Engine Refresh - Studs, gaskets, etc...

[RumblyXT]

Good progress.

Nowadays makes no sense to me why some people heavily modify their engines for these “crazy power gains”, only to later probably have to fix the entire work they did because the motor couldn’t take the added boost/pressure.

Keep it stock, maybe a few subtle power mods here and there, set it for reliability and that engine should last long and still offer plenty of fun.

Maybe I’m getting old, but to me 300-320hp range seems more than adequate  power for these cars.

[Max Capacity]

My stock vf52 was fine for all the years on stock injectors. But as you know, with a custom vf52 you'll want more fuel. 

As they say, it's all in the tune.

 

As Rumble said, that under 320AWHP is plenty for a reliable, fun DD. You know my numbers and trouble free miles I got, on stock fueling.

[KZJonny]

Yup. I am actually reasonably concrete on the JMP VF52 being the end of it. I like this car, and like that I can actually use a lot of it's powerband on public streets etc.. It's still a comfortable car to ride in with the stock Spec B suspension if maybe a little noisy with the exhaust and all, but I don't mind that at all. I wouldn't even be going for a max power tune witht the '52. If I could get to around 300 wheel give or take, that would be fine by me. It would probably be leaving 'power on the table', but I do not care. I think that is about all I would dare ask of an original short block, and the turbo won't be running at max effort all the time either, so it should live a little bit longer that way. I'm fairly sure I'll need a new short block eventually in this car, but hopefully that isn't for another couple hundred thousands kilometers.

I still may not, since the JMP VF40 is a lot of fun to drive and supposed to very much like a stock VF52, so I think I have a clue what that is like. The other other thing these days is that there are just much more modern and cheaper engines to get to make a lot of power for a lot less money. I don't like Hondas particularly, but it's pretty to argue with a K series for being able to take a few pounds of boost and then get beat on all day, and just keep on running.... Nothing wrong with EJs at all, I like them, but it isn't the platform I would choose to try and make 400hp with these days. I also don't really think that for me the GT is the car I would pick to do it with.

It's just sooo easy and relatively a lot cheaper to find some chassis that you can stuff an LS into and be done with it. I mean, they make drop in kits for all kinds of chassis now, it's almost too easy.

[KZJonny]

As far as engine rebuild work goes. I cannot get 3 of the exhaust valves on one of the heads to not leak a little bit of water when I test them and after doing some very light lapping with polishing compound.

I was really hoping not to have to start playing around with new valves buckets and all that, but it seems like that's what I'll have to do.

I am going to have another go at that head tonight with some "coarse" cutting compound on the valves to see if I can get past the little bit of pitting on the valve seats, which I am damn sure is going to ruin my lash.....

Edited April 1 by KZJonny

[RumblyXT]

Hmm.. 3 of them leaking eh? Pretty sure by now you've made sure that head is not cracked and it's just the valve seals not seating completely.

Yeah, those Hondas K20A2/3 from the Integra Type S and and K20Z1 from the Civic Si are absolutely awesome platforms, revving all the way to 8-9K sometimes, so much fun and reliable. If they had been AWD drivetrains, I'd have probably never switched over to Subaru.

[KZJonny]

Head is fine, yeah. It's just a little weeping.

In all seriousness, the heads are already probably better than they were when I removed them from the engine, and the mating surface is definitely flat now.

It's one of those, "I'm already in here and doing work, I'm going to do it right while I have it apart" sort of things. Decent chance the valves and seats would mate up tight at they heat and hammer into each other while running normally, but for the sake of a few more hours of work. I'll just make them super clean now and forget about it.

 

Of course, all of the intakes look perfect and seal just fine. I do really appreciate that about port injection. Being able to adapt some GR86 D45 heads to our cars would be the cats ass, but I doubt anyone is going to bother doing something at all like that any time soon. Hah!

[KZJonny]

Bottom is lapped, and top is clearly not.

