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Hey guys, just bought an '08 Spec B. Fortunately, it hasn't been modified, so I have a clean slate to start with. Been doing my homework browsing and searching the legacygt.com forums and to a lesser extent nasioc for more general Subaru topics. It will be my daily driver, so I don't plan on going nuts with upgrades. But more power is more gooder. Seems the best bang for the buck right now is a new downpipe and intake. Being on a budget, I'd like to find them used. Aside from buying new from the sites in the OP, would I have the best luck with the legacygt forums or are there any other recommended sites(besides ebay)?
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May 4, 2012 02:21
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| # ? May 12, 2024 21:01 |
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Get a good, safe dyno tune.
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May 4, 2012 03:01
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I may be buying a 2004 Impreza wagon, 2.5 5spd, 190k km. Timing belt, water pump and head gaskets done at 150k (not sure if the updated gasket was used, doubtful). Anything I should look for? It's in great shape and is owned by a "car people" couple, no rust, good rubber and winters on spare wheels.
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May 6, 2012 02:07
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stevobob posted:I may be buying a 2004 Impreza wagon, 2.5 5spd, 190k km. Timing belt, water pump and head gaskets done at 150k (not sure if the updated gasket was used, doubtful). Anything I should look for? It's in great shape and is owned by a "car people" couple, no rust, good rubber and winters on spare wheels. I thought all repairs were done with the MLS gaskets, but perhaps not. If it's MLS you're good to go, but even if not you're likely to get at least as long out of the replacement gaskets as they did originally.
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May 6, 2012 05:06
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nm posted:Get a good, safe dyno tune. It is very much worth the money. Don't blow your motor up with a new downpipe and the lean part of someone's off the shelf map.
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May 6, 2012 17:43
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Plus getting a dyno tune is fun as hell. My last tune, we must've had 10 Subarus there all hanging out to show support for a community guy who was trying to put down 400+whp for the first time. Lawn chairs next to the dyno, fancy cars all over the place, fast food, it's a good time.
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May 6, 2012 18:53
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So the suspension on my 03 WRX is in desperate need of some work, and I'm looking to get new struts/springs/tophats. I daily drive the car, every now and then have some need to hit dirt roads for work, and also autocross. It looks like I can reasonably do 1 or 2 types of builds. The first would be tame, using Eibach pro-kit springs, KYB AGX struts, and new tophats putting the cost of parts around $800ish. Alternately, the TiC package deal would cost more like 13-1500, but seems to be all around better gear. Is the difference drastic? Would buying the cheaper gear be completely not worth it, or is the more expensive set really only necessary for serious competition? What worries me most about the Eibach springs is that they are a pretty significant drop of 1.2ish inches, but perhaps without the spring rate to back that up. Is there an option 3 I have totally overlooked?
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May 7, 2012 14:40
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mlmp08 posted:Is the difference drastic? Would buying the cheaper gear be completely not worth it, or is the more expensive set really only necessary for serious competition? What worries me most about the Eibach springs is that they are a pretty significant drop of 1.2ish inches, but perhaps without the spring rate to back that up. Do you really want a hard suspension that a drop and higher rate springs would give you? Why not keep the stock springs and get some koni inserts?
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May 7, 2012 14:45
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Eh, we just swapped the GTI over to harder springs and struts, and I quite like it. The WRX is just frankly loose as all hell right now with mountains of bodyroll, and I really should have replaced various suspension bits a while ago. I also don't care about comfort as much because I have no kids to ferry around and almost never have passengers except my wife, whose car is stiffer than mine right now.
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May 7, 2012 14:55
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mlmp08 posted:Eh, we just swapped the GTI over to harder springs and struts, and I quite like it. The WRX is just frankly loose as all hell right now with mountains of bodyroll, and I really should have replaced various suspension bits a while ago. I also don't care about comfort as much because I have no kids to ferry around and almost never have passengers except my wife, whose car is stiffer than mine right now. Konis are better than the AGXs.
