Wirebrush

It's an '85 so that's good to know. I actually like that feature. I hate it when my wife flips the headlight switch on our '04 Grand Cherokee off of "auto".

My brat is seriously possesed with electrical demons. One day I pulled into the parking lot and shut the motor off, but when I turned the key to the "lock" position it turned the engine over. It did this for a week or so in which I had to just leave the key in the ignition in the "off" position. I then pulled the cover off the stering column to check it out and it stopped doing it. It has since started doing it again and I can't figure it out. It also allows the radio and heater to run when the ignition switch is in the "off" position. Interestingly since I've owned it the headlights go off when the key is turned off which doesn't seem right. Here's the really wierd part, when I pulled the fuse to the radio to keep it from draining the battery the electric cooling fan came on, then promptly went off the instant I reinserted the fuse. I think I need a young priest and an old priest.

I'm getting ready to install an SJR 4" lift on my 85 Brat and I'm looking for tires to mount on a set of 15" Pugs to fill the wheel wells. I'd much rather have a tall skinny tire than a shorter, wider tire. According to the tech info the Swamper is 28.5 inches tall. Will these fit with a 4" lift? I expect I'll have to do some cutting on the fenders. Has anyone gone this route? Thanks.

The only ones that I've found that fit the bill are 215/75-15. BFG makes off road tires in this size. On a side note- Does anyone know if the 29x8.50-15 Super Swamper will fit under a Brat with a 4" lift?

My 85 Brat does it quite a bit especially when it's cold. It does have a glaspack and no cat though. I don't know for sure, but I think the ignition on these motors is pretty weak. I plan to install an MSD 6A ignition and blaster 2 coil when I upgrade to a 2.2. I had the same ignition on a hopped up Dodge Omni GLH with the high compression 2.2 and that thing would fire instantly every time even when it was -20 and I never bothered to even hook up the manual choke. It also got considerably better mileage than I'm getting with the 1.8 in my Subaru.

-20 This morning. It's the first time my Brat has refused to start due to the cold. I'm kinda surprised it's done so well considering it came from Florida. I guess I'll have to put a block heater in it, but that won't help much when I'm away from home and don't have a place to plug it in.

Slush in the radiator & hoses. I run about 75% antifreze to about 25% water. You're probably lucky it didn't get cold enough to freeze solid and crack the block or push out the freeze plugs. I would drain off about a gallon and replace it with a gallon of good straight antifreeze.

Depending on where you live many refiners add alchohol to the gas in the winter as well to prevent water accumulation and possible gas line freezing. Unfortunately the 10% alchohol mixture also reduces gas mileage by 10%.

Temps play a huge part for two reasons. First the choke is on longer using more gas and second, the lube in the engine, trans, and diff get very thick and take a lot of power. This is very pronounced in cars like the Brat because of the extra diff in the rear soaking up power and the fact that there is very little power to begin with. My Brat will actually move forward in neutral when temps are very low due to the viscosity of the trans fluid. The best thing you can do is to have the gear lube and trans fluid replaced with a good synthetic and have a block heater installed.

Is it possible to do the Ford Escort distributer install on a SOHC 2.5? I can't find a decent 2.2 for a swap into my brat, but I've located a decent buy on a 2.5, but I'm ally only interested in doing the swap if I can stay away from elecectroncs.

I replaced the distributor with a new rebuild this morning and I still don't have spark. I'm picking up my Weber carb right now. I wish my car was running so I could get it installed and try it out.

Well I tried a new coil and condenser and still no spark. I got it towed home and ordered a rebuilt distributor. It's got to be in the distributor guts. I swear I have a forcefield around me that destroys anything electronic. Funny thing is that I was just thinking that it was running better thanks usual when it died. I've been having carb issues since I bought it. I've got a used Weber on the way to fix that, I hope. ETA- Thanks for the input, especially the last few. I was just about to yank the module out of the distributor when my father suggested trying a new coil first. I'll try getting a module from the wrecking yard tomorrow, it sounds like a good idea to keep a spare on hand anyway.

It's not fuel, or cap, rotor, wires etc. because there is no power loss, chugging, miss, etc. It just shuts off like a switch. I would think a loose connection would also cause it to run erratic as well, and not allow it to start and run smoothly after sitting for a few minutes, then suddenly shut off again. To top it off it's now beginning to snow. I've got another hour and a half before I get out of class and can go rescue it.

I was driving to school (college, I'm 34) when it just died like I'd turned off the key. After sitting for a few minutes it started and ran for a few hundred yards before it died again. No sputtering, it's either getting spark on all four or none at all. I tried running a jumper wire straight from the battery to the coil and it didn't bypass the problem. I had someone pick me up and couldn't spend any more time on it. What is the most likely culprit? I had an old jeep wagoneer that would do the same thing, but it had a pos Ford/motocraft ignition. Any input is greatly appriciated. I hate the thought of it sitting on the side of the road more than I'm going to hate walking back.

I want to swap an EJ22 into my brat, but I have really bad luck with electronics and I don't have to worry about smog testing out here. What pitfalls are there in converting an EJ to work without a computer? I'm sure it's possible since they are done this way in aircraft, but has anyone done it with an automobile swap? Thanks.

Has anyone used 4 of the 15" "doughnut" spare wheels and a tall, narrow off road tire on the older EA81 cars? It seems like it would work great for the kind of wheeling I do and without power steering the skinny tires would be easier to turn. Mickey Thompson makes a 27" tire that can be mounted on a 4" wide rim, but there is a disclaimer stating it is for off road use only. Finding the wheels may be easier than finding Pugs and the skinny tires should be great for mileage and cutting through the snow and mud without bogging down too.