Crazyeights

Are you sure it's not just the gauge? The ones in my EA81 wagon are quite inaccurate, and in fact read higher with the headlights on. Perhaps test the pressure with a real gauge and/or put an aftermarket one in and go from there.

IMO This makes the difference between a job that will be leak free for a short time and one that looks good and stays dry for years.

Cool Glad you got it working! Congrats

Don't the early EA81 cars only get power to the fuel pump if the alternator is working? It's been a while but you might check for power to the fuel pump. Good Luck!

1. Stock plugs should be fine, NGK perhaps? 2. Regular needle nose pliers are fine for this. Use a Ring expander to put the rings on the pistons so you don't scratch the pistons. You will need to make or buy a tool for pulling the piston pins as well as a large allen wrench or socket for pulling the access plugs. 3. Subaru 3 Bond, or Loctite 518 for the case halves. I'm sure there are others you could use also.

Must be the injector itself? Not really sure. Both of the bad units had well over 200k on them. The perfect one I scored had only about 122k on it.

Thanks a bunch! This solved all of the same problems for me also.

Thanks! Quite a few changes, yes. I remember doing point and condenser tune ups all the time and being able to preset the dwell by eye most of the time:grin:

Twenty Five Years! It was waiting for me in the mail box.

Excellent info, Thanks!

Congrats! Check the engine oil cooler lines for leaks.

Personally I would go with an EA81 (easier but less power) or an EJ22 (well worth the extra cost) and just skip the EA82 altogether.

Thank you for the response. I am very close to acceptable idle condition on mine especially the more I drive it (perhaps it is still too fresh). Sorry for Hi-Jacking your thread, I'll shut up and read now:grin: [EDIT] @GD I need to eat some crow here. You were right. I was just lucky enough to have had 2 different SPFI units with bad injectors. Following a tip from a different thread on here I finally borrowed a 4 gas and got to the bottom of it. High HC's, High O2, and no vacuum leaks on a brand new performance build (crappy idle and low on power). I harvested a nice low mileage SPFI unit from a 91 or 92 today. I cleaned it up, bolted it on without touching any of the adjustments and it idles perfectly for the first time. I also has TONS more power now. It really snarls for an EA81 with all the mods. I would have to agree with GD now, don't touch the screw:rolleyes: Thanks again!

@GD I understand that. However there are differences between the EA81 and EA82 such as total combustion chamber size, SOHC versus OHV, CAM Shaft timing, ect and at the end of the day with everything else exhausted we have to make our cars run in a manor acceptable to us. Idling like crap at 500 rpm with a Brand new highly modified engine just doesn't work for me. A spare virgin throttle body is only about $8.50 at the local P-A-P. FSM does contain a detailed procedure for adjusting the Idle Stop screw. Your right-ups and informative posts are the best and I have learned a lot from you. Any ideas are greatfully appriciated:)

LOTS of time invested personally with this problem. With a Highly-Modified EA81 it's even harder to find the sweet spot (if there is one). Some tips based on my tinkering. Make sure the timing isn't too far advanced, stay at a max of about 28 degrees, the stock throttle plate screw location for most of the SPFI's I've seen is about 1/2 turn clockwise after the screw just touches the stop. You will probably need to go another 1/4 to 1/2 turn open but no more. Finalize by finding the sweet spot with the Idle/Air control screw near the top of the TBI. Make sure the IAC valve is connected and working properly, no air leaks between the throttle body and the MAF and the PCV is properly routed. Idle should flair up when first started and stabilize after a few seconds. Let me know if you find anything that helps even more:rolleyes:

It will help right up to the point that it gets too tight and causes a valve or seat to burn. Mine are pretty darn tight (about .004 and .006) and I can still hear them so I'm sure they are ok (this EA81 has ALL the mods with SPFI). The old tired stock solid lifter EA81 I pulled out was really quiet at .010 and .014, go figure. I have been over my valve adjustment several times carefully. @GD you can adjust the valve train to take up the extra .020 or .030 thou but for some reason it doesn't stop the noise. Thanks for the updates and progress reports!

Congrats on the progress! They seem to be really finicky to set up with performance mods but I agree the difference in power is worth all the tinkering. The more I drive mine the better it seems to run. It only has about 300 miles on it so far.

Well perhaps it is the shaved heads then and not the cam grind. I have .020 shaved from mine too with port and polish (and NOISY valve train).

I have had a heck of a time getting mine to quiet down too (EA81) with the Delta grind. Perfect explanation and solutions by 84GL. This is what I have been going through. I spoke with someone at Delta that said sometimes you have to get pretty close to Zero Lash cold on these before they are quiet. I am at .004 and .006 and they are still a little noisy but I am learning to live with it for the extra power it makes.

Perhaps double check the ignition timing and the valve clearance. Where is the timing set? My newly built EA81 is noisier than the old tired one I pulled out but it has delta solid cam, ea71 pistons, ect.

Looks Great! @GD How soon after a fresh Hi-Po EA81 rebuild should one switch to Full Synth?

I just finished mine (EA81). About .004" removed from both deck halves to clean and square the surface up, another .020" off of each head, NOS ea71 pistons, delta solid lifter torque cam grind. I used FP Permatorque HG's @ a final step of 51 lbs and it runs great, makes lots of power, and doesn't leak a drop. I run quite a bit of timing with an SPFI setup. Hardest part was nailing down an acceptable valve clearance for the delta cam. I would probably go Hydro, or all the way to EJ if I was doing it again.

@subaru360 Well Said, couldn't agree more.

The heads are different. I think the MPI EA82 heads have 2 intake ports (in addition to injector bosses) and I know the SPFI heads only have one. I have no idea how involved an SPFI to MPI EA82 conversion is so you might want to check first. I would think the engine computer and wiring harnesses would be totally different at the very minimum.

Having been in the industry for 20+ years I can say alignments are a wonderful tool for trying to sell the customer struts, tie rod ends, ball joints, tires, ect that they may or may not need. It is my opinion that a well maintained car without any worn/faulty front end or suspension parts should rarely need an alignment unless something is changed, damaged, or bent. This is only MY opinion so take it for what it's worth.