subarubrat

The website for show/club organization will make it's debut soon as well as some feed and drink announcements! 05STI, bring that STI, I brought mine and hope to have both the STI and BRAT there this year. You are so right about the other Carlisle show also known as the (word deemed offensive) show. This show has NOTHING in common with that show. This show is more like the Subaru, Saab, Opal GT, MG, Tiumph, sort of thing. For those of you who don't know what 05STI was mentioning, there is (was) a show at Carlisle that was mostly Honda/Hyundai/Geo etc. and no bones about it the show was a perfect representation of the worst stereotype you can come up with for the (word deemed offensive). Where as our crowd has a clean-up crew after the show to make sure that every scrap of garbage is picked up, their folks knock over trash cans. They do burnouts (such as a geo storm with 500lbs of aftermarket bling can muster) at every light, and generaly pose a danger to the public. That show has been kicked out of every place they have moved it to. This is NOT that show, this is a much different affair. Stay tuned for the website, a list of registered cars will appear there as well as the goal for registration and getting our own club area! ALSO, should you register now or when the website is up please make sure to email me so I can include you in the paperwork I have to submit to the Carlisle folks!!!!

THAT'S RIGHT! East Coast Subaru Show III is coming up! I have already registered our club and I am working on the website right now for tracking registrations and planning events. I should be putting this up soon. We will have all the goings on of the prior years at the East Coast Subaru Shows. I will be bringing the grill, Subie flags, and of course the movie projector and 12x9 Ft screen. Last year was a spectacle with us all kicked back in the chairs watching movies and downing beers and bratwurst. No club has a shindig like we do. -More news to come soon!

Although a new generation engine like a 2Ltr turbo would be a better choice for power/ durability and driveability I would love to see a VW engine in a subie. It would be unique and something nobody has ever done.

Whoa Whoa Whoa, I am all for building and tuning engines because of preference even when there is a better alternative. I chose the ER27 even though it was about the least practical engine for my BRAT. But to say that the EA82 compares to the EJ/EG series is like saying a DC3 is a viable compeditor to the 777. It was an OK engine, it developed allot of the technologies that went into the EJ series, credit where credit is due, but it is not an equall to the newer engines in power or reliability. At it's ragged edge it is barely touching the baseline of the newer engines in power and the newer ones have a tolerance for increased output that is an order of magnitude greater. The WRX engine is good for an honest 50Hp increase with just an ECU reflash and exhaust. And at that point you aren't making any meaningful impact on the longevity of the engine. The STI engine has been reliably putting down over 60% power increases on stock internals. The phase 2 EJ25 from the 1st gen Impreza has been turbo'd over and over with reliable multi hundred thousand mile reliability. A stock EA82 is clicking like a sewing machine and leaking like a pasta strainer when the newer gen engine is pulling hard and trouble free at 50% power increase and the same mileage. Each subie engine is a great and unique step in subie history but we have to be honest about what each one is and isn't.

Whoa Whoa Whoa, I am all for building and tuning engines because of preference even when there is a better alternative. I chose the ER27 even though it was about the least practical engine for my BRAT. But to say that the EA82 compares to the EJ/EG series is like saying a DC3 is a viable compeditor to the 777. It was an OK engine, it developed allot of the technologies that went into the EJ series, credit where credit is due, but it is not an equall to the newer engines in power or reliability. At it's ragged edge it is barely touching the baseline of the newer engines in power and the newer ones have a tolerance for increased output that is an order of magnitude greater. The WRX engine is good for an honest 50Hp increase with just an ECU reflash and exhaust. And at that point you aren't making any meaningful impact on the longevity of the engine. The STI engine has been reliably putting down over 60% power increases on stock internals. The phase 2 EJ25 from the 1st gen Impreza has been turbo'd over and over with reliable multi hundred thousand mile reliability. A stock EA82 is clicking like a sewing machine and leaking like a pasta strainer when the newer gen engine is pulling hard and trouble free at 50% power increase and the same mileage. Each subie engine is a great and unique step in subie history but we have to be honest about what each one is and isn't.

I don't know how I missed this thread. Awesome. The STI gets 13~18, 500Hp is 500Hp in a 4cyl/V8/V12. X ammount of fuel and Y ammount of air is needed. The BRAT gets gets 13~15. Big engine, lots of drag, and low low gearing.

