zanzabar Posted July 20, 2013 Share Posted July 20, 2013 i was driving about 45 down the boulevard and the cruse controll started to flash with the check engine light on. i stopped and checked the fluids, every thing looked fine so i went about a quarter mile to my job site. nothing strange happened, no loss in power, and it was running fine the check engine light just came on. my mechanic said it should be fine to drive to his shop (about half a mile) so i took it over there when i finished my job affter about an hour and it had no power. he pulled the code and said it was a cam sensor error on the drivers side, and that the dealer would be a better choice than his shop. i had it towed to the dealer and they have it now. is there anything i should be looking out for in the future? the car has 129k mile and i bought it a month ago at 128k. when i bought it i had a boost leak test, compression test, and then had the timing belt done with the full kit right away about 600 miles ago. my mechanic checked to see if the belt jumped and it did not. my legacy has the 257 with d20 heads, it has no filter on the turbo banjo, but the dealer said it was common for them to only remove the banjo filter for the turbo side even though the TSB for 02-97-05 calls for the removal AVCS side removal (on the sti) and it should have the same part for the AVCS banjo since it has the same short block and heads as the 05 sti. they did a part search and it showed it was used in 05 and some 06 but the filter was not supposed to be installed on the sti. the guy said he had seen most LGT with the filter and assumed that was the problem. am i on the right track, and is it also messed up that it had been sold to various subaru dealers 3 times before i got it and they never fixed the potential problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Capacity Posted July 20, 2013 Share Posted July 20, 2013 Have them remove the filter from the banjo fitting on the front drivers side head. They can grind/cut down the top of the banjo bolt to give it clearance behind the timing belt cover. and remove the bolt without removing the timing belt. Then dump a can of motor flush in the oil follow the directions on the can, (subaru sells motor flush at the parts counter at the dealership) change the oil and drive the car. See if the code returns. If it does then look at cleaning, replacing the oil control valve on that side. HAMMERDOWN has pictures of how he cut the top top off the banjo bolt. Any mechanic should be able to figure it out. Also learn the sound the turbo makes. If that sound changes think about replacing the turbo. My 05 had P0011 and P0021 about a 1000 mles before my turbo was shot at 142,000 miles. The CEL for the codes came on while in CC at 68mph on the drive home from work one day. 305,600miles 5/2012 ej257 short block, 8/2011 installed VF52 turbo, @20.8psi, 280whp, 300ftlbs. (SOLD). CHECK your oil, these cars use it. Engine Build - Click Here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zanzabar Posted July 20, 2013 Author Share Posted July 20, 2013 was your turbo worn out, or did it oil starve? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Capacity Posted July 20, 2013 Share Posted July 20, 2013 worn out. It didn't blow, just had shaft play. 305,600miles 5/2012 ej257 short block, 8/2011 installed VF52 turbo, @20.8psi, 280whp, 300ftlbs. (SOLD). CHECK your oil, these cars use it. Engine Build - Click Here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sneeky Posted July 20, 2013 Share Posted July 20, 2013 worn out. It didn't blow, just had shaft play. That's what she said! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zanzabar Posted July 21, 2013 Author Share Posted July 21, 2013 what is the price range on the vf52 swap, and if i want about the same power but bullet proof what is the best turbo for it? That's what she said! well played Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Donated thefultonhow Posted July 21, 2013 I Donated Share Posted July 21, 2013 what is the price range on the vf52 swap, Minimum to upgrade to a VF52: $500-1100 for turbo (depending on used or new, and how many miles) $175 for e-tune $15 for tuning hardware if you have a laptop you can use, $200 if you don't Subtotal for a basic Stage 1 VF52 setup: $690-1475 Or, if you want to add in Stage 2 parts and boost higher: Catless UP: $50-175 (depending on model) Catted DP (highly recommended to get one with a cat): $350-600 Intercooler upgrade: $100 for BP TMIC kit, or $500-1000 for an aftermarket IC Exhaust (optional): $350-1000+ Subtotal: $500-2775+ Or, if you want to add injectors and fuel pump, add in $750ish for those. TOTAL: $690-$5000+ and if i want about the same power but bullet proof what is the best turbo for it? There is none. You bought a turbo Subaru. Turbos are inherently