exister99

Thanks for the bump, guys. As a postscript to this story, a few weeks after this trip my transmission started making horrible noises. When I drained the gear oil out came a severed tooth from one of the gears. I am installing a Brat transmission now. Then it will be time to party once again.

Yet you still recommend changing the rear main seal while the flywheel is off? In any case, there is visible oil at the end of the crankshaft where this O-ring goes.

Thanks a bunch for the part number! I think the Brats kept the same drive train that I have until the end of their production run, so it is probably the same part for my 1984 GL Wagon. It looks like a part I could get away without, but it has a black oily residue on one side, so I am willing to bet that its absence is the cause of many of those "unfixable" oil leaks. I will try to get ahold of one, or a couple, and install it for good measure. Thanks everyone for weighing in.

Thanks, I'll give it a shot!

I took the flywheel off of my 1984 GL Wagon last night and on the back of the flywheel there was an orange rubber ring. This ring is in pretty sad shape and I would like to install a new one. Has anyone found this item new anywhere? If so, can you pass on the source and part number? Does anyone have the dealer part number? Thanks!

You should be punished for this. That is all.

Yeah, I have been considering that. The exhaust was banged up, but still airtight. The noise turned out to be from losing one of the nuts that holds the y-pipe on to the exhaust manifold. That caused some leakage past the gasket. The worst damage to the underside was the smashed sway bar bushing on the driver's side. Fortunately the bracket that holds the bushing in place was crushed but still functional, preventing a suspension catastrophe.

Thanks! It was 100 miles in and 100 miles back out. I had hoped to connect to another road and make it a loop, but rain and long deep water crossings dictated otherwise. I didn't want to have to break out the fence puller and execute a self rescue. I will try accessing that area again by another route.

Thanks for all the props and comments, folks! It was a hell of a trip, but not my last for sure. Currently the Soob is suffering from some rather severe transmission knocking noises. I bought the car at around 150,000 miles and I think it still had the original gear oil in it. Now it is pushing 190,000 miles and the tranny is suffering. In any case, I got a replacement tranny out of a Brat shipped to me from Tennessee and I am currently in the process of swapping it out. As soon as I do there will be much more joyful adventuring in Mexico, and I will make it into the Maderas del Carmen Mountains. Stay tuned...

Thanks Brian, I'll try that.

Thanks GD, By admitting that this thread is ancient you are also pointing out that whatever it says cannot be "latest and greatest." Consequently your laboriously typed reply is both uninformative and pointless. Thanks anyway for trying!

So what is the latest and greatest source for new EA81 half-shafts?

There seems to be some difference of opinion on this board regarding what exactly to apply to the threads of the exhaust studs prior to installation. One poster said anti-seize and another locktite. After a recent offroading trip my exhaust got a lot louder. Upon inspection I discovered that I had lost one of the studs entirely and the other 3 were loose. This would lead me to believe it would be best to apply locktite to these high vibration fasteners to keep from losing my Y-pipe entirely. Any thoughts? Also, I plan on ordering a new stud from McMaster.com. Does anyone know of another source?

Or, for just a few bucks you can pic up a flush kit that splices into your heater hose. You tap a garden hose into it and run the engine until clear water is gushing out of the top of the radiator. Works great and beats the heck out of stressing the threads in the cylinder head every time you want to flush your cooling system.

I haven't yet seen an EA81 oil pump for less than $100. Do you have a URL where I can find one for $65? Thanks, exister99