22 replies to this topic

[lilredjusty88]

hey guys time to revive the idea list for my 93 loyale sedan, with the blown #1 cylinder. i am trying to compile ideas as to what engine i should run in it.. i want MPG's as its going to be a commuter/travel car and i can't afford a gas hog.. i honestly thought about just sticking with the original 1.8ltr OHC as i can get 35+ out of it but i'd settle for 30 or so.. so here it goes, i'm open to ideas as to what engine to run in it, its all factory original right now.

[Subruise]

with an ej swap youll have more power and more mpgs to boot

[Fairtax4me]

You can easily do 35 with an Ej18, and have more power to go with it. An early ej22 would be a simple swap (obd1) and will get you about 35 more hp than the ej18, and still get you ~low 30 mpg when driven right. I would expect at least mid 30's with the lightweight EA chassis.

[lilredjusty88]

ok i have done homework and the EJ's are pulling a hefty price, i am on a budget of mass proportions..

[lilredjusty88]

ok i did homework on the EJ18 and can't figure out what the difference in the EJ18 and the EA82 really is im leaning towards the EJ18 though seems to fit my needs more, and questions have now arisen, can i use the same computer and wiring harness for the EJ that is used on the original EA? what accommodations have to be made to the trans and mounts to accommodate the EJ

[Loyale 2.7 Turbo]

ok i did homework on the EJ18 and can't figure out what the difference in the EJ18 and the EA82 really is ...

Basically talking, the EJ18 has a Single Timing belt for both heads and has Newer EFi Technology than the EA82, which has two different Timing Belts and weak castings on its first two gens Heads. (There are Three Gens of EA82 Heads)

... can i use the same computer and wiring harness for the EJ that is used on the original EA? ...

No.

... what accommodations have to be made to the trans and mounts to accommodate the EJ

Again, Basically talking, if you want to use the EA Transmission, you'll need an EJ to EA Adapter, also you need to Modify the Engine's Crossmember... and many other things, like to Swap the Wiring Harness and Computer, etc...

The Lowest budget plan could be to Swap another EA82 there, or Fix the one you already have: those are Easy to Fix.

Kind Regards.

[Subaru_dude]

Absolute easiest thing for you would be to go with either an EA82 or EA81. The EA81 is a little lighter, is a pushrod engine so there's no timing belts, notoriously reliable and the intake, exhaust, and trans will bolt right up to the engine. You'll have to run a little wiring to the disty because it's at the front of the motor and I think you may have to take it to a machine shop and have the EA81 disty gear welded to the bottom of the EA82 disty. Don't quote me on the disty part, there's a write-up GD did on the swap. You can google it to find it.

An EA81 with hydro lifters ('85-'89 all had hydro lifters, '80-'84 had hydro lifters in automatics only) might be hard to come by where you're at, I don't know. You could probably find one around here for a couple hundred shipped.

I'm not a fan whatsoever of the EA82 but they're really not bad engines. If you're pretty good with engines, you could swap the SPFI pistons out of your EA82 into an EA81 block for higher compression.

[lilredjusty88]

well i am quite the handyman when it comes to cars i'm not happy unless i'm dirty under the hood lol... so i'm probably going to do the ea series engine as it requires no mod's just bolt in and go LOL, plus i'm on a huge budget plus the car really ain't worth squat its beat to hell lol and i just need me a commuter car cuz the Brat needs alot of work and i don't have the time for it... just seems like everytime i fix one thing another breaks on it so just gonna fix the old dependable loyale :-D

Edited by lilredjusty88, 11 September 2012 - 07:45 PM.

[Crazyeights]

An EJ swap while worth the effort will get costly really fast. There are TONS of small details that have to be looked after and each one will take time and money. An EA82 while not the best engine Subaru ever made will go well over 200k with a fair amount of abuse and neglect. The EA81 is also a great option but it's getting REALLY hard to find a good core to rebuild. The EJ18 is a whole different beast - basically the same design as the EJ22, four valves per cylinder instead of two on the EA's, much better and more efficient design IMO. Having done the both the SPFI conversion and the EJ22 swap (don't get me wrong I love them both) it sure would be a LOT easier to find a 91-94 EJ22 Legacy than swap an old EA body over to EJ.

Edited by Crazyeights, 11 September 2012 - 08:03 PM.

[djellum]

when you say blown #1 cylinder what do you mean?

generally the absolute cheapest option is fixing the one you have. that being said I think the easiest would be getting a running used EA82 cheap and swapping it in. then take the one you have apart and repair it as you go. then you have a fresh replacement.

of course it depends on what you mean by blown. if its just failing a compression test you may just be able to rebuild a head and keep running it.

[lilredjusty88]

i am looking into the idea of getting a running ea82 or ea81 and puting it in the car and rebuilding the one that is in it so i will always have a running engine for the car cuz i don't wanna ever let it go i love the beast... when i say blown number #1 cylinder i mean it has a blown compression or oil ring

[ivans imports]

just put a piston and some rings at it or a 2.2

[Loyale 2.7 Turbo]

... when i say blown number #1 cylinder i mean it has a blown compression or oil ring

Sometimes a compression lost could be due a Blown Head Gasket and / or worn Valve seats and seals... Could you tell some Background info of your EA82 engine? ... Was it working Hot or Overheated before the problem happened?

