darkstarxi's '07 spec.B Project

[tysparks81]

16 hours ago, darkstarxi said:

Some comparison pics of OE exhaust manifolds/cross pipe vs. CNT V3 Equal Length Header @SoobyDoobyDoo:

 

Will probably be awhile before I get to continue working on pan, pickup, & header install.

I just installed these headers a few months ago.  Great fitment and picked up a little more power with these.  You will loose the Subi rumble but it still sounds great.

[SoobyDoobyDoo]

Thanks for the pics! I’ve seen the CNT for a good price but don’t know if I want to pull the ELH trigger just yet. While I was doing my rear brakes this weekend I noticed my resonator was starting to separate from the back of my mid-pipe…so I get unforeseen delays. Oh, and I had to get oem pads instead of using the stop techs I had ordered since they gave me the wrong clips. It’s always something…

[darkstarxi]

4 hours ago, SoobyDoobyDoo said:

Thanks for the pics! I’ve seen the CNT for a good price but don’t know if I want to pull the ELH trigger just yet. While I was doing my rear brakes this weekend I noticed my resonator was starting to separate from the back of my mid-pipe…so I get unforeseen delays. Oh, and I had to get oem pads instead of using the stop techs I had ordered since they gave me the wrong clips. It’s always something…

It is always something. I noticed while I was removing the exhaust pieces and replacing the turbo drain hose that my passenger's side ball joint boot is torn badly. Also couldn't get the O2 sensor out of the exhaust manifold without resorting to destructive methods so now I have to replace that - guessing whoever installed it failed to use anti-seize. Thought of some other stuff I can do while I'm working in that area...the list grows.

[darkstarxi]

Removed the oversized worm clamps from the turbo drain hose - they'll be replaced with appropriately sized ones.

Painted the OE up pipe w/ high temp black paint that I had leftover from a previous project.

Before:

After:

Removed oil pan & pickup tube, cleaned up gasket surface, & installed Killer B Motorsport Ultimate Oil Pickup.

Old pan & pickup in drain pan - looks undamaged to me:

New pickup installed:

Current state:

I stopped there to compile a shopping list and go shopping so I can finish the job.

Shopping list:
- 2x properly sized worm clamps for turbo oil drain hose - LOKMAN assortment kit from Amazon
- 2x red dipstick tube o-rings - Subaru 806910170 from eBay
- 1x upstream O2 sensor - Denso 2349120 from eBay
- 2x head to exhaust manifold gaskets - GrimmSpeed 020001 from GrimmSpeed
- 1x double-thick exhaust manifold to up pipe gasket - GrimmSpeed 027001 from GrimmSpeed
- 1x up pipe to turbo gasket - GrimmSpeed 024001 from GrimmSpeed
- 1x turbo to downpipe gasket - GrimmSpeed 028001 from GrimmSpeed
- 1x double-thick downpipe to catback gasket - GrimmSpeed 076001 from GrimmSpeed
- 1x catback donut gasket - GrimmSpeed 020099 from GrimmSpeed

All of the above has been ordered and when it comes in, I can install the new Subaru 11109AA151 oil pan & CNT V3 Equal Length Header and reinstall everything else.

I'm trying to figure out where all of the banjo bolt filters could be on my 2007 spec.B so I can get them while I'm taking everything apart but I'm not too clear on where they are. Any guidance would be very much appreciated!

[Febreze Mee]

Mmm, looks good. I can smell the paint on a hot UP from here.

[darkstarxi]

Got notification that the worm clamps were on my porch. Went outside to install them on the turbo oil drain hose and wouldn't you know they're not there - hopefully they were delivered to someone in the neighborhood who will bring them by sooner than later.

While I was out there, I decided to look more into these banjo bolt filters that I'm unsure about. Based on my reading, my impression is there are FOUR locations that could potentially have banjo bolt filters on my '07 spec.B... I believe I was aware of and checked/removed THREE of them when I replaced my turbo awhile ago but wanted to make sure and document it for myself. If anyone knows of more, PLEASE let me know. The following are the ones I checked just now...

Front passenger's side of motor:

No filter!

Front driver's side of motor (two locations):

Behind air pump - no filter!

Behind timing cover - looks like there's a filter in there that I'll have to get next time I do timing belt, etc. Backed it out as much as I could, which was enough to get a peak in the hole and verify.

The fourth one I'm aware of is under the turbo inlet, right by where it connects to the turbo. I believe I got this one when I replaced the turbo but I'll check when I remove the turbo inlet next.

