GeneralDisorder

Turbo Brat's (and turbo EA81's in general) are rare. As such it would be sad to see someone butcher one with an engine swap. Besides that, unlike the EA82T they are excelent engines. Installing a 5 speed is understandable however - the stock 3AT's were crap. GD

You can use the stock EA81 lever setup (at least here in the US). The D/R rod needs 1" added to it, and you use the standard 5 speed gear selector linkage. My Brat looks 100% stock inside with a 5 speed. Just added a 5 speed knob of my choice (80/81 2WD knobs are nice). GD

Then it really isn't the same problem then is it? You may have the same symptoms.... but how that is germain to this man's question (and indeed - why you didn't start your own thread?) escape me. GD

GCK all the way for me. I own 4 of them and nary a problem to be found. Lifetime warrantee through any Autozone or affiliates too. Once you see one in person you'll understand why they are more than just new axles - they are *NEW* axles - redesigned using modern components and they carry an "off road approved" rating. Beefy..... very beefy. GD

Weber makes no such beast, and you have not read this. You are mixing up carbs and fuel injection - they are two totally different, and incompatible animals. A Weber will no more work on your loyale's fuel injection than a ball point pen would work for cutting hair. GD

Yeah - I don't like those stock snorkel tubes. On my Brat with a cone filter on the end it seems alright - the way it's situated in the bay the tube is at a better angle to not collapse like that so I probably don't notice it much. When accelerating up to freeway speeds I generally shift around 5,000 - 6,000. The redline of the SPFI block is 6500, and for the short time it's near that durring shifts it's no problem for them. The EA81 aicraft guys run them at 7,000 or more for hours. GD

Actually that's not *quite* accurate. First, it has been done - but with an EA81 block. Rguyver had quite the interesting setup on his lifted hatchback. Among other things it was an SPFI EA81 with turbo and NOS. Of course few here remember that rig as it was quite a few years ago - when this place was still on EZBoard.... The problems (I have questioned him in person about that particular build) are numerous. The biggest drawback for *you* will be the SPFI's 9.5:1 compression - that alone will make it crack heads, blow head gaskets, and collapse ring lands, etc. The EA82 block and heads are simply not suitible for turboing. The EA81 did handle it - but it has a carbed compression of 8.7:1 and does not have the weak heads, and uses studs to mate the heads intstead of the inadequate bolts used in the EA82's. He told me the SPFI did actually handle the turbo fairly well, but when the manifold pressure went positive under full boost the computer would go a bit nuts. To offset this he installed a second injector above the TB. It wasn't the greatest setup in the world, but with Nitrous I'm sure it moved like a deamon under boost while sipping the bottle. I would imagine that possibly MegaSquirt could have improved the charactaristics of the setup immensly. The SPFI injector already flows a massive amount of fuel, and the second injector he used was really only because the computer didn't understand positive manifold pressure so the thing would lean out too far. It's important to note that this was not a street vehicle - it was primarily off road only. Also important to note that he now runs a WRX powered Brat. Sadly none of this really applies to the EA82 - it simply will not hold together using the SPFI block and heads. So really not worth the effort or time when a reliable, more powerfull EJ series engine is availible for relatively cheap. GD

Frankly, who knows what their parts lookup gave you since there actually wasn't an 85 model coupe of any kind. The last production year for the EA81 coupe was 84, and the EA82 "coupe" 3-Door didn't come out till 86. There was a gap of one year where only the Wagon, Sedan, Brat and Hatch were produced. GD

Ask for an 89 non-turbo. Just make sure it's not for a hatchback - wagon, sedan or coupe (3-door) only. GD

Since propane is a gas at atmospheric pressure, there is no reason to use FI with it. A propane "carb" is literally just an orifice protruding into a venturi with a throttle butterfly. They already run at any angle (even upside down). So there is nothing to be gained by using an FI system - on top of that it would be difficult to convert any conventional gasoline FI system to propane as there wouldn't be any way to lubricate the injectors, and they would freeze as the liquid propane cools rapidly when expanding from it's liquid state. GD

They gave you an EA81 axle. You can tell the difference by both the length (compressed - EA81's are shorter, so yes will pull apart), and the diameter of the inner wheel bearing sealing surface on the outer joint. One is bigger than the other by quote a bit. It's not that hard to pull an inner joint apart - all that seperates the joint parts is a small diameter wire in a groove inside the cup. GD

Owing to the fact that EA81's are not OHC, they don't have cam seals. GD

Easy - drill a small hole and thread a wood screw into it. One on each side if you need - then grab with pliers and pull. GD

Probably about a 25" or 26" tire - like a 195/80r13 would probably fit without cutting but there would be a lot of rubbing. I wouldn't do any trimming on a Brat as they are too valuable and rare to be hacking up just because you want big tires and don't have a lift. With 4" of lift 27" tires fit well, and as luck would have it that's the smallest interco swamper made.... With 5" I've got 28" (215/75r15's) on white chevy wagon wheels (standard trailer rims - $30 each) with modest trimming in the front and some beating of the body ridge in the wheel well. GD

Yes, but you would be unwise to run alloy's off road. If all you care about is looks those are pretty sweet rims for sure. I would run them on a street Brat. Alloys are too expensive to replace when (not if) you crack one by smacking it against a rock. The best you can hope for is to have to shell out big bucks for a new matching rim - the worst is a catostophic failure at freeway speeds assuming it's still holding air. Steel rims are inexpensive, and when confronted with rocks will flex some, or will bend. If they bend and the bead pops you can smack them back into shape with a BFH and then reseat the tire and drive on. Replacement is rarely more than $30 and even the most depraved, redneck town has a few lying around. You can redrill your hubs to accept 6x5.5" chevy/toyota lug pattern rims and the toyota rims are almost an exact match for offset, or drill most steels out for 4 lug using two of the existing hoes as a guide. GD

