Frank's 818R build

[Frank818]

Remounting the hard line bracket on the front side of the tube. That's where I fitted mine after test fitting with my custom length braided lines.

[Pearldrummer7]

Remounting the hard line bracket on the front side of the tube. That's where I fitted mine after test fitting with my custom length braided lines.

I did exactly that! It fit just right now. Tightened up the brakes and I'm just about ready for wheels!



Also got into some shifter work this weekend. Man, those cables are cool!

Test fit with the seat so I can pretend to slam gears

[Pearldrummer7]

Also found this gem of a coolant hose in Advanced Auto. It was $13 I think, and it's so long! Has some cool bend in it, too. I'm using this to reroute my coolant lines on the passenger side of the car.

[Frank818]

Happy to help, Frank, it's great when you say something and it helps someone else.

Those are the FFR supplied shifter cables?

[Pearldrummer7]

Happy to help, Frank, it's great when you say something and it helps someone else.

Those are the FFR supplied shifter cables?

It's definitely great when that happens! You're a huge help, as are most people on this forum.

Those are the supplied cables. Are you using them or do you have to do something different?

[Frank818]

I don't know if I can use the FFR cables with the K-Tuned shifter and I didn't check if length was working with my engine, but I already bought a custom length set from Wayne for race cables, apparently people like the feeling of these cables. Bought them a long time ago but could only provide the length recently.

[Pearldrummer7]

Coolant lines and the nose are on! Coolant lines are on the passenger side because racecar (and ballast). I looked at the nose a few times, only to realized that it doesn't need a bracket and isn't the same as in the manual. No mount/bracket necessary; it just bolts right up.

Also, my pack of 8 3/8"-16 x 1" bolts was down a bolt. Seems to be the story of this build for me! (one bolt short)

[Santiago]

Are your upper radiator support brackets backwards or did you swap sides? Not sure it really matters, but I thought the scalloped holes in the angle bar go to the outside.

Minor thing, but mostly I'm just jealous that you're making progress. =)

Best,
-j

[Tamra]

Will the coolant lines both fit through the dead pedal area, by routing them both on the passenger side? Any issues you've ran into doing it this way? Seems like a great idea.

EDIT: never mind, you have an R. Do you know of anyone who's done this with an S?

[Pearldrummer7]

Will the coolant lines both fit through the dead pedal area, by routing them both on the passenger side? Any issues you've ran into doing it this way? Seems like a great idea.

EDIT: never mind, you have an R. Do you know of anyone who's done this with an S?

It's not an issue with the R(as you mentioned) however, I bet if you just stuck the flex tube through that spot without committing to anything you could see if it fits on the S. I would imagine it fits, just at a glance. I think I'm still running mine through that area.

Only issues so far are that it's:
1) a little longer of a run
2) the bend is a little more extreme coming from the lower coolant line at the block. I kind of got around that by buying a different flexible hose (from some GMC truck at Advanced Auto) and using that instead of the WRX one.

Are your upper radiator support brackets backwards or did you swap sides? Not sure it really matters, but I thought the scalloped holes in the angle bar go to the outside.

Minor thing, but mostly I'm just jealous that you're making progress. =)

Best,
-j

Thanks, J! I did swap them and they fit a little nicer now. Good eye!

[FFRSpec72]

Coolant lines and the nose are on! Coolant lines are on the passenger side because racecar (and ballast). I looked at the nose a few times, only to realized that it doesn't need a bracket and isn't the same as in the manual. No mount/bracket necessary; it just bolts right up.

I had the issue of getting the wrong steering rack bracket, as the nose mount bolts and the steering rack bolts were on top of each other, with the new rack bracket and single spacer all went well

[Pearldrummer7]

Since it's now cold in the garage, I'm doing some stuff that's possible inside the house.

Splicing the fuel pump and level sensor right now. These are the connections I'm planning to make for them:




Here's a live-action shot of the connectors for the level sensor:

[JeromeS13]

Interesting. What year/model is that schematic from? It appears to not have a fuel pump controller?

[K3LAG]

Looks like it's an NA schematic. Only the turbo cars have the fuel pump controller.

Larry

[Pearldrummer7]

Interesting. What year/model is that schematic from? It appears to not have a fuel pump controller?

Looks like it's an NA schematic. Only the turbo cars have the fuel pump controller.

Larry

*facepalm*

I noticed that and immediately updated my wiring/harness thread, and not this thread. A game of Settlers of Catan got in the way (for the last 4 hours...I won, though! ) of me correcting this.

I'm not at all sure where I'm splicing the pump yet. Does anyone have any suggestions?

[Pearldrummer7]

AWESOME present from my Reddit Secret Santa:

http://imgur.com/djXUh0D

Very cool, especially since I didn't have a shift knob on the car yet. This one's relatively light and a good size, too.



Hope everyone on the forums had a great holiday!

[Frank818]

Nice chrome knob.

[Pearldrummer7]

Nice chrome knob.

Thanks, Frank!

[wleehendrick]

Nice chrome knob.

Looks good, Frank!


