GeneralDisorder

'83 - '86 Turbo's use a different, and older style distributor. The ignition advance is still partially mechanically controlled with a vacuum pot and mechanical advance. The '87+ distributor's are 100% electronic with no advance mechanisms at all. So no, they are not compatible. Unless you are refering to the (rare) '86 SPFI used on high-end 2WD's.... in that case it's the same but you will have to change the plug. GD

As with anything, that depends on how they are built and what the gear ratio is. With a 1.6:1 reduction, you would still be able to do 55 MPH at 4,000 RPM in 5th gear on 33's. I've already done all the math. And as stated - H1's run portal hubs as well Unimog's and other's. They are perfectly streetable. GD

Yep - that's classic wheel bearings. There should be no play in the wheel at all that you would be able to notice by hand. Front bearings are easy - go to a bearing house and get sealed unit's. GD

A socket with a wobbly and some extensions.... it's not easy. I moved mine to an easier to access location closer to the bell-housing. It's not *that* critical that it be located in exactly that spot. It's sensing detonation and that's going to be felt more or less the same as long as you are near the center-line of the block. GD

You can move the engine higher than the stock location, but at some point you are going to lose clearance on the hood (more so with a carb than with FI), and the transmission can only go so high before you are seriously in danger of having to cut the unibody out at the spare tire area. I would much rather lift it higher and get the added benefits of being able to run 32's or larger than try and re-engineer the body at great cost of time and effort only to gain virtually nothing from said effort. Lifting it higher and retaining the stock location of the engine and trans is preferable to my way of thinking. I swear - when I get my machine shop set up I'm going to build chain driven portal hubs and eliminate all this foolishness. A 1.6:1 reduction at each wheel would give all the lift you would need, all the gearing you would want, and take much of the stress off the stock drivetrain components. In combination with a bit of suspension rework, and a small body lift it would easily accomidate 33's and still be streetable on stock drivetrain components. GD

Should be okay to drive without it in the short term. I initially tried a used one as well when I had the knock code - didn't work. $53 IIRC from my dealer. Best to get a new one. GD

Even Loyale's aren't a great choice for a daily anymore. Seriously - go for a 93 or 94 Legacy - they are super dependable and easy to find parts for. 135 HP - they will take 5 psi of boost for about 200 HP.... what's not to love? GD

BAH! EA81's are easy! Try a Legacy with every option in the world! And I did in the POURING rain with myself (6' 2") and the dash IN the car while I replaced the heater core. BIG suck. You have the right man on the job though. GD

XT6's have issues with the oil pump shaft seals - check out the XT specific forum site for details. I believe a lot of folks move the location of the seal so it rides in a different location on the shaft as the shafts are often grooved badly resulting in the pump sucking air. Normal XT's are just EA82's with a quite different body. Unfortunately you really have to love the XT6 to actually own one. Parts are difficult to come by and they share almost nothing with any other vehicle. The engine is an EA82 with two extra cylinders (known as the ER27) - they are on par with reliability, but the maintenance parts are extraordinarily expensive being they were only made for three years - electronic components that are near impossible to source for less than your first born, electric power steering for which no fluid exists anymore , and a myriad of other strangeness that makes them undesirable for daily driving. I am personally of the opinion that if I can't throw a rock and hit a spare part for my daily within 10 miles of my house it's not a viable vehicle for me. If I lived in a lot of the locations that some of the poor souls on this board live in I would just drive a Toyota. If you a looking for a collectible and something to restore and drive on weekends - go for it. They are not viable daily drivers in this man's opinion. If you are looking for something for daily travel - get a Gen 1 Legacy. 93 and 94 being the best years. Consider anything older to be a part time job just to keep it on the road. I spend every other weekend keeping my fleet of old junk on the road - but I love it and accept it for what it is. If that's not what you want in life then trust me - XT6's are a poor choice. Along with just about every EA series out there at this point. Just too old and too many miles I'm afraid..... GD

There would be no room for the "rear" diff to be mounted in the front. Being it would need to go under the transmission.... that results in about a minimum of 8" to the front. Rear could stay stock height I guess if you wanted - sure would look damn funny though GD

Did you replace it with a new one or a used one? What year/model are we talking about. There were some 90's knock sensors that were prone to cracking and were superseded with a new part. Old one's have a grey connector - new one's have a white connector. GD

Correct - and none of the '94 GT's were turbo. They were all non-turbo 5 speed's. GD

