el_freddo

I really really don’t think you’ve done this in an EA81 platform either - unless the US versions got the hill holder function. Over here we did not. The EJ251/EJ253 will fit. A mate of mine did one years ago and it passed engineering easily. And it was stupid quick! The EJ25D and any other dual cam variant does not fit without frame/chassis rail mods for a clean install. The SOHC with the valve thingy black-magic stuff could be a different kettle of fish, but I don’t know for sure as I’ve never done or seen one of those in the EA81 engine bay... Cheers Bennie

@sparkyboy - you’re correct. I originally had the EA82 AWD gearbox internals in the front cases of the liberty/legacy gearbox. And I got to keep my low range I’ve now got a real “hybrid box” - SG Foz gearset and front cases, L series AWD centre diff and its matching rear housing, L series 1.59:1 low range and 4.111:1 diff ratio. Goes very well both on and offroad! @Giles, with your time on Ausubaru back in the day I’m surprised you don’t know about this conversion! The best in the L series. @sparkyboy (again) - you guys got the impreza in ‘88?? We didn’t get the impreza until ‘93 I think. The Gen1 Liberty/Legacy series1 came out in ‘89 over here! Ruby Scoo is an ‘88 model... with an EJ since 2009 from memory - it’s still going strong! Cheers Bennie

Who fits the wheel bearings? Are they lubing the bearing properly by packing the bearing with grease? If they’re fitting them with only the packaging grease, they probably won’t last long. How are the seals holding up? Are they also lubed with some rubber grease to avoid “burning” the oil seal out? Bearings wear out for many reasons - how do you use the vehicle? I was regularly replacing my rear bearings due to water crossings when regularly off-roading. Bog holes could do the same too if you played around in the mud long enough. What sort of signs of wear do you have to indicate the bearing is dead and what do they look like when they come out? As others have said, proper torque is key. And you have to retain the bearing spacer between the bearings on the front end. Cheers Bennie

Any EA81 models without AC. Look for base model vehicles - sedans and flat top wagons typically. Cheers Bennie

Correct. Either get an L series 5 speed (the EJ253 will kill this box in the end) or pick up an EJ AWD, flywheel and clutch setup. Use a cable operated clutch cable, no need to go hydro unless you like a lovely light clutch pedal Cheers Bennie

Love that colour scheme! That EJ25 is most likely a SOHC EJ253 - and it will fit in the engine bay. You’ll want to upgrade the gearbag to either the L series 5 speed or the AWD box that comes with the EJ engine. A few custom bits will be needed to fit the gearbox but there’s plenty of info on the net about this. Wiring will be the biggest issue and is the one that usually stumps most people. The keys are 1) find a wiring diagram specific to the donor model and 2) know how to read said diagram. After this a brake upgrade would be a wise idea. Rear disc conversion, new rotors and decent pads front and rear, new flexible brake lines should be the bare minimum. Then enjoy! Cheers Bennie

I’m thinking the pinion shaft bearing is dead. This was a common issue on the L series auto. What does you front diff oil look like in colour and texture/thickness? Is there more in there than what it should be? Is the trans fluid still a good red colour or Ian it discoloured? If you have either of these signs I’d say the seal between the front diff and the transmission died, allowing cross contamination of one or both components (diff/transmission). Pinion bearing then dies due to a lack of lubrications. This allows the pinion shaft to start walking as it tries to rotate the front diff. Forward/reverse action will give different noises/movements in the pinion shaft due to the shape of the hypoid diff ring gear (I hope I got that correct from memory!). If you drain the diff oil you *might* be able to get one of those little camera units in to view the pinion gear, have two people rotate the front wheels (car secured and on jack stands, transmission in neutral) while you watch the pinion gear rotate. It should be a smooth rotation with absolutely zero lateral or vertical movement. If it feels crunchy to the two turning the wheels in the same direction this will be a clear indicator things with the front diff are not healthy. If that’s the case, new transmission will be required. Cheers Bennie

If it’s got an EA81 it will. Just make sure you put it on the EA81 and not on the hatchback Cheers Bennie

@Giles - JohnnT put up a pic of the trim piece. I believe this is the trim around the instrument cluster Cheers Bennie

Host them image on a free photo hosting website or reduce the photo size and attach it to your post. Cheers Bennie