Did both for that one cylinder, and surprise surprise, it doesn’t leak at all. Great seal.

So, I guess I know what I’m doing the rest of this evening, and probably the next….. coz you know I’m going to pull apart the other head and do those as well, right?

*le sigh*
 

….. just gonna slap in studs and new head gaskets right?

Right.

[RumblyXT]

That’s how it is with these things.. you plan for a simple overhaul, you end up doing a lot more.

You’d feel bad later on saying, damn it should have done that, “while I was there”.. lol

Progress! 

Edited April 2 by RumblyXT

[KZJonny]

Last set.

My frikkin hands are about to fall off, hah!

Final touch up on the LHS then on to the last one.

Having done alL of this, I now understand better why people specifically just get the seats cut by a machinist. Or, just drop off the heads entirely and just pick them up once done.

Still, I would do this again. It’s the kind of thing I find rewarding, even if very time consuming.

[KZJonny]

Weather is decent, and I am alone at home for the weekend. I think it is reasonable to say that I can start putting the thing back together soon. Maybe even have a (mainly) intact engine by the end of the weekend.

Since I am already neck deep in this thing, I figure I might as well ask if there is anything else that comes to mind that needs doing...

I have already done, or will do the following with this "refresh" turned everything but bottom end rebuild...

-studs and OE head gaskets
-heads are machined and flat
-valve stem seals
-valve lap and polish, which will mean going back through all the valve lashes upon reassembly
-TGV cleanup & removal of butterfly flaps
-cam seals + rear cam bore caps (half moon seals)
-oil pickup & windage tray
-general replacement of rusted and corroded bolts/fasteners
-installed electrical oil pressure adaptor bung at rear oil galley; actual pickup will be installed towards the end of everything to avoid damaging someting expensive during install
-any vacuum lines not replaced last year will get replaced now
-heat wrap tube for front/lower coolant crossover pipe
-same heat wrap applied to front O2 sensor wiring, which runs scarily close to the EL headers
-new plugs, one step cooler, since they are a better price, and it doesn't matter
-new valve cover gaskets
-pretty sure I have a rear main seal kicking around somewhere.... probably install that
-Spec Stage 1 clutch kit + resurfaced Exedy lightened flywheel
-new OEM clutch fork
-Verus clutch fork SS pivot
-group N engine mounts
-throttle body coolant warming loop delete
-IAG OAS install (yeah, yeah, yeah... I drank the koolaid okay? I already have it, and it isn't going to hurt anything.)
-new exhaust studs
-new/used OE fuel rails + injector o-rings + fuel hose to connect them all up + @jaylew fastener delete under the manifold + point all clamps in a direction that can be reached while the engine is installed, etc...

I am thinking that perhaps I should/could do some of the following

-remove and clean throttle body butterfly? I have no idea what the backside looks like.... need to get a new gasket... meh.
-sand paint coolant metal tube while they are off (POR 15 and done...)
-flush and top up clutch system fluid while it is easy to get at?
-IF the pinions seals on the rack can be replaced IN CAR, I may do this while the bay is empty? Probably doable, and easier than doing it from below later? Very slow leak, which is ignorable, but you know.....

 

So, since I've already get enough work to keep me busy for a month of weekends, anyone that's been following along care to tell me what I am missing? Anything glaring that I am overlooking?
 

Edited April 4 by KZJonny

[RumblyXT]

Nice! A lot of detailed work, but all well worth it.

You mentioned you’ll be replacing the vacuum lines, will that include the PVC valve too? Might as well..

I cleaned the injectors with cleaner using a 9V battery and alligator clips, maybe you don’t need to do this though.. but worth flushing them a few times just in case.

And the last thing which imo, is very important, are you keeping the OE oil pickup tube? They tend to crack and starve the motor of oil. Why not upgrade it? 
Other than that, I think you have all bases covered. Maybe someone else can give their input?

ps: definitely clean the T/B.. Open the blade slowly, and once cleaned with T/B cleaner, close it back up slowly.. (don’t let the blade slam shut).

