tjZ06

In general for stock classes the shocks and front sway bar are open (meaning they can be changed) and that's about it. Brake pads are generally open too but you can't run drilled/slotted rotors. Also, any DOT legal tire should be fine. So if you really want to get the most out of your Forester I'd suggest Kuhmo 710s on stock (or stock sized) rims, whatever the best shock available for a Forester is (I dunno how much of the WRX stuff crosses over, but you can not run a full coil-over so I'm talking about a good double adjustable standard style shock), and a nice large front bar to help combat the big body roll that mini-SUV is going to have on the 710s (again, I dunno if you can use WRX stuff or what). But like others have said: seat time is your biggest mod! -TJ

The hood, hatch, spare/jack and a few other things were out also. The windshield might... but probably not. -TJ

It'll be caged in shortly to make up for that. We're probably going to do some "safari doors" anyway which will add just as much strenght as a full door ever did (all a door serves to do structurely is tie the hinge location to the "stricker" or latch location). Sorry to the purists, I know it's somewhat painfull to see. I understand they're a bit rare, especially in full running order. But this car does have a lot of body rot etc. from sitting in a field the last 6 years. At least this way it's getting enjoyed! -TJ

That's the one! So far nothing has been done that can't be reversed (we just removed the doors, hood, hatch, spare etc.). The car just has more rust than I wanted to deal with and no power what-so-ever. The original plans were to clean it up, make it a decent DD type vehicle and RallyX it in whatever the "stock" class it falls into would be. But I just don't think it has the power at stock weight to be any fun at all RallyXing nor deal with my 100mi/day commute on busy CA freeways. If you're still intersted in the car you shoot me a PM quick before we get our hands on the Plasma cutter. -TJ

Well, we made our desicion the '79 would become a "toy." It had way more body rot than we'd want to deal w/ to make it a "nice" street car. And it's just way too gutless for Silicon Valley freeways. So here's a little day-light under all 4 action (crappy camera phone pic): That's what we might call "stage 1" weight reduction. The whole interior is coming out soon, roof is going by-by, and a basic "cage" is going in for structure/safety. Then we have to do something about making this thing make power. -TJ

Any chance of a EJ22? Does anybody make an adapter plate for it... or could I modify one? -TJ

Hmmm. Perhaps a NA is a better option for me. It's down 25% on HP and 33% on TQ which is pretty huge... but has a stronger bottom end. But the higher grade fuel and (presumeably) worse fuel mileage would start to kill me with a 100mi/day commute. My current DD gets about 23-24mpg freeway and only takes 87. I really don't want to go too much worse than that. -TJ

Also, two fuel questions: 1) does the Turbo require premium? 2) what can I expect out of a totally stock EA82T wagon (once it's running right of course), what about w/ ~4" lift + 27-29" tires? Thanks. -TJ

What would you call a decent price, based on the above desc. From the pics I've seen it's one of the cleanest/straightest EA82s I've seen. It's red, which is "okay" with me, not a big plus nor minus. The asking price is 950obo. When should boost come in by (there's some kind of boost gauge right)? It's a non-digital dash so that would mean it's a D/R not full-time AWD right? And just how cheap to rebuild? My current beater truck is hanging in there so that is a viable option, if it's cheap 'nough and I get the ca cheap 'enough. I just want to know what I'm in for. Thanks for the help! -TJ

You must not be lookin' in the right places. -TJ <--still lurking this thread for all the good info!

Well I'm STILL in the market for my Subi (some of my might remember I stormed on here a few months ago w/ a million questions ) and came across an intersting one. '89 Turbo GL Wagon ~170k Miles. It is very very clean inside and out for a 17 year old vehicle, 5-speed 4x4, all the stuff I'm looking for. But the sales add listed it as "turbo doesn't work" so I emailed the owner and they said "it does work, it's just slow to kick in." What could the possible culprits be? Could it be as simple as an exhaust or boost leak? Or could it be something much more serious? Just the turbo itself going south? Or a whole motor going bad? I guess my question is... worth a look or should I run the other way? -TJ

Nice score... I'd love to come up on something like that... though preferably w/ a stick. -TJ

It's a WRX... chance are very high it was abused. It has the classic symptoms of a beat-on WRX: clutch & tranny failures. 6k clutch-dumps will do that. The whole story about the guy just being a bad driver is possible, but highly unlikely. And even if that was the case poor driving of a stick is tough on all the drivelines, axles, etc. At $22k you can do a lot better. -TJ

Especially on a turbo car I think it'd be worth the time/effort to weld a bung in your exhaust pre-cat for a wide-band o2. Does your dyno facility have a wideband o2 or do they just use the sniffer in the tailpipe? Hopefully the former not that latter. Anyway, good work and I'll check that other link. Thanks. -TJ

Thanks again! It looks like the 2nd Turbo tank was much better. More freeway driving? Or perhaps the computer just needed some time to adapt to the new setup? I didn't follow your swap in detail (though if you have links I'd like to) but I imagine you're using the EJ22T computer? One would think its calibration would be pretty close since the chassis swap shouldn't have effected things too much. But who knows. EDIT: just clicked the link in your sig... good stuff! -TJ

