GeneralDisorder

EA81.... GD

Strange. Are you sure you waited till the engine was up to temp? Just a thought. Cold engine has higher pressure. GD

Entire engine. Do a search - you'll find plenty of threads on that sort of thing. Bottom end of the engine as well as the heads are different. You need the entire engine. GD

+1 for any MT over AT rating. The AT's just can't clean themselves - at least not out here in the wet northwest. They are awesome for desert racing.... the BFG AT's are used by many desert racers. Mud isn't so much the issue there tho. It comes down to granularity. GD

Gauge itself is not vacuum operated in any way.... so I'm guessing that you increased the idle speed and this caused the increase in oil pressure. The pressure is related directly to engine speed. GD

Well - carbs do need to be "pumped" in order to start. That is totally normal. Most people these days are not used to this anymore being that carbs have all but dissapeared for going on 20 years. FI does not require this. As for running lean, that's probably another story. I would check for exhaust leaks, and make sure your cooling system is setup right. Your should have the stock 190 thermostat.... lower temp or innefiecient cooling system (too hot) can cause mixture issues. Carb cannot be adjusted - they are jetted - so the only adjustment you have is the choke adjustment/pull-off, and the idle mixture. GD

There's probably some phillips screw on the back side of the wheel that go into that center horn assembly. That's the common method for a lot of the EA82 wheels, and most newer ones. Might have to get a stubby screwdriver to get at them. GD

Problem is going to be the rear end - the hatch is just that - a hatch. There is like a 10" lip that runs all the way around the back, and the rear door sits on top of it. On the wagon the door opens all the way to the floor. Oh yeah - gas tank in the hatch is shorter too - too accomidate the difference in rear overhang. Sure - something like that could be done, but unless you are a fantastic body guy, it's going to look and function like poop. GD

The Hitachi's run very well if rebuild properly. Unfortunately, they are horrifically complex for a carb - as many 80's cars were. I have lots of mechanical experience, all the tools, and I've been working with carbs since I was 10.... took me about 7 or 8 rebuilds to get those Hitachi's down. Of all the 80's carbs, the Subaru and Nissan Hitachi's are some of the worst. Particularly the choke system is complicated, and varies a lot from year to year. The power valves are staked in place - good thing they usually aren't bad, but still.... don't lose the accelerator pump check ball, and keep careful track of all the little cotter pins. I'll say it.... WEBER. There - happy? For me, it's more than worth it - sure the Hitachi is cheap to rebuild, but for the time investment I would rather spend around 150 - 200 on rebuilding and installing a used Weber. They are simpler, and provide a much more pleasureable driving experience. If you have more time and money - the SPFI swap is the way to go, but you need almost a whole donor car to do it, and even if you manage to spend half a day at the junk yard and get all the parts, the wiring and mods needed to swap it over will take a bit to figure out. Figure more expensive than a used weber, and twice to three times as long to install. GD

Turbone's right - and a timing belt change isn't $300 in just parts The ER27 has all the problems of the EA82 + 50% more because unlike the EA82, parts are not plentiful, often only availible from the dealer, and usually at a high price. For that you get the same stock performance as the JDM EJ20 N/A, and less performance than the EJ22T. Only slightly more than a USDM EJ22 N/A. Add to that the fitment issues with any chassis other than the original, and you have a pretty dim combination. It's a cool engine for sure, but like a lot of brands, it's a high end engine, and there just weren't many made. As for hacking the ECU - sure it could be done. I'm a software engineer, and I know people that could do it. But the time investment is not worth it, and all the people I know would maybe assist me in doing it as a personal favor, but they would all much rather play with their PC friendly Audi's and Porsche's..... I'm the weird one of the bunch driving old soobs. Best to just go with something like MegaSquirt. I learned a long time ago that re-inventing the wheel gets you nowhere - while you do that, someone else is working on the jet engine.... GD

I've always wondered - 20 or so odd car batteries, and a leaf blower motor..... maybe. Would be a good eppisode of mythbusters - I can only imagine what they would end up using for 15 lbs of boost from something "electric" GD

Is filling the doors and front end with concrete outside the rules too? GD

Drain your alternator, messy up your engine bay..... It will help a lot in the weight department. Of course just carrying plastic instead of cash would help just as much. GD

