wagonist

Actually, that isn't the "factory" switch for the front fog lamps, it's for the dealer fitted option fog lights (tho it might be for American specs cars) The factory fitted one (well at least JDM) sits in the bank of 6 beside the cluster between the steering wheel & door. Its the bottom left switch on RHD. I'll try to get a pic of the S1 version I've got at home. It has to be that because the series 1 GL wagons had a separate locking switch for the tailgate (which smart people remove because it allows you to break into the car in about 4 seconds ) It's a possible fitment on Series 2, but I've seen a full spec JDM turbo wagon with it still up the top, and not in the position where this switch should go.

Subarist, a thought I just had. IIRC, the fuel pump is in the engine bay on these models. You could simply T piece the fuel feed lines from each tank together without any valves. The system will automatically draw from wherever physics thinks is best (which I suspect will be from the higher tank first due to its higher "potential energy"). This will probably pressure the factory tank when you're not driving & cause it to overflow from the factory filler, so a 1-way valve on the line from that tank would be advisable. This method would eliminate any need for electronics or solenoids. If you want to have solenoids, search for something off older diesels which still have a mechanical distribution pump. The only way to stop an engine on those is to shut off the fuel, which they do by a solenoid in the fuel feed line which is has an electromagnet that is energised (open) when supplied power, and shuts when the power supply is removed. A lot of modern cars have the fuel feed come out the top of the tank, but they also have the fuel pump inside the tank pushing. Not sure how big the opening is for the sender as to whether you could squeeze a pump through there. In a previous job, I had a 200L tank for diesel mounted up on the aluminium tray of a "ute". It also had a larger metal toolbox up there also. But being a full chassis commercial vehicle, there's no way it would corner like a Subaru anyways... You could add a rear sway bar, and stiffen up the front one if you're worried about cornering. Won't have a bad effect on off-roading unless you're into the extreme stuff. People here with lift kits have cut their metal tanks & welded in strips to extend their range. If you're worried about about being in a remote place, try coming here. Our country is about 90% of the size of the US mainland, yet we only have 7 states and 10% of the population.

Why need a fuel sender? Why not plumb the outlet of this tank into the fuel filler nozzle with a valve (some kind of agricultural fitting), then when you see your normal tank is full, open the valve and let it gravity feed (because its higher up) into your normal tank. Of course, you're going to have to remember for this setup when you have the valve open or not, otherwise you'll assume you an extra 20 gallons reserve when you're already using it However, looking at the tank, you could simply drill whatever mounting holes you like. And for the sender, mostly they're just hanging off the end of a long metal rod, so that could be extended. In this kind of case, you could probably use a Subaru sender in the hole. Just watch out for the expansion of the tank in the sun. These tank are designed to be used down under seats/in the hold, etc, so they're out of the sun. Aluminium expands a lot with heat, so I'd recommend making some kind of insulated sun cover

It's doable with some jiggling and skill and patience. Personally, I'd rather support the chassis & then be able to disconnect the lower ball joints from the steering knuckles and reconnect the shafts after the box is in place.

We never got any turbo wagons here, so can't give you any advice about what was supposed to be the side strips. GL & RX here got the chrome strip. DLs got no strip, or sometimes a green one. I did a turbo conversion from a JDM halfcut 15 years ago & I think I remember it being red. I'm curious about the ST & T model designations. We only got DL, GL, RX

I thought it was standard on turbo models to have the blacked out trim (at least in this country). ie black handles, no chrome strip on the trim around the side windows It is interesting to see what variations of cars turn up in different places. Wonder if a turbo wagon in Kenya could be one left behind by the factory Subaru team when doing the African WRC in the late 80s/early 90s? Good to see another Touring Wagon saved

For clutch aligning tool, if your old trannie is completely stuffed and you don't think it'd be wanted by anyone else (considering it's a rare dual range) then cut off the input shaft as close to the casing as possible & use that as your clutch alignment tool. And if the wiring is different, just unplug & use the one off your existing (though being similar generation, I'd be surprised if they're different)

Great if you've got a VW because not much else will fit in the engine bay without mods, but the performance figures of these engines are pretty bad (but better than anything else available standard though) eg 2.0L Diesel engine in the Hyundai ix35 has 180hp & 289 lb-ft with equivalent fuel economy to the Forester and a slight upgrade to 2.2L Diesel engine in the Hyundai Santa Fe has 193hp & 321 lb-ft I personally wouldn't be converting my Subaru for a few years until they've got some time & development under their belts.

Great write up. Should be stickied. One thing to note is that the plastic surround on these are brittle. You need to be gentle undoing all of the screws. Use the smallest screwdriver possible, not the biggest. If the screw doesn't want to come undone, don't force it otherwise you'll snap the whole thing off. Work it a little bit at a time. Move onto the other screws & come back is a good idea. But have some epoxy and tape on hand to make up new pieces where they do break off. Don't bother trying to reglue anything that breaks.

