Bucko3the7man's 05 ABP Lightwhore

[bucko3the7man]

I think it's about time for me to make one of these.

 

I've owned this car for 3 years now, bought it at 95k in Sept of 2011 and it now has 158k on it. Daily driver, and until this year was my autocross and rallycross sloot as well. Daily driven though all the racing until I got bit by the RWD bug and bought an S2000 in April. Used to compete in STX class with it, did very well despite being woefully unprepared for that class. Here's a couple pictures and videos of me and it racing.

 

 

http://i.imgur.com/91CYktR.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://i.imgur.com/CYH4IxF.jpg

 

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-bL9iHLuNY]NER SCCA 8-17-13 fastest derek - YouTube[/ame]

 

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fi_HBqQG8MA]Renegade Miata School fastest dirty run 4-13-14 - YouTube[/ame]

 

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csHRsJ8l0Z0]NER SCCA Rallycross 1-13-13 Stafford Springs Derek Run 4.mp4 - YouTube[/ame]

 

 

 

05 Legacy GT Limited

STI uppipe (to remove the cat from my factory one)

Invidia q300 catback

BP TMIC kit on the stock intercooler

Perrin foam drop in filter

Bren Tune

OEM Subaru block heater (because why not, I was flushing the coolant anyways)

Killer B pickup

Killer B baffle

Group N motor mounts

Group N transmission mount

Perrin front and rear shifter bushings

 

Suspension:

Koni Yellows with Eibach Pro Kit springs

25mm front sway bar, 22mm rear

kartboy endlinks

AVO rear reinforcement brackets

Lots and lots of whiteline bushings including camber adjustment for rear, ALK for front, many more.

 

Wheels/tires:

Summer: 17x7.5 Sparco Assetto gara in gunmetal with Dunlop Direzza Z1 Star specs, getting changed out for 225/45/17 Hankook Ventus v12 Evo in the spring.

Winter: 07+ LGT OEM wheels plastidipped black with 215/50/17 nexan winguard 231.

 

Brakes:

Hawk HPS pads year round with blank rotors

SS goodrich lines

ATE TYP200 fluid

Grimmspeed master cylider brace

 

Interior:

Jazzy aux-in cable hooked to miccus bluetooth receiver

boost gauge

TWM Performance hybrid shift knob

12" mtx sub in trunk with 500 watt amp

 

Exterior/lighting

DIY crown vic grill

4300k HID low beams

3k HID fog lights

2500k halogen high beams

dual 5" amber flood lights behind grill tied in with high beams

hellas, painted black

40% tint all around, 35% on rear window

mudflaps and snowboard rack in winter

r-rev rear lip spoiler

[bucko3the7man]

Reserved

[bucko3the7man]

Well the car died merging onto the highway last night, the bolt that holds the alternator tensioned in the correct spot sheared and left the alternator to adjust itself.

 

I believe this happened sometime Monday because the power steering started to act up and the belt was whining. Figured it was just the o ring on the top of the pump so I got that with plans to do it last night.

 

Got to work yesterday and it was worse so I took a look at the belt, it was toast. So I got new belts and decided to flush the ps fluid when I went to do the o ring.

 

Then, the car died on the highway and I finally looked at the tensioner, it was gone. Luckily I broke down before the dealer closed and I was able to get the tensioner part. Got it fixed with the new belt last night and now I don't need to do any of the power steering things because it works perfectly again!

 

Side note, probably going to call AAA and complain about the tow truck driver. Instead of winching the car up onto the flatbed he jumped it and drove it on himself, then only attached it with 3 straps, one of which was more than half torn through.

[bucko3the7man]

I just finished installing Jeremy's old vent pod for my boost gauge, and while I was in there I decided to investigate dimming the gauge with the illumination switch. The prosport mechanical gauge I have has a separate wire for a blue illumination but I didn't like that as much as the white/red because the white/red is what the rest of the car is, so I always dealt with it being bright at night. It always slightly bothered me that it was very bright at night, so I hope this will help someone else.

 

I used a 330 Ohm resistor and a 5 pin relay to do all of this, can be found at autozone for $1.49 for a 5 pack, 5 pin relays can be found online or at autozone. probably cheaper on amazon but I wanted to do this today and not wait for shipping so it cost me $16.