Yeah - if the bearing gets too bad the whole rear drum assembly will eat itself. Had that happen once to me. Luckily it just locked the wheel up solid. Took it apart to find lots of little mini brakes :-\. It's sort of like mini-wheats, but not as tasty, and no frosting. GD

Those are all good sugestions. Pop the heads off and have a complete valve job done - three angle grind, port & polish the heads, mill 20 thou off em to up your comp a little. I'm sure Delta cam will be able to assist with your cams - just send em in, and they can grind whatever you like. For big tires, you want a torque machine - so go low end. Heavy torque cam. I'm guessing there is a LOT to be gained here for the ER27 being that it was really built for a sports coupe, and had a light flywheel, and such. Change to the "heavy" EA82 flywheel. Bolt pattern is the same. This will give you more rotating mass, and higher torque at lower RPM. Can't "recurve" the disty since it's.... software. But you can do the fuel management and look into fuel maps for low end torque. That will also give you timing control. Seriously - you would rather LOSE some peak HP for more low end - it's going to get you farther off road. On road is going to be fine - 235's are not all that large for the HP the ER27 can put out - even detuned a bit at the peak. Keep in mind that the "perfect" off road engine for a vehicle with the Brat's capabilities would really be a lightweight diesel - you want to try and approximate that model as much as possible. Think of the Hummer H1, and model your mods off it - just that will get you FAR (ex military myself). Realize that here you have a 6,000 lb+ truck (four wheel independant just like a soob) with an AUTOMATIC (yes, they only come as auto's), and only 160 peak HP from a non-turbo V8 diesel (armored ones are different). You want serious grunt, not 200 HP at 10,000 RPM. You'll never see a use for it. I know it's not as "glamorous" as a turbo, but it's what will work - vs. being stuck and blowing your engine to bits. Remember that less is more off road. There's a reason people still drive willy's jeeps, old beater trucks, 60's rovers, samuri's and the like.... they are simple, rugged, and almost always will bring you back. Note how any of the previously mentioned if set up for off-road will do around 50 MPH on the freeway - teeth chattering, bone jarring ride it may be, but those are the ones that get the job done. It really does come down to weight and gearing. A lot of the old rovers made around 50 - 60 HP. They are stump pulling, tree climbing machines. Same for Suzuki's, and old willy's jeeps too. GD

EA81 and Justy have the same splines. Legacy = NO. GD

Could get 5 more HP by swapping to the MPFI heads, intake and wiring from a late model XT. (Rather than a port/polish, which probably wouldn't net you even 5). But that's a ton of work for 5 HP. Better off getting an EJ22. "As good as it gets" about covers it really. In more ways than one. Not just for HP, but for simplicity, and reliability too. GD

I matched mine up with a round file - didn't take long. Dremel would work too. I've ground on some, and not on others - no difference that I could tell. The intake manifold itself is more of a restriction - better to just get an EA82 manifold, and use the EA82 adaptor. Better flow all around. GD

Yeah - I understand what you mean. Some people are just stupid. Personally I drive near the speed limit, and occasionally I get some asshat that thinks it's real fun to tailgate me for miles on a two lane road. Often I just keep slowing down till they get the idea, but someone is going to push me too far one day.... Case in point - on my way home from WA one time - I driving my lifted wagon, and a friend and his wife behind me - he in an RX, and she driving my Brat. I was doing about 65 in the fast lane - it was dark, and I had friends following me. I notice someone close on my tail, so I immediately get over to the center lane (it's late, dark, and I'm in a caravan - the last thing on my mind is messing with other motorists). He gets over as well - and continues to tailgate me. He gets closer and closer till his headlights dissapear from my rear-view. I can't get over another lane because there was a city bus there. That, and the fast lane was COMPLETELY clear. I'm pretty annoyed as there isn't really anything I can do here. So to signal him that I was not intending to speed up, I touched my brake pedal enough to turn the lights on, but not slow me down (28" tires - the brakes don't even work all that well ). Everything sort of became a blur at that point - he whipped into the fast lane, shot in front of me (nearly), and then back into my lane - only he hadn't calculated it quite right, and the left rear quarter panel of his Ford Focus hatchback smashed into my front bumper/brushguard. I pretty much lost my sh!z at that point, and threw it into third and rammed him - left a huge knarly dent in the rear hatch of his Focus. For his part he did nothing - probably paralized with fear by now. I came up next to him in the fast lane and glared over as it to ask "where are we taking this?" but he would not return my stare. I left - never to hear about it again. Moral of the story - don't mess with folks in lifted subaru's - we are a strange bunch - slightly imbalanced already. Only thing I can figure is he was either trying to draft me like a semi, he was totally high on something, or off-chance I picked up a rock and chipped his windsheild or something with my agressive tires and lack of mudflaps.... GD

