GeneralDisorder

You can't weld on the shifter - it's nylon insulated against vibration. You will melt the plastic inside that pretty chrome tube. Better to cut the thing off and replace with solid rod - threaded to your liking. GD

Those bullets for the clock memory are there for shipping purposes. On the cruise over from Japan they didn't want the clock's draining the battery's. Low voltage (at the gauge) is often the gauge mounting studs/nuts on the back of the cluster. They corrode at the PCB connection as no electrical grease was used when they were assembled. It can be other corroded connections in the harness as well. Pretty simple to trace - just check for voltage drop across each circuit from the battery positive. A $3 DMM from harbor frieght will do the job. GD

That makes no sense at all. First - just driving the car is a heavier load than the AC compressor. That alone should be enough to cause this problem if it were a "load induced tooth skip" as you surmise. Second - have you seen the distributor drive "gear" on an EA81 crank? It's a gear in the strictest sense of the term, but the "teeth" would be near impossible to break off as they are close to vertical, very long, and quite deep. Shine a light down in there and look if you can. Something isn't right, but the AC compressor is just a load on the engine. Just like everything else (clutch/transmission, alternator, etc). Turning the AC compressor on while idleing at a stop is a much smaller load than driving the car forward from a stop. If this ONLY happens when the AC is turned on and not when driving the car then it certainly is not a load induced change. GD

Sounds ignition related - plugs, wires, cap, rotor, etc. Test the coil.... could need a new ignitor as well. GD

That's normal - you are introducing a vacuum leak each time you step on the pedal. Some carb tuning and timing adjustments will minimize it but you can't get rid of it entirely. GD

"Short", and "short throw" are different. Which do you want? The EA81 trans isn't really suited to speed shifting - a short throw shifter might not really work out well. You may end up having to conciously shift slower to compensate for the throw being so short if you end up with any grinding, ect. If you want it to be short throw you have to move the pivot point down in relation to the location of the shift rod. That usually means adding a section between the pivot and the shift rod connection. Then you can shorten the shifter as well to keep the height the same, or shorten it more to give it the "short" shifter as well. GD

All true. I just grab the size I need, cut a chunk off in the band-saw, and bevel the ends on the belt sander..... Takes me 2 minutes. But you do need access to the tools to make it happen the right way and make it quick and simple. I could do it with a hacksaw and a dremel but it would probably be quicker to buy them for most folks. GD

Sounds like the HVAC switch panel is hosed. It may be the source of your leak, and it's obviously difficult to operate. I say replace the obviously broken switch cluster first - then look for other potential leaks. Once you remove the surround, the HVAC control cluster comes out easily as I recall from my last heater core swap - just some electrical connectors, some control cable's, and vacuum hoses. Shouldn't take more than 30 minutes or so being you have a replacement on hand. You may indeed have a vacuum reservior leak, but if the HVAC panel is using all the vacuum because of a leak there might not be enough left to operate the CC. GD

Timing need to be at 20. The SPFI computer expects to receive the CAS sensor signals on a 20 degree base. The ECU will fire the coil based on it's internal timing maps - which are very well suited to the EA81 being it's nearly identical to the EA82 except for slightly less compression. You might be able to turn the timing up to 22 degrees or so without pinging, but it won't be much over spec. You would certainly never want to run less than 20. GD

Intake manifold gaskets are often a problem on the EA's - especially if they have been tampered with previously. They seal both the intake, and the coolant cross-over in the manifold. They often leak internally into the intake runners. The milkshake in the valve covers is often because your PCV system isn't flowing freely. Clean out the lines, connectors, valve, and the valve cover ports and replace the small, white PCV filter element in the airbox. R&R the PCV, replace the valve cover gaskets (OEM only, 12 ft/lbs), and see where you stand. That may be all you have to do. As for using coolant - that's just silly. I drive an EA81 every day right now and haven't had to add coolant since I replace the water pump 6 months ago. As mentioned - don't expect it to be full all the time. The coolant will seek it's own level and will be farthest down in the radiator when cold. Without an overflow it's natural for there to be an airspace at the top of the radiator to allow for expansion with heat. GD

