GeneralDisorder

Yeah - if anyone wants a "special" socket for doing it - send me one and I'll turn it down on my lathe . I have carbide tooling for just such occasions. GD

Looks nice inside from that angle - who made those intake's? Looks like a fun carb setup...... GD

Don't be afraid to use it on dry pavement - just make sure the tires are the same size/brand and correctly inflated. It is differences here that will cause you problems - and of course turning sharp corners. You will not cause any harm or have any problems using 4WD any time you wish as long as you take it out of 4WD for tight turns on hard/dry surfaces. I've been using 4WD in Subaru's for a LONG time and unless you are lifted/welded with big tires you won't break or harm anything being in 4WD on dry pavement. Just observe the rules about tires/wear/inflation and put it in 2WD when you are taking a sharp turn, parking, etc. GD

I've never done it, but I would never attempt it either - not with a "factory" sunroof. The drainage system wouldn't be in place for it in a plain roof car. They do make aftermarket kit's that are designed for installation into plain roof cars though - I would look into that as they are designed to work without the drainage system. GD

The EMPI stuff suffers from the same problems of all the chinese brands to some extent - QA is poor. I haven't had one fail but I've heard enough stories to know they probably have issues with it. Guess I've been lucky. But for the price (and I get them local for $65) I can't argue too much. I give the shop a lot of business and they will take them back without question if I have a problem. Also - I think a lot of people don't know how to properly install the hub/cone washer and how to inspect them for damage. I beleive this, as well as mishandling/improper installation accounts for a percentage of the failures that have been reported. And lets not forget that engine and tranny mount condition have some sway in those premature failure's as well.......I've installed probably a dozen and so far I've not had to have one swapped out yet. Subaru runs a reman axle line through their dealerships - price is around tripple or more of the EMPI's. Around $175 to $250 for an axle - depending on model. GD

Did you change the fuel filter by the pump under the bed? GD

Sure - they exist. Not in '85 though. '80/'81 mostly. GD

Are you sure the power steering pump is good? Sounds like a massive internal failure to me. That bracket isn't going to bend - either it's installed wrong/loose or the pump is shot. GD

Just don't go any thinner than the EJ stuff. It might be better to take some material off, and also drill some holes to lighten it. I know Skip lightened a few - mostly for EA82T's I beleive. You might see if you can get ahold of him - though he might be in winter hibernation or something GD

That would be a STD, not a GL. GD

'83+ automatic's (including turbo) and all '85+ EA81's are hydro. I have an '83 automatic/coupe engine in my lifted wagon that's hydro. I have NEVER seen one with TOD. I own three personally and have worked on many, many more. EA81 hydro lifters just don't tick unless the engine has been abused or something. They are not the finicky things that EA82's have. GD

You won't lose any appreciable amount of torque. And remember - when it's in gear you have the weight of the pressure plate and the disc to help. The EJ flywheels are much thinner/lighter. Go nuts - just don't go so thin that it causes temp/warping issues. "starting torque" or the tendancy for the flywheel to assist with clutch engagement is an issue with larger, heavier vehicles and equipment. Mostly deisel stuff that's low geared to begin with. The flyhweel is so massive that the engagement of the clutch doesn't really slow it down much. With a Subaru this is not that big of a deal. Mostly they have big gnarly flywheel's on these things to help them run smooth with the 3-main crank. You might get some noticeable drop in idle quality, but that's about it. GD

No - you probably won't be able to tell other than the joint will likely not feel real tight anymore. Chances are you could clean/regrease/reboot the old axles and the vibration would go away for a time. Not worth it for the cost difference (~$25 savings per side), extra labor, and putting worn joints back in. $52 is a good deal. I pay about $65 local. GD

Bad front axle inner joint (DOJ). You need 23 spline axles. GD

Either the heater core is plugged, the heater control valve is plugged (or not working), or the coolant level is too low. Blown HG will not cause the heater to stop working. 190* is the proper thermostat - get one from the dealer and install it. GD

That depends on if you need to pass visual inspections and if you have an EA81 or EA82. If it's a GL as in your former post then it's not an EA71 as those came only on STD model hatcbacks in '85. GD

An '85 GL would not have a 1.6 - it would be a 1.8. Is this an EA81 or EA82? And does it have a feedback carb or non? GD

Obviously check all fuses and fusible links. Make sure the rotor in the distributor is spinning - timing belts can strip the teeth off and I've also seen pictures of broken cams, etc. To have spark the rotor must turn - verify it. If that's working then check the ignition amp on the coil bracket - that could have failed. GD

Yes - you could use an EA82 ('85 to '94) coil-over setup. Basically it's exactly like the trailer picture you linked to but instead of the shock it has a coil-over strut. Otherwise it's almost identical to what you have seen - just the tube has no torsion bar inside it and the weight is carried by the spring on the coil-over. GD

Just tore one down to the short-block with 250k - factory hone marks still very prominent. Granted it was little-old-lady driven it's entire life, but still - it's not uncommon to see on EA's. Subaru's do tend to use a bit of oil just due to their cylinder's being horizontal rather than near vertical as most other engine's. Mostly valve stem seals is what I have seen fail unless they have been abused at some point in their life. GD

Is it a feedback model? GD

Yep - sounds like a faulty check valve before the vacuum accumulator or a small leak in the system. As you open the throttle, you lose manifold vacuum - same reason the Toyota's with the faulty gas pedal have no brakes at WOT. You have no vacuum signal to retain the posistion of the HVAC actuators. The fact that this happens only at drops in manifold vacuum points to the system having a leak - either from a bad check valve or from a small leak in a line to the actuator or the heater control "button valves" in the cabin. Leaks in the tubing inside the cabin are rare since it's a hard plastic tubing for all but the connections to the controls and the actuators. GD

Not worth $3,000. You could buy a 90 to 94 Legacy wagon - get more HP, better mileage (a lot better), and nicer/newer amenities with the same mileage for probably less than that price. The EA81T is very primitive - it makes 95 HP, has very dated electronics and fuel injection, and is very hard to source components for. It may be "nice", but it's value is purely as a collectible for the right person - not as a daily driver, and certainly not for the price being asked. A good condition, low mileage EA81 wagon is worth *maybe* $1,000. The turbo doesn't add to the value - it actually detracts from the value due to the complexity, automatic transmission, etc. Those are detracting points for the EA81 body. It's worth more as a parts car for a turbo Brat frankly. If you are looking for a nice wagon - I have a '95 L that will be for sale soon - auto, ABS, all power, 6 speaker, factory CD, roof rack, rear spoiler, 165k. It will have a full 60k service done shortly. I was going to list it for $2500. Just to give you some perspective. GD

The ECU may phisically have the pins - but it probably doesn't have the circuits and it definitely doesn't have the programming enabled. There would be no point to supplying the feature and if it were as simple as adding the knock sensor then the ECU would have no way of knowing if it should/should not output a sensor malfunction code when it is not present. 99.9% chance that hooking up a sensor to the pins will result in nothing at all. You would have to hack the ECU to enable/add the code to handle the knock sensor timing routines. A simpler method would be to install Mega-Squirt or similar engine management and chuck the ECU. GD

Probably have to rewrite the software in the ECU to take advantage of it. Or use a turbo ECU without the turbo. The software in the stock ECU isn't going to be looking for the knock sensor if they aren't already equipped with one. GD