el_freddo

Should be fine then if heads were shaved and the HG replaced properly. Cheers Bennie

My weapon of choice was an angle grinder. Very satisfying. Cheers Bennie

Also look into the possibility that you have a leaking head gasket. Hopefully not, but if they’re the original HGs I’d be suspect about them. Cheers Bennie

If the injector is clicking, have you looked at fuel pressure or the possibility that the fuel pump is dead? Cheers Bennie

As GD said ^ But... Only way around this and keeping the low range is to find an RXII coupe AWD gearbox. This box has the locking centre diff - you’ll want to find one that’s not flogged out from running different front and rear diff ratios or from dickheads doing rear wheel burnouts using the front hand brake. From here you can cut and shut the pinion shaft to have the 4.44 ratio diff. The crown wheel needs to be shaved to clear the low range gears too. The good L series low range of 1.59:1 will drop in once the crown wheel is shaved to clear. Then you’ve got basically the ultimate package - best low range, 4.44 diff ratio, locked centre for 4wdn and AWD on the road - especially good if you’re running the EJ22. Downer on this box is that it’s a custom build with few spare parts available these days. Over here I have the advantage of EJ AWD dual range gearboxes for the drive gears at the very least. It’s the centre diff that will have this as toast if it dies (I lock it whenever I’m on dirt to avoid wear). Not a simple task, and in the eyes of GD, not cost effective, go get a truck :p (sorry GD, couldn’t help myself!). Cheers Bennie

Thanks mate. I’ve not seen anything like that before - only the spfi system and that didn’t land in Australia either. Cheers Bennie

@GeneralDisorder - what’s a “feedback carb”? Just a carb with an auto choke or something more involved? Asking as my ‘91 brumby has electric choke and a black fuel pump control module. I’ve not seen a blue one before. Cheers Bennie

Sounds like an awesome score! I’m sure you keep it and use it much in the same fashion as your wife’s grandparents did. While GD will say not particularly valuable it will have that sentimental value through family ownership and will be a very cool old school ride Cheers Bennie

I did them as cheap insurance/maintenance. Both engines I did them on were 350,000 and 420,000km (not miles!). Cheers Bennie

I doubt it was the pump doing it. I know of several EJ power steering pumps operating MY/EA81 power steering racks without issues. Dis you run this rack without leaks previously? Cheers Bennie

If you’re going to lap the valves it’s worth replacing the valve stem seals while you’re there. Cheers Bennie

That alignment looks bang on Paul. Ive not heard of cam or crank sensors going bad. They’re just coiled copper wire wrapped around a magnet, they’re sealed pretty tight and there really isn’t much to go wrong with them (they also make good cruise control speed sensors for after market units!). Are the cam and crank sensors plugged in correctly/fully? I like NVU’s suggestion of the super junction plug pins. Although I’ve not heard of this being an issue it could be worth the 10-15 minutes to rule them out. Any codes from the ECU to share? Cheers Bennie

EJ257 will most likely have dished pistons to aid dropping the compression for boost. I could be wrong though, the difference could be in the combustion chamber volume build into the turbo heads. GD will know I reckon. Also: best to get a manual vehicle if that’s what you want. Swapping a manual into an auto can have all sorts of wiring issues leading to codes etc from what I understand. Cheers Bennie

Don’t do it. The transmission won’t be up for that amount of torque on tap. Cheers Bennie

??? Thats old school thinking with a distributor. TDC doesn’t matter with the cam belt fitment. In fact, the pistons are halfway down the cylinders when the crank timing mark is set properly. This ensures the timing belt is installed correctly in terms of crank position If you use any other mark to align the crank you’ve got it wrong. And if you’re using the arrow on the cam wheel that’s wrong too. You need to use the small line on the rim of the cam wheel on either side. One side will be free of valve spring tension, the other side will be held by/have spring tension acting on it. All the beat with it, I’m sure your issue is that the Cam belt timing/alignment isn’t correct. Cheers Bennie