No - not as reliable as the 2.2. The SPFI EA82 isn't a bad engine. Underpowered (90 HP to the 2.2's 130), eats timing belts, and has a tendancy to leak oil and have annoying valve train noise. The cooling systems aren't great. Not a lot of overhead in cooling capacity, and they can be finicky if the air isn't bled from them properly. Radiators are small. The shift linkage gets sloppy, and the pushbutton 4WD isn't very desireable. Most folks want the dual range or AWD systems. GD

Heli-coil's are pretty inexpensive.... GD

Depends on the all-thread you buy. You can buy grade 8 all-thread (hell - you can get left-handed tool steel if you wanted it). Most is grade 5 though which should work just fine. I make studs from metric all-thread all the time since it's difficult to source them in the US. GD

Unfortunately that may not fix the problem. This problem is almost always a combination of things. Yes, the switch may be part of it, but I've replaced them only to have the problem not change. In fact, I've replaced the starter, switch, checked the available connections inbetween, cleaned all the contacts, replaced the positive cable to the starter, and replaced the ground cable and cleaned/reterminaled all the grounds.... only to have the problem return or even be worse. The trouble is probably a poor factory splice, or just corroded wireing at some point in the crank circuit. No amount of parts swapping will fix it (many of us have tried), and short of unwrapping the entire harness (often not worth the time considering the value of the vehicles in question) the best fix is to live with the abilities of the wireing you have and put in a relay to get full current to the starter solenoid. GD

Just run a 7/16 x 18 tap into the existing hole and replace the stud with a peice of all-thread cut to the size you need. JB weld will not do it. Something like Devcon would do it, but to do it right it would require more work than tapping it so it's not a viable option. GD

I have no need of these, or any real intrest in doing this, but looking at your drawing it immediately occured to me that you could cut down the cost of production by haveing them just drill the holes and tapping them yourself. Running a tap into pre-drilled holes is easy. These wouldn't even be hard to make if you just want a one-off set. Get some scrap plate steel, cut the circles out on a bandsaw, and then using some hubs and a bit of geometry lay out the holes and tap them. I could build a set in a few hours.... most of the cost is in the materials if you do the work yourself. GD

Well - there's many factors. 1. Automotive is very competitive. Dealerships make a lot of money off service, and they pay a correspondingly better wage. They have better training programs, hire/train more knowledgable people, and have better equipment to perform the work. 2. "Shops" (non dealerships) make the bulk of their money on "services" - by which I mean oil changes, brake work, timing belts, shock/strut replacement, ect. Stuff that is in the maintenance schedule of the vehicle. Not outright repair of "broken" things. The collective experience (if there is much) is usually clustered around that type of knowledge. Not how to diagnose and repair "problems" but rather how to follow a procedure and change wear item parts on an otherwise correctly functioning machine. 3. Knowledge of older vehicles really isn't out there to any great extent. It's not marketable, and people that really know this stuff are either retired, have moved into management, or have changed industries..... which brings me to... 4. The "old timers" that know this stuff got tired of the automotive industry long, long ago. It's competitive, it's extremely fickle, the pay is usually flat rate (more on this in a minute), and the customers are often a horror story all to themselves. Take for example a story from my co-worker that spent 20 years at a Pontiac dealership: One day his service manager pulled a customer's car around to the shop with the customer standing nearby. He jumped out and closed the door - unfortunately locking the keys inside. He asked my friend to open the car "right away" as the customer was waiting. My friend leaned close and sugested he take the customer away and tell him it would be a few minutes. His manager, not understanding the folly in allowing the customer to see his car being "broken into", recoiled at the sugestion and further indicated that he wanted it done "NOW". My friend offered to his manager that this customer was "your problem", grabbed his slim-jim, and popped the door open in approximately 1.5 seconds. You can imagine the horror on the customers face..... 5. Flat rate pay engenders a lack of concern for quality and a sense of urgency in finishing the job and moving to the next. When you pay people based on their speed rather than their experience, knowledge, and abilities you take away their willingness to do things the right way. Flat rate workers are always finding quicker, cheaper ways of doing things - usually at some cost in the quality of the job. That's a little summation of my feelings about the autmotive service industry anyway. I am lucky to have avoided it and now I work with a lot of very knowledgeable guys that got out of that industry for all of the reasons I went over. As with a lot of things in life - if you want it done right do it yourself. That applies specifically to older automobiles. Even the dealerships have a hard time with them. I like to go and talk with the old-time parts guys and service managers that have seen the stuff, but the people doing the actual work are more likely to break things than to fix them. There is no money in doing work on older cars - the flat rate scale isn't enough to allow them to both learn/be trained on something they have never touched before, and still get the job done in a reasonable amount of time. 9 times out of 10 taking jobs on outdated equipment like that spells a money losing proposition for the shop. GD