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May 7, 2012 15:10
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Sockington posted:Konis are better than the AGXs. Ok. What type of springs go well with the Konis?
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May 7, 2012 15:12
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mlmp08 posted:Ok. What type of springs go well with the Konis? I did the Konis and sti springs. Got rid of most of the body roll and rides really nice as well.
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May 7, 2012 17:40
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I'm pretty partial to Racecomp Engineering black springs. Also the koni sale has about two weeks left. There is also one good coilover option in the $1000 range made by ST.
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May 7, 2012 17:43
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I'm getting some pretty serious clunking in the rear going over small bumps after installing a whiteline rear swaybar. What could cause this? I torqued everything to service manual specs but it sounds like loose endlinks could be the culprit. Anything else I should check? One thing I noticed during installation was I could slide the bar side to side about an inch in either direction before the bushings hit the collars with a moderate amount of force. Is that expected with the stock endlinks, or am I supposed to move the collars farther out to prevent this movement?
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May 7, 2012 20:31
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mlmp08 posted:So the suspension on my 03 WRX is in desperate need of some work, and I'm looking to get new struts/springs/tophats. I daily drive the car, every now and then have some need to hit dirt roads for work, and also autocross. I have the dspecs and sti springs with group N tophats. It's good once I settled it out. I would have gone RCE blacks, but I do dirt stuff. I'd either do AGX's or Koni inserts with STi springs and whatever tophat you want.
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May 7, 2012 21:09
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kylej posted:Plus getting a dyno tune is fun as hell. My last tune, we must've had 10 Subarus there all hanging out to show support for a community guy who was trying to put down 400+whp for the first time. Lawn chairs next to the dyno, fancy cars all over the place, fast food, it's a good time. That sounds pretty awesome. I'll have to see what places are recommended here in Tampa.
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May 8, 2012 01:08
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Ok, so if I go Koni inserts and some springs, do I need new tophats? I'm still on stock 2003 WRX tophats with 102K miles on them.
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May 8, 2012 02:35
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mlmp08 posted:Ok, so if I go Koni inserts and some springs, do I need new tophats? I'm still on stock 2003 WRX tophats with 102K miles on them. Do you have the sedan or wagon?
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May 8, 2012 06:31
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Splinter posted:I'm getting some pretty serious clunking in the rear going over small bumps after installing a whiteline rear swaybar. What could cause this? I torqued everything to service manual specs but it sounds like loose endlinks could be the culprit. Anything else I should check?  If it's hard to tell, the heads of the bolts securing the mounting bracket broke clean off the shafts. Does that just happen with the stock bracket and stiffer bars, or is there something I could have done during the install that could have caused that? As mentioned in my first post, the out of the box position of the lateral locks allowed for some side to side movement of the bar (at least on ramps, not sure about on the ground), but it doesn't seem like the locks were meant to be moved during install (judging from the install instructions for the locks Whiteline used to sell separately). Any ideas? In the meantime I zip-tied the bar so it can't stray far enough from the mounting position to hit the exhaust pipe (let me know if this sounds like a horrible idea...). Splinter fucked around with this message at 07:24 on May 8, 2012 |
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May 8, 2012 07:14
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hmmmmm. that's a new one for me. Could just be the bolts worked their way loose. There's a good amount of force there and if it's not torqued down those bolts could snap off. I would say extract/drill those out and just bolt it back up, possibly with a dab of loctite. There are a couple places that make reinforcement brackets for the mounts but that is not the problem you are having and plenty of people are running that bar without them.
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May 8, 2012 07:46
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http://columbus.craigslist.org/cto/3002802234.html Looking for a replacement car for #1 Son. I'm not afraid of high mileage, but is this a deal killer? Any caveats?
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May 8, 2012 11:57
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Amandyke posted:Do you have the sedan or wagon? Sedan.
