el_freddo

Another way to get the extra length is to make a "ute swag" for your BRAT and it's canopy. Here's the general idea from this mob I saw a few years back at the Deni ute muster: From here: http://www.uteswags.com.au/Ute_Swags/Home.html Brilliant idea I reckon! I agree with the dual battery setup! They work a treat if you put the time and effort into a decent setup. You could even run an electric blanket with an inverter then, but the inverter would have to be a big one I'd imagine for the electric blanket! The other thing is to look into how they heat the campers in Canada - I know my sister's camper she had over there had some sort of heater setup that was independent to the car's battery system. Probably ran on gas some how. I know some of these ideas probably won't work for you as you'll be on a budget, but for the sake of sharing ideas I've added them in here anyway Cheers Bennie

That's the theory. But then the engine could be working outside it's "power vs efficiency" zone. You might be lucky and the engine will handle the required power fine and return you some good economy. But if you're cruising with the throttle open further than what you used to do with the stock sized tyres then you're using more fuel over all, even if your revs have dropped by 500rpm (big difference!) Cheers Bennie

Numbchux I'm loving your work! And I'm jealous that you're playing with gearboxes and I'm not at the moment (I'm trying to source a few bits for my build). The clearance issue you're having with the LSD and the side gears on the low range: how badly are the fouling eachother? The gearbox I've had built we shaved the same area including bolt heads to clear these gears. The amount taken off doesn't impact on the integrity of the bolts or the LSD in general. I'll be keen to hear what revs you'll be doing at cruising speed - and can you match a speedo drive gear to show true speed on the dash/instrument cluster? And I have to ask - what's the plan for the RX FT4wd R&P gears and the centre diff? I'm chasing one (or two, or three :twisted: ) for my build - the unit I've got has been flogged within a thou of it's life, that's all. Cheers Bennie

I've got mine mounted on the steering column like the MPFI touring wagons do. No fancy brackets, just some large cable ties doubled up on eachother, pulled nice and tight so it doesn't move and you're sorted: The fuse box above the ECU is for 24/7 power, ignition, fuel pump power and the starter circuit. Time to check out your pics Cheers Bennie

Thanks mate, been on here a while now (can't edit the first post to change the title) - been doing more reading than posting - I find it hard to keep up with the number of posts that can occur in one evening! Plus I've got several other subi forums that I've been on longer than here... Hence the reason for the rebuild work - I saw this as the cheaper option than sourcing another L series and going through the rego purpose, plus I'll be able to use the rotisserie again - I couldn't let her go just yet, it's not her time... At the moment it's pretty easy, as for their condition it can be hit and miss. Best bet would be to hit up the aussie forums and see what you can get from there - at least there will be support. Planning on packing some EJ dualrange gearboxes for the trip home?? At Pick-a-part style wrecking yards these tend to go for about $200 to $250 each regardless of the model of vehicle they come from. Could be a good "investment" if you can work out how to get it back to the US easily and cheaply. I'm actually after the RXII coupe's dual range with the locking centre diff. Specifically I'm after the centre diff and housing - the one I'm building turns out to be stuffed :-\ This diff is all that's holding me back from putting the icing on the cake with Ruby Scoo. Details of the build: 4.11 cut and shut pinion shaft gearset, L series good low range 1.59:1 and front mechanical LSD. This should round off Ruby Scoo very well. These gearboxes are like hen's teeth over here Cheers Bennie

That's because, well - for me, I'm too busy driving and having fun to take pics! These were taken by a mate ages ago: ^ This little fella is no longer :-\ I hope this helps lift the "flat ground" photos! Also, these pics were taken from the Otway NP and Aire River area in Victoria, Aust. Cheers Bennie

Hmmm... I wonder if I might find one of these in the yards over here. Awesome find. Now to go hunting Cheers Bennie

Yeah they do! I reckon the L series should have come from the factory EJ'd! My only concern with your conversion is the ECU in the floor. Trust me, if you're out wheeling like I am with the EJ, expect this to happen at least once: I was VERY glad that I mounted my ECU and immobiliser up under the dash board - it gets tight but in this situation I was still able to drive home, even with a wet air filter... Cleaning up is not fun. I don't wish for this to happen to anyone - I'm just sharing my concern. ECUs in the floor of an offroader is just asking for trouble in my book! Other than that, top effort on your conversion, the wiring from what I've seen on here looks very neat and factory like! Got any more pics with more engine bay pics of your wiring efforts? Cheers Bennie

