I have recently acquired an '81 GL wagon. It has the Exxon Valdez edition EA81 and a dual-range 4-speed. Low miles; car only has 77k, and about 30k on the engine (my grandpa lost oil and grenaded it a couple decades back).

 

No EA81 based vehicles in the local salvage yard, but there are two loyales. I'm already having a D/R 5-speed and rear disc brakes pulled for me. Debating if I should get more. One loyale has an EA82 with all the goods for converting to SPFI. The other loyale has a turbo EA82 with 140k miles and an auto. Supposedly a good runner.

 

Also looks like I'm getting an EA81T w/ auto wagon, mostly for body parts. It's a non-runner, but the engine may still be serviceable.

 

So, what should I do with my engine? At a minimum, I'd like to convert the low-mile EA81 to SPFI. Or should I use the EA81T from the parts car? Can I perhaps convert my current EA81 using parts from EA81T? Or should I take this opportunity to get an EA82T from the salvage yard?

 

I got the car free from family and I intend to preserve and improve, so I don't mind spending a little money to make it awesome. Thoughts?

Your best option is to stick with your engine. Swapping the SPFI from the loyale would make it super dirveable and eficient. The ea82 spfi motor is an option as well, since it is simple and the parts are available, and it has a little more performance, and is better with a 5spd swapped in with it.

 

I would chose to go after the spfi setup for practicality, and keep the ea82 engine out of that car as a spare, with the option to install it in the future, or to replace the ea81.