el_freddo

Fuel cut module kicking in until you're cranking/engine is running. Short the fuel pump to make it run to ensure it's primed the fuel system good and proper. Cheers Bennie

If resealing the oil pump ensure you do the shaft seal. Also a good idea to inspect the shaft to ensure there's not a groove worn into it. A small 2-3mm spacer behind the oil pressure release spring can help with lifter tick/upping oil pressure a bit if needed. We did this to several of our EA82s with good results. On one it stopped the engine dying from a dying big end bearing for another two months. Before this mod it would knock at idle once warmed up. After the mod the knock wasn't there at warm idle - but it did eventually die which at that point was always on the cards :/ Seat: If you're not happy with it, swap it. RX turbo driver's seat gives great comfort and support (Unless the GL10 already has this seat). Cheers Bennie

G'day mate, Best thing you can do for your turbo is exactly what you've done for it. I would've mounted this behind the thermo fans so you're not adding hot air in front of the radiator. Another thing to look into for both your vehicles is a copper radiator. A good unit will cost you money but will get the job done well. I'm now running a Nissan Pulsar N13 radiator with my EJ22 in the L series (new mount holes at the bottom drilled in the rad support panel and the upper panel folded up a little to slip the radiator under). Works well but I'm still looking for a bit more cooling in the summer offroading similar to what you are. On road and around town I have no issues. Lower rad hose would be the bit to work out on the EA82 setup as it only points straight out at the engine rather than up on a 45* angle. Years ago I fitted a brumby radiator as a temp setup. It didn't fit well and wasn't a pretty install at all. Creating a larger bash plate, or air dam under the car between the rad support panel and the engine crossmember can increase the negative air pressure in the engine bay which will naturally help with pulling air through the radiator. On our last trip across the Nullarbor in the middel of summer we resorted to using a grill from a truck that we happened to find on the side of the road to create this air dam. Was awesome, but did look a little bit odd if you noticed it: ^ That was loads better than my mad max setup on the trip over... Also, what thermostat are you running? If a generic after market there's a "high flow" option. I'd recommend using this unit if not using a genuine thermostat. The MPFI shouldn't be overheating with the AC on unless there's some other issue lurking/waiting to rear its ugly head. Cheers Bennie

This bearing, is it a common issue for the Gen3 manuals as well? Cheers Bennie

How do you know that the thermostat isn't opening? As stated, the heater circuit is what's used to open the thermostat/regulate engine temp. I've had my engine block frozen, including the radiator and heater core. Long story short, even with the heater circuit frozen the engine managed its temp just fine and managed to thaw out the radiator without damaging the block. HGs held on for another 3 or 4 years after this! One way to gently test things is to go for a drive to warm the car up, then leave it idling in the driveway with the heater OFF. Monitor the temp gauge when doing this (it should take 5 - 10 mins depending on weather), Idle engine and allow it to trigger the thermo fans. IF the temp gauge climbs to 3/4 and there's no fan action you need to look into why. The fans should kick in without ANY change to the temp gauge on the dash. You need to allow time for ALL the coolant in the radiator to heat up for the thermo fans to be triggered. If the radiator is new it may give off a funky smell as it heats up, my all copper heater core did the same thing for ages. And as mentioned, there could be an oil leak that's causing the smell that seems to have raised the alarm for you. I also recommend getting a mechanical aftermarket temp gauge - and tap it into the heater hose - I believe it's the upper one that is the heater IN line. This is the one to tap into so that the use of the heater doesn't interfere with your readings. You will need to knock up a block to fit this. I used some plumbing items, threads were close and I've not had any problems with leaks for many years: Going by my mechanical temp gauge, thermo fans kick in at about 93*C, off at about 87*C, normal operating temp in cold weather is 82*C solid - it won't move! Do you know if the ECU has ever been changed in this car, or whether there's been any wiring mods for whatever reason done under the dash? Long shot here - the wire to trigger the thermo fans from the ECU may be damaged and not allowing the signal to get through. To test this wire you'll have to work out a way to test it's continuity with a multimeter. Or get an infra red temp sensor to do some quick easy testing of temps. Cheers Bennie

