86 Wonder Wedge

Make sure the vacuum line to the booster isn't kinked as well

Even on RockAuto, they are only 88/each.... Nice find! Now if only someone made the XT ride-height replacements...

IIRC, you only have to use the BFH on the XT, everyone else has the clearence.

Lol a BFH to the rescue! The SPFI distros are all electronic. The ECU times the coil to change the igniting advance, the distro just tells the ECU where the crank is (essentially) There is an optical pickup in there that could've been jammed up or a stuck rotor, but who knows... Anyway! Keep an eye on it to see if it changes timing again on you.

Have you inverted the rear strut mount bracket? I've read its worth about an inch. and I gather you're not a fan of cutting springs? Even if you experiment with the stocks, OEM replacements are still available.

Check the compression. Thought i had a dead EA82 after a fresh rebuild, but the HLAs hadn't pumped up yet to open the valves. Upon the rebuild, were the heads cleaned/rebuilt? Did the HLAs and/or valves move freely?

In my old XT, I had to click the 4WD button several times to get it to engage ( I think the act. solenoid was dying) I'd lift all 4 corners, slowly rotate the rears and fronts while hitting the button. It should engage and the fronts should move with the rears. However, since the fronts and rears are open diffs (LSDs excluded), the front wheel will rotate opposite and the rears will rotate opposite, but rotating one will rotate the other axle.

Is it a small tube, about 1, 1.5 inches long, very bottom of the radiator, several inches inboard from the tank? Passenger side, correct? Sticks straight down toward the ground (when the radiator is mounted in the car)? It sounds like you're describing the anchor pin that attaches to the radiator core itself. If it's leaking from there, that's not good... Otherwise, there is a small, 3/4 inch long nipple on the bottom pass side of the radiator that runs parallel with the frame rail. There is usually a 6-7 inch clear hose attached for the petcock drain, but IIRC, it's a plastic nipple. I think pictures are going to be the best bet.. lol

For body parts, your only real source of OEM body and non-wear parts are the wreckers. In the PNW, you're in EA82 heaven. car-part.com is the largest, multi-yard seach tool out there. While half the yards can't keep their inventory straight enough to be reliable, there's a chance someone will have what you're looking for...

With all the apples and oranges comparisons in here, its a laugh a minute. While yes, the G37s is sportier and has a higher price tag and yes, the Cadillac is a nicer ride and has a higher price tag, I invite you to look at both maintenance schedules for the aforementioned cars and join me in laughing. That nice, powerful VQ37VHR in the infinity? Requires special Ester-based oil to protect the diamond-like coating to reduce wear. From the dealer. At $12/qt. The trans? Non-serviceable without the Nissan scanner. And have fun with the 30k mile OCI for the rear diff. I also invite you to just google the Caddy 3.6/3.7 V6 in the CTS. Now please go and ask about headgaskets, exhaust manifolds or even the O2 sensors to any mechanic. Should we even LOOK at the electronic suspension? Didn't think so. if you have a hard-on for any specific brand or car, more power to you. But by the numbers and book, financially and logically, its hard to beat a Subaru.

Sounds like you've got all the basic parts swapped... I'd still move the distro over 1 tooth yo give yourself the extra play.. Where is points is irrelevant as long as the wires are in order and the timing is correct. Also, my CEL never comes on when I connect the green connectors. also, I don't get any codes when connecting them together (when I purposely unplug something) I always leave them unplugged to pull codes. It will flash any current drivability codes w/o them connected. As for the poor mileage and idle, id check to make sure the EGR is sealing/closing at idle. Grabbing a vacuum reading will definitely help point to what's going on. I'd also unscrew the O2 sensor and see if the idle smoothes or increases (to help rule out plugged cat/exhaust)

Check ALL the hoses AFTER the MAF for cracks, splits or weak connections. This includes all of the PCV hoses and breather tubes that run into the large, black hose from the MAF to the TB. Any air after the MAF is unmetered and is not seen by the ECU. Also, make sure your rotor screw is tight (I.e the rotor doesn't flop around by hand). If you've got a timing light, hook it up and make sure it's not ignition cutting or something stupid like that either.

I've been running this swap for about a year now, approx 15K miles with no problems (with the setup. The alternators however, aren't holding-up well. 3 total in the last year. One had a stripped ear and the other one VR failed. Remans, what are you going to do...) One thing you MUST be careful of is to get the SOHC VQ30DE alternator. Pre-91 Maximas all had the SOHC. 92 and up had the SOHC and DOHC. The DOHC had different plug location and is a royal PITA to plug-in and wire. And while yes, this CAN produce more amperage, I did the swap for higher production at lower RPMs AND off the shelf replacement. Around here, an EA82 alternator is an order item and even then, you have to swap the pulley because they're only supplying 2x pullies on the remans now. And it's a only a few bucks cheaper. The Maxima? Every parts house has one on the shelf. And will for a while because the 90s maximas are 1M times more prevalent then the EA82..

I'd also have someone (similar in weight to you) sit in the car and you watch the strut mounts/struts while they sit down. 99% of alignment places won't load-up the driver's position during an alignment. While this is not the standard SOP while aligning a car, it can expose weaknesses in what isn't holding an alignment. If you've got weak bushings, mounts or springs, throwing an extra 150-250 lbs on one side CAN throw off the camber or toe-in if things are shifting.

When the gauge goes cold and no heat, do the radiator hoses get firm, like they're cold? I had an EJ25D do the exact same thing... pushing water out of the overflow, random temp spikes, but no external leaks or "loss of coolant" (except for pushing out of the overflow). Turned out to be the headgaskets. This sounds like a classic symptoms of HG/heads pushing gasses into the cooling system. When the air/gas pushes the coolant into the bottle, the only thing the sensors read is the "cold" air in the system and the temp drops. When you take off, the air gets pushed by the now spinning water pump and the super hot coolant spikes the gauge. While I know the SPFI EA82 are not known for blowing their headgaskets, but it IS possible.. MIght also check for belt tension on the water pump just to be sure..