Edited April 5 by RumblyXT

[KZJonny]

58 minutes ago, RumblyXT said:

will that include the PVC valve too? Might as well..

The air oil separator takes the place of the PCV more or less, but I'll clean the existing one anyway if it is not removed.

 

59 minutes ago, RumblyXT said:

I cleaned the injectors with cleaner using a 9V battery and alligator clips, maybe you don’t need to do this though.. but worth flushing them a few times just in case.

Good idea. I should flush the new fuel lines as well anyway. No idea what might be in them after removal and being shipped across the continent.

 

1 hour ago, RumblyXT said:

And the last thing which imo, is very important, are you keeping the OE oil pickup tube?

Nope, there was an IAG pickup/windage tray combo on sale around black Friday. Been sitting on a shelf for a while, but it is already installed and just waiting for me to clean up the mating surfaces on the oil pal and block to reinstall. (with stainless steel bolts and lock washers, so they will never corrode again....)

 

Thanks for reading through and commenting man! I really do want to know if there are things I should be doing that I'm not.

1 hour ago, RumblyXT said:

ps: definitely clean the T/B.. Open the blade slowly, and once cleaned with T/B cleaner, close it back up slowly.. (don’t let the blade slam shut).

Added to the list of "to do's". That one is at least an easy win.

[RumblyXT]

3 minutes ago, KZJonny said:

Nope, there was an IAG pickup/windage tray combo on sale around black Friday. Been sitting on a shelf for a while, but it is already installed and just waiting for me to clean up the mating surfaces on the oil pal and block to reinstall. (with stainless steel bolts and lock washers, so they will never corrode again....)

Oh perfect! You're set with this combo then.

 

4 minutes ago, KZJonny said:

Thanks for reading through and commenting man! I really do want to know if there are things I should be doing that I'm not.

Sure thing brother. I'm no expert by any means, just sharing the bit of knowledge I've gained in these 4 years.

 

5 minutes ago, KZJonny said:

Added to the list of "to do's". That one is at least an easy win.

FSM calls for replacing the T/B gasket after removing it, but you may get away with reusing it if treated carefully.

[RumblyXT]

Look what this guys is selling down here, but I can't reach him.. He has his contact info removed! Argh! Check out the mileage, that car looks mint! I want to jump in into another OBXT project lol..

https://offerup.com/item/detail/b91a7c42-ef5e-37f8-8bce-8d1ae6d94129?q=subaru+outback+&cid=5.1

Edited April 5 by RumblyXT

[KZJonny]

VERY clean for the age and miles. I bet that's hardly a project and just a general maintenance car, but you never know.

I see things like that come up around here (tho never as clean) from time to time, and price would be similar. Reasonable for what you're gettting. No matter how nice and clean a car is tho, I can never convince myself to pull the trigger on an automatic.

I'm actively looking for a manual bug eye/hawkeye Impreze or Outback/Legacy in manual so I can finally move on my AT Outback... Haha! I like that car for being reliable and non-turbo and being able to fit all sorts of junk into it, but every time I move the gear selector to "D" and.... that's it. It really takes some wind our of my sails.

[RumblyXT]

27 minutes ago, KZJonny said:

No matter how nice and clean a car is tho, I can never convince myself to pull the trigger on an automatic.

I'm actively looking for a manual bug eye/hawkeye Impreze or Outback/Legacy in manual so I can finally move on my AT Outback... Haha! I like that car for being reliable and non-turbo and being able to fit all sorts of junk into it, but every time I move the gear selector to "D" and.... that's it. It really takes some wind our of my sails.

I know.. I've been looking for a manual myself for some time now, but they're just hard to find in good condition with a turbo, most previous owners tend to abuse these cars. There's plenty of WRXs, but I'm convinced the versatility the wagons offers, especially with kids and space in the trunk for bikes and cargo, etc. is just awesome, best of both worlds: Grocery getter, people mover, and even a bit of off road and go fast capability.

