Somac

I took apart my JDM HVAC unit and it looks like the Russian one is completely different and the JDM unit won't work with the Russian faceplate. --- I got my new Joying head unit and was pretty disappointed to see that it doesn't fit the JDM faceplate. The head unit is barely too tall, but it can be forced in, and probably a quarter inch too wide. Looking at other people's posts, it looks like I'm not the only one that has a head unit too wide for the OEM faceplate. Really bummed about this since I don't want to have to hack up the faceplate.

That was probably from Japanese Performance Engines, the same place I bought my 3rd gen JDM front end from, but I don't recall seeing facelift Outback front ends from them (in black). I've been watching eBay US for a while now. That tan one from the same place xt2005bonbon got his from keeps calling my name, but I really don't want to have to get a front end repainted.

The head unit they want you to use does not come in any US cars, to my knowledge. All US cars have all of the head units looking like their example with a red X through it, not the green check mark version. You'd still have to buy a JDM HVAC setup (or this Russian one?) if you wanted to completely replaced a USDM setup, then maybe you could use this LHD faceplate.

I can't say I've ever had a desire for real Gucci guns or anything $2000+. I've got probably $2k into my best AR, but that was a "Improve everything along the way" type thing that just compounded, not necessarily buying for $2k off the bat. Even then, it's still just got Aero receivers and some other nicer stuff for quality of life improvements. I like my H&K pistols and I like my ARs. I don't like shotguns at all but I know I finally have to buy one soon for 3 gun matches so I can stop borrowing my buddy's setup. Trying to convince myself that all I need is a cheap Mossberg or something and not a Benelli M4. H&K also just released their long slide kits finally and I was considering converting one of my VP9s, but I got dirty thoughts of picking up a Canik TP9SFX as my new competition pistol. It costs less than a slide kit alone and it's already optics ready.

I think you might have it backwards - EJ20X is auto trans, EJ20Y is manual trans.

I never thought that finding parts for a generic black car would be hard, but it seems like it's impossible to find a black JDM facelift Outback front end that's already in the US. They're dirt cheap in the UK but I talked to a few sellers and none of them want to ship a whole front end to the US.

AEM sells an inline wideband that is meant for people that don't actually need a gauge, like most people. It's the AEM 30-0310 X-Series Inline Wideband UEGO AFR Sensor Controller. Good write-up!

I'm excited for the new H&K VP9L slide kits revealed at SHOT Show. As much as H&K absolutely hates its consumer base and everyone that dares to buy their weapons, I've been waiting on a VP9L for a while and I'm glad it finally came out as a slide kit so I won't have to buy yet another VP9. I especially loved that they demo'd it on a VP9b and the H&K rep said he didn't like paddle mag releases and preferred button releases. It drove all of the H&K fanboys mad. I can't say there was anything else that really interested me.

Yesss! Just let me know when you're ready to ship!

You will spend five times what your Legacy is worth trying to swap it with an EJ255 and 6MT when you can just buy a spec.B for less. If you're willing to spend that much money and can't find one near you, save up for a plane ticket and fly out to buy one from somewhere else.

The OBXT looks great! As far as recommendations: Turbo: VF52. It's the best daily turbo out there. Great spool characteristics, capable of more than enough power for a daily, they're very common, bolt right on, and they're pretty reliable. Headlights: Buy the brackets from Custom Brackets and Designs to swap a Mini H1 projector into the stock USDM headlights. Or, for less money and better output, you can buy JDM pre-facelift headlights, open the projectors, flip the shields, and have the superior D2S setup. No need to change the actual projector. Along with your catless up pipe as a reliability mod, you should remove the filters from the oil banjo bolts to prevent the VF40 from blowing up and taking your motor with it before you get a chance to change it.

Most of these guys are driving their cars, which is how they go through lips.

For reference, I hate the bugeye 3-piece front lip, http://i29.tinypic.com/25grk2q.jpg but I absolutely love the JDM facelift Legacy bumper. It's my favorite front end from any Legacy ever. It looks awesome to me. It's one of the reasons why I wish I found a LGT wagon instead of my OBXT and it makes me sad that I can't use it.

I've got the same clutch in my car and I love it. Seems to hold up to 300wtq with no issues.

