Dave's 2005 STi *SOLD--Evo Time!* R.I.P. 10/4/05 to 10/19/09

[DaveSTi]

Originally Posted by LevittownMonster

Dave how much power you think you are making?

Your guess is as good as mine.

I dynoed at 306whp and 341wtq at 20 psi with the following mods back in March 06:

K&N Typhoon
Helix catted downpipe
3" eBay N1 catback

Since then, I've changed the intake over to the APS 65mm to get rid of the heatsoak I was getting with the Typhoon. I also added the MAF hose and turbo inlet pipe, got the intercooler y-pipe ported, added a Perrin crank pulley, went over to a Borla catback and soon Perrin headers and the Prodrive BCS.

Maybe 320whp?

[DaveSTi]

Originally Posted by rodder

wow this looks to be one of the most well-sorted STis I've seen yet. EXTREMELY nice mod choices. I'm following a similar build style but 2 new shortblocks in 3 months doesn't leave much cash left over for suspension and drivetrain mods. At least I was able to purchase and install my ohlins sportlines before the disaster started.

Thank you I like to build cars up with a complete build. I couldn't care less about if the part is "JDM yo" or who makes it so long as it works the best. Even though the car handles in stock form better than my old cars did with upgraded springs and shocks, it's more about leaving no stone unturned in the build.

[DaveSTi]

Thanks to Josh at Import Image for extra quick shipping of my Perrin headers. I ordered them late Wednesday and had them Friday afternoon! Here are some pics I took of them after taking them out of the box:





Here's where improvement can be made with some slight porting, but for my purposes, I'm just leaving them as is since the runner diameter isn't that large to begin with:

Here's a pic of the collector...


All in all, the previous GT Spec I owned had larger diameter runners and a much cleaner collector. That's ok though, because for my purposes, a proven equal length is the way to go.

So I looked at the directions and saw this:



Then I saw this post by Jeff Perrin:
NASIOC - View Single Post - PERRIN - 2008WRX: Header and Up-pipe

If it's good enough for Jeff, it's good enough for me!


onto the coating:



finished:


I did 3 coats and the can was about empty. You can choose from different color choices, so I went with something close to CGM The finish looks good, with some overspray here and there because I suck with an aerosol can Now it's time to let it dry for 7 days then I'll install it and do the heat break-in through them.

[DaveSTi]

I tried to install the header yesterday.


Good news: My O2 sensor socket fits

Bad news: Only without the ratchet attached


I hope Ryan can schedule an appointment...

[scutzi128]

Installing that damn 02 sensor is such a pain there is simply no room. I used a box wrench to put mine in, I forget the size though.

[DaveSTi]

Originally Posted by scutzi128

Installing that damn 02 sensor is such a pain there is simply no room. I used a box wrench to put mine in, I forget the size though.

I was wondering about using a wrench, but on mine, theres a raised circle edge around where the O2 sensor plugs in that makes getting to the hex impossible. I wonder how you're supposed to remove it with hand tools?

[Honest_Bob]

I have a crow foot type 02 sensor socket that works very well. I use it with a 1/2 ratchet and I think maybe (I dont remember) a very small extension. Soak that thing in PB blaster every 10 minutes for half an hour and it comes right off. You can borrow my setup it if you need.

[DaveSTi]

Originally Posted by Honest_Bob

I have a crow foot type 02 sensor socket that works very well. I use it with a 1/2 ratchet and I think maybe a very small extension. You can borrow it if you need.

Awesome, thank you! I just sent Ryan a PM to see if he could schedule an appointment for me. I'll definitely let you know if I could use that tool. I have the o2 sensor socket that fits well, but my ratchet is too big to fit in that small space without hitting sheetmetal

[DaveSTi]

Thanks to matt, I got and installed the kartboy pitch stop mount today. Makes a nice difference in smoothing out the shifts during momentum changes. very easy to install too, took me 20 minutes to pop off the intercooler, swap mounts, and swap the intercooler back on thanks to helping matt out with his.

[DaveSTi]

Trying to get my header and ebcs installed this weekend and the car retuned. I'm thinking I may take up SOG on some tint for the car too.

The ceramic coating in a can turned out great. It's plenty gritty, which is good, and I'm hoping it can handle the heat longtime. We'll find out.

[DaveSTi]

Header installed by Ryan. He also ran the wideband on my car to check my AFRs and they looked pretty good so I may not need that retune after all.

AREA1320 rocks.

[DaveSTi]

So after talking with Ryan and Drake last night about my power goals and what I use the car for, they've convinced me that a 20g is the way for me to go with my car. That way I give up basically nothing for spool and get the topend I'd like without it dying off like my 39 does.

