jj421

I'm near Seattle, Washington. I love the northwest, haha. I don't plan on moving elsewhere anytime soon. I see you're in Wyoming... I plan to do a road trip to Wyoming at some point. My car was sold at some dealership in Wyoming in 1990, and I would like to try and find that dealership. Bratman, we have almost the same setup, haha. Except you have a 4" lift, right? How do the tires do in the snow? I could've got them cheaper, yeah. But I didn't want to wait for shipping. I was getting my tax return check, paycheck, and lift kit all about the same time. So I needed the tires ASAP, and Discount Tire did a great job.

I highly recommend these tires! I hear they are amazing in the snow, but I'll have to see. I was originally going to get the BF Goodrich All Terrains, until the guy at Discount Tire mentioned the Generals. I did some research and found that 27" tires are the biggest you can do with a 2" lift. The Generals are a lot bigger/beefier than the BFs. They're also cheaper, you can get the white lettering (although it doesn't last long if you play in mud), and they have better reviews online. The only downside I've experienced is they like to throw rocks everywhere at 30-40 MPH. Best part was, the guy at Discount Tire has seen lifted EA82s come through his shop. Yeah, I could the PVC pipe, but I'd rather do metal. Something a little more secure. I've welded before, and it was crazy fun. I'd love to weld again, if only I had the equipment. Met with my buddy in his Ford Taurus. Shows the height difference, haha. My car's still cooler.

Thanks! Yeah, I plan on getting/making a roof basket soon. Probably gonna be buying one as I don't have welding equipment. But I need a better place to put my spare, need a place to mount some offroad lights, and I need a place to mount a CB antenna. Wheels are 14" Pug steelies that I painted black; Tires are General Grabber AT2, 27x8.5R14. Bought them brand new from Discount Tire, where they matched the price from Tire Rack. Got the tires, plus mounting, plus balancing, for $525.

2" SJR lift with 27x8.5R14 (General Grabber AT2) tires, 14" Pug steelies. No rubbing unless you're at the extremes of the suspension, but I've also hammered my front fenders quite a bit.

Well figured I'd post some pics of my newly lifted wagon. More will come later as I go offroading more. But wow, so much ground clearance, haha.

I did the LED dome light on my EA82, and it works great. I got my panel for $3.01 two years ago, with free shipping. Price has gone up, but this is the one I got: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005J3BPCK/ref=oh_details_o05_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I actually won't be going. Can't afford the gas for this trip. And I might attempt to put the front lift on my car again, since right now only the back is lifted (couldn't get the front bolted together with the lift block in).

Went on a mechanical adventure! So I tried lifting my EA82 wagon. Put the 2" lift on the rear no problem. Got it on there in less than an hour. The front though..... Could not get it on, whatsoever. Spent like 10-12 hours on it. Either you put the ball joint in, and can't get the lower control arm in. Or you put the lower control arm in, and can't get the ball joint in. Tried almost everything, but nothing helped. So the front went back to stock height. Leaving was fun too. I put everything back together (or so I thought). Put it in reverse, let out the clutch, and just heard a grinding kind of noise. Turns out the inner CV of my driver side axle separated. Had to put it in 4WD to move. Keep in mind, now it's 2-3 am and POURING down rain. At first, driving away was okay. Then once I got on the road, I touched the brake and the right front wheel locked up. It stayed locked until I came to a stop. Managed to limp in into a parking lot, only to find that my right front wheel had pushed against the fender and was doing it's own thing. A quick inspection later, I realized the ball joint came apart. My ball joints were complete crap, so I couldn't get the castle nut on there tight anyways. So now my ball joint is disconnected and the nut has fallen out on the road somewhere. I search through my tool box and could not find any nut big enough to fit on it. Luckily, I did find a lug nut for the stock EA82 wheels, which fit on there. Got it on there tight by removing the rubber boot and holding the ball joint still with my RoboGrips. Put the wheel back on and kept going. Still had the brake locking up issue. I managed to get into a parking space and shut her off. I'm soaking wet, shivering from the cold, an hour away from home, it's 3 am, I haven't eaten or drank anything in the past 24 hours, my body is sore from working on my car all day, and my car is broken. I gave up and just uncomfortable slept in the front seat of my car. Morning came, and I still had the brake issue. Drove around the parking lot a bit, and the front left ball joint decided to eject itself too. Turns out I forgot to put the pinch bolt back in. Luckily I kept the leftover hardware, so I put the pinch bolt back in. Still having the brake issue, I tried bleeding the brakes, which didn't work. I took off the right front wheel, and guess what? The brake caliper isn't bolted on. The top bolt is on there, but that's the only bolt on there and it isn't even tight. Luckily I had a spare caliper bolt in my car, as the bottom one was gone. Put that on and tightened both of them. But to my surprise, the long bolt that you can take out to access the pads was gone too. Turns out I had stupidly put that bolt in for the pinch bolt on the ball joint. Took it out, and put the proper bolt in for the ball joint. Put it all back together. Now, my car was finally driving alright. The axle is still broken, both ball joints are sketchy, and the brakes need to be bled. But I managed to limp it home. Drove about 75 miles home, avoiding freeways (for everyone's safety). Stopped by O'Reilly and purchased/ordered a new axle and two new ball joints. Had another catastrophic ball joint failure on the driver side, which I had to fix in the middle of the road (no shoulder and couldn't move the car, ergo couldn't get into a parking lot). In total, drove another 75 miles (150 miles total) in my car in this condition. This morning, I replaced the axle and ball joints. Now she's driving great. So in the end, I'm running a 2" lift in the rear and stock suspension in the front. Has a little bit of rake since the rear sits a bit higher, but not as much as you'd think. Running 27x8.5R14 tires (General Grabber AT2) on 14" Pug steelies. Rears are fine, and fronts rub a bit. The ball joint failures damaged the rear of the fender, which eliminates most of the rubbing back there. I've hammered the front fenders quite a bit, so they rub a bit in reverse (when turning) and at full lock. But these tires rock! Insane amount of traction, look awesome, and do pretty good offroad from what I can tell. Only downside is they are self cleaning at 30-40 MPH and stick out a bit from the body. What this means is these tires throw rocks against your car's body. Probably gonna paint bed liner on the bottom half of my car to prevent against rock damage. I also have a stock EA82, and it turns these tires fine. I was worried I wouldn't have the power to turn such big tires, but it's no different than hauling a couple hundred pounds in the back. I was also worried since I don't have power steering, but actually, it's EASIER to turn the steering wheel with these big tires. Weird, but I'm fine with it. Also running with my sway bar disconnected. I hardly even notice the difference, haha. Maybe swerving at highway speeds, but it's fun. Recently had "built" a roof "basket" out of some metal shelving. Made a spare tire mount out of a wood block and a spare stripped hub, in which I put a spare 14" Pug with a 26" tire (205/75R14). So I have a full size spare (er, very close to full size). In total, gained about 5" of clearance at the rear diff and 4" at the driver side door. Definitely makes quite a bit of difference. Sorry, pictures are sideways.

