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Headache to Heaven

9K views 51 replies 14 participants last post by  Ricco 
#1 · (Edited)
Welcome to my journey from patience, headaches to chills, cheers and joy!

History
My daily driver being a 2015 Subaru STI Launch Edition i had accumulated 60k in about 2 years and boy was that car a trip but that's another story to tell. I later on bought a 97 Civic Hatchback as a daily and after a year i decided to look around for a GC and here's the story..

Found one Black GC9 in NYC but it was about double the price but i saw pics and it was quite clean with no mods. Though as in the middle of working with the seller, i had a friend who just so happen to send me an ad for a White GC that was lightly modded for just a little less but the location was just in my backyard. So i figure why not, since im saving 8 hours round trip, why not check out the local one and save some money and spend on parts instead.

Owner stated the motor was WRX swapped, he blew it and swapped with a stock 2.5rs engine. The car had idle issues and 100 CEL codes. This car came with a ton of surprises, it came with a fully loaded audio system but the dude decided to tear everything apart and dumped into the trunk. (Seriously?) Came with a fire extinguisher, (The incorrect one that will destroy your engine) "RS6" Front brakes (German sticker), Headers and mid-pipe were held on by one bolt on each side but not even fully tightened and that sounded extremely loud and terrible.

Got the car towed out of an air force base and boy was that a hassle. Attempted to do some troubleshooting to figure out the idle issue but had no idea where to start. Once we started digging deeper and analyzing his swap, we noticed missing bolts, nuts, hoses connected to incorrectly, some missing and all sorts of WTFs like no wonder he insisted on giving me the fire extinguisher.

As tempting as it was to go WRX/STI swap i ended up going with another 2.5rs engine that i know for a fact works.(Thanks to a friend for his donor engine) Thankfully we did the swap because all the shitty things i saw on how they "ghetto" installed it.,only one engine mount and wasn't even tight, brake lines weren't connected which then made sense because the car rolled down the tow truck after unstrapping... slamming on the brakes but slid all the way till my bumper made out with the concrete to a stop.

After pulling the engine, we started tearing the interior apart and HOLY i don't know what this guy did but maybe dropped a bottle of cologne but GEEZE as soon as you opened the door it just slapped you in the face of stank. Anyway, after tearing down the dash to get to the dash harness we noticed that the harness was never touched to merge for a WRX swap as he claims. So no idea how he managed to do that but we noticed the engine harness on his motor was all kinds of cut and merged of some mess.

All in all it took about 3 months to get this bad girl running, coordinating with a friend and also the end of fall towards winter was just a bumpy road. I thought i was a patient person but after this first engine swap, there were so many times i regretted and wished to bite on the black GC in NY but after all the headaches, stress, pain and blood it feels to get it running decently knowing that i put work into it.

At this time I'm going to enjoy using regular gas, light autoX, daily drive and hoping to have her properly function till a house is secured. THEN I will be ready to drop an STI engine in but this is going to be a slow and steady build. ?

--------------------------THE MOD LIST-------------------------

Engine

  • AEM CAI
  • DNA UEL Headers (Amazon)
  • 2.25 Custom Midpipe
  • Stromung Axleback Dual Tip
Exterior
  • 5% Sunstrip to ASA line
  • 35% Driver side tint
  • 20% tint all around
  • Amber Turn Signals
  • Amber Side Markers
  • Hella Horns
  • JDM Taillights
  • Retrofitted Mishimoto Bixenon Headlights
  • Rhino Roof Rack
  • WRX STI PU Front lip
Interior
  • WRX Front Seats
  • WRX Rear Seats
  • WRX Carpet
Suspension
  • KYB AGX Struts
  • Eibach Springs
Brakes
  • 06/07 WRX 4/2 Pot & Rotors
  • StopTech Slotted Front Rotors
  • StopTech Slotted Rear Rotors
  • Braided Front Brake Lines
Shoes
  • Volks Racing CE28 17x7.5 +50
  • Muteki SR35
  • Riken Raptor ZR (Better summers later)
The Build