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May 8, 2012 13:38
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Bucephalus posted:http://columbus.craigslist.org/cto/3002802234.html It's a little worrying they haven't done the wheel bearing yet, but at least they have a complete replacement hub if the deranged bearing has damaged the existing hub. Rust would be my primary concern if they've been parking it on grass. As an aside, I like how they say "car is from original owner." It's cute.
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May 8, 2012 14:09
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This weekend, I'm tearing the entire exhaust off my 02 wrx. The 10 years and 190,000 miles through northeast slush have really taken their toll, and it sounds like poo poo. Last summer I celebrated 180k by gutting the suspension. I replaced every no-longer-existent rubber bushing with polyurethane. New ball joints, struts and mounts all around, since all of them were shot. Somehow, the springs were fine, and by then I'd run out of money, so the original springs went back on. I installed the group N motor and tranny mounts, and Whiteline 22mm sway bars and Kartboy end links in front and back. While I had everything pulled apart, I figured I might as well do CV joints, tie rod ends, calipers, pads, rotors, and brake lines. Because it was due, I replaced the clutch and flywheel with a combo kit from Spec. gently caress Spec, by the way. I was sold a flywheel with damaged teeth that had obviously been spun on another vehicle, and a clutch that fit so poorly that I had to grind off 1/8" of my shifter fork. The clutch jittered for 4 months before "breaking in". All of this wasn't as offensive to me as the rear end in a top hat customer service I got for it, which amounted to "nuh-uh." Anyway, before reassembling the undercarriage, I took a wire wheel to EVERYTHING I'd taken off, stripped it all down, and painted it with POR15 and black Rust-Oleum. It was a fine project, and I was really happy with it. So this (or next) weekend, everything from the headers on back is getting pulled off and replaced. I'm installing a Borla header and catback, Cobb catted downpipe, and coated Grimmspeed up-pipe. Finally, I'll be able to load the next-best accessport map. When I'm done with all that, I'm installing my new head unit to replace the factory unit that has finally poo poo the bed. New speakers all around because why the hell not, and I'll do a good cleaning. Finally, I'll drive over to the scrap yard, sell all of the catalytic converters, and use the money to buy food from the only decent mexican place in town, which is conveniently out by the scrap yard. Yay for projects!
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May 8, 2012 20:27
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I'm crossposting from the Toyobaru thread:quote:After North America and China, it is time for Subaru to present the lightly facelifted Legacy sedan, Touring Wagon and Outback models in its home market of Japan.  A redesigned 300hp WRX with a 6spd (or a DSG  ) that got 30mpg hwy would be a day one purchase.
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May 9, 2012 02:24
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I may have to sell/set ablaze/trade-in my car for the 2.0 STI when it comes out. Everything that I'm hearing about the 'return to rally' design for the WRX and STI sounds like it is going to amazing.
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May 9, 2012 04:41
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Good news! My 08 LGT is getting it's transmission rebuilt by Subaru at 47000 miles. Glad I decided to take it in instead of slowly working my way through the wheel bearings while I ran out of warranty. Dropped the car off at 1:45 and was told 'we have to pull your transmission apart' and given the keys to a loaner imprezza at 2:00. The base imprezza is a surprisingly fun car even with the CVT. Very torquey. Sadly, I've never even worn out a clutch in a car before. First time transmission problems might as well go big.
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May 9, 2012 05:04
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So I have a 2003 Subaru Forester and about 2 months ago I had an issue with my exhaust system (namely a broken pipe.) and while I was having this repaired my mechanic noticed that one of the axel seals on the front passenger side was a little wet and actually leaking. So he ordered the seal, it came in and does not fix the axel. So he goes through Subaru to get the seal. Seal comes in and does not fit. Now today, a third seal has arrived and is close but does not actually fit. Now he's scratching his head because he can't figure out why the seal (the first) is supposedly the one for the car but does not fit. We are now operating under a theory that the vehicle at some point had its front axel replaced and whoever did the work did not put in the correct axel and just jammed things in there, which caused the seal to shred in the first place. All this being said does anyone else have any ideas or theories as to what could have been done to/or something we're missing that could cause this issue? I'm pretty clueless when it comes to this kind of stuff. Can anyone shed some light on this possibly? Or does anyone have a theory?
