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2001 Impreza L | WRX swapped | Rust repairs and weight reduction!

189K views 1K replies 66 participants last post by  bue car 
#1 · (Edited)
This is mostly the progress of my srp 2001 L coupe, but also some 98L and 2018 brz stuff.



Backstory:


I got the car in August 2011 with 100,500 miles. It was my first car, and it had lots of problems at the start. Almost sold it a few times, but once I read about all the swap stuff, I decided I had to keep it.

I messed with weight reduction, and fixing/upgrading the suspension while I gathered funds for the swap...lots of maintenance too...although the ej22 ran strong the whole time. It really was bulletproof. I had to have the transmission rebuilt, but was finally was able to start the swap summer 2014 and I got an ej205 in and running.

Fall of 2015 it was totaled (not my fault) and I spent a year slowly fixing the car myself with no collision experience. After tons of spot welds, test fits, wiring, and double checking......I got the car inspected and legal to drive again in November 2016, with a reconstructed title.

2017 and on will be dedicated to rust repairs,weight reduction, and self tuning.




Here are some up to date pictures, regardless of the different seasons:

















The goods:


ENGINE:


-USDM 02/03 ej205 (6/28/14)

-TGV deletes

-Grimmspeed catless uppipe, ceramic coated

-Cobb catted downpipe, ceramic coated

-02-05 wrx, Invidia q300 catback

-STi oil pan

-KillerB oil pick-up tube

-Avo turbo inlet

-lighter crank pulley, and no p/s or a/c pulleys

-Protune by Jermaine @TurboXS

-v3 accessport

-iWire merged harness



TRANSMISSION:


-'01 5mt (3.9) and cable clutch;
AndrewTech rebuild

-custom reinforced clutch fork

-'01 (oem) TOB, and pivot ball

-'06+ wrx clutch

-'06+ wrx pressure plate

-'06+ wrx flywheel

-TiC shifter linkage update and pivot bushings



SUSPENSION / HANDLING


-KYB excel-g struts (2/2/14)

-Eibach pro-kit springs 2/2/14)

-Group N front top hats (2/2/14)

-3/8 saggy butt spacers (2/2/14)

-18mm Outback rear sway bar

-20mm WRX wagon front sway bar (6/28/14)

-JDM GC8 crossmember (6/28/14)

-Whiteline steering rack bushings (6/28/14)

-Whiteline rear endlink bushings

-group N front-of-trailing arm bushings

-power steering delete



WEIGHT REDUCTION&DISTRIBUTION:


-Currently about 2690~ lbs.
-***Was at 2590, but the turbo engine swap and a full-size spare added well over 100 lbs back.

-Aluminum jdm gc8 hood

-USDM front bumper beam cut in half

-deleted a/c

-deleted power steering

-washer fluid tank relocated to trunk

-battery relocated to back seat

-removed hunk of metal from glovebox and under dash

-removed most sound deadening

-stripped trunk besides spare

-lighter wheels

-removed keyless entry system

-random little things. More soon.



----------



Here's the progress from the beginning mostly in order. I'm going to add in some dates/mileage later on. Bear with the potato pictures for the first few pages. I eventually got a digital camera, and now a DSLR, so the pictures get progressively better in quality.







Warning, picture heavy:







-Bought late August of 2011, bone stock.















--some actual wheels to replace the steelies and decent tires too.







16x7 with 205/50-16 Conti DW















--This is the oldest pic I have of my car, and the only pic from the beach driving I have left.























--Rally armors, which get used on a daily basis on PA's crazy roads :unamused:























--Homemade light bar that mounts 2 hella 500's























How it looked last winter:























--Polyurethane rear end link bushings







This is when I learned how hard pressing bushings is.....















--New outer tie rods, ball joints, and front wheel bearings.







This is when I learned to hate wheel bearings and ball joints......















This is a ball joint removal tool......mine were really stuck.















j
 
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#183 · (Edited)
2001 Impreza L | WRX swapped daily | Damage repairs and weight reduction!