Looks like I'm going. Got my new 27" tires put on my Pugs, and getting my 2" lift from Marcus tormorrow. I'll probably be bringing my friend with on the run, and she's a photographer. So hopefully we can get some cool pictures!

I think you're trying to say your hubs are worn out, and you've replaced your front hubs twice from the junkyard? If so, are your axle nuts torqued properly? Are your cone washers in good shape? That'd be the only reason (I know of) to wear out/strip a hub. I'd check those out before getting new hubs again.

I'm still wanting to go, but it's depending on my next paycheck, my tax return check, and if I get the lift in time. I'll know by the 14th if I'm coming or not. Tires are costing me a bit more than expected. Oh, and I'm Grant for those who don't know.

Eh, a couple shots from my excursion today. Boy, I can't wait until I get a lift kit. I need it (as seen in the second picture).

I'd like to go, for sure. Hopefully my rig should be lifted by then, but that depends on when tax returns come in mail. But if it's easy and stock ride height should conquer the trail(s), I'm definitely going.

Photo dump!!! Beware, as I liked to take pictures of my car, haha. Before getting to camp: Then as we were in the mountains: Then Marcus and I went on our little trip: Then, Marcus decided to get one wheel airborne. He was successful, but we ended up both getting stuck at this point. A little bit of shoveling got us out.

I know peacewize camped last year. Someone else too, I think. I actually probably won't be camping. Gonna run to the junkyard Sunday morning. So it'll just be a one day trip for me. Been looking forward to this since last year.

I was wondering about the Christmas tree run this year. I guess I never saw this thread. Glad I saw it now, since it's not too late. Is anyone thinking of camping in their car overnight? I didn't do so last year, but I want to. I'm thinking of sleeping in my car and leaving on Sunday. Would be nice if I wasn't the only person. Last year we met at the one on Roosevelt AVE. I'd imagine it'd be the same one.

Haha, I don't know about top speed, but I can say this. At 60 MPH, I'm in 5th gear at 2750 RPM or so. Maybe a little more, maybe a little less. I don't remember. At 70-75 MPH, I'm in 5th gear at 3400 RPM. This is with a N/A EA82 and 5-speed D/R 3.9 ratio.

Body, suspension, chassis: 266,666.6 miles Transmission: 226,XXX miles Engine (longblock): 121,XXX miles

Indeed. Very simple swap. It wouldn't be a bad idea to install a new clutch kit while you're there, but not necessary. If you want to know how hard it is, I have some videos on YouTube. It was my first major repair, so the videos aren't great. I also did it the hard way. I pulled the transmission out from under the car, which wasn't very smart. Much much easier if you pull the engine (I've also got videos from when I swapped my engine). If you've got an hour to kill, you can watch my series (you can find the second part in the related videos section): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LK_tMtkWPCw&list=PLWKW712Na2Z5uYMhUIrlkcgGSaNQ8ozGA&index=16 MilesFox also has videos on YouTube. I used his videos to help me. If you've got another hour or two to kill, watch his videos. I recommend his over mine because he really knows what he's doing. Oh, I have a thread on here as well. If you've still got time to kill, feel free to read through it. You can also find numerous other D/R swap threads. http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/topic/136457-dr-swap-new-clutch-pics/ Hopefully one of these three choices will help you and give you a better idea as to what's involved in a D/R swap. It was my first major task on a vehicle and I pulled it off in 5 days. Which, to me, wasn't too bad for an internet-taught 17 year old kid with no experience and limited tools. That should speak for itself on how easy this swap is.

