baccaruda

OK, I gave up on the auto harness I was sorting out for my EJ-into-EA swap. I'm going to the parts yard tomorrow and hopefully grabbing an intact ECU/harness from a manual car I saw there. question: do i need to grab the wiring *on the engine* or is the engine wiring the same between the AT and manual cars? I'm hoping I can just disconnect the three gray plugs from the engine harness and save the time and effort of grabbing an engine harness I don't need. BTW my donor engine is a 1990 and I can grab the ECU/harness from any Legacy with the same body style, right? (up to 94?) thanks!

Hey Dave, I have a question about the surge tank as well. and thanks for those great pictures you posted a while back, they've been really helpful in mking my own adapter. My wagon, which is receiving an EJ22 swap, is (used to be ) MPFI turbo. I've never seen anything like a surge tank during this and the numerous other times i've taken it apart. Is this something that only has to be added to carbureted cars? I'd be interested in seeing your wiring diagrams too even though i have the "wrong" car for them thanks Andy

don't know but they're on this one: http://www.coximport.com/kyb/s.html at a good price too. picture doesn't match FYI.

hi.. depending on how bad that damage is on the brat, it's probably not worth more than $1500-$1800. your car sounds like it might like a timing adjustment, assuming your regular tune-up stuff is in good shape. you might also look for vacuum leaks (drifting idle) and even consider cleaning/rebuilding your carburetor. as far as the grinding sound, i have no idea. could be a vibration instead of a grinding, too. good luck

The PN for KYB GR2s to fit the rear of a GL (*with* the RX's 3 adjustment levels) is 341 053.

i saw this one coming last week

are the best! I have one for my travel toolbox. I have: punch 3lb sledgehammer 1/2" breaker bar & 3/8" adapter assorted screwdrivers, pliers combo wrenches 10mm-17mm + 19mm (should pull out the 16mm and 13mm, what are they good for? ) 10mm/11mm, 12mm/14mm, and 15mm/17mm combo wrenches (love these!) small wire brush extendo-magnet tool headlamp & batteries 1 vise grip, 1 crescent wrench axle nut socket 3/8" ratchet & the usual sockets battery post cleaner probably more stuff too. jumper cables baseball bat (do it yourself security system ) coat hanger for sanctioned break-ins can of orange scrub hand cleaner I also like to carry duct tape and electrical tape (need to make an emergency electrical kit out of some of the extra wires i'll have after my EJ swap), coolant, and oil. I don't carry penetrant in my wagon since i've had literally everything under the car off before except the gas tank. and yes it's on my list I also like to have some sandwich bags for bolts, oh and some of those blue nitrile gloves as well as some leather gloves. I am sort of shopping for a first aid kit and it just occurred to me to source some disposable tyvek coveralls while i'm at it. Also have a couple rain ponchos (for the passengers too!) and need to get a space blanket, recharge my fire extinguisher.. my flares are super old so i need new ones. i also have an extra distributor cap, rotor, plugs, belts, etc from an old tuneup. an easy first aid kit could include alcohol swabs, knuckle bandages, assorted bandaids, and super glue. for those situations which defy classifications, I also have a rocket launcher, radar jammer, $50,000 in small unmarked bills, three passports, a couple of visas (don't even know my real name ), prophylactics and a bottle of wine (or should that be the other way around? hehe), a shovel and some lime, and midget repellant (in case skeet threatens to visit again).

I was going to mention the compression that you could get from EA71 pistons but you got it. you might consider sourcing the intake/injectors from an EA81T and run an MPFI...

I suggest that you search for this info. it's been covered countless times before

you might also research adjustable cam gears to help tweak the timing. I can't remember who was looking into making those (garner perhaps?) but it should come up in a search.

