Power loss?

[Theshwartz35]

Hello again everyone! The 257 build turned out great. The guys at IAG really know what they're doing. I had one problem through the entire process and turns out it was my idiocracy giving me the shaft and forgot to torque my flex plate bolts on the new block when I first got it. Anyway it didn't cause any damage and was fixed/tuned and ran like a champ! I think the original numbers were 380 whp but the tranny kept slipping (AT) so he tuned it down to around 340. That was a few months back and here we are now. I live in VA and this past winter we had what we consider to be a moderate to sever snow storm. In my carelessness I slid into a curb and bent my drivers side front control arm, end links, and tie rod. Just so happened that this occurred on the way to the shop to have my transmission rebuilt. This is where my issue starts. When I left IAG the night I picked up the car, it surprised the hell out of me and I was like a little friggin girl on the way home because at a 40 roll I could punch it and cut loose and take off like a crazy person. I was shocked at how much torque and responsiveness it had. So...... eventually the tranny started slipping a little more. (not badly but bad enough that I wanted it gone ASAP.) truth be told it only got driven for maybe a month after the tune and was only slipping for about a week in higher rpms before I decided to take it in. So everything that was damaged in the curb incident was replaced at the same time. New factory control arms. whiteline bump steer kit, cant remember end links but, also tie rod. While I was waiting for them to start my rebuild, I was researching AT modifications to beef up the tranny to handle the extra power. They ended up ordering what they said was a "performance shift kit" from transgo. So after about a month and a half they finally had it rebuilt. They said though, that they were unable to find a new forward thrust sensor because subaru has stopped selling them by themselves and only sells them with the wiring harness now which was much more expensive. So they let me take it home with an advisement to take it easy until they can get the sensor. (the reinstalled the bad one until then to plug the hole.) so the car obviously threw a code for it. I noticed immediately that there were a couple issues. There was a vibration that went in and out which turned out to be the wheel bearing (that has since been replaced along with the other 3 with new timken hub assemblies) there is also a slight "rattle" when the car starts cold that lets a second or 2 then goes away. Also, at very low speeds (such as turning at a light or accelerating slowly from a stop) the car bounces and jerks like crazy in second gear until it up shifts to third. almost like a manual that is too low in rpms for a particular gear and tries to stall ya know? it jumps and lurches. almost the same thing except more rapid. So I told them all these issues and they said to wait until the sensor gets put in to see if any of the issues are resolved. So, they finally tell me after another month that they cant get the sensor by itself and are going to have to buy it with the harness (which we already knew) but that even after all the lies they told me about the timing of the work they'd done, they will need me to pay the difference in the cost. Rather than argue, I just payed the f****rs and the sensor was installed. The CEL was gone and the car very quickly "relearned" its shifting characteristics. No other issue was fixed my the sensor. I still have a high pitch rattling that is coming from the area close to the windshield. if i had to guess I would have said the starter however, when I took it back to have the sensor installed I told them that so they adjusted the started a little and still no bingo. Also, the car still has a seizure occasionally in second gear. its not all the time but, when it happens a few times in a row and honestly, if I was easy enough on the throttle at every stop, I could probably make it happen every time. I am currently awaiting a call back from the shop for a date to bring it in and have them look at it. None of this is, however, why I posted this. I just figured that this was necessary information to have considering it was the prerequisite to what I'm mainly concerned about.

 

Ever since that snow storm, and the car going into the shop, it has not had NEARLY the same amount of power. Low end seems pretty close but, hard to judge but, definitely not the same mid to high end power as before. Now as I said, once the snow storm hit and I hit the curb, I hadn't really got into the throttle because I had to baby it to the shop, then baby it for a month until the sensor was installed. I've been watching my accessport which I use for the gauges and the boost levels are the same as before. No boost leaks which Ive checked multiple times. I've checked the MAF as well and cleaned it but, no difference. I just started trying to diagnose this problem today because until today, I had not really had it WOT. A good friend of mine drove it earlier today with me in the car and I was kind of embarrassed when I told him to open it up and I didn't get the expected suction into the seat when the turbo spools. As soon as I can find my usb cable Im going to post some datalog that I will perform tomorrow. I haven't checked the coils or plugs yet either which, by the way, are factory coils and wires and off the shelf iridium plugs. There are no oil leaks anywhere after about 30 minutes of inspection with a 650 lumen mag light. I keep the oil changed with royal purple 5w30 every 1500 miles. (probably overkill on the mileage but, i want it staying as good of shape as possible) also K&N filters every oil change. never once seen so much as a glimmer of metal in any oil change and I do check. Its had 3 oil changes so far. the motor only has about 5k on it. tranny less than 500 but obviously still has issues. I figured the issue could be coming from the transmission problems but, I need to know what to diagnose while im waiting on these "mechanics" to get my car back in their shop. They gave me a warranty paper stating that it was not valid on vehicles that had more than a factory power output but, it also said that it was for work COMPLETED. which was not done until the sensor was put in since they considered it part of the rebuild. Should my next step be the coils and plugs or something else? Sorry this is so long, just wanna know whats wrong with my baby and get her back to good. Thanks for reading and will post datalog as soon as its performed. If that's possible I guess.

 

also, if any technical info like parts installed or anything is needed please let me know.

[whitrzac]

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