AGAIN, if anyone is aware of any other banjo bolt filters that might exist on my '07 spec.B, PLEASE let me know!

[SoobyDoobyDoo]

Here’s a little tidbit: 

 

there was one thread where someone did a step-by-step for removing the one behind the timing cover without taking everything apart…I believe they grinded the nipple off the bolt head and that was enough to get it most of the way out…at least enough to check it.

[darkstarxi]

18 minutes ago, SoobyDoobyDoo said:

Here’s a little tidbit: 

 

there was one thread where someone did a step-by-step for removing the one behind the timing cover without taking everything apart…I believe they grinded the nipple off the bolt head and that was enough to get it most of the way out…at least enough to check it.

I've seen that post - it's here. I'm not interested in doing all of that hacking to get it out if I don't have to - I'd be concerned about damaging something else in the process and regretting it. I backed it out enough to check it and can see that there's a filter in there for sure. I guess I'll just wait until I need to do the timing again.

I'm mostly looking to find out if there are any other banjo bolt filter locations I need to check out.

[darkstarxi]

After a lot of thinking about @HAMMER DOWN's approach and determination to get that filter out of the banjo bolt behind the timing cover, I was inspired to try a neater but similar way....and it worked. No grinding of bolts required.

Removed air pump, removed bolt for dipstick tube to move it out of the way, and backed the bolt out while gently prying on the timing cover as much as I could without doing damage. It was very tedious and I used flathead screwdrivers & picks to back it out toward the end, prying the hex head to rotate it and sticking tools inside the banjo bolt hole to rotate it because I couldn't get a wrench or anything on it. When it was backed out all the way, I removed the banjo bolt on the other side of the oil line and used the line to push the bolt toward the passenger's side of the car until it came out. With everything removed, I pried the filter out of the banjo bolt.

Time for reassembly. I put the now filter-less bolt with the nipple back on the other end of the line and used the nipple-less bolt on the side of the line behind the timing cover. Took a bit of creativity to get it back in there but way easier without the nipple. Got fed up toward the end of tightening the bolt and was concerned I wouldn't get the bolt sufficiently tight with limited access and an open ended wrench so I ground down the box end of my wrench very slightly to get it between the bolt and the timing cover and got it nice and snug. Snugged up the nipple bolt on the other end of the line and put the dipstick tube & air pump back and done!

That's three banjo bolts that I now know for certain don't have filters in them and one under the turbo inlet that I'm pretty sure I removed the filter from but will verify next time I have the turbo inlet out. Hope there aren't more than four total.

[darkstarxi]

Received and installed more appropriately sized worm clamps for the turbo oil drain hose.

Received and installed (2) o-rings for dipstick tube.

Before I put the o-rings on the dipstick tube, I did a mock install of the oil pan on to the motor and found it would be very difficult to reinstall the bolts on the rear of the pan without getting the engine up higher - so I ordered a bottle jack to use instead of the floor jack that made it tough to lift at the engine>transmission adapter plate. That should be here tomorrow and allow me to lift the engine higher with ease so there's way more room to get at the rear pan bolts.

I also ordered Subaru OE axle seals for both front axles (because mine are leaking), Mevotech TXK9513 greasable ball joints (because my passenger's side Moog is busted and not greasable), an AVO 20mm rear sway bar (to replace the 16mm factory one), and am in communication about ordering a full set of SS brake lines.

Edited April 28, 2023 by darkstarxi

[Febreze Mee]

Which SS lines were you looking at getting?

[darkstarxi]

11 minutes ago, Febreze Mee said:

Which SS lines were you looking at getting?

Ordered them this evening. Techna-Fit SUB-1130 in green. 

I've used Techa-Fit lines on previous vehicles and have been pleased so I stuck with what I know I like.

[Febreze Mee]

I was very happy with the finish of my Techna-Fits. I didn't realize they had other colors. I have red on rn.

[darkstarxi]

11 hours ago, Febreze Mee said:

I was very happy with the finish of my Techna-Fits. I didn't realize they had other colors. I have red on rn.

I'm typically more of a clear/black/charcoal/smoke kinda guy but since I have yellow struts and shocks, bright blue strut and shock boots, pink springs, orange bushings and braces, and my new ball joints will have green boots, I thought, "why not stick with the colorful theme?"

[Febreze Mee]

I said "finish" and totally meant the quality of the lines. Very happy with the build quality. The red is nice too, I guess. I bought mine BNIB from a guy on here, so there were not any colors to choose from.