So let me get this straight... you are putting an ER27 into a Brat? With a turbo? And then lifting it? For a daily driver?!?! Since no one has asked this stuff: 1. Are you aware you will need to relocate the radiator? 2. The ER27 is much too high compressio to run any sort of turbo.... are you putting in EA82T pistons? Even so, the heads are the same design as the EA82 MPFI head, and are most likely not going to handle the added heat of the turbo. If you change the pistons, you might be able to reliably run 5 lbs on it or something. Basically the ER27 is the EA82 with extra cylinders - ask around the board about people that have run even a carb block (9.0:1) with turbo heads - lots of power for about 5,000 miles. The ER27 is going to be 9.5:1 same as the EA82 SPFI and MPFI. Then of course there is the totally seperate issue of the cams.... you'll have to have custom cams done. 3. Fuel management - I hope you have some ideas - megasquirt I guess. Stock ECU isn't going to cut it. Might as well do crank fired ignition and do away with the disty while you are at it - one less thing to get wet. 4. Turbo engines are generally not good for off-road. For one it's difficult to keep them spooled, and at lower non-spooled RPM the turbo is just a big anchor backing up your exhaust flow. Also off-roading in a lifted Brat with 235's (you'll need more than 4" for 235's BTW) is going to be mostly slow crawling and some speedier stuff, but nothing over 20 MPH really. That's going to be rough on the heat situation - turbo's generate a lot, and to get that turbo power you'll need to get it spooled.... even more heat. 5. Daily driver..... . Your mileage with 235's will be worse than most large SUV's. Think 15 MPG with a turbo ER27 and those tires. I get 20 - 22 in my wagon with 215's and an EA81. Turbo's SUCK the fuel. Ask anyone with an EA82T. Mods just make them suck more fuel too. For comparison I get near 30 in my stock Brat. Just some stuff to think about - don't want to discourage you, and the ER27 is a great swap.... I just think the turbo part is a waste of time for what you want. GD

If you don't care about the car, a 2lb copper or brass hammer will do the job - I jacked up the threads something aweful tho (totaled parts car anyway). GD

You won't be able to tell it's bad from the outside - the wear is on the inside of the joint, and likely has been there for a while - the various axle rebuilders don't replace stuff unless it's totally broke. Heat will make it more obvious - especially on the passenger side where the axle is right above the cat. The extra heat will expand the joint, and make it more loose. Also will cook the grease inside and turn it into some nasty goop. You may have good luck with just replaceing the grease and finding out why your cat is getting so hot. Make sure the heat sheild is in place, and check your mixture. Maybe a bad O2 sensor or something. (personally I just gut the cat's on mine so I don't have to worry about heat cooking off my boots) GD

And you have owned this wagon for all of the 275k? It could have been replaced before you got it.... I've owned some that had good oil pressure too. But I also threw a rod because of a bad oil pump. Also the oil change interval has a lot to do with it - if you do the 3k interval it would probably last a lot longer. Subaru says (and still does!) to change the oil every 7500, and the filter every 15k..... GD

Could be a different guage than what I got. And where is this turbo oil light port? I don't have any turbo soobs (right now), so is it somewhere other than on the pump? GD

I swear one of these days when I have an expendable car (it's bound to occur at some point - jeez I get subaru's like crazy), I know it's going to happen. The right time - the right day - maybe I'm not terribly interested in showup up for work on time or whatever. Someone is going to eat a subaru. I'm just going to lock em up with them riding 8 feet off my bumper and let the car go to the crusher. I'm an upstanding citizen, member of the national guard, and I've NEVER had an accident. I'll tell all about the puppies that were in the road in front of me..... oh it will be an awesome day fo-sho. And being an expendable car I'll ask for an unreasonable amount from the insurance, claim injuries - oh joyus day indeed! If I only cure one idiot of tailgating, then I will have contributed a little. I'll try to make sure it's one of those $50k SUV's. My little Subaru will total it. hehehehe. Oh yeah - and I won't lock em up till I see them turn their head to the side to make sure their reaction time is less. GD