I disagree on a few points. One - I have not seen a switch fail and be unable to activate a relay. The current is very small and no arcing of the switch contacts should take place. Thus the switch shouldn't deteriorate beyond that point. It could happen, but replacing the switch is so simple at that point that I fail to see the point in worrying about it. Two - wireing a relay using the existing switch retains stock functionality. And wireing a relay using a pushbutton allows you to use small gauge wire to the pushbutton for the relay coil. It also saves the pushbutton from the same fate as the ignition switch. Three - pushbuttons are ugly and impact the resaleability of the vehicle. They seem hokey to most people and smack of a disregaurd for proper/quality electrical repair to the rest. I would not buy any vehicle repaired in such a way. GD

It shouldn't be in that far. Even, and flush with the OD of the case. Use locktite blue (the 248 stick works best) on the OD of the seal. A tiny bit of valve sealant or grease on the ID. Use only OEM seals - they fit better. GD

Yep - that's the size of it. Barring some type of swappage from a previous owner. GD

No - non-feedback continued till the end of carbs in '89 (EA81 hatch). Feedback was always a 2WD, or California model system. 49 states 4WD's never had it. As for a definition - "Feedback" refers to the "feedback loop" programming used by most computer control systems. The 02 sensor continously updates the computer on the mixture - the computer makes adjustments, and the cycle repeats - ad infinitum. Thus you simply remove the ECU, it's associated sensors, valves, and duty solenoids (if you wish - you could just as well leave the junk in there), and install a non-feedback carb with proper routing of the mixture port air supply lines (no duty solenoid controls). That is all that is required to convert an EA81. GD

The lines, and especially the black plastic "F" shaped bit on the drivers side of the PCV system gets clogged up with carbon deposits. I almost always have to clean them out with a screwdriver to get all the gunk out. The breather element is a couple dollars at the dealer - worth having a new one. I haven't been real successful cleaning them. Here's the thing.... There's only two places that oil can get from the engine to the inside of the airbox - the top of each valve cover. The inside of the valve covers also gets really gunked up - they should be clean and shiny so that oil can drain away from the breather ports and not be sucked into the airbox. I sandblast the inside of all mine to insure there are no deposits or build-up in them. Castrol super clean degreaser will eat it out as well - protect your hands from the stuff though. The deal is - if you have oil in the airbox, it IS comming from the PCV system. That's the only place it can come from. This can be a frustrating problem. You just have to address the system from top to bottom to insure you get proper flow and aren't sucking up oil. It's best to address it now as you'll still have the same problems with the Weber if you don't. Except with the Weber the oil will be sucked into the carb rather than just inside the airbox but outside the filter. With the Weber the same filter is used for both airflow and PCV. GD

It's too far into the frame rails. You'll never make it solid again without cutting it apart and making new rails. Not worth it. GD

I don't think you quite grasp the situation here - there's no such thing as a "non-feedback ECU". Carbs equipped with ECU's are feedback. Without ECU's are non. So the answer is that you should remove the ECU. GD

That hose is a breather line for some thermo-valve, ect. It's not the source of your oil. You may have replaced the PCV, but did you clean out the hoses, valve cover nipples, and plastic connectors? Also I see you haven't replaced the PCV breather element. It's that white foam element on the inside right of the filter box. You are almost certainly still getting oil from the PCV system. GD