On some cars it is the nightmare formula, on Subies, EA and EG series most of all, there is about 1deg of difference in terms of reliability between the turbo and NA. The STI engines are putting down 300 stock and touching 700HP with STOCK internals. I am putting about 500 at the crank and commute with it, take it on trips etc. 42k in 1.5 years and no worries. Don't fear the turbo, change the oil and use synthetic. Over the hill, which Porsche model do you have? I ran a 911 for a while, the wife has a Boxster S (Deerslayer special edition). I like them, but after this new gen one, I think that I am out for good. I mean the STI crushes it for half as much. I would consider a late 70's or early 80's whale tale turbo though....

We are pushing these things beyond what they were ever designed for. Failures are part of the price for that. And I think the fact that a 20 year old high mileage tranny holds up in a lifted Tcased rig with 30 in tall tires, or even 33 in tall tires, with 2 and even 3 times the stock HP, long enough to drive it around the block let alone off road and such is a testament to the incredible quality of the design.

The application I see here is that clutchmasters makes a clutch kit (new gen) that is only SLIGHTLY stiffer than stock and held up to 305Hp on my old 2.5RS for almost 100k miles. The disk is more of a factor than the PP in that kit. That disk could be used and provide substantial improvement even if the stock PP is used. Although, since I am reffering to the Gen1 RS it is a push type, you could always redrill/peg that PP to work with the flywheel if needed.

O5' Welcome aboard, I have an 04 myself. I can't say enough about the Vishnu packages, and certainly Cobb is a fine and safe performer as well. You will be selling yourself short if you don't do a full turbo back system. I had mine on by itself for a few days before I did the full build and that change alone made a huge difference in how it spooled and pulled. I am running the Vishnu 500 kit right now and although your talking about a 60% or so increase in HP the driveability is very stock like, just more power. The driveline has proven to be very reliable at these power levels and there are allot of folks out there running more than that. About the only other changes I have made are springs and tires. The stock springs are good, but the JDM STI pinks are far better and match the struts better than the US ones. The stock tires are probably the best OEM tire I have ever experienced. I did replace them with some Falken 245s and there is no rubbing. So far they seem to be at least as grippy and maybe a hair more so than the OEMs.

Make sure to pay attention to what was said above about taking your time to compress the tensioner, the manual says over a period of 5 min I think. Trying to go faster will ruin it. Take your time.

I love that Grasshopper! I flew mine with a full sized 2ch system and a Cox Texaco (about 1996) and it was a bullet proof plane. Take the time to glass the wing to do the plane justice. It has great flying manners and the landing gear is really an optional thing. I am all about the electric, virtually everything I fly nowdays is either electric or gasoline gas (giant scale). I still fly a few 1/2A planes in glow.

There are a few good engine options with the Poppa51, the Jag supercharged Jag V12 is able to haul it around nicely.

Pretty! After the Lambo is finished I have pretty much decided to delve into a kit plane. With the kajillion choices out there I think it has come down to the Pappa51, a scaled down P51. I would love to own an original but lets face it, the cost of the plane is just scratching the surface, miantenance is the killer. A gear strut rebuild costs about as much as a mortgage payment. If you just want to own a warbird Texans are a dime a dozen but pretty sleepy. I would rather have a Poppa51 that than a Texan.

http://www.foxflier.com/nieuport/index.htm

Competing philosophys on the minimum lift, some say 6 some say 8, and both have their good reasons. But a Tcase is a major undertaking that only comes after a few other major ones. You can look at my website http://www.subarubrat.com under MY BRAT mods and then see the Tcase install, lots of welding and fabbing. But, I think your question is more about going from a 4 spd to 5 spd tranny, that is easier to answer by saying that the "Tcase" is internal to the tranny and that a tranny swap is all that is needed.

33x16s Iin my experience, running a Tcase or not, 30s are a great comprimise. With 30x12s the brake system is still capable, axle loading is allot less than with just 3 inches larger, and the tranny is allot happier. If you want to go bigger you have to WANT to go bigger and be prepared to deal with the increased maintenance that comes along with it. Another thing you need to be prepared for is the change in handeling. At 30x12 the truck handled like a legacy GT with the coil overs and adjustable shocks I have. With the 33x16s the handeling is much more truck like and you have to drive it like a little truck with big tires. The weight difference between the two sizes is considerable. On the plus side, I get unreal floatation in snow, sand and even sticky mud, my brakes are upgraded so stops are crazy fast, and it looks absolutly fantastic. I was out in our 5 inches of snow the other day and I couldn't even break traction and get it to slide when I tried unless I got on the gas and spun the tires first. Casualties: 2 trannys (1 rev, 1 2nd), two cups split open. No stubs believe it or not. My angles are signifigantly increased with a 2 inch suspension raise. At max downward travel the cups are at their limit. One cup I broke on hard pavement and one off road when the wheel dropped to negative travel and then contacted ground, I think going from lock to load caused that.