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May 10, 2012 04:07
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So I brought my 2011 WRX in to the dealer for a repair to the throwout bearing, and to have a noise my transmission makes when coasting in the 1500-2000 rpm range. They say that crazy grinding noise is normal. YAY! So after a week of them fiddling with my car, they replace the throwout bearing, replace the clutch fork with a revised part since they were already in there, and it works great from what I can tell. Except they had to replace the up-pipe. Whoops! In removing the trans and the turbo, they stripped something on there and broke it beyond repair. So I get it home, and it throws a CEL after about 40 miles of driving: P1153 O2 Sensor Circuit Range/Performance (High) (Bank 1 Sensor 1). This on top of them having my car for 7 days for something that was planned for 1.5, the damage to the paint on my hood from what looks to be someone laying a piece of cardboard on it and grinding it into the paint, and the chunk of plastic that's been removed from my bumper due to some impact. I realize I'm being a whiny bitch, I'm just venting so I don't try and take it out on the service rep with whom I have built a solid rapport. It's going back tomorrow - if anyone has any advice on what I should do and ask for, I'd really appreciate it. More knowledge is more gooder. All I wanted to do tomorrow was install my mudflaps 
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May 10, 2012 05:45
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Danger Doug posted:I realize I'm being a whiny bitch, I'm just venting so I don't try and take it out on the service rep with whom I have built a solid rapport. It's going back tomorrow - if anyone has any advice on what I should do and ask for, I'd really appreciate it. More knowledge is more gooder. No you are not being a whiney bitch. gently caress them they need to fix your poo poo right. They need to fix your hood, fix your bumper, and fix your CEL. It's a loving 2011, you shouldn't have to do a drat thing except show up and say make me happy. When you drive a clapped out 2002 then you can roll with the punches, when you pay new with a warranty they need to be kissing your rear end.
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May 10, 2012 12:16
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Slow is Fast posted:No you are not being a whiney bitch. gently caress them they need to fix your poo poo right. Agreed 100%. When the dealership damages your vehicle while "fixing" they are completely LIABLE for ALL damages incurred while the car was in their care. You should also be getting a loaner vehicle when the car is in the shop this time on their dime. Hell, I'd call up SOA and scream at them as well so they can in turn call the dealership and REALLY scream at them. Even if that happened to my 2003 I'd be seeing red.
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May 10, 2012 15:28
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Bucephalus posted:http://columbus.craigslist.org/cto/3002802234.html Doesn't mention if it's an automatic or a 5speed. 5speeds like to die at higher mileage, the rear bearing on the input shaft goes. And they have other issues. If it's an automatic and it works properly: shift from D to R without delay, awd doesn't bind and it works (2 different and opposite issues), it doesn't slam into 2nd, doesn't take forever to shift into third, and if the fluid looks good. It'll probably be fine for a very long time. The AT is a pretty durable transmission, as long as you maintain it, the stupid thing will last a while. Other than rear quarter rust, these cars are pretty good. I have 247k miles on an AT, and it works perfectly. And I give no fucks about the thing, I mean really, for the last 20k miles I've beat the everliving gently caress out of it.
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May 10, 2012 15:32
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Anyone have any tips/tricks for the Koni Insert job? NASIOC has the write up, but its typically NASIOC in its crap.
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May 10, 2012 15:36
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Amandyke posted:Agreed 100%. When the dealership damages your vehicle while "fixing" they are completely LIABLE for ALL damages incurred while the car was in their care. You should also be getting a loaner vehicle when the car is in the shop this time on their dime. Hell, I'd call up SOA and scream at them as well so they can in turn call the dealership and REALLY scream at them. Yeah they're giving me a loaner, and they really started jumping around trying to make sure everything is right. They're supposedly going to try and fix the engine code and then give it to the body shop guy who is going to rape my car with a sander and a bucket of black paint. Service rep dude said this wasn't the first problem car he's had the past few weeks and that the service techs are loving up it seems. Also my throwout bearing makes noise just as it started before. I'm really trying not to be angry, as it seems to have a much more striking effect than if I was spitting vitriolic hate at anything with a Subaru workshirt on, but I want my loving car to work correctly. All I can do right now is document EVERYTHING they're doing, write a timeline, and then gently caress their face in with SOA support when they decide to stop being helpful. Anyone want to buy an obsidian black pearl 2011 WRX?
