GeneralDisorder

You only heat the axle cup - the idea is that it expands faster than the stub. Doesn't hurt them in any case. Just don't do anything stupid like dowse it with water. Let it air cool and the temper will not be harmed any sizeable amount. Besides which, you can replace the stub really easily too - it just knocks out the rear much like the outer joint of a front axle. And the stub is so much stronger than the axle joint cup anyway, that you will break the joint first, followed by the diff stub before you would ever break the solid outer stub. GD

There's no beating with Jerry's x-member even if you aren't lifted. You have to use the stock EA81 x-member, but you will have to fab new mounts. His is very custom with special brackets he fabs to accomidate the EA82 mounts on a lower profile to prevent it from rubbing the tunnel on stock EA81's. Being that you are lifted, it wouldn't be hard to fab some mounts for it, but you will need some welding and metal skills. GD

You should be plugging the green connectors together before you start the engine. Do you mean it doesn't start with them plugged in? If you can't get it to run in D-Check then there's really no telling that the issue *really* is. U-Check isn't very accurate, and the FIRST step in verifying any codes is to clear them, and confirm them with D-Check. I would say you have a sensor problem. Try a different MAF just in case, and perhaps adjust the IAC screw open a bit further. D-Check turns off the timing advance, and it sounds like you have a lean condition that makes it die.... GD

Sounds like a wireing issue to me. Check the plugs between the manifold harness and the main harness. Verify the continuity of the wires to the MAF and IAC. Clear your codes, and do a full D-Check. The IAC is just a resistance value to the ECU - it's just a solenoid with two wires. The MAF needs voltage, so make sure it's got voltage at the sensor, and then verify the other wires show the correct resistance and that it changes when you blow air over the element. GD

Here's quote from that page: "The dashboard indicator light circuit also typically has an extra wire with a calibrated resistance in it. This wire is run in parallel to the indicator light and has about a 10ohm resistance. It's purpose is to allow slightly more current to flow to the alternator field current system at initial start-up to make sure the alternator begins producing power as soon as the engine starts. About 1 amp total current is flowing to the field current between the light and the resistance wire, with the resistance wire supplying about 3/4 of an amp. This extra resistance wire does not affect the functionality of the indicator light in any way. NOTE: I've been informed by my readers that a Radio Shack 10 ohm 10 watt 10% wire wound ceramic resistor (part #271-132) has worked well on their GM vehicles. Use caution if you decide to do custom wiring work with resistors as they can get hot and melt stuff." Now I'm not sure what the resistor value is on the subaru's.... probably similar but I've never tested it. It's probably part of the lamp assembly/voltmeter in the guage cluster, or the lamp itself has a low enough resistance. Probably be a good idea to just go with the GM reccomendation. GD

Yes, the older ECU will work fine. They are nearly identical, with the only differences being the manual Loyale ECU has a clutch switch and the older one does not. An auto ECU will work too, but you may get a strange code about the park switch malfunctioning (or you may not). Why do you think the ECU is bad? I've never seen one fail. And if it runs then it's likely not bad. As far as the neutral switch - well that's going to be interesting. You'll have to play it by ear as the 87 tranny may or may not have the switch. You may have to use the clutch switch on your loyale pedal assembly to simulate the neutral switch so the ECU doesn't complain about not seeing it. GD

Yes! thepartsbin.com sells the shorty blue "nippon" ones same as the dealer....Anything but Fram. They are universally recognized as crap. GD

For $4 and some change you can get a Wix or Napa (same), which is even better. GD

There should be no switch for the remote sensor wire. Here's the diagram for it (stole from one of the above links): The dash light is the one that needs switched ignition power. Then the alternator will provide the ground when it's field isn't energized to light the lamp. When the alt is working properly it provides full field current to the bulb, and thus the ignition switched voltage and the field curent from the alt cancel each other out. Again, there should be NO switches involved in the two wires to the main junction. They should be connected directly to battery positive through fusible links. (ideally no wire should leave the junction without a fusible link). This is by design and will not drain your battery. It's also how it's hooked up in the car originally. GD