[KZJonny]

Surely I’m not the only person to set valve lashes like this?

[KZJonny]

In case you do not/can not ready oily cardboard...

I am calling this good. Exhaust lash is all set at about as high as I could without going over spec. Since I did a little grind and polish on all the exhaust valves, I expect them to close up a little, and I was always taught to set exhausts loose since as everything heats up, the lash closes up anyway. Although I suspect this is also why the gap is 0.30 to 0.40mm from factory.

I do not care about the train being loud, so lots of lash is fine by me. Without buying more shims, this is as good as it gets. I feel okay about all the intake as well, since they are at very least uniform and within 0.02mm of each other. That is not a lot.

As always, open to comment or other opinions, but this means I can call this done today and start closing up the valve covers, etc.... which is nice, if only for me.

[KZJonny]

 

Starting to look like an engine again!

[RumblyXT]

Is that a Mazda filter I see? Sacrilege!

[KZJonny]

Yeah man! Genuine Tokyo Roki filter, with the correct bypass pressure, etc…

Best thing for your EJ, especially when you couldn’t get Japan made filters from dealerships here. You can now, but it is hit and miss, so I don’t trust them, and my dealership doesn’t have the ‘large’ filters in any case.

Go to Mazda and get a filter for a 2010 RX-8.

It’s for a rotary, which is pretty cool, if that helps to make you feel better about buying one.

[RumblyXT]

I have one mounted on the Outback as well.. lol 

Better than the OE we buy here.

 

[RumblyXT]

Oh hey.. I almost forgot! Did you remove all the banjo bolt filter mesh? I think there's 4 in total in the whole engine. Now's the time to do it before you have the rest of the components and Cam Gears on.

The one behind the Left head under the Turbo, another one on top, the oil pipe by the front of the RH, one in front of the Left Intake Cam and the last one I think it's on top of the Left head in the other end of the other oil pipe.

Also, will you be doing the 4th Cylinder cooling mod? Might as well too. I have a brand new JDM fitting from eBay is you need it. It connects on the back of the Left Head.

Edited April 11 by RumblyXT

[Max Capacity]

Link with banjo filter locations.

 

https://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2834394

[KZJonny]

1 hour ago, RumblyXT said:

Oh hey.. I almost forgot! Did you remove all the banjo bolt filter mesh? I think there's 4 in total in the whole engine. Now's the time to do it before you have the rest of the components and Cam Gears on.

The one behind the Left head under the Turbo, another one on top, the oil pipe by the front of the RH, one in front of the Left Intake Cam and the last one I think it's on top of the Left head in the other end of the other oil pipe.

Also, will you be doing the 4th Cylinder cooling mod? Might as well too. I have a brand new JDM fitting from eBay is you need it. It connects on the back of the Left Head.

Yessir. One of the first things I did when I bought the car years ago.... Well, except for the one behind the LHS intake cam wheel. That one I meant to do for a long time, but only did a year or two ago when I finally committed to spending a day with my dremel and grinding down a wrench to get in there and remove the banjo. Thankfully that filter was perfectly clean. I removed it anyway. None left in the car.

+ GADT 4th cylinder cooling mod installed the summer before last when I upgraded my turbo to the Custom VF40. I didn't have the Grimmspeed Intercooler yet ($$$), and figured that little thing would probably be squeezing air pretty hard and generating more heat. So, new rad + hoses + the mod just to try and help out. The new TMIC is probably overkill for my driving, but it is a step up from OE, and nobody complains that their IATs are too low. I also deleted the throttle body warming circuit, since this is a 3 seaon car only. (And also cleaned the TB last night and reinstalled w/new 0-ring... tho it hardly needed to be cleaned, really. IT looked great on the backside too.)

Edited April 11 by KZJonny