Rain, rain, and more rain slowing things down. Can't finalize the core support anyway because I'm still waiting/looking for a lightweight hood, passenger headlight, and corner lights.

...but anyway.....I made a new electrolysis set-up. Made use of the rebar from my old set-up, and just bought a deeper container. This time I welded the cage together instead of just linking it all with copper wire.





First up to be de-rusted is the little flywheel cover thing underneath the engine, and a bunch of hardware. I'm very curious how the hardware will turn out. I also have a spare turbo header I want to try.




While I wait on parts, I did some more little things inside the engine bay.
--Closed off some unused bolt holes. The main reason was to get rid of rusty broken bolts from a while ago....and it made the bay look a little better I guess.

The plan for the engine bay is to add minimal bondo and metal patches.....so I might not close off many more things, mainly because it'll just add a bunch of time and weight.


Passenger side strut tower had 4:





Drivers side strut tower had 2, plus the holes for the VIN plate. I removed the VIN plate because it's been falling off for years





Ran into a little rust issue on one of the holes.....which caused this side not to turn out as well as the driver's side. Drilled it out, and before I knew it I was cutting a somewhat large hole in the strut tower. :lol:

I didn't bother making the patch piece perfectly to size, because it was at a very awkward spot on the strut tower. There's a "bump out" from the factory, and it's where 2 panels meet. Not a fun patch, but it turned out OK after it was done.

I also cut and re-mounted the fuse box mount strap a little lower. Can't really see it from the picture though.








Also went to the two pick-n-pulls near me on Saturday. I was disappointed to see that there's still only 2, 93-01 Impreza's total between both places.....and both have been there almost 2 years.

So even though they didn't have anything I really needed, I did grab a new passenger fender plug.

 
#186 · (Edited)
2001 Impreza L | WRX swapped daily | Damage repairs and weight reduction!




Thanks! Can't wait to see how your widebody turns out.

I think the Legacy is definitely cursed or something. It's completely stock besides a catback.


towers look much cleaner without those holes/rust. nice work. i need to do this to mine.

Yea, it always bugged me seeing all the broken bolts as soon as I opened the hood. I figured they'd all rust out eventually, so I'm glad I took care of it while I had the chance.

Although, it would've been much easier to do with the struts out. Getting decent prep work on the backside was hard. Didn't want to catch the rubber undercoating on fire. :lol:
 
#188 · (Edited)
2001 Impreza L | WRX swapped daily | Damage repairs and weight reduction!

^^ :lol:


No real progess on the cars last week. Went up to Wellsboro all weekend to watch STPR. So to make up time, I stopped looking for a used lightweight hood, and just ordered an OEM aluminum hood from Subaru. Should be here in a couple days.

The dealership dude said there's only 8 left in the country now:
Part number = 57220FA130

Yay for weight reduction!
Also, the LGT may be going away. :lol: Thinking of trading it for something. It would kinda be a downgrade (no turbo) but it's a low mileage car and hard to pass up. Just can't decide....

---------------
---------------

Here's some pictures from STPR. I still have a bunch to go through and edit.

This was my second year watching STPR. I actually planned out a trip this year, instead of going last minute by myself like last year. Such a great time, can't wait for next year....I wish there were other events closer.




Pastrana:


















Loved this Porsche:



 
#189 · (Edited)
2001 Impreza L | WRX swapped daily | Damage repairs and weight reduction!

Almost got rid of the Legacy GT...so, so close, but it didn't work out. At all. Here's a quick rant/story:

I came across a 2000 Impreza L, with 70,000 miles and 1 owner, at a dealership 2 hours away. Over the phone the guy assured me the car was in amazing condition.....no rust on the body or underneath, no accidents, all original paint and body stuff, ect.
(CarFax also said no accidents)

Wasted no time and made a trip over....Unfortunately, after a 150 mile drive, this is what I arrived to see:

--damaged radiator support and a/c condenser.....so it was in a front end accident.

