washakie

Thanks! So, after doing a little forum searching I discovered some folks talking about the EA81 vs EA82. Here's a few questions: 1) If I go with an EA81 (what I have), how much time to just swap out what I have with a used one (I found one for $450)... is it pretty straightforward? Put another way, how different than a vw 1600 motor swap (I've done that enough times!)? 2) Are there significant advantages to going with a EA82 EFI? How much more work/time/money? 3) Is it highly recommended to go with a rebuilt from CCR or someone similar versus just throwing in a used one? Thanks again!

Hey folks, After returning from a year abroad, I came home to find out my roomies had somewhat abused my soob. Not their fault, they just didn't realize when the radiators leaking, the engines probably overheating! Eeesh. Anyway, I just emptied about 8 quarts (honestly) of water followed by a brown sludgy goo from the engine. I'm pretty certain the block must've cracked or the headgaskets are gone.... Here's the thing. For a long time I've wanted to start towards making this soob an off-roadin' machine. If I'm going to replace the engine are their any others I should look at (i.e. conversions) rather than just putting another 1800 in her? What about diesel? Are there any known diesel conversions? I'm open to all your suggestions/input! Thanks! -john Update: Wow! Just went back out to see how the oil draining was going... this sludge is SLOWWW! Decided to turn the engine over, and after a few turnovers, a bunch of water came straight out from the drain hole.... man, must be one hell of a crack/leack/something!

Excellent! It was in fact a vacuum leak. All is well now.

Thanks. The story here is that this is one of those soobs, that has served many good people for many good years, with MINIMAL maintenance, but regular maintenance... i.e. oil changes. It has 200k on it now, and I'm planning on doing a major over haul in time, but now is not the time for me... I never should've stressed over the leaks, because it was running like a champ! I'll go and see if it's a vacuum leak. Thanks for the tip. I'm sure Seafoam is in order too.

Howdy folks. Glad I found this site! I have an '83 GL with an EA-81, 4wd, 4 spd, non-turbo. I have big plans for it as an off-road project car, but currently I need it for my daily drive. It's leaking oil pretty bad, so I washed the motor to help trace the leak. The disty cap did get wet, but it was bad anyway. I replaced it with a new one after the wash (#3 wasn't firing). All is well, and it runs great, it just won't idle! I don't know what to do?? Any thoughts?