coxy

A couple of extra pointers when fabricating stuff like this,always try to fit any bracing gussets on anything you fabricate along the neutral axis,this means for instance on a section of tubular metal along the Centre line of the tube ,easy to work out for any metal shape if you imagine bending a piece of metal the outer part of a bend will stretch and the inner will compress but along the Centre line the length of the metal will not alter this is the place to put any gusset plates for additional strength if required. On top of this if you need to fabricate a mounting for anything always try to put it into double sheer,basically take an engine steady bar as an example with a through bolt the bolt needs to go through an upper and lower plate so it is supported on both sides rather than just one side with the steady bar sandwiched in between what this does is stops the load twisting a single mounting and eventually breaking it. This is why all the best lower control arm mountings have the lower control arm sandwiched between the sides of the cross member rather than mounted on the end of a through bolt and held on with a nut and washer,it is possible to modify the later style with an additional plate that mounts where the washer sits and is bolted on to the cross member a little further on turning a single sheer mounting into the much better double sheer style

Of all the tips you guys have posted what about the most important one with spray cans,especially in the cooler northern area's. Best tip for a good finish with any spray can paint is as well as shaking the can is to hold it in hot water for a few minutes to warm the contents,doesn't have to be too hot though just hot running water you would run for a kid's bath. When you do this it flows paint much better and is less likely to clog the nozzle and gives an really good finish with absolutely minimal orange peel.

I'll raise you the 200 gallons of gas that sucker will devour in a week. ha ha If it's a clean RX Turbo it is worth whatever you feel it's worth to you,another project car for all to get involved with,an another Subie where it belongs on the road with an appreciative owner,if the body is clean how can you go wrong,EJ conversion or WRX turbo and Intercooler only your imagination is the limit,go for it before the clown's in power ban all fun.

If the oil pan was damaged enough to partially block the pickup tube would it not Lower Oil Pressure guys.The issue here is excessively high Oil Pressure,this may be due to temperature and or oil Grades,also it may just be a stuck Oil Pressure Relief valve as we normally modify these with a stronger spring to increase Oil Pressure,therefore if for some reason it is sticking it could easily lead to higher oil pressure. For anyone thinking of increasing Oil Pressure by changing springs either replace the spring totally with a stronger one or Alternately find a smaller spring wound the opposite way that fits inside the stock spring,this may be of interest to someone running a Subie in Hotter areas. Generally I have found these EA motors seem good at about 55~60 Psi Oil pressure at 3,000 Rpm and hate it when they drop below 20 Psi at idle. The Pressure relief valve should maintain the pressure near what it does at 3,000 Rpm all the way to redline not continue to Rise with the Revs.

Having rallied for years here in australia and built different cars for others, I would stitch weld and plate the towers for what you are doing. When making a strut brace use a plate to cover the whole upper section do not just make Tag type mountings,as well I would triangulate the brace by also running from both towers bach toward the centre of the firewall not just across between the towers. Have also done similar stuff between rear towers as appropriate on some cars but with the triangulation dropping to the centre of the floor,dont forget to put reinforcing plate where you mount to the floor or firewall. Additional to this if for competition use you have the option or requirement for a Roll cage what we normally do when we fit up a multi point mounting Roll Cage is run the cage through to the towers as well if you have a cage fitted. Generally only use 2.4mm(12 gauge from memory) for plating with additional 5mm(3/16") smaller plates for cage tubing to mount to over the 2.4mm reinforcement already fitted.If possible any reinforcement plates should take the form of something that spreads the loads over both horizontal and vertical planes for optimum strength. Special stage rallying here sometimes takes the form of round Australia epic bashes,Look up the Redex Trials and an interesting Character by the name of "Gelignite Jack" we test our stuff pretty hard at times.

As I posted elsewhere Neil Hinze in New Zealand the guy who designed the Sub4 EA81 4 port heads is close to releasing a new engine based on EA82 models with A 4 valve head conversion I believe Twin Cam belt drive a major Re Engineering upgrade of the good ol EA82. It seems that talk on the Gyro forums is they are looking for a light weight engine and in this area the EJ series doesn't work that well in Gyroplanes due to the percentage of overall weight being too great. Last time I looked it up Sub4 EA81 heads with manifolds were Aus $2600.00 plus shipping so it will be interesting to see what eventuates this time,there is a possibility he may only supply a complete built engine due to the nature of Aircraft and possible Legal ramifications,Still interesting none the less as it means like the EA81 if the Homebuilt market has an interest people will still develop and market parts for our older Subie Engines. Russell's main claim to fame seems to be his reduction drives for converting Subaru's for Light aircraft use,this was how I tracked down talk about his new project the Ultimate EA82 weapon engine conversion 140hp NA as a starter

