Rock_Steady Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 well, what i meant was, can't go wrong as they are great car, in that sense in my defense I thought you meant mechanically obviously. Never mind me, carry on. No worries. i can remember why you'd question the "reliability" of a Subaru. You were sensationally unlucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMT Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 He's bought one of ....'the enemies'... nooooooo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMballistic Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 well, what i meant was, can't go wrong as they are great car, in that sense in my defense I thought you meant mechanically obviously. Never mind me, carry on. No worries. i can remember why you'd question the "reliability" of a Subaru. You were sensationally unlucky. That is very true, ...two blown engines, two gearbox rebuilds etc etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grahamc Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 well, what i meant was, can't go wrong as they are great car, in that sense in my defense I thought you meant mechanically obviously. Never mind me, carry on. No worries. i can remember why you'd question the "reliability" of a Subaru. You were sensationally unlucky. That is very true, ...two blown engines, two gearbox rebuilds etc etc That does sound very unlucky..... I dont know many that have had 1 of either, let alone 2 of each. And most of those expected it as they knew they were running too much power, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted July 26, 2016 Author Share Posted July 26, 2016 But what was the one thing it had in common between those two gearboxes and two engines? The driver... ;) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMballistic Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 That does sound very unlucky..... I dont know many that have had 1 of either, let alone 2 of each. And most of those expected it as they knew they were running too much power, etc. The car was a classic my96 JDM Impreza WRX. First engine was standard and suffered big end failure after the oil pump died whilst I was driving on the motorway (only had it a month but bought privately). Second engine was the original I had rebuilt with stronger uprated parts (lighter/stronger conrods, STi pistons, uprated oil pump...) by a company in England. I followed all the correct run in procedures etc but the engine only lasted 12K miles before putting a conrod through the side of the engine block. Was running on a standard WRX turbo/top mount intercooler with a touch over 300Bhp (@hub AFAIK) so hardly mad power. First gearbox literally just blew up one day ~ sounded like a load of pennies in a blender ~ this was with a more powerful engine though and the standard WRX gearboxes aren't the strongest. Second gearbox was the original I had rebuilt with new OEM parts ~ (went the following day after rebuild) my theory was that the builder f**ked it up by not putting enough oil in it. They did however fix it FOC. Did have loads of other common faults as well as sensors go etc so all in all a bit of a cra**y Subaru experience. Tbf though I know I was unlucky plus two businesses I used (the engine builder & gearbox builder) were subsequently proven to be inept (imo) or at the least muppets. But what was the one thing it had in common between those two gearboxes and two engines? The driver... ;) Can't really argue with that... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grahamc Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 (edited) I never really tried to mod the WRX I had.... cone, exhaust and remap was about it. 1->2 syncro was crap when cold, but not many issues. WRXs were always weaker engine and gearbox wise. The STi I had and modded was brilliant.... next owner blew it up on track, but it was about 10 track days later and near 90k miles and he was planning for it to happen, its now a 2.1l Maybe you should buy another to see if it was the car and crap tuners or if it was/is just you Edited July 26, 2016 by grahamc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMballistic Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 I never really tried to mod the WRX I had.... cone, exhaust and remap was about it. 1->2 syncro was crap when cold, but not many issues. WRXs were always weaker engine and gearbox wise. The STi I had and modded was brilliant.... next owner blew it up on track, but it was about 10 track days later and near 90k miles and he was planning for it to happen, its now a 2.1l Maybe you should buy another to see if it was the car and crap tuners or if it was/is just you I think I was just cursed with that car tbh and the people I chose at the time to work on it when I couldn't. My mate who spent more money than me bought a my99 JDM WRX Sti Type Ra V-Limited and the only real problem he had was when he first chose to use the same engine builder as me. He was having an EJ20 closed deck forged Cosworth 2.2Ltr stroker build done by them but afterwards the engine began to knock after only a few thousand miles. The engine builder tried to blame him at first although just like me he had followed their run in procedure to the letter. When the engine was stripped down we found out they hadn't used Cosworth gudgeon pins or circlips (maybe to save money) and this was the cause of the fault. I don't know the full ins and outs of it all but basically they were threatened with court action I believe & my mate also went down there with another of our mates who's a crazy guy ~ they took back his old closed deck block, got a full refund on all the parts & that was that. He eventually got the engine properly done by a very reputable engine builder and 10 years later it's still running great for him with over 450Bhp. Don't think I'll ever get another Subaru but never say never. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMballistic Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 Sorry for going a little off topic Dan. Get some pics of the engine bay up if you can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grahamc Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 Sorry for going a little off topic Dan. Get some pics of the engine bay up if you can. Definitely needs more pics Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted July 26, 2016 Author Share Posted July 26, 2016 Sooooooon... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted July 9, 2017 Author Share Posted July 9, 2017 When I said soooooon, I mean like over a year later obvs Bored of the Prodrive exhaust now, as it's great but just a little too quiet for my tastes these days, I volunteered to pay for an exhaust 'upgrade' on Jo's car. Nothing fancy and certainly nothing too loud as it's got to be her DD and she'd kill me if it droned, so I went for an Afterburner Vortex made by Hayward & Scott. Cheap enough to not worry if the quality isn't all there (although it's H&S and they're normally spot-on), I went to get this fitted during the week. Straight forward 30min job yeah? No. Once I eventually found my axle stands buried in the are-end of the garage (why on earth did I put when under a box of cushions for the garden?!), got the car up and gave the bolts a Plusgassing. Tried to get a grip on one, no dice as it was caked in mud and road crap. Proper hard stuff. Grrr. No probs, I think to myself, I'll go grab a small screwdriver and chip it away. Still much tougher than I expected, until I look again and realise that I'm not chipping away mud, I'm chipping away actual centre pipe flange... And I didn't buy that. Eeep! Emergency stop before I do any real damage luckily, and a new resonated centre pipe on order. Bit irritating as I wanted that done for this weekend, but hey ho. Will have to get a new flange welded on there at some point, as it's the PPP one I want to keep it for the provenance of the car when/if she ever sells is. Also picked up some new wheel bolts as the locking ones were stating to resemble cheese, and some new brake pads too as the current ones are getting a bit low. I love the Brembo calipers on these, makes changing the pads a breeze. TL;DR I'll get some more pics up when I fit the exhaust. Sweardown. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMballistic Posted July 15, 2017 Share Posted July 15, 2017 You're not wrong about the Brembo calipers on these; think it's 2 R-clips off, 2 cotter pins out, spring clip out, old pads out with shims, clean shims/copper slip on backs, new pads & copper slip greased shims back in, spring clip in, 2 cotter pins in, 2 R-clips back in & done. Well more or less like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nowhereboy Posted July 19, 2017 Share Posted July 19, 2017 Still waiting for pictures Dan............ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted July 19, 2017 Author Share Posted July 19, 2017 Oh yeah! I did get this on on Monday, I'll grab some pics tonight when Jo gets home. Maybe a vid too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docwra Posted July 19, 2017 Share Posted July 19, 2017 I have to say, after 15 odd years these are actually starting to grow on me now. A little. Maybe. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted July 19, 2017 Author Share Posted July 19, 2017 One of us, one of us... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted July 20, 2017 Author Share Posted July 20, 2017 Only a year late... And finally, video of the exhaust too 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stutopia Posted July 20, 2017 Share Posted July 20, 2017 Sounds like perfect boxer noise What's with the pink wheels? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted July 20, 2017 Author Share Posted July 20, 2017 They used to be orange Now faded to a rose gold, we'll get them redone in either the orange again or probably go back to the black when we first bought her. The orange was the idea of the last owner, funnily enough also called Stu! Personally I'd be happy to go louder, but then that would almost certainly drone at certain revs and that was an absolute no-no. Def not chavvy this way either, in the way some exhausts on a Scooby can be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RVSV2824 Posted July 27, 2017 Share Posted July 27, 2017 (edited) Nice car! Was never a fan of subarus but I've come to like em... Seeing as I now own one it's only fair haha Bit spoilt for choice on owners clubs though... Can you recommend any? Edited July 27, 2017 by RVSV2824 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted July 27, 2017 Author Share Posted July 27, 2017 Tbh, I don't bother with any of them. SIDC has all the tech data but is US-based, Scoobynet the best UK example but too big to not get lost in the ether. We've previously been members of the Essex Scooby Crew (I know, I know...!) but they've now been sucked up into Scoobynet. In general though, Impreza clubs are incredibly friendly places who do not stand for chavs or nonsense at all, which is surprising given the brand image. It's a good thing though 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RVSV2824 Posted July 27, 2017 Share Posted July 27, 2017 (edited) Ah thanks for that... I've not long owned mine and went one step further to reduce the scoob-chav association and bought a hatch... Had my eye on one since they arrived and the marmite comments they get makes me like em even more...I like different! Its the best car I've owned and the driving experience is pretty damn good too, almost comparable to some much more expensive cars! I have a 330s edition which is fully forged running a touch under 400hp. That 4wd is something else though... Together with A048R gives insane amounts of confidence Edited July 27, 2017 by RVSV2824 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted July 27, 2017 Author Share Posted July 27, 2017 We liked the hatch too, but the 2.5 lump just isn't as exciting as the 2.0 one IMHO. There's a lot to be said for old-school turbo lag Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RVSV2824 Posted July 27, 2017 Share Posted July 27, 2017 (edited) 1 hour ago, Ekona said: We liked the hatch too, but the 2.5 lump just isn't as exciting as the 2.0 one IMHO. There's a lot to be said for old-school turbo lag That and the ej25 is made from cheese!! 2 rebuild done for both top and bottom end until it was fully forged! The 2.0 is a deffo a much stronger unit and I was only ever interested in a hatch if forged. Nearly 400bhp with torque to match on #sport sharp is very exciting in what could be mistaken for a regular hatch Edited July 27, 2017 by RVSV2824 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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