The curse of the Baja contiues.

[Subie_sleeper]

Popped again. Worse than the ring gear this time. Cant swing PPG's now that we have a house. Stock parts band-aid round two.

[Subie_sleeper]

most likely the front diff. metal poured out of the drainplug. hopefully thats the full extent of the damage. if i need to replace the diff and the gearset you'll all probably hear the scream no matter where you are. Wish me luck , I should know tomorrow.

[CiZiN]

hahahaha sorry I had to. Good luck

[Honest_Bob]

ouch! :eek:

[Intercooled T]

I thought this thing was tuned and turn-key sleeper? what happened? too much power for the stock parts?

[Ender81]

You might want to re-think the run until the spring when your trans is happier and healthier.

[Honest_Bob]

I thought this thing was tuned and turn-key sleeper? what happened? too much power for the stock parts?

300lbs of tq + stock 5 speed tranny + fun = bye bye tranny. :o

[ray@turbotek]

rob you still owe me dinner lol

[Subie_sleeper]

looks like taco bell ray. Hopefully i'll know the extent of the damage tomorrow. if parts of the ring gear made it all the way through the trans i'm f@#$%d .Rebuilding it with stock parts will be cheaper plus i get my discount at work , but its just a matter of time till it pops again. Andrewtech gave me a ballpark figure of 5500 to 6500 bucks to rebuild it w ppg gears and a front lsd . that would mean driving the thing down there in the back of the wifes 06 Outback XT Ltd. shes not to thrilled with that idea. lol. oh well, they say speed costs money. as always i learn the hard way.

[Subie_sleeper]

I thought this thing was tuned and turn-key sleeper? what happened? too much power for the stock parts?

looks that way. oh well thats what they make credit cards for.i just have to be extra nice to the wife. shes not too happy right now. the terms ppg , andrewtech , trans and It's better than using stock parts that will just break again ...etc cause an instant color change from white to red and little veins pop out.. its scary:eek:

[OMGz Turbo]

Damn bro well hope the best for ya.

[Ender81]

oh well, they say speed costs money. as always i learn the hard way.

Come on now you were warned that your trans wouldn't take what you wanted to do with the car. Sucks it was so soon though

[ray@turbotek]

cool rob please let me know how you make out, i know this puerto rican guy that tunes selling an 06 6 speed for about 3800 has 14k miles on it

[Buster]

cool rob please let me know how you make out, i know this puerto rican guy that tunes selling an 06 6 speed for about 3800 has 14k miles on it

haha, hey I know that Puerto Rican guy too, hes a good seller!

[Ender81]

Rob no worries I didn't get any of your previous messages so you are still fine lol. When I get a chance I will give you a ring.

[Subie_sleeper]

that would actually be do-able Ray. only problem is the 4.44 rears in mine probably won't get along too well with the 3.90s in the 6 speed. switching rear diffs would a. cost more and b. require axle swap as well. see a. does anyone know if its possible to swap ring and pinions from a 5 speed to a six speed? I'm guessing not , or wayyy to much money.

[Subie_sleeper]

I forgot to post this last night. 1-5 and reverse are not damaged at all. the ring and pinion are gone and so is the center diff. the best explanation I got from the tech at work (besides the obvious Bajas are not supposed to be faster than stock STI s ) is that powering through turns with a front wheel spinning (repeatedly) put way too much stress on the front and center diff s. I'm having them fix it with all stock parts and plan to by a used trans from Weddes. The low mileage trans gets shipped to Andrewtech for a PPG rebuild as soon as they get the right gears in , and all will be right in the world. I'll just have to sell a lot more Subies and get used to Raman noodles for a while. :-)

[Subie_sleeper]

The Baja is finally back on the road. Thanks to Andy at Verocious for adjusting my maps and for the heads up on needing to get the wastegate ported. It takes an hour and a half to get there and 3/4 s of a tank to make the round trip but it's definitly worth it.

[)><(((x>]

I just popped in 'cause I saw you're username was subie sleeper and I would just like to complement you on a SICK subaru. I like the idea of taking the Baja and making it into what you have. Thumbs up to you my friend, thumbs up!

(besides the obvious Bajas are not supposed to be faster than stock STI s ) I found that to be especially funny.

[Subie_sleeper]

I just popped in 'cause I saw you're username was subie sleeper and I would just like to complement you on a SICK subaru. I like the idea of taking the Baja and making it into what you have. Thumbs up to you my friend, thumbs up!

