oldude

I might want to tow one of my Subbies (83 Sta. Wag Auto or 85 Brat 4Sp, 4WD) from Northeast to California. Wanted to tow behing an RV. Now I thought I remembered that it was recommended or necessary to disconnect drive shaft, but obviously this was a long time ago and with rear wheel drive car. So what will I need to do with either of these front wheel drive vehicles. Not that it might matter, but I still haven't decided which one to take. 83 Wagon only has 60K and just had it inspected. Replaced all 4 tires, both front brakes (calipers, rotors, pads) and exhaust from Cat back. Near mint interior. 30 mpg but Automatic and slowest pickup of anything I've ever owned except my lawn tractor. And not by much. Brat supposedly had engine rebuild less than 50K ago, but not a reliable source for that info. Previous owner lady was a bit cuckcoo. Needs CV axles replaced. One ticks when turning and boot busted. Not a problem. Problably some brake work, too, as it has sat for a bit. But still strong running and I like the 4Spd, 4WD part of it. And while not exactly going to the wilderness in CA, the property is a bit secluded, dirt roads, and even tho it has a cab on it now, I might take it off to make carrying some building materials easier. Bought land, hoping to build my own house. Sorry about the long-winded life story. So what do I need to do to tow? Such a great site for Subbie info. Feels like family, but smarter. Thanks:burnout:

I've had nothing but good experiences with Cooper tires. And even better, the place where I always go to get them has been great with any warrany issues. Case in point (Sorry if a bit off-topic) Had Cooper's on my daughter's car. Only 2-3 weeks old and she managed to run one in to a curb and it developed a small hole on the sidewall. Didn't want to plug it, so took it back for a replacement, expecting to pay full price. Salesman looked at it, (and it was pretty obvious that it wasn't product defect) but looked up receipt and date of purchase. "No problem, still under warranty." Ended up with new tire that cost only $ 3.+ So Cooper's get my vote.

Thanks for the input. I will check out the codes, and if I can find my book maybe then I'll find the temp sensor.

So are you saying computer may be bad? I have another one.

An 83 GL EA81 Sta. Wag. Automatic So this has got me a bit confused. First start of the day is really tough. Changed to manual choke, which helped at first. But now it is taking longer and longer to start when cold. Once started, it runs a bit rough, as if it is missing. Then when it warms up a bit AND ECS light comes on, it runs smooth. No missing, decent power, ( for a subie engine) Plugs new, Wires, new exhaust from Cat back. (Problem was happening even before new exhaust. This just seems backwards to me. I'd have thought that it would run worse when ECS light came on. Any ideas? Hope the New Year is good to y'all. Thanks

I seem to have the same problem, but on an EA81. I get 2 codes. 11 and 22. Mostly 22 I have gone through 4 distys. Changed distys from original with ignitor and pick-up coil, to one from Brat, same EA81, but different insides. All ran OK but not for long. Changed coil Changed wires Changed ECU What could cause this to happen>> Answer could help this person's question and from what I've seen, many others, too.

For once a simple fix. Cleaned and tightened battery connections. All is well Thanks to all who responded. Wish all fixes were so easy

Hi again. Well at least my 83 EA81 2wd Sta. Wag is running. Distributor has been working so far. New problem. I noticed my guage at only 12 volts. Used to be higher..14+ After 10-15 minutes, voltage goes up. Checked belt. It is tioght. Today I started it up and not only did the guage read low, but I noticed the the gas guage also registered empty. Had 1/2 tank. After the 10-15 minutes, the voltage kicked up back to normal, and at the same time my gas guage started to work, too This board has been so helpful. Really want to thank all who have helped and wish y'all nothing but the best for this New Year.

I have an old disty from my 83 EA81. I think the pickup coil and/or ignitor is bad. But I think the vac. part is still OK. Is this what you mean> If so, PM me and I can arrange to send it to you. Better yet, emailing me might be better. I check email more often than msgs here. oldude8@yahoo.com Now that I think of it, does it matter that the disty is nippon denso? I ain't that bright.

So far, so good. Finally gave up waiting to find a disty to get my 83 2WD EA81 Carbbed going. I had the use of an aquantances 85 Brat, but didn't really want to keep running it as it is not in as good shape as the 83 and I was afraid I'd break it and then be up the creek. Anywho, took disty from it, with different guts and voila.....it works. The 83 is on the road again. And Shawn, if you see this, wouldn't ya know your disty came the next day. But now I am ascared of changing back and tempting fate. But I guess I'll have to unless I can find another disty for the Brat. Who knows, maybe Santa will bring me one. But I hope this helps anyone thinking of whether different distys can work in diff cars.

I've done it w/o opening valve, but even tho a PITA, I would still recommend opening the valve and doing it that way. It may be in the long run you might end up having to bleed them anyway. Rather be safe than sorry

Here's the link I was thinkinf of. Hope it helps http://www.main.experiencetherave.com:8080/subaru_manual_scans/

I found wiring diagrams by doing Google search. I didn't save them. I'll try to locate again and posts links if you need.

Read first post, please....Edited.. What the heck is stopping spark????