That's what I thought the first day I bought my Loyale. I was confused as to what it was, because the hazards button was to the left of the steering column. A quick glance in the owner's manual and I found out it was a parking light switch.

Sounds like the idle problem I have. I've posted numerous threads on this and only received minimal assistance, so let's hope you get better results. Only difference is mine is a manual, and it stalls whenever I push in the clutch or put it in neutral. I have to heel-toe and rev it to keep it alive, which is hard to do when you're approaching a traffic light at the bottom of a hill and the car in front is braking hard. I've got code 34 (EGR solenoid) and 35 (purge solenoid) all the time. I get code 24 (air control valve) too when the engine is cold--when it doesn't want to idle. Let me know your findings with the vacuum leaks. I suspect I might have a vacuum leak, but it's not obvious. I'll have to spray some fluid in the engine to find it. Tomorrow I might be trying a new ECU. I've tested the IACV and the wiring, and it all checks out. I'm thinking my ECU might be damaged or something. I haven't tested it yet, but we'll see. Are you getting voltage to the IACV? Unplug the connector, put the key in the on position, and grab your multimeter. Negative lead on negative battery post and positive lead on one of the two terminals in the connector (I forget which one is positive). You should get at least 10 volts. Also, make sure the IACV has 7.3-13 Ohms of resistance, but if you've seen it actuate, it should be okay. Here's another simple test for your IACV. With the engine running, disconnect the connector or pull the vacuum line on the IACV. If the engine is warm, the idle should drop 100 RPM, maybe a little more. If the engine is cold, the RPMs should drop significantly, possibly causing the engine to stall.

I've been surprised by that too. I think most auto parts stores will do this, but I know O'Reilly will: take the battery out of the car and take it to an O'Reilly store. They'll load test it for free, and tell you if you should replace it. They can also charge the battery overnight and test it again in the morning, for free. Very helpful if you don't have a charger/tester and can't justify spending money for one. Just remember, stick with the easy stuff first. Fully test and rule out the quick fixes, then move onto more complicated issues. I learned this the hard way, haha. Glad you got it fixed. I bet the car is happy to have a new battery in there.

The buzzing with the hazards sounds like a problem I've had before. For me, the wire from the fusible links to the positive battery cable was corroded and not making a good contact. Once that was fixed, the hazards would not buzz, but work fine. Check that wire and check the fusible links. Sounds like you've tested it, but it seems like a battery/connection issue to me. How old is your battery? Voltage may be good, but it might not be producing the amps required to start the car. Cables could also be damaged. Could try doing a voltage drop test or hook up jumper cables in parallel to your battery cables. The tach needle moving is interesting. Can't help with that, haha.

I've heard two good stories from people using Blue Devil in their EA82T engines. Hopefully "marcusgl10z28" and "Twitch de la Brat" will see this thread, because that's who I heard those stories from. Maybe they'll give you better advice on how to use the product. What kind of engine do you have? EA81? EA82? EA82T? If it's an EA82, I might want your old engine when you do an engine swap. I'm currently taking auto tech classes and would love to learn about rebuilding an engine, but I don't want to practice on the engine inside my daily driver.

Went into the mountains today. I am getting sick, probably just a cold, and wanted to get some fresh air. Ever since my D/R swap earlier this year, I've never used the low range. Never. However, this trail definitely required it, and wow. There were rocky parts, steep hills, and rocky steep hills. With the low range, I climbed up everything. No wheel spin whatsoever in 4WD. Never realized how well my wagon does offroad until now. The only problem I face is ground clearance, but it wasn't that big of a deal. A couple rocks hit my skid plate, but nothing too bad. All in all, pretty good for a stock suspension setup. Pictures don't really show the hard parts of the trail, because I was more focused on driving than taking pictures, haha. Anyways, here's some pictures: A dip in the trail. Just enough clearance on the front bumper. Rear towing hitch scraped a bit, but not much. Going down the trail. This is the easy part. Some viewpoints along the way. Getting near the end of the trail (well, as far as I could go). Lots of loose, jagged rocks gave it a rough ride. Kept it in 4WD Lo to be nice to my clutch. Got to the end. I could've gone further, but the trail had a weird ditch in it, and I didn't think my front bumper could clear it. Definitely very peaceful where I ended. Some inclinometer readings on the trail. These were pretty much the worst of the worst. Some hills were steep though. Combined with the loose rocks, having the D/R is a requirement. My old push button tranny probably wouldn't have made it so far.