Another interesting possibility would be the Alfa Romeo 4 valve 1.7 boxer engine similar dimensions to an Ea82,but can be had with 2 dual downdraft throttle bodies.Earlier versions were 1.5 Litres with twin two barrel downdraft Webers of 36mm size,an interesting conversion possibility as well. Also just starting to make an apearance in New Zealand is a design by Neil Hinze of Sub4 EA81 4 port fame,it appears he has designed and is gearing up for a 4 valve I believe twin Cam conversion for the EA82 motors. This new variation on the EA82 is rated at 140HP normally aspirated and is for Gyroplane use I believe as Neil manufactures a reduction drive for Aircraft use with Subaru engines,seems as the benefit they are looking for is as with the EA81 is the weight savings over EJ series engines. Quite hard to find info at the moment as even the old Sub4 website can only be found in the wayback machine on the net,but interestingly Sub 4 and Neil's Gyro reduction drive business are based in the town of Hamilton a few hours drive south of Auckland in New Zealands north Island,probably not a coincidence,Kiwi's seem to make all kinds of interesting stuff at times

Please note from my previous post I have no intention of being arrogant but I see unlike some professionals my experience being of greater value to others if i pass it om,Keeping knowledge to myself i see as pointless,if by passing on knowledge I can help someone out this I see as being a worthwhile enterprise. We all bring differing experiences to a discussion and I would not dismiss anything out of hand,but If someone proposes something I know to be Dangerous or ineffective at solving a problem I will point it out to save others grief. As I pointed out I do have wide ranging experience comensurate with many years earning a living on the tools,if some of this knowledge can be of benefit to others they are most welcome to it,not all people will pass it on as some see giving away trade knowledge as a threat to their livelihood. In many cases owning a vehicle can give you an insight not even a tradesman can have on a particular model,but I have owned MY models MV models Rallied and prepared RX and WRX Legacy and Liberty amongst others in the Subaru range,and rarely for Mechanics have also done all the engine machining on a wide range of Engines as well as Fabrication of suspension chassis and Approved competition Rollcages therefore I have some worthwhile knowledge . For instance lifters are designed to operate within a certain preload range and this can be altered by Cylinder heads and valves being machined,therefore on some Engines Valve train geometry must be returned to standard with longer valve stems,shimming of valve spring seats,shiming or machining of rocker arm posts and pivots all this over and above just the basics of wear,there are many factors involved this is why I pointed out the first reply dismissing out of hand what I said was pointless and short sighted. Cheers Steve

You do not seem to realize it is air being sucked into the oil pump that makes the lifters noisy in this case it gets in via a front seal not sealing fully any more It is not the only thing that causes noisy lifters. Thirty five years as a mechanic and engine machinist does give me some insight into these things,so do not dismiss what I say out of hand. This will not be the case in all instances but my experience is it is in many cases and is a far cheaper and quicker solution to look at first. Just dismissing someones efforts to help others out of hand does not gain you any brownie points. My experience and Technical training means I will not post some of the dubious things that I have seen posted on Internet forums,That Either plain do not work or are downright dangerous. Unlike some I do not pretend to be an expert on all things but I am an expert on my profession,My last example was a Yamaha Raptor turbo 804 you will find it won "King of the Hill" amongst other classes at Glamis Imperial Dunes this January's four stroke association Quad races Look up TRE/Explosive racing results January 2009 races ,I do know how to build a sucessful engine, fastest single cylinder in the world if you doubt my expertise and over 600.00km and counting in subaru's as well as having run and prepared a number as Rally cars at up to International competition level. So I am not just some dumb 15 YO kid posting on the Net. Over 30 years preparation work with Cars Bikes and Boats at all levels of the sports,MX -Road racing-Rally-Drag-Circuit-Unlinited class Hydro's-ISDT and Speedway what expertise do you bring to the discussion.Cheers Steve

Seems everyone has issues at some time with EA82 hydrauilic Lifters. Seafoam I assume is similar to the Subaru carbon Cleaner pressure pack. The main cause of noisy lifters With EA82 engines is actually the oil becoming aerated at the oil pump,Oil full of air bubbles means noisy lifters after startup that can last for quite a few miles of driving. This happens because air gets into the pump via the front crank seal,you replace the front crank seal possibly also the front crank pulley as well to fix this problem. For those who don't wish to replace the crank pulley any good bearing supplier can order or supply what is known as a "Speedy Sleeve". A speedy sleeve is a very thin stainless steel sleeve designed to fit over the section where the seal runs on the crank pulley,over time a wear lip occurs at the contact point of the seal,in some cases a new seal can be fitted in a slightly different position to avoid this wear area. You can also increase the spring tension of the new seal to counteract wear like this as well,all springs used in seals have a join where one end is wound in a taper and screwed into the plain end to give a circular tension spring. Remove the spring from the seal looking carefully you will see where the join is holding both sides of the join twist to undo the join. You can usually cut 3mm fron the NON TAPERED end of the spring,then simply twist back together and carefully refit for a adjusted seal that makes allowance for wear on the mating surface. Yes this can be used in other areas like hub bearings as well just don't go too tight on the tension by cutting off too much and practice on an old seal first to be safe Cheers Steve