I'm going to change my wagon's heater core while I'm swapping the engine and digidash. I took the liberty of slightly reformatting the information in the first post to make it easier to consult while working on the car. Full credit is given to Paul for this guide. s heater core.txt

you have one jack under the engine so its mounts can clear the slots, and another under the trans to ease the disengagent and reengagement of the trans input shaft. the trans needs to match the angle you put the engine at when you raise the engine for the mounts to clear the crossmember. the easy way to change the trans mounts would be to unbolt the trans crossmember with the back of the trans supported by a jack (the front will be supported by the engine or if the engine's out, by the crossmember). then with the crossmember out, you can change both mounts right on the trans.

I think it would be far easier to swap in a diesel engine than to reengineer a subaru engine to run on diesel. a 150HP Cummins would go nicely in a lifted EA82 wagon with an RX transmission, such as mine. (OK, lift hasn't arrived yet ) I suppose I should wait and see how my EJ swap goes before getting this far ahead of myself? but I'd toss a subaru block out in a *second* to run my car on biodiesel. or better yet, TURBO biodiesel: http://www.cumminsnorthwest.com/Cummins/Trucks.asp we've also been over "is it still a subaru?" many times before and the answer is officially "who cares?" Subaru isn't paying anyone here to wave a flag as far as i know. people can call their own cars whatever they want. If I put a biodiesel engine in my subaru it will still handle the same and have the same driveline capabilities, and I'll call it the same thing I do now: "my brat" or "my wagon."

I've done a few and have found the resources on this board to be very helpful. here's my $0.02 1. How rusty can a flywheel be before it need a resurfaced and does the clutch life suffer if the flywheel aint done? --Rust isn't usually why a flywheel is machined; warpage from friction/heat is why. The clutch may chatter and grab unevenly and wear out sooner if the flywheel is not machined. I would machine a flywheel anytime the clutch is being changed due to its service life ending. 2. I think I am going to pull the engine and was wondering if the stock jack is upto raising the g. box/engine assy. up engough the clear the engine mount studs from the engine x-member, ofcourse with a block of wood to protect the g. box sump? --You would probably be better off getting ahold of a larger hydraulic jack. The spare tire jack might work, but a hydraulic jack is better (and probably safer as it'll be easier to reach), and you might want the spare jack to lift the trans a little as it aids in reuniting the engine and transmission. 3. I have about 168k miles clocked up and need to know if the engine mounts should be replaced? --I would. I'd also change the transmission mounts too. worn mounts allow inner axle boots to fail sooner due to the extra stress on the axles. 4. I have read in numerous posts that while the block is out it easy to replace the water and oil pumps, with this many miles would either of these require attention? Note the temp. guage reads always a bit below halfway unless stitting at a set of lights for a prolonged period, then it raises to halfway. --This would be a great time to replace the water pump and at least reseal, if not replace, the oil pump. If you go to that much work you should also consider changing the timing belt (OEM only!) as well as the front main seal and the camshaft seals. You might also replace the rear main seal since you'll have access to it. I like to do that as well. 5. I am going to do the valve cover and oil pan gaskets while i am it, do these reuire any sort of sealent or do you just bolt then down firm? --the oil pan gasket benefits from some gasket sealant (don't use silicone as it is oil soluble) and very light torque. the bolts will accept a phillips screwdriver and i would use one instead of a ratchet as you'll have more control over it. The valve covers take a little more. I've used a trick i've heard of here for the valve cover gaskets.. use gasket sealant to secure the gaskets to the covers themselves, and use white lithium grease on the engine side of the valve covers. this will allow for easy removal of the valve covers if needed, without damaging the gaskets, so you can reuse them. --I'd also add that you should get two new throwout bearing clips from the dealer. they're cheap and they often break as they age. if they break they can allow the throwout bearing to spin on the pressure plate and wear out prematurely, and if they aren't broken now they might soon, and it would be a shame to have to tear back into the clutch to replace a $3 clip. good luck!

but my RX springs add more HP!