 

I started with this wiring diagram to plan out how to do this, I also had to learn how to use relays so I did that using this project as well.

 

http://i.imgur.com/HrQSUeD.jpg

 

I tapped 12V fuse and the ILUM fuse in the dash, I just used some full size fuse taps that I modified with my wire cutters to fit into a mini fuse slot. When you put these on, be sure to put the tap on the bottom paddle of the fuse, I put mine on the right side of the fuse so that it wouldn't interfere with anything. If you wanted a cleaner look you could try to investigate which wires come out on the back of the fuse panel, but I was not that committed. Here's a picture of which fuses I tapped, refer to the panel and you'll see exactly where they are. Also see where I zip tied the relay, it doesn't interfere with anything.

 

http://i.imgur.com/W3TlVSr.jpg

 

I used a bolt in the top right as the ground, it's one of the bolts holding the dash frame on, worked well. I used a military splice for both the ground that had to go to the gauge/relay and the two power wires that come out of the relay. Picture of side panel off and military splice for those who don't know how to do it.

 

http://s273.photobucket.com/user/Scurlee/media/militarysplice.jpg.html

 

http://i.imgur.com/MY3pPsR.jpg

 

Finished product! Lights off, then lights on. At night the gauge is illuminated enough for the needle to be still visible also, even though it doesn't look like it in the picture. I can take additional pictures at night if anyone is interested.

 

http://i.imgur.com/Qk2qf9T.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/ymT3MkU.jpg

[laff79]

hawt

[Legacsti11]

Looks good man and glad you took on that project, while learning something new. That's something I would rather have my mechanic to as I am not as mechanically inclined LOL. What are your future plans for this car?

[bucko3the7man]

Looks good man and glad you took on that project, while learning something new. That's something I would rather have my mechanic to as I am not as mechanically inclined LOL. What are your future plans for this car?

 

Well I've already got a racecar with my s2000 so this is just a reliable daily. I'm just going to keep it as is and try to spend as little money as possible on it while staying up to date with maintenance

[bucko3the7man]

Ordered some things today and yesterday:

 

2 OCVs, I figure after 170k these are probably getting tired.

Defi 52mm oil pressure gauge

block8head single defroster vent pod

 

A few weeks ago I changed trans/rear diff fluid, and about two weeks ago I put summer tires on. Very pleased with the 225/45/17 hankook ventus v12 evo tires I picked up on closeout last summer. They definitely have more sidewall rollover than the Z1SS I had on before, but I knew there would be some compromise going away from extreme performance tires. Happy enough with these on the street for sure.

 

Not so happy so far with the new blend of extra-s that subaru is selling these days. I've got a couple thousand miles on it so far, and it already seems to be tough to get through the gears. Next change I'll definitely be looking for something else, as the redline grew tired quickly as well.

[Streetlegal]

How did you get ahold of block8head? thinking about getting a dual one.

[bucko3the7man]

How did you get ahold of block8head? thinking about getting a dual one.

 

http://www.block8head.com/

 

I found his facebook page and he has a link to his site, and also a link to the mazdaspeed forum post where he has all that same info. You can even get a triple from him in that location if you want. I just paypaled him the 85 + 7 for shipping along with all the important info as he specified.

[Streetlegal]

http://www.block8head.com/

 

I found his facebook page and he has a link to his site, and also a link to the mazdaspeed forum post where he has all that same info. You can even get a triple from him in that location if you want. I just paypaled him the 85 + 7 for shipping along with all the important info as he specified.

 

OooOooo that triple actually looks pretty cool. Thanks for the link.

