massive power loss with no codes

[Thethc]

2005 subaru legacy gt 2.5 turbo

So ill give a list of mods and then describe the issues.

invidia catless downpipe 

cold air intake ( unsure of brand )

parts that have been changed:

MAF

Bank 1 sensor 1 02 ( A/F sensor )

codes:

p1446

p0031

Just bought this car and attempted driving it home ( succesful but barely ), anything over 1/4 throttle it would misfire super hard to the point you had to pull over and restart. If you drove the car in sport and kept it around 2k-3k it ran and drove like nothing was wrong. Got it home and started checking things over. found boot for intercooler was clearly not on all the way. reattached everything properly and took the car for a ride and it was a completely differant car, didnt need sport, shifted through gears with no misfires to be felt. 

Took the car to work the next day ( 20 miles 1 way )and about halfway i could feel a real down low misfire, hit the throttle and the car would perk up and take off, was anything huge, seemed like a possiable spark plug issue. On my way home was complete oppisite. Trying to take off from a red light it would fall on its face and then out of nowhere take off like a rocket! again, just as long as you kept it in the 2-3k range it was fine. 

Got a couple of questions about the data. When i monitor the B1S1 ( a/f ) sensor i get a constant reading of 5.5v, doesnt really move from there, idle or WOT its 5.5v. I got the car home and unpluged it and it still reads 2.2V? is that normal? also found a pin in the plug bent, i fixed but havent deleted the P0031 code and see if it comes back ( probably will ).

My other questions is the tune.. Being catless and untuned wouldnt it throw some type of p0420 for the rear 02? assuming it doesnt it is safe to assume the car is tuned? I'd assume with the runability issues im having and the car being untuned that i'd have way more codes, but im rather new to the subaru Diag and am only well trained in the GM / Isuzu ( and hino diesel ) diagnostic training and subaru resembles none of it. I just purched the Tactrix cable this morning to hopefully be able to view way more Data and possiable data log for a tuner to have a look, until then i dont really wanna drive the car any longer and risk internal failure.

[m sprank]

The car is most likely tuned.  Need an LV, a log at idle/cruise... something.  

[Thethc]

Thats what im guessing as well. I've been all over the car today, found #3 coil pack connector was just ziptied on and most of the connector in pieces, plug smelled pretty hard of fuel, waiting for the connector and the cable to pull info

[BoozeRS05]

I’ve never understood why new owners beat on a car when it’s clearly not running well and before you understand why. You’re launch it from stoplights when it was badly misfiring the day before and you haven’t even had it for a week yet. Great idea 

[Thethc]

I really wished you could have read and understood the post. I never launched the car, nor did i beat the car. If you can pull data without driving it, please tell me how, im all ears. The problem is litterally that it misfires so hard from a stoplight and then suddenly takes off, the car is litterally incapable of launching. I thought I could get more information from my scanner. I guess i shouldnt have been so colorful with my wording. When I say hit the throttle i dont mean im mashing the pedal, i mean i hit it enough to downshift and the misfire goes away. Ill take the time to say it again, the intercooler wasnt connected, i reconnected and the took for test drive ( roughly 3-4 miles ) and the car ran buttery smooth, only reason i decided to take it to work the following day. Nice response from a mod tho

Edited February 26, 2023 by Thethc

[m sprank]

The coil pack connectors disintegrating is a normal Subie thing.  We used to carry connectors, pins, etc to replace them.  The zip tie was the "ghetto" way. 

For the misfires, air/fuel/spark/compression.  Air leaks? Coil pack/plug? Fuel? Timing? Compression?  Having a log of idle/cruise would help with knowing MAF readings (gs and v), O2 sensor reading (afr), manifold relative pressure (vacuum/boost), timing, load, knock, misfire, IDC, etc.  An LV will show in a snap shot the learned afr's, IAM and knock.  

Sorry, kind of a multiple symptom type thing and its really hard to offer good advice remotely sometimes.  Data helps.  Dont want to send you on a snipe hunt. 

[Thethc]

@m sprank I completely understand. I basically lined up the pins to the best of my knowledge and reinstalled for now. I did a boost leak test, everything leaks  some chinese bpv not holding, intercooler in the corner... turbo intake pipe.. you know, all the important stuff...at only 5psi..

Edited February 26, 2023 by Thethc

[m sprank]

Thats not good. Deff need to seal up all the leaks.  Good luck with it all.  Lots of info to be found here on the forum. 

@BoozeRS05 has been around even longer than I on this forum.  15 years and  thousands of posts later we all get a bit jaded at times.  He meant no ill will. 

[Thethc]

I'll keep this thread updated incase someone comes across same issue. I understand how the subaru community can be aggrevating at times. Unfortunatly, there are alot of kids modding these cars, beating the piss out of em and then talk shit about the platform. So its to my suprise that i give as much info as i can and then get the response I get. Its a double sided sword in the subaru community sometimes, guys asking for help with no info whats so ever and then the other people who absolutly pound the daylights out of a car and ask for help while knowing what they already did but dont wanna hear the truth. I miss my 15' wrx and babied the hell out of it, traded it in for a "family car". Just excited to be back into a subaru.

