GeneralDisorder

Distributor shaft bushings - always is. There's shops that can rebush them for you - here's the place I use: http://www.philbingroup.com Cheaper than a new disty, and as good as new - used is only buying time, and generally costs about as much as having the bushing done.... It is NOT the module. In fact, I have never seen a module die in one of these... GD

Just to clarify, the peice cut out of the cage was from my dremel - in order that I might get a better picture of the damage, and to see what the cage surface looked like as well. The blue marks were already there of course.... I think they just regreased and rebooted a failed axle, and sold it to me as "rebuilt" I sure would like to punch that guy in the nose. GD

No - it shouldn't have to build up fuel in the line.... well it should, but it's pretty fast. About 10 seconds if that. I had my Brat's engine out, and I changed both the front and rear fuel filters, and had dry lines - didn't take any time at all to fire it up with an empty float bolwl, and no fuel in the lines.... GD

Update in my original post - more pics and damage.... GD

He can totally make you some for your 79! There's even some cars around down there that he could pattern it off. One of the reasons I had TWB do mine is because he was willing to go find a 2WD wagon to pattern the bumpers on. My car was originally 2WD, and thus the bumper mounts are completely different..... GD

Actaully you can get a lot from just listening - take the valve covers off and listen to the tail pipe with the exhaust valve open, then rotate till both are closed, and listen again. Do the same with the intake, and you can get a feel for the difference between open and closed. This is all without a gauge by the way.... GD

Yeah - I think I'll just go ahead and paint the rocker covers all the way down the car. Black down there makes it recede into the background. Helps the wagon to look taller than it really is..... GD

Ok, so I've been hearing a lot of noises from my passenger front axle, and decided to take it out and see what the deal was. At first it looked like a *massive* gear oil leak from the diff side plate, but upon closer inspection turned out to be axle grease! After removing the axle I saw the cause of this - the plug in the bottom of the inner cup is ill-fitting, or improperly installed. When you expand and contract the axle, you can hear air comming through the plug. There is no evidence of any other damage to the axle - just massive loss of grease from this incorrect rebuild. The part that really makes my cheerios sour is this axle is only about 8k miles old. And this was a rebuilt from Discount Import Parts here locally. Now I wish I had got the lifetime ones..... At least I have discovered the origin of the leak, and it's easy to fix. The stuff was dripping right on the exhaust, and made for quite a stench in the car - and even some smoke when I was at a stop light a few weeks ago. I decided that since this axle was toast anyway, I would go ahead and dismantle the thing for a closer look into what went wrong with this "rebuilt" axle. Now I don't know for sure, but I suspect that this axle wasn't rebuilt at all - it was just repacked, and a new boot put on it looks like. You guys tell me if you think the damage in the lower photo's could have been caused by less than 10k miles of driving. I replaced this axle around September last year... If you look close in the photo, you can not only see the spalling on the bearing race, but also that the race has a cracke running the length of the valley where the ball sits. What's the consensus? The boot was undamaged, and the grease was nice and clean - no evidence of leakage present, and yet the damage seems severe for less than 10k of driving. I didn't get a warrantee with this one, and I sure do feel ripped off. GD

Yeah - bottom radiator hose you can cut, and for the top, I just cut the end off the filter box right behind the heat riser inlet. Of course most of us lifted types are running Weber's, and so it's not so much of an issue. Oh - and installing the steering linkage while the front cross-member is dropped makes it a lot easier. If you wait till it's back bolted up, then it's a tight fit. I could do one in a full day by myself easy. It helps to have a hand now and then - for things like the steering linkage. You have to turn the wheel, and getting out from under the car each time is a pain. And help with the rear end is nice, as those parts are pretty heavy when your on your back, and trying to support them with one arm while attempting to thread a bolt into something.... GD

You should find an EA81 power steering rack. If you do, note that you will need the engine cross-member as well, since they are different. GD