That__s_What_She_Said_by_J_Bob.png

[Pearldrummer7]

Looks good, Frank!


That__s_What_She_Said_by_J_Bob.png

Haha this is fantastic. I don't use Michael Scott flavored memes nearly enough.


Finished my side paneling:

[Pearldrummer7]

So, I got rid of that pesky coolant path running around the throttle body. Slightly colder air temps, here I come! Not shown in the pic is that I repurposed the original (photo right) hose by attaching the throttle side to the right coolant line and the right side to the left coolant line.



My friends and I were discussing some of the logistics of PCV vs. VTA vs. catch can, and it turns out I will at least be plugging these two holes on the intake:




I hear VERY mixed reviews on deleting the PCV system. Our thought was to plug all but the "main" crankcase outlet, and have that one vent to atmosphere through a filter. This way, I'm never feeding vaporized oil into my intake, but can still keep nearly neutral pressure in my crankcase. Please explain to me why this won't work.

[Tamra]

You want the heads and both block spots breathing. The ideal way is to run the center crank vent back into an unbaffled fitting on the heads (you have to put a new fitting on the 205 heads to do this; the 257 heads already have the fitting and that is how it is run from the factory, minus the catch cans), and then run the baffled vent on the heads to a T with each other and a catch can, and run the baffled crank to a catch can. Then you can get vacuum from wherever you want or vent to atmosphere.

We did not drill out the heads before assembly, so what we are doing is running the two block spots together into a catch can, and the two baffled ports on the heads together into a catch can, and having both pull vacuum from the exhaust with a venturi. We will wind up with a bit of oil coming out of the center crank vent because it is not baffled but oh well.

Here's a photo of ours. You can see the two hoses running into the T (we reused the original one). The top port that is open in this photo now has a hose on it running to a catch can:

[Pearldrummer7]

Slotted the coolant hose pass through so it was at less of an angle. I think it's a cool idea. Anyone see a reason this is not a good move?

[Pearldrummer7]

You want the heads and both block spots breathing. The ideal way is to run the center crank vent back into an unbaffled fitting on the heads (you have to put a new fitting on the 205 heads to do this; the 257 heads already have the fitting and that is how it is run from the factory, minus the catch cans), and then run the baffled vent on the heads to a T with each other and a catch can, and run the baffled crank to a catch can. Then you can get vacuum from wherever you want or vent to atmosphere.

We did not drill out the heads before assembly, so what we are doing is running the two block spots together into a catch can, and the two baffled ports on the heads together into a catch can, and having both pull vacuum from the exhaust with a venturi. We will wind up with a bit of oil coming out of the center crank vent because it is not baffled but oh well.

Here's a photo of ours. You can see the two hoses running into the T (we reused the original one). The top port that is open in this photo now has a hose on it running to a catch can:

I really like this. I will be doing exactly this set up with a catch can I think. I didn't drill out a spot for a fitting on the 205 heads I have, so I'm not left with a lot of options.

[Pearldrummer7]

Popped the WRX wheels on it, just to see. Torqued suspension to spec beforehand. They definitely don't fit (+48mm offset) :lol:

[Bob_n_Cincy]

Popped the WRX wheels on it, just to see. Torqued suspension to spec beforehand. They definitely don't fit (+48mm offset) :lol:

What size tires and where did they not fit?

[C.Plavan]

Slotted the coolant hose pass through so it was at less of an angle. I think it's a cool idea. Anyone see a reason this is not a good move?

It will be fine as long as you place rubber around the holes- The metal will eventually rub through and give you a coolant leak. You can just get some fuel hose, cut it length wise and put it over the cut edges as a rubber gasket.

[Pearldrummer7]

What size tires and where did they not fit?

It's the +48mm offset that doesn't work. Rubs the rear links pretty bad. They're 17x8 wheels with 235/45 Z2's on them (for the WRX I daily drive)

It will be fine as long as you place rubber around the holes- The metal will eventually rub through and give you a coolant leak. You can just get some fuel hose, cut it length wise and put it over the cut edges as a rubber gasket.

Oh good call, Chad. Thanks for that.

[Harley818]

From what I read on the forum as well as on the Impreza forum I'm going to use two catch cans. One takes the two lines from the valve covers, through the first catch can and into a port on the intake, the other takes the main crankcase vent through the second catch can to the port on the intake. They say to run them separately as they have different rates of flow that you don't want to mix.
I'm new to the Subaru engines so I hope this works out.
Anyone see any problems with this set up?

[Scargo]

Harley818, You've left out a lot of details. Why are you wanting catch-cans? I'm not familiar with your goals for the car. Mainly, what happens to what you are catching?
I don't know how many dissertations and warnings I've put out about this, but if you run more than stock boost (and a few other factors) you run a high risk of busting ring-lands of stock pistons if oil from the catch-cans ever finds its way into the intake. You may have inspection/emissions issues to deal with, or no, but if you are modding it to a VTA (vent to atmosphere) setup you should consider letting it go back into the engine and not build up in a can.
I hope we don't suck the oxygen out of Frank's thread with a long-winded discussion on this topic right here. Why not ask it on your thread? I'll bet you a dollar to a donut there's already a thread started on the subject.

