GeneralDisorder

I just always leave the EGR pipe on the manifold. Then thread it into the head when I'm installing it. I never have any trouble doing it that way. GD

They will come off clean till it's been ran for a few weeks. It takes a while for them to bond usually. As for with the manifold on.... from what I remember of my first time, I had to loosen it. GD

If it stripped then you put it in too tight, and the EGR will thread right in if you do it before you put the manifold bolts in. Both of those items are common sense, and neither are "stupid". It's an inanimate object - and as much as people like to think the car is out to get them, most also realize that this simply isn't within the realm of possibility. The car has lasted over 20 years before it encountered you - it's a tired, old, turbo, and by default that means it's going to have needs. If you can't fulfill them, then pass it along to someone that can. It's a poor mechanic that blames his tools and equipment. You have how many cars that don't drive?? :-\ GD

You should always thread the EGR pipe in BEFORE you lock down the manifold. If it leaks you just get an exhaust leak under your hood. GD

And yet another note (and even for the NEW soobs) the factory interval is 7500 miles for the oil, and 15,000 for the filter (except for the break-in). GD

Remove all the plugs, and disconnect the fuel pump when you are testing too. Unburned fuel will wash down the oil in the cylinders. GD

I run 10w40 year round personally. Chevron is my choice as I get a good price at Costco. It's a very good quality oil for the price. But then it rarely gets much below 25 degrees here. GD

There shouldn't be a need to drill anything for the rear mount. It should already be there. The 2WD 5 speed linkage back in the EA81's was the same as the later 4WD 5 speed linkage so the floor pan already has the capture bolt to mount the rear of the linkage. You just thread a nut on and it's golden. GD

Probably - it was in the Medford area. That was a while back - took a trip down there to pickup my new bumpers from Tony. He still around? I heard he got his self a lifted Nissan? GD

You don't need the Int. unit to park the wipers. You just have to wire around the unit so that the P (park) terminal of the motor gets power in the off posistion of the switch. You'll lose the Int. function, but that really doesn't matter much. Or you can use a momentary push-button switch on the dash to apply power to the park terminal of the motor and manually park the wipers that way. Lame repair, but in-line with most of your other methods and practices anyway. GD

I would try a used one first, as the tranny may be the problem. If the tranny has a bad drive gear it will eat gov. gears like candy. GD

You add exactly 1 inch to the stock 4 speed 4WD shift rod. I just cut 1" from the 4WD shift rod of the 5 speed donor linkage and welded it in. Paint the welds to prevent rust. You use the stock 5 speed gear shift linkage, and push it all the way to the drivers side when you tighten the rear body mounting nut. If you have the tranny properly installed it should not hit anything. GD

There is not a "bolt-in" option for the EA81 body. You will need to modify the drivline, and the transmission cross-member to fit an EA82 (85 to 89) 5 speed D/R. There's a guide on how to do it here in the repair manual on this site. GD

MPFI is the same compression as the SPFI block, but will require your SPFI heads. Carb is only slightly less and will still run fine. Stay away from Turbo's GD

You probably didn't have all the cam tower bolts tight enough, or the valve got stuck in it's guide. This isn't real common, but it does happen. So far I've only had one engine do that, and the owner was helping me assemble it - he did the cam tower bolts and I suspect the one under that rocker arm wasn't tight. Basically toss that engine in the dumpster. Replacing the piston, while possible without splitting the block, is going to be a lot of work for maybe nothing. You have a lot of metal contamination inside the engine, and it's going to be hard to tell if the rod is slightly bent or not. I would use it for parts and find another short block. GD

Could be the tranny won't upshift too. That'd be the dreaded 3AT rearing it's ugly head. Probably just a plain old EA81 sedan it sounds like. I like the sedan body when it's 4WD (and especially lifted), but conversion to 4WD is a pain in the butt. Just put a 2WD 5 speed in it. GD

There's two subaru engines that most consider "indestructible". The EA81, and the EJ22. Of the two the EA81 is lower maintenance, so could probably be considered a bit more reliable than the 22. Both are good for 300,000+ with fairly little maintenance. I had an EA81 with 316k, and it's now up over 370k and still going. The EA82 in your Loyale is a hybrid EA81 with an OHC setup. It's renown for both timing belt failure, lifter ticking, and is usually a bit worse on head gaskets because it uses a bolt setup for the heads instead of studs. The SPFI on your loyale is awesome tho - some of us use it on the EA81's instead of carbs. In my opinion, the most reliable setup possible in a subaru is an EA81 with SPFI. Very easy to maintain too. GD

A stock Brat has as much clearance as a Jeep Cherokee. 7.5" ground clearance. Even stock they do well - especially if you air down. EA82's are less - around 5.5". But with a little bit larger tires they do alright. They do get stuck easier than a stock EA81 though. My lifted wagon with 28's has 14" under the rear diff. Aired down I can easily outwheel an exploder all day long at the "beach". I air down to 7 psi. Beach ruts?? You're joking right? GD

Sounds like the idle circuit on the carb(s) is plugged or sucking air. This is pretty common on the Hitachi. The gasket between the upper and lower section of the carb is usually pretty rotten. GD

I don't know what was in the kits. The mixture is not adjustable - the Hitachi's have jets like most carbs. I would guess it's some sort of device that enriches the mixture by changing the float chamber pressure. But that's just a guess. But I can tell you that 1,100 feet above sea level should not require any compensation. 5,000 and up is usually when you need to start changing things. I would do a full carb rebuild and pay special attention to the float settings. GD

Lucas is bad for anything other than a tractor differential - low speed applications where there isn't likely to be any frothing action it's alright. Bad for just about anything else. Crap - just like most additives. http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/images/lucas/lucas.htm Altitude compensation was purchased as a seperate kit. GD

Replace the CTS first. Then retest in D-Check mode. White connectors are "read memory". Green connectors will put you in D-Check. GD

The SPFI EA82 is rated at 90 HP, and is a bit higher reving - it's got a 500 RPM higher redline (on the guage cluster). The 86 engine would have been 82 HP. The main differences are in the valve train and compression ratio. The 90 has a 9.5:1 bottom end and the 86 was 9.0:1. Your increase in torque was all from the engine. The Holley 5200 is fine for a fuel system, and I doubt you would lose more than 1 or 2 HP without the SPFI. The big win with the SPFI is not really power, but fuel econemy, driveability, and easy to work on. GD

Good question. Perhaps consult the stars, or the chicken bones, or the magic 8 ball if your tendancies are toward the somewhat foolish. As it is though, we can only conjecture on the true reason. I'm pulling for alien intervention. Have you lost any long tracts of times lately? GD

Alternator's internal rectifier is fried. Replace your alt. GD