Ditto about filters. Also, have you checked all your vacuum lines are plugged in/unbroken? And, yes your 2 cars are designed differently. The carb fuel pump can't even think about supplying enough fuel for an injected system.

You've checked the engine fits between the chassis rails? Because every EA82 into EA81 conversion I've ever seen has required the rails to be cut, sectioned & welded. Can be done quickly if you have the correct tools & know where to cut. As for the wiring, I'd like to see it done also. You need to check if the EA82 injectors are of the same impedance range as the EA81 versions. No point to use the EA81 injectors as they are rated for an engine with less power. And with the flapper type AFM, you can do changes to the mapping.

Be warned that you may or may not find that later model struts will rub on the strut towers under turning loads, because the springs are not wound as tightly. Some people have this problem & some don't.

They are also built in Japan, where even now, highway speed limits don't get much over 80km/h. And you thought 55mph seems slow If you want to reduce it, the best way is to fit oversized wheels, and learn the conversion needed so you don't get tickets.

Old thread digup Mainly cos I see those in the know are already here. I'm installing a spider manifold EA82T into my 89 NA MPFI EFI Touring wagon. The engine has the wiring loom attached, but being from an XT, it comes out the back, not the side. I have a "gold" turbo ECU to fit also I'm considering the following options: 1. remove the loom from my NA engine, modify it to reach the required sensors in their different positions. Except I don't know what sensors are where on the spider engine 2. make a patch loom that plugs into the spider's engine loom across to the wagon's body harness. again, I need to know what sensors are what so I can trace the wires. help please....

Not quite sure I'd agree, but only by my logic, not Subaru's Only because more modern self levelling suspensions for extra loads like you've mentioned are normally only fitted to the rear. Yet this is for all 4 corners. All of the Subaru height adjustments are only meant for getting over rough terrain in the short term, hence the reason they lower themsevles when going over 80km/h.

And there's this... I like that factory headunit. Are they hard to find over there? Looks much better than any factory offering available here.

Not sure about these models, but front LSDs are available for EJ type boxes.

I saw once a hydraulic unit like you're describing some 15 years ago. Never seen another since. Always wondered what happened to the ride height with these sitting on top of the suspension. It'd be a good way to do a lift by installing normal height shocks/struts. All of the Gen 1 GX Liberty (Legacy) AWD wagons here had the air suspension. But for the price of 1 replacement unit, you go out & buy 4 conventional aftermarket ones, so these get ditched. The air units are really only a gimmick. And the low range wasn't much use tho. Leone can mean anything from 73 to 94. It was the proper Japanese name for this sized car. Tho in Aus, the Leone was really only the sedan. I think the Loyale is 90 - 94.

How many wires does your current TPS have? There are 3 wire, 4 wire, and 5 wire versions around.

I'd be curious to hear how the rear bushings have fared. Because the pivot point through the rear arms isn't along the bolt centre line, the bushes actually twist & compress, which I think would flog out urethane versions in short time. I've also never liked the washers on the front radius rod idea either. The threaded section is thinner than the bar, which is normally within the mount, but now its pushed out of its "cocoon"

The crunched side will be next to impossible to get the bolts off. You'll need the correct tools and maybe tweak the A/C lines a bit to get passed them But basically, I'd be cutting the bumper off from in front of the rad support first. It's already toast. Just don't stand too close when you're almost finished cutting through one side. It's probably under some pressure and will want to spring back

Once you've got the hood open, check that the chassis rail between the wheelarch & firewall isn't bent. I hit a tree with pretty much exactly the same spot years ago doing 80km/h & it deformed the rail both in front & behind the wheel. caused it to be written off on insurance. But you hit something of similar weight & movable, so you should hopefully come out ok

cruise control front fog light rear fog light headlight washers pre 87 A/C "recirculating air" post 87 suspension height control "4wd auto" I know the US versions had 3 of these blanked off with black pieces, but the rest of the world got grey blanks that match the 2 already there So you would prob lose the front & rear fogs + headlight washers

Yes, there is an LED inside the ECU that you need to look for (it has a cutout for this purpose). The ECU on the XT is under the back parcel shelf The ECU on the Loyale type is bolted under the steering column. If you can sit just right, you can sometimes see the light in the gap between the plastic around the steering column and the next piece underneath fixed to the dashboard. Either that, or remove that lower part of trim to get clear vision. You only need a screwdriver to do this.

I did my later model wagon 2 tone back in the 90s. Looking at the lines on the Brat, I'd be more tempted to use the metal crease line just above the rubbing strip, then follow that line over the wheel arches. Harder to do with masking, but then it will follow the car all the way around (though I can't tell for the rear cos the cars are black & the shots are dark)