2017

07-10/17 #2 146k/175k Exchanging her Soul
11/17 #12 Goodbye Rice LEDs, Hello Ambers
11/17 #13 Goodbye Stinky Seats, Hello WRX interior
11/17 #14 Goodbye Stockies, Hello New wheels

2018
01/18 #15 Goodbye Windows, Flaccid White & Pinstripe
03/18 #22 Hit and Run but new LED Ambers
04/18 #16 p0440 p0446 EVAP BS
04/18 #23 149k/178k Driver Side 4pot Seized, new seals, Oil change
04/18 #29 149k/178k Goodbye front pads, hello brembo pads
05/18 #33 Goodbye OEM Tails, Hello JDM
05/18 #34 Hello WRX STI PU Lip
05/18 #43 150k/179k Hello Slotted Rotors
07/18 #XX 151K/180k Rear diff, trans, oil change

2019
01/19 153k/182k Dropped off unicorn for thermostat replacement & Inspection
05/25 154k/183k Oil Change
06/06 154k/183k Replaced Thermostat, flushed coolant
06/07 154k/183k Still overheated

2020
03/01 155K/184k Head gasket & bolts, throttle body gasket, coolant flush, oil change, valve cover bolts, 4/2 pot calipers, slotted rotors, pads


 

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#8 ·
After the struggles 1300 vs 4300 was a lot better, the money i saved i was able to spend on the maintenance and a few aftermarket parts which was nice!

And it's a good looking car. :cool:

-Brakes are Audi Brembo's. just paint em red or black. and put a sticker on them. ;)
Thank you! I found that the "RS6" were Audi brakes but didn't see ANY thread of ANYONE doing that conversion lol. The guy also had European Tuning stickers all over the car so maybe it is? After comparing the STI Brembos and those it almost looks like he could've shaved down the hump and slapped the sticker on. I poked at the caliper and the paint literally came right off. hmm...Speaking of which today i found out my driver side front Brembo are about ready to seize. Welp

^those brakes look like Subaru 4 pots to me with an Audi sticker...somebody problaby searched for an "RS" sticker for the brakes on eBay. It's just the wrong RS... :lol:
I believe this might be true, after the experience with the car i dont trust anything the previous owner says. In which i texted him about a question and he just ghosted on me, unless he was deployed since he was in the air force. Shrug
 
#12 ·
11/18/17 Goodbye Rice LEDs, Hello Ambers

The turning signals were this ugly three bulb LED with a black housing. while thought of keeping the clear corners but when looking at how the bulb was installed, it was taped to the housing..Another surprise.
Decided to get new amber corner lights and the turning signals to match the side markers.
Before and After.
 
#13 ·
Nov 2017 Goodbye Stinky Seats, hello WRX interior

The car just smelt absolutely terrible, and when i was doing the swap i pulled the front and rear seats out to air them out for few months..and Geeze the smell just did not go away. Ended up trashing the rears (but as soon as i threw the dumpster I'm like shit i could've sold for cheap or hell just give it away. Though i did not want to climb in the dumpster.

Found a used set of WRX Front and Rear seats in pretty good condition, no tears or fade but slight dirty due to sitting in a shed. The trip going to pick these up was deep in the woods, while driving i didn't have cell service nor saw any gas station for miles..I'm thinking this would be the perfect setup for a kill, no one would ever find me lol...the owner had a 05 WRX with a full STI interior swap. At first he couldn't decide on selling it to me because he kept getting "fakes" so when he said no, i spent 5$ on a milkshake. While heading back home he texts me back changing his mind saying if i get there by the time he needs to leave he would sell. I felt bad but i actually forked up 5$ in quarters from my change cubby as i didn't have time to run to the store or bank or else i wouldn't of made it. He was a pretty nice guy, lives out in the middle of no where because they wanted land for his wife to ride. Pretty awesome.

A few later i found WRX carpet. The guy just wanted the front seats but had to buy the whole set from another owner. Funny because i believe i was looking at the same AD but thought the price was just too high. Hooked me up with a sweet deal on the carpet. Pretty cool guy as well, has a different car per track, rally and auto-x.

Anyone installing these front seats, front seats bolt right in but you have to interchange the seat belt buckle from the stock seats. I noticed that you have to cut a bit of the metal to bolt the buckle in fully and not awkwardly sitting.

