Having come to a point in my life where i have more motors than project cars, I have decided to move forward with a little something I have been dreaming up for ages. Gloria is an 83 Subaru Leone coupe, with GL trim, and an EA series drivetrain. As you can imagine, the whole thing is begging for a rotary engine (RE).




Glorious 80s digidash.

Everybody likes mouse crap


All Leone coupes came as fwd, but being no stranger to old subes, I had planned to swap it to 4wd, and use a kennedy engineering adapter plate I have acquired to run the rotary through the subaru trans. As time progressed and parts collected dust, I decided that 4wd wasn't going to cut it and I wanted another small lightweight RWD rotary.

As luck would have it an entire 1st gen legacy rear suspension showed up on craigslist for a paltry $20. Money exchanged hands and soon I had a plan, but where was I going to get an rx7 drivetrain? In hindsight I should have played the lottery that week, because I acquired a free '83 gsl in running condition that had been in a front end collision. I will be using the engine and tranny from the gsl for now, and upgrading in the future (bridgeport 12a )


Out with the old


In with the new






With a bit of cutting, welding, and fabrication the legacy rear end just about bolts in Once I mount the strut tops and fab the crossbraces I will be moving on to engine/tranny installation.

 

Until next time...

 

awsome project..

 

I got quite a bit done today, strut tops and wheel well cutouts.














We will see what i get done tomorrow

Isaac

 

Made some progress today

I originally planned to butt the strut top plates against the underside outer corner of the rear deck, because that is where I designed the strut top plates to index from, and then brace accordingly. Since this car is going to spend most of its life really low, and sideways, I decided to cut out part of the rear deck in order to gain an extra inch of vertical rise.









Once I had the struts in I threw a set of stock 15in legacy wheels on it to double check the fit, and my math.









Makes the stock 13in xt wheel on the front look pretty small

With a slight fender pull the legacy wheels will be the cats meow



Isaac

 

u sure u want to mount the shock towers that high? remember the weight of the vehicle isn't on them. weld it where it's at then set it on the ground and see how far the wheels go up inside the fenders.

 

I took measurements of how much static strut compression there is on my 99 legacy. It is an even 3 inches from full droop to static ride height and the legacy weighs 1000lbs more. 3 inches up from full droop on Gloria puts the tires even with the fender(it wont be 3 inches because this car is way lighter). When it hits the road it will be running 300lb springs in the rear as well

Thanks for the thoughts, that is why I'm posting this here you guys are bound to think of something I haven't factored in.

Isaac

 

This is terrific. You think you'll be able to retain that AWFUL-in-the-best-possible-way digi-dash?

 

Looks great. Nice project and should be a blast to drive. The strut plates look a bit thick for a clean match to the host car structure but if you are good at welding should be fine. Just watch them wheel wells through the complete suspension stroke, you don't want a tire rub after all them mods. Good luck with the build!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I definitely plan to keep the digidash, I picked up a 3.9 rear end for the legacy suspension just so the speedo would work with the rx7 trans.


The strut plates will be x-braced in between them and the floor, and triangulated to the front and rear with square tube ending in plates welded to the floor. The original rear suspension was a torsion bar, so there is nothing in the way of structural rigidity anywhere back there.

The rear fenders are getting a bit of a pull, just to clear. The legacy rear end does not increase camber as it goes through its stroke, so what clearance I have will be minimal for a smooth look


Isaac

 

looks like a lot of work, congrats on something different though

 

The wife is 7mo pregnant, and the kid has had a sinus infection so this update has taken a bit longer than usual. A lot of progress has been made, and I think I will let the pics do the talking

 

You guys didn't think I would leave you hanging did you?

 

Everything being done at home???
man i wished i knew how to weld! I wouldn't leave my garage

 

That glorious background is my backyard lol, Subaru's, RX-7's, and chickens, all co-habitating... really is a beautiful thing.

Isaac

 

Cool project man , i was raised around these Subarus back in the island...

 

well i mean more like the fabrication of the metal. IE strut brace

 

That is going to have to come out.



Its a shame really, car had AC/PS/Cruise.

Nice empty bay.






New and old, greeting each other in passing.








Isaac

 

1) There's a reason everyone uses round tubing. Square tubing is weak and susceptible to certain angles of attack(Anything but orthogonal). Round tubing doesn't care where the force comes from.
2) You should have tied your X bracing into the floor and not the upright side of the angle iron. What is preventing that angle iron from bending over when any lateral force exists? Nothing.

If you don't have the right tools to work with round tubing or don't know how to build a structurally sound cage then let a professional do it.

A for effort.

 

1) round tubing wasn't in the budget I am into this project a grand total of $100 including the shell.
2) Lateral forces do not exist in that plane(or do so minimally enough to make it moot), the hubs lateral forces are transferred into the rear lateral links to the rear subframe. The x brace is there to provide extra resistance to lift on the inside face of the strut top plate and/or transfer it to downward force onto the opposing frame rail.

It's not a cage, its a glorified stut tower bar with integrated strut tops.

B is for bracing

 

Cool stuff.

 

want to check this out when i get home!

 

If you welded them to the inner strut supports or floor plates it wouldn't be an issue. I don't think the upright portion of that 90* angle iron is not a good place to weld structural things.

 

This is brilliant, what rear differential are you using, one of those R180 Viscous Units?

 

I don't plan to finish skinning the wheel wells until I have test driven it, so I may mod the rear bits slightly and/or add/change bracing, I will write it in sharpie so I remember when that point comes . For the purpose it serves, I think the whole thing is overkill, but I would rather overkill than under braced.

In the future I imagine an r180 with a decent LSD, but at the moment that would cost more than the whole build. The current plan is a welded r160 since I have a few to spare.

Isaac