I Kindly suggest you to take out that EA82 engine and Open it to take a better Look of its internal's Shape, maybe it only needs Head Gaskets and Valve job...

Kind Regards.

[scoobiedubie]

Since your car is a junker, you would be completely wasting you money doing an EJ swap. Since loyale prices have come way down, the cheapest thing to do if you already have about $1500, is buy a much lower mileage loyale of the same transmission and year. Then you keep your old car for parts, if you can keep it stored dry. An EJ swap can probably only be done by someone who has done it before because of things like the electrical wire harnesses, the transmission, etc. And also if you did an EJ swap, you would have to walk to pick up your replacement engine and parts. Humping a 500 lb engine on your back for 10 miles, could be a bit of a workout.

Before you do anything, you should attempt to tighten the cylinder head bolts with a 3/8" x 17mm socket, by simply pulling off the camshaft covers. If they can be tightened at all, then that could have been your problem in the first place.

[MilesFox]

you could consider this in an area that is flooded with them and no road salts, but in other places, they all rusted away, or never sold when they were new.

sometimes it's easier to swap what you have than to import a car from across the country

find a whole legacy for a few hundred and there you go. you still need a bellhousing adaptor or some fab skills

[lilredjusty88]

well guys first off to cover the issue of the current engine, its blowing oil up the intake and out the throttle body.. i have pulled the #1 plug wire and made no difference in the way the engine ran, all the rest of the plugs when i did a similar thing stalled the engine... that is how i deduced that it was #1 cylinder blowing the oil.. and then i learned from a mechanic friend of mine that is ASE certified that it can either be an oil or compression ring causing it.. my reasoning for saying compression is because sometimes it started up really funny sounded like it didn't have compression.. Ok now to answer the second question i did have a 92 loyale wagon i picked it up for 900$ just needed a clutch and plug wires, original owner 145k on it, had leaky cam seals, bad front brakes, bad cv axle, but ran like a CHAMP 4x4 worked flawless, i was stupid for EVER getting rid of it, it was rust free, and looked brand new.. i'd do anything for a chance to have it back it was an immaculate example of a 20yo car, traded it for my old 83 GL which was grandma owned and looked new which just wasn't me it was BARF yellow and it had issues but ran great till the ignition system took a ************, so i traded it in the condition it was in for 79 brat and now i'm screwed with it because there is no ignition voltage what so ever when u turn the key on.. the coil don't energize, the gauge lights don't come on, i have really screwed up now

[Loyale 2.7 Turbo]

...there is no ignition voltage what so ever when u turn the key on.. the coil don't energize, the gauge lights don't come on, i have really screwed up now

In the '79 Brat or in the EA82 subject of this Thread?

Have you Checked the Fusible Links?

[lilredjusty88]

i was just making mention of the hot water i'm in now with all this.... the brat has no fusible links like the ea's do

[scoobiedubie]

Sounds like you have a leaky cylinder head gasket from loose cylinder head bolts, and an intake valve is not sealing possibly from the standard crack between the intake and exhaust valves. It is probably also spraying coolant and the overflow coolant bottle empties real fast. Simple fix. Get a rebuilt cylinder head with no cracks, and clean those cylinder head bolts off real good before reinstalling them.

Edited by scoobiedubie, 13 September 2012 - 12:45 AM.

[86 Wonder Wedge]

Has anyone (even your "ASE certified" mechanic) inspected the pass side timing belt/cam alignment? If you have a jumping/off belt, it can cause intermittent no/hard starts and the "spitting" back through the intake (i.e. the engine starts to compress before the valve closes and is spitting the oil/air mix from the PCV out..) You could also have a dead/dying HLA (lifter) either failing to open OR close. I almost wrote-off a rebuilt EA82T for "No compression" until I discovered the HLAs were stuck in the bores...

I'd pull plugs 1 and 3 and compare to 2 and 4 and do a compression and leak down on 1,3 and 2 (2 for compro sake).

Can't make bricks without clay!

[lilredjusty88]

See i had a problem with some coolant getting in the oil and i realized the problem before driving it and making a big mess so i'm not sure what the hell happend i'm wondering would it be best to rebuild it or what??? its had a valve job about 40k ago and new head gaskets..

[86 Wonder Wedge]

You can do the job with the motor in the engine bay. (It's worlds easier to pull it and plop it on a tire, but not necessary)

If you're also drinking coolant or blending it, then it sounds like a headgasket. Do you have any record of who did the valve/HG job before?

On the last EA82T i worked on, the HG blew not b/c of the gasket, but 3 of the head bolts had worked themselves out and stripped the block. Now, I fixed it by boring the M11 out to an M12 since an M11 tap wasn't readily available (and it was a beater w/ 165K) and it held great! So incase that's also your issue, there are options. If you do it, just be sure to follow the torque specs TO THE LETTER (NUMBER/ whatever). 3 stages and never overtorque or you'll strip that aluminum.

[lilredjusty88]

i was the one that did the head gasket, my bud that has been working on cars for 30 some odd years did the valves for me..like i said the water in oil thing was related to the de-icer gasket on the throttle body going bad... wasn't related to the head gasket going at all