kdixey Posted October 23, 2006 Share Posted October 23, 2006 Okay, I can't even count the number of times an EJ22 swap has come up on this board. I can't say that it doesn't appeal to me because it does, but to be honest I actually think my p**p brown 86 wagon is actually FUN to drive (and it is bone stock with nearly 200K on it). Now, I have spent the last 4 years with an 02 WRX as my daily driver, and it is definitely fun with a capital F. But, I think that my wagon is just as fun in a completely different way, and in some ways MORE fun than the WRX. Maybe its the fact that I'm half way through my 40's and have driven a bunch of different cars over the years, but there is something about that EA82 wagon that brings a smile to my face. It reminds me a lot of my very first car a '79 Fiat 128 that I got out of high school. It was bright yellow and looked a lot like a hat. It was slow, got mediocre mileage and started to fall apart after about a week, but man I loved that car. It was blessed with an excess of personality. Sure, my many Civics got better mileage and were faster, the black Trans Am made me feel all Burt Reynoldsy (yes it had the bird on the hood) :cool: ...the Volkswagens were nicely appointed and the WRX was just a friggin' rocketship, the closest thing I have found to the goofy happiness I felt in that Fiat (except for a brief ill fated fling with an X19) has been my dinged up, chugging brown wagon. I KNOW other people feel the same way. What is it exactly that makes these things so appealing? Is it that they are cheap? Is it the time we all invest in them? What is it? Kevin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subaru_dude Posted October 23, 2006 Share Posted October 23, 2006 I feel the same way. It's so fun to drive... but it's so slow. well, not terribly slow, but it could definitely use more oomf. it's just... it feels so damn nimble. like you could fit anywhere and manuever wherever you wanted, which you basically can. I remember driving my sister's civic out to town when my soob was temporarily out of commission... and I had to adjust the way I drove just to prevent from turning the oil pan inside out. couldn't even zoom in and out of a parking lot without banging something up. you can get air in a subaru and still not bottom anything out. it's like driving around in an underpowered urban dune buggy, lol. it's a narrow car, short for a wagon. and on top of that it has an insanely tight turning radius. sits up high for a small car, and you can feel the clearance under you so you don't feel pressured to slow down at a steep hill or zooming into a steep parking lot entrance. they handle VERY well for what they are. and ahhhh, that sound... coupled with the smell of dead mice eminating from the heater vents. Now THAT'S what makes a Subaru a Subaru. hahaha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffast Posted October 23, 2006 Share Posted October 23, 2006 what he said:headbang: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Numbchux Posted October 23, 2006 Share Posted October 23, 2006 I thought my '85 was the most fun thing ever. heck, I loved my FWD 3AT loyale! until, that is, winter came, and I got stuck in everything (didn't have money for decent tires), and the actuator for the tranny started leaking and it would refuse to shift at anything above 3k rpms. then, I decided I wanted to build an autocross toy, and for now would include a bone stock EJ22 and an RX tranny. and let me say, it's definately more fun. "it's more fun to drive a slow car fast, than to drive a fast car slow" an EJ22-powered EA82 car is still slow enough to fit in that first category, where it really is pretty easy to drive it hard and fast, and be well within the acceptable limits of speed. but it much closer to the cutoff. but yes, I understand. but let me just put one more encouragement to do the swap. it's even more fun (if you can imagine it)! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoscowSubaruDude Posted October 23, 2006 Share Posted October 23, 2006 My '93 Loyale is, like other EA82 cars, gutless... but when it comes time to sh*t'n'git, she picks up, and gits. I've been surprised at the freeway mergers that I thought were going to kill me, and then I look down and I'm going 10 over, thinking 'how the hell did I get moving that quickly.' I think the stickers act as a super-advanced micro-NOS system though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted October 23, 2006 Share Posted October 23, 2006 Yeah - I have to say that even the measly 16 HP increase I got with the EA82 SPFI engine and 5 speed dual range in my Brat - it moves pretty decent. Being light helps a LOT. Any weight I gained with the EA82 I lost when I tossed the 4 speed. So far I like it, and the more I tune up the SPFI the more I like it GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowman Posted October 23, 2006 Share Posted October 23, 2006 Subarus definitely have a "feel" that is different from any other vehicle on the road. In addition, each generation has a personality all its own. Maybe it's because it was the first car I ever drove (I was 10 at the time), but I'll always have a special place in my heart for EA82 wagons. They just feel natural to me. That said, I liked my EJ-powered EA82 car even more. It had a relatively loud muffler and no carpeting, so I could really hear the engine and running gear doing its thing, which helped to maintain a serious personality. It was definitely different from stock, but it was different in a good way. It was also much faster and had better drivability. Having moved on to a Legacy these days, I definitely miss the feel of the EA cars. I guess I'm getting old, trading "fun-to-drive" for "practical".:-\ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daeron Posted October 23, 2006 Share Posted October 23, 2006 It's nothing sentimental, it is a very real phenomenon. I also blame the lightweight rear end. I realize that my 2wd is much lighter than a 4wd in the back, but the turning radius and the narrow track, and short wheelbasecombine to make a chassis that behaves very well, and they put a unibody on it that made you well aware of where the corners were. The ride height was higher because it was so lightweight, and balanced better (is my theory anyhow, for a grocery getter) I take the speed humps on my way out of my neighborhood at over 40mph without losing contact. (I never drove this fast on this road before they put in the speed humps. The turns you can throw it into are fantastic, it just pulls them right out. I was driving up to meet a gy i went to highschool with in his new 350Z, hadnt seen him in like 7 years.. my soob is very rusty and ugly.. but i pulled into a spot he thought he had made inaccessible through his flamboyant parking job It is a beast. see the " " video recently posted... gonzo man, absolutely freaking bonkers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdixey Posted October 23, 2006 Author Share Posted October 23, 2006 I have to agree that the insanely tight turning radius is pretty cool. I can park in spots that I could NEVER get into with a Honda Civic (or the WRX for that matter). I think that the flingable nature of the Soob is part of what makes it so attractive. Another thing that I really enjoy is the way I can drive over just about anything! ...I HAVE been thinking about an EJ22 swap. I agree the extra oomph would be nice, but I think the EA82s are quite fun to drive despite being slow. Also, as one person said noted, they can surprise you sometimes. FWIW, I have been in an EA82 with a Weber and it had pretty decent power (and sounded pretty great). The Weber seemed to have improved the low end considerably which is where the EA82 seems to be most in need of a boost. ...but I digress. Kevin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweet82 Posted October 23, 2006 Share Posted October 23, 2006 I've been driving my Subie for 24 years and have not got board yet. It's the car I want to drive. They are not fast but just plain fun to drive. I wish we (USA) could still get them with the old D/R tranny.... Never had a car that was so enjoyable to drive... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syonyk Posted October 23, 2006 Share Posted October 23, 2006 They're light, they have a lot of suspension travel, handle surprisingly well for wagons with such good ground clearance (I was amazed by the grip on the autocross course), and will turn around and bite their own tail if you let them when turning around. I needed to move my brother's minivan at one point ('94 Dodge Grand Caravan). My comment after this task was, "It turns like a Mississippi river barge." I'm used to being able to turn tightly & get into places, and that van DOES NOT TURN. I have one car that's good for hauling people/stuff (if a bit underpowered), that's awesome in dirt/gravel (though won't keep up with a WRX), that's unstoppable in snow (and snow tires just make it better), that's easy to work on, etc. I have an RX-7. I haven't driven it in several months. The Subaru, while definitely slower, is just more fun to drive. -=Russ=- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burtonsnowman Posted October 23, 2006 Share Posted October 23, 2006 Man, there is something about it, isn't there? I have a nice Jeep, a somewhat quick 240SX and a couple Subes... I drive my '82 wagon every day. It's just more fun. It's louder, more obnoxious, etc...but by golly, I like it. When I want to go out and raise heck, I do it in the Sube. All my friends like the Sube. You can hear it coming from 3 miles away on a clear winter day. It tracks like a tank on any surface. I love the thing. In conclusion... Subaru. There is no other. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cubastreet Posted October 23, 2006 Share Posted October 23, 2006 Agreed, they're great cars. While my brumby's getting a birthday, my daily driver at the moment is a 1978 Mitsubishi Lancer (sold back then in the US as some sort of colt). It's RWD which is quite nice, but doesn't make me grin like my subie does. In the mitsi everything in it is cheap flimsy plastic, which I kinda like in a kitschy sorta way. Hop into the sube, and everything's well thought out and well made. I love the solid clumk as you open the ashtray in my gen1. It half makes me want to smoke. Start it up and drive it, and you really know you're in control of a machine. I think the rack and pinion steering goes a long way toward the feel and enjoyment, most cars I've owned have had a steering box. Throw it at a bit of rough terrain and instead of screaming and scraping, it just goes "yeeha!" and gets on with it. I plan to keep mine for a long time. Yay for dual range also! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7point62fmj Posted October 24, 2006 Share Posted October 24, 2006 My other subby is a 04 cobb stage II wrx with a ported turbo and turbo back exhaust and etc...blah..blah... any whew I also like my old brat in some ways it is more fun then my wrx. Slow... yes very slow.. but I can also drift farther up a dirt road with the brat and I am not afraid to take it off roading and vally climbing. I love the T tops and I can use it on my acrage as a small tractor for doing chores. Yep there is just some thing special about a boxer egine with four wheel drive reguardless if it is 280 ish hp or 70ish hp it does not matter. Pluss the ea81's are sooo easy to work on. It will be the motor that my daughters will get to cut there first mechanics teeth on. Thanks agin MCbrat for saleing it to me!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosens Posted October 24, 2006 Share Posted October 24, 2006 They're light, they have a lot of suspension travel, handle surprisingly well for wagons with such good ground clearance (I was amazed by the grip on the autocross course), and will turn around and bite their own tail if you let them when turning around. Hey,I like that description alot! You guys have to drive around in an old 1600 with no power anything for awhile.Then when you get into the otherwise slightly lame EA82 you'll feel like you went from a tractor to a late 60's Caddy. Yeah,lots of people rag on the EA82 but it's been mighty kind to me. SPFI is fine enough for this poorboy.Add the D/R fivespeed and life is good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgd73 Posted October 24, 2006 Share Posted October 24, 2006 I went through extremes, and learned and learned.v8's , 6's and four cyl engines big and small cars and trucks. engines suck, bodies