Well this is what I got up to last summer - from mid november 2011 until the end of april 2012: All of the above to fix this issue: Going back together: A great feeling when it's back in one piece, but it all takes time and patience and I guess some will as well! Re-routing some wiring: ^ In one way I kind of wish I didn't do this, but in another I wish I went further with it and tidied up the "knuckle" that I ended up with in the cut down... I've now got to go back and find my tacho wire in this mess (that's "neatly" tucked up under the dash) so that I can watch my engine revs again. All back together and almost "on top of the world" near Mt Hotham: Out and about: Site of Australia's first airplane flight: Victorian High Country in May: ^ Ruby Scoo is sitting level in this pic Mt Hotham two days after the trip above; at the Arlberg Hotel were I was night manager last year - very fond memories of that place! Mt Cole: Mt Cole with Tweety (EA81'd trike - now supercharged!) and Dulagarl (the H6 dual range foz) Wimmera River and Wyperfled NP trip with the H6's: The "new" touring storage system - still under construction and probably will be for a number of years! ^ A number of improvements yet to come. This was built over two days before the trip with scrap steel. It works well for what it is, even though it doesn't look pretty or organised it was enough to make life easier for us out bush. And the last one for now to finish off this post: Wyperfeld NP kitted out for touring: I often forget how much work and effort I've put into this vehicle. While it's old an beaten (not too badly) she still goes very well and does what I ask of her. It's great to have done all that work and occasionally realise that you did it and remember those times when it all seemed too much yet ploughing on was the only way to get it done. Many things learnt and I wouldn't hesitate to do it again! Cheers Bennie

My thoughts too. If these were out in Oz, I'd have one for sure - maybe even two, one for street, one for offroad Keen to see how this turns out. These coupes have ALL the good bits except for the XT6 5 stud gear! And I want that gearbox too Cheers Bennie

And may I ask where's the fun in that? DIY of course - no use having someone else work on your car for your hard earned! I know over here all the MY's (as we call them) have the two notches in the dash board for the AC button. Seriously though, how hard is it to wire in a different switch and label it "AC"?? RallyAlex, if you do get a complete AC "kit" or find a donor vehicle you'll also need the crank pulley, alternator and AC compressor pump bracket as well as all the associated wiring - including the relays on your passenger's side strut tower, also you'll need the glove box and the exchange box under the dash. I've done this conversion/addition to my mum inlaw's brumby (brat) - it was simple plug and play, you just need all the bits, make sure all the plumbing is sealed properly and off you go. Having a donor vehicle I also added power steering while I was at it - that transformed the feeling of the vehicle, much more nimble with the PS! Cheers Bennie

I'll add to what Loyal 2.7 Turbo has said above: My educated guess would point to the radiator being blocked by 50% or more. I've seen and experienced EA82s over heat due to a blocked radiator that's only had a back flush ever done to it. Have it checked out for corrosion, if any is present get a new radiator! If it's all good remove the end tank, get a piece of small steel or wire and clean out each individual channel in the radiator. Over here we call this "rodding the radiator" - the mechanical action will un block a radiator much better than a back flush will! Then replace the end tank - I've seen a mate use a set of rachet tie down straps to get a real good bit of pressure squeezing the whole radiator together so he got a good seal on the end tank he had removed. A new radiator also gives you the piece of mind that it'll be doing what it does the best it possibly can. If you continue to have over heating issues from here it'd point to a head gasket Cheers Bennie

Not on the golden lap that's for sure! Cheers Bennie

From our last trip. Ruby Scoo is the only EJ present for this one. The other two are H6's: This is the Wimmera River - we followed it from it's head waters to it's terminal lakes. In the last year or two it's had some major floods - you can see debris in the trees in the mid left of the image - that's at 5 or 6 metres! I think it peaked in some areas at 9 metres!! Floodway crossing on the Wimmera River: This is un edited (as are all of my pics, except the obviously cropped ones), the morning after the night of storms: One of the "wet weather only" roads that we've been hanging out to traverse: ^ Last time we were in this area it was sunny and 46 degrees C! It was a good change (~15 degrees C day time and below 12 at night) My Sydney Opera house "tribute". Mallee rains with a setting sun behind it. This area is usually very arid! Ruby Scoo the poser: Awesome trip, wish I was out there much much more often and for a longer period next time. This trip was 6 days in length, but the first was wasted in travelling to the meet point (and the usual final organisational stuff!). Cheers Bennie

