el_freddo

I’m sure there were different shaft thicknesses but for what reason I don’t know - probably 2wd vs PT4wd, with the 4wd one being thicker I reckon. Aftermarket axles can do what they want with these items, so it can be hit and miss, not to mention inaccuracies in parts catalogues from time to time. Cheers Bennie

I have zero experience with the Vortex body and interior bits. I can’t even tell you if the shift linkages are the same! Best of luck doing a swap. I doubt anyone with an impreza knows what they’re looking at unless they’re a real fanatic! Many EJ subaru fans don’t know about the L series let alone the Vortex/XT4/XT6 variants! Cheers Bennie

Thanks @Numbchux - I was meant to mention the 25 diff spline stub axles but forgot! If you have a PT box, forget doing a ratio change, very difficult to pull off and I’m yet to hear of anyone that’s done it yet. A 4.44:1 diff in the PT box would be awesome, more so if a matching 5th ratio can be added in for good revs at cruising speed. Cheers Bennie

I’m guessing this wasn’t a common conversion. Parts will be hard to find these days in terms of the pedal box if it differs to the L series. Everything else under the floor pan is L series based. Cheers Bennie

I’ve done it in a complete bitza box! I used an OBX helical diff - and found out after installing it that some bloke does a kit to build it up to be better than it is when it comes from the factory. The cheap build apparently has washers of different thicknesses and springs that don’t have the same rates or something. Mine worked well in the AWD box I put it in. To clear the low range gears you’ll need to chamfer the bolt heads on the diff. They’re Allen key heads so should be able to do it and retain enough meat to use the Allen key if ever needed to remove the bolts. Here’s a pic of box one time I had it open after it’s initial build. The phase 1 EJ cases (“4 bolt” bell housing mount) are the same internally as the EA82 cases for the two front units that you split. The rear housing needs to match whatever internals you’re using, and the front cases need to match in terms of single range/dual range internals. Can’t use dual range cases with single range internals and vice versa. EG: L series PT4wd dual range 5spd will work incased in a set of phase 1 EJ casings - must be a dual range case set though. Then the rest of the L series gear bolts on the back end. Up front it’ll bolt to an EJ and use all EJ factory flywheel, clutch pressure plate and disc Phase 2 gearboxes (“eight bolt” bell housing mounts) are only good for building AWD boxes from. Cheers Bennie

Ah yeah, Roger that! I was a bit miffed that you wouldn’t know about the CEL in the OBDII! It all makes sense now! Continue! Cheers Bennie

Every EFI system has a CEL. And OBDII can still have codes read through the CEL. I do this on my sister’s Gen3 Liberty/Legacy all the time, works a treat if you don’t have a scanner. Cheers Bennie

Dead trans right there! Cheers Bennie

Why not disconnect the battery and go again?? Cheers Bennie

If you keep the airbags and computer, write the VIN on the back of them for future reference. The question about the whole steering column with the airbag - totally doable. Just let the bag sit without power for at least 30mins. Could be a myth but I’d rather play it safe with airbags! Cheers Bennie

If it’ll be a dummy scoop make a plate under the scoop (painted up side black) that diverts water off to one side or the other. Job done. Cheers Bennie

Schmick mate!! Look after it! Cheers Bennie

Don’t adjust your idle screw! You’ll need to adjust your TPS to be back in spec - you’ll need a manual to tell you these details as it’s been ages since I adjusted one myself. Glad to hear it was the CTS, the over heat event could kill an old one easily I reckon. Cheers Bennie

I’m a bit late to the party but I was going to chip in that I use a motorcycle jack to raise and lower the gearbox out. It’s a bit fiddly as you have to remove the jack to get the gearbox out from under the vehicle. Then do the reverse when putting it in... And I’ve perfected the art of pulling the box out and reinstalling without needing to pull the ball joints out to swing the hubs out for the drive shaft removal from the box. Works a treat. Cheers Bennie

Also if the timing was adjusted it may have thrown things out of whack - there’s a set of plugs under the dashboard, above the driver’s feet that need to be connected when timing the dizzy. This stops the ECU from advancing the timing as you set it. And from what I know of the EA82 EFI systems it needs to be 20*btdc. Given that you overheated the EA82 it could have popped the HGs, or they were already on their way out. What compression do you have on each cylinder? Cheers Bennie

