whistler

RE: the vacuum advance/timing issues it turns out I'm just an idiot. I got a copy of HTKYSA and started reading the section on timing and realized that I had the timing set to 8* ATDC not BTDC, so the timing was retarded by 16*. Fixed that this afternoon and suddenly the direction that the timing goes when the throttle is applied makes sense AND it has significantly more power. :-\

good to know, thanks. What would you recommend for spot surface rust treatment on the (other) new fender then before I rattle can it grey? The reason I thought I needed the hood/wipers off is because the plate that the wipers pass through is covering one of the bolts holding on the fender. How did you go about getting at that bolt? Tom

I don't really see it being that difficult to modify the EA81 adapter to fit either of the EA82 intakes so long as the overall size is correct. worse case you'd have to fill the bolt holes with weld and redrill/tape and then shape the opening a bit for good air flow. The biggest problem I would have with making an adapter from scratch would be finding a suitably sized chunk of metal, it's pretty simple.

Thanks for the suggestion! Unfortunately I'm coming to the realization that not only was a new engine put in my Brat (an EA81) but whoever did it also decided that it was necessary to completely rebuild the wiring harness. Nearly every last bit of it is loomed with lots of electrical tape with connectors hanging loose and unplugged. It's probably a miracle that it runs and functions as well as it does(almost everything electrical except for the PS headlights works now after replacing some bulbs and cleaning some contacts.) Long story short, there's no evidence of a ground plug anywhere around the steering column... :banghead:Suggestions? Any way to add a ground wire in there without tearing apart the dash and laying out the wiring harness so I can trace wires?

Thanks! There's some other bits of rust on the intake so I guess I'll go with my current one.

trying to find the headlight relays in my brat tonight (passenger side headlights are super dim, and it's not the fuse) and I saw this under the steering wheel... Yes, that's a c-clamp holding my clutch pedal together. Definitely going to be tightening that before I go to work in the morning!

My new to me 85 Brat came with a weber carb bolted to an intake manifold. I'm hoping somebody can tell me if it's an 82 or not? I started stripping it down to clean and discovered this If it is an 82 is the airflow improvement worth getting a new t-stat for it and swapping it on when I put on the weber or should I just continue with the current manifold? Do I need to worry about the rust in the coolant track and if so what do I do about it? Thanks Tom

pics! As you can see the previous owner (I'm apparently the 3rd) beat up the front fenders just a wee bit but he found and included new ones when I bought it. so became this and then got 2 coats of grey primer that almost match the stock paint aside from being matte. Then I realized that I needed to pull the hood and wipers to install the fender and didn't have enough time so it'll have to wait. Gotta get all the rust fixed in the next few weeks though. The RAIN is coming....

A few updates... I spent all day painting at my girlfriend's work (gotta keep the money for parts for the Brat flowing in ) so I haven't checked the valves or cylinder compression yet. Sunday latest! I pulled the dome light cover and the switch was apparently set to "on" because the light popped on. The lack of pressure must have allowed the little bearing to make a contact. I'm cleaning it as we speak. It's really amazing how much light the mount blocks. Super bright without the cover on, really dim with it on... probably be looking for an ea82 light if it's not too ugly in the interior. Or just try cleaning the plastic lenses. I realized this evening that the Driver's Side headlight was significantly brighter than the passengers and started pulling fuses. All the power to the passenger side is coming from the driver's side circuit. So that probably explains the issue with the PS high beams. Time to start tracing cables :-P The electronic choke on the carb doesn't seem to be working right so that's going on my list of things to multimeter... I really want to get the weber rebuilt so I can get it on there so I'm dealing with a known rebuilt carb... Speaking of, can anyone tell me how to check the jet sizes. Do I have to buy a special set of gauges or are they marked or something? I'm hoping that they're correct since the thing was bolted to an EA intake manifold, but I know lots of people never get carbs jetted correctly. My girlfriend just realized that her new laptop has a card reader that takes the cards from her camera, so we finally have a way to get decent pictures on to a computer. Pics will be forthcoming! Thanks to everyone for their comments.

Type of Wrenching:mostly maintenance, getting into shadetree What: Have a 05' forester for about 4 years now that hasn't needed anything but maintenance and I just got an '85 Brat that's needing some tlc How long doing it: mostly this past week... Been tinkering with wood, metal and electricity for a decade or so. Other Skills:Former IT/Network Engineer. Getting into Sound Design and reinforcement as a more permanent, possible career. Carpentry, basic concrete, welding, blacksmithing, bowmaking(yes, with arrows), lots of random hobbies and too small of an apartment to cram them all in.

Hey friends, I bought an '85 Brat with an EA81 in it a week ago today and immediately had some adventures (due in a large part to my own stupidity) that I've mostly gotten worked out, but they helped turn up some other issues that I need help with. Apologies for my tendency to write essays, hopefully it's not too rough for people to get through, it seems like you are all a really helpful bunch(I've been reading a lot and the forums have already helped me solve some problems.) 1. Right hi beam lamp doesn't turn on, but the low beam lamp gets really dim when I switch on the his is there a relay that controls the switch, I only have a chilton's manual so far and combing through the circuit diagrams would take a magnifying glass so I'm hoping people will have some thoughts. I'm going to go back out in a bit a check with my multimeter to see if the hi beam lamp is getting any power at all, but it isn't putting out any light. 2. The stupid problem that I caused was by pulling the dizzy to replace the coolant hose through the intake manifold without marking the dizzy. I learned A LOT about engine timing this weekend I have the timing set a hair past 8* now and had to up the idle speed quite a bit (stock hitachi carb) to get it in the 800rpm range, and it's running pretty happily except that it backfires when you let off the accelerator if you open the throttle up more than 1/2 or so. Looking at the timing while working the throttle it looks like the vacuum advance isn't working, (the timing goes back across TDC and keeps retarding the more you open the throttle) but there's definitely vacuum pressure on the line. I was wondering if it's possible to do any maintenance on the vac advance or if I need to just plan on hitting the junk yard (not going to pay $300+ for a whole new dizzy just to get the advance which is the only option I've found so far.) I sprayed carb cleaner around and haven't found any vacuum leaks so I don't think it's just an issue with insufficient vacuum pressure, but I could certainly be wrong. I don't think it could have any relation to an advance problem, but I haven't checked the valve adjustment yet, I should be getting the valve cover gaskets tomorrow so I'll do it tomorrow or Sunday along with compression testing the cylinders and I think that'll mostly conclude the pantheon of basic timing/carb related diagnostics. Guide me if I'm wrong about that please. 3. I got a weber 32/36 bolted to an intake manifold with the brat when I bought it and I've ordered a rebuild kit for the weber but I'm wondering if there's any way to tell if the intake manifold is for an EA82 or an EA81 by looking at it. I know that the 82 is supposed to be more free flowing so if that's what it is I'm inclined to swap that too, but if it's the same thing then it doesn't seem worth the work to swap both the carb and the manifold for no gains from the manifold(except new manifold seals.) I know I could just look at the manifold and compare it to what's on the engine right now, and I have, but the stock carburetor really obscures the manifold and I'm not totally sure of what I'm looking at, I don't see major differences, but I'm thoroughly uneducated. 4. It's kind've piddly, but the dome light isn't working. I replaced the bulb and no dice, thoughts on other things I can check? I'm really loving the brat, I have a 05 Forester that I like a lot, but there's something that really makes me grin about driving around with the t-tops up. It has a lot of character.