--rust EVERYWHERE. Strut towers, engine brackets, suspension, subframes....ect. It was BAD.

Pictures don't show it all. The underside of the car was bad. Pretty sure the oil pan was rusted through, because it was dripping onto the ground. :lol:








--rear of car must have also been resprayed, because the exhaust tip was the same color as the car. :lol:
Scratches everywhere. Visible rear 1/4 panel repairs...ect.



Super disappointing. I was very excited to get a second 93-01 car. I'm sure it ran OK...but for $4400 with only 70,000 miles wouldn't you expect minimal rust and no body repairs?

I hope no one on this forum ends up with the car for the price they were asking. The guy told me I was being too "picky" and the car was in perfect condition for the miles......so frustrating.




.
 
#191 · (Edited)
2001 Impreza L | WRX swapped daily | Damage repairs and weight reduction!

Finally back to some progress on the Impreza. The replacement exterior parts for the front end arrived last week:
-aluminum jdm hood
-passenger headlight
-corner lights

The aluminum hood feels like paper compared to the steel hood.



The hood arrived in a MASSIVE box...even without the box it barely fit in the LGT's trunk.

Shipped all be way across the country from another dealership with no damage, which is amazing. The aluminum is very thin and could be bent with no effort.





Did a quick layer of SRP on the new hood (and old vents/scoop). I just wanted to see it all the same color for mock ups. Everything will get repainted after its all back together and running again.

Didn't bother painting the passenger fender because I still need an OEM one. The aftermarket replacement I have is junk.



So, here's the first mock up of the front end! I was nervous that things would be way off, but it looks ok so far.

The core support panels are still roughly bolted together, so there's still LOTS of measuring, adjusting, and finalizing to do. Should be able to make it all work though.



The only spot that's a little off is part of the passenger corner....which is expected. It's not by much, and once everything is permanently together it should fit just fine.

 
#193 ·
2001 Impreza L | WRX swapped daily | Damage repairs and weight reduction!




Yea, it's weird seeing the front end somewhat together again, since it's been so long. It's like seeing a friend you haven't seen in a while. :lol:


-------


Got some more parts this
week/weekend:

-> New grill
Could have sworn my grill was fine, but I found a broken lower tab. So I got a replacement from JDMgary.



-> On Saturday, I FINALLY found a junkyard with some different 93-01 Impreza's. Got an OEM undamaged fender (no dents), OEM fender liners, and a bunch of OEM hardware and clips for $30.



-> The white OEM fender fits WAAAYYY better than the aftermarket one. I also forced/pulled the frame rail out a little more and the passenger side is lining up really well now.

You can also see the sweet pinstriping on the fender.






So here's some more mock up pictures.

I'm hoping to do final mock ups with self tapping screws next weekend. So that means lots more measuring and double checking. I've already taken the bumper, beam, grill and lights off about 30 times this weekend.





 
#202 · (Edited)
2001 Impreza L | WRX swapped daily | Damage repairs and weight reduction!

Started off the weekend by taking it all back apart, then back together. Basically all ready to weld up now!

Well first I ran some sheet metal screws into the core support panels, then took it apart.



Needed to take off the wheel tub to drill the holes for my plug welds. 41 holes for this piece.....which ends up being a total of 50-55 welds for that panel alone.

Only focusing on the wheel tub because it's the largest of the 3 pieces to weld in....the other 2 will be very quick and easy.

I was nervous about taking everything back off. I figured I'd be fighting to get all the exterior parts aligned again....but the screws held the alignment just how it was.





Back together for now.

Rare shot of both cars together. Maybe one day they'll both be running at the same time, ha



I'm hoping to weld it in this upcoming weekend or the next. Still need to remove the wheel tub the day before welding to get everything down to bare metal.

Just finishing up some final measurements and adjustments until then.

 
#203 · (Edited)
2001 Impreza L | WRX swapped daily | Damage repairs and weight reduction!

No real progress on the car itself last weekend......but I've been doing more de-rusting shenanigans!

