GeneralDisorder

Same, yes. GD

Those are the same as the SPFI pistons - both are 9.5:1 The EA71 pistons don't give a lot of comp. increase, and the ring lands are thinner. Plus they are more difficult to find than SPFI ones.... GD

No, but the book is out of print, so who's going to complain? No one is being cheated out of royalties or sales profits.... and there's no way it's ever going to be printed again. If you really think some publishing company is going to sic it's lawyers on a message board full of 80's subaru owners think again. They have plenty of other worries that aren't 10 years out of print and about as desireable as leftovers from spaghetti night. And I'm not sure, but the author may not even be alive anymore. Hasn't published anything near as I can tell since the late 80's. If someone wants to attempt to contact the guy that would be awesome..... but good luck finding him. With a name like that...... well there is probably a LOT of dudes named Larry Owens..... It's also been floating around for at least a couple years on here and "just under the surface" of this board. I know I've had it that long or longer. Oh yeah - and besides being an easy to understand learning guide it's really not too usefull as a reference. Good read the first time, but I haven't cracked it open in a long time. He goes the way of all the rest of the manuals and claims you need help (machine shop) to press the axles in and out of the hubs GD

Break a CV and the car will stop moving (or with the VC style it will move, but *slowly* - undrivably slow). AWD will not work if any single wheel loses traction completely (broken CV is equivelent). Where you got this "bad cv wrecks manual AWD tranny" business is beyond me. You will have a crappy day, and it's true the car won't move, but all that's required is an axle replacement. Your arguement is a non-sequitor really - you can't drive a manual AWD with a broken axle... Auto's are different, and I won't comment on that mess, but for a standard 5 speed AWD (no LSD's) that's completely wrong. GD

There is nothing wrong with the OEM gaskets. As I said I've used them too. My reasons for using the Fel-Pro's are several: 1. No retorque required. BIG plus. Quote from fedmog's web site: "These head gaskets compress enough at installation to conform to, and seal, minor surface imperfections while minimizing relaxation and maintaining adequate clamping force over long time periods." Clearly this is improved technology that wasn't incorporated into the OEM design. And the Napa/Other brands I've looked at don't incorporate it either. I've also heard BAD things about the NAPA subaru gaskets - carquest too. I aquired a problematic EA81 that had gone through 2 sets of Napa HG's. I put in Fel-Pro's and never had another problem. 2. Under ideal conditions (newly milled head, and block - with factory level finishing of the gasket sufaces) the OEM gaskets should perform just fine. However this is rarely the case. If anything I'll mill the heads *if I have to* but generally if things look alright I would prefer to just clean the surfaces very well. From my experience the Fel-Pro's seal well under "feild replacement" conditions. They conform well to non-factory level finished surfaces. 3. They are quite a bit CHEAPER. Even wholesale at my dealer EA82 gaskets are $23 each for the non-turbo gaskets. The Fel-Pro's are $15.99 each and are rated for the turbo's as well. One gasket fits all. Anyway, I recommend you give them a try. I have to admit I was skeptical about them at first too, but others on here convinced me to try them. At any rate I wouldn't buy anything but Fel-Pro or OEM. Either choice is a win in my book GD

9.5 would run nicely. The EA82 SPFI runs that comp already, so just using the SPFI pistons would work. Take .020" off the heads and you might get up close to 10:1. Should still work fine, but I would probably use the SPFI on it. GD

You could trigger it the way it's done on the EA81 - when the AC compressor comes on so does the second fan. That's really all the clutch fan is for anyway. It's there to cool the AC compressor from getting dangerously hot when the car isn't moving. The non-AC models of EA82 didn't have the clutch fan at all. Same with the EA81's - it was just electric. That's why they are so hard to find - not many EA81's had AC. GD

All my manuals show a three stage torque - 22, 40, and 47 I think, but don't quote me on those. Close enough tho. GD

No - mine went 230k, and it's engine #808. Definately capable gaskets. I just installed a set for a friend. But it's got to be noted that OEM gaskets have been sitting on a shelf for years, and were designed with 1985 materials. Fel-Pro perma-torque's are using the latest in improved materials and processes.... and after some extremely hairy personal experiences with them I can say they have a death grip on the gasket surfaces. I overheated an EA81 about a week after I did the HG's to what I considered at the time to be the point of no return. I drove it at least 3 miles in 80 degree weather with zero coolant. Only reason I stopped was because the engine lost all power due to pre-detonation. I thought for sure they were blown. Drove another 20,000 miles after that day - had to replace the heater core hose that blew . I recently tore the engine down for main bearings and was amazed to find the HG's looked almost good enough to reuse. Fel-Pro for life for me! GD

Stop-gap solution. 20 year old tech. The Fel-Pro's are stronger. Also - it's common when doing these to torque them to 55 or 60 rather than the spec 47. Even tho the Fel-Pro's don't need a retorque, a little extra for the insurance doesn't hurt. I've been setting all of mine to 55 and no problems at all. I also use a harbor freight $9.99 torque wrench so who knows how accurate it really is anyway . GD