(besides the obvious Bajas are not supposed to be faster than stock STI s ) I found that to be especially funny.

Thanks . I'm driving a lot more conservatively now , though thats still not saying much.lol. I'm waiting on a quote from Andy @ Verocious on a PPG trans and LSD install. Till then , no banging gears and no holeshots.

[jwan01]

Hey man, sorry to hear about your trans. Remember me? I picked up that 04 WRX from you on my birthday last May. I traded in that beautiful :rotfl: GC RS for it.

[Subie_sleeper]

Here we go again. Yesterday , on the way to the mall........
First..........Second........Thir.....BANG!!! :furious: It was bound to happen. I'm not gonna cry about my bad luck. Modded cars break , I know it. I just don't have to like it. lol.My friend Rob came right over to steer the Baja home.(we drug it back a mile and a half with my 4X4 cub cadet)I'm hoping to have it together by the weekend so I don't miss the crab run. Stock parts again 'cause PPG's are not in the budget right now. I wanted to play , now I have to pay , AGAIN. :mad:

[CiZiN]

Rob!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Subie_sleeper]

Boo Boo Baja

[Subie_sleeper]

Hopefull working at the dealer might have an impact on whether its gonna be covered under the 5/60 powertrain. I'm not very optimistic though.

[TROLL]

Please put your money toward something worthwhile at least... this is obviously going to continue to happen and continue to cost you money. If you get a 6 speed or PPGs it'll be the end of your worries and driving your car will be more fun, believe me. Just trying to look out for you... the 6 speed swap is probably my favorite mod ever to the car because it allows me to enjoy every other part that much more.

[Subie_sleeper]

I've researched the options. Six speed needs axle conversion and the correct rear diff also. 4.44s in my trans 3.90s in sti. PPG's .... hell yeah , but unless i hit the lottery its a hell no. Not enough cash to do it comfortably right now , and a personal loan for a trans is not gonna happen. Thanks for the good advise , sadly $$$ is the limiting factor here.

[Subie_sleeper]

For got to add .... I can pay the bill for stock parts off in accounts recievable at work a little bit each month.

[Ender81]

Sorry to hear it Rob.

[TROLL]

six speed can be adapted to your axles pretty easily and inexpensively, and you can either swap in $150 worth of the proper ring and pinion into your original rear diff or you can probably find a properly geared wrx rear diff for $200 or less (gearing will depend on model year of the 6mt: 3.9 for 04-05 6mt, 3.54 for 06+ 6mt)

[Ender81]

I've researched the options. Six speed needs axle conversion and the correct rear diff also. 4.44s in my trans 3.90s in stiand the wife not to kill me. . PPG's .... hell yeah , but unless i hit the lottery its a hell no,because the wife will kill me. Not enough cash to do it comfortably right now ,because the wife will kill me, and a personal loan for a trans is not gonna happen,because the wife will kill me. . Thanks for the good advise , sadly $$$ is the limiting factor here.and because the wife will kill me.


Troll I have edited Rob's post. Everything left unsaid is in Red. :-p

[TROLL]

hahah understood loud and clear. if you need any help with info on what will and wont work feel free to get in touch and if i can help i will.

[Subie_sleeper]

A MIRACLE HAPPENED!!!! I got a loan the PPGs are ORDERED and best of all...... she knows AND DIDN'T KILLME!!!!!!!! (yet:eek:)

[CiZiN]

haha no the truck will be louder yet... great!

[Subie_sleeper]

1-4 helical

[AREA1320]

Rob...



I giggle in your direction...




teeheehee.. :P

[TROLL]

haha ok that was a turn of events i didnt quite expect, but thats pretty awesome. glad i'm just about the only subie in the area that doesnt have ppgs now...
want to do a billet shift fork upgrade with that new trans? i have a set of used ones i'm selling at almost half price :) not that i want to contribute to your debt...

[Subie_sleeper]

depends on what half price =. this is a line of credit with peoples first federal credit unuion. i don't want my second morgage on the car too high. lmao.

[Subie_sleeper]

Rob...



I giggle in your direction...




teeheehee.. :P

thanks. Were you planning on getting back to me to finish the gauges , or waiting for another call? It's been so long I forgot where we are. LOL. Doesn't matter now. As you know from experience with ppgs , those f ers are not cheap. Just dust off the gauges once a month and maybe our schedules will click someday. It's only been 7 or 8 months right?

[240_fun]

Wooo hooo
Ever since they came out Ive always wanted to mod a Baja
Then again i was like 12 ish when they came out so even now im prolly more broke than you lol
GL with everything man!

