Red0ktober

Think it's worth it? I bought it as a parts car but figured I'd see how serviceable the EA81T was. My other option is to swap in the low-mile EA81 (non-Turbo) from my ugly car since the body on this one is so much nicer. Or I could just have the heads rebuilt and see how long the rest holds...

The cylinder that seemed to have coolant in it was the first picture. That's Cyl #3, nearest the turbo. It's an EA81T. What am I looking for on pic #2? The rough intake valve?

The car has 160k on it, I bought it as a non-runner and was told it blew a hose and overheated. I'll check with the local machine shop in the morning and see if they work on aluminum heads. Anything specific I should ask them to do?

I posted this on another board at the same time, a guy pointed out a crack on this one, below the intake valve.

At a glance, it appears to me that my heads are cracked between the valves. I have been in touch with the owner at time of failure. He said it blew a hose (or something) and overheated. I didn't see any obvious places the head gaskets blew, but there was water in the oil and a cylinder.

The covers have a "Do Not Adjust Valve Clearance" sticker on them. Assume that means they're hydraulic? I bought the car non-running. I don't know it's history, other than it has coolant in the oil. Hoping it's still serviceable. Showing about 130k on the odometer if I recall correctly.

I've pulled my EA81T for head gaskets, and I'm looking for other things to fix/improve while I have it out. Obviously, all head gasket related seals/gaskets are getting changed. I see the oil pump is leaking, so I'll re-seal that. I'll change the rear main. I think there is some other cover back there, but I don't know what to search for to find that gasket. For the longevity of the turbo'd engine, should I put in a cooler thermostat? Any other maintenance items I should be looking at?

Is that kit for the 3AT to 5-speed or 4-speed to 5-?

What does that mean? I've never had or worked on an auto before this car, other than doing a filter and fluid change on a friends car once. (Edit: I found the USRM page which explained somewhat)

Oh, ok. I didn't have them side-by-side, but for some reason I was thinking the starter was different. That's good news. I'm going over some write-ups again, I think I may be better doing one thing at a time. I bought this 5-speed to replace a 4-speed, not an auto, so I don't have all the bits I'd need (eg. shifters, flywheel, etc). I might just have to wait until the local yard gets another donor. How are the 3at's for drivability? I bought the car as a non-runner with I think about 130k. Planning on a fluid and filter change before I try to drive it.

I'm pulling my engine to replace head gaskets and re-seal. I was thinking that I would make sure the engine was good before I invested too much, but now might be the best time to swap in my 5-speed D/R Are there any caveats to running an EA82 5-speed on an EA81T? I see the starter is on the opposite side. Will that clear the turbo bits well enough? I'm new to Subaru, so any relevant info would be appreciated. Thanks!

And now it's gone. Nearby, and I still own it, but I'll let a friend use it up and benefit from the fuel economy. She picked it up today and loves it.

I'm giving the car away this evening. Boo hoo. (not really) I took it to the local Subaru specialist (that I've heard nothing but good about), and he gave me his opinion. It was not good. I still have the '83 Turbo that I'm going to try to fix, but sorry grandma, I'm not going to mess with the '81.

I emailed the connector pic to you. I don't have the MAF, missing on the car I bought.

Are flapper and hot-wire MAF Sensors interchangeable? I'm trying to find a MAF for an EA81T, or something that will work.

What's the fun in keeping it stock? I have no other reason to have the car other than to screw around with it. I have an Isuzu that is a better 4x4, and a BMW that is more comfortable and gets better gas mileage (and goes way way faster too).

Are there any differences in the bottom end between the EA81 and EA81T? Does the drop in compression come from the different heads, or different pistons? I don't mean to double post, I started this thread with my engine questions: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?p=1016653

I have recently acquired an '81 GL wagon. It has the Exxon Valdez edition EA81 and a dual-range 4-speed. Low miles; car only has 77k, and about 30k on the engine (my grandpa lost oil and grenaded it a couple decades back). No EA81 based vehicles in the local salvage yard, but there are two loyales. I'm already having a D/R 5-speed and rear disc brakes pulled for me. Debating if I should get more. One loyale has an EA82 with all the goods for converting to SPFI. The other loyale has a turbo EA82 with 140k miles and an auto. Supposedly a good runner. Also looks like I'm getting an EA81T w/ auto wagon, mostly for body parts. It's a non-runner, but the engine may still be serviceable. So, what should I do with my engine? At a minimum, I'd like to convert the low-mile EA81 to SPFI. Or should I use the EA81T from the parts car? Can I perhaps convert my current EA81 using parts from EA81T? Or should I take this opportunity to get an EA82T from the salvage yard? I got the car free from family and I intend to preserve and improve, so I don't mind spending a little money to make it awesome. Thoughts?

I have leads on both an EA81T and EA82T to replace my carb'd EA81. Both donor cars have an automatics, but I intend to keep the manual. Can I simply omit the transmission wiring, or must I source an ECU from a manual equipped car?

I stopped by the salvage yard again. No GLs of my era, but two Loyales. One with the injection and 5sp DR I'd need to convert my EA81, the other with an EA82T but an auto. So, what to do? Retrofit the EA81 with injection, or swap in the EA82T. The 5-speed swap and rear disc conversion are happening regardless. Any other bits I should make a point to pull of either of them?

Salvage yard is supposedly bringing in a GL, should be able to get at least the wiring from it. Hopefully some other bits too. I want another set of wheels for snow tires (as I already have a set from my old I-Mark, but on 4x100 wheels). Found and fixed one oil leak; the oil drain plug didn't have a gasket. It does now. Still a non-trivial leak somewhere on the backside of the engine.

Awesome, that's just what I needed to know. I'm going to check with the local Subaru shop and wrecking yards to see if they have any fenders and a hood, but if I have to I'll get some off the internet. I could use a new drivers door if I could get a decent deal. That has some rust holes, but it's probably the easiest to repair.

I think I'm going to pull the engine and re-seal it. I'm going to need new front fenders. What is the interchange on these? Can I get some of the newer model years if I convert the grille/headlights too? There are some refurb fenders for an '83-'84 on eBay for $150. I assume there were cosmetic changes between the years.

My worry about finding parts is that the car I pull parts from will be nicer than this one.

Upped some more pics to photobucket: A battery popped in this once, nice repair 'eh? Some rust on the forward portion of the battery tray. Can see daylight through the metal. This is after I vacuumed and hosed out the area.