edrach

EA series front axle replacement Remove the cotter pin in the axle nut while the car is still on the ground and "break" the nut loose with the 36mm socket and a long breaker bar. Remove the wheel after jacking the car up (wheel chocks and jackstands are VERY important here). Knock out the pin on the DOJ with a drift-tool from the UNBEVELED hole and remove the pivot bolt from the lower arm. I don't remove the sway bar mount (never had to). Pull the DOJ away from the transmission; it should move freely now but won't quite come off. Tug on the wheel hub and pull on the DOJ and often it will pop off the stub axle. If not, loosen the nuts at the top of the strut tower a bit (don't take them off!) and/or pry the lower pivot arm away from its support with a crowbar or large screwdriver. This should allow you to get the DOJ off the stub axle. Now remove the castle nut, and both washers (tapping the hub smartly with a small hammer will help get the spring washer out). Now the trick is to get the spindle out of the hub. Either get a large gear puller (6 or 7 inch version) or a sledge hammer and a block of wood. You can push the spindle out with the gear puller or smack the spindle with the sledge (MAKE SURE THE BLOCK OF WOOD IS THERE to prevent damaging the threads--hard to get your core charge back if the threads are bunged). You might need to use your drift and a smaller sledge and pound the spindle out the last inch or so via the small hole in the end. Now carefully remove the axle from the car. Installation is the reverse of removal. Feed the spindle into the hub first; once you get the nut started on the spindle you can use two screwdrivers to pry the spindle out of the hub. I have a number of large washers that I use for spacers to help that along. In really difficult cases I remove the four bolts holding the outer portion of the hub and put the hub aside to give me more purchase on the end of the spindle. Once you have the spindle through the hub reinstall the washers and castle nut and tighten (not completely yet). Now re-install the DOJ (line up the splines first and note that the splines only line up one way--one hole has a tooth in the center and the other has a groove in the center). Tugging on the hub you should be able to slide the DOJ back onto the stub axle again. Line up the holes and knock the spring pin back into the BEVELLED hole. Put the pivot bolt back into the lower arm and snug it up, but DO NOT TIGHTEN. Tighten the nuts at the top of the strut, replace the wheel and drop the car back on the ground and tighten the castle nut to 145 ft-lbs of torque (or more--more is better and won't hurt anything). Torque the wheel lugs to 75 ft-lbs replace the cotter pin in the castle nut. Now that the car is back on the ground, tighten the pivot bolt with the suspension under load. I got that info from the Subaru Guru and it makes sense to take some pressure off the rubber bushing. Re-torque the lug nuts after 300 miles again and check the castle nut for tightness (yes they can loosen up--I'll explain the mystery of that some other time if you ask nicely). Start to finish takes less than 45 minutes unless you run into a snag. Thanks to Andy and Skip, the trick of removing the swaybar clamp is definitely less work than loosening the strut tower nuts and certainly is easier to remove the DOJ from the stub axle this way. Some people have suggested removing the ball joint to move the hub away from the tranny and get the axle off. I've found that removing the ball joint is often more destructive than releasing the sway bar or loosening the upper strut nuts (nut loosening not needed if you release the sway bar). You can save the threads on the axles if you need to drive it out with a sledge hammer (many axles require that) if you put a block of wood between the sledge and the axle. Once you get the axle to move inwards about an inch for more, you can use the drift tool on the axle end (it'll clear the small hole) and drive it out the rest of the way. I've no problem with those of you that remove the ball joint end to free up the strut enough to get the DOJ off the stub axle. Whatever works for you will do the trick. New versus re-manned versus used axles: You know, I've not had much success with re-manned axles (with the exception of www.cvaxles.com/ and I haven't bought enough from them as yet to have a good statistical base. I've had my best success looking at the axles of cars in the yard at the local Pull a Part yards. One can usually tell from the condition of the boots how old the axles are and when I find one that looks good I usually pull it so I have spare axles for emergencies. When I use one of my emergency spares, I usually think about ordering a remanned unit from Florida as soon as the used one starts to make noise. I'm still waiting for the last one I installed to start making noise. While we're talking about replacements, MWE in Denver has been very reliable in the rebuilt axles they are making and would be a fine addition to cvaxles.com. Not sure if anyone else repaired the hard to read black on grey, but I thought I'd do it now. Amazing that this thread is still active.

Returning home from Portland and I stopped at the Olympia PAP yard. '90 XT6 is still there altho lots of good parts are gone now. Also saw a '97 Legacy Outback wagon; quite a few earlier Legacy models as well as one Impreza. There were two Imprezas waiting to go into the yard unless they sell intact. Here's the craigslist ad: http://seattle.craigslist.org/oly/cto/1074762935.html

To the OP: Don't let the big-mouthed braggerts get to you. Usually the people that really know this stuff don't need to remind the world of what they know by shouting before putting their brains in gear.

