ShawnW

Absolutely a wonderful conversion. Do it!

It seems like half the major work I do at the dealer these days is certainly HG's too. I dont think that will change.

I drove that car years ago and am still grinning about it today after seeing the picture you posted. The picture looks kindof like its in Micks old driveway even. The houses around it are kindof the same shape, age and style as the ones in Micks neighborhood.

Certainly you can't say Subaru didn't try to fix the problem. You also made the statement that Subaru wont back the warranty on the car. It would appear that statement isnt true either. Every time the dealer looks at it they are backing the warranty. The neutral switch on the trans certainly seems probable and not on the list of repaired items on the car. They certainly threw every other part at it. The number of warranty tickets on that is pretty staggering. Why did you stick with one dealer thru all of it?

Just leave room for the EJ22 swap.

Neat idea! You might be pushing it for printing, work, distribution, etc at this point though. Maybe work better as a 2010. September 12th. My turbo brat.

Mine has one as part of the lift kit but otherwise no.

That would be the ultimate sleeper with an EJ20 turbo swap in it. As awful as it would be to do that to the car what fun it would be. And leave the original thin tires on it too. And the brakes! SUICIDE!

Ill be in town around Turkey day.

Mine feels like fiberglass. I have a yellow one with some cracks.

Ultimate Subaru is a club. It is primarily a forum obviously but there hasnt been a demand for more than that. Mostly because of large distances between members. I would also say that 4 lug isnt really a Subaru specific thing but I know your intent. Even our specific special bolt pattern is shared by Peugeot. Certainly not trying to step on toes though have fun with it.

I would guess he may have left the air filter box lid loose at the bottom corners and the MAP sensor isn't happy about it. Mechanics tend to check a car over after they work on it for a repair. They may have popped things open to check them and such.

You may need to set your display to show older threads. Its in the lower left corner when you open a forum.

Someday Jerry will call me to come help with the garage he has been planning on building for a decade I think he said? As far as rodents make the car less delicious. I would think a cheap car cover would help some though.

Impressive! Id also compliment you on keeping it going too. I find the high mileage cars at the dealer I work at are half good maintenance but half just not pounding on it and remembering to take it in and keep things topped off is more the owner than the car sometimes.

I love my 84 Turbo cars but they are a lot of work. If this is your first Subaru maybe you should consider a Legacy wagon of the 90-94 Era. IMO best car for the buck. Just skip the turbo and the auto and it should be solid and not cost ya too much to keep going. I would buy the 84 Turbo wagon and the 85 Carb car and take the trans out of the carb car along with the pedals, etc and convert it. You do need a driveshaft made and Jerrys shifter kit but in the end that car would be super reliable, fuel injected, plenty of power, etc. But in the end its more work than a Legacy, less power, less reliable and not as resellable. And emissions.... But this is what I would do, not what I would recommend somebody else do. Im a 10 year member of this board and a Subaru technician. Not that these credentials are required to do it but for your first Subie I wouldnt dare suggest that sort of conversion.

Resist the temptation to use dish soap on anything automotive. Ive seen people take the clearcoat off a car with it, use it improperly in their washer fluid tanks and all kinds of stuff. Its cheaper but not in the end. Having lived 25 years in Iowa I wouldnt go near that brat with wet dry no matter what grit. Thats asking for a rust issue. Try an inconspicous area first and definately try something that restores paint. I have used Malco Rejuvenator (heres a company selling it by the gallon) http://www.chadssupplyllc.com/catalog/i15.html It worked great but the fading came back on mine after a year or so and I had to do it again...but the next time it looked even better than before.

I am no longer doing wiring harnesses. Thanks Shawn

They bolt in. The seat heaters might be different electrical plugs if that even applies to your car. (BTW adding the option to the car is a pita) The seat belt should be a bolt in swap too, you might have to swap the end.

Spend the $20 on a "Spill Free Funnel" and be done with it. I have seen them cheaper than this but heres what it looks like. http://www.amazon.com/Lisle-22150-Spill-Free-Funnel/dp/B0002SR6WK http://www.thefind.com/pets/info-spill-free-funnel

The vin is stamped onto the side of the shortblock itself but if its been warrantied in the past or anything it wont match. If the car runs good and looks ok whats the big deal really? A good running Subaru impreza under 4000 is a steal right now.

I went spud gunning with my parents in the hills. I actually forgot about the meet unfortunately. I know this isnt the right message board to blame Ian on but I am going to...it is after all a mostly AWDpirates meet. I blame Ian for missing the meet.

Take pictures! Cant wait to see it!

The vanagons weakest point whether it is waterboxer or Subaru powered is its cooling system. The radiator is great but the cap should have been put on it. Its hard to bleed the air out of, like a Legacy but 5x as hard. The 3.0 H6 motor, in a Legacy in its stock vehicle, runs hotter than a normal 2.5 or 2.2 car. Its got a special radiator, two upper radiator hoses, etc. If you are going to put a 6 cyl in get the SVX. It runs cooler and has a complete kit available from Smallcar.com (fairly local to you out there). If you havent done a vanagon conversion before I would go with the 2.2 or the 2.5. The 2.2 has easier wiring to deal with if you use a 90-94 harness. I dont think the gas mileage should even be a factor. All of these are going to be similar. The vehicle itself is more of a factor than the engine is.

Theres a dealer tool available from Kent Moore for the Cam, Crank and rear main seals (for installing them) They are not cheap. They also have a tool that holds the crank pulley in place and another that turns the crank (slides over the end of it) to turn it for aligning. My Matco truck has a tool with a screwdriver handle and a little twist thing that slides into the inner edge of the seal. Roughly 15 bucks and works a lot better in tight area than the old seal puller tools. I dont replace the cam or crank seals on the 2.2 or 2.5 SOHC unless they are leaking. The DOHC 2.5 and EJ20 I only do if I have the valve covers off. I agree on the water pump, not leaking leave alone. The gaskets are what fails anyway. I do replace them if I am doing head gaskets though, along with the T-stat and gasket as well. I usually only replace the cog/toothed idler and the smooth one on the top. On the bottom I put the better of the 2 used ones. The tensioner replace only if seeping oil out the top. I repin it gently with a prybar while its still mounted to the engine. Do not use a vise.