O.C.D.'s 1980 Brat - "The Squirrel"

[O.C.D.]

And the final assembly and paint complete.

 

And without further ado, WRX seats in a gen 1!

 

Lined up perfectly.

[biffanyus]

Nice but can you even get into the brat now??? LOL!!!

[86BRATMAN]

is this the first gen1 brat with aribags? lol

[O.C.D.]

is this the first gen1 brat with aribags? lol

 

Nice but can you even get into the brat now??? LOL!!!

 

Well, you'd think not.  But I can get in and out just fine and there is a little leg room like before.  Only real issue is my head is about 1/4" from the roof as opposed to 3/4" like before.

 

is this the first gen1 brat with aribags? lol

 

Yes indeed.  lol

[Nico]

nice seat work wish mine was that easy 

Edited June 29, 2013 by Nico

[BratRod]

Geez... looks real good. Wish I could afford them, lol. Nice job.

[SmashedGlass]

OCD, have you tried checking the Mitchell manuals at the downtown Penrose library, in the reference section downstairs? Just about anything you would need to know is in those, carbs, engines, trannys, wiring, etc.  I can't remember if they have one that goes back to the '79 or not, but from memory (I moved to FL last year) they had a fairly complete collection of the import manuals....minus the electrical schematics for the 1988 GL thanks to a thief someone too cheap to spend $1 to copy them 

[O.C.D.]

OCD, have you tried checking the Mitchell manuals at the downtown Penrose library, in the reference section downstairs? Just about anything you would need to know is in those, carbs, engines, trannys, wiring, etc.  I can't remember if they have one that goes back to the '79 or not, but from memory (I moved to FL last year) they had a fairly complete collection of the import manuals....minus the electrical schematics for the 1988 GL thanks to a thief someone too cheap to spend $1 to copy them 

In this day and age I never would have thought about the library, odd.  I just might look into that if I can't snag an FSM.  I have been scouring the web for free downloads with no luck.

[SmashedGlass]

I would recommend giving it a shot, you'll at least find something of use in that section of the library.

[O.C.D.]

Well I finally got some time to try that silly nut again.  Frankly I am shocked at how hard it was to get off.  1/2" impact at 150 PSI didn't touch it!!!  So I listened to Ivan's idea on using the Dremel and low and behold I got it off.  Damn thing popped as it gave too?!  Must have been some serious tension on it.

 

Anyhow.  The gear was free and once removed all went smoothly

 

And here is the carnage count.  Luckily I ordered a new nut and washer already.

 

4wd transition housing clean as a whistle.

 

And what I needed to get too the whole time to split the case.

 

And finally!!!!!!

 

And after countless hours of cleaning and fixing seals I found the reason for all of the leaking on the Squirrel.  Believe it or not, the trans output seal was the only thing I should have needed to change on this entire build and it would not have leaked anymore.  Oh well.  Whoever cracked this case before didn't replace the seal?!  I can tell this is original based on dry rot.

 

Picture do it no justice - the seal literally crumbled in my hands.

 

So I thoroughly cleaned the inside of the housing and did the output seals as well.  Easier than on the car and no messing with proper shimming.

 

So for all of this work I am on the downward slope of the project (drive-train wise).

 

Gonna seal her up tonight and then clean the undercarriage a bit. 

 

[sancofw]

OCD, Great details on the build.  I just rebuilt my carb and think I have all the pieces back in the right spot.  Did you get the answers you needed there? I can get some pics and try to post if you need them.   ??

[sancofw]

I took a bunch of pics of the carb and stuck them in photobucket here.  This is a carb off my 79 Texas Brat, I think it is all original, but can't swear to it.  It did match the diagram to the rebuild kit & pics I've seen.  Has all the correct linkage as far as I can tell  http://s1111.photobucket.com/user/sancofw/library/Subie%20Carb  

[O.C.D.]

Wow, thanks Sancofw!!  I can now see that I need to build a few of those connecting rods.  I am missing like 3 of them.  I will have to go off of your pics so don't take them down, lol.  THank you for taking the time to post those and link me to them!

[sancofw]

Let me know which ones you need, I won't be putting it on the motor for a few weeks, so I can pull them and get dimensions for you etc if you want.

[O.C.D.]

Not much to update as I am waiting forever for parts from SOA.  I did get the trans re-sealed and about to be completed. Can't do much without the magical nut that was such a pain to get off.

 

So I am left with some other options.

 

While I wait though can anyone tell me the correct gear oil and correct amount of oil for this trans?  I have found that 75-90 is probably the right oil but I cannot find the amount needed.  And silly question but where do I fill it?  Do I funnel through the dipstick or?

 

Once rebuilt I will mate her up to the engine and drop her in.  Some more body work and then she is going up for sale, lol.  Time for a new project me thinks.

Edited July 12, 2013 by O.C.D.

[BratRod]

....FOR SALE?!?!?!

[O.C.D.]

....FOR SALE?!?!?!

Yup, probably.  I never keep what I build.  I like to move on to other projects..

 

Basically I eat all the costs and time for the fun of it.  My last motorcycle, my last Jeep, etc. they all go forward to new owners.

Edited July 15, 2013 by O.C.D.

[BratRod]

I guess I'm just too sentimental for that. I get attached to whatever I put hours into, haha. 

[O.C.D.]

Sentimentality prevents me from new projects.  Well, maybe I should say my Wife does if I keep them, lol.

[O.C.D.]

Oh and I finally got my parts coming from SOA this Friday.  Time for the trans to be finished and mated up!!!

[O.C.D.]

Finally got some time to work on the Squirrel.  Finished buttoning up the transmission.  SO, I am getting really close to dropping the combo back in. 

 

All new seals and gaskets all around. Tore the starter apart as well.  Modified shift linkage to use standard 5/16 hardware as well.

 

When I got the Brat there were no reverse lights as the switch leads were sheered off.  So I rewired both the reverse and 4WD switches.

 

New shifter bushings installed as well.  The gear shifter was so worn it lost the button on top.  But I could still put the bushing on.

 

New tie rod dust covers to seal it up as the others were disintegrated.  And this is what the cups looked like.  Dry as a bone.

 

Cleaned up the 4WD shifter bracket as well.

Edited July 29, 2013 by O.C.D.

[Reza]

Nice, where did you pick up the gear shifter bushing? I'll need one of those. thanks for posting the break down and assembly pictures.

[O.C.D.]

Nice, where did you pick up the gear shifter bushing? I'll need one of those. thanks for posting the break down and assembly pictures.

 

SOA -

 

733146090

 

[O.C.D.]

One of my gripes has been with the remnants of the rubber suspension components.  I can not find anything from SOA for the sway bars and those are completely rotted out.  But I was able to get the leading rod bushings.  Figured I might as well do that while the transmission is out.  The lighter colored stuff in the picture is the old bushing.

 

Here be the new ones.

 

Turned out I needed to drop the trans cross-member as the rods would not move cause they are welded to the control arms, duh.  Benefit is I needed to clean it anyway.  Here you can see the nut off and the one bushing out.

 

Hmmmm....  Guess they were bad?  This is the best one too.

 

Probably about ten pounds of oil soaked dirt on the cross member!!!

 

All cleaned up.

Edited July 29, 2013 by O.C.D.

[O.C.D.]

Forgot to add I have a Weber and adapter plate coming this week. I was missing too many parts on the Hitachi and I think it sucks anyway, lol. So the carb is outta there once the engine and tranny go back in. Should be firing it up soon!