Anyone installing the rear seats that they will not bolt in fully, either the top goes in or the bottom goes in but not both. I believe i hooked the high back into the slots but only one bolt on the bottom to hold it in. Then the butt cushion was bolted in by the two at the bottom. Also note that the back is higher then the stock RS seats so will have to either spray paint, tape, sticker bomb or something. Or else you will see the wood from the rear window.



 
#14 · (Edited)
Nov 2017 Goodbye Stockies, Hello Volks

With one of my stock wheels broken i ended up finding these CE28 in Sept in NY, did some research and saw that he was all over NASIOC and with a few itrader reviews i asked him if he would ship. He was very nice about helpful about fitment questions.
CE28 17x7.5 +50 Wrapped in Riken Raptors (Cheapest summer tire rack tire) but these actually grip REALLY well lol. I was inches away from Star Specs but at the time of purchase i wasn't sure what else i would have to buy to get the car running so i stayed low on budget.




 
#15 ·
Jan 2018 Goodbye Windows, Flaccid White & Pinstripe

How much i forget to say i love amazon for its 2 day shipping!
Replaced the reverse lights and license plate lights and boy they are bright!



Finally the car runs decently and was bold enough to make it to the tint shop.
5% sun strip to the ASA line
35% driver side window
20% all around


Got myself the 3M Magic wheel from Amazon and that whipped off the pinstripe Easily, but still left the hard residue that just couldn't take it off.
Went to advance auto and Goo-gone was sold out @10$, i went to CVS and they stopped selling it, then i went to Target and got a big spray bottle for 4$!
Even after i let the Goo-Gone sit and soak, have yet to pry off the rest of the residue. Got some feedback to hit it with some heat and compound so once it warms up will probably do that. However the pictures, you cant really tell from afar. aha






 
#16 · (Edited)
April 2018 p0440 p0446 EVAP BS

Thread about the issue i posted
http://www.rs25.com/forums/f13/t243521-after-gas-station-car-hesitates-start.html#post3557098

For weeks now i have been getting EVAP p0440 but continued to ignore it. Once we got the car running, after every fill up the car would take a few cranks before it fires up. Just about a few weeks ago the car felt like it lost power, felt like vtec and or boost lag..though i have no boost. Eventually the car started hesitating and bucking really bad. The car would have a tough time getting up to 2k even and the idle was just terrible.

So after replacing the purge solenoid located under the intake manifold towards the intake side (p0440) it fixed the rough idle (Fuel Short bank was running rich before hand).


Replaced the vent valve towards the rear passenger wheel (P0446), this dropped the fuel short bank to around 0 at idle but the long bank was then running really rich. I test drove it after the CEL cleared but then after a few pulls the P0446 comes back.


i still had the CEL then to find out that the wire was previously cut and poorly crimped that the wires broke loose. After sauntering it back together it then cleared the CEL.


i Seafoamed the car and idle started running really rough again and the short bank is now back at rich and long term at 0.

I then replaced the canister hearing that if it clogs then it could also cause an issue, but after that replacement it still had an issue with the idle.
The brackets holding the canister was so rusted that it ended up breaking off and we had to create a spacer by using a piece of wood, painted to keep its good condition due to its location. The wood spacer ended up working in replace of the rusted spacer.


I also swapped the gas cap as the seal was okay, slight small break but i don't think that was an issue.


After a few theories and some research we found that the seafoam MAYBE pushed all the gunk onto the o2 sensor and that could've caused the car to idle rough and hesitate at high RPMs. We then disconnected the O2 and the car ran similar to what it was before but just with a CEL. We replaced the pre-o2 and everything works!

Short bank still slight rich at ~16-18 but better then ~30 so i'm pretty satisfied. The car runs like normal now and in its happy place. BUT...after a week of troubleshooting and replacing parts, i haven't gotten a chance to fill the tank yet to see if the car takes a few cranks as it still has some gas.
 
#18 ·
Removing stickers? hair dryer,WD-40, and an old credit card. ;)
then 2 step buff.


