el_freddo

I'd go with an intercooler, a water to air unit is subtle and doesn't require a hole in the bonnet for air to pass through the intercooler. With such a rare Subaru, I wouldn't be pushing that engine too hard for performance. We didn't get any turbo MY's over here so you're pretty lucky! Look after it, keep it running sweet as I believe it'll only appreciate if kept in the right condition Most of all, enjoy a very unique subaru! Cheers Bennie

I was going to do the same but using a set of VL commo electric mirrors as they were square and slim - and back then readily available in the parts yards. But I never got around to this, it was the last mod to do on Sunnie the Brumby in the comfort department for my mother inlaw - but she's pretty happy with the way it is. We've now upgraded the factory seats to Honda Integra DA9 units. They fit really well, look good and "hug" you when you sit in them Glad to hear you've got the 6 gauge and intermittent wipers. These two things are what I need to do with my brumby, but finding a good dashboard to house the 6 gauge in is proving difficult on a small budget... Best of luck with the mirrors, I reckon it'd be a sweet little addition to the brumby modernisation project! My other issue is also where to put the switches for the electric mirrors as the Auto up/down window switch takes up one prime location just near the ignition barrel and on the other side of the column has the driving light's switch. I'm also gearing up for the 5 speed conversion on Sunnie the Brumby, I think I've got everything I need except for time :/ Cheers Bennie

Have a read of this build, post 16 would be the one to read about how they did the WRX front end in the brat. A guy over here did a full conversion like this to the GLF hardtop (coupe). He grafted in the whole WRX firewall to make a lot of things easier and to run the WRX climate control gear in the cab with the matching dashboard. Turned out really neat (and is up for sale again) but unfortunately all his pics of his build are lost on the interwebs Cheers Bennie

What's the go with the area between the valves on the top combustion chamber in the second pic? That doesn't look right to me... Any cylinders drop a pile of coolant when you removed the head? Cheers Bennie

What a dilemma... Glad it's not me (sorry). I'm one of those lucky ones, while she might not pitch in to work on them she's happy for me to go yarding etc to keep our small fleet going (or parts gathering for projects). Of the two I'd go with whichever vehicle you enjoy looking at the most or that you like to work on the best. I've got my fleet but it's missing an RXII coupe - that never landed on our shores ;( Cheers Bennie

All coolant hoses, including those little painful ones around the intake manifold. If the sump gasket looks like it's leaking resealable the oil pump - and remove the crank pulley to do this! Don't be lazy as it'll cost you an oil pump Cheers Bennie

I did it years ago as a temp rad... its a different height to the L series, got close to the EA82 and in general was not a very nice looking setup... N13 or N14 (can't remember now) pulsar rad on the other hand, nice fit once moved over to clear the EJ22 cam cover. Got a dual core unit and it handles temps very well even with my crappy bash plate that does nothing to help create negative pressure in the engine bay to help draw air through the radiator... we drove across the Nullarbor in 43 degree heat with AC cranked and the car fully loaded without any issues Cheers Bennie

To increase brightness with the factory lights on my brumby I've installed a new wiring system that improves the amount of voltage/current at the lights. It uses a set of relays that reference the original system to reduce the path the power has to take and do this with newer wiring. The results are chalk and cheese in comparison. Well worth the $20 from China even though I had to swap some wires around so that all my high beam lights came on when they should (quad lights) rather than having the high beam only lights come on with the low beam at the switch. It was heaps cheaper than me buying all the parts and doing it myself. I haven't tried LED headlights even though they're available as an aftermarket item. And I wouldn't touch HIDs with a 90 foot barge pole. Such a spoob light source that everybody raves about :/ Cheers Bennie

Inner CV spline count on box is different - 25 spline and larger diameter. Gearbox mounts or matching member mods required, longer tail shaft or L series two piece unit fits with a mount made for the centre bearing and gear selector linkages may need mods to fit. Flywheel needs attention to mate L series clutch pressure plate. Basically search info for L series 5spd conversion as that's basically what you're about to do Cheers Bennie

Dirty... love it The issue is either module or coil. I don't think you should have a resistor in the system since it's got a module. Someone correct me if I'm wrong! Cheers Bennie

The way I'm about to do this is use the L series gear selector and weld up the 4wd lever to keep the Brumby's factory 4wd lever. Now wishing I got a factory 5 speed gear knob - I didn't think about that all those years ago when glf5 coupes were in the parts yards... We've got the same list of mods in one of our Brumbys, the second one is the up and coming, basically headed in the same direction Some things you're "missing" on your list are intermittent wipers and the 6 gauge cluster/long dash and aftermarket additions of cruise control (best mod ever if you drive a lot!) and (on day to be remote) central locking Cheers Bennie

I just remember it this way: square plug = better than round plug Cheers Bennie

Don't get me started on the "added safety" technology that actually reduces the drivers need to know how to actually monitor what's going on around them as they "drive"... Then there's the canbus system where one thing in the car goes a bit funny in operation and the whole car has a hissy fit. HGs will be a thing of the past - because cars will be disposed of before they can blow a head gasket :/ Cheers Bennie

What ever the machinist takes off the top they need to do the same on the plate surface. If off-roading it's not good to lighten the flywheel. If performance go for it Cheers Bennie

Good used one fixed the issue because I replaced the coil with a new stupidcheap one. The unknown module was then fitted and everything worked. Theory is the dead coil killed the new module. Not a dead new module. But I'll be talking with my parts guy to see what can be done - worth a try and I've been buying from these guys since I was 15! Should've asked for stocks in the store back then Cheers Bennie

