PLEASE HELP

[02SilverWRX]

SAD UPDATE

Okay so today SOA called me up and said that they are only going to pay $500 of the cost to repair my WRX! I was told by the service manager that they ordered a 2.5 though so i am hoping this was correct! The used car dealer i bought it from is paying half of the repair as well so i am coming out with a fair deal i suppose! The reason SOA did not cover is because after fully reviewing the car they found lots of aftermarket parts: AEM short ram, HKS Hi-power exhaust, Kartboy Short Shifter, Turbosmart BOV, SFI Clutch/ Pressure plates, SFI 12 lb. flywheel, Engine management has been tweaked and there is no rev limiter, top speed limiter, fuel cutoff is at 7500 rpm, something is modded on the wastegate, and some more fun stuff i cant remember I mean i knew a lot of the stuff was on there other than the EM stuff and the clutch and stuff but they said there is too much on there so they are only paying $500, i should have it back by tuesday though so then i can make the next meet!!! Hurray!! Oh well, they are installing a down pipe and uppipe for me while they are at it and i am gonna hook the accessport up possibly, Not sure if i should though!

[avriette]

lots of aftermarket parts: AEM short ram, HKS Hi-power exhaust, Kartboy Short Shifter, Turbosmart BOV, SFI Clutch/ Pressure plates, SFI 12 lb. flywheel, Engine management has been tweaked and there is no rev limiter, top speed limiter, fuel cutoff is at 7500 rpm, something is modded on the wastegate, and some more fun stuff i cant remember I mean i knew a lot of the stuff was on there

That's a pretty incriminating list. I'd think you are getting a pretty good deal, and now you've got a fresh (long?) block and can treat it proper. Are you going to get a new flash for the ECU? And I gather you've lost the blowoff valve. And do you know what the story was with the wastegate?

[Phibs]

Aftermarket BOVs are big no no for "our" cars and the fuel cut limit / other tweaks are certainly dangerous. Glad it seems to be working out for you though!

[zaxrex]

That is quite some list
I think had you been the first and only owner and put that stuff on, SOA would have laughed at you.

What Subaru dealer were you working with that will be doing the swap?

[Sabre]

BOV are fine as long as you TUNE for them.... pretty much anything is fine as long as you tune for it, haha. That is a lot of stuff though, so I can kind of understand Glad to hear it's working out for you (as best as to be expected at least

[02SilverWRX]

okay they said my car will be done on tuesday... funny thing is that the dealer i bought it from in the first place, the owner actually went to the dealer fixing my car and tried to talk them down in price because he doesnt want to pay so much to fix the car that HE sold me...

The Car is being fixed at Stohlman Subaru up in vienna i think it is, they seem to be a very good dealer much better than the one next to my house so i am going to stick with them! Not sure yet if the block coming in is the 2.5 or 2.0 but the service manager claims it is a 2.5!

The problem i have with the blow off valve is that i dont have the stock one! I do however own: HKS SSQV, Greddy Type RS w/ recirculation kit, and turbosmart 50/50 bov... So i dont know what to do yet! I do plan on getting the ECU fixed other than the rev limiter i am going to just leave and i am going to run stage 2 from cobb accessport for a little while just to see how that works out, probably purchase a stock bov and relax at that for now!

Well i will update shortly hopefully with good news... Oh yea, there was a legacy GT engine in the shop as well and the manager said that a 70 year old man blew the engine over-revving! Just thought that was kinda funny...

[Mr Kleen]

...Engine management has been tweaked and there is no rev limiter, top speed limiter, fuel cutoff is at 7500 rpm...

no rev limiter, but a fuel cutoff at 7500 RPM? does the WRX even have an ECU speed limiter?

with that list of mods SOA is giving you an early Christmahanaquanzika gift of $500. count your blessings and enroll in a driving class.

[BryanH]

Are you working with Matt Snow? He is about one of the nicest guys you will ever run into. I can guarantee you the only reason this turned out so well is because that guy is involved. Your results at Manassas Subaru wouldn't have been so positive. You would do well to actually listen to those guys if you are interested in having a reliable car when all is said and done.