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May 10, 2012 15:51
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toplitzin posted:Anyone have any tips/tricks for the Koni Insert job? I didn't get a chance to PM you back. Put the struts upside down in a vise, then mark and center punch the bottom of the strut. Then drill a small pilot hole to let the remaining gas exit the strut. Turn the strut upside down and pump the oil out of the strut. Cut the struts *right* below the gold coloured lock caps with a grinder. After they are cut, remove the stock strut rod from the housings. You have two options at this point: 1) Measure the depth of the strut and measure your new insert. Follow the instruction sheet to cut the strut tube 15mm longer than the nubs on the insert. 2) Get longer M12x1.50 bolts and just suck the inserts into the strut tube until it bottoms out. Switch to the shorter supplied bolt and loctite in place at the proper torque setting. That's pretty much it. I sprayed the inside of the strut tube with white lithium grease to prevent corrosion later on.
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May 10, 2012 17:19
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chrisgt posted:Doesn't mention if it's an automatic or a 5speed. 5speeds like to die at higher mileage, the rear bearing on the input shaft goes. And they have other issues. It's gone now, but thanks for your input. (Photo of the interior showed that it was a 5-speed.)
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May 10, 2012 17:40
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Danger Doug posted:Anyone want to buy an obsidian black pearl 2011 WRX? I'll give $5 for it. You are right in keeping a level head while they're acknowledging the issues and doing everything they can to fix them. It's when they start telling you "it came in like that" is when you start with the volcanic reign of terror and slurs.
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May 10, 2012 19:06
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toplitzin posted:Anyone have any tips/tricks for the Koni Insert job? Remove struts from car. Not too hard. The caliper bolts I found really tough to get off. Clean and paint. Drill holes in bottom of strut with a small drill, while its upside down or you will be sprayed with oil. Make sure its in the centre of the round part, don't try and be fancy and measure from the edge. It doesn't have to be that precise. Empty oil, pump rod until it is empty. Measure down 4 cm or whatever is suggested and cut with hacksaw. Sawzall and grinding disc don't work. Remove guts of old shock. Using step drill bit, upsize the hole. I needed to go to whatever they say, 9/16 or similar. Didn't really matter as I was using a step drill. New rubber thing on, then shock in. Do up bolt to the recommended torque. I put the dust covers back on, and the bump stops. Stroke that strut a bit, get the bubbles out. Stroke it, stroke it hard. Oh yeah. If you are going STi springs, you will need spring compressors for the rears. fronts will go back together just fine. I found it a bitch to get the torque right on the top nut. I couldn't get a open end wrench on the big bolt, and hold the rod from spinning. I ended up just getting it as tight as I could, then impacting it a bit when it was back on the car. If you are doing lock bolts, get the tap. I didn't, now I have rattley lock bolts, very well jammed in busted off captured nuts.
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May 11, 2012 04:54
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Thanks for the tips--I'm doing mine this weekend. From what I've read it sounds like a pipe cutter is the way to go rather than a hack saw: cleaner cut and more precise. We shall see! I'm following this walkthrough posted on the LGT forums. A reply on the first page has Home Depot and Lowes part numbers for pipe cutters that supposedly work well.
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May 11, 2012 08:01
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Pipe cutter won't work on both sets. It's too tight to squeeze it on the rears (or fronts, I forget). Seriously, a grinder works great. To hold the strut shaft in place, wouldn't a rubber strap wrench do it without marking up the shaft?
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May 11, 2012 11:07
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