Ryan and Drake took my car for a spin on the DD settings that I tinkered with on my T2's and the comments from them had to make me feel great about this entire build so far. Ryan said the handling was insane and the car is a handling monster. Some concern over the twitchiness of the setup with the big front swaybar.

Drake came back and asked who tuned the car because it was the hardest hitting VF39 he's driven. The handling was beyond what he could do on the street and said the steering was really twitchy too.

haha, so I thought about it and I think I know why it's so twitchy to them:

X-Brace, 500/400 spring rates, ALK, RCA, and the Vorshlag plates. My caster is 6.3 degrees as well. Plus, the STi comes with a quicker rack than the WRX did too. Maybe that all conspired to make the car overly reactive to their steering inputs beyond what they're used to. (Here I am considering a Q-Rack so I was a bit surprised when they both said that).

The wideband showed my car hitting 14.6-14.7:1 under part throttle, dipping down to 13.6:1 under partial boost, and going from 10.6:1-10.8:1 to 11.2:1 under WOT. So the AFRs are very healthy. A retune could clean it up some I suppose and with timing and AVCS work, could probably get more power out of it, but I'm happy with it as is.

The car torque steers to the left under WOT, which makes me giggle.

The header coating smells better than the turbo wrap I put on the car a long time ago. Still smells. The Cobb heatshield rattles ( I really should replace it with a Cusco).

After talking about my car use and goals, Ryan and Drake both felt a 20g was the way to go for me. I trust Ryan with my car. Therefore, 20g it is. I plan on the following:

-Spearco TMIC
-Blouch TD06 8cm 20g
-EWG
-TGV deletes
-DW 850cc injectors
-APS 70mm CAI

Still unsure of what up-pipe to run for the EWG with so many cracking, having bad EWG designs, or having a flex section. I'll have to run that by Ryan.

Oh...about the Perrin header. Sound-wise it's a radical departure from the boxer rumble. There is a lot less bass from my exhaust system which I actually like since it was overpowering at times. Ryan says the car sounds like a cross between a 2 liter and an EVO. It sounds pissed off! I kind of like it, but I will miss the burble. ah well. Power-wise, its no contest. It feels like a cork was popped off, very smooth midrange delivery now. When I romp on it, the car accelerates in the midrange a lot quicker than before. I'm going to need better tires to keep this power down at the track.

Well worth it.

[Honest_Bob]

Sounds like a good plan to me.

[DaveSTi]

Originally Posted by Honest_Bob

Sounds like a good plan to me.

how do you like yours?

[Honest_Bob]

Originally Posted by DaveSTi

how do you like yours?

Its a little laggy, but if I had an extra .5L it would be perfect.

[DaveSTi]

Originally Posted by Honest_Bob

Its a little laggy, but if I had an extra .5L it would be perfect.

nice..what EWG setup did you go with? got a dyno printout?

[Bobert540]

Nice work! Sounds like you have made solid progress so far. I look forward to reading about the 20g upgrade.

[rocco]

the car has come along way, just curious why did you replace the seats? were your seats beat up or were you looking for something different? no offense but those evo seats look a little grimey?

[Honest_Bob]

Originally Posted by DaveSTi

nice..what EWG setup did you go with? got a dyno printout?

The first setup I had was a custom one done by Ryan. It was a cheap uppipe and never fit very well (not Ryans fault). I've got a grimmspeed ewg pipe now. My only complaint with it is that the dump tube rest against my hks flat flange downpipe, a hammer fixed that.

I'm not sure how cost effective it would be to have Ryan fab you up an ewg setup (using an aftermarket uppipe) vs a kit. I would talk with him. He would be able to fab you up something that fits just right.

Here is my dyno chart. The dyno reads the boost about 3 psi to high. I'm only running 19lbs (forgot the high boost spring for the mbc when I got tuned ) The 20G laughs at 19lbs. From what I've been told they really wake up at 23lbs.

http://gallery.honest-bob.com/d/8044...se_final+_.jpg

[DaveSTi]

Originally Posted by rocco

the car has come along way, just curious why did you replace the seats? were your seats beat up or were you looking for something different? no offense but those evo seats look a little grimey?

STi seats are one of the main culprits behind why the car bobbleheads so badly (that and the crap stock struts with no bump travel that ride on the bumpstops).

So with the T2's and their spring rates, the stock seat springs were at that perfect frequency where they'd move up and down over the road. That got annoying VERY quick.

The seats look grimy in that pic because I hadn't cleaned them yet with Folex. ;)

They aren't as quality-made as the stock STi seats are, surprisingly, but they're a TON better for holding me in and not bouncing.