Snowman

Q Man, what is your exhaust pipe doing way up there in that picture? Would I be right in assuming it's for better clearance, or is it some magical thing that appeases the internal combustion gods?

Definitely keep it, but MAINTAIN it. Subarus as well as most well-made cars will last forever if they are meticulously maintained. Just follow all the maintenance recommendations in the owners manual and it will not let you down.

Everybody is amazed they aren't the only one. When I found this board I nearly fell out of my computer chair.

Usually the reason for difficulty in shifting out is caused by slight amounts of binding from turning. If it won't shift out, then either break the wheels loose to relieve that tension or try backing up or turning one direction, then straightening out and trying again, then turn the other direction and straighten out and try again and so on. As for the speed thing, yeah it doesn't matter how fast you are going. I have gone in and out of 4wd at 75 mph and it feels the same as doing it at 10. I usually stop going into low range just to make it easier on things, but it works fine to shift out of low range while moving.

If you really want to make that outlet constantly hot or switchable, it can't be too hard to locate the source of that wire if you can get a good schematic for your car. Then you could just connect that wire to the battery with a fuse, and put in a switch if you so desire. If it were my car, I would just add on a second outlet that is constantly on, but I'm just into having more choices and neat stuff on my car.

Maybe the clutch mechanism inside has just totally disintegrated. It's also possible that the lsd failed and was replaced with an open diff, but they left the sticker on.

Modine makes a good radiator. I ordered a single-row from them, but they had a two-row available for like $150.

I've recently been running mine at 14 degrees with 88 octane gas. Interestingly, the guy that put my engine in must have looked up the wrong spec when he did the timing, because when I checked it for the first time, this fall, it was set at nearly 20 degrees! Amazingly, if I just ran premium gas, knocking was never a real problem. So apparently there is a lot of room to play with here if you take the time to do it right.

Drift punch out. Then get a socket the same size as the outer race or use the old bearings for tapping back in. No need for a press, just make sure they are in good and solid. And NEVER tap on the inner race of the new bearings. This will deform the balls and they won't last very long.

I would recommend getting a Legacy outback if for no other reason than the fact that it weighs more, which will keep the trailer from "pushing it around" as much. Also, the braking system is most likely beefier on the legacy and better able to handle the added load. I think a five-speed would be the way to go because an auto might get very hot, and you have the added benefit of just being able to downshift to slow down. Either car should handle it. I tow trailers of similar weight with my 86 wagon and it does fine. It's just too bad they don't offer a dual-range tranny on the later model cars.

I am soooo jealous. Here in ALASKA we don't have any snow yet!

These were aparently used in F1 or Indy or something like that. You probably won't be able to find one. Seriously, though, probably the best thing you could do is get the engine and tranny out of a WRX and swap it in. In case you didn't know, they are a 2 liter turbo and only come with AWD. I have heard it's an easy swap into the late 80s gen wagons, but I don't know about your brat. If you could do it, you would have a 227 hp engine in stock form, which can easily be modified to produce way more. Go to funonwheels.net to see pics of a wagon with that engine and tranny in it. I like the pic where it's jumping about six feet in the air.

"i was looking up subarus on autotrader and under the model selction i saw Brat, so i went to see what it was. basicly a retro baja without the plastic trim." :eek: Has this guy been living in a closet his entire life?

I found the bomb muffler for ea82s. I ordered it from Summit Racing. It's a Thrush Mini-Turbo muffler or something like that, and costs less than $20. The center/offset one fits pefectly into the stock muffler location, gives you more ground clearance, flows better, and has a similar volume to the stock muffler but with a deeper tone that I find very pleasing.

Are these wheels from an ea81 or ea82? I've got three of the center caps for ea82 wagon wheels in Haines and I could get them mailed up (or pick them up at Thanksgiving). They may be interchangeable between the two generations, but I haven't tried it yet. I have absolutely no use for them, and since I only have three and not a full set, I can't really sell them for a decent amount of money. I'd give them to you for $5 plus any shipping costs if you want. It is also possible that I could get ahold of a couple ea81 center caps, but again they are in Haines and these are out in the woods.

Northguy, where did you buy your herculiner at? I went offroading on this trail that goes off to the left of Buffalo Mine Road. Didn't go very far because I was by myself and didn't want to get in trouble.

Hmm... I am running my timing at 14 degrees BTDC (stock is 8). But with the ignition off when the car is turned off, it shouldn't affect that. Or does it? Idle speed doesn't seem to affect it. Mixture is possible. I have been tweaking it a bunch to get it to run right, and it could be a bit lean.

I think I'll just go ahead and rip out the carpet and do the bedliner. Up here, the floor is constantly wet during the winter, and my car is always dirty both inside and out, so I think that's the way to go.

Since I put the weber on, my car sometimes diesels a couple of times when I shut it off. I put in a colder set of plugs, which has almost eradicated the problem, but it still happens every now and then. Any ideas?

Oh man, I don't wanna strip the interior. I think I'll vacuum like crazy again, then pick up a cheap space-heater and leave that in there every night for a week or so, and drive around daily with all the windows down for a few minutes. If I'm gonna have to take the carpets out anyway, has anybody used that brush-on bedliner in place of their carpets? Wow, you posted about the bedliner as I was writing this one!

I think the absolute best thing you could make a skid plate for is the rear diff. Is it just me, or do those things take a serious beating?

This weekend, the stuff on the floor of Roxanne was floating. I got stuck in a BIG mudhole, and now the carpet is totally soaked and muddy (I opened the door because I wasn't thinking), and the rear storage areas are still wet after I removed all of the water that I could. I am terrified of my floor pan rusting out if I don't dry everything out really well. So far, I vacuumed everything at a carwash as best I could, I soaked up all the water I could out of the carpet and storage areas with rags, and I was able to get into a heated garage to park overnight. Aside from driving around for hours with the heater on and the windows partway down, what can I do to dry out my car? Oh yeah, and I forgot to bring my camera, so no pics of my car buried above the rear bumper.

Great to hear from another Alaskan! My condolences on the trade-in. I know you said you're looking for an ea81 or an XT, BUT I've got two almost rust-free ea82 wagons that I will be selling pretty soon, and I could give you a pretty good deal on one if you are interested. I would even try to work something out for transporting the car to you.

Polish the block and heads, and rally blue the intake manifold, valve covers, oil pan, and air cleaner.

I cannot remember exactly why, but using a carb that is too big just won't work. I think that it won't produce enough vacuum to work properly, or something like that. It actually results in running too lean with a carb that is more than the engine can handle. I'm sure they have single-barrel webers available, you would just have to figure out what size is correct for your engine.