Exactly. The heat from the turbo and hot exhuast is boiling the cooling after shutdown. It's basically supposed to do that. The EA81T's when first produced didn't even have water cooled turbo's. But Subaru found that people who didn't idle the engine before shutdown or that lived in hot climates had excessive failure's of the turbo units. They were recalled and fitted with the EA82 style turbo and cooling hoses. The EA82 inherrited this "recall" design to prevent turbo failure. GD

Yeah - and the Fel-Pro's are definately the best. The OEM stuff is 20 year old gasket tech. Use the Fel-Pro's - and they don't require a re-torque. GD

They draw a good amount. You can watch the guage drop when they come on. Pretty normal for a motor designed to move that large of a fan. GD

Nope - too short. All the EA81 drivelines are shorter than EA82's - especially the Hatch - it's actually shorter than all the others. The 5 speed is a shorter transmission. GD

Actually - here's a recent thread where I sold a complete dealer fog setup - there's pics of the harness. It's 100% seperate from the factory harness, and splices into three wires under the dash. No drill is required - the wires run through the same holes in the firewall and fender that the factoy loom runs through. http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=56335 GD

No - I can tell you from experience of removing said factory wireing (both for dealer installed fogs, and entire wireing harnesses) that no wireing exists for fog lights. The wireing/relay/switch came as part of the fog light kit, and was spliced into the existing power supply to the fuse panel, and to the headlight switch harness. GD

EA81 head gaskets are totally simple. And they cost about $15 each. No cams or timing belts to deal with. Just do the HG's. The sealant will collect in the heater core and clog that permanently. Trust me - the way the core is designed on the EA series both the inlet and outlet are on the same side. GD

It's got zilch to do with race. It's about poorly trained translators, and the written form we used above is about people with accents. A white guy from chicago sounds funny too. And if I grew up learning Japanese as my first language I would probably sound just as funny. It's called lexicography. It has everything to do with speech, and nothing to do with the color of you skin. I bet I sound like a fool to the spanish foks at work when I try to speak their language. Aint higher education wonderful? Oh, and my GF is half Japanese, and I drive a Japanese car (who would have guessed THAT?).... so I'm probably not the most racially motivated person you could find. Not trying to start a fight about it, just clarifiying in case anyone *did* get the wrong idea. GD

Yes, it can be done. There's a toyota part number that fits. Old U's have to be unstaked, and the yokes have to be made capable of accepting the toyota joints.... all in all too much work. It's not economically viable. A driveline shop will charge well over $100 for the job as it's a real PITA. It would be better to just grab an EA81 driveshaft and have it lengthened. At least those already have replaceable U's, and the shop only needs to replace the tube, and not all the yoke's. Or even better - find a good used one. I've used shafts with well over 200k with no problems. And I can routinely find them with much less than that. The last one I picked up with 130k on it. Very good condition. But here on the west coast we don't have the salt and rust issues. If you get a decent shaft and keep it slathered with some grease to keep the rust and salt at bay you should be fine for the life of the car. GD

Oh - yeah didn't see the oil pump part of your post. Use anereobic sealant for that if you need anything. RTV is a no-no on anything but the cooling system IMO. I don't really use it anywhere else on a soob except the cam cases/valve covers. GD

Oh - I agree. I Lrov my engrish manual! Seriously tho - I have a 1980 manual that's just impossible to wrap your head around in places. I guess it's that first-edition-new-model-year Engrish thing.... GD

I would *hope* they would be using it for reference in order to rephrase the badly translated fuji procedures into laymans terms. I'm sure they are not interested in being sued. GD

By whom exactly? GD

It's very similar to the VW's you have done. Just pull the engine out and you will see what I mean. The only difference is the way the block comes apart. Instead of the cylinders unbolting from the crank-case, you pull the wrist pins through access ports in the sides of the block, then the engine unbolts down the center. You will most likely need new main and rod bearings, and complete gasket set. Rings do not usually require replacement, but you can if you like. You should bottle-brush the cylinders at least so new rings will seat properly. Get the Fel-Pro gasket set, and use dealer gaskets for the intake manifold and oil pan gaskets as the aftermarket versions are inferior. Really it's pretty straightforward. You can always ask questions on here as you go. GD

I would recommend you REBUILD the one you have. Buying a used engine or a new one is a waste of money. The used engine could have problems, and a new CCR EA81 is over $1,000. You can rebuild the one you have for less than the cost of the used engine. And you could probably get by with just head gaskets. As for the EA82 - don't waste you time with it for an off-roader. It's a higher reving engine, with only a slight HP increase over the EA81. It's problematic for off-road repair. The timing belt makes it slow to work on. It also does not fit without modification to the frame rails, and moving the hill holder. Too wide for the EA81 body. The EA82 fuel injection is awesome. It runs at any angle, and has great torque. That would be a great conversion, but it takes a not-insignificant electrical knowledge, and the parts to do it run into the $300 to $400 range by the time you are done, and the conversion usually takes people a couple weeks the first time they do it. I've done it to my Brat, and I love it. Much more predictable than the carb options. GD