el_freddo

Front doors backwards is different. Centre console swaps over too. Great for parts. PS and AC will swap in. Cheers Bennie

1) replace head gaskets and have the heads shaved - before you toast that engine good and proper 2) drop an EJ conversion in 3) drive till it pops good a proper. Junk it and buy a newer Subaru. I vote option 2. Cheers Bennie

Broke and mods don’t go in the same sentence! What you can do is basic maintenance things - quality spark plugs and leads. Suspension handling is an area you could look into. There are parts out there second hand that will improve the handling of the vehicle. Suspension bush replacement could be a good option too. But really, how long are you looking at keeping the vehicle for? If you’re moving it on in a few years just save your coin for the next vehicle and get what you want in a factory package Cheers Bennie

Yeah the side view mirrors. The JDM had them and I believe they were switched separately and self folding too. A mate had them on his JDM imported Outback. Bit of a wasted feature in Australia for the most part! Cheers Bennie

Was it DIY’d in a dude’s shed or built by a shop? Is the suspension mount points lifted into the body of the vehicle to lower it but keep good suspension geometry for best performance and low centre of gravity? I reckon this build will be one of a kind for the above reasons. That’s what makes it epic - DIY built and will meet required class specs/scrutineering. Not everything epic has to be about money and power numbers - where’s the personal skill in that build? Cheers Bennie

Rear diff plug looks to be normal. If there were chunks of metal instead of fine particles, then I’d be concerned! Cheers Bennie

Another blank will be for rearview mirror heater switch. Cheers Bennie

Those coins also means the head hasn’t over heated since the last work was done. They’re there as a warranty on their work. Over heat the heads and the coins fall off. Cheers Bennie

Clean the switch contacts in the cluster switch. Steering wheel will need to be removed for this. Also check all solder joints on the main wires to the switch cluster. Renew/repair if looking dry/cracked/dodgy. I had the main power wire for the lights break off mine one night on a 2hr drive home. It shorted out so I had low beams. Not great but I was greatful for having some sort of lights I could drive home with. The symptoms you describe are the same as what I had in the lead up to this issue - except for the lights randomly turning off when in use. Mine only did it between switching from Lo to high and vice versa. I ended up replacing the combination switch from a ‘91 L series and haven’t had an issue since. It was a much tighter unit too. My old one had 400,000ish km on it with a lot of night driving during my ownership (which continues). Cheers Bennie

Also make sure your crank and cam sensors are bolted in place correctly and are plugged in. Any codes on the ECU? Cheers Bennie

Thanks mate, not instincts - experience after buying a brumby “that just stopped onthe way to work”. Popped Welch plug filled the content of the cooling system into the engine. We got 20L of water oil and sludge out of the little EA81. This is what we found once the heads were removed: One welch plug dropped out. Cheers Bennie

If the fuel pump is turning on and off the ECU is still in check codes mode. You need to disconnect the black connectors above the driver’s feet. It’ll be a single black wire with black connectors you’re looking for. Also make sure the green connectors in the same area are disconnected. That may influence the injector voltage - might not. You’ll have to investigate. Cheers Bennie

Welcome to the forum bbf. Thow up some details and a pic of your 80’s Subaru Cheers Bennie

That’s awesome! We didn’t get anything like that over here AFAIK. Cheers Bennie

G’day Scoby4wd, As you’ve said, under the defrost vents are three bolts. Under the dashboard left and right are two bolts on the lower A pillar. Remove the centre console. Remove any panels from above foot area. On either side of the heater box is some moulded ducting. Remove this, it clips in top and bottom. Can be a tight fit in there. Again, either side of the heater box are the cables for vent and temps. There is also one for the outside air vent high up under the dashboard. Disconnect these. Disconnect the main wiring plugs near the fuse panel. You might need to drop the fuse panel to access them properly. There will be other fiddly wiring clips to undo here and there. Take note of these for reassembly. I believe there is one wiring plug that goes to a relay or some box on the firewall. Keep an eye out for this sucker. Remove the steering wheel and drop the steering column - or remove the whole steering column (leaving the steering wheel in place). Pull the speedo cable from the back of the instrument cluster. Hold the dashboard and jiggle it gentle to loosen it’s sitting position. Feel for any resistance as this could indicate a missed mounting bolt/nut. Carefully lift the dashboard avoiding the windscreen (can easily crack the windscreen). Again check for any resistance while removing, it’s usually easiest to go out the passenger door, but really it doesn’t matter and will be more about what has better shed access (if indoors). It’s easier to do if you’ve got the windscreen removed! Those bolts under the demister vents are vertical and are a PITA to get at with the windscreen in place. Still doable though. The replacement dashboard should drop straight in place of the old one. Install is the reverse of removal, or close enough to it. Pull the cracked one first! Learn, clean the firewall etc. Then pull the good dashboard out. Now is a good time to add AC if you don’t have it but have access to a full kit. I think that’s about it. It’s been a few months since I did this last so I may have missed some finer details. Cheers Bennie