Idasho

Gave the little Subaru another thorough engine check-up today. Glad I did... First got the motor up to temp, them pulled the plugs for inspection and compression check. Plugs all looked great, a hair on the lean side. Compression on all 4 is much closer to 150psi now. All within 2-3PSI of each other. Tightened a few heater hose clamps, weeping a bit... I then did a lean-best weber tune on the carb. First time since swapping the carb from the old motor to this one. this cleaned up a slight off throttle hesitation and flat spot between primary and secondary carb chambers. Should help squeeze a few more MPGs as well. Though Im RIGHT on the edge of needing a larger idle jet. Then I pulled the distributor cap to check rotor and cap.... and found the distributor advance mechanism not only VERY loose, but jammed in full advance This dizzy is a napa reman, with less than 2k miles on it Rotor and cap were fine. So I dropped a good used one in, retimed, and tossed everything back together. Much improved.

Well, I think I found the problem. With this motor still being very new, I have been giving it a check-up every few hundred miles. I did just that today. I found a bad dizzy advance. Luckily I have a couple of good used dizzys on the shelf. But this one (napa reman) has less than 2000 miles on it. And it WILL be going back Ad far as I can tell, the dizzy was jammed fully advanced. I thought it felt funny recently. I had some strange off throttle and steady throttle surging. I attributed it to the Weber needing a tweak. here is what I found: Since dropping in a good dizzy and retiming it, highest oil temps I can get the gauge to read is 240

No, you should put the same size tires on ALL 4 corners.

I know the temps are not anything to worry about as far as max oil temps go, but Im curious as to what other EA81s are seeing. This is the first time Ive had an oil temp guage on one. And if the temps do not stabilize more as the motor breaks in and clearances loosen up, I think I will opt to go for a remote filter along with a t-stat controlled cooler.

SuperBrat hooked me up with some front mud flaps!! So I tossed them on this evening...

Speaking of trying to keep the crap off the car.... SuperBrat came through and found me a set of front mud flaps!! So I tossed them on. next spring they will be removed and restored, along with the rear flaps. The text paint needs touched up. but they look great! Dont mind the nasty road grime... and I just realized that I never posted a finished pic of the rear deflector... here it is.... just painted for now. Im sure once it starts flaking Ill rip it off and have it powdercoated. But I can already tell it is doing its job. The rear window stays much cleaner.

Stuff they use here is magnesium chloride, slightly better. But still bad. And it is used sparingly. Normally just on the major passes.

I like 'em too Got her cleaned up this weekend, only to get things dirty again.... Winter is awesome here in north Idaho, but gets cars all nasty. Luckily the worst we get on the roads is de-icer. Normally just gravel, but never salt

What kind of temps are you guys seeing? My high compression EA81 mated to a 5-speed D/R is still in its break-in stages, but Im slightly concerned about oil temps at higher RPMS. I currently have about 1500 miles on this new motor. Here is a run-down to cover the bases... Zero mile rebuild all new bearings all new seals heads decked .0015 fresh valve job + new valve stem seals new ea82 pistons New ea82 rings new oil pump new water pump new distributor new rotor/wires/plugs new radiator all new coolant hoses new OEM t-stat running WITHOUT EGR Weber carb (okay tune, havnt touched it since swapping from old motor) Currently running 10degrees advanced Currently the motor is running fantastic, and coolant temps are always in the green. What I am concerned about is the oil temps. During the early stages of break-in I was seeing some high oil temps, which is expected with a new motor. Around town the oil temps would creep up to 200 or so and stay there. On the highway with sustained runs at 3000rpm the temps creep up to 250 or so and stay. Regardless of up/downhill. 3k RPM with the 5-speed puts me between 60 and 65mph with stock tires. But If I push it past that 3k rpm, like dropping into 4th gear and reving to 3800rpm the oil temps immediately start creeping to the red zone. Ive seen as high as 280 so far. The same happens on sustained high rpm drives on the flats. Just yesterday we drove back from Pasco, running 70mph on freeway and the same happened. I had to back it off to 65 to get the temps back in the green. It is running good though, we averaged 28MPG on the 300+ mile trip. Not bad for a lifted rig with a roof rack I think. I know that a new motor will always run the oil a bit hot, as clearances are much tighter. But this has me concerned. Oil pressure is always good. Even when the oil temps get that hot on the highway Im still seeing 50PSI, and always at least 15PSI/1000rpm throughout the rev range. Currently running a 10w40 dino oil. Once broken in completely it will be changed to a 10w30 synthetic. Long post, thanks for all who read, and any insight is very appreciated

The sun actually came out, so I blasted all the nasty winter crust off the subaru and cleaned her up... Then we left for the tri-cities, and got her all dirty again

depends on what cruise setup you have too. There are a couple different types.

I sure would.

Thanks dude BTW, we FINALLY got some snow last night!! We are taking the Subaru up to the local mtns for some a snow-shoe hike. Pictures to follow

Just an update... A bit more than 200 miles on it since the change to synthetic, and I can honestly say that is made a HUGE instant improvement. In town MPG is up by more than 2mpg. And you can feel the car roll easier out of the garage in the morning. With the dino oil, as I backed out of the garage into the street in the morning, I barely had to use the brakes to stop the roll, before shifting into 1st to drive off. Now it feels like it is free-wheeling with no resistance, I really have to use the brakes to stop the roll before driving off. 2nd gear shift when cold issue is 90% gone. I think the remaining issue may just be a syncro issue, or possibly linkage. Shifting fantastic though.

#1 is reverse light #2 should be neutral safety switch #3 is 4wd light #4 should be low range

#1 is reverse light #2 should be neutral safety switch #3 is 4wd light #4 should be low range

dealer only? Have you been able to find a new one?

stick your noggin under the dash by the pedals. Its there. The valve allows the coolant to bypass the heater core.

its a valve dude. I dont think it is available anymore. What is wrong with yours? Most of the time they just get gummed up, or the mechanism from the temp control knob gets broken.

Thats the stuff I got, the Valvoline Ah hell, this trans is getting synthetic

Well crap... maybe Ill return the synthetic. Still havnt dumped it in. Stuff isnt cheap! Thanks

Currently the thing shifts great when warm. Its the first 10 minutes in sub-freezing temps thats tough.

1k miles on it now. Pulled it in this evening for a compression check. I was hoping to swap over to synthetic, but it isnt quite ready yet. 140PSI on all 4 cylinders. Rings still have some work to do to seat all the way. Running great though Last tank I averaged 23MPG. Not bad for a motor still trying to break in. Left front e-brake cable is a bit sticky too.... The trans is getting an oil change too. Picked up 4 jugs of fully synthetic for it. Should help the cold shifting a bit.

CVT also tries to keep the engine at peak torque at all times. No lugging, no over-reving. More efficient that way.

No, they dont. A stock tire is about 24" tall. That gives it a circumference of 6.28 feet. There are 5280 feet in a mile. 5280/6.28 = 840.76 revolutions per mile. Driving 1 mile per minute (60 miles per hr) the tires are doing just that. 840 RPM Take that 840RPM and you can figure out how fast you actually need to travel to spin the tires to 1000rpm. 840/60 = 14 1000/14 = MPH to reach 1k wheel RPM. Your answer is 71.42mph No way in hell you are doing that in 1st or 2nd gear. Possibly 3rd. Still, 1000 is a FAR cry from 9800