el_freddo

Put an EJ engine in with the EJ gearbox and you’ll have some of the usual fitment mods to do as required when doing the L series 5 speed. Some required mods will be more involved than others compared to the usual L series 5spd conversion. And I highly doubt you’ll find a dual range EJ box at a parts yard in the states. All the best with whatever you decide. Cheers Bennie

Make sure the valves aren’t bent. If it’s running you should be all good though. Cheers Bennie

International shipping from Oz is the killer bit. Cheers Bennie

@oczuk32 - correct. Chrome strip (plastic) is separate to windscreen rubber. Cheers Bennie

Probably not the tensioner if it goes quiet then. I’ll have to watch the video tomorrow and get back to you, I’m sure someone will have an answer for you. Cheers Bennie

That sounds like a dead cam belt tensioner. Removed LHS cam cover and check if the tensioner is bouncing. There are plenty of YouTube videos about this. If you can’t see it, it doesn’t mean it’s good, use the above link to the stethoscope and use this to properly diagnose the issue. We had one go bad on our EJ251 and it looked fine while running but the stethoscope pinned the noise with the tensioner. Swapped for OEM and no issues since Cheers Bennie

Yeah they’ve been on the market for a while now, probably a bit over a year. I’ve toyed with the idea of getting one for the shelf - waiting for the day my beloved ute gets a respray after all the dents are pulled out. I believe they ship international Cheers Bennie

Which then equates to about $4.11 US. So we’re better off by a bit of a margin. Who would’ve thought?? (That is provided 91 is their highest rated fuel for domestic use) Cheers Bennie

@sirtokesalot I reckon the lack of replies means your on new ground with this one. I hope leaving it means it’s all good long term for you. Cheers Bennie

That’s really balls. Not much you could do there otherthan sell parts. Front bumper from the brat will bolt on your hatch. Even then, some wire or cable ties and you’ll have your bumper reattached and ready for action again! Cheers Bennie

Why claim insurance anyway? Get a new bar, replace, move on, insurance company doesn’t need to know... Cheers Bennie

Your insurance company sucks. That’s not totalled!! That a damaged bumper bar! My brumby was backed into by a tray back ute that sliced open my front right hand guard like a tin can. The insurance company found a new guard and replaced it. Now that panel is the best looking one on the car! I hope it’s not totalled. Too straight to have a salvage title on it. Cheers Bennie

I’m in Australia too and I know that panel (plastic) above the driver’s feet as a kick panel. It’s there to tidy up loose wiring from interfering with the driver’s feet. It probably does a small job of reducing the driver’s feet ending up in the dashboard during a crash - at least it does in newer vehicles! And yes, it’s tight in there but isn’t too bad overall. Cheers Bennie

If you’ve got noises from the CV shaft on that side of your front end, then it could be a dead outer joint. I had this issue on my brumby and it would pull on the steering wheel right off the mark. But it had mega noise when turning corners from that front driveshaft. Cheers Bennie

How many km/miles? I’d say your rear suspension bushes need replacement. Cheers Bennie

Remove kick panel for better access. From memory the last time I did a cable swap I didn’t remove the clutch pedal (I could be wrong though - I removed the pedal for the L cable recently), the driver’s seat certainly did not move out of the vehicle. Use a torch or some sort of light to brighten up that dark space - it’ll make work so much easier! Cheers Bennie

Said no one ever! Looks good mate! *almost* makes me want to do a lifted sedan. But I’m a wagon boy at heart (or ute, either way!). Cheers Bennie

I’d be using new gaskets an sealing washers. 5ftlb is just keep the bolt in, on the EJs, it seems the thread is all taken up and the bolt bottoms out on the cam retainer plate. Any tighter and you risk stripping the bolt or the thread the bolt fits in to. Cheers Bennie

I didn’t realise how badly I typed that post! Apologies! Cheers Bennie

@Steptoe Wiring loom and processes would be similar if not the same. Tried a forester workshop manual? Have you done a JDM workshop manual search? Cheers Bennie

Brake lines aren’t ballooning when applying pedal pressure are they? Cheers Bennie

Why did you weld instead of bolting the centre piece in? Cheers Bennie

And Redback is back in action as of yesterday (second time since last post!)! And in good time too, it was raining this morning and that’s never fun on a bike! New front drive shafts and bearings this time around, plus painted hubs (knuckle). If you ever pain hubs just make sure the paint doesn’t build up where bolts etc go. Not fun sorting that out, especially in threaded sections. So I’ve finally lost my steering wheel wobble under all conditions, plus the clacking noises from the front left and the steering wheel shudder under brakes that was the initial issue ages ago. It’s bliss! And I forgot how much I enjoy driving this little beast! Now that everything is smooth up front, I reckon I’ve got a niggle up the back now. I’ll look into that in time as I’ve got a few other things to do first. Cheers Bennie

You’re adding the engine loom to run the engine. There’s no need for the brake res wiring unless the ECU references it. Otherwise just stick with the EA brake reservoir level setup. Thermo fans: the ECU has one wire that is earth switched that triggers the thermo fans. Hook this to the radiator switch wire (MY) or the trigger wire (L series - have to work out which one triggers the relays) to make the fans come on. If you don’t want the EA thermo fan loom doing its thing you could use the EJ gear or make your own setup with some wiring and a couple of relays. I hope this helps. Cheers Bennie

1 - don’t need 2 - correct. Cam, crank and O2 sensor 3 - correct 4 - never seen a double diode but you definitely need them so leave them be 5 - don’t need. Just use the wire from the ECU to trigger the fans. Run your own wiring or wire into the trigger for the factory EA wiring. 6 - correct. Igniter and corresponding plug 7 - correct (AFM) 8 - looks about right. 9 - relay block. Don’t need for the engine loom cut down, but could be reused for other purposes 10 - something like that. Keep it 11 - definitely need them! 12 - dunno what that plug is, it doesn’t look like the third plug in the three plug wiring loom Looks like you’re making some good progress! Getting your head around the wiring really is a journey - kind of like being enlightened. Once you’ve done one it’s much easier! Cheers Bennie