Numbchux

3.9->4.111 change is pretty small, in all reality. an RX FT4WD D/R basically allows you to switch from 3.70 -> 4.444 on the fly, and you really only notice that in the higher gears, where it just gives you short freeway legs.

2700 lb loyale? wow, is that with a full tank, 5 passengers, and a spare engine in the back seriously though, that does sound heavy.... compared to other AWD cars though, it's pretty light. I've been driving my dad's '94 LGT for about a month.....and my god is that thing slow in comparison

13" of travel with air shocks......with subaru air shocks? per corner? 13" of travel would eat a CV axle alive! not to mention the fact that the vast majority of air shocks ever made now leak

some of you may remember MorganM here in MN. he was the owner/builder of the black '88 EA82 wagon "PoopenVagon" that I had for about 6 months. he sold it to get a sammy. his was in rough shape, so it's been slow, BUT, some engine tinkering, YJ leaf springs, and 31s: I dunno....real low range, real solid axles, open top.....and depending on the initial purchase price, pretty cheap.

could be.....I've got one apart in the basement, and 1st might be different, but it's hard to tell. I think it's just a result of wear. cause I've had some trannies that did whine a bit in first, but most of my EA82 5MTs, as long as they had good fluid, where very quite in all forward gears. and now this '94 LGT I'm driving, is louder in first and second than it is in reverse, and it's got 3 week old Scotty's Cocktail in it.

nope, using Nissan 200SX rear calipers for rear handbrake (still cable operated). I live in a very hilly city, and am a delivery driver, so I need to have a parking brake. and the stock EA82 cables won't reach the back without kinking. so I'm mounting the rear-pull handle, and drilling new holes for the legacy cables to go towards the back. custom short shifter (cut 3-4" off the stock shifter, drilled new hole for the little spring pin) and, extending the PT4WD hi/lo shift rod to work better with the FT4WD DR trans. now the hi/lo shift lever won't hit the 5MT shifter when in 4th Lo! went to menards, and bought a 1ft section of 5/8"-11 threaded rod, and 2 matching couplers. then cut the shift rod, and tapped the ends to match (took all day to find a 5/8"-11 die!), a little thread locker, paint to resist rust, and voila!

nope, 1st gear is helical. the only straight cut gear in a 5MT is reverse. and that's just to ease engagement.

as phiz said, FT4WD boxes only came with 3.7 or 3.9.only way to change that, is to change the center diff to a new-gen AWD center, and then you can use an EJ-series 4.111 or 4.444 front ring and pinion. it's no small task....that's for sure!

possible to get a different standalone that could read the CAS signal properly? I've been working with a Link LEM G3 on my buddies LGT project this summer, and it's very well setup. with separate maps for cold start, etc. it can even control A/C. might it be possible to set it up to read the EA82 CAS?

your driveability won't change until you bottom out the shocks.....and with stiffer springs you can easily run 2-3" lower than stock without risking that. in the back, you'll ride on the bump stops long before you actually bottom out the shocks. if you're going for some extreme lowering, THEN you should switch to 2WD XT struts and miata rear shocks. but these (especially the miata stuff) will require at least 3" of drop since I can't afford the AGX's this fall, I intend to try the WJM patented shock/strut fluid change. but I think it'll make quick work of the seals on my daily driven car

measure the approximate diameter of your stock fan (the blades...). go to your favorite auto parts store. they'll have a few generic thin electric radiator fans for ~$40. wire it in place of the factory electric fan so it will function just like the stock one did (thermo switch on the radiator, and override when you turn on the A/C, if applicable). with a crappy, mud-caked single row radiator in either of my lifted wagons. the stock electric fan was plenty to keep the engine cool. with a nice, 2-row radiator, and an aftermarket fan, you'll be set. AND, with the removal of the clutch fan, you'll gain a little power and mileage too.

2 things... 1. this thread is more than a year old.... 2. don't be spreading lies as fact. accord front springs in the rear of an EA82 subaru LIFT the car an inch or so. and Miata FRONT shocks are about 2" longer than stock, and rears at least as much shorter. in order to run Miata rears in an EA82, you need a much stiffer spring rate (I still bottom out mine on 400lb/in coilovers adjusted as tall as they get). and the accord/miata stuff is only applicable in the rear. for a decent setup for 4-lug, without spending too much money. KYB GR2s, and Ground Control (or similar) coilover springs for a '93-'01 impreza.