The voltage comes from the wire from the igntion barrel when in the start position only. The solenoid does not give voltage. You need to test the wire from the ignition. But if you've already got it cranking this test is redundant. You now need to look at spark - coil, dizzy module if it's got one (being an '85 it won't have the optical gear in it). Check the coil and replace if needed before going and replacing the module Cheers Bennie

Ok new information from my end. Last week my brumby stopped dead in its tracks. Turned out the module in the dizzy died - because the coil let go. So I killed a good module in the process of working out that the coil was bad. I also ran a jumper wire in the plug for the rev sensor unit that triggers the fuel pump. I guessed which wires ran the pump, for mine it was the two thickest wires, both black wires, one with a white trace. This made my fuel pump run whenever ignition was on. Before I got my brumby running again I reversed this mod as it confirmed that the fuel pump was good. New coil then new module (2nd hand one now that I killed the new one ), fired up first kick and hasn't looked back Cheers Bennie

Awesome work mate. Hats off to your thorough and patient approach, I think it's all paying off for you and the BRAT. Keep up the good work and I look forward to seeing the finished product Cheers Bennie

On the horn relay: Cheers Bennie

That's a good explanation of how this eventuates - so it's not really the design of the EJ25D as such - just how they were miss diagnosed time and time again really. Still, I haven't heard the same over here on such a frequent number of vehicles but that could be the difference in the markets and how Subaru America and Subaru Australia dealt with the issue. If you're really worried about temps and potential HG issues, jump on fleabay and look up engine watch dog - these use metal temps rather than coolant that once lost, won't give you an accurate temp reading. You can also set an alarm for a particular temp setting above what is normal to alert you to something abnormal going on. I'm yet to put one on my cars but it's on the to do list of 2018! There are other, cheaper versions of this around too. Cheers Bennie

You're talking about different systems in an "all in one" way: EA81/EA82 dual range 4wd: Dual range between engine and gearbox, not at the back of the gearbox like a "traditional"4wd. Permanent front wheel drive with the rear wheels engaged via a mechanical lock. Front and rear axles locked together when in 4wd. EA82 single range "push button" 4wd: Same setup as the dual range 4wd minus the dual range part. Locking device is basically the same but the operation is different. Locking operation is done via a vacuum diaphragm that pulls/pushes on the lever to lock/unlock the rear end. EA82t AWD dual and single range: Uses an open centre diff for AWD onroad. Push a button/flick a switch and the same vacuum diaphragm as the push button 4wd actuates a dog clutch on the centre diff to lock it. This locks the front and rear axles together like the above two boxes. EJ AWD (dual and single range - we got dual range!): centre diff with a ~5kg rated LSD built into it. This LSD limits the front or rear axle spinning independently of the other. Some later models got the DCCD setup which is controlled by a module for best traction possible in a variety of situations, it can be manually over ridden too. This device is being used by many over here for offroading to effectively lock the front and rear axles together as required when offroading. We're yet to see when/if the coil in the DCCD burns out. EA/EJ auto AWD/4wd. Effectively the same gearbox setup. Permanent 2wd to the front with engagement of the rear through a set of electronically controlled clutch packs. EA's had a switch to lock in "4wd" where as the EJ's had "AWD" via the TCU monitoring wheel spin/need for power to the rear axle. This is where the switch mod that's been discussed can come in handy for those that offroad or are in very slippery conditions such as your snow driving. The clutch packs can wear out over time too which is another issue with this setup. idosubaru's explanation of the 4wd systems and their "drive wheels" is also a good way to explain it. Differential setup is very important in slippery conditions and each driver might use something different according to their driving style. My EJ22'd L series runs a modified EA82t AWD box with 4.11 ratio diffs. I have a front LSD and an open diff in the rear. I'm waiting for a locker if it ever eventuates but I've also found that in 99% of my offroading I don't need the rear end locked as when climbing all the weight is on the rear end providing the best traction - until I lift a wheel. So I drive trying to keep my rear end on the ground when offroading. The Front LSD has been an awesome addition over an open diff but not as good as a manual locker would be! Cheers Bennie PS: my snow tyres are now about 7 years old and don't see snow work any more. They've hardened up well and aren't melting in the summer heat like my first set did back in the day. They're wearing pretty quickly now compared to a regular road tyre, but I'm not fussed about this as I won't be in the snow over here like I was for two years. They were on an L series in the snow, now they're on my brumby. They're Toyo Winter iPike's IIRC and to me were a good tyre in the snow

As for your spark. Replace the coil. And the dizzy module. Last night my brumby stopped dead in it's tracks and wouldn't start up again. Though it was the module so replaced that with a new one. Still no spark. Did some testing and the coil had very weak spark if lucky to get one. Replace coil with a new one. Still no go. Finally it had to be the module, swapped it out for one I remember I had on another engine. Fired up first go and did a 120km trip loaded without a single miss or stumble. Try the coil first then the module. It seems like the failing/weak coil took out the dizzy's module with it - twice for me :/ Cheers Bennie

Hmmm... That list of issues suck and must be a US market issue. In Oz I know head gaskets and rings/pistons were changed under warranty but have not heard of them throwing rods through blocks over here. Odd. Jeryst, do some searching on the forum. As previously mentioned there are many people/members that have effectively worked with/around the issue. Look after your vehicle, get to know it well and watch out for the signs of an issue or anything abnormal. Cheers Bennie

Incorrect. That would be the EA82, period! Many ways to look after or deal with this potential problem - one could be insuring you're not doing repeated small runs where the engine doesn't spend a lot of time at operating temp. Not flogging the engine could be another way to reduce the occurrence of a dud hg. There are many and also different options for repair or replacement... Cheers Bennie

Agreed. Poor wheel alignment will also do it, or a heavy foot and someone with no idea of how to control a 4wd slid/power slide... Cheers Bennie