I'd give the TB and intake bolts a good snug again just to he sure, and is the coolant line hooked up behind the TB? If the TB and/or intake isn't heating up, that can and will cause the fuel to fall out of atomization and pool in the intake... And the ECU uses the sensor data from the MAF to determine how much air is being intake and pulses the injector and adjusts the timing and fuel to achieve the preset idle. Its assuming the air coming in is exactly the amount the MAF is reporting. Any more or less will throw off the mixture and cause an erratic idle or running. This also means all of the PCV hoses and gaskets/caps for the oil must be air tight. Excessive blow-by will also effect it.. Lots of factors, but your high idle/slow response is typical of a "cold" engine. I'd make sure the thermostat isn't stuck open and that the intake is heating with the rest of the motor.

This is exactly what ANY idle valve does. Before DBW, (and after carbs) most systems would close the throttle plate completely allowing for almost NO air to flow through it. This valve is a metered air leak, essentially, after the throttle plate to allow the engine to draw air in. The IACV on the SPFI systems (Subaru specifically), the IACV opens when the TPS hits the "idle" circuit (throttle is at 0 opening). When the throttle is opened past a certain point, the circuit opens, then valve closes and cuts of air because there is enough of an opening in the throttle plate. I'd check the adjustment of the TPS sensor. There are 2 screws that anchor it to the throttle body and allow for adjustment. Make sure the "idle" circuit is not opening any time except at idle. Check to make sure the "opening zone" is within spec. I'd also make sure your throttle plate is snapping shut and/or completely closing. Gunk build-up from sitting or lack of use and cause the plate to stick or not seat properly. Lastly, I'd make sure the throttle plate shaft does not have any axial play relative to the throttle body. I've seen this happen on high-mileage stuff (causing a vacuum leak randomly or erratic running/idle).

Yeah, that poor EA81... :/ anyone know where this is located? Doesn't look to be outside of the USDM with that plate bracket... maybe JDM..

Well, sounds like you're on the right track. I'm going to assume this is an EA82, SPFI (and that the "carb" reference was the injector pod housing/throttle body?) It'd check for vacuum leaks around the intake gaskets and throttle body. These are common culprits. I'd also work the EGR valve with a hand-vacuum pump to ensure that it IS opening and closing (closing is the important part here). Lastly, I'd check out the coolant temp sensor (located on the thermostat housing, 2 wire pig tail, green connector) and grab resistance readings from cold and hot. Could be playing games with the ECU. Lastly, if the plugs have been in the car for more than a few days (hours of running), pull them and see what they look like. Should be french-fry golden brown. Black and wet is usually too rich or burning oil or white and powdery is too lean and/or burning coolant. Report back! EDIT: What were the codes you were pulling from the ECU?

That "new" one is a remanufactured unit, probably by Cardone. That torn-off sticker is the reman sticker along with that "QA" sticker. Cardone does not use the original housing units (probably due to lack of supply) but uses ones off the nissans which will work. The sensors also mount differently into the housings which is why they use "Tamper-proof" Torx screws instead of the original phillips heads. The sensors will not swap. If you look closely at the plug, you can see where that plug head was "fused" onto the plastic sensor body. They do this because the Nissan head was wired differently and wouldn't match the Subaru. Having seen lots of stuff like this from Cardone (I work for a parts house), I avoid reman'd stuff like the plague.

I also look at it this way. What would you rather do? Do you want to go forward and back in the snow or do you want to be able to turn and stop? I see people load-up their (and their kid's) pick-ups and/or cars with several hundred pounds of salt/sand/whatever to "add weight to keep traction". Yes, this does work to apply a greater force on the contact patch, but then that bitch physics comes in. When you change the angle of force application on a near-frictionless surface, the momentum can be devestating. Imagine standing on a bowling ball on an ice rink. Then lean over. Not good. Point is heavier stuff tends to "grip" better, but lighter stuff can recover quicker. Have that toyota and lexus slam on the brakes about half way down the driveway and compare it to your loyale. You'll probably have 10-30 feet less sliding distance then they will. And IDK about you, but 10-30 feet can be the difference between a close call and an accident, bridge, cliff, ect.

Nail on the head. Someone did the HGs, didn't bother to check for a thermostat/test it. OR they're not the revised HGs from subaru or Fel-Pro and the problem arose again and they gutted the thermostat. Most likely the replacements would be Fel-Pro. Fel-Pros have a tab that sticks-up above the head-block mating surface that says "Fel-Pro" on the driver's side, just behind the dipstick, somewhat under the intake manifold. You can see it from the front of the motor.

I would also do a resistance check on the coolant temp sensor to make sure it isn't giving bad info to the ECU.

Could have severed the connection to to fuel pump. The wiring harness for the pump runs in that quadrant and the pump itself is located infront of the rear tire. Connecting the green connectors in the engine bay will cycle the fuel pump on and off when you turn the key to the on position.

That silver piece is the cap (with the hex head), correct? There should also be a bullet shaped piece that sits inside the hole that the spring came out of. Almost the exact same diameter of the spring. Since it didn't come out with the other pieces (assuming it's not pictured and you only have those 2 pieces), it could be stuck in the bore causing a pressure spike. Pressure spike will also cause the HLAs to stick WAY out of the bores, keeping the valves open.. are you getting any air coming out of the intake (positive pressure)? What's the vacuum gauge say?