You can never trust a seller, unless it's a guy who's attention to detail you really admire. (ie:i'd buy a car off a James May,or Edd China type)

or the seller tells you it's a broken turd, and shows you a list of all it's known problems, and lets you poke around for more. -The A/C doesn't work? and the power steering is noisy? oh, the battery keeps going flat?
drop the price a bit and i'll take it off you. i need a car now.i'll have a guy look at it. :D

you did good man, got a pretty solid base, with superficial screw ups.
and your attitude towards the car tells me this is a build to watch.
keep up the good work.
 
#21 · (Edited)
Ill keep that in mind, i totally didnt think about the WD-40. Just waiting for it to warm up before i give it a "swirl"..hehe
Yeah i wouldnt be able to lie about the issues because i believe karma would bite me, what if it was so severe they didnt know and caused a major accident but i knew about it..

I remember i sold the EK and told the guy EVERYTHING that was wrong, i even offered to fix ALL of it so he can pass inspection because i already had the parts on hand including the 100k maintenance but he wanted to take it to the mother's mechanic. i forewarned him that the cost to even inspect and then charge for the labor is going to rape him..Then he doesn't listen and does it anyway then tells our mutual friend (Whom set up the sale and told me that his friend needed a car) that i sold him a fcuked up car when i clearly told him what was wrong with it. Though the car was running okay, but it was a beater and got me from A to B and put 10k no problem...In the end i met up with him to give him all the parts i had and to find out he reked the car....story was he swerved into a guard rail to avoid an oncoming truck who was in his lane on a rainy night...
Not to mention that since it was a friend of a friend that was walking to work, i gave him the deal to take the car at this lower rate, then the weekend bring it back and ill swap all the parts for the cost of the parts, but after he told me not to worry his tech will do it. im like alright, save me a few hours on the weekend I'm fine with losing a few hundred bucks..

I try to keep a good attitude and i appreciate it! If you would've seen how frustrated i got at the beginning fighting the car lol..

Love comes in all ways :lol:

Subaru
Seriously lol...Just wait for the next few posts i haven't yet...

Great progress. Your build reminds me a lot of how mine started out. Mine was much more to the extreme of a beat down cheap car though lol. Keep it up man. Car looks much better with the rims and pinstripe removed.
Thanks man! It could've been a lot worse, though before the two GCs i mentioned at the beginning of my post i did pass out on some decent conditions for a damn steal but didnt realize those sold quick then later after a few months of seeing them come in waves and backed down i decided to just make the jump. Couldve saved a lot more money if i bit on the others but its okay, it is what it is!
 
#22 ·
Mar 2018 Hit and Run but new LED Ambers

So this day i was on the way to a meeting and 2 miles down the road the car is bucking severely...i turn back and park the car and uber away. (Previous post about the evap)

This day was just absolute terrible, GC died, 50$ for uber, get to the meeting in a different state to find out i later on lost my STI key fob, luckily enough a coworker was nice enough to drop me home. I go inside and later on decide to get something out of the GC to find out this damage has happened. Wasn't there that morning when i left then to a surprise later in the evening...Luckily enough only the bumper and corner light. The bumper stood up pretty well and for some reason there was a deep hole in it. Living in apartments, cant even finger what had hit me.

I put the clear corners in just so i could drive it, plus it was rainy so didnt want to jack up the electrical portion or bulb so.


Hopped on Amazon and thanks to prime and two days later i got new corners even and thanks to the referral items i got some amber LEDs lol...damn it



Now I'm either in debate of either repairing the bumper and getting it painted OR buy a new bumper and paint and along with purchasing a lip and getting the whole all around lip kit painted or find a used white bumper but who knows how long that will be...
 
#23 · (Edited)
April 2018 Driver Side 4pot Seized @149k

So i noticed for quite some time now that i had about half way play in my brake pedal, also noticing there is vibration on the car while braking but not the steering wheel. Then to check, noticed that there was no play in the driver wheel when the car was jacked up. So from a friend stating that most likely the caliper is seized because i really didn't want to take the brake apart to diagnose it but to find out it was matter a fact seized. So i got a piston caliper rebuild kit from MachV (fastwrx.com) shop was local so spent the extra dollars to get it over with vs cheaper online...

