el_freddo

For weight distribution you’re almost better off putting a quality fuel cell behind the front seats in the foot wells. Im loving the bracing work. My L series could do with this! Although if I tightened up the rear end like this the rest of the body would probably take up more of the body flex and create other issues… Cheers Bennie

Correct, they can be pulled apart and cleaned. I had one cleaned up by a mate and it worked well. I wasn’t there to see the process, I believe it wasn’t that difficult. Cheers Bennie

Bob you’re probably right about that timing of the battery dance. I guess someone was playing it safe to ensure codes are cleared. 30 mins is a good time to boil a kettle and have a cuppa tea & a bikky No worries on that part number. From what I can see it’s not just the 1993 model that uses it. I should find a VIN for a Gen2 and compare, I bet it’s the same though! Cheers Bennie

Bin the 4spd and drop an EA82 five speed in. Been done many times! Bin the EA82 engine if it comes with the gearbox… or use it as a boat anchor! The EA81 4 spd is a pain in the butt to tear down and rebuilt. A specialist tool is required to remove the nut on the back of the pinion shaft that isn’t easily accessible. Fun fun. It can be done as others did it previously, just not easy. The 5spd conversion is easier in my book. Cheers Bennie

Love the three door coupe!! We didn’t get them in Oz. Special import only and they weren’t known or weren’t popular. I’d have one! I’ve done this dash removal several times. Not too bad once you know what you’re doing. Best of luck sourcing a new heater core, mind you, your unit looks like it’s an all copper unit without the plastic end tanks that can let go in a big way! You could have this checked over by a radiator specialist to get the ok. Regards Bennie

Awesome time, money and effort you’re putting into this wagon! I’m hoping to one day do something similar with my Brumby and L series! (And the RS wagon, Leone wagon…) Looking forward to progress pics! Cheers Bennie

^ this. Easiest way to ensure the check engine (CEL) light is working. And yes, those black plugs are the two you connect to read the codes. Such an awesome way to read codes for the DIYer! I found part number 22633AA060 for the TPS. It’s listed as “Sensor Assembly - Throttle”. This part is from a 1992 AUDM VIN search. This is also the same part for a 1992 USDM SS Legacy turbo (2.2L) and the 1993 AUDM RS turbo (2L). So I’d safely say that this TPS is used across the board on the Gen1s. I haven’t looked into the Gen2 Liberty/Legacy. Cheers Bennie

Pls delete

Time to get an aftermarket temp gauge that actually give a number reading for the engine temp. These gauges that point into a no man’s land tell us nothing useful. The gauge won’t move but I bet anything the engine temp is constantly fluctuating depending on the situation - and sometimes this will go much higher than you think before that needle moves north! Even better is to get an engine watch dog - you can set alarms and there’s a model that comes with two sensors, many options here - coolant (first one and quite obvious), second one could be engine oil temp/gearbox oil temp/hub temp on one corner/fuel temp etc. pick one and go from there. Cheers Bennie

The MAF is required to run the engine. The “MAP” sensor as you call it is the ignitor, also needed to run the engine. The sensor in the throttle body is the TPS. They can get dirty contacts. It’s worth opening them up and cleaning the tracks that the fingers follow. Once replacing it make sure you’re following the procedure to have it properly installed. The MAF could need cleaning (VERY carefully!) or replacing. Also look at the knock sensor, back of engine near the bell housing on the LHS, got a 10mm bolt head holding it in place. It’s black and probably cracked by now. This won’t usually throw a code if it’s got an issue until it’s really proper dead. If you’ve pulled plugs off items when the engine is running you’ll have to reset the ECU if you want to accurately read codes. The 30min “battery dance” will clear the ECU memory of new and old codes. Start the engine again and let it idle up to temp. The idle speed will fluctuate - this is the ECU setting the idle etc. DO NOT touch the throttle once the engine is started until it’s up to temp. Drive it like you stole it and see if the issue persists. The issue will return, then check codes and start with the sensor the codes point to. I hope this helps. EFI systems are nothing to be scared of if you’re coming from the dark ages of carbs and dizzys. They will generally give you a starting point with a code or two Cheers Bennie

