Boostin1657615274

Just drove beside a Silver LGT yesterday on US-1 N near downtown Raleigh with either Megan or Stromung exhaust on it. Who was it?

Sure. Actually, here is one that was on my last car: http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a332/jrroszko/Nopi%20Nationals%202007/Nopi012.jpg I saved it after I sold the car, it will be going on my dad's FD RX-7 soon, which is even more appropriate.

Show off funny vanity plates if you spotted one. Here is a site dedicated to the 100 Top Rated License plates: http://www.coolpl8z.com/top-100-best-vanity-license-plate-ideas.php Some of my favorties: http://www.coolpl8z.com/pl8z/final/coolpl8z_Bronco.jpg http://www.coolpl8z.com/pl8z/final/coolpl8z_658914.jpg http://www.coolpl8z.com/pl8z/final/coolpl8z_nverla8.jpg

Fresh spotting in North Cackalacky http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a332/jrroszko/Funny/DSCF2046.jpg http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a332/jrroszko/Funny/DSCF2047.jpg

Any time you are doing a motor build (any motor build really) you have to ask yourself a lot of questions first. 1. Will you be depending on this car--as in, when it runs will you need to keep it running? 2. Are you be making payments on this car? How much of a concern is depreciation and ease of resale? 3. How often do you think you will drive it? I think people have a lot of trouble estimating this. People who do hardcore builds end up wanting to drive the car more than they expected, and grow tired of certain parts they chose for the car. Other people think they'll love the thing and drive it all the time, but it just sits there because it's impractical or because they got bored with it for whatever reason. 4. How much power do you want to make? Now take the number you just came up with and add 10-25% to that value. That's how much power you will really want to make after the car has been running for a while. Trust me on this one.

This was mentioned in the forums before back in the day. Request for a sticky this time, mods?

Just because Stephen Hawking can barely function doesn't make him any less of a genius. This guy made a 1-letter typo, and anyone reading the article knew what he meant. This is an article explaining the differences between a typical forged piston and cast, and makes people aware of the differences. I feel it is beneficial to note that 4032 pistons are more prone to causing ring lands, but 2618 pistons have sloppier tolerances and will wear down the block faster due to piston slap. I just wanted to point out the pros and cons of each. But keep in mind, this article was written for naturally-aspirated Honda all-motor builds, not turbo applications. It was a good resource to point out the facts.

I added an informative article on forged pistons that I have been holding on to for a while that explains the purpose of them. I also added this to the OP:

I co-owned a Mark III non-turbo with a friend, he was on supra forums, don't know if he is still active.

I'll be honest, the ringland thing is really a Subaru deal... not that it doesn't happen in other cars, but I NEVER hear any other car community talk about it. I never hear "Oh shit I lost a ringland on the LS1 at the strip." On Hondas people start freaking out about the stock sleeves (I had a friend drop a sleeve on his Integra), but you don't hear people with other types of aluminum blocks worrying about sleeves much. On 7M Supras and twin turbo 3000GT's spun rod bearings are a major concern (I had rod knock on my old Supra), but you don't see people with Subarus freaking out about that much. On a DSM it's a timing belt jumping or crank walk in some cases which makes owners fret. On Rx-7s it's apex seals but it's almost never bearings or the crank. You don't need a built motor to make 500whp on that car as long as you can control heat and detonation. Every car has its strengths and weaknesses and then the internet forums can just amplify whatever concerns people have. And remember that many car communities have a "silent majority" of people who are happy with their car, don't have many problems, and don't feel the need to post on the internet about it.

It's too hard to make predictions of engine life, either the original engine or a rebuilt engine with aftermarket forged pistons and looser clearances. There are so many factors involved, so many possible clearances to use, so many things that can make an engine fail. I think what I wanted to do here is to debunk the idea that aftermarket forged pistons are always 100% better with no tradeoffs.

The million dollar question. For the 05-06, I don't think the stock tune is questionable on a 100% stock car. But I can't say for sure if there is an inherent design flaw in the motor which leads to the ringland failures. Nor can I vouch for the quality of everybody else's tunes. But I do believe that the Subaru ECU is very forgiving and has an aggressive knock control system, IMO more aggressive than any other turbo car I've ever messed with. There are so many cars out there that if you make one mistake, you're dead.

Some of you may have blown a motor (lost a ringland perhaps) or may blow one soon, and you may be thinking "while I'm in there, I might as well upgrade to forged pistons. I don't want something to break again in x miles." Just keep in mind that there is always a tradeoff. Aftermarket forged pistons require looser clearance between the piston and the cylinder wall. There are a number of reasons for this, and we can debate all day, but it has to do with the material these pistons are made of and the way people tend to use their motors when they have these aftermarket pistons. http://www.legacygt.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=79983&stc=1&d=1265554127 On factory pistons, the clearance between the piston and the cylinder wall is going to be between 4 and 12 ten-thousandths of an inch. On aftermarket forged pistons, clearance may be between 25 and 40 ten-thousandths of an inch, sometimes more. That is at least twice the clearance compared to OEM style pistons. The extra clearance means a couple things. It gives the aftermarket pistons more room to expand in the cylinder, and this may be good for very intense driving and high horsepower setups. You don't want your pistons to seize. However, because the clearance is greater, your motor will have increased blowby and increased wear on the cylinder walls. The increased wear occurs due to possible piston slap during startup. Piston slap is when the piston moves laterally against the cylinder wall due to the large clearance. It can be audible and annoying. As the motor warms up, thermal expansion will tighten the clearance and the piston slap should go away. Piston slap is not the end of the world but it doesn't help longevity. Many of you deciding on pistons may have a relatively mild setup, like a small bolt on turbo upgrade or even just a stage 2 setup. Longevity may be of great importance to you. And in that case, aftermarket forged pistons are not a "no brainer" answer. It doesn't mean you shouldn't get them. It just means you should ask yourself what you are really using this car for and also ask yourself whether you can tolerate the drawbacks of aftermarket forged pistons. I have also included an article written by Inline 4 (Honda Tuner) explaining the difference between forged pistons and cast:

