Horhay's 2005 STi...the makeover begins

[horhay]

sounds good man, we're done for the day, check out the pics from today!


IC piping installed


Close up of the AC extension lines installed


Quick look between the front of the engine and the V-Mount


Test fit of the radiator ducting


Angled shot showing the support bar, hood latch support bracket, and test fit of the ducting







Test fit of the bumper and grille

After this point I hit a snag having to do with some previous work I had done on the car. I don't want to go into it anymore than that, but suffice it to say, when I started the car to check for coolant leaks, I poured about 2 quarts of oil onto my garage floor. I'll get that fixed asap and hopefully be back in business! Anyone have any requests for pics while I still have some sunlight out there?

[ozthunder]

Your **** is stank

We need to get together dude!

[CHAOS]

how often do you drive this on the streets? im just wondering the chances of banging up that radiator

[horhay]

Thanks Dylan...

I haven't driven my car on the streets in something like 8 months. Its my 3rd string car, behind my 03 X5 and 97 Legacy. I really only drive it for auto-x's and to go to get togethers. I bought it in Sept 04, and put 24k miles on it by Sept 05, and it has barely 26k now, in May 07. Thats how rarely it gets driven.

[horhay]

no updates yet, just wanted to bounce Buster from the top spot

[horhay]

Intake has arrived and been installed.







Here's one to show everyone how the radiator sits compared to my (mangled) bumper.

[horhay]

The STi came out of the garage for the first time in around a year yesterday. It got loaded onto a trailer and towed up to Andrewtech Automotive in Gaithersburg, MD. They'll be fixing an oil leak and then looking over all the systems on the car to make sure that its road worthy before it goes for a tune. I figured since the dang thing hasn't been driven in so long that I'd better make sure it still knows what to do!

[CHAOS]

haha awesome man, let us know how it works out... wheres the leak?

[horhay]

I'm not sure, but its almost as if an oil line is just off somewhere, I'm sure they'll fix it in time for the Subaru Challenge!

[Chris_PA]

Very sick car
Awesome work

[CHAOS]

Originally Posted by horhay

I'm not sure, but its almost as if an oil line is just off somewhere, I'm sure they'll fix it in time for the Subaru Challenge!

subaru challenge? r u talking about the evo vs wrx at e-town or something different?

[horhay]

Subaru Challenge is a big Subaru only autocross event. Its a good time for sure! You should definately come down to MD for it, even if you don't autox, its fun just to hang out.

2007 Mid Atlantic Region Event #1
Ripken Field - Baltimore, Maryland - September 22nd, 2007


The Subaru of America Mid Atlantic Region is pleased to host the 2007 Subaru Challenge Event Mid Atlantic Region Event #1 at Ripken Field in Baltimore, Maryland.

I would like to take this opportunity to tell you what the Mid Atlantic Region Subaru Challenge is and what it is not.

It is…

· A Subaru customer appreciation event designed to enhance your Subaru ownership experience.

· An exclusive, Subaru only event. No other make vehicle will be allowed to compete.

· Your opportunity to have fun with your fellow Subaru enthusiasts and to meet some of them in person for the first time.

· Your opportunity to test your Subaru’s capabilities and your driving skills in a controlled and safe environment.

· Your opportunity to see some pretty tricked out Subaru’s and be able to talk to their owner/creators.

What the Mid Atlantic Region Subaru Challenge is not…

· It is not and never will be a forum for Subaru personnel to take pictures and record VIN’s to void future warranty claims.

· A boring waste of your time.

Please accept our personal invitation to attend this 2007 Mid Atlantic Region Subaru Challenge Event. Keep checking this site for more details and take a look at the previous events section. It only costs $TBA to participate and you will have ten times that much fun if you attend. Take advantage of the On-Line Registration (Coming Soon!) as only 125 entries will be accepted and we look forward to seeing you in Baltimore!

Entry Fee: TBA

Entry Fee includes participation in the Subaru Challenge event competition and refreshments at the event.

Official Ripken Event Hotel:

TBA

Maps & Directions:

Click Here for directions to Ripken Field

Participating Dealers:

TBA

on-Line Registration - Entry List - Event Regulations

I registered at www.myautoevents.com and it cost $40.

[horhay]

Update from the guys at Andrewtech:

The car is running with no more oil leak. Apparently there was a missing gasket on the oil drain fitting on the turbo. That has been cleared up though and they are now just completing a thorough check of the car to make sure everything is working as it should. They did find an issue with a power steering line, so that is being replaced as well.

That leaves just a couple things for me to work on for the time being.

