OK, it has finally begun. i have stripped all the wires off the engine (there were less then 10!), fuel line, accel cable, air filter, my old engine is now ready to be lowered out of the bus in anticipation of a new heart for the bus. sitting a little further op the driveway (our neighbors must hate us at the moment, 2 cars and a trailor on the front lawn) is a 1984 subaru with a jap import EA81 engine (including aircon) which will eventually find its way into the back of my bus. over the coming weeks i intend to document the removal of both engines, along with the fitting, setting up and (hopefully) running of the new engine in the bus. this will include some major wiring work, exhaust plumbing, aircon plumbing, and whatever else may occur along the way. hopefully it will help some of you out there hoping to do a similar conversion to your dub.

[Edited on 26-7-2004 by baybuscamperkid]

what gearbox are you gonna use?

currently hoping the original box (a 2l unit, i think) is strong, and will be keeping it as i dont have the money to even consider swapping it at the moment.

i am so interested in this. keep us informed. how big a difference is the engine bay between a split and a bay?

i dont know, but i dont think there would be too much difference. there is a LOT of space between the engine and the rear panel (where the radiator fits), so no chopping is necessary, and there is several inches either side of the engine. i will post a photo of the engine mount as it is very well made. it uses the ends of the VW mount, then bends down to the hieght of the bottom of the sump, at which height 2 rubber blocks are mounted, and ontop of those blocks are specially formed triangular units that make use of the 4 mounting holes on the subi motor for extra strength. also attached to the mount is a rail on which the radiator sits. the only downside is that the mount, sump, and exhaist are rather low, probably a bit lower then teh stock engine.
the other thing is that, although the engine will fit in the bay easily enough, there are several things that will have to be removed (initially) as they will not fit through the hole while attached to the engine. this includes air filter, aircon pump (if used), possibly generator, and a couple of other small components. on the positive side i am intending to re-use the subi radiator, as it is almost as big as my original one, but near new and with 2 thermo fans, and should be able to be fitted with its original hoses.

mate i look forward to the info and pics.
thanks

just pulled the ea71 today. engine is amazingly lightweight! (compared to the old 2l). Bellhousing apears to be VW (definitely not subaru, and doesnt look custom). very simple removal (same as bus engine) will hopefully take some pics of mounts, etc tomorrow.

yes, pics, take the pics...:thumb

sorry about the wait, pics VERY soon. camera is playing up and has just lost the pics i took this arvo. on teh up side, i have just about finished prepping my new engine for removal from the subi, so the fun will begin the weekend after next.

pics finally here! sorry bout the delay

engine from the bus (ea71)

the engine mounts - note the use of original VW ends and rubber mounts that make use of all subi engine mounting holes

angine bay prepped for installation of new engine

UPDATE: got a bellhousing off stu y at the jamboree, so am back in business. have test fitted it and will hopefully have the flywheel made during the week so i can have the whole unit fitted over sunday and monday:thumb

flywheel FINALLY complete, so fingers crossed engine will be going in this weekend

ok, just got hte flywheel back, IT FITS! woohoo! sealed the bellhousing on and, if weather permits will fit the engine tomorrow

:cryold clutch was too small for new flywheel!!! dad is out getting new one now. what else could not fit!?! (oops, shouldnt question that)

ok, new clutch (watercooled vanagon type) fitted, engine 'slid' under back of bus, jacked up, a couple of sh1tty brackets removed so that it will sit against gearbox properly... SUCCESS! engine mounts from old engine (1600) fit straight up:thumb, but broke one mounting bolt on the way in:cussing.
sorted most of the wiring (dont seem to be getting spark at the moment), fuel is pumping, ENGINE WONT GO! will barely turn over, with plugs in will only spin one or 2 times and struggles even then. plugs out ad it spins, ok. had auto-electrician friend around, pulled the starter out, it is near new and in great nic, BUT has been shaking around cos brushes are stuffed. will get new brushes soon then hopefully starter will engage correctly and the fat chick will live again!

SHE'S ALIVE!!! yes! its finally happened! fuel tanks almost empty, but got her up and firing for up to 10sec at a time (before fuel cut out - i hope its only an empty tank), absolutely roared! (possibly the open pipes helped that a bit:thumb). thermo fans up and running, now just gotta wire the guages back up, finish building the exhaust and should be flyin!

Where is ya radiator? Please don't tell me it's at the back of the car. I know of a number of people who had real issues trying to get the engine to cool with the radiator mounted behind the engine. The bus creates and big vaccum at the back and the rad gets no airflow.

yes rad is at back, as it was when set up by the original owner. by my calculations, the air coming from beneath the vehicle up intothe engine bay (as there is no longer any tinware to keep it out) along with the air coming down from the cooling vents, boosted by the twin thermo fans i have attached to the radiator, cooling shouldnt be a major problem.

are you ducting the air out of the vents or something?

no, just freeflow, i figure since the air is being pushed by the fans out the back, it will naturally be sucked down from the vents and up from under the car.

Ideally, the fans should not be going all the time. You really want to find a way of setting it up so that it draws or channels the air through it naturally. At higher speeds this may work ok, however it's around the 0-60 and normal street speeds where it is more problematic.

I am currently thinking about how to get my buggy to do the same. It's fans come on way too regularly, they work very well, but they should only be a backup.The fans should only be for sitting in traffic and the like. You need to make some shrouding so that the only place the air can get out is through the radiator.

Kimm Garland from Indian has gone to great lengths to ge his customer vans to cool properly with a commodore V6. In the end, for him it was all about proper ducting. He doesn't like the radiator at the back of the van as he says it's a night mare to get it to work well. Prove him wrong, but it will take some work.

Why did you replace the previous subaru motor in the van? I believe this is no.2 motor isn't it? Coz prolonged heat kills any motor. 10 degrees in oil temp is the difference between ok and dead.

Fans are only for backup in traffic and stuff. My buggy is currently having too much fan action.

You have to set up some ducts to force the air through the rad. the rad has to be the only place for it to get out. At higher speeds you will probably be ok as it is, it's at traffic speeds (between 0 and 60) where issues will appear. The fans should only come on after prolonged sitting.

Don't know if this will work.... (the post was mucking up last night)

YOu need to make it so that the only place the air can exit is throught the radiator. The fans should only come on in traffic at a stand still or after a long time. they are you back-up only. I am currently having the same issue at the mo with my buggy. The fans come on too often.

At highway speeds your current setup might work ok, but for round town, 0-60 and that (which is most driving), you will need to do some ducting to get this to happen. try and talk to some radiator people for ideas, or talk to an engineer friend. Baja Wes would also be good to answer questions.

It can be done, but you will have to think about it. :duh