suck and electrical sucks.Especially in maine. then theres the 87 dl wagon with a carbeurator and manual everything outliving my grandma, a dozen cars, my dog since high school, 3 apartments, 6 moves, a near death experience, a disease that should have killed me... to the point of forgetting I even owned a DL, a 6 year tour in the military, to wake up with what seems to be a miracle, eyes seeing color, to a black and white soob just as no bullsh*t as the day it was made. and drive. And drive. And drive the one thing including all friends and closest relatives and favorite pets that didn't disappear,abandon, hurt or pretentiously pretend to be reliable. That's right I am psychotically comvinced my old subes are my best friend. I just bought a poop brown wagon btw, not exactly for old times sake, it isn't ready to retire yet. Will be 20 years in a few months... that is incredible. The car made a cross continental trip after getting off an island of alaska all the way to maine (mapquest claims it is 3903 miles) before I owned it. "Amazing" sure is realistic to say about an old sube sometimes.like no other car in the past ,now ,or from what I can find, the predictable future. and its four wheel drive! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdixey Posted October 24, 2006 Author Share Posted October 24, 2006 I have to agree, the Soob is a no bullsh*t car. It's not speedy (at least I don't have to worry about getting a ticket), not particularly flashy but it just its tough as all get out and will handle whatever you throw at it. MY son is fond of saying that my car is soooo fast because it can go the speed limit. I also love it because it has the proper amount of importance in my life (as in not too much). I am not pouring $$$ every month into it worth of car payment, insurance, gas etc. Sure it requires fixing every now and then bit it really a pretty low impact obsession. A trip to the pull apart here and a few weekend afternoons there and you're good. In a day when my friends are dropping 30K and 40K on their rides I look at my Sooby and smile. Oh yeah...the D/R tranny is awesome (especially in the snow). Kevin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted October 24, 2006 Share Posted October 24, 2006 They really are hard like a coffin nail. I've driven a lot of vehicles, and only with the older soobs have I seen wheel bearings that could be driven making a terrible racket for thousands of miles to no effect. My ex-GF showed up one day with a rear wheel bearing that I really couldn't beleive - the whole wheel moved about two inches in and out at the top and she had been complaining about it for a week . Still wasn't in danger of the wheel comming off. The bearing was starting to disintigrate and was full of sand, and the inside edge of the tire was a little chewed. Had it been a hondar, or a yota that wheel would have fallen completely off. The front wheel bearings in an EA knuckle are nearly the same size as the bearings I'm used to repacking in Hummer H1's with 38" tires. And I HAVE seen the wheels fall off the H1's. Lieutenant Dan wasn't pleased that day . GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgd73 Posted October 24, 2006 Share Posted October 24, 2006 Can't forget "the vibe" about a car either. Soobs is good. Thinking of the world and consumption. I first realized it with a beetle my mom drove around. Slow as heck but it got what was needed done. The soob is even better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daeron Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 keep thinking about points I want to add to this thread.. two more: 1. even if we would all love a little more gitup-and-go when we stomp our foot in it, we know we have the torque to make us move from 50 to 70 in top gear without much throttle.. and 2. The higher ride adds to body roll, which has no real impact on the ride quality beyond making it seem more fun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazy D Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 and ahhhh, that sound... coupled with the smell of dead mice eminating from the heater vents. Now THAT'S what makes a Subaru a Subaru. hahaha hahahahahaha:lol: :lol: thats f###ing priceless!!! (its so funny cuz its true) hahaha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zyewdall Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 yeah, the old EA82 wagon just seems to handle better than my other cars. Either they handle well, but lack the capacity to go off of flat pavement without breaking stuff, or they can handle mud and dirt, but not without lumbering through it -- like my 4wd pickup. The VW GTi is close, but you have to be too carful about tearing the oil pan off on dirt roads (tore it off once already), which of course are the most fun to tear around corners on. The subaru you just charge through mudpuddles, snow, whatever, and it takes it on. Shift on the fly to 4wd if needed. And if you keep the rpm above 3500 or so, it actually has good horsepower on the highway too (though I did almost get run over by a box truck last night -- I was doing 75 which was top speed for me, and the headlights kept gaining on me, and no passing lane ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffast Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 i just like the looks i get from old friends who look at my car and say you actually drive that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burtonsnowman Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 i just like the looks i get from old friends who look at my car and say you actually drive thatOr they see the bank statement on your counter (the ONE TIME I have a substantial amount of $$ in there) and say "WTF? Dude, get a NEW CAR!" To which I must respond... "Ha ha ha...NEVER!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syonyk Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 Or they see the bank statement on your counter (the ONE TIME I have a substantial amount of $$ in there) and say "WTF? Dude, get a NEW CAR!" Nah, a better response is, "Why do you think there's money *in* there? You don't get rich by spending money." -=Russ=- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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