subawoohoo Posted April 17, 2004 Share Posted April 17, 2004 i have a 1980 gl hatchback, 4wd 4 spd. i dont wanta mud slinging off roader. RALLY x ok ive been rally-ing arround in the nearby deserts in tucson, and well, id like to know what mods, mainly suspension mods i should do. does anyone have any cool suggestions/mods that i can do so that i have a better handler and a car that can take some bumps. the tracks i run on are curvy, usually s curves with small quad birms. what suspension mods are available. should i go with harder shocks? PS(i dont like body roll) if so what others will fit?waht combo would be best so that i can hit the bumps i have around here and still be able to turn without toppling. also im lookin to do a rear disk setup. i know the swap can be done but i havnt heard it being done on my year. will it work. and probably the most important. id like power steering. ive searched but came up with no useable info on the swap. what cars should i look for with PS that i can rob from? and what parts will i need to complete the swap. ill be hearding to junkyards tomorrow so id like a list of "useable" cars for my scavenging. im pretty sure thats all for now. thanks a LOT guys tyler j Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subawoohoo Posted April 17, 2004 Author Share Posted April 17, 2004 ok ill just go and hope whatever i pick up fits. later tyler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carfreak85 Posted April 17, 2004 Share Posted April 17, 2004 For your suspension heres what I'd do: Beefy struts. FRONT: http://www.subarubrat.com/frntshk.htm REAR: Rancho for a Toyota FJ60 might work if you lift the hatch but what has been tested is a top mount of XP7 and a lower mount of LS26 or simlilar. Get a shock length that matches your requirements. BRAKES: Rear discs WILL PROBABLY fit on your car. You'll never know until you try. POWER STEERING: Look for any EA81 that has power steering. EA81Ts came with PS, and it was optional on other cars. EA82 might work, but I doubt it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. RX Posted April 17, 2004 Share Posted April 17, 2004 You are dealing with a car that is 24 years old, most after market manufacturers don't even make parts for cars that old unless they also fit more current models. When dealing with a car that old you need to be able to modify and improvise to make parts fit. You might be lucky and find somethng that does fit, but most of the time there will be some sort of modification required. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subawoohoo Posted April 17, 2004 Author Share Posted April 17, 2004 thanks carfreak, Dr rx, take a look , "aftermarket", what i meant by that is that i wanted to know what other SUBARU parts from other late model SUBARUS would fit, as in would i be able to do a rear disk setup on my gen 1 car, perhaps from a gl10 or loyale? i know theres a thread going on right now too. would i be able to fit the rear coilover shocks or struts (whatever) from a loyale or a gl10. i know i know i know that AEM and preformance parts manufacturers dont make "go fast" goodies for our cars. and i dont care if they do, BUT i was really just looking for INTERCHANGEABLE parts that would be slight upgrades. ya know. i shoulda been more clear. THATS waht im lookin for. thanks again all. tyler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soobme Posted April 17, 2004 Share Posted April 17, 2004 Well..... there is not much in the way of interchange between a gen.II and late model stuff. U can get the type of suspention U are looking for, but it will be ALOT of custom work and $$$ to get it up to par for a pre-runner(wich is what it sounds like U want to build) U could make new strut bodies for the front and use Monroe PN#73963 for the cartridges (this will give U 8.875" of trav. in the strut and stifer valving). While making the new body convert to 3" coil-over style springs (14" long 225lb springs should be about right)and that will help with tire clearance and body sway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushbasher Posted April 18, 2004 Share Posted April 18, 2004 I would get some 14" pugs with some rallyish tires on them, in the 25" tall range. You might have to trim a fender lip here or there, but it will be an improvement to the looks and performance. A weber carb would definitely help in powering you through those s-curves. Its all up to driver preference really, If you feel that body roll is killing you in the corners, you should look into adding stiffer swaybars from an rx, or perhaps stiffer front coils. If your car bucks and wallows when you drive it hard then get stiffer shock absorbers. hey soobme about how much would those long travel strut inserts cost? I'm definitely interested in that for my rig. