airweld

Thanks 987687 for your assessment of the damage. I think you are right on the money... a boatload of time and money to restore it to it's former glory. I wish I had a Vanagon with a bad engine. Always wanted do do a swap on one of those. Lots of parts and online resources as well. If I can get my boy behind it, we'll probably stuff it into the brat when we get time and everything lined out to do it, so we tie up the shop for a minimum amount of time. I need my shop to make my living.

Hi Shawn, I have to agree ... ! Almost doubling the hp in the Brat would be sweet. I am still trying to figure out what all can be transplanted, like power steering and AC? Also could the AWD be locked to full time 4WD when needed? I thought it was a fair price given the condition and mileage of the car, plus the fact that here in Fairbanks, you don't have too many to choose from. It's a father/son project so there's the educational value as well. For both of us! With all the expertise I've seen on this board, I'm sure we'll figure it out. Thanks for the comments. Scott Pictures of the Brat: http://s1121.photobucket.com/albums/l516/airweld/Brat/

I am considering a 95 ej22 swap into an 85 Brat also, so please document as much as you can. We will all appreciate it very much!

Grossgary wrote: "I'd try to repair it personally. A car like that would give you many, many years of cheap, reliable service." I hate to part out a rig like this, one with so much potential, ...however, it would sure make the Brat a new machine. I don't know at this point what it would take to restore it . Will look into it more. I appreciate your opinion, whichever way it ends up. Thanks. P.S. Paid $1500.

I got what I think was a great deal (let me know what you guys think) on a T-boned 1995 legacy with 61K driven since new by a little old lady. Always garaged, autostart, two sets of good tires, one studded, regular dealer maintenance, no damage at all, till the big one (see pics). As far as I can tell the strut is the only thing that's bent which is causing the alignment issue. So should I rip the rear door out and fill in the hole with a used door, plywood or whatever, see if I can get the front door working and have a nice TrashWagon,...OR take the EJ22 and 4EAT and transplant to my 1985 Brat that drives but has 125K, uses oil and is getting harder to get into reverse?? The Brat has nice body and interior, no rust, and I'm looking for a cruiser more than a wheeler. Especially if I can lock the AWD to full time 4WD. I see that I can't upload pictures (in the posting rules). So I'll tell what I paid for the Legacy if I can upload pics. How do I get that changed? Edit: Try this: http://s1121.photobucket.com/albums/l516/airweld/Legacy/

Well, we put it all back together without re-ring or hone, as we are in need of the vehicle and it will prove the point if it still uses oil. And if necessary we will rip it apart later when we have more time. No leaks and runs great so far. So, while the engine was out we replaced the front axle due to a torn boot, and the "new" axle is making racket right from the git-go. So much for quality rebuilt axles from O'Reilly's. Lifetime guarantee!

Good question Turbone, How would I be able to tell by looking at the cylinder walls if the rings were not properly broken in (without splitting case)? I would think that after 12k the rings would be sticking and scoring the cylinders, or showing low compression?? It was driven hard initially to assure the rings seated, but hey, how can you be sure? Anybody tried the Bon Ami trick to break in cylinders? Thanks Naru for your insight, I am assuming the heads are good as they were rebuilt by a machine shop. And is there any chance of determining ring and cylinder condition without splitting case? The engine didn't use oil before the rebuild and the pistons were cleaned, inspected, and new rings installed in honed cylinders.

My son and I rebuilt this motor 12k miles ago with all new bearings, seals, rings, heads rebuilt by local shop, cylinders honed, and new oil pump. EA-81 solids, non-turbo in 84 gl wagon. Started using oil after a few thousand miles, so we found #3 cyl. had an oily plug but the compression tested same as other cylinders. Put in next hotter plug and eventually when the plug fouled, we would replace it with a clean one, and now at 12k, the valve has a big notch burned into it. The valve stem seals of all four exhaust valves were shot with the small springs laying in bottom of pan. I assumed that the oil was getting thru the guides and eventually caused the burned valve. Now I am not so sure. The shop that rebuilt the heads has no clue why the valve seals failed, and I have learned that the exhaust valves did not have stem seals originally. The shop did not know this and put them on because they came in the Felpro kit. They rebuilt the heads again and put the same seals on again. I am wondering now if the bad seals may not have been the cause of the oil in cylinders, because it was up to a quart in 200 miles or worse at the end. I can't see that much oil getting by the guides? There was no indication of cylinder wear when we did the overhaul, so I assumed that a ring and hone job would be fine. The cylinders all look great now, no scratches or anything. Still see hone marks. I really don't want to split the case so can anyone give me any advice on valve guide seals, burned valves, and what to look for? The machine shop says the valve burned due to coolant in the cylinder, but there was no coolant in oil, or vice versa, no coolant smell in exhaust (no white smoke either). The valve had clearance to the rocker arm (did not hold the valve open). The front crank seal was leaking some and we put a speedy sleeve on the pulley and new seal, but still I don't think that accounts for all the oil used. Well if anyone can help, we would like to assemble this engine, but want to be sure we haven't overlooked something. PS. I am an aircraft mechanic, however this is my first suby overhaul. Thanks.