Muffler - internal parts moving or beginning to collapse. A mate of mine had the same thing in his forester last week, but a dull thudding sound like the exhaust was hitting something or there was something wrong with the rear diff (mate’s first thoughts). We narrowed it down to the exhaust. He took a punt on it being the rear muffler and had it replaced. No more noise. The sound was most prominent between ~1900 to ~2100 rpm. Loading the engine up could make it louder the longer he let it go before taking action. Cheers Bennie

I considered the tribeca as our next family bus. But decided that the Mitsubishi Pajero/Shogun/Montero(?) was the way to go in diesel. Loving it. Still got my older subi’s too I regularly see Tribecas in my area - probably because we have a dealer in our town so there are plenty of Subaru’s around. But if you don’t know what they are then you’d easily mistaken them for a CX5 or something of the like... Cheers Bennie

Welcome to the forum Hogan! Cheers Bennie

You can’t strap the block to the bench to do the work? Personally I’d avoid using the impact wrench. Some of those bolts in the coolant galleries can be really difficult, I wouldn’t be introducing multiple shocks to those bolts or threads. Cheers Bennie

@Giles - I’m not the one organising it but I think JohnnyT is talking about the trim piece around the instrument cluster - the one that breaks very easily if not handled with extreme care. As for the EJ22 conversion - this conversion has the equivalent power output as the peak of the EA82 turbo. It’s got better torque and earlier in the rev range. Plus it’s uber reliable compared to the NA EA82 let alone the turbo variant! Cheers Bennie

You would’ve been better off pulling the dash board out. You’ve created a lot more work there pulling all the individual pieces out like that! There are seven bolts holding the dashboard in from memory. Three under the windscreen hidden behind click on plates, two each side, one centered one. Lower section there’s one on each side, then two in the centre on top of the trans tunnel. Other snags include speedo cable, temp control slide cable, vent cables - driver’s and passenger’s side, AC wiring, ignition wiring and the main dashboard harness plugs. This is all from memory so I could be wrong on a few of these. Last L series dash removal was in 2015... I thought I had an image of my L dashboard out of the vehicle but I can’t find it now. As for the MY heater core. I can’t see how this can be removed without pulling the dashboard to remove the heater box. I’ve got my brumby dashboard out atm and there’s no way that heater core comes out sideways. Cheers Bennie

Unfinished business in this thread @Loyale 2.7 Turbo? I wonder what happened with this build... Cheers Bennie

I dunno what your dash trim looks like. But this may be of interest to you. Very early days though! https://ausubaru.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=49678&sid=2d2aff677794a92f62692bd8f5e30399 And if you remember your old credentials you’ll have user access to the new version of the forum Cheers Bennie

Yes. That’ll work. The trick is not to crack the windscreen upon removal. And you’ll need that glue stuff you apply to the windscreen and put a current over the wires to heat it up. I’ve always had a pro fit my L series windscreens. Cheers Bennie

Surely someone has a spare 13 inch steel rim to throw your way! Peugeot rims also fit (the 4x140 PCD). Just make sure you have the imperial rim size. If you get the metric rims you’ll be up for big dollars for a tyre that’ll fit - if you can find one! Cheers Bennie

What sort of wear were you getting? I’ve had two rear tyres chew out the inside edge. That was partly due to worn bushes. I’ve since replaced them and need to have this setting adjusted properly. Cheers Bennie

I need to do this too but have put it off due to the hassle of this job... Cheers Bennie

No mechanical clutch fan - just a direct drive. It requires a different alternator bracket with it and this doesn’t work with AC. Cheers Bennie

Maybe not, but can easily be retro fitted: You might remember those pics Jono - from Sunnie the Brumby’s build. Still going strong! And the gauges are “modular” - they can be removed. Only issue then is how the wiring behind the cluster’s “motherboard” lines up. So you have a total of five gauges and not six as shown above? And I wonder what sort of switch is used to determine how much boost that loose gauge displays, it’d have to be some sort of adjustable resistance type like the oil pressure gauge setup... I think the one Jono talks about is just a switch for a light. Cheers Bennie

Hmmm... I want that turbo gauge! What are the other gauges on the other side of the dash? Our Aussie units have volts, temp, fuel level and oil pressure. And of course tacho and speedo in the middle part. Cheers Bennie