You need a blue wrench. GD

Ok - for safety reasons, and simply so you aren't pulling your hair out trying to figure this out, you REALLY need to understand how this works. I don't have the time to make up schematics and such, but here's some links that will clear everything up for you. Read this stuff, and you'll understand how to setup your electrical circuits. http://www.rowand.net/Shop/Tech/AlternatorGeneratorTheory.htm http://www.madelectrical.com/electricaltech/onewire-threewire.shtml And yes, all alternators after 81 were internal regulated. GD

No switch - it goes to the main junction - where your fuseible links are located if you are using them (you should be). GD

Not exactly. What we are talking about is an economic Subaru engine - small, low power output, and a design that has proven itself to 200,000+ with relatively little careful maintenance. The analysis was performed with an engine that most would agree would be tired at 200,000 and was built more on the performance end of the spectrum for a sports car. If you look at some of the oil change interval equations, many use a "power" constant to help bias toward more frequent oil changes for higher performance engines. It should also be noted that the Subaru engine was far ahead of the GM engines of the same time period both in construction and materials. The differences are not a large as you might think. If anything (and I'll state right now that this is educated conjecture on my part) all things being equal the EA subaru engine should be able to go LONGER between changes than the Z28 V8. It has a superior lubrication system due to the cylinder oreintation (oil does not as easily drain from the cylinder walls as they are not vertical), and has a comparitively large oil filter for the engine displacement. One can also deduce from the original specifications of 7,500 oil/15,000 filter put out by Subaru in the owners manual that their own engineers came to this same conclusion 20 years ago. The new subaru engine continue this legacy. The owners manual for my friends '06 forester 2.5 reads the same way (after the initial break-in change). It's a general guideline, yes. It would not work for all scenario's, and (just as the authors of that page) I would not sugest that anyone blindly follow those intervals without consideration for their specific situation. But, in the face of no availible statistics for the EA engines, it's better than nothing at all, and most especially better than seat-of-the-pants, and guesswork/conjecture. I'll take a detailed scentific analysis of a similar situation any day over nothing at all. The similarities far outweigh the differences, and in practice one could expect similar numbers from most alloy engines built in the last 40 years. GD

They are both internal combustion engines, and both share piston over crank design... what specifically are the differences that would invalidate this testing? Please provide details. Words like "huge" have no scientific value at all to me or anyone else here. Again with the "huge". Provide accurate data. Why not? We use the same oil in both. Seems to me that the oil's properties are going to be similar when used in engines rated for similar amount of mileage before rebuild. Both are street gasoline engines. Not race equipment or special service designs. Here's more info for ya from the good people kind enough to offer their Z28 up for analysis. And they bothered to quote sources! "Engine wear actually decreases as oil ages. This has also been substantiated in testing conducted by Ford Motor Co. and ConocoPhillips, and reported in SAE Technical Paper 2003-01-3119. What this means is that compulsive oil changers are actually causing more engine wear than the people who let their engine's oil get some age on it." GD

It's not silly at all. You are talking about impacting the environment, your wallet, and a big investment of time. But largely what we have done here is guesswork. If you want a real answer, then it's got to be based on your specific circumstances. Arguing about oil change intervals is like arguing over how hot you like your shower. What works for some, may not work for all. Here's a good breakdown of current theory's on oil change interval. Many based on good, actual science not the seat of the pants dyno and the reading of chicken bones: http://neptune.spacebears.com/cars/stories/interval.html Check out the rest of that site too - there's lots of interesting info including a full on oil analysis of mobile 1 and amsoil at 1,000 mile intervals. The Mobile 1 hung on for 18,000 miles and didn't need a new filter till 12,000 (Wix). This was in a 2002 Z28 Camaro.... Here's a tasty quote for ya: "Based on the results we've got here, we'd recommend 8,000 miles between oil changes on an engine that uses no oil at all, perhaps 10,000 miles on an engine that uses some oil, and 15,000 miles or beyond with a filter change every 5,000 miles. This, of course, isn't any kind of guarantee, and you must evaluate for yourself what your engine requires. One thing we're pretty sure about though: 3,000-mile intervals is a huge waste of resources." (no oil company advertising there ) GD

