2006 Subie STI rebuild

Car looks good!

 

Couple small things added to satisfy my personal taste.

Cobb Tuning reverse shift lockout and Killer B teardrop shift knob. Shitty pic, I should have opened the garage door.

 

When you finish, gotta find some SCCA Autocross races to get into.

 

Definitely has crossed my mind! Also the possibility of doing a track day here or there. Lots of race tracks within a few hours drive.

 

@Empty_Lord likes big knobs

 

Got the Takata air bag recall done finally, last Thursday. I also had them do a diagnostic on the airbag dash light being on.

Not the seat connectors, which is most common. It's complaining about the dash clock connection and the driver side front impact sensor.

Codes are:

DTC 26 - Passenger side airbag indicator failure
DTC 31 - Right front sub-sensor failure

Finally checked wiring diagrams and traced the gauge pod wiring today and confirmed that the wire for the gauge dimmer function is tied into the clock/passenger airbag indicator dimmer wire. This seems to cause issues for the airbag system sometimes and is what is setting off the dash light. The front right sensor is a false positive at this point.

Unplugged the one gauge wire and the airbag dash light finally went off. Plugged the wire back in and so far, it's staying off. I'll be replacing the head unit at some point and will re-wire the gauges when I do that. Found a good how to that describes using the stereo and AC control wires for tapping into for gauges.

More maintenance work done this weekend. And another issue found but caused by the maintenance work just done....

Driver side valve cover was leaking so it got new gaskets. Installation took 2 tries because I'm dumb and followed youtube vids instead of looking at the service manual. I really should know better.





My self-induced mistake was slathering Toyota FIPG over the whole gasket and trying to slap it in there. Pretty dumb on my part.




Of course, this caused one of the corners to pop out when the VC was tightened down.



So, I had to pull the cover off again. Fortunately, the gasket wasn't destroyed and I was able to re-use it after cleaning all the FIPG off everything. Applied fresh FIPG sparingly to the areas on the head mating surface that the service manual called for and then reinstalled the cover, successfully the 2nd time.

And while I was doing the valve cover, I replaced the spark plugs as well as replaced the #3 cylinder coil plug with the broken tab.

The old tab fell apart while I was trying to carefully take the wires out.



New plug from iwire.com. They specialize in Subie related wiring stuff. Anyone know of a place that does that for Toyota wiring stuff?




Old plugs pretty much all looked the same. Running NGK LFR7AIX plugs which are one range colder than stock. Car was tuned with them, so that's what it gets new.



And, the new issue caused by the VC gasket replacement? No more cold AC. The upper AC discharge line has to be moved some to get the oil fill tube around the line. I guess with the age of the car and moving the line, it caused leaks and refrigerant escaped. New discharge line order from rockauto for $15 vs and OEM line at $150.




The green tint means a leak. Both ends have that.

 

Digging this.
Also living vicariously through this thread until I can also find a DD and get goin.

 

Bunch of stuff I had been waiting on came in today, including the big one, the wheels and tires. I can finally start driving the Subie on the regular now!

First was the remaining clips for the cowl panel that I had been waiting for to reinstall it. I replaced all the rubber parts on it except the hood seal, which was still in good shape. I also painted it with Rustoleum Bedliner since it was faded and ugly and wanted to give it a textured look. Happy with the results.

These little rubber end wings were gooey and falling apart, so both sides were replaced along with the rubber molding that runs along the bottom of the windshield.







The biggest thing was finally getting the new wheels and tires. These have made such a huge difference in how the car looks and feels when driving, although I haven't driven more than a few miles with them. One bummer tho, one of the wheel studs stripped out on the front driver side. Looks like someone zapped them on with an impact and cross threaded. Took some work to get it off but the stud is fucked now.



Wheels are Enkei TS-7 Bronze 18x8.5 with +38 backspacing. Tires are Toyo Proxes Sport A/S in 255/35Rx18XL. These are replacing the 18x10.5 rims with stretched 225/45x18 snow tires. That won't hold air and are dry rotted.



Tire comparison. The new tires are the same height as stock tires were. Old ones were a tad taller.





Shitty pic of the goobered up wheel stud. First time I have taken the front wheels off the car.



Really happy with this so far. Lighter than the previous setup as well I think. Haven't weighed them yet.