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subawoohoo Posted April 18, 2004 Author Share Posted April 18, 2004 well now i cant say that a subaru pre runner wouldnt be AWSOME!! but thats not what i want. (out of my subaru at least.) no rather i just want to upgrade the suspension a little. all i do is rally my car in the local trails and dirt roads. i dont aim for bumps or gullies if thats what u think. and if any one had any tips and tricks i would be happy to give a hearing ear. thats all. so let me rephrase my questions one more time. 1.) will the rear shocks/struts/coilovers whatever fit onto my car? they really look like they will. will it be benificial? it should be. 2.) will the rear disk setup from a loyale or gl10 fit onto my car? 3.) i need info for a powersteering swap. what donor cars will be useful, and waht should i look out for? hell will it even work? thanks alot guys, i plan to put a little money in my car, tomorrow actually, so the info will really hit the spot. thank again and i await your responces. tyler j Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subawoohoo Posted April 18, 2004 Author Share Posted April 18, 2004 soobme, thanks for the shock info by the way. bushbasher, i agree with your first paragraph, that lies ahead though, your second paragraph told me what i already know. in the corners when i have the rear of my car sliding, it feel like the top is leaning and just pulling the bottom of my car. (hard to explain.) so when im hitting these little birms while sliding arround the corners, it doesnt feel like my car will stay upright. i do need stiffer shocks but im trying to figure out which ones will fit. thanks im pretty sure im just going to get the shocks, that doesnt really matter all that much anyways, but i really would like to know about the power steering and rear disk brakes. thanks for the info and suggestions. tyler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushbasher Posted April 18, 2004 Share Posted April 18, 2004 Yes the discs from any 4wd turbo ea82 subaru should work. The rear suspension is a torsion bar type so increasing the spring rate in the rear would be hard. Sticking in a rear coilover from an ea82 car would make the rear too stiff because you would have the torsion bar and the coilover together making 2x the normal spring rate. In the front, the strut is composed of a spring on the outside and a shock absorber inside the assembly. You would have to do some research to find a kind of shock absorber insert that will fit inside the strut and have a stiffer rate. You can put a stiffer spring in the front which could also help. A larger sway bar from an rx will reduce body roll. Not sure about the power steering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subawoohoo Posted April 18, 2004 Author Share Posted April 18, 2004 now that was helpfull thanks bushbasher. if you have any remidies for the suspension, keep me posted, im goin searchin... . again. thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. RX Posted April 18, 2004 Share Posted April 18, 2004 Tyler, why didn't you say that instead of saying 'aftermarket'. When you said you "need "aftermarket" parts" I figured you wanted 'aftermarket' parts. Again, it would be a lot of trial and error to figure out which parts from newer Subarus would work on the Gen Is. Subaru did do some strange things like making it so that the EA82 rear disc brakes would work on a Gen II BRAT or a Hatchback, but I'm not sure if they will go as far back as a Gen I. The best thing is to get a set and try to make them work. I've seen people on this board do some amazing things. I know many people thought about doing the 4 to 5 bolt conversion, but before I did it, no one was really sure it would work. So, take that step, go out and see what will work, experiment, modify, have a good time, and let the rest of us know how things turn out. Never be afraid to try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushbasher Posted April 18, 2004 Share Posted April 18, 2004 I thought he was talking about a genII hatch? like ea81 not ea71? I guess Im still not clear on the years of transition from ea71 to ea81 :-\. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subawoohoo Posted April 18, 2004 Author Share Posted April 18, 2004 ok dr rx, my mistake, shesh, i just really enjoy writing and playing with words, and well reading my first post i thought it pointed to that i wanted to just use subaru parts. now i completely agree with you in that i should go out and just try, but its already been done, and well im not one that absoulutely has to learn from my and only my mistakes. if 15 people completed an engine swap and someone came on asking about it, i think telling him to just try and hope might not exactly be the most helpful responce. also the local "pull you part" is quite a while away so i cant just make quick runs. thanks for the input, tyler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subawoohoo Posted April 18, 2004 Author Share Posted April 18, 2004 bushbasher, it is indeed an ea71, sorry for any confusion, i was under the impression that the 1980s were ea71s. hell i dont know kinda confusing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CamoMan Posted April 18, 2004 Share Posted April 18, 2004 Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but it is my understanding that an 80' hatch is a genII car w/ an ea71 eng. An 80 brat is opposite -a genI frame w/ an ea81 engine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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