Started with the passenger side..and noticed i had braided brake lines..well at least previous owner did something right..but wait, wtf is this metal ring just hanging out loosely...


Scrapped off the paint to actually now think that it is a Subaru caliper? At first from the paint i thought he shaved the square edges down but guess not.


Passenger side Piston..not too bad


My foolish mistake...after breaking apart the passenger side caliper (Farthest away from the brake reservoir) I crack open the bag and noticed two sets of square cut seals, 1st set is smaller diameter then the other. Then thinking hmm..maybe front piston seals are bigger and rears are smaller then to find out this package is only for one side. FCUK...it was late in the middle of the night at a friends house. Luckily enough the passenger side was okay, so i cleaned up the seals and the boots and reused those.


Another foolish mistake, the previous owner fooled me and i should've known better but at 2050 we make it to Advance auto to get some brake pads..ASSUMED these were STI 4 pot so i made the purchase...it was way too big...fcuk so after some research I'm ASSUMING its FHI 4pot (04 wrx) Can someone verify? I ordered some WRX pads and should be arriving 4/19 and i havent gotten the chance to actually do measurements but when i compared the WRX and STI pad the length was the same and if i recall correctly the length did not fit...i just hope the edges just fit


Now onto the driver side



I recommend if you dont have a strong air compressor, this will be a PITA. After lots of elbow grease, nearly gave up because the piston was literally stuck. Once last attempt after hours we installed the caliper back on the rotor and used the brake lines to push the piston out. Which it did but pull the rest out was such a PAIN. Unfortunately we used A LOT of brute force and i should totally buy new pistons lets say...not only because of the minor damage i made but the damage the rust/corrosion has made as well..
The top being the passenger side and bottom being driver side


Also to mention i did some deep scrubbing with the help of purple power




All in all it was a good learning experience but really without a strong air compressor (We had a 90lb) and with a seized piston...fcuk that shit..Literally 7 hour job including running back and forth doing misc things . I was planning on painting the calipers but figure once i get the rear 2 pots then i will get them painted at the same time.

Hopefully the brembo WRX pads fit tomorrow...
 
#24 ·
Hey man cool build! Nice to see another GC8 in the area! Really reminds me of my old white RS. Even though it's a rough start, it seems like it came with a lot of goodies for being a 1300$ RS.

I bet you could fix that front bumper without a ton of work, but it's hard to tell over pictures. Sad it got hit though :/

I'll be watching this build for sure.
 
#26 ·
More headaches then goodies lol. Time to time me and a few subie buds meet up for hangouts and shoots. Been a little busy lately so maybe later towards the summer. I feel like its going to cost me a rough grand to fix and or paint all what i want

IIRC, it's the 06/07 wrx that had the pads you need.

the metal ring is supposed to plug itself into the slot on the strut that's there for the line to feed through.

the biggest thing with those square seals is to make sure there are ZERO rips tears or anything stuck to them. if there is ANYTHING, they will leak and cuase you issues. they are cheap. it's best to replace them. the piston ""shouldn't"" cause you issues as the seal shouldn't go up that far on it. just be very careful to not push it allllll the way in when you reset the pistons. it will/can cut the square seal.
06/07??? NOoooooo i hope these 04s fit...i knew i STI 5x100 last year was 04 but never bother to look at the years for WRX...Weather is nice today i hope it just slides in.

The passenger side i tried analyzing it closely under light and seemed fine, no tears or rips. Compared side by side with a new one and just about couldn't tell a difference minute that there were green and yellow indicators on them. Ill probably end up replacing the passenger side when i get the rear 2pots. Just hope it'll last till then..anddd i about pushed the piston all the way back in when i reset them..BUT I DIDN'T KNOW, hopefully i didn't cause another headache lol.
 
#25 ·
IIRC, it's the 06/07 wrx that had the pads you need.

the metal ring is supposed to plug itself into the slot on the strut that's there for the line to feed through.

the biggest thing with those square seals is to make sure there are ZERO rips tears or anything stuck to them. if there is ANYTHING, they will leak and cuase you issues. they are cheap. it's best to replace them. the piston ""shouldnt"" cause you issues as the seal shouldn't go up that far on it. just be very careful to not push it allllll the way in when you reset the pistons. it will/can cut the square seal.
 