Hang on, so is it a WRX gearbox or the NA Impreza box? In my L series I'm running the phase two box (8 bolt) with the factory L series pull clutch setup mated to an EJ22E. I'm pretty sure I'm using a Gen1/2 clutch fork. Find out exactly what the gearbox is for the most accurate help you can possibly get from other forum members. If you don't know what a term means, please ask! There's a HUGE difference between the push and pull clutch setups! Cheers Bennie

Subaru = Lego. Pick one We have a gen3 liberty (legacy) that's running a gen2 solid flywheel with the gen3 clutch pressure plate no worries. This was done to remove the squeaky dual mass flywheel. Cheers Bennie

How did you check the head gaskets? When mine went, there was no mixing of coolant or oil in either systems. EJ HGs can weep lightly for a period of time before they let to and become an issue. I believe mine were doing this for some time before running the engine hot but not straight to the red unless I was in really slow traffic on a warming/hot day. I drove it for two days like this before the engine was stripped down. If you suspect the HGs, just do them, especially if they've not been done before Cheers Bennie

It'll swap in. Just make sure the front and rear diff ratios are matched. Also if able to reference factory workshop manual I'd be checking the speedo drive gear tooth count to ensure they match. Cheers Bennie

Is the thermostat being installed correctly? The spring section should be on the engine side of where the thermostat is mounted. You have to actually mount the thermostat upside down in its position in Subaru EJ engines Cheers Bennie

New waterpump or old pump? This information is critical to be able to help - you haven't said it specifically so we can only assume given you say about the paper gasket that comes with it. If it's te old pump I'd suggest getting a new one. Cheers Bennie

Also on the sump gasket - you'll probably find that it's actually the oil pump leaking and the oil moving over the sump gasket area of the engine at speed. A couple of spray paint cans (rattle cans over your way I believe) to do a wicked street art/street graffiti paint job Cheers Bennie

I've got a nissan pulsar N13 radiator cooling my EJ22 powered L series. You will need to roll the upper rad support panel up for the rad to fit. I drilled new mounting holes to fit with the nissan rad mounts. Rad hoses may need a solution for your application. A guy I know runs a small motorbike radiator BEHIND your passenger's side thermo fan - this rad is hooked up to the turbo coolant return line to help waste some heat from the turbo before it enters back into the engine. It seems to work well in Australian conditions and helps take some pressure off the cooling system. A good bash plate come air dam under the engine can also do wonders for airflow being drawn through the radiator Rear springs swapped with the front springs from a late 80's honda will increase ride height/firmness/load carrying ability if you need those things. Cheers Bennie

I got all my info from here. Thanks to Jeszek! The civic springs I used raised the rear by about 1.5 inches - which the weight of the rear bar, spare wheel and jerry can (both on rear bar) settled it back down to a bit higher than with the old springs. These springs gave me better load carrying capacity over the stock units by a long shot. When the original oil filled KYBs died I replaced them with aftermarket KYBs - simply for cost reasons. These units are gas filled and initially raised the rear end about an inch again. They've since settled. I'm now looking into the toyota IFS front strut assembly swap to see if this helps with extra height when loaded, even if I need to swap them on when headed out bush loaded for an offroad touring trip. My L runs a 3 inch lift except under the gearbox xmem where it's 2 inch Nicky, for the front springs you could possibly run a set of EJ front springs as these will be sprung heavier for the extra weight of the EJ vehicles. Outer coil diametre and overall height is what you'll need to investigate. I'm running some sort of L series aftermarket King Spring that I got second hand - I can't recall if they're raised or not. Cheers Bennie

Slapping tensioner's can cause the belt to jump teeth on the crank or cam wheels. Jump enough = trouble. To the OP: once you've pulled the pin on the tensioner, rotate the crank a few times, realign the crank marks and check the cam wheel marks to see if everything is within spec. Cheers Bennie

