GeneralDisorder

Excelent - did you fix any of it? If not and you would like me to take a look at it send me a PM - I'm availible for a reasonable fee. I'm sure I could fix all that and more in an afternoon. I'm right down in West Linn. GD

Go to the dealer and get both the thermostat and the gasket. It will be about $17 for both. The dealer gasket is much better than the cheap cardboard one's you get at a parts store. It's important to fill the coolant with the nose in the air, and to massage the radiator hoses as you fill to eliminate bubbles. Start the engine and run it for a minute with the cap off then shut it off and repeat. Make SURE you have all the air out or the coolant will not circulate and it will overheat. I fear that since it had no thermostat, you have a bigger issue here. Perhaps a clogged radiator. When you get it running again without any leaks - check the temp of the radiator at various places along the surface. It should be hot on the thermostat side (195 degree's) and ~20 degree's cooler on the water pump side. Check the temp with a laser gun if you can - often the dash gauges are not at all accurate. On my Brat for example - the dash gauge reads very near the red when the radiator fan kicks on, but my DMM thermo-couple, laser gun, and fan thermo-switch are all telling me the temp is just fine.... If there is for sure no air in the system, the whole radiator is hot, thermostat wide open.... then we can begin to look for other causes to your problem. Obviously someone had a history with this thing and there always the possibility that your manifold gaskets are bad. Try to get a look at them and see if they are sqeezing out from under the manifold where it bolts to the head or if there is any dampness to them. That would be a good indicator of failure and probable leaking into the intake runner's. GD

If it's done *right* with RTV, it shouldn't blow out. But then there aren't a lot of people that know how to use the stuff the *right* way. But it is called gasket maker for a reason. I've sealed plenty of EA water pumps with RTV and not a single leak. Same with valve cover's, oil pan gasket's, etc. RTV is great if you use it where and how it's designed to be used. Sadly few people prep the surfaces properly, or use the right amount. It can't be used around gasoline, and it shouldn't be used around small oil passages as it can break off and clog small passages or lifters. There are types of RTV that are safe for these situations but they aren't just the common stuff you get at the parts store. 3-Bond makes some that we used around small oil passages and was safe for this purpose according to the manufacturer of the equipment (RTV was specifically disallowed because of this very reason). If you get an OEM thermostat it can only fit one way in the housing. The cover/upper radiator hose nipple doesn't have enough space inside to accomidate the thermostat the wrong direction. That goes for EJ's as well. The aftermarket unit's are always smaller and cheaper and there's a possibility they might fit upside down in the housing..... I haven't tried so I don't know. GD

Time-Serts are nice, but frankly they are overkill for this application. I've never seen one fail that had been heli-coil'd and the heli-coil kits can be had with 10 inserts for half that price. I'm all about a better quality product if it's needed to do the job right or makes it easier..... but there's no reason to go all NASA on this one. Nice find on ebay though - I'll have to look into stocking those in my garage. There are times..... GD

I know the EA81's had reversed valves, hotter cams, higher compression, etc for the dual carb engines. Being that there is good evidence that this was true of EA62/63's, I wouldn't think the EA71 to be any different. Even the EA81 in dual-carb was only 108 HP, though there are rumors that race prepped versions put out more - as much as 150 HP or more. I've never seen actual documentation to this effect but I have seen pictures of EA81 performance engines and components that were obviously upgrades to the "stock" dual carb setups. Race engines with no manifold - just two carbs mounted directly to each head, etc. Dual exhaust port heads and header's for EA81 RX coupe's..... I wouldn't be at all surprised if someone came up with documentation claiming 175 HP from an EA81 in race trim. Closer to 200 with turbocharging though I don't know if that was done outside the US. The basic engine can handle it - RAM performance has a 200 HP build for aircraft use. GD

Why is it such a problem to oversize them to 7/16"? Just because it's not metric? Seriously - it's a cheap, reliable, and permanent solution to the problem. And if you ever wanted to go back to the correct size then you just heli-coil it. The 7/16" tap threads right in without drilling. I don't see a reason it should be relegated to "junk cars" or a temporary fix. Measurements are measurments. Standard or Metric - doesn't really make that much difference to me. Hell - if you go buy metric nuts for the OEM studs they will often be 17mm instead of the stock 14mm. Same goes for 8mm threads - stock is a 12mm nut but most that you can actually buy are 13mm. Whatever - find the right wrench and go to town. GD