Here in Australia Rotaries have been fitted to brumby's (ie Brat to you guys) interesting conversion probably the original Subaru 4 wheel burnout machine. Biggest thing to be aware of is only 13b and later rotaries have Mazda spares backup these days for all parts so 12 a can be a problem in this area. If cheap enough any RX7 with a 13B can be OK,but they are not a bulletproof old Chevy Six reliability wise unless treated correctly.

Start with the basics always which are Spark present on both cylinders,Fuel system which will include fuel tank cap venting fuel tap which if original will have 3 positions On---Res---Pri Pri means Prime On and Res are operated by vacuum moving a diaphragm in the fuel tap which can stick especially if not used for some time,Prime however will bypass the vacuum feature of the tap and should flow fuel constantly in this setting. And last but not least compression,as some have alluded to a light grade of oil can help to free up sticky rings if these are an issue and should be tried before dismantling an engine. Compression can quite often be a cause of hard starting with bikes because the valve clearances are too tight especially on the inlet valves,whereas too tight on the exhaust valves can not only burn the valve and valve seat but affect how well the vacuum style Cv carbs work as well as affect compression,If this is a later XS500 with what is refered to as the One Piece head they are not a bad bike to have a play with only the early TX 500 and early XS models were two piece heads and leaked oil profusely. Qualified Car and Bike Mechanic and Machinist for 35 years which is why I know this model. Hope this helps you out Cheers Steve

There are always plenty of options I have seen a standard manifold cut just before the elbow into the head some square alloy plate welded on amd a pair of SU carbs fitted,problem with this is SU's are vacuum dependant and the firing order is not advantageous for steady vacuum signal. You could however use a single throttle body on each manifold stub with a custom ECU this would work OK. A megasquirt or remap an early GM ECU for which software is available on the net then all you have to do is make a water runner. Single siamesed ports are not the best but not that bad ,after all only one valve is drawing through it at a time the biggest problem is the standard manifold and to some extent the firing order. Nothing is imposible I know of a BMW four valve K100 motorcycle head adapted to an Morris Cooper 1298 engine with a belt drive to the cams. Until someone tries we will never know, the Gyro guys use Mikuni's 2 per engine so why not.

Yeah plenty of people have cut down Falcon or early Mustang tension rods to fit many things being straight and wide they fit many things,But the metal Ford use is junk compared to Japanese steel and they have been known to break when used offroad.They are probably OK for road use. Be aware when looking to make sure the threaded section is not worn out, they are easy to drill the appropriate holes for the lower control arm mainly because they are not high tensile items,you have been warned. Increasing castor will result in more camber change on lock this is what gives the improved handling,but remember compression struts need to be stronger than tension struts so they don't bend under braking force. To illustrate what I mean pull on a piece of nylon rope very strong under tension weak as piss under compression as it bends,Subaru use compression struts so I would think they use far better steel because of this than any tension strut setup you may find in a wreckers.

EA 81 alternaters are 50 amp thats what is refered to by the 50 in the label. LR means internal regulator ,LT means external regulator. You will fine they interchange with Datsun L series alternators as on 510 610 710 all zeds up to 280 and some others,all are hitachi and later ones are LR internal reg from early 80's on. Another which interchanges are the 65 amp Mazda Rotary from RX4 and most likely bigger output on later RX7 models. cheers Steve

You could try Kevin McIntyre at Kmac suspension in Sydney Australia he also exports all over the world. Having worked for him years ago I know he never throws anything out and caters for all models,he would for instance have swaybars for early 1400gsr coupes springs etc and makes urephane strut tops for almost anything. Also in Sydney Australia is Peter Jacksons "old Auto Rubber Co." who can supply most any vehicle rubber you care to name as he makes his own extrusions and dies. Both should be on the net,Kmac I believe has an American agent as I know he has made stuff for many of your more famous tuners that they rebadge and repaint from his trademark orange finish. Strut tops would probably be adjustable for camber and castor which is the best option for front or all wheel drive . With the exchange rate where it is at the moment it is advantageous for US buyers as well Regards Steve