It's a wagon wheel! http://www.vaiden.net/childhood_memories2_files/image005.gif

Modified my original post. Actually, when I did it, I reached in the seat and tugged on the cloth from the seat heater, not the wires. I only pulled on the wires for the last little bit.

You will have to tell us the model year, it is a little different on the 05-06 versus the later ones. I have the diagrams in front of me right now. EDIT: these diagrams are confusing, they don't match up to the colors and pinout in the FSM completely. Maybe your pic is affecting the way the colors look. The middle wire is definitely MAF signal, the black/green to the right of it is MAF ground, but the other stuff is confusing because the colors don't match the pinout. In the connector pinout Subaru numbers each pin and then you have to match it to the color in the diagram. But the connector pinout, the diagram, and your pic don't match. Other manufacturers have a connector pinout with actual wire colors so it's easier to match something... Subaru is very frustrating. And then Subaru will have a wire going to another page, but they don't label what the page is (what system it's for), they just give the page number, so you have to go chase it down and figure it out. You're going to have to meter the wires to be sure. On the 05 there is power, MAF signal, MAF ground, IAT signal, and then IAT ground which is shared with the water temp sensor back near the ECU. Also note that the MAF signal wire is shielded. It is tied with the shield wire coming from pin 32 on that same B136 ECU connector. See page WI-40 in the 05 FSM and WI-65 in the 08 FSM

Follow up on this method. Did the seat heater fix described in this post, and took some pics for those who may be too intimidated to attempt this. It is actually quite an easy fix and wont take too long if you are capable of doing good wiring. First, unbolt the seat, unplug the connectors (which takes a majority of the time), and take the seat out of the car. Second, pry off the seat cover anchor off the back of the seat. A large flat head scredriver will help with this. The cord you see in this picture is the wire harness for the seat heater. http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a332/jrroszko/2005%20Legacy%20GT/FSM%20Pictures/2010-01-10181350.jpg Next you need to reach inside the seat cushion and pull on the seat heater attached to this harness. As you pull it out, the design flaw will become dead obvious. The four larger-gauge wires never seem to cause problems, but the signal wire is a weaksauce 24-gauge-excuse-for-a-wire soldered to an 18 gauge wire, without any reinforcement. This picture shows the seat heater pulled out and the broken connection. http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a332/jrroszko/2005%20Legacy%20GT/FSM%20Pictures/2010-01-10181629.jpg Now this next part is tricky. Pull the small signal wire out of the heater cocoon enough that you can work with it. Now CAREFULLY strip this wire back enough to twist it. You will need a small length of jumper wire maybe a few inches long to reconnect this wires without stressing the little signal wire. Here is a picture of the wires twisted together. I was not able to perform a traditional linear twist and solder as the signal wire strands are way too flimsy, so I had to twist them parallel to each other. Here is a picture of the wires twisted together and soldered. http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a332/jrroszko/2005%20Legacy%20GT/FSM%20Pictures/2010-01-10184332.jpg Here is the final product, soldered and heat shrinked. Stuff the heater back in, reinstall the cover anchor, and your ass will once again be warm! http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a332/jrroszko/2005%20Legacy%20GT/FSM%20Pictures/2010-01-10185248.jpg

Per Fred Bean's website: Exedy Stage 1: 287 Wheel TQ Exedy Stage 2: 326 Wheel TQ ACT Puck-Style Clutches: 537 ft-lbs (most likely at the flywheel)

Can a mod move this to how-tos?

Well I have had the Hogzaust for about 2 weeks, but will be parting ways with the Hogzauster's - just found a great deal on a used Agency Power 3" Catback. But i will still always be fond of the hogzaust sound.

I work off hillsborough st too, ever seen a modded black 05 GT near the char grill?

Agreed. It was an unstated assumption.

Yes and no. I believe you would gain no power by running, say, the HKS Hi-power exhaust since the diameter is the same. But by simple physics, if you are running a full 3" DP and a full 3" CB with 2.5" splits, there will be a noticeable power gain...in the case of the LGT, that will practicallly reach the limits of how much this turbo is capable of flowing. If you are comparing just doing the axleback portion of an exhaust, I agree completely. Axleback exhaust is no better than the Hogzaust, and you are really just paying close to $500 for a different look over the Hogzaust, with a slightly different sound. I personally enjoy my Hogzaust for that reason, because I dont want the look of aftermarket exhaust unless it's a full 3" system. Plus, my flange bolts had rusted anyways, and I had a buddy at a shop torch them out. With the current Hogzaust setup, installing a new catback will be much easier.

How would disconnecting a muffler cause a CEL? I understand how gutting the cats would, but a muffler? You have got to be joking. It just redirects air flow. Oh no! P0555 : EXHAUST LEAK

Nothing the Accessport can't handle