[Subie_sleeper]

thanks man. It's nice to hear. I don't know what I was thinking when I started getting crazy with the mods , but it's wayyy too late to stop now. I wonder what'll be next? Bottom end ? Turbo? Center diff? Small plane crash onto me on 78 when I'm driving to work? I'm going to a church and asking for holy water for the radiator or something. It needs an exorcism. Or someone to pull the loose nut out from behind the wheel. :)

[TROLL]

Half price of really expensive originally = $450 which is my asking price on NASIOC. I'd sell them for $400 picked up to a TST homie though. They come highly recommended by Andrewtech, but of course it all adds up so maybe do some research on them and see where the budget falls.

http://www.bryantroll.com/other/ppg/images/IMG_0208.jpg

And if you're going to need these bearings which are $75 each from subarugenuineparts.com then I'll add them in for $75 total. They are factory sealed...
http://www.bryantroll.com/other/ppg/images/IMG_0222.jpg

You can have the shim for FREE (saves you almost $2!)
http://www.bryantroll.com/other/ppg/images/IMG_0225.jpg

Also free... not factory sealed, not sure where they go or if you even need them...
http://www.bryantroll.com/other/ppg/images/IMG_0220.jpg

[Subie_sleeper]

I'll let you know by friday. I'm going to see if the credit unuion will lend me a little more. I'm really tapped out because of this.If they say yes , I'll say yes. Oh, I will be replacing the bearings , but will get them at work .I get 25% off of actual dealer cost. Thanks for lookin' out man. TST kicks ass!

[Honest_Bob]

poor baja. :o

[Subie_sleeper]

Its ok Ben , she's just waiting for her transplant. resting peacefully. free from crazed driving.... flying objects .... senior citizens that drive into her in traffic on 476.... Just resting. FOR NOW:mrgreen:

[TROLL]

I wish everyone would get a $10k bonus this year... it bums me out when money is an issue with stuff that people love. On the other hand, I'll be the first to admit that cars are pretty stupid.

[Subie_sleeper]

True. so verry true. Now what do we buy next? lol

[Ender81]

I'll let you know by friday. I'm going to see if the credit unuion will lend me a little more. I'm really tapped out because of this.If they say yes , I'll say yes. Oh, I will be replacing the bearings , but will get them at work .I get 25% off of actual dealer cost. Thanks for lookin' out man. TST kicks ass!

**COUGH450gettheinstalldoneinmdCOUGH**

Sorry crazy allergies.:wink:

[Subie_sleeper]

Don, I talked to Dan again today. In Depth. I told him the credentials of the tech performing the install. He is confident that the tech at work will be fine and have no problem at all considering the number of suby 5 speeds he does a year. Therefore so am I. If Dan would have said there might be a problem I'd be taking a day off work in two weeks to go down to Andrewtech.. Thanks for looking out for me. I do apreciate it.

[Erik]

goodluck with your repair. you ass of a driver :-p

[Ender81]

Don, I talked to Dan again today. In Depth. I told him the credentials of the tech performing the install. He is confident that the tech at work will be fine and have no problem at all considering the number of suby 5 speeds he does a year. Therefore so am I. If Dan would have said there might be a problem I'd be taking a day off work in two weeks to go down to Andrewtech.. Thanks for looking out for me. I do apreciate it.

I guess my point is a very simple one. With all the bad luck, why bother tempting fate? You can go good but why not just have it done by the best? Just saying you know.

[Subie_sleeper]

I absolutely get your point. But....
A) The "BEST" have given their blessing and made me comfortable with the current plan.
B) There are cars all over the us and other countries with ppgs. I'm guessing that only a few of them shipped their trannys to Md. for a rebuild. See (A)

[Ender81]

I absolutely get your point. But....
A) The "BEST" have given their blessing and made me comfortable with the current plan.

I'm willing to bet though Dan wasn't on the phone saying "the guy with three years experience is just as good as coming here" :-p

Hey it's your car just make sure you don't break it on my run :wink:

[LilSubiedrvr]

Good luck Rob!

