Mechanical_misfit Posted February 25, 2012 Share Posted February 25, 2012 After being out of a Subaru for almost a year now, I have fallen back into the game. I recently found a pretty clean `84 DL 4x4 wagon, and jumped on it. I paid $1150 for it. I don't think it was a bad price considering how hard these things are to find here in MI. I know shipping one in similar shape would have been about that much anyways. Plans for now are to get it back into fighting shape with a few needed maintenance items. Then after doing some repairs on my `87 Toyota van, I will have the time to give it a proper repaint and restoration. Here's some pics. I can't say enough how happy I am to have finally gotten my hands on an ea81. gotta love Michigan's winter. These pics were a day apart. Also, anyone have Ideas on why my gas gauge seems to be all over the place? At full it reads 3/4 and doesnt really make up its mind from there. I am also in need of a left tail lamp if anyone has one they would part with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomRhere Posted February 25, 2012 Share Posted February 25, 2012 Hasn't this Winter been wierd? It can go away now!!!! Nice looking Wagon!! Issues I've had with the gas gauges on the BRATs have been corrosion in the connectors at the sending unit. My fix was to cut-out the connectors, solder the wires back together using some heat-shrink tubing over the repair. The stock bullet connectors are not all that waterproof, so moisture gets in there. One could buy the proper newer style of connectors and put them in. I just took the easy way... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanical_misfit Posted February 25, 2012 Author Share Posted February 25, 2012 Thanks on the tip Tom. I'll give that a shot later today when I have it in the garage. I'm changing out the passenger front axle. This winter definitely has been weird. I've never seen Muskegon Lake unfrozen all winter like this. Not complaining though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomRhere Posted February 25, 2012 Share Posted February 25, 2012 Tail light link. http://www.car-part.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivantruckman Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 definatly a weird winter, finally got some decent snow yesterday, awesome wagon , i just got rid of my ea81 stuff last year,were you looking for a taillight lens ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanical_misfit Posted February 26, 2012 Author Share Posted February 26, 2012 definatly a weird winter, finally got some decent snow yesterday, awesome wagon , i just got rid of my ea81 stuff last year,were you looking for a taillight lens ? thanks for the compliment. Yes, I'm looking for the left tail light, and also the roof rack and trim is missing. I would love to find a factory style push bar for it too. I commute through an area that is notorious for deer hits and would like a little bit of protection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLoyale Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 Nice GL. Rather clean for a MI car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanical_misfit Posted February 26, 2012 Author Share Posted February 26, 2012 Its actually not a native to MI. I was told the original owner brought it here from some where out west. Not sure where, but I'm not too concerned either way. Today's project will be getting the odometer working. I noticed that it works if you hold in the button that resets the trip gauge. I hope it just needs some cleaning. I guess we'll see once i pull it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLoyale Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 Its actually not a native to MI. I was told the original owner brought it here from some where out west. Not sure where, but I'm not too concerned either way. Today's project will be getting the odometer working. I noticed that it works if you hold in the button that resets the trip gauge. I hope it just needs some cleaning. I guess we'll see once i pull it out. Somes like something is loose in the Odometer, When you push on the trip reset, you are applying pressure therefor it starts working. Looking forward to seeing more of this car! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanical_misfit Posted March 2, 2012 Author Share Posted March 2, 2012 Well, being that work is too slow for me to be there today, I figured that it would be a good day to do some work on this little guy. I'm just getting started now. I uploaded some before pictures to IMGUR, I'll go through and update with some after pics when I'm done. Here is the album of before shots. Mechanicalmisfit.imgur.com Be warned, these are large images and I have not had time to re-size all of them yet Today's plan is to buff out the paint and do some detailing. I'm going to touch up the b and c pillars were the paint is fading too. Time to get cleaning! Weekend Nachos ftw! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BATLWGN Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 I clicked the link and it says your album is empty. but I agree that it looks clean for a MI car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanical_misfit Posted March 3, 2012 Author Share Posted March 3, 2012 album should be working now. I also resized all of the pics. anyway, here is how my day went. The paint on this thing is actually in pretty rough shape. It has pitting everywhere and was faded. I eventually want to do a complete repaint, but I still have to replace or patch the rocker panels. Money is tight on this end right now, but once my summer job with the DNR starts back up I'll have the extra funds to do that. For the time being I thought it would be nice to make this thing a little bit more presentable. These pillars were faded out from the original black. Easy fix scuffed and masked off. also did the wiper arms while I was at it. sprayed on the color, I used some cheap base coat that I had kicking around. Cleared Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanical_misfit Posted March 3, 2012 Author Share Posted March 3, 2012 then it was on to buffing. you can sorta see my progress in this pic I found a matching spare, and buffed out my air cleaner cover. I'll do more under-hood detailing once I have some degreaser. It was getting there, and I was getting excited to get it outside to see it. I can't wait for a sunny day to really see her shine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanical_misfit Posted March 3, 2012 Author Share Posted March 3, 2012 and here is the after All in all, it only took me about 5 hours worth of work. I was really milking the job too. I was lucky that my aunt had stopped by and dropped me off some beer that her and my Uncle did not plan on drinking It was really nice of my grandmother to let me use her garage today. My current house doesn't have one, and with the weather we had, it made it all the more appreciated. If you have a faded out old car, it is definitely worth your time. This thing is looking great now, I am thrilled. All in time for this thunderstorm that is supposed to turn into a snow storm this evening. Gotta love MI Stay tuned for more updates, I've got more plans for this guy. I just gotta stay with in a pretty tight budget. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1982gl4 Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 It's looking good man! You should repaint the trim pieces on the bottoms of the doors. The sunken in sections are supposed to be black originally, with the raised sections sanded to to metal. I repainted my 82's over the summer and they made it look so much better! Keep up the good work! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanical_misfit Posted March 3, 2012 Author Share Posted March 3, 2012 It's looking good man! You should repaint the trim pieces on the bottoms of the doors. The sunken in sections are supposed to be black originally, with the raised sections sanded to to metal. I repainted my 82's over the summer and they made it look so much better! Keep up the good work! I was wondering about that. A long time ago I saw another DL in a junkyard that looked like they had been painted that way. Do you have a pic of yours? I was also thinking of getting some aluminum polish and trying to bling them out. Are they aluminum even lol? Also thanks for the compliment. After seeing your progress on the fwd wagon, I couldn't help but get motivated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1982gl4 Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 (edited) This is right after I painted them (the first time, they faded again after about two years) Actually I think this is the first time the car came out of the garage after paint I think they are aluminum. Although they bend kind of hard (my brat has them as well and I had to pound out a dent) so they could be stainless? Not sure on the material they do polish up nicely though. Edit, just found this one of my Brat. Edited March 3, 2012 by 1982gl4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanical_misfit Posted March 3, 2012 Author Share Posted March 3, 2012 That is a very nice wagon! I will have to go and paint those panels then. Maybe I can do it next Friday if I wind up not working. I'm thinking of re-painting my bumpers too. They are faded pretty bad, and it would make the car look so much better if they were black again. I really want to get a brush guard similar to what you have on your brat too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1982gl4 Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 Thanks! It was in very bad condition when I got it. I probably shouldn't have fixed it, but I loved it to death after having about a week and knew I needed to fix it. Definitely paint the panels it would make that car look sharp. I'd be hesitant to paint the bumpers. People on here have had good luck using back to black (product by mothers) on the bumpers. I have yet to try it. A brushguard would be sweet if you can track one down. I got lucky and there was one at a local pick and pull. They had no idea was it was, I got it for the high price of $35 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanical_misfit Posted March 3, 2012 Author Share Posted March 3, 2012 I've also heard mixed reviews on painting those textured bumper covers. I will have to talk with my painter buddy and see what he says. It seems like that back in my days at the body shop, one of our suppliers had a good paint system for them. Maybe I can figure something out. I've also had good luck with the back to black stuff, but these guys are ugly and I would like them to look as good as the other trim that I've painted. We will see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanical_misfit Posted March 3, 2012 Author Share Posted March 3, 2012 I'm waiting to hear back on the sale of my fixie, and don't want to count any chickens before they hatch, but what does everyone think of these stripes? Does anyone have a pic of these on a car? I like them a lot, but like I've said, I'm on a pretty tight budget for this thing. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Gen-2-Subaru-BRAT-Hatchback-Wagon-Desert-Fox-Stripes-/140529338681?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&vxp=mtr&hash=item20b8338939#ht_500wt_969 I managed to put some rain x on the windows. It's cheaper than buying new wiper blades No real other progress to report today. I think I over indulged in that free beer last night Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatRover Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 Thought maybe you'd appreciate this picture. Glad to see the cars in good hands, I'll definitely miss it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BATLWGN Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 Nice pictures and it looks fairly solid still! Love the Sasquatch Repellant sticker! I want one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanical_misfit Posted March 5, 2012 Author Share Posted March 5, 2012 Haha, thanks for the pic Josh, that's classic! Thanks Batlwgn, I thought I saw that you're a fellow Michigander. Your wagon also looks like it's in pretty nice shape. I might have a set of center caps for you when you decide to repaint your wheels if you're interested. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BATLWGN Posted March 5, 2012 Share Posted March 5, 2012 Haha, thanks for the pic Josh, that's classic! Thanks Batlwgn, I thought I saw that you're a fellow Michigander. Your wagon also looks like it's in pretty nice shape. I might have a set of center caps for you when you decide to repaint your wheels if you're interested. Thank you, it is still in reather decent shape. The interior is in excellent condition! but there is some rot underneath that I hope to fix come spring as well. Not as bad as some pics of the frame rails on here. And I would be interested in those center caps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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