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Leone’s 1979 Subaru Leone wagon discussion


Leone

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Curious on the measurement between frame rails. And engine bay dimensions, if it was me I'd probably look at a turbo EJ but a turbo FA would also be cool. Depends on budget and pricing/availability of parts.

5x114.3 and big brakes would also be on the list depending on how much it weighs however.

Assuming these are solid rear end?

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Apparently 775kg stock so 400hp would be nuts power to weight even with a heavier drivetrain.

Assuming it's the 1.6L I wonder what EFI and a turbo could do powerwise on that. Not sure if the factory gearbox would handle much extra power however. The Brumby I think had a similar box in it and took a moderate amount of power.

Edit: later generation Leone's had the EA82 and EA83 1.8L (also a turbo varient) 

Would possibly be an easier update till you build a better option

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Yea lots of people have put ej’s in front of the later Leone box with an adapter plate. Not sure if many turbo them tho. Could go less power but certainly want something capable of 400. I have been dreaming of this since I had my last 70s 4wd wagon.

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5 hours ago, RUNAMUCK said:

Power plant solved. Lock it in.

This may have a wider engine bay, but it's still a suby.

'MURICA!!!

 

Screenshot_20230228-180522_Chrome.jpg

Where it’s parked has a lot of v8s on the shelf… if I told him I wanted to LS it or supercharge some V8 he would be happy as to assist… as soon as he sniffs a turbo V8 it would be dragged outside with a forklift and used as target practice..

 

But I do like the idea

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My old man had an early 80s Leone Hatch rally car in the 90s and early 00s. He started with the factory motor, then chucked that on twin webers, but it ended up with a stroked N/A 2.5 ej (up from 1.8) with Kelford cams, Link etc. And adapted an RA 5 speed Cr box. From memory he went 4x114.3 for better wheel selection. But can't remember how he did it or if he upgraded brakes? 

He had to notch the chassis rail(s) to fit the cam covers being DOHC. Was a weapon in its day being light and 4wd. But people started putting more money and technology into turbo cars and he eventually got left behind and upgraded to an RS Legacy. Was way easier to drive. He said it didn't want to swap ends on gravel coming into every corner which was reassuring haha. 

If you have any questions I could ask him about the specifics of putting an EJ into an older Subaru as I was just a kid when he built it. Excited to see where this one goes. Always had a soft spot for Leones (my first car was an 88 wagon). 

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yea i have seen a few EJ swaps particaullry in the 2nd gen, they also had to notch the chassis to fit a quad cam - altho the twin cams just fit, one of the biggest issues for an early model subaru rally cars are the handbrakes on the front wheels, preventing a lot of the handbrake entries into tight corners.

It would be interesting to see exaclty what model it was and how much he notched out of the chassis, and for sure ask about the stud pattern upgrade, eventually ill replace the entire suspection to suit but am interested in how others have approached the 4x140 PCD issue.

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Yea my Leone wagon was handbrake on the front too and that was an 88. 

His rally car was an 84 model. Not sure what generation that makes it off the top of my head sorry. 

Maybe it was a twin cam? I honestly can't remember. I was like 3 when he did the swap lol. 

I'll ask him about the stud pattern change and chassis notching in the weekend when I see him though. 

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