86 Wonder Wedge

Follow the two coil wires (should be wrapped in a harness) down to the little disc object mounted to the coil bracket. This is the power transistor. If this is not grounded (or bad) it will cause a no-start. You DID use the original coil bracket with the new Accel coil, yes? Also, the 8140 coil SHOULD NOT hurt the stock setup. The resistance specs on the primary side are within the OEM Hitachi specs as well. However, the HV and high voltage coils are not and can be damaging to the transistor.

I'd double check the timing and hook up an analog boost gauge to make sure the pressure is not spiking. These are equipped with an overboost switch which cuts the fuel (which is a bad idea, IMO. Should be an ignition cut) when the boost pressure is too high. Otherwise, check the normal rubber parts for cracks and check the TPS for smooth operation and consistent resistance readings.

Update: Well, I think I've fixed it? I also had the symptom of the alternator charging at less than 12V (11.5V approx) until I hit 4K RPM, then it would charge normally, then return back to low voltage. Also, no fuel pump cycle in D-check mode, but EGR and canister purge would cycle. Well, after multiple days of terrible driving, and running the tests by the FSM, swapping the CAS (distro has ZERO play) and coil and transistor with known good ones, checking the TPS, checking the wiring, running the D-Check mode (good lord, what a process) then finally resulting to checking the timing belt for looseness, I believe resetting the ECU has fixed my problem. I had the battery unhooked for about 30 mins screwing with the belts and cover, I reconnected to watch it and it didn't act up one bit. It's been approx 200 mi since I've reset it with no indication of the problem. I've got full power, idles like normal, alternator is charging normally and no more jumping tach. What has me skeptical is that the battery is a new Optima red top (for the sealed factor, I didn't want my frame/battery tray eaten alive) and the terminals are BEAUTIFUL. Didn't touch the fusible links or any of the fuses as well. Even screwing with the wiring when the battery was connected did NOT have a different result. The only change was "resetting" the ECU. TL;DR I believe a reset (no power for 10+ mins) of the ECU has fixed my problems. Erratic alternator charging, misfiring (multiple discharges, not failure to discharge), jumping tach, and puel pump cycle again in D-check mode. Have 200+ miles with no problems. P.S. If you're going to run the D-check mode, you MUST drive the car. Failure to do so will pop-up false codes. I ran D-Check in the garage and pulled codes 35 (purge solenoid), 51 (Neutral switch) and 33 (VSS), but none of those came up while driving in D-check mode. So just a heads-up.

On solid pavement, the 4WD will be squirly because the front and rear diffs are LOCKED to each other. Any turning or bump-sway from either end will force the other end to do the same. You've got to treat this 4WD like any other truck 4WD. Only on loose surface or slow, straight lines on dry.

Yeah, I still have all the original fuses (I assume so, looking at the style of them compared to the new ones available) and there are only 3 yellow (20A) in my MY91 Loyale. Locks, Wiper/Washer and a spare. The rest are 15A.

Well, got home and looked around under the hood since it was driving fine.. But after revving it for a min in the garage, I got it to act up and we've got purple lightning! Arcing from the coil positive to the HT post and from the negative to the HT post. Make sense cause the needle would bounce higher (mostly) versus lower indicating extra discharges. Now I'm not sure if this means a bad coil or bad HT wire.. My guess is HT wire since every time I play with it, it seems to "fix" the problem.. That boot on the end does seem to sit a bit high... Will report back!

Alright ladies and gents, this one has my head scratching. 91 SPFI EA82 5MT At cruise, random lurching/bucking/misfiring and tach is jumping several hundred RPM while trying to maintain speed. At WOT, purrs like a kitten and pulls hard. Upon engine braking, the tach jumps several THOUSAND RPM but the engine is smooth. Tach jumps all over the map on engine braking. Will also do this in idle. And when it lurches, it's very sharp and sudden, like a hiccup. Cap and rotor have less than 20K miles, as do NGK wires and plugs, original coil which tests within resistance specs on both the primary and secondary windings. CAS is original, rotor is NOT loose on the shaft, however, I can rotate it about 10-15* with some resistance. NO shaft play. Wires are seated fully, good connections at all the CAS, transistor and coil plugs. Good, clean ground. No check engine lights, but haven't looked for stored codes yet. Now for the kicker: Car does this intermittently. Sometimes it will, sometimes it won't. Seems to disappear every time I screw with the coil-to-cap wire at the coil. Ideas? I've got an extra transistor and CAS, and I'm at wit's end on this one... If someone has a SSM they'd like to lend, I'll gladly compensate...

What oil are you running? 10w40? In this super cold, my ea82 clatters for a few seconds until oil starts flowing.. Um going to switch back to a 5w40 and just deal with the oil leaks..

Have the struts been replaced recently or before? I too had a bad camber problem when I first bought my EA82 sedan and come to find out, they had replaced the struts up front. Luckily, there was a Monroe part number on them which revealed 4WD struts. My car was 2WD. It gave it about 2 deg positive on the camber...