Edited February 27, 2023 by Thethc

[Infosecdad]

I think it was a misunderstanding based on some of the terms in your initial post, I read it a similar way as well.  We do have a number of people that show up asking for help after beating on their car. It's the Internet and hard to fully understand the intent behind just words and first-time encounters. Honestly, I'm still on this forum after years because of the level of maturity and understanding that is common across the membership. There are a few others Subaru forums that are close, and many that are way on the other side of the spectrum. Too much of the knowledge is falling into Facebook groups now and a ton of people are showing up no longer willing to invest the time and just want a quick answer instead.  Stick with us, this is a good place to be for your Subaru needs. 

[BoozeRS05]

This scenario happens all the time. It’s important to speak bluntly sometimes as a contributing community member in my opinion. I’d prefer my best friends in life speak honestly with me and sometimes it’s like that.

If your car is running like shit - at minimum stay out of boost, if you HAVE to drive it. This is obvious to me now, but maybe it wasn’t once.

I’m definitely not an asshole in real life, but I’m not jaded and I will ask that nobody try to speak for me again. If someone reads this and doesn’t grenade their motor, then I’m doing my job. 

[BoozeRS05]

It’s very hard for us to help troubleshoot with the individuals in these situations and it’s definitely frustrating. But it also kind of sounds like he’s speeding around through traffic, in a car that’s new to him, 17 years old, on/off power, and he’s got random parts and leaks all over the place..

Maybe there’s a way I can actually be helpful though, lemme work on it.

[m sprank]

My bad.  I digress.

I read this all differently.  Should probably move to PM rather than light more fireworks.  

Unfortunately forums are not anything like what they once were.  But there will be no new members if all we do is make assumptions and immediately offend. 

I am an admitted asshole and I just wrote that, LOL. 

[Thethc]

@BoozeRS05 it's fine to assume but assuming makes an ass out of you and me. I'm no kid and I'm not making the car do anything it doesn't wanna do, I'm simply driving it as per a diagnostic stance and even quoted that i wont be driving the car any longer until i recieve my cable and can actually visualize the data i need to see. My choice of words were a bit colorful and I can see how one may think I'm beating it, but I'm actually just keeping with the flow of traffic, unless I'm at a red light, then I'm the guy that holds up traffic until the car corrects itself and moves. 

I don't hold grudges over the internet, I'm sure your a great guy and just came on blunt assuming this is just another fan boy until the car explodes. I'm fine with blunt, I'm an asshole myself, I just don't understand your standpoint. I reread my post and see nowhere where I said I i was smashing the car, did I go WOT, YES. Because I need to know how what little data I'm able to review is doing, hence the 02 voltage reading. 

Trying to figure out a car you have never seen, with mods you don't even know about ( tune ) is aggrevating to say the least ( hence the codes question about tuned vs unturned).

I'm sure we will cross paths on this forum many times and it is not my intentions to not talk or ignore you. 

Have a great day!

Edited February 27, 2023 by Thethc

[m sprank]

To try and help by answering the O2 sensor question it sounds like you are seeing the heater circuit.  In a Subie (at least since 2000) A/F sensor voltage is not a definitive indication of operation. A/F sensor data is determined by current draw.  In my experience normally it is the heater circuit that fails. 

Edited February 27, 2023 by m sprank

[Thethc]

@m sprank yeah I can't see much suprisingly being a snapon scanner I can see volt and current, current being at -126.xxxx, assuming that's the heater circuit and throwing the code.

[m sprank]

My Modis was worthless on Subies.  I used to break my reps balls about how much better my laptop and a tactrix was for pulling data. 

[Thethc]

Yeah, amazing how much it costs and shows nothing more than a pocket scanner, hopefully the car doesn't have tune I'm locked out of. Is that true that ecutek and cobb tunes have a lockout? Meaning I can't open source unless I get a factory reflash? 

[m sprank]

If it is a Cobb tune and you do not have the AP, you are locked out.  If it is a Cobb tune, you have the AP and it was pro-tuned you are locked out.  If it was tuned with EcuTek it was pro-tuned and you are locked out.  The few pro-tuners I know/knew who would tune opensource usually had a "trick" to basically lock you out of the tune.  Iirc it involved changing a file location. 

The mods are minimal (stage 2) so it could very well be opensource and it could be self tuned or it could be a tune posted on the web.  Unknown tunes are a bit sketchy.  You want to trust the tuner, but....

 

[Thethc]

Just too update. I'm pretty sure i got all the kinks out. Removed ebay bpv and installed OEM. Found the intake boot at the turbo was severly rubberized and tearing, replaced. Car was NOT tuned, Torque performance sent be a stage 2 base map and car is a differant car.