First, late 90's and early 2000's are cheap for a reason - they have a bad reputation for blowing head gaskets in the phase I and phase II 2.5 liter engine's. If you do get one, make SURE the head gaskets have already been replaced with the updated versions. I have no clue about the ABS. Although I can tell you that all of the ABS systems I am aware of in the Subaru world were 4 wheel systems. My '91 turbo has one of the early systems (the first actually) and it's a 4 wheel system. You won't find rear drums on a Legacy unless it's a very low end Brighton model or similar. They existed, but it's not common. And even should you run across one that you otherwise like and it has drums - they are easily swapped out for the disc system. There are no lockers available for Subaru diffs - at least not the diffs that would be found in that era of Legacy. There may be some available for the R180's and larger diffs used in the STi's and maybe other applications? There aren't any for the R160 though. What is available is the Limited Slip versions used on some of the WRX's and turbo's of various years. If you swap the diff you have to match the ratio of the one you take out as otherwise it will not be compatible with the transmission. If you are looking for an automatic, watch out for "torque bind". Do a search for it here on the board and you will get an idea of what it is, and what years it mostly affects. If you stick with a manual it won't be an issue. Personally, I would avoid anything with the phase I and II 2.5 - which means some 96's, and most '97 through 2001. Anything before or after that (and some exceptions in the middle that still used the 2.2) is a good choice. The most sought mid 90's Legacy is probably the '96 Legacy Outback. That's after they got the suspension upgrade, and the last year they came with the 2.2. A more reliable car you will not find. If you can stand something a bit older, all the 90 through 94 Legacy's have the 2.2. They are also well-optioned as they were the default flag-ship model of their day - the Loyale's filling in the low-end model lineup. My '91 Turbo Sport Sedan has more power and torque than my GF's 2007 Impreza Outback Sport..... lots of fun. GD

If you aren't willing to install a divorced t-case, then you are stuck with the gearing you have unless you want to spend BIG $$ on an EJ dual range transmission from europe and install 4.11 gears and the low range from the USDM 5 speed D/R (1.59:1). That will only lower your diff ratio from 3.9 to 4.11 though and it would be AWD not 4WD. For running the rear diff in the front with a t-case, 10" of lift is better. 8" is the bare minimum to clear everything but you end up modifying the floor pan to make it work. GD

Transmissions in my u-pull-it yards are $79.99 plus core. On virtually EVERY holiday weekend they run 50% off sales. And there's always a dozen 5 speed D/R cars to choose from among the 5 yards that are part of the "LKQ" chain that runs these deals. After all said and done, it's easily under $100 even with the core and the environmental fee, etc. Reminds me that I need to pick up a couple for my shed GD

Yeah - but there's no confirmation that it WAS a US car. Just like the EA81 touring wagon seen by NVZeno - clearly not a US market vehicle. Service-members often bring stuff like that back from other countries or it comes in from South America or Canada. According to all the sales literature I've ever seen, the EA82 touring wagon was for the '89 model year only. GD

Without knowing more I can't discount that possibility, but from the sounds of it, it just happened out of the blue at 160k.... and I've seen this happen before - I've seen them snap the valve guide casting clean off and bend the valve. It's not a common failure, and I don't know definitively what causes it.... frankly IMO just one more reason not to run the EA82's. Since I stopped running them I've been a much happier person. GD

Touring wagons, in the EA82 body style, were only imported in '89. There was the gen 1 Legacy Turbo Touring Wagons, but those were only made in 93/94. As far as I know, in 90/91/92 there was not a touring wagon option in the US. And no EA82T's of any kind were made after 90. GD

If you want seperate thermoswitches for the fans, that's fine - but where are you going to mount it? I don't like the surface mount style units. I think those are gay. I would use the stock thermoswitch - use it to control a relay that in turn trips on both fans. If you upgrade the alternator it won't have any trouble running both at the same time. Besides - the stock AC equipped EA81's ran both fans with the 50 amp alternators. I have one in my wagon and it runs without issue. The stock thermoswitches are set for 95 C, so 203 F. You want them about 8 to 10 degrees above the thermostat. I doubt your Brat had a "mystery" radiator. All EA81 radiators are two-row units. There was a cap style change in '83 so you may have seen something you didn't recognize. My '83 hatch has a replacement radiator in it with the older style cap and automatic transmission cooler pipe. You just have to know what you are looking at. I don't know of any other model radiator that will easily fit the EA81. GD

Les Schwab GD

I've seen a number of Subaru exhaust failures directly on weld seams like that. I have just clamped them back together on the bench and welded right through the old weld to repair them. I've had header's snap off on both EA81 and EJ22 stock exhausts. In both cases I simply rewelded them at the failure point and have not had an issue. GD

To get it to kick in late like that you would need a 12v delay timer, and a relay.... at least. GD

Parts will be difficult, yes. I would pass on the '81 just because of the EA71 and the lack of a D/R transmission (or even the option without swapping the engine). Externally regulated alternator, engine bay mounted fuel pump (no return line), etc, etc. If you want a hatch, look for an '83 or newer. Easier to find parts for, and capable of accepting the 5 speed, SPFI, all the goodies. An '81 will just be a headache. GD

They are non-vented. Vented cap's went out when the EPA mandated evaporative emissions systems. The tank vents though the charcoal cannister. GD

No - you cannot install them by hand. The way this sort of thing happens though makes it unlikely that a simple repair will do the job. Either the valve stuck in the guide, or the valve seat came out of the head and jammed it open - as a result the rocker arm fell out sideways and probably when the valve finally unstuck itself the rocker arm got caught between the cam and the spring - compressing the spring and allowing the keeper to fall out. It is very likely that the engine will need a new head at this point - assuming no damage to the piston or cylinder occured from whatever jammed the valve. Pull the head - can't hurt to look at this point. GD