lvsarge

At this point, I was having some problems with the motor. I was only really using it for small commutes as I really had only checked and replaced essential fluids and hadn't actually mechanically remedied anything on the motor. I did replace plugs and wires. Two of the wires were corroded from moisture, and one of the plugs was burnt up pretty bad. After running them a few hundred miles, I was getting misfires in cylinder 2. Compression looked good, but what appeared to be the problem was a bad oil seal on the intake valve, which was seeping oil in the cylinder and causing a lot of unburnt gas to get expelled and backfiring like crazy. So I got a little inspired, tore the motor down, painted things with a Subaru STi inspired flare. Pressure plate got stuck on the trans pulling it out. :/ Cylinders were good. Pistons, other than carbon build up were pretty good. Cleaned up the heads a bit by hand, but ultimately ended up taking them to a machine shop to address some of the valves and seating. Exhaust valve seating was a little iffy. Here's the busted seal. So I took the heads away, and just started scrubbing the block down, and cleaning it all up. Snapped a bolt off in the water pump... Clean clean clean.. Found loads of old oil foil seals in the pan. Literally about 30. Cleaned up. Loads of parts. This is my first engine tear down too, so I didn't want to confuse myself. Labeled and bagged everything. Scrub Scrub Scrub... Clean Clean Clean. There was a lot of oil build up around the pan and the oil pump. After removing the pump I saw the oil ring got sucked in. Fantastic. Heads came back! I tried to address that broken bolt by backing it out with locked nuts and PB blaster. That didn't work... So I welded a nut on there. No luck. So I tried drilling it out, and welding it out, and then another nut on there.... Then another, and another and another... It was pissing me off. So I quit. Moved on to other things. Sand down and paint other parts! Back to the bolt... Drilled it out and helicoiled the P.O.S. Mounted the heads... And more reassembly.

Hey guys. I've been posting on and off in this community for a while. I did an introductory post but other than that I've been mostly here to ask and answer questions (mostly asking, to be fair). Since then I've been tearing apart my truck and trying to make it sound. When I purchased the truck, I think I was mesmerized by a fresh coat of paint and just being in the presence of a 1st gen BRAT, so I bought it without looking too close at it. It has it's share of problems, but overall it's still a pretty solid truck. I'm also a member, and forum administrator for Flat4 Las Vegas. We are a group of Subaru enthusiasts, although I will admit that most of the folks in the club are very WRX-STI oriented, which is a mostly younger crowd. Nothing wrong with that. I enjoy Subarus of all years and models, but as I age, I really find myself enjoying my classic more than my STI. Anyway, I started a build journal over on my home website, but I thought I'd also like to transplant it over here and see what you guys think -- and maybe get some suggestions along the way. Anyway, hope you enjoy it. There's quite a few pictures! Here's when I bought the truck. I got it in Carson City. It's a good 7 hour drive from Las Vegas. Went up there, saw it, drove it, and brought it home the same day. Very tiring, but it was nice to bring it home. It has a fairly new paint job on it, although it's a Maaco paint job, and it's flaking off in some spots. Also the previous owner did cover some rust with it, so it's going to be coming off. Also the bed was rattle-canned, as well as part of the engine bay. I'm actually addressing the engine bay currently which you'll see below.. This actually came with two sets of jump seats. I also got a spare set of tires in the deal, and the original tailgate and fender which were replaced. The tailgate is junk, but the fender is still usable so holding on to that. And a spare quad-light grille! Lots of original parts too, and spare things the previous owner stripped from junk yards. Door handles, mirrors, etc. Interior as it came... Pay attention to the center/shifter area. He had a custom stereo solution done, which I was not a fan of. Basically chopping up the console, and using some fiberglass/cardboard to build a speaker box for some 8" mids. I removed it almost immediately. An overflow tank which had seen enough.. Was leaking and eating through the rattle canned portion of the engine bay. Sitting outside, after my first inspection.. The bed was pretty beat up, and I actually poked my finger through the driver side wheel well. Figured that was going to be a big problem. I've never done body work before, so I figured I'd try it out. Looking back at these pictures, I think I could have done a better job, but I think once I get everything sorted I can hopefully bondo some of the lows from welding and make it look fairly proper. I haven't addressed anything else in the bed since this, so I will be coming back to it. Power blasting as much muck off the bottom as we can.