[metalmaker12]

Crawford or Perrin Aos is all that's truely proven to work correctly in all conditions with little maintance period.
http://www.maperformance.com/blog/be...rrin-crawford/

[Pearldrummer7]

From what I read on the forum as well as on the Impreza forum I'm going to use two catch cans. One takes the two lines from the valve covers, through the first catch can and into a port on the intake, the other takes the main crankcase vent through the second catch can to the port on the intake. They say to run them separately as they have different rates of flow that you don't want to mix.
I'm new to the Subaru engines so I hope this works out.
Anyone see any problems with this set up?

Harley818, You've left out a lot of details. Why are you wanting catch-cans? I'm not familiar with your goals for the car. Mainly, what happens to what you are catching?
I don't know how many dissertations and warnings I've put out about this, but if you run more than stock boost (and a few other factors) you run a high risk of busting ring-lands of stock pistons if oil from the catch-cans ever finds its way into the intake. You may have inspection/emissions issues to deal with, or no, but if you are modding it to a VTA (vent to atmosphere) setup you should consider letting it go back into the engine and not build up in a can.
I hope we don't suck the oxygen out of Frank's thread with a long-winded discussion on this topic right here. Why not ask it on your thread? I'll bet you a dollar to a donut there's already a thread started on the subject.

Crawford or Perrin Aos is all that's truely proven to work correctly in all conditions with little maintance period.
http://www.maperformance.com/blog/be...rrin-crawford/

For what it's worth, I intend to run the V1 Crawford AOS (which is not heated by coolant, as this is a summer car) on my 818. As long as you're good about emptying it, I don't think it's unsafe to run. Plus it gives you insight into how much oil you're sending out.

[Pearldrummer7]

Okay, electrical question! I'm trying to remove some of the complexity on the car's wiring. Here's a big one I found that I'm convinced I can do without:


The original starter circuit involves a relay to disallow starting the car if it's not happy about security (that definitely is getting bypassed), a switch for the clutch to be down (that's a pain in the *** as getting in/out of this car isn't as easy as a normal car), and a relay that locks out starting if the clutch switch isn't down.



Here's the new circuit I propose for this:



What's everyone think?

[billjr212]

If you go that route, i would make the "hand switch" a momentary switch. That way you have to consciously push it prior to starting the car. Prevent an oops moment by trying to start the car with it in gear. Doubles as a security feature, I suppose, as well. Would have to be by your left hand though, since your right would be busy turning the key.

[Jaime]

Why take the clutch switch out? If you are concerned about starting the car while working on it, just get a $20 remote switch.

I wired in a relay in my fusebox to run the starter so I wouldn't have to run the starter solenoid wire the length of the car.

[tmoretta]

I jumpered my clutch switch temporarily. This way I don't have to climb in the car any time I want to start it. When the car is fully driveable and registered I will re-connect the switch.

[Pearldrummer7]

I jumpered my clutch switch temporarily. This way I don't have to climb in the car any time I want to start it. When the car is fully driveable and registered I will re-connect the switch.

Why take the clutch switch out? If you are concerned about starting the car while working on it, just get a $20 remote switch.

I wired in a relay in my fusebox to run the starter so I wouldn't have to run the starter solenoid wire the length of the car.

The main reason was to eliminate the relay (as that was my last relay in the block, I could eliminate the entire block), but I obviously could just have it interrupt the start wire. The remote switch is a nice idea though.

If you go that route, i would make the "hand switch" a momentary switch. That way you have to consciously push it prior to starting the car. Prevent an oops moment by trying to start the car with it in gear. Doubles as a security feature, I suppose, as well. Would have to be by your left hand though, since your right would be busy turning the key.

Yup, should've mentioned it'd be a push button or something. And security by obscurity, right?

[EODTech87]

You can just take a hacksaw to that set of relays so that the starter interlock relay is by itself

[Scargo]

This might help the above discussion of catch-cans. Might also leave you even more perplexed. It's the latest from a long-running discussion on IWSTI called "The Official STi engine Venting, A/O Separators, and Catch Cans Thread!!"

[Pearldrummer7]

You can just take a hacksaw to that set of relays so that the starter interlock relay is by itself

Doing just that. Excellent call.

This might help the above discussion of catch-cans. Might also leave you even more perplexed. It's the latest from a long-running discussion on IWSTI called "The Official STi engine Venting, A/O Separators, and Catch Cans Thread!!"

That helped, then made me more confused, now it makes sense again. A lot to think about with catch cans! Thanks for this.



After some discussion with many people about trying to get the wheels I want (RPF1), I finally found someone who can help with the rears, and someone else who can help with the fronts -_- much better than nothing, though!

I'm going to buy 17x8 +45mm fronts (or should I do the 35mm ones they offer?) and the 18x9.5 +38 rears. Tough to find that combo in 5x100 flair, and it'll be a little costly, but they're so light! (15.6 and 18.6 lbs!) Anyone see an issue with my sizing?