From what I've read fellas over there have been bolting SPFI intakes to EA81's so I'd say that the carb head intake is the same as the SPFI heads. I'd love one of these systems to run on an EA81 - that'd make for a sweet setup in my book! Cheers Bennie

This is how I've done mine - stock EA oil warning light sender on one end and aftermarket mechanical gauge on the other. It all fits under my alternator. To fit your pressure sender unit which is much larger, I've seen it done with a line extension to an area where it's easy to access and clear of any other objects. Worked a treat for them. Cheers Bennie

Very remote is a good case, basically you just CAN'T get them anymore! Last time I heard, ARB were no longer producing the R180 air locker. I could be wrong though; also this is the Australian side of the ARB mob. It's funny how many go nuts about the centre diff lock - the stock EA 5spd gearbox has exactly the same thing for offroading, just that it doesn't have the centre diff for the AWD onroad handling. Your 4 spd box will do the same thing once you've selected 4wd I hope this makes sense. I thought this was an auto locker - where it locks once one wheel has lost traction yet allows a wheel to unlock when cornering (until you give it to it and spin the inside wheel). An air locker is a manual locker where the user decides when to lock it. The air part is simply the mechanism that locks the diff, via an air actuated piston of some description. You can also set them up as a vacuum or cable operated locker too - it all depends on how the locker was designed. Cheers Bennie

How's this all coming together Mark? That wiring looks pretty neat to me! I've seen much worse than that! Did you run the EJ's harness without removing the dashboard, if so, top effort! Cheers Bennie

Awesome. Thought about using the front stubs from the EA gearbox as a template? These clip in like so: The carb boxes are 23 spline, same as the rear, but I'm unsure about the difference in diametre of these stubs in the diff housing/oil seal. It sounds good though, some stronger stubs would be awesome, hope it doesn't then break something harder to replace further along the line Cheers Bennie

You can hook up an after market gauge by using a T piece to add the extra sender into the system. This is what I've done with my EJ: This can easily be done on the EA82 as well. You can even make it a "remote" T piece where you move it away from that low position on the front of the EA82. You use some copper pipe or a flexible hose. This little oil gauge in the cab is great to know what's going on in your engine. Cheers Bennie PS: ignore all the oil on the block, I took this photo after fixing a blown pressure gauge hose!

Have you got a multi meter? What you need to establish is that the fusible links box has power to it, there's usually a cable from the positive side of the battery to the box to provide power. Also pull out and check all the fusible links if you haven't done so already, sometimes while they look good they're fried, moving them will tell you if they're good or not. Are there any other mods that have been done to this vehicle? Probably a question I should have asked earlier. Cheers Bennie

What's that black box for? The electric window box, the one I've been talking about should mount behind the kick panel. I can't remember how the MY's do it but the L series is designed with the kick panel free of the bonnet release handle bracket... Cheers Bennie

This black box mounts above the bonnet (hood) cable lever, it uses the same mouting bolts - at least it does in the aussie delivered subi's... I hope this makes sense! Cheers Bennie

Nah They've usually just got a number on each item - crown and pinion gears - that should match, this shows that they're a matching item as you're not supposed to change just the crown or pinion gears, they should always be moved as a set. Mine had "30" engraved on both the crown and pinion gears, it can be hard to see. Cheers Bennie

Why hasn't anyone tried spinning the passenger's cam 180 deg and replacing the belt to see what happens? I'm 99% sure that the EJ subarus are still a batch fire setup so the EFI system should be able to do it, the knock sensor might have a hissy fit though. I don't think custom cams are going to change much, you're going to end up with 1&2 firing then 3&4 firing one after the other, then the exhausting, sucking, squeezing without any power. I can see how the V8s can get away with it, they're essentially running as a 4 cylinder with 4 bang events that can be spread out enough to match the 4th event in the cycle evenly to the 1st for a continuous spread for power strokes. You'd probably have to look into a custom crank that would have all 4 pistons hitting TDC at the same time to achieve the double explosions at opposite ends of the cycle to make it a regular beat - there'd be one explosion per revolution, instead of the current 2 explosions per revolution. If I've got this very wrong, flame away, I'm happy to stand corrected, but this is how my mind is thinking at the moment. It'd be a bit of fun to see what would happen, but a lot of work just for some ************s and giggles. Cheers Bennie