GeneralDisorder

Yes in both cases with some swapping of clutch parts, but putting an EA82 in a Brat is tight. Especially around the HH (disty on the EA82), and the frame rails are about 1/8" from the valve covers, and might hit occasionally. GD

He means 7-7/8", and 8-7/8", or more accurately, 200mm and 225mm (cmon guys - subarus are metric!). :-p As far as the clutch thing goes - I couldn't really tell the difference with stock tires... but with 28" mudders the 200mm will slip badly. GD

Completely wrong. Rear's are not like fronts. There is only a single sealed bearing in the rear. The axles unpin from both sides (diff and trailing arm), and then you have to unstake and remove a BIG nut on the backside of the spindle housing. After this, you can pound the spindle out from the outside, and then the bearing as well. Sometimes they come out together. Cheapest I have found rear bearings was Autozone (timkin I think) for about $50 each.... expensive buggers. EA82 4WD rear wheel bearings are the same. GD

You don't turn the pin - you turn the nut. 21mm thin open end wrench. GD

Just to clarify some of the above - turbo's didn't exist in 82, and ALL the EA81 turbo's came with automatics, so there shouldn't be much confusion there. EA82 turbo's either came with a 5 speed, or an auto. In short, no 4 speed trans EVER came attached to a turbo. GD

Any 4 speed D/R car is the same tranny. So any GL model from 81-84, and hatchbacks from 81-89, and Brats from 81-87. HOWEVER. The 82 you have has different gearing than other years. Only the 81 and 82 4 speeds had the lower 3rd and 4th. They changed to a higher 3rd and 4th gear for better fuel mileage in 83. Either one will work fine, but just so you know that 3 and 4 will change RPM wise if you go with a later trans. 5 speed is possible - 85-89 4WD EA82's have them, but you need the driveline to go with it, and the EA82 clutch+flywheel as well. Also the linkage will require some modification. Stay away from the turbo 5 speeds, as they have a different spline count for the front axles, and you would need custom axles made for those. GD

Just so you know, Brats are only rated at 800 lbs including passengers and cargo. Much over that, and you risk breaking a torsion bar. Also - don't EVER put anything on top of the bed chrome (especially the tailgate), as it's very flimsy, and rather difficult to find. The rhino stuff seems to be the most durrable, but they charge a ton for it on Brats since their drop down screen system doesn't work for us. The rear of the cab is problematic for it. GD

Yeah - I really am dissatisfied with all the aftermarket thermostats I've used. In the specific case of EA81's, the subaru design seems to be quite different than what most of the aftermarket ones consider "replacements". They just don't flow as well, and the parts look wimpy. Glad to hear it was a cheap fix for you. People on here are quick to tell you to replace the radiator when that often is not the problem. I suppose they live in an area that has lots of corrosion, but for a lot of us, the stock radiators will last the lifetime of the vehicle if the coolant is just changed once in a while. GD

An 88 with a digi-dash? Now that's interesting. We stopped receiving digi's for EA81's in 84. My 84 wagon has one - one of the few that is still working correctly as they seem to be fairly unreliable. Also means that it's a GL without the t-tops. Only GL style dashes would have a digi-dash. You got 2WD Brats too? We never got a 2WD Brat here.... Very interesting. GD

No GD

Hot wire goes to the plug that the Hitachi was connected to. Test the plug to see which one is not. Several of them should be with the key on. GD

Check your fuses too. GD

Philbin can rebuild the one you have. They put new rubber in them. As for finding one - junk yard I guess. GD

170 is not healthy. Cooler is not better, as your oil will not reach it's proper viscosity rating, and the metals in the engine will not fully expand to their operating state. The stock thermostat is set to open at 195 degrees, and the engine should run at a constant temp of at least 200-210 degrees. GD

Yeah - some of them are. Then there's ones like my Brat - must have been built on a Monday. Only has 130k, and took 5 trys to get through emmissions. I've replaced the carb, the y-pipe, the muffler, and now the rest of the exhuast has to go as it has holes too. At some point in it's life it was broken into (shattered glass in the doors), and the alarm system was installed incorrectly screwing up the wireing to this day. There is still an intermittant short in one of the tail lights that I can't find, there's water+oil goo in the drivers valve cover, and I have to top up the coolant once a month. Besides all that it got t-boned before I bought it so it needs body work on the drivers side of the bed, and they replaced the bumper with an ugly hitch. My wagon has 164k, and I think the only major problem I've had was the disty bushing. Other than that - even after numerous trips off road, it's still in top running order. The poor thing has just been abused I suppose, but at least it will still be worth more than I have into it when the restoration is done. GD

You might notice something - but more because the damn coolant runs through the manifold, and water injection would cool the incoming charge. Probably get about the same gain from removing the coolant from the manifold and building the manifold from carbon fiber. Some people rig them to spray on the intercooler in a turbo..... GD

Yeah - as long as it's not to the red. Every EA81 I've had runs like that. Even with new thermostats, caps, and perfect radiators (I have a friend at a radiator shop, and had him go through one). My guage usually reads slightly less than halfway between the mark and red. Totally normal. GD