But that's an exception to the rule, and it's even MORE reason to use non-synth oil. There is really no difference at those kind of mileages. Synth's big advantage is it's ability to go longer between oil changes before the contaminates saturate the oil. With an older EA engine, it's going to burn and leak enough that you could literally NEVER change it. Change the filter and top it off and it would still be fine. Also - if you do the "Severe Driving" thing then you should be keeping track of hours not miles. GD

Right - but I said "in stock form" Virtually anything was an option, and even more strange things were done in the aftermarket. Like the EA81 convertibles, vintage EA81 5 speed swaps, etc. GD

I've been able to get all of mine (including my 230,000 mile sedan) to read at least 20 psi hot idle with a new (OEM) sender, and new oil pump and/or seals. I have yet to encounter a properly sealed up engine that wouldn't register correctly. I think the reason they put that in the manual is that reading 0 at idle is alright as long as the guage comes up when you rev it - just means the seals are a little old, and the sender is probably leaky. GD

You are competing with the Datsun guys. $350 to $400 is about the going price. Shop the u-pull-it type yards. I've got them for about $45 before. It's just a diff to them. As for buying a turbo car, it must be a FT4WD 5 speed to have the LSD in stock form. GD

Virtually unkillable. Amazing the punishment my lifted wagon's power rack has taken. I tore it down looking for a problem that turned out to be something completely urelated to the rack, and it looked nice inside. Realy simple design too. I doubt you hurt it. GD

Oh - if you are refering to the gear ratio then you are correct. The ratio does not change. The cams rotate at exactly 1/2 crank speed. Correct. But I wasn't advocating counting the ribs - I was merely describing mathematically *why* the two crank sprockets are not aligned. GD

Way to me open minded kid. Lots of luck to ya. That's actually detrimental. The PH of synthetic has barely stabilized at that point. Plus with the cost of synth being changed so often, you could afford to have oil analysis done and get a true breakdown of the heavy metals, acids, and alkalids of the oil. Not to mention that regular dino oil, changed every 7500 miles, with a new (quality like WIX/Napa, or a few others) filter every 15k per the owners manual is perfectly fine for your soob. Most of this 3,000 BS is perpetrated by the oil companies, and dealerships that make money off frequent oil changes. Very, very few vehicle manufacturers reccomend 3,000 mile changes at this point - so basically you are operating off of reccomendations for 50 year old equipment. Don't you suppose that engine construction/materials and oil engineering has made some advancements in that time? GD

Big difference between the headlight relays and the flasher module. There is only a single flasher for the signals and hazards. But it is located near the relays. Relays are round and silver - flasher module is square and black plastic. GD

Ok - Alternator 101. The subaru EA series alternator uses the normal GM remote sensing system of the GM 2 wire and 3 wire alternators of the past. (Note - 1 wire alternators are an aftermarket thing - haven't been used on any production vehicle that I know of, and frankly shouldn't be either. Totally stupid idea made for people that don't understand electricity). The LARGE ring terminal mount on the back of the alt goes to the "main junction". As does the smaller black/white wire from the 2 pin connector. The large wire is the main alternator supply - it charges the battery, and handles current demands of the electrical sysem. The smaller wire is the "sensor". The alternator uses this wire to regulate voltage AT the main junction. With accesories turned on, the voltage at the junction should remain a constant 14.5 volts. The output at the back of the alt will be higher to maintain the proper voltage at the junction. ALL your main electrical circuits should eminate from the main junction so each circuit has the correct 14.5 volts. The third and final wire (smallest of the three) should run through a 15 amp fuse to a single 12v lamp on the dash. This will illuminate if the votage drops or the regulator malfunctions. It's known as the "charge indicator" lamp. With very minimal modifications you can use a GM 2 or 3 wire alternator. I had one on my EA81 wagon for a bit. Or there's the nissan maxima 90 amp that is basically a bolt it. They all operate the same wireing wise. GD

500 is fine, yeah. You aren't going to hurt it so run it till it feels nice. GD