It sounds very colorful underneath!

[MitchRoyce]

It's awesome to see that you've been working on this car for a while now, tackling all the issues it had when you first got it. I'm sure it's been a fun and challenging journey so far, and I'm excited to see what's in store for the future of this project.

Those pictures you took might not be glamorous, but they still give us a glimpse of your ride and I can tell you've put in some work on it. I can't wait to see more pictures and updates on your progress.

[darkstarxi]

Made some good progress today!

Got the bottle jack delivered which allowed me to lift the engine to where it needed to be.

Cleaned up the pan and engine again & applied RTV to pan. Man - do I hate RTV!

\

Installed Subaru 11109AA151 oil pan onto motor. Those rear bolts are a bit of a PITA - glad I got the bottle jack for the improved access.

Hand tightened the bolts, waited an hour for the RTV to set a bit, then torqued them to spec.

Installed CNT V3 Equal Length Header mated up to my freshly painted OE up pipe w/ GrimmSpeed gaskets all around & a new Denso O2 sensor.

Reinstalled downpipe w/ new GrimmSpeed gaskets.

Reinstalled pitch stop mount, turbo heat shield, & intercooler.

One more shot of the revised underside of the car.

Tomorrow, I'll pick up an oil filter and oil. Tomorrow evening, the RTV will be fully cured and ready for oil. Will verify no oil leaks or exhaust leaks, reinstall skid plate, clean her up a bit, & take her out for a drive!

[Febreze Mee]

Your undercarriage is gorgeous!

I'm excited for you to be able to drive it. My car was down and out for 3 days for the engine swap, and I was ITCHING to drive it!

[darkstarxi]

Last night, I installed an oil filter and filled up the oil. Started it up and ran it a bit, checked for oil and exhaust leaks, turned it off and checked for oil leaks again. Everything looked and sounded good so I took it out for a fun little drive.

Pulled it back into the garage for the night with the intent to check under the car for leaks again today. Today, I found that the oil drain plug was leaking a bit and I snugged it up some more. I think I tightened it onto the pan pretty good before I installed the pan on the car and then never snugged it up more when I got the pan installed on the car - will monitor the situation - may need to actually replace the washer for the plug for the first time ever.

Snapped some shots of the header and up pipe after they got good and hot yesterday...

Reinstalled the skid plate and took a couple more pictures...

Next on the To Do list:

- Give the interior, exterior, & underside of the car a good cleaning

- Install AVO rear sway bar when it comes in (think it's backordered)

- Replace leaking TGV to intake manifold gaskets

- Have fuel injector service performed on aged stock fuel injectors or upgrade them - will consult tuner for advice

- While I'm in there for the TGV to intake manifold gaskets & the fuel injectors, I'll permanently remove fuel injector covers & any other bits that unnecessarily clutter the engine bay

- Make sure OE PCV system is up to snuff - replace & zip tie any degraded vacuum, PCV, etc. hoses that weren’t already replaced and zip tied

- Check/remove banjo bolt filter underneath turbo inlet

- Re-tune

[Febreze Mee]

On 4/29/2023 at 9:50 PM, Febreze Mee said:

Your undercarriage is gorgeous!

Like I said...

[darkstarxi]

No more leak from oil drain plug after snugging it up some more. Added butyl tape between the STi style front lip spoiler & the front bumper from behind to fill any small gaps that remained after using hardware to attach the two but did not get any pictures of it. Reinstalled the skid plate, inflated the tires to 35 PSI cold, and got the car washed.

After wash:

Accumulating some parts for future work:

Subaru 806735290 & 806735300 axle>trans seals

Mevotech TXK9513 greaseable ball joints - came with very little grease in them so I pumped them full already

Techna-Fit SUB-1130 SS brake lines colored to match(-ish) the ball joint boots

AVO S1X03G1HS020J 20mm rear sway bar w/ poly mount bushings

Will continue to accumulate parts for this project as funds permit.