To fix that block, have that cylinder sleeved then bored to match the other bores. Best way to do it would be to sleeve all bores and have each cylinder bored out to match the piston being fitted into that bore. But $$$$ needed as it’s a full bottom end rebuild going this way. Have you tried cleaning up the bore when the piston is back down the cylinder? You might be surprised as to how it comes up and could possibly save you the hassle of a rebuild. The EJ22 must be hard to come by over there. They’re becoming harder to find these days across the ditch from you. Cheers Bennie

Me too! That’s a pretty impressive space. Does it cost you anything to park up there for the winter or is it a group arrangement that looks after each other? Either way, it’s a sweet storage area for your BRAT! Cheers Bennie

Geez that’s an interesting project you got into there. And welcome to the forum Cheers Bennie

Aftermarket KYB struts are gas filled. OEM KYB struts are oil filled. Something to keep in mind there. We put superpro or Nolthane poly bushes in my sister’s Gen3 RX Liberty (Legacy) a number of years ago. It drives beautifully now! I can’t vouch for the product in that link. It’s each to their own with the type of bush to use. Personally I like the Nolthane, many consider these too harsh etc. I’ve not had that experience in my off-roader L series, or my sister’s RX Liberty; I think they’re a great product. Stiffer springs will generally mean better handling, the trade off might be a firmer ride. For a road going vehicle that’s not a bad thing as the stock springs are a compromise between handling and ride comfort for the general consumer. An uprated spring goes a long way for better handling/performance. Cheers Bennie

If your springs are worn get some upgraded aftermarket units. Kings springs if available over in the states would be a good start. A new set of struts could help improve the handling/driving feel too. But as I said earlier, new suspension bushes all round will go a long way to restoring the driving experience your vehicle originally gave, if not making it better again. How far has your Subi travelled? Cheers Bennie

Gen 2 and Gen 3 Liberty/Outback platforms are completely different in the rear end. To swap in a Gen 2 rear suspension you’ll be welding some strut towers into the back of the Gen3 to accommodate the MacPherson style struts. Not worth it in my book. You’d be better off replacing all of your bushes in the suspension, front and rear. This will refresh the handling and a new set of springs and shocks will further complement the ride quality. Well worth the effort. All the best with it! Cheers Bennie

That’s an awesome write up Tod! It took me three goes to read the whole thing and take in the pics etc. life is hectic! Your trips are epic and that one looked like you had a month off! 3900 miles is HUGE! I’m jealous. Thanks for sharing all the pics soo g with the write up of your big adventure! That tyre change didn’t look too difficult in photo form, I know how they compress slopes and grades etc, so that would be a nerve wracking event! Glad the vehicles went well for you! I’m sure you could knock up some “drop tanks” WWII style to slip in some small cavity under the vehicles! While you’re there, knock up some scrub bars that also protect those now contoured sill panels Keep up the good work, and the trips! Epic country! Cheers Bennie

Just remove it and wire/cable tie it so it can’t be activated - the spring should stop this from occurring anyway but best to be precautious. Cheers Bennie

So Awesome that you came back and updated this thread after three years - and admitting you only just fixed the issue! Cheers Bennie

G’day Stephen, I checked out those pics, thanks for the permission to view them! I can’t work out what it is on the backing plate that fouls on the swing arm - as this is the reason for this whole effort isn’t it? Time to learn Mandarin? Or get one of those fancy translator apps? Cheers Bennie

Get the GL, pull the EA82 and fit the EJ22. Laughing. That’ll solve 99% of the GL’s issues from factory Otherwise keep the EA82 and My 10c Cheers Bennie

Old engine probably just needs new valve stem seals. And yes, you can use your multi meter to read the oil pressure. You just need to know the values of the voltage/amps/ohms you’re seeing on your multimeter. An original workshop manual should have those values recorded somewhere - or a member from here might be able to record their values to what’s seen on their pressure gauge. Not exactly accurate but a good indication for you. As for noisy drivetrain, the lifters probably need more time to properly pump up, that or they’ll always be noisy. Cheers Bennie

Looking at the cam belt off to the right in that photo, third tooth, the cam belt looks to have a decent crack in it. I’d be concerned about that! Definitely get in there and sort it out with that new cam belt you’re talking about Cheers Bennie