[08Legacy-GT]

sweet lights! haha thats awesome behind the grille

[bucko3the7man]

sweet lights! haha thats awesome behind the grille

 

Thanks! I'm thinking about a 24" led bar in the lower grill area now. I should really stop haha

[Streetlegal]

Thanks! I'm thinking about a 24" led bar in the lower grill area now. I should really stop haha

 

lightwhore

 

[08Legacy-GT]

lightwhore

 

 

indeed

[bucko3the7man]

lightwhore

 

 

Here's the one I've got my eye on - [ame=http://smile.amazon.com/Penton-Lights-Waterproof-10v-30v-Offroad/dp/B00RV83UUG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1429795918&sr=8-1&keywords=24+led+light+bar]Amazon.com: Penton 120w 24" Inch Led Light Bar Work Lights Flood Spot Combo Beam Waterproof 10v-30v 3w*40 12000 Lumen for 4wd SUV UTE Offroad Truck ATV UTV: Automotive[/ame]

 

Should fit nicely in the lower grill area, and if I cut out that little center piece it should give me some very good lighting. This one is a spot beam in the center with the outsides being flood lights. I'd probably tie these into the high beams as well, but not in the same way that the grill lights are.

[bucko3the7man]

Copy and pasted from the WDYDTY 4th gen thread

 

So, couldn't get the engine and trans to separate in the car, rather than fight with it forever I think I'm just going to go under tomorrow and remove the driveshaft/front axle shafts and pull the trans along with the engine, and separate them when they're out of the car. Fairly sure that the dowels have rusted or something, 10 years and 180k miles have not made it easy on them. With the motor and trans out I'll be able to get at the pry points on the bottom better. I'm tempted to try the putty knives, but we couldn't get anything between those two, couldn't even get the motor to budge from the trans at all with 45 mins of work on it.

 

Had to cut pieces out of the group N mount I put in just over a year ago though, nut rounded off rather quickly, and it quickly became a game of "Insert angle grinder here". New motor mount will be on order tomorrow morning. Picking up new turbo/dp gasket as well as pcv valve tomorrow, and I'll probably take a look at the oil pan as well, since that looks like it's seeping a bit from when I did it a year ago.

 

On the plus side, 180k on original turbo and there is exactly zero shaft play whatsoever. I also have a sneaking suspicion that the previous owner replaced the clutch at some point, there was anti-seize on the clutch slave bolts, and I've never had them out. Not sure if this goes in the plus or minus column, but we'll find out when i'm finally able to separate the motor and transmission tomorrow.

 

http://i.imgur.com/chh3W1V.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/SI5IC10.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/oRkj6lv.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/IO7eoWb.jpg

[bucko3the7man]

again, copy and pasted from WDYDTY 4th gen thread:

 

Putty knives were able to get the motor separated very easily today, pulled it in about 20 minutes. Did the timing belt and then took a look at the throwout bearing. Holy crap, RIP that throwout bearing. Clutch itself looked like it had more life left in it, but flywheel definitely had some heat damage. Snout of the trans looks a tad scored but overall not in too bad of shape. TSK3 kit should do fine. Oil pan is leaking quite a bit, going to replace that and re-seal while the motor is out, and I damaged one of the studs between motor and trans when we took it out so i've got to replace that as well.

 

http://i.imgur.com/nr8N1sf.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/9qYUWRG.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/sIseOmE.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/TKKjZhX.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/5VrzFC7.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/mkNwPR6.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/HpMmirX.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/P0tFJGA.jpg

 

Plan for Thursday - Should have pcv valve in, turbo/dp gasket, new motor mount. Have to see when I can get the oil pan, that will determine future pace. If I can get that by Friday, I'll do work on it saturday morning and probably end up putting the motor back in Tuesday of next week.

 

On order/arriving soon:

motor mount

pcv valve

turbo/dp gasket

black RTV

transmission drain plug crush washer (no longer needed immediately, will save for future change)

4 quarts redline 75w90 (no longer needed immediately, will save for future change)

 

Need to order:

Oil pan

motor mount nut

front oil line, looked very rusty

oil dipstick tube

oil pan bolt (snapped one two years ago changing the pan, RTV'd over it and has never leaked, but there will never be an easier time than now to replace it)

motor/trans stud

spark plugs (why not, i'm due in 5k miles anyways)

brake clean

more oil filters/crush washers? Might be running low

[bucko3the7man]

Well this clearly needed replacing.

 

http://i.imgur.com/o8xgQOL.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/xD7MihR.jpg

 

And it's back together! New oil pan, pcv, couple breather hoses that cracked, clutch, flywheel, timing belt, I greased the starter while it was out too, seemed to make a big difference in how smoothly it starts. Man, I missed this car so much.