Progress has been painfully slow - sorry for a lack of updates. I've had to keep shuffling my parts back and forth since I can't keep a stable spot to work on the car/engine. The motor is mostly together. I hopefully have all the parts I need. To reiterate, it's just a stock EJ255/EJ257 B25 casting courtesy of JmP6889928. Replaced all of the gaskets courtesy of the Subaru OEM engine gasket kit. Got the ARP head studs in after I had to wait for a silly M11x1.25 tap to show up to clean up my threads. Made an improvised long-handle tap by cutting a stock head bolt in half, then welding the M11 tap to the head bolt so that I could clean up all of the threads. Bought a Company23 billet timing belt guide and got some Company23 cam gear tools. All super nice stuff and I can't say enough good things about Company23. Also got the IAG AVCS/turbo feed oil line to replace the stock one. The stock one was fine, but I didn't want to have to deal with chancing it leaking or breaking. Got both of these from Oakos, who's also awesome. They've helped me out a couple times to make sure I can get the parts I need quickly, even with my unfortunate work schedule right now. Bought a Harbor Freight engine crane and the engine is ready to come out of the car. I've got no time outside of work for the next week so I'm gonna try to get a couple buddies to try to help me do a quick pull and drop in of the new motor. I'm selling my JDM front end from my BH9 Outback tomorrow, which will help free up some more cash and really get this car back together. Maybe I'll do something dumb and buy the JDM front end I've been eyeing on eBay.

Head units will usually have an RCA input on the back of them. The universal aux I was talking about is just a red/white RCA to 3.5mm aux jack. There should be a SWC interface that will allow you to retain steering wheel controls. I believe the rear sub also will no longer function properly with an aftermarket head unit.

When I had the same question for Svxdc regarding the aux jack in the center console working, he basically told me to just nix that idea and just get a universal aux jack to replace the OEM one and it'll plug right into an aftermarket head unit instead of trying to make the factory aux jack work.

Correct, his email is 96svx.dc@gmail.com. I think last time I emailed him in November, I initially emailed at 6pm on a Sunday night and he got back to me a few hours later that same night.

I got my kit from the dealer a week or so ago. At employee price (cost + 10%), it came out to ~$240. Also note that the original image is still off on some labels, like #28 and #29 being switched.

The GDT cooling mod is just snake oil, imo. Subaru knew cylinder 4 would be the weakest cylinder and that's where they put the knock sensor. The whole idea is that if any cylinder is to see knock, it should be #4. This mod raises the temps of cylinders 1-3 so that they're more prone to knock now, but you won't be able to see it because the ECU can't monitor that. Who do you think knows the cooling system better, some aftermarket tuner, or the company that spent millions of dollars designing the engine? Unless you're adding knock sensors to every cylinder, just leave it alone.

I probably would never chance using stock pistons for 400whp and especially not stock rods for 400wtq. For a safe daily driver, some 4032 forged pistons are a great choice. Stronger than cast without high expansion rates like 2618 so less slap.

Progress has been slow, but at least I've been buying stuff. Decided to buy a used EJ255 from our resident turbo man JmP6889928. The motor had a blown head gasket, but the motor was all disassembled, heads were checked and slightly shaved, and the cross hatching in the cylinders still looked good. Ordered ARP head studs, an OEM engine gasket kit, and Aisin timing kit. Cleaned up all of the engine plastics, bought an engine stand ($38 out the door at HF!), bought some more tools. At this point, I feel like I probably should have just ponied up for a new OEM block for what I paid for the used engine, but oh well. Regrettably, this is the only photo I have of the engine I bought. It'll get cleaned up and be as good as used, though.

Those headlights look awesome! The end result looks worth it to me on my end, hopefully you feel the same. The JDM beam is pretty unfortunate, but maybe you can still flip the tiny shield somehow or even make your own.

I think the 08-09 USDM cars use the high beams at a reduced brightness (through PWM, I think) for the DRLs, so it makes it easier to convert to JDM HIDs since the DRLs won't mess with the HIDs if the DRLs are on the high beams.

Wait, the JDM facelift lights are bi-xenon HIDs? I didn't think they had a shield drop. That's great news! That copper coil is your shield drop solenoid. When you hit the high beams, it moves the shield out of the way so that the HIDs can work as both low and high beams.