And the final item, no more stupid grill in the hood! I still need to paint this, have to order the paint for it tho.



The small front scoop is directed at the turbo. The larger rear is to allow heat to escape. There is a divider built into the underside of the scoop. Not sure how well it will work but I like it much better than the grill. With a front mount, and actual OEM scoop is kind of pointless.

 

Hells ya, looks badass with the new wheels!

 

Thanks man! I wasn't sure if I was going to like the 7 spoke look as I wanted to get the Enkei

$140 TS-10 SunFounder 10" Touch Screen for Raspberry Pi 10.1" HDMI 1280x800 IPS LCD Touchscreen for RPi 400 4 Model B 3 Model B+ 3B 2B LattePanda Beagle Bone, Libre Computer Board

TS-10, 10 spoke rims, but they were backordered and I needed to get them quick-ish. But I'm super happy with how these look. Helluva difference IMO.

 

I had the arc reverse scoop years ago , it really does help with removing heat from the bay

 

The grill that was on it when I got it was great for removing heat but I hated the look and having the engine wide open the the elements like that. I don't need a traditional scoop since I have the FMIC so I think this is a good compromise and looks great. Paint for it is ordered, so it should look better in WRB once I paint it. And do the rest of the hood...

 

haha, that is too cool. I know that kid, super nice guy. Guessing you were at the meet?

 

Nice car. When the time is right. I plan on owning one of these

 

More maintenance items today.

Replaced the goobered up wheel stud on the drivers side.





When I was swapping the wheels out, i finally got a good look at the brakes. New pads were in order. Decided against turning the rotors since they are drilled and slotted (already on the car when I got it) and I don't want to have a rotor crack on me. So I bought some inexpensive OEM replacement brake pads to use for now until I can get better rotors, pads and replace the brake lines with braided hose. Spent a good bit of time just cleaning the calipers and backing plates.





While I was doing the passenger side, I needed to pull the CV axle out to replace the inner boot as it was torn completely. Much easier to remove than on the 4Runner or a Tacoma.



I used OEM boot kits since they come with the boot, clamps and grease all in one package. This is the inner side.



The inner boot kit also comes with a new C-clip and snap ring.





Both sides completed, ready for reinstall. I also replaced the axle seal in the diff.



Change out rear brake pads tomorrow and then bleed the whole system.

 

Got the rear brake pads done yesterday and bled the system.

I think they might have needed changed.





Need to change the master cylinder at some point. It works fine but the reservoir plastic is cracked to shit and I haven't found the reservoir separate yet.



Also received and installed the new pitch stop mount.





And today, I finally had the chance and confidence in the car to give it a thorough shake down run thru the mountains. 550 mile round trip, 10 hours of driving. It was a good day. The car did awesome and is so much fun to drive on the windy mountain roads.













Many butterflies perished today.

 

Front wheel well liners came in. Wasn't sure I'd be able to use them or not since the PO had not just rolled the fender lips but actually folded them to the inside of the fender skin. At some point, the car was lowered enough that the fender clearance was needed. Also rubbed the paint off the inner fenders in a few spots from the tires rubbing. But with some work, I have been able to pull the lips back out so I can install the liners. These are super cheap from Rockauto. $14 for one side and the other was a closeout at $7. I didn't get the support brackets, something I might look into later if I feel they are needed.

I'll be driving the car pretty much year round and in all sorts of weather, so having the liners to protect the wiring and help keep things cleaner under the hood and in the door jambs is important to me. I'm not going to lower the car any further than it already is, I want to be able to drive this just about anywhere without worrying if I'll clear a curb or rub the tires on the fender or wheel wells.

Got the passenger side installed tonight, still waiting on the OEM foam door jamb/fender seal for the driver side to come in since that is missing.







This is the driver side, without the door jamb seal and fender liner. You can see just how exposed all the wiring is as well as the inside of the door.



And the front of the fender well. Battery is exposed, wiring and the washer bottle as well as the IC pipes. I'll feel much better with al that covered. Makes it a little more time consuming when the bumper has to come off but the trade off is worth it to me.

 

So. When’s the indiana trip

 

First, CA. Maybe shoot for after winter to head out your way? When's it get decent again out there, May, June, July?

 

April it’s typically decent out