[Subie_sleeper]

I won't break the trans at least.:mrgreen: Two of your runs under my belt so far and the only problems I had were a slow leak on a tire and a fog light taken out cause the guy in front of me didn't stay on the road. :lol:

[Subie_sleeper]

oh yeah , thanks Liz. :mrgreen:

[AREA1320]

Rob, the problem is... If there is a problem with the "gears" good luck getting Andrewtech to do anything about it... I would have them do the install. I know how factory techs are... their idiots ;P

[Subie_sleeper]

thanks Ryan. I talked to Dan at Andrewtech for about 30 minutes regarding the install here at work. The tech doing the work really does know his ****. Dan is also fine with talking him through any issues on the phone if need be. I ordered the entire kit so he'll have everything he needs. I'll let you know when I'm back on the road. Then Maybee you can get me on the schedule to finish the gauges.

[Subie_sleeper]

PPGs are in the air! I hope that the plane doesn't have any Lost / Castaway issues just because parts for the Baja are on it.:mrgreen: Scheduled to be in Maryland by Thursday or Friday. I should be back on the road by next Wednesday at the latest barring any unforseen gremlins.

[Honest_Bob]

PPGs are in the air! I hope that the plane doesn't have any Lost / Castaway issues just because parts for the Baja are on it.:mrgreen: Scheduled to be in Maryland by Thursday or Friday. I should be back on the road by next Wednesday at the latest barring any unforseen gremlins.

Which plane are they on?? :devil:

[Subie_sleeper]

SILENCE!!!!!! I KEEL YOU! :) Ben, while the Baja is down I'm having our touch-up guy fix the bumper from the when we went down to Delaware and he's gonna fill in those the holes from the de-badgeing.As for the plane , I'm pretty sure it's the one having all kinds of problems. lol

[DaveSTi]

Hey man, thanks again for the help yesterday with my sirius radio purchase!! it's great to know an enthusiast is at Becker now!

Your trans is going to be bulletproof, no worries there. Hope the Baja gets back on the road ASAP!

[Subie_sleeper]

Any time! BTW My PPGs might be here today! Andrewtech shipped them UPS yesterday. Even if they don't get here today I'll be back on the road by midweek.:mrgreen:

[Ender81]

I'll be sure to pray for it lol

[Subie_sleeper]

PPGs are here! I'll be on the road by Monday or Tuesday. :banana:

[CiZiN]

I'm not praying for the car, I am praying for that poor rear... =) Glad to see your happy again Rob. Can I have my razors back now?

[Subie_sleeper]

LOL Now we can turn up da boost!

[Ender81]

LOL Now we can turn up da boost!

On the stock clutch? Don't break down on my run lol:-p

[DaveSTi]

PPGs are here! I'll be on the road by Monday or Tuesday. :banana:

Sweeeeeeeeet!

[Subie_sleeper]

On the stock clutch? Don't break down on my run lol:-p

I wont break down. Try not to get any more body damage before your run. :-p

[Ender81]

I wont break down. Try not to get any more body damage before your run. :-p

I'm not worried...are you? lol

[Subie_sleeper]

Not at all. Dan e-mailed me a list of all the Subaru part #'s needed so we have the correct syncros. I'll be back on the road by Monday or Tuesday. I'll be scheduling with Ray shortly thereafter to get the damn top speed limiter off. Then I'll be ordering a Forge Performance boost actuator for the VF39 so it won't bleed of pressure so quickly. I wish I had gotten more info on the pro's and con's of porting a wastegate before I had Ryan do it. Andy told me it would fix my problem.Unfortunately I had a problem with the tune (like a lot of other people that went there it seems) not the turbo. Porting the turbo was just a patch. Now the VF39 won't hold more than 17 pounds. Once the actuator is in I should be able to run 20 pounds safely according to Germaine at TurboXS. At least when all is said and done I'll feel safer with the PPGs in there. I just hope Gary's concerns on the rear diff don't manifest right away.

[CiZiN]

Ohh don't get me wrong Rob, I am not concerned. It is simple car enthusiast math. The weakest link will break. Not if but will. Be gentle to the thing and you will be fine. Sliding sideways into church on Sunday morning isn't a good idea.

[Ender81]

Rear diff you are the weakest link.......Goodbye................................ ........Oh yeah I know how sad that was

[CiZiN]

now now lets not get Rob down, I want to hear this winey baja... I am sure it will be nuts after you get the rest of the stuff fixed up.

[TROLL]

Wastegate size and shape is just one element of many in a delicate balance of turbo and exhaust design. You want to just reshape the leading edge to the wg opening slightly, and not touch anything else. Do less than you think you need to, the results are very sensitive to the porting that is done. Of course I only leaned this after it was too late for myself and I also learned the hard way that more is not better and ran into a similar problem that you did. I ran a helper spring because no upgraded wg actuators were available at that time, but it achieves the same result, and it works.