I agree 100% I've spent the last month or so doing the wiring for an '05 WRX swap into a '96 impreza LX. it's going to be a hell of a swap. BUT, because it was into another impreza, the entire dash can be swapped over. if this was not the case, this would have been 400x harder. seperating the engine control stuff from the rest of the harness would be an enormous project! because the ECU is still mounted in the same place as other OBD II cars (passenger footwell). but because of the turbo location, none of the wiring can go through the firewall right there, so it all has to meander around into the fenders and then to the engine. and the biggest problem we're encountering. the fuel pump. the WRX uses a fuel pump controller, and a number of other sensors on the fuel tank to control how much voltage the fuel pump gets. so it doesn't have to be on 100% all the time. it works in the impreza, because there are places to mount the required sensors and the WRX fuel pump, but the same is very much not true in the XT. like suberdave said. mechanically speaking, it's not that hard of a swap. but the wiring will be very complicated. once it's done, it would be an extremely sweet car. but you'd have a much easier time if you got an older JDM EJ20G. things are a bit simpler, and the power gains are comparable.

yep....and yea, the STi one is bigger, but this one was free I've never looked very close at an EA81 one, but I bet it could be done.

^yep, he's got it right on. and both of these will make cold starting difficult.

WOW. someone put alot of work into making that 2 door (unless it's fake...)

update. progress has been rather slow. since my last paycheck was almost completely soaked up by this: I love Craigslist.... BUT, with my new impact wrench, I was able to get the pinion flange off the rear diff and get the new seal in place. and today I started working on the interior stuff..... manual seatbelt conversion: and I took pics of the painted parts today. I wish I hadn't been lazy, and had taken pics while the paint was fresh.... started mounting the legacy handbrake handle: finally ordered the socket to get the rear wheel bearings apart, so I can get the sand blasting media out of there, and some fresh grease and seals.

it's getting dark, so the other pics I took didn't turn out very well. I wish I had taken pics of the process, but I wasn't really sure what was going to work, so I didn't bother. it was actually a simpler process than I expected...

yes, I ran my '85 adjustable struts on my '88 lifted wagon for about a year. worked perfectly. I wonder if the monroe replacements are adjustable

what AA lift are you running? I had the 4" high clearance, and adjusted the shock extensions up another inch, and ate through 2 rear axles in one weekend of hard wheeling.

yea, the offroad guys call them coilover shocks.....so that's what I call these. anyway, I know you can get Monroe Gas-a-just and KYB GR2s for an EA82. personally, I'd prefer the GR2s as they're a bit stiffer than stock.

my understanding is that a strut has to support the knuckle, and effect the alignment (comes from the term McPherson Strut...). just having a coil over it doesn't make it a strut. easy way to tell the difference is how many bolts mount it to the bottom.

an idea for those of you with radiator problems. there are 2 guys here in MN who are shoehorning EG33 6-cyls into imprezas. both are using the same radiator idea. use a radiator that's half as tall, and then you can stick it up in the bumper easier. it wouldn't work quite the same way with an EA-series car....but it might help: (that's not an intercooler...it's his radiator) and the other one hasn't been mounted yet, he used a ron davis custom radiator. and they messed up the first one (it looks awesome, but the put the inlet in the wrong place: "2 & 1/2 inch core, 13 by 22 with 1 and 1/2 inch tanks" now, about the ER27. keep in mind that this will be virtually the same project as an EJ22 swap, with more modification (same wiring project, won't need an adapter plate, but an EJ22 will at least fit in the engine bay), and it's still just a bigger EA82. you've still got 2 timing belts, still got a distributer, etc. and you've still got zero aftermarket/upgrade uptions. if you've got an ER27 donor car, and you have the time, patience, and skills to do this swap, I say go for it. but you sounded a little weary about wiring the EJ22 swap.....and this isn't any easier, and there isn't a writeup telling you exactly how to do it.

it is, a bit, but if you know how to read a wiring diagram, it isn't too bad. and if it looks like too much, there are a few of us who can do most of it for you.

download this, and read it 8 or 10 times.....it should answer most of your questions: http://www.d.umn.edu/~alex0219/Subaru/EA2EJ.pdf