When's the last time you did a general tune-up on it? I know it's not a Subi but on my Daily Driver I dropped from an average of around 24mpg to 20-21 recently (and it was running like crap ). I just did plugs/wires/cap/rotor/all filters etc. this weekend and am back up to 25mpg (better than it's been in at least a year ). Is it running okay overall? Or does it feel down on power or miss? -TJ

Interested, but not worth you going to a huge hassle. If it's quick/easy to find that'd be cool but don't put too much effort in. I'm sure a lifted GL would be significantly worse than your leg' anyway. -TJ

Interesting, and thanks for the input. Will an NA EJ22 hit mid 20s mpg? Regardless, very nice power on an almost stock EJ22T. I suppose it's worth the extra bucks at the gas pump. -TJ

Yeah... I'm bragging. Actually, I went out and bought a Z06 'vette just to come to a Subi board and brag about it... it's my validation in life. First of all, I have about half that in my car (it's a '02 I bought used). I'm very interested and enthusiastic about Subis. And no, the Z06 is not economical to operate on a daily basis, even if the mileage isn't that bad. Oil changes w/ synthetic every ~2,500miles, $1k clutches, $415+mount/balance/shipping/tax each for my back tires etc. That's why it sits at home 6/7 days of the week and I drive my '89 MazDUH pickup. But the 'DUH doesn't really have anything to offer in the way of driving enjoyment. But a lifted GL on Swampers would for me. Or maybe a 2.5 RS if I can stretch the budget that far. My point in my post (if you read the whole thing, rather than just reading the section you quoted and took out of context) is that I'm considering the very same motor swap into a GL and I was hoping to still see mid-20s mpg. Perhaps if I left the EJ22T bone-stock? -TJ

Not to rain on yoru parade, but I do better than that in my 442 RWHP Z06. I'm looking into an EJ22T sway myself and was hoping to see better. -TJ

Update: the seller of the Turbo Wagon I was looking at says "it's a 4wd with a push-botton on the stick." So what does that make it, the part time D/R? I imagine the full-time has no button and/or stick since its' full-time... correct? Thanks for any help. -TJ

Very helpfull link... thanks! So it looks like the '88 Turbo Wagon I'm looking at might be a good buy for me. The NA 88s were 90hp/101tq while this Turbo would have been 115hp/134tq. 25hp is better than a 25% gain and 33tq is right on 33% better. That should make a big difference when it comes to pushing a set of 29" TSLs and a 4" lift. The down-side is the mileage doesn't seem like it'll be as good but I'll make that trade-off. It looks like if it's a Full-Time 4wd I also get the LSD, which would be nice. But if it's a Part-Time I get the D/R but no LSD. Sort of 6 one way and half-a-dozen the other. Long-term I'll end up swapping something (diff or tranny) in either one to get the "ideal" match. I don't think I'll really "need" the DR as bad as the LSD for the type of "wheeling" it'll do though. It'll see some snowy roads (non-plowed/salted) out at the cabin in Idaho as well as some moderate trails (some would consider the driveway to my cabin a pretty decently challenging trail). But for extreme crawling and such I'm probably buying my friend's Samis. If all looks well when I go check it out I'm going to make him a cash offer... hopefully he accepts. -TJ

Yeah... I suppose it's a gamble. If it runs well and passes smog it probably doesn't have a blown head gasket(s) or cracked head(s). But then again... it might... or it could be close. He's asking $500 more than the other one. But it has ~140k miles vs. ~240k for the NA '87 and some seriously needed HP help. If it's not D/R that's a draw-back though. If I get one it will get AA's 4" lift, 15" wheels and 29x8.5-15 TSL Swampers. So the extra HP on the Turbo model would be advantageous. -TJ

Ummm, Subis of the era this forum pertains too: 80-90. So I found a '87... I guess it's a late '87 because he claims it's EFI. I haven't gone and looked yet. He says he just did the T-belts. I can get it under $1k running and smogged. Hmm... 4" lift for around $400... $1k for wheels/tires... hmmmm. I also found a '88 4wd Turbo. I haven't heard back yet if this is dual range or not (or were all turbos not D/R?). Much lower miles than the other one ('bout 100k less) w/ recent tune-up and smog. Are the turbo models less reliable at all? -TJ

The co-buyer of my EA71 might want to "buy me out" from the deal for a foul weather DD. I'm alright with that... as long as I can turn around and build a "Woods Wagon." But yeah, even running very poorly on 6 year old gas w/ the front right brake dragging it would hold 65mph... though it was a chore getting there. I've also considered getting it running well 'nough for the trip and takin' it out to the Cabin. Then just riding back w/ a relative and leaving it for all to use as a run-about at the cabin. I'd of course have to buy-out my co-buyer in that case. But there's also the chance we're both just going to rally the $242.50 each we spent on it out of it for a bit and then re-sell it. -TJ