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Hi all! Just got a 1985 gl wagon....


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... and, my god, is it ever gutless. I'm working on squaring away some radiator issues and getting the choke adjusted so it won't die all the time when idling cold, but what I'm really wondering and daydreaming about is -- how can I get more power out of this thing?

 

I want to go the whole nine yards with this car as it is my first project car, ever. I've lurked the forums and seen some of the awesome wagons you guys have put together, and I'm wondering what you all have done to beef up the hp. I was thinking of maybe putting a turbocharger on mine, but I don't know if that's kosher with these engines (EA82). What are your thoughts on reducing my 0-60 time to less than 10 seconds? I would settle for less than 15. Right now it's like 32.

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Sounds like you are extremely close to me. I'm in willamette near the 10th street exit.

 

You should drop by my garage sometime so you can get an idea of what you can do and get some realistic expectations for your future mods.

 

GD

 

Oh man, that would be amazing! I'm a total noobie, and I would really appreciate some guidance, as this car is really starting to concern me. I was driving it today, and after a while, it started dying whenever I came to a stop. If I kept the gas on it, it ran fine, but as soon as I let off and slowed down, it would die. NOT SAFE! And the real kicker is that after driving it home, keep it running at red lights when it just wanted to die, I get it home and park it, and it starts idling fine. This car wants me dead, I'm sure of it. Any ideas? I picked up a Haynes manual today, and I'm going to try and adjust the choke to see if that solves my problem, but I'm unsure if this is symptomatic of something worse. I just had the carb rebuilt.

 

Edit: Thanks in advance for any replies, and a thousand thank you's for the generous offer.

Edited by brainpowerr
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Any ideas? I picked up a Haynes manual today, and I'm going to try and adjust the choke to see if that solves my problem, but I'm unsure if this is symptomatic of something worse. I just had the carb rebuilt.

 

Probably a bad rebuild. Who did you have do this? It's not likely that adjusting the choke will help. For one thing the choke is factory adjusted and not supposed to be changed. Same with the idle mixture.

 

Sadly rebuilding these is money wasted - the solution for economy, performance, and reliability is to install a Weber 32/36 DGV. They are down to about $199 for the carb. Then you just need the filter and adaptor plate and some JB weld to block the coolant port on the intake. Should easily get the job done for $275 if you do it yourself.

 

If you want a Subaru of that vintage to be economical you should most likely learn to do your own wrenching. Otherwise it's just going to nickle and dime you constantly. A combination of old technology such as the carb, elderly components, and a design that is unfamilair to most run-of-the-mill mechanics makes paying for someone to wrench on an EA81 or EA82 generally a losing proposition. Even with someone such as myself doing the work it's going to be less economical than a first generation Legacy - simply due to the Legacy being virtually the same entry price and being a lot more reliable in general. Easier to work on as well.

 

GD

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Probably a bad rebuild. Who did you have do this? It's not likely that adjusting the choke will help. For one thing the choke is factory adjusted and not supposed to be changed. Same with the idle mixture.

 

I took it to a shop in Tigard called Brake Team, they suggested the carb rebuild. I learned my lesson, not taking this thing back to a shop, going to do all the work myself. I changed out the thermostat last night, and I noticed that when I turn the car on the EGR light comes on. I just did a little reading on it. Could this be the reason for the car dying at idle? Most of the time now, if I don't keep the gas on, the engine stalls as soon as I slow to a stop. I thought of adjusting the idle speed, also. When I get home today I'm going to look into the EGR valve. I'll definitely get that Weber carb and cams once I get this thing running smoothly.

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EGR light is a mileage tripped service reminder light on your car. It has nothing to do with engine operation. It comes on every 60k miles.

 

Chain-store brake monkey rebuilds carb FTMFL! :-p

 

Sorry but that's hilarious. People that work at places like that have recently stepped up from shaking fry's out of a basket. The place is called Brake Team and I wouldn't even let them do brakes! :horse:

 

GD

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EGR light is a mileage tripped service reminder light on your car. It has nothing to do with engine operation. It comes on every 60k miles.

 

Well, that's good to know. I just checked out how to turn the light off, will do it when I get home.

 

Chain-store brake monkey rebuilds carb FTMFL! :-p

 

^^^This bugs me. Should have known, but I guess I'm a bit naive:confused::banghead:

 

Shopping for that carb right now, though. How much of a performance increase do you think I can expect? I know it won't be blazing fast or anything; I'm just curious.

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