1. The car needs a new front bumper, and I'm having a heck of a time finding one that I like but is also not ridiculously expensive. My favorite front end out there is the Burn-Up WRC03 front end, but $1200 for an unpainted bumper makes me flinch a bit.

2. The car will DEFINITELY need a tune. I'm thinking Agile Auto for that. I guess I should call and see if they have any time for me.

3. I think its time for tires. The stock RE070's (3 are even the original tires!) have been good to me but I think they're getting close to their life cycle.

So anyone have any suggestions for any of those three issues?

[CHAOS]

1 are you looking for aftermarket or OEM?

2.why not verocious/andy? they are in wilmington now. agile has an equally good rep im just wondering.

3. RE-01R's.

[horhay]

1. I'd like to do something different, like a non-flashy aftermarket item, but I'll probably end up with a stock STi front end with a V-limited lip. :yawn:

2. verocious/Andy? the old xotic guy? Hmm, Wilmington is much closer...do you have any contact info?

3. I'll keep those in mind

[CHAOS]

http://vertexnow.com/Verocious-Motor...4Pa38Ta38Lchz0

and yes its the guy from xotic... they got bought out and moved to wilmington..

[Broken5hift]

one of the best sti's i've ever seen.

[redwrxwagon02]

i was tuned at Agile and its definately worth the drive and the money hes booked up alot for a reason ;) you can trust those guys over there at Agile

[horhay]

Yeah, still not sure who I want to do the tune. The car is already in MD so if I can just coordinate a tune with when I pick up the car, Agile won't be too far away.

Originally Posted by Broken5hift

one of the best sti's i've ever seen.

Thanks man!

[horhay]

Alright. So I picked the car up yesterday. Anyone notice I didn't reply to my journal yesterday? Thats because I was out driving it as much as I possibly could! I don't know if its because I haven't driven the car in over a year but the car is just so much fun! Not just the power, the handling, the steering, the shifting, the sounds, all of it! Man, I'd forgotten what I was missing. Enough about that though, here's how everything went yesterday at Agile, and the real story about the car.

As everyone knows, Agile Auto is an extremely busy shop. I had made an appointment for August 15th or so to get my tune done. Unfortunately, the car had developed a serious idle issue, so the car couldn't be tuned that day. Hill and his crew used their free time over the next several weeks to diagnose the idle. From what I remember, the AFR was going from extremely rich to extremely lean just about every second. The MAF voltage was pretty much pinned, meaning that it wasn't the intake that was the problem. Anyway, after many different tests and alot of head scratching, the injectors were replaced (PE 650cc instead of the Helix which seemed to have issues with sealing)and the O2 sensor was replaced. At this point, Hill was confident that there were no other issues with the car, so he told me it was ready to tune. Too bad there were no openings in his schedule to get the tune done.

Annie came to the rescue and was able to sneak me in for yesterday morning. I worked out a ride to Agile for my wife and I, and I left work early to head out there. Turns out I had left work too late though, and I was going to be late, so I called Annie and told them to start without me. When I arrived, Hill informed me that the car was down on power (the gas in the car was from 2005...) and that I needed a new exhaust. Well, not needed, but I wasn't going to make any power with the stock midpipe and the Genome axle back. After the tune he re-emphasized this when he told me that he was nervous about getting too aggressive with the tune because of the back pressure in the exhaust and he shined a flashlight into my muffler to show how small it really is. He said I could easily see, with this tune, a 20whp increase from just a 3" catback. Maybe in time I'll decide to get that 3" exhaust and another tune, but right now I'm happy with what we came up with. What did we come up with you ask? Well, without divulging any numbers just yet, we came up with a 20G STi that feels like a V8 in the lower speeds. Third and fourth gear in this car are downright scary. The thrust is immediate when you depress the go pedal, and the 20G is at full boost of 19psi by 3500 or so. Hill gave me exactly what I was looking for while keeping the tune safe enough for my scarred psyche. As he said, there is still alot left on the table with this setup (if I change the exhaust) but for the time being I'm happy with the power levels.

Where are the numbers you ask? Without pulling out my dyno sheet they are 325/325. Like I said, a lot left on the table (80whp with an exhaust and tune doesn't sound out of line). If you think those numbers are low, come get a ride at the Subaru Challenge and you'll see why I'm extremely happy with this car!

I have to find my camera cable before I can upload the two pics and a couple vids that I remembered to take yesterday.

In other news, I picked up an 07 STi passenger seat and began converting it into an office chair last night. I should have that finished soon as well.