Ok, finally! Here are the rest of the build pics - in collage! ^ L series interior light “mod” - it’s a HUGE upgrade over the stock unit (mine didn’t want to work but when it did, it wasn’t worth the effort!); now I can see stuff in the cab - and I haven’t installed an LED unit in there yet either! The L series interior light is also responsible for holding up the new roof mounted UHF radio. I’m very stoked how this turned out! No new holes or screws added to the brumby for this one. Inspired by my roof mounted UHF radio setup in Ruby Scoo. Everything is reversible back to stock quite easily. The other two pics are a before and after of some wiring tidy up under the dashboard. I forgot to photograph the front brake transformation so I did it with the rear instead - where I also forgot to take a pic of the drum fitted, anyway, you get the idea! Much better setup over the drums. Also new braided lines fitted everywhere. Brakes are AMAZING now! Scorpions fitted with their sticker, completing the look they’re known for (and this owner was seriously missing the little black sticker!). Top pics - the faded decals. Bottom pics - painted up decals using a set of paint pens from office works. I’m not set on the red colour that the pen came out with but it looks far better than what it was before anything was done to the mud flaps. The front ones were painted in white over the Subaru logo. They look mint too! No pics of those though… With the bullbar paint up, fitted and the front mounted chopped sticker refitted; side badges and mud flaps painted up, Redback Brumby is looking awesome. It’s amazing what a couple of small details can do to distract from other bodywork “features”! And we were finally off, second stop (after a servo) was the Deniliquin Ute on a Pole. We made it to Barmedman to camp the night near their mineral springs pool. Neat little spot. Got rained on during the night, we were mostly dry, but got 95% of our stuff fully dried out before we left. Then it was continuing on our way. Parked up brumby in Cowra, a couple of laps of Bathurst/Mt Panorama - worth the effort, I’ve got a new found respect for the race and the drivers (Australian Touring Car Championship)! And a Bunnings (hardware store chain over here - also the inspiration for Hammerbarn in Bluey) that’s retrofitted into an old building in Lithgow - something I didn’t know they did, I found it interesting! We had to swing by Shield’s Orchard this time since we had time to find it! At this time of year they’re closed because it’s not Apple season, but we snapped a pic out the front of their place with their main sign. Then on to camp at Mt Wilson, pretty good camp ground, but felt like we could’ve been anywhere really - we were hoping for a real vibe of being in the Blue Mountains - really we could’ve been camping on Mt Macedon (Central Vic, same elevation). Next day we were off to Boxer Beauty to pick up some stickers - particularly the scorpion rim stickers to finish them off. Then off to cut a lap over the Sydney Harbour Bridge - aka our nation’s big coat hanger. Following this we buzzed around the Sydney CBD followed by parking at the harbour to snap a few pics like this one from earlier in the thread: Ripper! Then the big day. I won’t flood this thread with pics from the day, I’ll drop the link to that later. I will share these poser pics though! On the Sunday we legged it home from the hotel same as last year. We headed up over the mountains and took a longer than anticipated detour to Evan’s Lookout. Well worth the effort! We changed a bit of our route and went through Young and Urana rather than Grenfell and Narrandera. Good drive and possibly less hills but unsure about this. Bottom corner pic below is one of the pubs in Young. I can’t get over how big the pubs are in NSW! We spied a brumby in Deni so grabbed some pics with that on our way past, then continued home. We arrived a bit after 9pm. My navigator held on but lost out 40mins before we made it home. I’ve roughly worked out we did 2300km in the five days we took to do the trip! Awesome trip! Brumby ran mint the whole time. Issues we had: - driving light wiring at the cab switch came off the back of the switch, sorted that by pulling the wiring and joining them together. - pencil beam driving light, blown globe. Was working prior to paint work done on the rear covers. - rear wheel nuts on the right decided they’d try to take a holiday on our way down the Sydney side of the Blue Mountains. I thought it was a rear wheel bearing issue. Easy fix, not an issue since (and I checked all nuts). - no other issues I can remember, the brumby just ran like clockwork! The plan now is to get the EJ turbo conversion sorted for next year’s Subinats25 That’s it for now! Cheers Bennie

We’re back already! Redback Brumby took it all in her stride. I haven’t tallied it up yet, my estimate is we did about 2200km in five days. After crusing over our infamous coat hanger we managed to pull up on the harbour and snap a few pics. This is the best one: Subinats was awesome! Met many other brumby and MY sedan owners which was awesome. More to come on that later. I’m waiting on a phone to return from being repaired as I busted the screen the day we were leaving - it’s got all the build pics on it! More on that later, the work list is quite extensive once I list it out - which will come in the build post later Cheers Bennie