My wagon has been running with (ok, sitting on) RX springs. I'd like to keep it that way. I'm converting it to the 5-lug setup and so it'll end up with legacy struts. I just compared the legacy struts to the RX struts and the RX springs have a narrower diameter than the legacy springs. is there any way to reconcile the difference in diameters? I can't see how the RX springs could work with the legacy spring perches... thanks.

you get what you pay for i prefer to pay for GR2s. You might look into Konis; i've heard they're good. there's some guy on ebay periodically selling 20year old Koni shocks.. i think i'd go newer than that if you buy Konis.

maybe someone could take $5 out of the USMB slush fund and buy the article. i doubt it's going to tell us anything we don't know already though.

never seen those 1992s, are you certain they're 4x140?

true that the EJ will make the front end lighter.. but if you're going to put that much HP in a VW, you will need to improve the suspension anyway, and you can adjust the front end to compensate for the weight. just a thought.

phooooooooo. here goes. brat: change motor mounts change transmission mounts --OEM mounts bought off of ebay change both front axles change both front spindles (cheapo wheel bearing fix) change R. front rotor change rear inner axle cups and 1 boot install LSD if skeet ever mails it to me and that's just a warm-up.. wagon: make EJ adapter install EJ22 change digital dash to analog (as well as fuel level sensor) change heater core wire in EJ22 finish 5-lug swap in front change from leaky GL PS rack to reman. XT4 rack change L. fender and hood if i find better ones install lift kit when it arrives install locking hidden laptop/handgun compartments under rear seat? make split rear seat bottom? new KYB struts for the front? aaaaand.. brake job on friend's car clutch job on another friend's car maybe another clutch job too tune up on another friend's car EJ belt/WP change on yet another friend's car ... gotta have project fundraisers...

shady, i'm all lined up with PK thanks anyway though. i'm interested to see pictures of your product though. a lot of people are suspicious of your product because we've had scammers offering shirky lift kits pop up from time to time. and as this is a fairly close-knit group of people, there is some loyalty felt toward PK. If your product is not a significant improvement, or offered at a significantly lower price than PK's (and he doesn't charge a lot of overhead on his, BTW), then you may not realize a lot of success from selling to the board. i read your other posts to mean that you are explicitly trying to avoid ripping off the Ozified design. That will go a long way here. good luck and thanks anyway. pitch stopper: I have a trans-mounted pitch stopper on my wagon, as I used to run an XT motor in it. I will just have a regular one altered to fit after my lift is in. i will be sending my payment to PK this week!

great primer. i would choose to be a little more picky about a junkyard spare tire as different manufacturers often have different specs for the same tire sizes. and as many of us have personally seen subarus with mismatched tires that have been junked or given away due to bad differentials or transmissions, we know this is bad for the driveline. Something else to mention: Check the eletrical grounding! get a can of diet soda and clean all that powdery crap off the battery. use diet coke or pepsi as they are the most acidic. use diet because it has no sugar to make your car sticky. then use a battery terminal/post cleaner (don't pay more than $5) and shine up your connections. check the terminals at the wiring harness for stiff wires or fraying. battery terminals are inexpensive and if you go to a battery shop to get your new car's alternator checked, they can help you replace any bad wiring on the battery harness. Standard Battery in Spokane has a really great crew if you're "here." You will want to add grounds (especially if you have a more sensitive digital dashboard) from the engine to the frame, from the transmission to the frame, and from the battery to the frame. sometimes i've seen the radiator grounded as well to combat electrolysis. also, get a few extra fusible links from the junkyard. on the EA82 they're in the black cigarette-pack-sized box on the coolant overflow tank. On the EA81 I hope mine are OK because i've not looked for my brat's yet and use deionized water only in your cooling system to prevent mineral deposits.

that looks neat. i'd eliminate the roman numeral VII though as i think it's repetetive. and is it West Coast Subaru Show or Subaru Summit? I think Summit sounds cooler...

if you get rid of the stock dash (and heater) you could explore moving the firewall back a few inches... but then your axles would start even further back. hm. put the radiator in the rear?