 

Updated To Do list from my last post:

- Give the interior, exterior, & underside of the car a good cleaning DONE

- Install AVO rear sway bar when it comes in (think it's backordered) FINALLY CAME IN & WILL HOPEFULLY BE INSTALLED THIS WEEK

- Replace leaking TGV to intake manifold gaskets NEED TO ORDER GASKETS

- Have fuel injector service performed on aged stock fuel injectors or upgrade them - will consult tuner for advice NEED TO CONTACT TUNER & GO FROM THERE

- While I'm in there for the TGV to intake manifold gaskets & the fuel injectors, I'll permanently remove fuel injector covers & any other bits that unnecessarily clutter the engine bay WILL DO WHEN I GET IN THERE

- Make sure OE PCV system is up to snuff - replace & zip tie any degraded vacuum, PCV, etc. hoses that weren’t already replaced and zip tied WILL DO WHEN I GET IN THERE

- Check/remove banjo bolt filter underneath turbo inlet WILL DO WHEN I GET IN THERE

- Re-tune

 

Also considering adding GrimmSpeed 8mm phenolic thermal manifold spacers & GrimmSpeed V2 bypass valve. Would love to hear feedback from anyone with experience with either or both of these.

[darkstarxi]

Installed AVO 20mm rear sway bar & poly sway bar mount bushings. Used the outer end link holes for the softer setting for now - will probably leave it that way. Should pair well with the stock 21mm front sway bar w/ the Energy Suspension poly sway bar mount bushings.

Had a tougher time with install than I anticipated - had to drop the axle-back sections to get it in and will be re-adjusting them in the near future because I rushed to get it back together and it's not sitting anywhere near as nicely as it did before.

Ordered and received the TGV>IM gaskets

Found the front bumper wasn't sitting right on the driver's side. Think this is the culprit. Looks like the top is busted.

Should look like this. Subaru part # 57765AG03A. Ordered a replacement on eBay.

Contacted @Tuning Alliance for advice on whether to upgrade fuel injectors or just send them out for service prior to tuning.

Last but not least, committed to and ordered the GrimmSpeed 8mm phenolic thermal manifold spacers & the GrimmSpeed V2 bypass valve.

[darkstarxi]

Got some more parts in. Bracket for front bumper, GrimmSpeed V2 bypass valve, GrimmSpeed 8mm phenolic thermal manifold spacers w/ new gaskets for a phenolic spacer sandwich on gasket bread, and I think that's it.

Didn't have time to get much done but did a couple of quick things. I've yet to hear back from @Tuning Alliance and their website is down - does anyone know what their deal is? I don't do social media and I don't have a phone number or email address for them.

Anyway...

Installed the bracket for the front bumper.

Old vs. New

Fixed.

Installed the GS bypass valve.

Old.

New.

Definitely sounds a bit different. I actually preferred the sound the OE BPV made. I also think that the vacuum nipple on the GS one should be longer. No room to get a clamp on and hardly even room for a decent zip tie. It's substantially shorter than the OE nipple is.

OE BPV is for sale if anyone wants it. Never had any issues with it. Excellent condition. Gasket looks great. Make me an offer if you're interested.

[darkstarxi]

Installed Subaru rear cargo net meant for the wagon on my sedan. Instructions involve drilling holes in the plastic paneling in the back of the wagon to mount hooks and utilizing factory hooks. That's obviously not an option on the sedan that has no factory hooks for the cargo net and has no plastic paneling to drill holes in.

Used hooks next to tail light access panels for the upper attachment points:

Hooked onto my Subaru rear cargo tray (also meant for wagons) for the lower attachment points:

Not perfect but it works. I've had these in previous cars and have always found them useful.

[darkstarxi]

How it started:

How it's going:

Started working on teardown today. Man these engine bays are PITA rat's nests.

Hoping to get all of the following done before it comes out of the garage again:
- Check/remove banjo bolt filter underneath turbo inlet
- Replace & zip tie any degraded vacuum, boost, fuel, PCV, etc. hoses as needed
- Have Dynamic Injector Service performed by Deatschwerks on aged stock fuel injectors
- Remove fuel injector covers & any other bits that unnecessarily clutter engine bay permanently
- Try to vastly improve upon the general orderliness of the rat's nest shit show that this engine bay is
- Install GrimmSpeed 8mm Phenolic Intake Manifold/TGV to Engine Thermal Spacers
- Install Subaru 14035AA492 TGV to Intake Manifold gaskets
- Install 1 step colder spark plugs
- Probably remove the buttery valves from the TGV housings
- Adjust exhaust positioning so the muffler tips are located properly and the exhaust doesn't his the rear sway bar
- Install Subaru 806735290 & 806735300 transmission front/axle seals
- Install Mevotech TXK9513 ball joints
- Install Techna-Fit SUB-1130 flexible brake lines

I intend to work at this everyday from today through this Sunday and see how far I get. Some stuff will be held up by waiting for parts, etc. After this Sunday, working on this will very likely be sporadic like usual.