NOT bulletproof, and on a Subaru, even if your turbo is fine, other stuff can break too. The most reliable, cheapest option is a low-mileage VF46 (the turbo from 07-09 LGTs). You should not need a retune if you get that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zanzabar Posted July 21, 2013 Author Share Posted July 21, 2013 i planned on a pro tune and catless downpipe some time in the next 6-8 months, and i planned to have $2k for a turbo swap so i have that $2k set aside. i dont really want more power or trust myself to tune the car so i am really hoping that my acvs problem is going to fixed by removing the filter and flushing the oil with dyno oil + factory cleaning agents then an oil change. and i know that bullet proof on thees will never happen, i just dont want to have to deal with more than regular maintenance for the next 50-60k miles once i get everything done. one last question. i have been reading that the subaru blue filters and all of the OEM filters have oil bypass around 24-25lbs but the specs call for one with a bypass of 40_lbs. do i really need to use the 09rx8 or an imported tokyo roki filter for this not to happen again? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apexi Posted July 22, 2013 Share Posted July 22, 2013 The oem subaru oil filter has a bypass valve spec of 23.2psi. I don't think that using an oil filter with a lower bypass valve setting would have any affect on the life of your turbo. Where did you read something about 40psi? Just to understand my train of thought, aftermarket oil filters with a bypass valve pressure lower than 23psi allow unfiltered oil to bypass the oil filter element sooner than the oem subaru oil filter would. From what I've read, the oem rx8 oil filter has a bypass valve spec of 20.3psi-26.1psi. From what I understand, this means that the bypass valve begins to open at 20.3psi, and is not fully open until 26.1psi. So personally, I would actually not want to run the rx8 oil filter on a subaru. I wouldn't feel comfortable with the bypass valve not being fully open until 26.1psi when the factory spec is 23.2psi. I don't like the idea of the rx8 filter requiring more pressure before it fully allows all of the oil going through the filter to bypass the filter element. Summary of my ramblings, I would stick to the oem subaru oil filter, or an aftermarket filter for a subaru, I would not use an rx8 filter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zanzabar Posted July 22, 2013 Author Share Posted July 22, 2013 my car has a blue subaru filter in it. i guess i got the numbers mixed up. i am still just mad that i have a problem from sludge, but i did buy it used with 100k miles on it so i should have expected more than needing a new turbo at around 150k. every time i do a search for the check engine code i find people bitching about the cheap fram blue filter that replaced the black tokyo roki. i also would be more concerned about getting all of the contaminants picked up over having it run dry with how much oil the ej turbos flow and how often they need changes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Capacity Posted July 22, 2013 Share Posted July 22, 2013 You'll also want to replace your up pipe which has a cat in it and can come loose and take out the turbo. Get a catless up pipe. Also a BNR16g is about $800, that is a option too. 305,600miles 5/2012 ej257 short block, 8/2011 installed VF52 turbo, @20.8psi, 280whp, 300ftlbs. (SOLD). CHECK your oil, these cars use it. Engine Build - Click Here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zanzabar Posted July 24, 2013 Author Share Posted July 24, 2013 the dealer replaced the oil control valve and did an oil change to get the code to go away. the avcs goes 12 on the passenger and 15 on the drivers side now where before it was 12 and 5. they said i should get all 6 banjo bolts cleaned, the screen was already removed from the turbo's but the other 5 need cleaning. there are a few under the timing assembly. it would have been nice if some one had warned me as i just had the timing changed but had no idea that other banjo bolts needed to be descreened. so, if you ever get the timing done, get all the banjos cleaned. if that could be added to a sticky it would be great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Capacity Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 There is only one other bolt with a screen. it's behind the top cam on drivers side head. you can cut the high part of the head off the bolt and remove it. HAMMERDOWN has a thread on it. 305,600miles 5/2012 ej257 short block, 8/2011 installed VF52 turbo, @20.8psi, 280whp, 300ftlbs. (SOLD). CHECK your oil, these cars use it. Engine Build - Click Here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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