And I don't know that an AP is the best choice for EM with that engine setup. Did they do a 2.0/2.5 hybrid setup or what? Until you KNOW there is a Cobb specific map for the stuff you are running I would probably be looking at a UTEC or something like that. And please pony up the cash for a stock BOV or do a search on NASIOC for a used one. I do think Matt/stohlman can reflash the stock ECU back to stock without too much hassle.

[02SilverWRX]

Are you working with Matt Snow? He is about one of the nicest guys you will ever run into. I can guarantee you the only reason this turned out so well is because that guy is involved. Your results at Manassas Subaru wouldn't have been so positive. You would do well to actually listen to those guys if you are interested in having a reliable car when all is said and done.

And I don't know that an AP is the best choice for EM with that engine setup. Did they do a 2.0/2.5 hybrid setup or what? Until you KNOW there is a Cobb specific map for the stuff you are running I would probably be looking at a UTEC or something like that. And please pony up the cash for a stock BOV or do a search on NASIOC for a used one. I do think Matt/stohlman can reflash the stock ECU back to stock without too much hassle.

Yes i am working with matt snow, he has been a big help! He said that everything is okay and that the blow off valve will not ruin the engine because it still recirculates but he said not to run the car too hard or i might be bringing it back! Not sure what block is going in yet since it has not arrived so i not sure... I was planning on just leaving the turbo back exhaust and the short ram and running stage 2 off of the AP... I mean the other stuff other than the bov shouldnt affect it too much should it? clutch and flywheel only! Matt told me that if i run the AP it should just rewrite over the EM on there now other than the rev limiter delete and it should run perfectly fine!

[BryanH]

Not to run it too hard?

WTF does that mean? I would ask him why....if he is referring to break-in period then OK. But other than that you need to know what the hell he is talking about.

[zaxrex]

Slamming the throttle closed when you are on high load dumps all that air through the BOV to the outside.

That air has been meeterd and the EM is assuming that it will be going into the engine. ECU adds the corresponding amount of injector open duration, and in the process goes extra rich. In extreme cases, running very rich mixtures can degrade the lubrication of the piston. When you are running it hard, that is exactly not the time to have that happen.

So, yes he is talking some sense.

[drwrx]

Honestly, unless you are tuned for it, any intake (except SPT or K&N) will likely affect your MAF sensor readings and cause you to run lean.
Many short RAMs also have been shown to actually lose power over the stock air box. For that reason i tend to make a blanket statement about intakes: If you don't tune for it, remove it!

And unless the BOV is 100% recirculating, don't bother with it either. Stock units have shown to hold to over 20psi.

If you don't have the stock units either look on NASIOC for someone selling them cheap or find an SPT or K&N Typhoon, and an aftermarket fully recirculating BOV.

[02SilverWRX]

My greddy type rs blow off valve is 100% recirculating so that should be good right? Also why do other intakes affect the maf readings but the k&n does not?

[zaxrex]

If it is recirc and you have it plumbed correctly, then it should not be a problem. I still would not push the car hard until all the parts have been tuned for, or returned to stock.

That MAF sensor is designed to go in a very specific place. There is the cross section area, bend location, and upstream-downstream flow characteristics that all effect what the sensor sees.

Most companies will just make it bigger to fool the MAF and have you run lean, or not flow test their stuff in all conditions to ensure linear progression that matches what the ECU is expecting.

The larger companies like K&N can devote more time and research.

[drwrx]

My greddy type rs blow off valve is 100% recirculating so that should be good right? Also why do other intakes affect the maf readings but the k&n does not?

Your Greddy should be fine. I have seen MAF charts, A/F ratios and dyno plots of the K&N and SPT intakes and can verify their improved performance and safety. Anything else and you take your chances, without some evidence of the contrary.

[02SilverWRX]

Okay sounds good, so i will change the greddy type rs back on n then i will just save up some money and grab one of the K&N intakes... short ram or cold air?

[drwrx]

Go with the K&N Typhoon Short RAM.

It's a very nice piece. Comes with a heat shield as well.