-> Flywheel cover thing

Turned out great. No pictures right after it was pulled from the tank.....but I basically just dried it off, and sprayed it.

No sanding down, or any effort.



-> Started de-rusting my spare WRX exhaust manifold

Was curious how this would turn out. Seems to work great so far. One side is finished, and the other needed to be flipped and dunked again....so I'm letting it run today while I'm at work.

Again, I just took it out, lightly brushed if, dried it off, and sprayed with high temp paint. Pretty much no effort.

If you want a nice smooth finish you would need to really grind it down, sandblast it, or something....but I think this turned out well for no sanding/grinding at all.

-Second picture is right after it was pulled from the tank and brushed off
-Third picture is after painting







-> Also might have figured out a plan for de-rusting bolts. The end plan here is to eventually try zinc coating with my tank. Then I can have all the nice factory looking bolts I want.

My first idea didn't work too well, because it's hard to get a good electrical connection with multiple bolts, without covering too much of the bolt.

Still have to drill and tap the rest of the holes, and make a second one, but I think this will work much better.

Setting it up for 10, 12, and 14mm bolts.

 
#209 · (Edited)
#217 ·
With Tapatalk not working, it's really hard to post here. Using the full site on my phone is a huge PITA.

Anyway, last Saturday I got the wheel tub all welded in. This was probably the biggest thing to check off my to-do list. I've never done a panel replacement before, so I was nervous that I would completely **** it up.....but it all went pretty smooth.

Still have the headlight panel and upper tie bar to weld in.....but those will be quick and easy.





Although, I did cheat a little. I copper backed almost all the welds, to help not burn through. Thin metal sucks.



Here's my rust prevention plan. Not pictured is some quick setting epoxy to fill in some gaps:

-seam sealer
-spray paint primer
-2 part epoxy primer (in a can)
-cavity wax (inside the rails)
-more primer/paint on top



Currently, the seam sealer is drying and I'll finish sealing that panel this weekend. I might start welding the other 2 panels this weekend too, but I'm not sure yet. Might take a week off from metal work and mess with some wiring.
 
#222 · (Edited)
Yea I think for the last 2 panels I'll drill 1/4" holes, or maybe something slightly smaller. Should be way easier to fill in.

Weld doesn't stick to copper
I think that was the point.
Yup doesn't stick. Makes it hard to blow holes through the steel, which helps a lot because I'm not very consistent on thin stuff yet. :lol:

-------

Quick Legacy GT update:

This car still hates me. Its not running lean anymore....I got the fuel trims much better, but there's still tons of FKLC. So I try to stay out of boost/high rpm's.

Then today, the turbo coolant hose decided it wanted to randomly tear and leak everywhere....so I had to make a parking lot repair with 1/2" hose to get myself home. The clamps in the middle are to stop it from kinking.





Anyway, back to the main headache...
Still haven't welded the last 2 panels yet. The past couple weeks has been full of random thunderstorms and it's been impossible to start anything outside.

So I've been giving the engine some attention. While its out there's some maintenance/fixing I've been doing, and I've also decided to squeeze in a couple extra things. Gonna order the parts soon, but here's what I'm planning:

-Catless up pipe
-New crosspipe (with my de-rusted manifold)
-KillerB oil pick up
-STi oil pan, baffle, dipstick

One thing I needed to do was replace a few studs on the turbo. When I pulled the engine last time, 2 of the studs for the downpipe broke.
.....they're pretty stuck
.....and I'm pretty lazy

so I might just get one of my td04's rebuilt and basically have a new turbo. Not sure yet. Gonna try to get them out again tomorrow.








Also got some of the last wiring/airbag stuff for the car. I think the only thing I still need is a clockspring.

$20 at the pick-n-pull:



Pretty much finished all the annoying measuring and adjusting. Ready to get the last 2 panels permanently attached and put the front end back together for good. This whole thing is just taking too damn long.

Hopefully the weather cooperates this weekend.

 
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