BTW, a Previa toyota minivan K&N adapter will fit. You can use the stock air inlet by cutting it and using a 90 Deg hose section to flip it. I use that on my BRAT.

That is some TOP NOTCH subie fabbing there! Way to go! I would suggest doing it justice and taking it to the power coat shop or at least hitting it with POR15 and chassis black. But again, NICE WORK!

"I have taken it to the local track a few times, but I dont throw my gears around like a monkey. The way I see it, the sti is a performance car, so why can't you take it out every once in a while? thanks for the input. this is a great site." Agreed. The driveline should stand up to the use that the car is marketed for. This was a chief complaint with the WRX's 5MT. And for the most part the STIs tranny has excelled at this. Again, your car seems to be an exception to the norm. Mitsubishi is a huge offender in this area. They are leaving EVO owners holding the bag on even the most legitimate failures. They have a history of doing that on prior non-performance cars too. Subaru denied allot of 2nd gear failures with the WRX when the truth is that the tranny was not as strong as it should have been.

Due to the press fit parts needing precise alignment you are probably better off swapping the tranny as a whole. Someone with the skills and tools to replace the synchros will buy your tranny, granted at a discount. The STI tranny has proven to handle greatly increased power 400~500Hp is an everyday thing. I am putting down 463. Again, I think your tranny would have failed at stock HP and it seems like you just have a defective one assuming driving habits are appropriate. And as the other fellow said earlier driving habbits are critical and underestimated. My Gen1 2.5 RS was putting down just over 300Hp and it was 165 stock. That 5MT had a reputation for loosing second with HP much over 240. Mine was sold at 150k miles with a perfectly functioning tranny. Not shock loading the gears is more important than their overall loading under power.

"synchro's are likely replaceable, but i'd find a used trans for $500 before i spent that kind of money to open up the trans." Unfortunatly you need to add another zero to that cost estimate...... That does sound like synchros but almost certainly not due to the increased HP. That is a pretty mild warm up for that car. Unlike the 5MT the 6MT has proven to have a huge margin for increased HP. That tranny would have likely failed under normal use and I would strongly suspect a faulty part or assembly problem. Your problem is that it isn't what you know it is what you can prove. Check out the Magnusson Moss Warranty act of 1975. http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/buspubs/warranty.htm#Magnuson-Moss In short it provides a number of consumer and business protections when it comes to warranties. The one relevant to you is that a company cannot deny your warranty due to use of aftermarket parts or consumables. By law they have to prove that the part caused the failure. IE if your AC compressor fails they can't deny your warranty because you had an aftermarket muffler or wheels. However they do it all the time and even if you are making a reasonable claim and show them a copy of the law they will often go ahead and deny it anyway. Most people will not pursue litigation to recover a repair that costs less than the legal process. Given that reality and that you have already taken it in modified and that is a matter of record you are in a tight spot. If you have the skills I would say pull the tranny and deal with it. If not buy a 6MT, sell yours honestly (someone will want it) and chalk it up as a lesson learned.

There are more than a few of us Boeing folks around here now.

Having owned an RS, WRX and STI I can tell you they aren't even the same car. Getting the same HP from the WRX engine is possible but to be done right needs more than just exhaust and a reflash (although 270~280 is solid). Put the same money into the STI and your worlds ahead. But that is just the beginning. The ability to deliver controlled power to the ground reliably is at another level with the STI. First the tranny and clutch are very proven for performance and even abusive driving at 50% or more above stock output. The WRX tranny is simply not that rhobust. The limited slip diffs front and rear coupled with the VLSD allow the power to be delivered in a way that the 5MT and rear LSD in the WRX could never do. The rest of the STI driveline is well up to the task of handleing that sort of power and use of that power on a daily basis. By the time you take a WRX and upgrade it STI equality, brakes, suspension, 6MT etc. and not just a ragged edge engine hop up you will have spent far more than just buying one.

The intermediate shaft from the Nissan Tcase will mate to either the 4 or 5spd tranny. In my opinion 8 inches is the minimum for a Tcase mod. The plane that the shaft from the tranny opperates on (and this is with the engine/tranny raised into stock position) dictates that the top of the Tcase be about one inch from the top of the tunnel. At 8 inches the height of the Tcase is higher than that of the stock tranny with a 4 inch lift, but just by a hair. Less than that and the Tcase is lower than the stock ground clearance. I know this isn't what you want to hear but an 8 inch lift is needed.