual and I had no trouble with it in the three years I had the rally car.

Just noticed your location. Many years ago when I lived in Wilmington, DE I had an alternator shop build me a custom 120 amp alternator for our 510 rally car (up from the stock 60 amp unit). We needed it since the rally car was pulling 80 amps with the auxillary lights we had and we were killing the battery on all night rallies. It was physically double the size of the original unit and we were able to fit it since we had removed the smog pump when the weber was installed. I wish I could remember the name of the shop; not likely to still exist since this was about 25 years ago. But your best be is to check for a local rebuilder that handles Delco and see what he suggests.

That's an unbelievable output you require. I'd be surprised if anyone made one that high. Why do you need that much current?

That should be safe. Wise to take the northern route in April. We got delayed by thunderstorms in Dallas on our way out to Bolivia. Luckily my smarter half worked a 4 hour layover into all our stops. Saved our bacon.

KYB also makes the "stock" OEM shock in may Subaru models. I have installed KYBs in the rear of my Brat and they work excellently. When I bought our '91 Legacy many years ago, the previous owner gave me all the paperwork on the maintenance he had done on it. He had installed KYB GR2 gas shocks on all four wheels at 73K miles on the car. I bought the car at 93K miles. I ran those shocks without problems until I replaced them last year at 196K miles!! The rears were pretty well shot, but the fronts still had some gas left. Needless to say, I replaced them with KYBs. I wouldn't install anything else IMHO. A high quality shock at a more than reasonable price.

Hitachi or ND disty?

Brembos!? You want them to lock up even sooner!

Trust me, I would trade the rear LSD in my rallybrat for a front LSD anytime. I think it would be killer if I could get it done without breaking the bank.

More traction in the rear tends to "push" the front end during turning. There might be more to that than my simple statement, but the effect on my Brat was significant when I installed the LSD. It required much more preparation for a turn than with the open diff. More throttle resulted in more "push" since there was more traction in the rear pushing the front end than with the open diff. I solved the issue by changing my driving technique slightly as well as adding a rear sway bar to the Brat.

I suspect the RX has a LSD. If that's so, you'll find that it promotes understeer big time. It took me three rally cross events to learn to deal with the understeer when I installed a LSD in my rally brat. On the other hand, once a wheel locks up, you're hosed no matter what.

Sorry to hear about the car. I'm glad you're okay.

Finally a search revealed the picture I was looking for. Here's the link to the thread. As others have stated, this is a common problem on all the other '80's cars that seem to have intermittant starting problems. Looking at the connector doesn't take a long time and can eliminate lots of other un-necessary work and effort. http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=2856&d=1124597297

No, that's more lights than light up when the diode trio in the alternator lets go.

Glad to hear you're back on the road. Was it the Hitachi Distributor? I'll bet you a beer it was the ignition module. Easy to replace and the odds are that any module you get at the junkyard will work. If you can't find one, let me know; I'll mail you one.

Drop the plastic kick plate off the underside of the dash on the driver's side as well as the plastic cover under the steering column. Follow the wires from the ignition switch about 6 inches to the first plastic connector; it'll be either pink or white. One of wires in the connector carries the current to the starter relay; if there is a bad connection there it can cause the clicking you hear. A bad connection gets hot and turns that portion of the connector brown or black. The fix is easy if that's the problem: replace the ignition switch harness or butt splice around the bad connection to bypass it. It'll take you 5 minutes to check the connector; if it's not discolored, your problem is elsewhere. Good luck. By the way almost all the ignition switch harnesses and connectors are the same for '80s and early '90s subys. Easy to find a good one at any junkyard; cheap too.

As to the worn front end, I'd suspect balljoints rather than bearings. Jack up the front and see where the play is; should be pretty easy to determine. I think the axles between an automatic and manual tranny are the same, but I'll leave that to others since I've never worked on an automatic; lots of manuals, but no automatics. There's a write up in the USRM which will give you some tips on axle replacement. When you say all the guage cluster lights are lit, do you mean ALL the lights from the guages as well as idiot lights? If just idiot lights, I suspect your alternator has gone belly up and should be rebuilt or replaced. Good luck and don't be afraid to ask more questions.

As to the rear shock bolts, you are wise to be concerned. The bolts go through the body entirely and the exposed portion of the bolt rusts and expands. I've found that I can loosen the bolt but as I remove it, it binds up again. Best technique is to be patient and loosen it a little at a time. Use a quality rust penetrant (Kroil is about as good as you'll get; PB blaster is not sufficient) and soak from the outside and inside for about a week. Loosen the bolt until it binds and then turn it back in about one turn. Soak it with rust penetrant again, give it some time and try it again. A torch will work, maybe, but I've never tried it. First one I did required a 4 foot pipe over the breaker bar to get enough leverage.

Give Jason (in parts) a call at 866-525-5282 (toll free). Even with $5 bucks for shipping he's less than your local $25.

Sorry, I'm late to the party. '85 wagon with likely lots of miles. Potentially your problem is the connector coming from the ignition switch. Remove the plastic under the steering column and maybe the kick plate under the dash. Take a look at the wires coming from the ignition switch (opposite from the ignition key tumbler) and follow them down about 6 inches to the first plastic connector. Plastic will be either pink or white. Examine the connector and look for a brown or black discoloration in the connector; if the plastic is not discolored, put everything back together since your problem is not here. On the other hand, if it is discolored, it's the sign of a bad electrical connection (bad connection overheats the connector and turns the plastic brown or black depending on how bad it is. Fix is easy. Find another ignition switch and harness at a junkyard. Almost all the early '80's and '90's use the same switch/harness. Replace it. If you are electrically adept splice a #12 wire around the one wire/connection that is bad. Somewhere in the USRM is a picture of a bad connector. It is a VERY common problem on the older cars. Edit: I checked the USRM and couldn't find a pic of what I was looking for. It's either lost or somewhere else. Maybe the original poster for that pic knows where it is.

That would be great news if accurate. Looks like I'll be jacking up the rear wheels on our '99 Model S!

I've had good success getting radiators from www.spaldings.com 2210 N. University Road Spokane, WA 99206 (509) 924-3300 It's a wrecking yard but they do sell new radiators. I got one for an Alpha a while back for $105 plus shipping. Since then I've bought one for my Brat and Legacy. Always fit just fine and worked great. At about a $200 saving it's worth a shot. By the way, they have a toll free number also.

Kyb's have proven to be great on my Legacy and Impreza. I can't think of a better bang for the buck.

Durania gave you the correct method of testing....doesn't matter whether it's AWD or not.

'Glad you're up and running again. I wouldn't worry about the extra pulley; you don't need it and it won't hurt anything to have it.

Here's a pic I took of the cupholder out of a '85 (or '86) ford contour. I'm planning to install it in my Brat. It retracts when not in use. If you go to my photo album section and check out the My Cup Holder album, you can see the one I have in my Brat. It works pretty well for the passenger, but is a long reach for the driver. That's why I'm adding the one from the Ford.