I doubt the fuel system is to blame - you could try getting a new O2 sensor and putting on a cone filter. That's what I have on the Brat's engine. The Nissan 240SX MAF adaptors fit the SPFI MAF. I would be looking at the timing - it's difficult to tell when just one belt is a tooth off for example. And your exhaust is a good place to start too - clogged cat can really hurt performance. You should run a D-Check on the SPFI just to be sure it's in running order too. I have a full stock exhuast - the muffler is a replacement, but appears to be a stock type replacement. I found it at the junk yard as the one on the car was hosed. Y-pipe and mid are stock originals, and I haven't gutted the cat on it as I've done with my EA81's. I think what you are thinking is a second cat is actually the resonator. All EA82's have a single cat as far as I know - even my sedan which was a CA feedback carb model has only one. Certainly not for me - both the on ramps two blocks from my house are uphill and I usually have to slow down from 60+ to merge as the traffic doesn't always comply with my desired speed in the slow lane. At any rate I actually feel that my sedan is quite quick for what it is - comparativly I felt it was an accident waiting to happen with the stock Hitachi when I got it. It wouldn't as easily maintain higher freeway speeds, and the low end grunt for things like uphill merging just wasn't there. The Weber and the SPFI are both excelent in my experience however. It really doesn't take much of a problem to lose 20% engine power.... in any vehicle. It's just that with the EA82's 20% is the difference between a decent, average car, and being run over. Take 20% of the power off a modern engine like the EJ25 and you still have enough power that someone who isn't familair with the vehicle may never know anything is wrong with it at all. That's the reason the EA series engines have such a bad reputation for being underpowered - they really aren't all that bad, but most have something wrong with them after 20 years that makes them seem worse than they really are. GD

Now here I think you have hit on something worth taking into account. I have an 86 carbed sedan which I installed a Weber on - the engine is original, and has 238,000 miles on it. It is currently my daily driver and find that it actually has an amazing amount of power. My SPFI Brat will beat it for sure, but that engine is rated 6 HP higher and the body is lighter. But the sedan moves more than adequately for a daily driver. I don't have any trouble merging, or maintaining 55 or 65 MPH up long grades even in 5th gear. Anyone familair with Portland knows the grade going from downtown to the Beaverton area via Hwy 26 - I can maintain 55 MPH up that grade in 5th gear the whole way, and I can pull it at 65 in 4th if I desire. Compare that to my ex-girlfriends 86 Hitachi carbed EA82 wagon that couldn't even pull it at 40 to 45 - I did a lot of work to that engine and never did figure out what it's problem was. I have a feeling though that the timing belt crank sprockets may have been reversed. Either that or the Hitachi had issues that I never resolved. It was gutless beyond beleif and I knew it couldn't be right....... I have to say that this $100 sedan I got on a whim from some dude's yard has treated me very well, and restored my faith in the viability of the EA82 N/A engine as a simple reliable tool to get the job done. I would say you just have an as-yet undiagnosed problem that's robbing a good percentage of your power because even with the older 84 HP carbed EA82 I don't find it scary to drive, or underpowered anymore than I do your average minivan for example. GD

Engine doesn't matter - tranmission does. EA81 transmissions, as well as later 2WD 5 speeds use a two-peice bearing assembly with the bearing pressed onto a cast peice with ears that contact the clutch fork. Dealer I beleive sells them already assembled to the holder..... I think NAPA does as well. The cost is significantly higher than reusing the old holder but the savings in labor is worth it probably. GD

Says the man that's never done the swap.... Let me ASSURE you that 130 HP is a LOT for the weight of the Loyale. You will easily smoke all 4 with an AWD trans. I would not put the EJ in front of a non-lifted 5 speed D/R. Perhaps an RX FT4WD box if I had one, but most definately not the part time box. It's too much power and could easily damage it. An EJ25 with 180 HP would disintigrate the EA 5 speed in short order. As a poor example..... I put an EA82 SPFI engine from a 93 Loyale in my Brat - a vehicle with only 74 HP upgraded to 90. That's a mere 16 HP increase in stock form, and the EA81 had a Weber prior to the swap. The thing is now quite fast - faster than it needs to be, and plenty fast to easily get me in trouble. It will do 100 MPH flat out, and probably more. It will be scary with my planned EJ22 swap and ANOTHER 40 HP. I can't see it holding to the pavement without AWD as it can barely take off now without melting the tires on the 5 speed D/R I installed at the same time. HP is one of those strange intangible elements that is often overstated - people claim huge HP benefits for things like Weber installs, etc. But between an EA81 with a Weber and an SPFI EA82 there exists a BIG difference. A Weber adds nothing to the EA81 other than throttle response and low-end torque. Peak power is unchanged. GD

Interesting - perhaps the ones I've seen were converted. Would make sense when the 3AT goes south. GD

Ah - didn't realize you bought seals without the lip. All the seals I've used (including Timken) have a dust lip (including you own dissasembly pictures). The OEM install in the FSM shows the dust lip facing outward from both seals. Perhaps you got seals without the lip, but I certainly wouldn't run without them - too much brake dust in that area. GD

That was the coupe - only the Turbo's were 4WD, and thus were single range 3AT's. GD

Ross is correct - the lip goes to the outside on all the ones I've done. GD

Your's are by far the best I've seen - I'll definately take two for me if you can... GD

I've seen a few. They weren't real common, but then none of the EA series "sedans" were common. Wagons and Hatch's were the most common. GD