unenthuzed

I got happy with the angle grinder and cut out the top section of the tunnel to tuck the transmission up. The Engine/Trans oil pans will stick down, but I'll just cover them with a skid plate. Otherwise, it was pretty easy to get it up to the position I wanted.

Also I'd like to voice the room regarding how much axle angle guys with serious lifts are running at the normal ride height to balance lift vs. longevity. The 2" drop at ride height "convention" doesn't seem to be the norm with guys running 6"+ of lift. Thanks in advance.

Time to cut some sheet metal to tuck the trans up a bit more. I'm torn on how far forward I want to end up mounting this thing. The 3rd pic has things positioned roughly where Id need them to be able to run 32" tires. IMO, thats much too far forward and would probably make this much too nose heavy. The previous car I messed with could only manage 28" tires due to how close they were to the wheel wells. I'll keep playing with the position of the Engine/Drivetrain after I cut a hole for things to go up higher. -Alex

You might want to specify the types of pictures you want. *Giggity* I'll be cutting out the radiator support and rolling the Engine and trans under the car tonight to see how much lower they need to be mounted in order to clear the lack of trans tunnel in that car. Also mental note: Drag both the Legacy and Saturn gas tanks outside before the sparks start to fly.

I figured I'd throw up shots of my derelict project I've decided to embark on while we're quarantined. The goal is to shove the Engine/Drivetrain from the '06 Legacy LL Bean [120k] into the silver car for some offroad shenanigans. As to the question of why, plastic doesn't dent or rust. Plus the Legacy was an auction car that glanced off a tree

Thanks for the link & info. I was trying to make a guess on their construction based on the Mark I dampers early in the thread! Also congrats on becoming a Super User [1000 posts ;D]

pontoontodd, what fox shock style was used for your rear strut? Was it a smooth bore with spring perches welded on? Also how well do those things take to being introduced to welding heat? I'm trying to plan out a nutty sort of offroad vehicle with Subie drivetrain underneath. I need to create new A-arm for the application anyway and your long travel results are impressive for a fellow DIYer. Cheers, -Alex

That I am not sure of. I've never intentionally taken CV axles apart. Are the marks you are referring to from machining or abnormal wear? Also, are the transmission mounts, driveshaft bearing support mount, and differential mounts the same between the manual and automatic cars? Due to the lack of cheap manual cars on FB and SearchTempest/CL, I'm thinking that there's a greater likelihood that I'll find an Automatic car priced right and just deal with locating a manual trans & related parts elsewhere.

I'm liking this direction: If this is possible to do for the longer tribeca axles, and if those axle splines will fit the Impreza hubs, that would be excellent

Thanks! I'll look into those as well. Im figuring with the wheels on the ground, I was going to limit the axle drop to 1.5 - 2", especially with 30-32" wheels on the end of them. I'd rather not be grenading axles left and right due to extreme angles since reliability is a nice thing to have. One interesting thing is that subaru tribeca axles are pretty long compared to impreza axles32" vs 27"]. If I could move the hubs further out, at the same axle drop height [1.5-2"] the joint angles would be reduced.

I wish I could simply weld it all up and be done with it, but this is something that will be on the road to drive out to offroad events with my buddies. Thanks for the suggestion on the Miata parts, I haven't looked that up. I did some reading on the R200s for the nissans and didn't dig up anything promising. Thus far, I think the easiest route for me will probably have me rocking the R180 and STI axles in the back, and keep the base trans and add STI axles up front.

I really only want a mechanical LSD in the back that doesn't break the bank. R160/180/200, whichever diff I can find/use with a decent LSD. It's not so much for power capacity, but for traction through nasty terrain.

Right, so in a base model vehicle from '05-'07, I would need to bolt in the STI hubs/bearings into the base knuckles, find STI rear axles, an R180 diff, and then Figure out how to get the correct length driveshaft mated to the R180 Diff flange...or weld an adapter plate onto it and hope it doesnt completely fail or cause an imbalance making the whole thing vibrate to death. lol

So riddle me this. Is the STI R180 diff ratio common with other models? Or is it only meant to be used with the STI Trans/Center Diff ratios? ***Edit Found this handy Chart: http://www.gearhack.com/myink/ViewPage.php?file=docs/Subaru Transmission Chart. Im assuming if the center diff is not 1.1:1, that the rear diff ratio matches the front diff ratio. With the 3.900 ratio for the R180, I would just need to find a car with that front ratio. But I'm probably gonna have an easier time if I narrow my search for an impreza from '05-'07 since it'll have the hubs and trans that I want [unless the driveshaft splines are different for the R180...]

The Saturns are dirt cheap, lighter, more plentiful, and they're not prone to body rust or denting (Plastic panels). Since I can take a razor blade to cut the fenders to make room for large tires, I should be able to make it look cleaner than if I took a clapped out, rusted Subaru and sawzalled the fenders. In the end I'll be modifying the entire suspension anyway [Mounting points, control arm location, etc] and extending the wheel base, so which platform I choose doesn't really matter, but I work with Saturns so I have a better idea of what I'll need to do. I've also got a boosted Saturn as well, but it's currently going through a rebuild.