60L tank Jono. I've driven to rAdelaide from the Macedon Ranges (Hanging Rock area, as in the picnic at Hanging Rock hanging rock ), about 740 or so kms. I managed to fill my L's tank with 62 litres to the brim. Just before this the engine would surge as you gently pulled up to the lights! This was when my L ran the MPFI EA82, otherwise standard with two passengers and gear for a week's stay interstate. We then did the same on the way home including a few decent overtaking sessions along the way. So I've come to the conclusion that the owner's manual is correct with the fuel tank being 60L capacity. The L wagon also has the biggest cargo area of any Subaru to date - largest floor space and height from floor to roof. With the EJ22 conversion my tank size remained the same as did my fuel economy but power/performance was so much better. Then I lifted it, ran a rear bar with jerry can and spare tyre plus a roof rack. Now if I drive it nice fully loaded I can get 10L/100km but usually manage to pull 12L/100km. Worst was 15.8L/100km across the Nullarbor, loaded, roof rack full, headwind and travelling at 115kmph as that's where the vehicle felt happiest. I was ok paying for it at the bowser. Good trip that one too! That aside, Jono, my L can drop the needle about two mm off the bottom of the "E" mark before I'm really in dire straighs. I don't do that often as I'm not into burning out efi pumps Cheers Bennie

'88 will be a series two, at least in Oz this model was fitted to the gearbox Cheers Bennie

The honda front springs work well in the rear of the L series - especially if you're lifted and carrying some gear/have a rear bar with spare wheel arm. Rear fitted with honda front springs, no weight in the back end: All kitted out: Cheers Bennie

Some awesome info in this thread! I took interest as I've got a TD05-16G turbo to strip and rebuild on my Liberty RS project (Legacy SS). I'm only doing this as the engine had zero bearing left on no1 big end - piston was slapping the head, lots of shavings in the sump and on the pick up. My thinking is that the turbo may have some metal in the bearings so thought it best to do a replacement job and learn a thing or two as I go. Goyale, very interesting (although very frustrating) situation that seems to point at the replacement core. Glad you've finally got it sorted pending a decent run at speed/in general driving conditions. GD, thanks for your input and knowledge on turbos through your experience, really awesome and something that money cannot buy. Keep the good info flowing! Cheers Bennie

Cool rig mate! I bet it sounds awesome (and loud!) with that straight off the turbo dump pipe! To identify if it's a turbo block for that era you need to look at the block under the original alternator position and on the back of the engine where the start motor mounts to the gearbox. If there's a small cross hatched pattern in the casing in these areas it should tell you that it's a turbo block from the Legacy SS. This also means it'll be a closed deck block - so if it's been properly worked you can really push this engine and not worry about the cylinders "walking" under high boost applications. From the pics I can't see enough to be sure about the origin of the block. If it was in Oz it'd be pretty easy since our Legacy SS equivalent (Liberty RS) was a 2 litre DOHC engine with the same casting marks as described above. I'm keen to see a video of the rooster tails this thing kicks up! Cheers Bennie

Hey Shell, I can't be sure on specifics - I'm in Oz and haven't pulled one of these apart, but I'm sure there's something that's interchangable between AUD and USD markets. CNY Dave has my other suggestion - gears intalled backwards or a second mounting point for it to run in the opposite direction. Might be worth pulling it out and having a close look at it's setup to see what's up Cheers Bennie

Was the arm from the transmission fitted correctly and not upside down/180 out? Cheers Bennie

Anything that replaces the broken section of rail or spreads the load along more rail would be the best option. To me this is a relatively easy fix. I've not heard of this issue before though. Usually the mustache bar bends before the mounts for this bar start moving - sounds like there's something else at play :/ The square bar would be easiest fix I reckon, probably wouldn't look very nice but really how many people are going to see it? Cheers Bennie

One cam sprocket marking should be at 12 o'clock, the other at 6 o'clock when the flywheel is lined up on those ||| marks. I made the same mistake with my first cam timing fix in my pre-forum days :/ Cheers Bennie

Hehehe... Us Aussies typically know a drive shaft as a "half shaft", or CV shaft is another common name from the gearbox to the hub. The driveshaft mentioned above is known as a tail shaft or prop shaft, not typically as a driveshaft... Always interesting. Cheers Bennie