#27 ·
You need pads for the USDM 2006-2007 WRX. As you found out those calipers are not a US STi caliper.

They were offered on Factory GC8 WRX/STi overseas but never here in the states. The only car here in the US that comes with them is the 06/07wrx.
 
#29 · (Edited)
Apr 2018 New Brembo Front Pads @149k

Finally after 3 attempts and only if would've posted on the forumns beforehand i could've avoided all the wait. Oddly the 04 WRX pads were more expensive then the 06 pads by 20$, so even though i made the mistake of getting the prior years in the end i got to save some money HA.

Passenger side went in as smoothly but the Driver side where the piston was seized before, i had trouble getting the new pad in. The pistons were retracted all the way and seemed like the top and bottom edges just didnt want to slide in. Shitty as it was but i banged them in with a hammer because it was such a tight fit. I have to go to the hardware store to get a metal file so i can shave down the edges. I was in the parking lot and the auto store didnt have what i needed so i just had to get it in for the time being.

I noticed that there is still a lot of play on the brake pedal. The pedal would travel half way down before feeling a bite and that just makes me worried...

Top two are driver side, top being new and bottom being used. Bottom two are passenger side, and sucks it seized because the old pads had A LOT of meat left.
 
#31 ·
#32 ·
Where were you before i made the purchase for the brembo caliper seals kit!? One side alone was ~110$! LOL. I just might, this driver side caliper is a PITA. I still have yet to pull the pad out and shave down the sides. After thinking about it i shouldnt of hammered that bitch in, because now its going to be a bitch to get out. GAH. I just wonder how quality is compared to OEM? Then again, a brand new one is better then a fcuked up one lol Though i wonder if the duralast one has the platform to apply a sticker like the other side lol the matchy matchy ocd...lol
 
#33 · (Edited)
May 2018 Goodbye OEM Tails, Hello JDM

I came across some used JDM tails and boy was this a roller coaster.
The seller actually found me and was at first great and very responsive.
The story and the review..
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seller was very responsive at first to sell, provided additional Stated that within 3 days of payment will tpictures to proof of possession.hen ship.

Payment sent on 12/11 but seller went out of town till the 28th.(Didn't find out till after i sent payment) January comes around and no response till mid January. I'm sending emails every other day trying to get updates and eventually by the end of the month the tail lights were shipped.

I receive them on 2/2 and seller threw the tail lights in with no inner packaging to secure them from damaging, Yes, both tail lights have cracks.

I tried being generous and provided MORE then plenty of time, even the LEAST to be provided with updates would even be satisfying but yet attempting to follow up various times was just frustrating. Also the paypal email he provides is his girlfriend. So i was coordinating with her to coordinate with seller, but why couldn't i just have the seller's contact? Okay..

I Requested a partial refund due to a damage product that was not mentioned before the buy but got no where with that.

I saw the "shit" review seller previously had but "hoping" i could be the come up for him but guess not. I THOUGHT about buying other parts he had but who knows how long that would've taken.

I HIGHLY suggest if dealing with seller to keep email trails to report anything on your behalf. HOPEFULLY this review will influence the seller to be more professional.

The Subaru community is supposed to be friendly. Help us help you, we're buying your old gold off your hands but yet give us silver or nothing at all. Try not to only help yourself and fuck it up for us.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The damages




I understand they're small cracks but still, i saved maybe like 70$ but with the headache i couldve went ahead and bought some new ones, but i figure I'd help someone and take their old treasure off their hands but eh i should've known better. (Sounding like a girl who can change a bad ass dude but that comes crying but should've known better..now just waiting for the i told you so.. LOL)

Now to the Good part of the post





So just found out the other day that there's something wrong with the passenger side parking light, because its out. BUT the funny part is when its out, you can slap the outside on the tail light and it'll come right on. *Slaps dat ass* Also the OEM harness obviously doesn't work with the JDM tails AND not to mention the seller left BROKEN bulbs in the tail light....GEEZE at least he sent the tail lights vs not at all....Now to figure out how to fix the weak connection on the parking light.
 
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