It's your choice what to drive. You can probably sell your Brat for a significant amount since they are valued quite highly since they are so scarce. An equivalent EA81 wagon in almost perfect condition would cost you much less than what your Brat should get and you'd have money left over. I personally was never very fond of the EA82 wagons because the engine design was less reliable than the EA81. Just my personal opinion. Best of luck with your choice.

What wheels are these? If they are OEM Subaru alloys, offset is stamped on the inside, usually 50 to 55 mm. Size is also located there.

Excellent. Best of luck with that beauty.

Actually, in a late afternoon and evening. You don't like my plates?

I was wondering when someone would pick up on that. You have sharp eyes, kid (and too much spare time:)). Previous owner has a small blemish on the fender and tried to make it better; he made it worse. I couldn't find an original Brat fender and used one from an '84 wagon. I'm working on making both fenders match.

Thanks Rob, but I need to eliminate the slow leak first.

Thanks, but I don't think the issue is the compressor. I thought I was low on R12 since the AC worked when I bought it three years ago, altho not as cold as I would have liked. I was planning on topping it up but now that I have the guages on it, I see there's nothing left. I put the vacuum pump on it last night and it pulled to 30 inches of vacuum right away, but hasn't dropped low enough based on the vacuum guage I have on it. I'll be going through the fittings and looking for oil and snug them up. Now it'll be a choice whether I install R12 or do the upgrade to R134a.

Even though the seats are OEM, they are not original. I had to replace the driver's seat (doh!). Thank you Richard.

No, I don't think I'll regret it. It should go to someone who will enjoy it for what it is and not keep it hidden away in the garage.

Quite frankly, I'm not really fond of the ebay experience.

I'm working on the AC now to get it to blow cold. Miles are 116K; I'm second registered owner of this Brat. I haven't settled on a price as yet. I'm thinking of $6K.

My 1984 Brat, purchased 3 years ago and planned to implement my "retirement" fund. After some cosmetic corrections/changes and clean-up, it'll go up for sale in the Spring. Sadly, I need the space more than I need the Brat. More pics can be found in my Show Brat album. http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/album.php?albumid=106

Generally KBB is high. This is what people quote to you when selling their car. NADA is usually much lower, and what a dealer will quote you when you trade in your car. The truth is somewhere in the middle. If you're buying, I would use NADA to justify your offer since they are more accurate in describing condition versus valuation.

http://www.books4cars.com

Just make sure you don't buy anything radio related at this store, they certainly don't know what they are talking about. This answer sounds like they couldn't be bothered with your problem.

'Just have to ask the question, is the antenna extended? FM will still work when the antenna is retracted, AM won't. After that, I'd consider replacing the antenna. You can test the AM with about 10 feet of wire plugged into the antenna connector. A new radio isn't that expensive. It could certainly be that the AM portion is bad and a new radio would be cheaper to install than fixing your old one. Good luck with it; let us know what fixed it.

If that's a good EJ22 for $150 you won't be disappointed. However, don't discount the EJ18; there are a number of them around, they are cheaper to come by, and they are more reliable.

More information from other sources: If you haven't signed up yet, hop to it! This is an intense school with LOTS of seat time. It is not uncommon for students to complain about being tired after all the run time we give them. Good stuff regardless of whether or not you want to Stage, RX or TSD. Remember, the School IS worth coefficient points and all the fun a body should have over a weekend. You won't regret going. If you have any thoughts about attending but are unsure or have questions, just PM, IM, Email or Call and ask. We are here to help. Scott

Primitive's Rally School will take place in Vallejo, CA on March 27-29. Check for details at http://www.writerguy.com/primitive/ A must for TSD, RallyX, and beginning Stage Rally competition. I've enrolled in the school in Hillsboro and it's the most fun you can have for the bucks (check out the cost for some of the other driving schools...this one is a bargain!). Early registration can save you some more.

I had a set custom made for my Impreza (OEM was WAY too expensive) by Pacific Import Auto, in Tacoma, WA. You might call them and see if they can have a set made for a Brat. Trust me, they will know what a Brat is. Ask for Steve or Dave. They are not open on Monday (they work Tuesday through Saturday). 253-536-0389. If the long distance is too much for you, I could call them for you and ask the question and give you and estimate. "Full set" means all for wheels, right?

Also, get a decent snow tire to go with the narrower rim. I'm personally fond of the Nokian studless tires; but cost considerations put Hankook iPikes on this year. An awesome tire in the snow!

I used the 75W140 once when I was trying to reduce the stress on the Impreza's transmission due to high rpm's during rallyX events. I took it out after a week because it felt like the shifter was mired in butter (and rallyX is normally a summer sport).