Agreed. EA71 on my brat is the easiest motor I've ever pulled. And can definitely be man handled by you and a buddy.

And so you can... Right there on rock auto of all places... I evidently do not search very well. I apologize.

Thank you. I've always just ordered bushings as Year/Model/Bushing type. Looks like I can make some of the universal bushing parts work after pulling some measurements. Any ideas for motor mounts and transmission mounts? Mine are very soft and falling apart.

This thread has some information you may find of use: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/topic/146920-installing-engine-and-transmission-together/

Hey all. I'm in search of bushings for my 79 Brat. Some I've heard of are taboo, but does anyone know or reccomend a place where I can find suspension bushings or a place that will manufacture them? I found a few on rockauto, and from my internet searching it seems like what they sell is about the same as what anyone else sells. Particularly I'm looking for the front stabilizer bar (sway bar) bushings that mount against the rear crossmember (held on by metal c-clips). And while on the subject, does anyone have a suggestion for the shifter linkage bushing? It looks like I have small plastic bushings in there now, which are not very tight. I've heard this is a make-it-yourself kind of deal. Just wondering what's worked for people. Thanks.

When did Subaru start their lifetime seatbelt warranty? I want to say the early 90's, but maybe before? Anyway, good luck with your search. I have some old Brat seat belts, but the assembly is rusted, terribly, and would be very unsafe to use.

My ea71 was doing the same thing. Ran like crap anywhere close to close to normal timing. I played with the carb until it started idling close to normal, but i was backfiring constantly. Since then i've ripped the motor out and found oil leaks on one head. Fixed all of that. Haven't got the motor back in yet to test. Hope your fix is less labor intensive than mine

Thanks for the input guys.

So I wonder if this was indeed used/recommended by the Subaru factory in 1979?

Thanks for the response. So, http://www.amazon.com/Subaru-75W90-Extra-S-Transmission-Fluid/dp/B007L6Q1EK This one ^^^ ? For both Trans and rear dif, yes? And do you know the capacities, by chance?

Hi all. Question about gear oil. I'm going to be dropping my transmission on my 79 brat, which is a single range. What is the recommended gear oil for the transmission and rear dif? I put some 75/90 in the transmission to top it off after it had been leaking but I have not done a full drain/fill on it, and I suspect both the trans and rear differential could use it. However, I can't find any factory recommendations as to what specifically goes in each. Any help? Thanks in advance.

Hey man did you meet a guy named Raul last night? He sent me pictures of your BRAT last night around 10pm. Small world.

I'm about to paint my bay also. Any tips?

I have two different threads on this board. First one kind of leads into the second one. The engine was running bad at the same time. Here's the links: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/topic/142895-79-brat-sputter-start-issues/ http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/topic/144805-ea71-backfiring/ For me, what ended up happening is I was misfiring one cylinder due to bad oil seals and not all the fuel was burning off, so I tore down the motor and rebuilt it. It's sitting on my engine stand right now, so I can't tell you if that got it all, but everything else on my motor looked great except the heads. So, I'm pretty confident I got it. Good luck.

I was looking at these guys because my speedo bounces real bad. Looks like they do repairs, call em up. http://speedometershop.com/

Clever. Sorry about that peanut.

I haven't gotten so far with my restoration to put the seats in yet, but I would fab a bracket to bolt the seat carrier through the bed. That way you just need a socket to remove everything. Weld a bolt/stud to the underside, to make it easy for installation/removal. But i'd also be worried about exposure to the elements and bolts rusting up.

Wow. What are those Enkeis from? I've never seen them before, they look amazing.

^^^ agree. I'd take a copy lol.

Yeah. I'm curious to know where that is too.

Yeah. I was gonna say weld a nut on the end, but threaded would be even better, you can remove it if you want at least.

The FR-S is everywhere here. I've seen maybe five BRZ, not including what I've seen at SEMA or dealerships. People who want this car, just don't want to pay the markup, and with the FR-S, you're really not losing out on that much of what a BRZ is offering.

^^^ so made me think of oregon trail... Flip the impreza over and ride across the Mississippi...