But any impurities that are "needed" by the system ought to have been put in the antifreeze by the manufacturer don't you think? I would conjecture that this is why they recommend distilled water. Everything else has already been added. I have never heard of the water pump bearing and seals needing anything of this sort. Which is quite odd considering the number of automotive classes I've taken over the years. I cannot imagine this to be possible considering the different qualities of tap water all over the world. There would be almost no way for the manufacturer to know what mineral content you will be using unless they put it in themselves. Water here in the US is some of the softest in the world, and I would think that if mineral content were any sort of factor we would be blowing up water pumps on an unbelieveable scale compared to the rest of the world. Freezing temp with 50/50 is more like -30 degrees. I do agree tho that people do not change their coolant often enough. And you are correct that some of the additives (such as zinc) will deplete after a time, leaving the engine unprotected against electro-chemical corrosion. GD

The real problem with making them uber powerful is airflow. The heads just can't handle much, and unlike VW's, we can't just go get some dual port heads for reasonable $$ (not sure theres any at all for the EA71 - EA81's do have a following in the aircraft crowd. $2000 for a set of dual-port heads for an EA81..... Get a 32/36 Weber DGV and you will gain some low end. High end is pretty much a matter of porting the wimpy heads you have, decking them a bit, and getting a custom cam.... probably a custom manifold too at that point. I'm afraid it will never make much over 100 HP tho without new heads. GD

Halfway between the middle line and hot is normal for an EA81. Have you tested your temp sending unit? GD

Absolutely! You just need a big breaker bar, and a socket the right size.... 21mm I think, or a 13/16" will usually work in a pinch. Stick it on the pulley with the breaker bar propped against the body, and hit the starter (coil disconnected). Sometimes takes a couple bumps, but it almost always works. Oh - and stay away from the engine compartment when doing this. Stories of hucking breaker bars into the next county are not unheard of You can also use something to hold the flywheel through the timing hole if you have a manual. Might work on an auto too.... Retightening can be done many ways. My favorite if I have the time is to remove a spark plug and fill one cylinder with nylon rope. Then you can reef down at will on the pulley bolt and not worry about breaking anything. you can use this technique for removal too if you wish, but removal is usually much more difficult than installation. GD

So what exactly is wrong with using distilled water? All the makers of pre-mixed coolant use demineralized (distilled) water in their production process, and all the car manuafacturers sugest distilled water. "Premixed with demineralized water to provide freeze protection down to -34°F": http://www.valvoline.com/pages/products/product_detail.asp?product=14 "Water quality is critical. Vehicle manufacturers recommend mixing distilled water with antifreeze. Don’t use tap water, which may contain minerals that will corrode your cooling system. Do not use water softened with salts.": http://www.eetcorp.com/antifreeze/antifreeze-faq.htm "Yes, tap water is commonly used for mixing with antifreeze, however, deionized water or distilled water is preferred. Do not use water softened with salts to mix with antifreeze." http://www.peakantifreeze.com/faq.html Antifreeze does not react with the minerals in the water to change the boiling point and freezing point - it reacts with the WATER to do this. I have no idea who told you that or why, but it's completely wrong. Actually - adding ANYTHING to pure water will raise the boiling point and lower the freezing point to a certain degree. That's why we use salt on roads. It disolves into the ice, and lowers it's freezing point. The outside temp is no longer enough to keep it solid, and it melts. A 25/75 mixture will protect down to about 10 degrees, and boil at about 200 degrees. The system is designed to operate at a continual 195 degrees on an EA81, and with a 13 psi system pressure you raise the boiling point another 40 odd degrees or so. Now I have a range from 10 degrees to 240 degrees with a system operating temp of 195. GD

First, to do a proper job, and so you have room to work, remove the radiator. It only takes a few minutes. It's just the two bolts at the top, the ground wire on the top, and the upper and lower radiator hose (and the ATF lines if you have an automatic. Really - it's better this way. Once you remove the pulley, you should be able to see the seal. You can just pick it out with a screwdriver or an awl. Clean up the area, and use a little clear silicone on the outer edge of the new seal, and grease on the inner edge that rides on the crank. Done. Also - for future reference, there is no need to remove the pulley to get the oil pump out. You can fit a socket right under the pulley and get to that 4th bolt.... GD

The tach will fluctuate, while the engine seems to run normally. That's what I mean by jumping. On mine, the tach would start to vibrate (you could actually hear it, and feel it if you put your hand on the disty), and the engine would idle along, but the tach read 7,000 RPM's New really isn't an option, as I think even the dealership only sells rebuilt units. I personally had mine rebuilt by these guys: www.philbingroup.com They are local for me, and will do a rebush (this will correct the jumping), for about $35 if you dissasemble the disty for them. It's more like $50 if they have to do it. They can also rebuild the vac advance canistor if your rubber is shot. I had a rebush and the vac can rebuilt. It cost a total of $55, and I've driven it 15k miles since then and no problems. You can also get rebuilt units from CCR for like $150 or so I think. Email them and ask about your options. They are by far the cheapest for rebuilt units that I could find. GD

See your last post on this for the return line thing. I answered it there. As for a pressure regulator, no you don't need one. The reccomended pressure for the weber is 4 psi. The stock pump only puts out 1.35 - 2.06 psi. Thus a pressure regulator is a waste of time. GD