Yep - done it many times - just grab a valve cover, and pull. GD

On those rear strut bolts at the top - the bar of metal they are threaded into is open on the back, and often times a buildup of dirt and crap back there makes them REALLY hard to get out. Spray some stuff on em a couple of days in advance, and then give em a good shot right before starting work on the front end. You do NOT want to break one off trying to get it out.... GD

It aint 300 - I can lift one and move it around myself - it's rather awkward tho... I would say somewhere on the order of 150 lbs without all the junk attached. GD

Actually, I drive it downtown all the time. I drive it to school. Parking is no prob cause I have power steering. People give me the craziest looks. Especially since I'm a running straight pipe. GD

Hhhhhmm - buy a GL. Too much work to bother swapping in all that stuff. Mostly your looking at a ton of wireing.... with the exception of the GL tilt column..... which I'm not sure would fit. DL Brats are rare - keep it stock. No rear sway's on EA81's..... ever. No overflow tanks on EA81's.... ever. Oh yeah - No power locks on EA81's.... ever. GD

Wish I knew more about it. When in doubt - check the FSM wireing diagrams! On carbed engines, I think the coil and the tach use the same signal..... since there's only two wires running from the disty..... GD

The fuel pump is somehow driven off the tach signal from the disty I think. There is a fuel pump control unit somewhere in the car on a carbed model that uses that signal to determine if the pump should run or not. It will shut the pump down if the engine is not turning over.... at least that's the theory. In the case of a turbo model, then I think the ECU probably does that job, as the engine was MPFI. Personally, I would find an aftermaket safety switch that runs from the tach signal, and rewire the thing. GD

Ask soobme about pricing - he's quite reasonable. My front bumper was $100, and the rear was $160. Now of course I picked mine up because he's only about 300 miles from me, but shipping isn't as bad as you think. GD

For one thing, you can't use the stock EA81T pump for a weber without a serious pressure regulator. The turbo pump is like 40 psi, and the carbed one is 2 psi.... GD

For an RX - all you need is some knarly tires, and your set. GD

Do you mean rally-x? Or just messing around in the woods and trails? For rally-x, I haven't seen anyone that's done any more than beat the ridge down in the front fender wells. The courses are generally pretty flat, and soobs already have decent clearance for a little mud and stuff. For real off-roading, a lift is really the answer. The 3" seems to be the most popular, and what I am running right now. I have 28" tires on my wagon, but even with 3.5" blocks on the front, I had to beat the fenders quite a bit, and do some cutting as well. Had to cut a bit on the rear too - in front of the tires. If you want to almost completely cut the fenders and such out you can fit 27" or so without a lift, but you'll beat the underside of the car up like a soda can. It's best to just get a lift, and save the frame of the car from too much damage. GD

Well - I was thinking about using it for the wagon, but then the bumper woudn't match the grill angle and such anymore..... looks like I'll have to get a hatch to put those on! GD

Soobme did me up some *very* custom bumpers. With a bit of input from him, and some from myself, we came up with a unique design, and he implemented it quite well. I am very pleased. The quality of the work, and the attention to detail is without question some of the best I've seen. He tells me that he will be getting a bender up and running here shortly.... you should all RUN - don't walk - to get a new set of bumpers from him. This is his first Subaru swing out tire rack.... I'll let the pictures tell the story..... GD

Find a cheap muffler shop, and have them make you one. You should be able to get a cat from ebay for pretty cheap with the O2 sensor thing in it.... I know I have seen magnaflow's on there... GD

Keep the EA81 - you can get more power from it more easily than an EA82. Also no timing belts... Use the 5 speed D/R with the EA81. Deck the heads, get a delta cam from WA, and put on a weber. Easily more power than an EA82T, and a LOT less trouble to do it. Figureing out the wireing harness, and trying to plumb in a turbo is a lot more work than rebuilding an engine with a bigger cam, and decked heads.... ask Qman for details on the engine - he's running one that's about 150 HP or so.... GD