Clutch Plate diameter

[brumbyjack]

G'day all. Looking for some advice. Planning to put a new clutch in a 1990 project Brumby and want to know if it matters whether the new clutch plate is 200mm or 225mm? FYI the input spline has 21 teeth. There is a bit of a twist. When I bought the car (a barn find) it came with an extra engine block (both are EA81's). My guess is the previous owner was looking to swap out the original engine (probably owing to a blown head casket) with this new block as he'd removed the carburetor, unbolted the engine mounts and there were chains on the lifting hooks. I've got the old engine out and removed the clutch - it has a 225mm diameter sitting in flywheel inner that measures 230mm across. Looking online for a replacement part the ads are generally a bit vague. Most say 'Clutch For Subaru Brumby 1979-84' with the majority specs. *CLUTCH MEASUREMENTS: 200 X 21T X 22.0* and go for around $170. Some other advertisements will say they're suitable for later models like mine but are twice the price $350 i.e. HEAVY DUTY Clutch kit for Subaru LEONE BRUMBY 1982-1994 1.6L 1.8L EA81 AF5E 1600. A) So, my first question is; will those 1979-84 era clutches work in my 1990? Or do I have to opt for the more expensive ones that specifically go up to 1994. B) second question is; can I put that 200mm diameter clutch in there or does it have to be 225mm?

The other wrinkle is the replacement engine block (don't know what year vehicle it's from) has a flywheel that only measures 205mm diameter (looks like an older version). So there's no guess work there - only a 200mm clutch plate can be accommodated. But because it's been sitting a long while waiting to be put into the 1990 Bumby it's really rusty. So I'm guessing my best bet is to use the original and bigger flywheel rather than spending money getting the replacement one tooled. So, my third question without notice is, will it matter if I transfer the original flywheel over into the replacement engine block?

A lot to take in I know. All suggestions greatly appreciated. Cheers!

[El_Freddo]

Go the larger diametre disc and pressure plate, Subaru did this for a reason - it’s probably stronger!

Swap flywheels. Easy. Timing marks will be in the same place.

The EA81 pressure plate is probably different to the EA82 pressure plate of the same size as the depth of the step is different between the two.

If you have the pressure plate just buy a new clutch disc and run that. Pressure plates work for a long time until their fingers wear through or the pressure plate cracks from misuse.

I hope that answers a few things for you!

Cheers

Bennie

[brumbyjack]

G'day Bennie.

That's really good advice. Didn't occur to me to just buy the disc. Last time I did one of these was for a 1992 and I found a kit on eBay that ticked all the boxes i.e. fit models 84-94 suitable for an EA81 etc, didn't even look at the diameter. But having the two different flywheels this time round gave me pause for thought. I'll do as you recommend and transfer the larger flywheel to the replacement engine block and go with the 225mm disc. The pressure plate looks fine to me, though the old disc had a couple of broken springs so was always destined for the bin.

Thanks a lot!