el_freddo

And even easier if the OP is going to remove the heads. @4wdHonky- if you have a bottom end bearing issue you could swap the NA block in for the turbo one AND swap the turbo pistons in at the same time. The bottom ends are all the same, just the pistons are different for lower compression partly due to lower grade fuels and crappy tuning in the 80’s and partly for boost being applied. Personally I’d try to keep the stock turbo engine running as it is if there aren’t any other issues other than the spark plug hole. Cheers Bennie

The fuel pressure regulator is responsible for the fuel pressure. Those stats on the pump just say what it’s capable of. The fuel pressure regulator will monitor the pressure correctly as it falls within the range on the pump’s details. I’d run that pump. Cheers Bennie

A brake place worth their weight will be able to re-sleeve and service the MC so it’s as good as new. Cheers Bennie

Awesome pics and trip report as usual Todd. I reckon my favourite pic is the one you walked in for - with the two big rocky outcrops that made a saddle and the sunset in the background; the vegetation on either side of the pic give us a nice amount of colour to balance it out. Mint! Cheers Bennie

Was the torque converter properly seated before the engine was refitted? Cheers Bennie

Nah I wouldn’t touch that as it’s got the EJ25D. Smooth engine when it’s operating properly, nasty head gasket which started the whole EJ25 reputation of having forever headgasket issues. Nice looking vehicle, I’d recommend having a game plan for when that EJ25D gives you issues. STi conversion been done many times before, great candidate for it Cheers Bennie

Good effort there mate!

Springs will interchange. The only difference will be the rating of the spring and possibly the final ride height being a tad higher if they’re an uprated spring. If it levels your car out left to right it’s worth a go I reckon. Cheers Bennie

Other difference is aftermarket KYB is a gas strut and OEM genuine units are KYB oil filled. Gas filled struts naturally sit higher than oil filled struts. If a gas strut fails it collapses, if an oil filled strut fails it will leak and continue to perform its duties with diminishing performance as it loses oil. Cheers Bennie

An aftermarket head unit will always create a tiny spark when connecting the battery. Other than that the fuel pump issue is either a poorly operating alternator, old wiring with resistance points or a battery that isn’t coping as well as it used to. Lastly could be some sketchy wiring done by a pervious owner. You’d really need to check out if anything was modified before your ownership. Eg: I have a Gen1 RS turbo Liberty (Legacy over your way) that someone used the door switch circuit as the earth for the aftermarket head unit. Whenever someone opens a door the headunit turns off as the circuit becomes active. Classic (*facepalm*). Cheers Bennie

Why not replace the rear springs? There are threads on here about suitable models to find parts from. I’ve got a set of early ‘90’s civic front springs in the rear of my L series. Stiffened up the rear end nicely and allowed more load carrying which is what I wanted. I’m not sure if this would lift the rear of your 2wd significantly as I don’t know how much lower the 2wd rear sprints were vs 4wd rear springs. Spring perch is in the same spot essentially with the change in lower mount height. I hope that makes sense! Cheers Bennie

Interesting… check that you don’t have: - a snapped spring - slipped lower spring perch - crushed lower shock mount - issues with the top spring hat/mount. Other than that I’m out of ideas. If you’re in the rust belt you’ll have to discuss with someone local to you as we don’t salt roads or get snow like you do over there from what I’ve read. Cheers Bennie

G’day @libertyherb123! Checked the fuses under the bonnet? There might be some over near the battery (from memory) in a black box. Under the lid will tell you what fuse and relay is responsible for what. Did the fan ever work for you? Silly question but maybe this car is new to you and you’re checking through your list of issues to fix… Salada mate! Bennie

Measure the shocks from the spring perch to the lower mount bolt. There’s a difference between the 2wd and 4wd rear shock units. Your issue may not be a spring - it could be a 4wd shock that’s been installed somewhere along the way. Cheers Bennie

If it’s not going about 10 then weld the moustache bar mounts to the chassis rails. Same for the front mount on the rear diff. Fab up a bracket or even use two tabs that pick up the one bolt front mount above the diff. Tip: the hole on one side is larger than the other. 4wd swing arms will swap right in. Bit of a bastard if you don’t want to remove the three retainer bolts on the outer arm. These will mess with toe in and camber. If our bush not necessary to stress about them. Cheers Bennie

Been done before. May need to add captive nuts to hold the moustache bar mounts to the body. Other than that it’s a bolt in operation from what I’ve seen. If you’ve got the donor it wouldn’t be hard to work out what’s different between the two. The whole rear K frame needs to be swapped in and if you’re not running a lift you might need to swap fuel tanks if there’s no “dent” for the rear diff to sit in. Cheers Bennie

Where’s @GeneralDisorder these days? I miss his blunt input on things like this. Buy an ‘80’s Chevy he’d say! I hope he’s ok. Cheers Bennie

I got my cam sensor wires the wrong way around on an engine conversion/bastardisation and it ran extremely poorly. Swapped those around and it purred like a subi kitten… This was on a 2002 harness. Cheers Bennie

Ignition switch can be unscrewed from the back of the barrel and unplugged from the loom to bench test it. You’ll have to work out what wire is what though as I can’t remember off the top of my head. From memory the white or blue is permanent power and is the one to always reference as you check the other wires. You’ll work it out though. Cheers Bennie

Maybe a bad ignition switch. Could be some bad earths or a dying fusible link.

That’s a standard tube on just about every charcoal canister. The Gen1 Liberty has the same sort of setup too. Did that sensor end up solving you passing your smog test @Craigar? Cheers Bennie

Nope. You’re all good. One cam is operating valves when you line up the timing belt. The pistons are half way up the cylinders so valves etc can’t hit. Cheers Bennie

22680AA160 is the part number. Drop the F. I didn’t think there were different AFMs for manual vs auto. My EJ22 converted L series runs that part with its EJ22E. It his is a Gen1 engine and management system. The other number on the AFM below the part number is 2X21D on a green and silver label - it’s a five pin plug with all pins present in a plastic housing. My ECU has a “G” on it from memory. I hope this helps! Cheers Bennie

AFAIK a timing kit is a timin kit. Just make sure you get a phase 1 or phase 2 kit as needed - and ensure you’re getting the correct tensioner design as they swapped in the phase 1 era and ran with that tensioner ever since. When you reconnect the battery and start the engine you shouldn’t touch the throttle - the ECU will change engine speeds as it works out it’s idle. I believe this is set as the engine comes up to full running temp. If it’s still stalling at times something else is at play. Clear and check codes again. If the fuel pump wasn’t replaced also consider this could be the issue. When a fuel pump dies it can do it randomly then start again, or it could completely dies. Also stale fuel can be problematic with getting the engine started. If it’s really bad you will smell a varnish like smell from the exhaust. Other thought with the poor idle is a sticky idle air control valve. Could be worth pulling and cleaning up. Do not remove the top cap as that’s the idle set from factory. Apparently you can adjust this once the engine is up to full temp to set the engine idle speed - but it typically doesn’t need to be touched. That’s all I can come up with - I hope some of it at the least is useful! Cheers Bennie

Got a part number on it to cross reference?