@Ionstorm66 - never seen that other than in the very base model EA81 units. Never seen that setup in the sedan or wagon L’s - they’ve always got a centre console! Cheers Bennie

I’ve seen several European LHD motor homes in Bendigo in the last few years. Very odd to see on our roads! But cool being able to cruise different countries in your own vehicle (this is a generally odd concept on Oz since we’re surrounded by water). Cheers Bennie

We do have LHD imports that are typically special interest vehicle. You certainly don’t see LHD vehicles over here often! And your driver is on the wrong side of the vehicle. Cheers Bennie

G’day Erik, Please excuse GD’s shortness, his time is money as he runs a Subaru specialist shop and has many years of experience around many different Subaru models. He speaks the truth as brutal as it can be to hear it. I was in the process of writing out a reply earlier today but got distracted by something more important, my reply was along similar lines as GD’s but mainly - WHY all the clear pipe work? It’s not a science experiment and to me it makes your engine bay look cheap. As for the air oil separator, yeah gimmicky blah blah; that said I have a small one on my brumby - just a cheap oil catch can from eBay plumbed in before the PCV valve. I’ve shoved some steel wool in the catch can and the crap it collects is insane. I must say my engine isn’t the healthiest and I regularly do short trips to and from work - hence why it fills so quickly. I neglected to check it after about six weeks and it was amazing to see how milky water this thing collected. What you’re doing isn’t my thing. Just ensure your hoses are all compatible with the fluids they carry, otherwise you could end up with a fiery mess. Cheers Bennie

Here’s a few threads for you to read @SiriusBlack. I haven’t read all of them as I posted as many are a decade or more in age! You’ll see the efforts ppl put into the EA82t and the frustrations at the end of it all. Here’s Discopotato who put in LOADS of time and effort into his build: ECU talk: https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=15414 Header discussion/mods: https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=15213 Tech edge wideband: https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=15122 Larger high impedance injectors: https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=14732 Newly built EA82t with general list of mods in beginning of thread: https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=14544 WRX exhaust modified to RX L series: https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=12590 Retro fitting TD04 or TF035 to EA82t: https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=9891 Spider manifold stuff: https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=9257 https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=6273 That should just about do it. There’s more from Discopotato and you might even find stuff of his on here too. He went right into full suspension mods to have the best handling RX possible. Of course by today’s standard it would’ve still been woeful at best. What was the demise of his build? A can of UEC was used and it seemed to have a gummy valve after that and never ran the same. He parted it out. I’m not dissing Discopotato, what he did was to stick within our vehicle modification rules to avoid the need for an engineer, he definitely pushed the EA82t to the limits of a build but he also spent loads of time and money in the process. Here’s some other reading from other forum members, Blackmale’s opening to the under bonnet temps thread says it all: Manifold stuff: https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=13110 Under bonnet temp reduction trials: https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=13017 Intercoolers: https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=12980 Custom downpipe: https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=12145 EA82t performance questions: https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=9385 Cheers Bennie

Pull the hub off and see if the axle needs to be swapped out. I reckon you’ll find the axle is ok to reuse and the hub is toast. Cheers Bennie

When in 2wd mode, in gear, clutch out, engine tuning - does the speedo register anything or just stay on zero? This will give you a clue as to what to look at. If there’s no speed indicated it’ll be the 2wd selector not engaging properly, if it’s showing something on the speedo it’ll be a hub or driveshaft issue. Cheers Bennie

I agree with silerhelm and DaveT. Shot hub spline, shot CV joint or not properly engaged in 2wd mode. All are easy to investigate and relatively cheap to fix too, unless your 2wd setting within the gearbox is shot, but you’d have metal chunks in the gearbox oil if this were the case - and it would be the last thing I’d check if you don’t find any other issues that resolve the problem. Cheers Bennie

Yeah mate that sucks. At least you got a ride before the lockdown. Looks like regional Vic is staring down the barrel of an impending lockdown. Shepparton went from one case this morning to 17 by this evening! Definite grounds for lockdown! Great to see your L getting out though. Hopefully the rain stays away so I can work on mine (outside ). Cheers Bennie

Suspension is where the best bang for buck will be in mods for your Impreza. A tune might tidy up the power delivery a tiny bit to your driving style. There should be small changes that could be made in the tune that’ll change the feel of the drive. Cheers Bennie