[02SilverWRX]

Will do thanks for all of the help!

Go with the K&N Typhoon Short RAM.

It's a very nice piece. Comes with a heat shield as well.

[02SilverWRX]

WOW! Subaru told me the estimate for my car to be fixed was $2500-$3500 and today i went to pick it up and it cost me $6000... HE showed me the parts list and i saw their cost for everything compared to what i paid while he was showing and it was a huge mark up! Ridiculous pricing, they replaced stuff that i know was not messed up... Well, its great to be broke again... how is everybody else doing?

[drwrx]

and today i went to pick it up and it cost me $6000

Is the dealer still picking up half the cost and is SOA still paying $500.
Did you pay the bill and take the car? I think a call to SOA is in order, especially if they thought it would be $2,500-$3,000. Is the dealer still picking up half of the $6k and your out $3k? Or is your share $6k. If that is the case there is some mistake. $6k is damn high, and there is no way that was a $12,000 job. Regardless, you need to have a serious talk with Stohlman.

[BryanH]

What he said.

It doesn't sound like SOA picked up ANY of the bill. They should have called you if it was going to go beyond the amount you specified you were willing to pay. A little overage is one thing....double is another story. I would be calling SOA at this point. Skip calling Stohlman back...it hasn't been my experience with them but it doesn't sound like they are being straight with you.

[02SilverWRX]

Well, SOA is going to send me a $500 check within the next 4 weeks, the total came out to $6,181.34... Of which i paid the entire amount because the other dealer i bought it from said they can not pay until friday or some crazy b.s.!!! Stohlman told me that i needed a whole lot of parts such as $324 gaskets and crap which made parts worth $3,465 and labor was supposively a straight 26 hours coming out to like $2500 approx... The only reason i paid 100% of it is because i was dropped off by my mom who had to leave and we were guaranteed the car and then i had to wait 6 hours before they were ACTUALLY done... Then they told me that they would not let me take the car when i paid my half even tho the other dealership guaranteed payment! The car does run good but for some reason the tranny feels a little bumpy in between shifts... I even caught the lot attendant doggin the car on the way to the front with my brand new motor in it!

[02SilverWRX]

hey everyone, the car is running great but when I installed accessport and flashed stage 2 my car only runs 8 psi, sometimes 9 ... Its not the bob cuz I tried ALL of my blow off valves and they all hold the same boost... Any idea what else it could be???

[complacent]

I'm sorry, but did I just see "Brand new engine", "six thousand dollars" and then "access port and only 8 or 9 pounds of boost" escape from your keyboard???

Look, if you want this motor to last longer than your last motor, there are a few things that have to happen.

First, the break in period. You can read about it in the owner's manual. Basically no crazy boost, nothing prolonged over 4K rpm for the first thousand miles. Then get an oil change at 1000 and again at 3000. New piston rings take time to properly bed against the cylinder walls. If not done properly, you can look forward to a number of oil consumption, poor mileage, lowered power and torque issues down the road.

Second - STAY THE AWAY FROM A BOV. Unless you are running a turbo larger than a VF39, you have absolutely zero need to replace your BOV. You are only inviting more trouble and more money spent. I can't be any clearer about it without becoming insulting.

Now, once those two issues are out of the way....


Here's what you should look into:

Wastegate actuator arm. The arm on the TD04 is notorious for "wiggling" around in its surroundings. You may need to tighten the arm in order to achieve full boost. It is a pretty simple to do. If you need help, any of us can show you how. There are also numerous pictorials and walk-throughs on places like scoobymods and nasioc.

(I'm willing to bet that the dealership set the arm on purpose to ensure the motor would not be ruined by overboosting.)

I am not saying any of this as a personal attack or an insult. I am trying to point out with a general sense of urgency that you are greatly running the risk of ruining a brand new engine that you were forced into paying a lot of money for.

Let me know if you have any questions.

[avriette]

you are greatly running the risk of ruining a brand new engine that you were forced into paying a lot of money for.

Looking at that number again, I hafta wonder why nobody mentioned AR Fab.