The sedan front struts will match best to the original ride height of the XT and rear struts from any 85-94 EA82 (the motor/chassis code) sedan, 3door or wagon will work but need the correct 2WD or 4WD.

Redrilling to 5 lug is difficult (to do it properly, most auto shops won't touch that job) OR you swap the front and rear spindles and front LCAs to XT6 stuff to get factory 5 lug. However, most common, especially for lifts and big tires are the 6 lug redrill. Much easier and Toyota truck 6 lugs are a direct bolt on.

Hey Matt, Ill see about getting a scan of my 91 FSM on the NPS/back-up switches and the 4wd switch. Should be the same hookup from any of the ea82 std. trans

For shits and giggles, unplug the CTS and/or MAF (do one at a time, then both, turning off the car each time of course). ANY air leak past the MAF will be an unmetered air leak and can cause an idle problem. I see JY style paint markings on the air box, is that a replacement unit? Check for correct voltage output values on the MAF as well..

Im going to assume a strict understanding that no mods means no mods. Being a loyale, I assume it has auto seatbelts? When you power up the car or shut it down with the key in the ignition, does the key reminder thing "ding" at you? I've heard my car's "voice box" give a few weak dings before, especially in the cold. Any way to take video/audio?

There isn't a heater control valve on the EA82s. The temp slider controls the hot/cold blend door position. Make sure you grab a subaru OEM tstat as the aftermarket ones tend to open before they should. Also be sure your air direction door controls are working and the blend door cable is connected.

I also cut mine out and ran a straight pipe in it's place. Sounds fantastic and I STILL passed my emissions with flying colors. However, they only look for 1 converter and sniff the tailpipe on the dyno. Still 600 ppm under the limit. I do have an SPFI EA82 though... YRMV.

That little capsule thing near the pump is NOT a regulator. It's a pulse dampener. The only regulator on either the SPFI or MPFI is no or near the throttle body, respectively. Could be a clogged/damaged dampener, but chances are it's the wiring...

You can't just bolt the wheels on, the axle holds the hub to the spindle. It's not the BEST way to go, but lay some ply wood in a trail for the floor jack to roll on, then lift by the crossmember and roll it back.

The SPFI after 87 are mostly identical. Turbos and MPFI get messy before 88, mid-year changes, ect... The Loyales are pretty identical after 90, with options really only ranging between Auto, or 2wd/4wd (A/C was standard by then, really) Anything after 87 really is going to be the same, Loyales after 91 only have the SPFI and the wagons are the dominating survivors. Good luck!

Your best bang for the buck are going to be the loyales/gl/gl10s. Excepting the DLs, most of them cane with power locks/windows and are very reliable. Chassis/engine/cooling/body stuff is mostly interchangeable from 85-94. Try to find a SPFI, manual car. The SPFI is dead simple and the 5MT are hard to kill. Autos and turbos are just more maintenance but not deal killers. Push-button (single range 4WD) is really all you need unless you're going rock climbing. But by far these are the easiest to maintain. Everything is accessible, can be repaired or tested, and are like Legos. Got some rust? Weld a patch. Engine blows? Any EA82 will drop in. Or EJ (from the newer legacies) will drop in, albeit with some modifications. All in all, a fine machine to save yourself some money, have loads of fun in and will keep you on the road for years to come.

When cold, thats acceptable. After the temp comes up, it should step down... If not, then youve got a problem..

Check for the kinks and sharp bends on the fuel lines to and from the regulator. I'd also hook-up a pressure gauge inline just before the injector. you could also have a blocked regulator (attached to the TB, assuming its SPFI) or even a bad pulse dampener (those small canister things inline near the TB, there was one on the original FP and should be one inline to the injector and one after the regulator on the return line. And when you open the cap to put gas in, do you hear any pressure or air escaping when you first loosen the cap? Could be causing a vacuum lock in the tank not allowing the pump to suck fuel out.. When you undo the feed line to the pump, does it flow well?

I DO have a spare, good, original MAF of a 90 SPFI if you're interested. With the above part, without that cardone part number, you're SOL. The OEM Hitachi part number on the MAF is useless since the only thing that matches that part number is the plastic case the guts sit inside. Do you still have the box the part came in? (Not the shipping box) It might have the reman's part number on there for a reference, however RA likes to sterilize their remans and white boxes so you don't know where it's original source. That's also the trade-off with buying stuff online. You'd better make DAMN sure that's what you want or you could end up eating it. And now you can see why part's houses parts are no where near as cheap... we have people to ensure this stuff doesn't happen and to bend the rules when it does.. haha

I find keeping it clean, and having it oil sprayed 2x/year is best.

The "real" fix would be to have the head removed and have a welder fill the hole then redrilled to the original (or even new size). However, what I would do is find an allen-headed plug, sink it as deep into the hole (with thread sealer) as it will go, then locktite the new stud in there on top of it. I think this way will give you the best chance of sealing up that oil galley.