Thermostat's rarely "look" bad. But about 85% of the time if you remove one it won't work when you put it back in. Just the nature of disrupting them it seems. I only buy mine from the dealer as they are much higher quality and seem to last almost indefinately if they aren't disturbed. GD

Follow the wire going to the clutch - it's on the top of the compressor right behind the belt clutch. Should be pretty obvious - it's probably a round, black, two-wire connector. GD

They typically just lock up. You can prevent the clutch from engaging by disconnecting the lead to it. Then the clutch will just free-wheel with the belts and no further damage will result to the compressor or your belts. GD

It takes like a couple hours to do the head gaskets on an EA81 and you don't even have to pull the engine. Then after you have done them you can be that much more confident in your engine - new head gaskets and a good internal inspection. I see no reason to replace the engine. That's plain silly over a GASKET. GD

He said "steaming up the engine" - by which I can only assume he means that coolant is dripping or pouring out onto the block - the H20 in the coolant will flash off to steam on a hot engine block. The white in the exhaust when cold could be normal or it could indicate a blown manifold gasket or possibly a head gasket. Many times I've seen head gaskets diagnosed when the real failure was simply leaking manifold gaskets. As for head gasket issues - they are relatively common with the EA82's, but cracked heads (not the small cracks between valves - they all have those) are rare in non-turbo engines. The gaping cracks that go all the way into the cooling jacket are unusual. I've seen a lot of blown head gaskets and I've yet to come across a non-turbo head that was cracked into the cooling jacket. At any rate, his most immediate problem is the leak. I say fix the leak, which may have been causing it to not build cooling system pressure, and go from there. Chances are that he *may* have a head gasket issue. But it could easily just be a gasket leak too. GD

If you are talking cost, then it's by far cheaper to just oversize them to 7/16". But if you work on Subaru's in any quantity or very often then you should have the heli-coils on hand for 6, 8, and 10 anyway. Thread repair kits are also MUCH cheaper online. GD

There should be oil in the system already. Even if the freon has leaked out there should still be oil in the compressor. Could be that the compressor is going out. It's not uncommon. GD

HOLY RUST Batman! Yep - those are disc's under all that red stuff. Weird - the '96 L sedan I just worked on had drums - it's a 5 speed though so maybe an option that came on auto's..... GD

The FSM claims that if the battery is connected reverse for more than 1.5 seconds you will damage the ECU. I would just get another and give it a try. They are common enough and rarely fail so it should be a problem. GD

Looks to me like a simple thermostat gasket failure. EA82 head gaskets don't generally leak externally when they blow. If you have coolant on top of the engine then it's 99% a leaking gasket/hose - intake manifold, thermostat housing, cracked hose, etc. And there's no reason to assume the heads are cracked - on a non-turbo that's very rare. Even after overheating they don't often crack. GD

It should not be a bolt. They should be studs for the exact reason you just discovered. Heli-coil it or oversize it. If you Heli-Coil it's a 10mmx1.25. If you oversize it then go to 7/16x20. Whatever you do, buy studs or cut your own from all-thread. GD

It got converted is what happened. '80 was three years before vented rotors came out. They had problems with them warping so when the car was still relatively new they were probably retro-fitted to it. The only thing that changes is the rotor, caliper, and bracket. GD

You need a steel punch to move the ring nut. The axle nut is simple if you have the VW tool. It's like $10 or less from any EMPI dealer. GD

I did the first couple without air tools. Really the only thing I use air tools for now is the ring nut because I have the impact socket for it. Otherwise it's all hand tools - beaters and pullers, etc. GD

Yeah - I routinely screw up that one. As Col. Frank Slade said - "because it's not important for me to get it right." Not in here anyway. I fixed it just for you Twitch. GD

Some people have fit 27's by bashing and cutting. Looks pretty silly and you have very minimal upward travel but it's been done. Lifts are pretty inexpensive these days. Save your pennies and do it right. GD

The sender wouldn't fling oil anywhere - nothing near to it that could catch and fling it. They just drip. Sounds like you are set then - just rip that sucker apart, replace some seals and the two pumps, and throw it back together. Should be able to do that in half a day. GD

There's no press required for any form of rear wheel bearing on an EA series. Just some careful work with a punch or a custom made driver tool. I've done half a dozen of them..... they don't fail very often and I've seen them make 300k without issue. You might consider just finding a good used trailing arm and swapping it in. The really useful tool is the ring nut socket. That's one I actually bought it's so useful. It removes the ring nut's without damaging them. If you use a punch to spin them out they are usually quite a mess afterwards. GD

It was late '83 that the rotor's changed to vented. All '82's should be solid. GD