Hi All,

 

 

...So I did a brief search on both Google and the forums here and I couldn't find anything like what I am doing with my GL Turbo.

 

Anyway, I am rebuilding my ea82t, but due to the difficulty of finding turbo pistons, and the presence of shaft play in the turbo itself, I have decided to remove the turbo and simply run it as an MPFI EA82 with the standard 8.7 pistons that are coming in my rebuild kit.

 

I am looking for input from anyone who has done this (or known someone to have done this). After removing the turbo, converting the exhaust to the NA piping, and bridging the air filter housing to the throttle body, is there anything else I need to do to get it running?

 

Is it as simple as doing what I have stated above, then firing it up, or will I need additional parts/preparation? I am not new to wrenching, but I am relatively new to Subarus. I am operating under the assumption that the computer will sense the lack of boost and be able to compensate, being as the displacement is still the same and everything else is stock.

 

I look forward to hearing your input/advice!

 

Thanks!

   -Jacob

 

 

Go to johns subaru junkyard in Gaston hes super close to you since your only in McMinnville. He has everything from the 70's up to now so he most likely has the parts to keep it a turbo. If you don't want to go that route he has mpfi to make everything fit right.

I didn't even know that place was there! I will give him a call to see what he's got on hand. As much as I like the extra power of the turbo, I'd rather have the efficiency and reliability of a NA.

 

Thanks for the tip!

 

Anyone else have anything to throw in?

 

-Jacob

I've got an N/A MPFI air intake tube here in Corvallis.  PM me for price.

 

Otherwise you just need to plug the oil/coolant lines to turbo, and get an SPFI Y-pipe.

 

I did the same to my 89 GL turbo, and it was great....the ECU will run it fine without boost.

Alright! That's the info I was looking for. I will be dropping by the Subaru yard in Gaston tomorrow to see what's there. Hopefully I will come home with a Y-pipe.

 

^^PM sent!

 

Thanks again,

   -Jacob

Also remembere thar the cam profiles are different in the turbo. I eid drive my ea82t engine without the turbo for some time when my original turbo gave up. I just did a pipe with turbo flanges to bypass turbo and plugged the oiland coolant passages so I could use turbo again. I did have na block (pistons) in it already then and it was drivable like that

How different are the cams? The setup I will be running is going to be NA block pistons in cylinders bored .020" oversize. I will be retaining the turbo cams unless they are going to reduce performance/drive-ability. 

 

 

On a note unrelated to the above, would it be better to plug the coolant ports on the head that would normally go to the turbo, or instead bridge them together so coolant can still flow through those areas of the passenger side head?

I guess I should rephrase my question on the cam profile.

 

Are the turbo cams more aggressive than NA? Longer duration? More lift?

I will be retaining the turbo cams unless they are going to reduce performance

That is most likely to happend with turbo camd. Turbo cams don't have valve overlapping like the na engine does. Google around for na vs turbo cams and you will be much eiser hopefully.

I run an EA82 carb block with turbo heads and cams as an NA and love it, gives the best fuel mileage of all my EA's as NA. Really not that much difference between the NA and turbo cams. My fuel is propane thoyh, so a bit different, but you should be fine.

I picked up an mpfi intake tube and related pcv hoses for $20 at the subaru yard in Gaston. So now I just need the Y-pipe and a few other miscellaneous parts to throw it all back together!

Did you get a MPFI intkae tube?  the SPFI ones will not fit the MPFI throttle body.

 

The turbo Cams will run in the NA just fine..

 

In fact in 85/86 the Carbed and Turbos used the SAME CAMS!!!....

 

88+ turbo cams have slightly longer duration than the SPFI cams......The NA MPFI cams have even more!!  So the turbo cams should work great.

 

Also.....for coolant lines just plug the hole in the botom of the head....and cap the return.......there is no need to loop them since the coolant goes straight out of the turbo to the radiator.  The head gets it's coolant from the block then up and out to teh radiator.

Edited November 11, 201411 yr by Gloyale

So... the 88+ NA cams have longer duration than the 86 turbo?

You know that face a dog has when you take them to get neutered? Your car has that right now.    jk.

Did you actually break a piston or ring land?

Edited November 11, 201411 yr by Ibreakstuff

I predict that you will be disappointed in the results.  You could have bought a used turbo for $100.  John in Laurelwood, has Subaru parts up the wazoo.  He probably has a dozen turbo's.

Why would I be disappointed?  I will be going from an engine that wants to eat itself to an engine that will run for 200k miles with regular maintenance. I'd rather have less power/better efficiency and more reliability any day of the week. If the cams provide less than adequate performance, I can always swap them out.

Why would I be disappointed?  I will be going from an engine that wants to eat itself to an engine that will run for 200k miles with regular maintenance. I'd rather have less power/better efficiency and more reliability any day of the week. If the cams provide less than adequate performance, I can always swap them out.

 

You won't be..  You are smart.

 

The turbo was the worst thing subaru ever did to an otherwise wonderful engine.

 

The EA82 MPFI was the test bed for all the wonderful EJ adaptations........OHC, MPFI, Multi-port heads, Long equal length runners.......

 

The 88 turbo cams are longer duration, less overlap in each cylinder......but more overlap between one cyl to the next......the Non-turbo MPFI in the XTs actually got even more duration........So.......the Turbo cams in that engine will be just fine with some NA pistons.

The last of the parts will be going to the machine shop here in a few days, so I will be able to start putting it all back together shortly after that! I'm pretty excited to get it back up and on the road.

 

..Then it's just a matter of rebuilding my dual range tranny, or finding a solid core. Should be fun!

Okay, so I'm trying to source an exhaust y-pipe. Will any y-pipe work from any non-turbo EA82-equipped donor, or are there significant differences in physical fitment between the different body styles?

 

I am going to have to weld it in to my existing header-back system after I cut off the turbo flange section, and I'm just trying to make sure to order the correct pipe.

Only issue I've had with swapping Y-pipes around on different vehicles is the rear hanger at the transmition.

Had to convince them that they would line up correctly. But other than that, they fit.

Well I guess I will order whichever I can find for less money since I will be chopping it off and welding it to my current system. I can fab my own hanger.

 

Thanks for the info!

 

She will live again within a few weeks!