[Ender81]

now now lets not get Rob down, I want to hear this winey baja... I am sure it will be nuts after you get the rest of the stuff fixed up.

Oh yeah I am sure too. Just the usual project car things, when it's not this it will be something else, same with all of us.

[Subie_sleeper]

Thanks guys. I'll let you know. I'm wondering if 1st and 2nd will be noticeably louder since i went helical 1-4.

[AREA1320]

Wastegate size and shape is just one element of many in a delicate balance of turbo and exhaust design. You want to just reshape the leading edge to the wg opening slightly, and not touch anything else. Do less than you think you need to, the results are very sensitive to the porting that is done. Of course I only leaned this after it was too late for myself and I also learned the hard way that more is not better and ran into a similar problem that you did. I ran a helper spring because no upgraded wg actuators were available at that time, but it achieves the same result, and it works.

his wg port was very very light. Just enough to do its job. Since it WAS doing its job, Im willing to bet a cracked housing is becoming an issue.

I don't care what anyone says... cracked wg ports WILL cause boost issues.. I've seen it on EVERY VF39 I have come across

[Subie_sleeper]

I'm pretty sure you told me a lot of material was removed when you ported it.:confused:

[Ender81]

Thanks guys. I'll let you know. I'm wondering if 1st and 2nd will be noticeably louder since i went helical 1-4.

It'll be the same as mine so yes. But keep in mind every set of ppg gears can sound different.

[Subie_sleeper]

Thanks Don.

[Subie_sleeper]

I'll have the Baja tomorrow. The tech overhauling the trans made sure that everything is moving the right way inside the case before he closes it up. I might have been able to get it back today , but he didn't want to rush. One of the guys said "You know this thing is probably going to sond like a dump truck going down the road." I can only hope.:supz:

[Ender81]

. One of the guys said "You know this thing is probably going to sond like a dump truck going down the road." I can only hope.:supz:

It won't lol

[CiZiN]

it will sound like a geo metro in reverse going down a mountain with a huge purple hippo on the hood drinking pink kool-aid

[Subie_sleeper]

yayyyyy!

[Subie_sleeper]

The case is going back in today! There is a concern that the gears are a little tight inside the case though. After a 20 minute phone call with Andrew from Andrewtech , the plan is to put it back together and run it. If something bad happens Andrew is going to take care of it. Seriously kick ass customer service! We'll see what happens.

[Subie_sleeper]

Woo Hoo!!! Uber loud gears work! :mrgreen: After some initial concern from the techs here I called Andrew and told him what the case was doing. He says everything sounds normal. I'm heading down there on Saturday. he agreed to meet up for lunch and to drive the BAJA! Life is good.:lol:

[Subie_sleeper]

Well , the case is breaking in. I'm driving as carefully as I can. There is still a lot of noise in 1st gear and the syncros are pretty stiff. I hope it makes it down to Andrewtech on Saturday. Everyone can feel free to start the I told you sos. LOL One of these years I'll learn something the easy way.

[CiZiN]

does it sound like a
geo metro in reverse going down a mountain with a huge purple hippo on the hood drinking pink kool-aid

[AREA1320]

Rob, if it is tight going into gear, don't sweat it... Thats normal

[Subie_sleeper]

Andrew and Dan are driving up here tomorrow morning. They are bringing everything necessary to fix the trans. Both think that I got a bad 1st and 2nd set. There is Definately something wrong. Andrewtech has the best customer service ever. I'm covering their gas and taking them to lunch. That's all they want.

[Ender81]

You're lucky they are that good lol.

[DaveSTi]

Andrew and Dan are driving up here tomorrow morning. They are bringing everything necessary to fix the trans. Both think that I got a bad 1st and 2nd set. There is Definately something wrong. Andrewtech has the best customer service ever. I'm covering their gas and taking them to lunch. That's all they want.

ugh. well, glad they'll be handling it.

[Subie_sleeper]

All is well. 1st has been replaced and nothing else was wrong. I should be rolling again tonight!

[Ender81]

Rob, if it is tight going into gear, don't sweat it... Thats normal

It wasn't just tight it was near impossible lol.

[Subie_sleeper]

News flash. The tech suggested replacing the clutch , there was one in stock surprise surprise. I said ok. The old one was fractured and metal fell out! LMAO. $200 less 25% for the parts and a hell of a headache saved. Yay factory tech

[Subie_sleeper]

Just drove the Baja. It is just what I expected. Yay