Topic: A.J.'s STI

[A.J.]

If you have a flat, smooth service you can do an alignment via the string method.

Yeah... about that... when all 4 corners were up on jackstands (set to the same height) only 3 of them made contact... so I don't really trust that my garage floor is very level.

BTW, your Subaru looked badass.

[jutes]

Yeah... about that... when all 4 corners were up on jackstands (set to the same height) only 3 of them made contact... so I don't really trust that my garage floor is very level.

BTW, your Subaru looked badass.

Thank you sir.

IIRC, as long as the strings are centred on the hub, it won't matter so much for toe. Someone can correct me.

It's not like you are doing an alignment on a lift, with the wheels off, aligning the bottom of the front rotor with the rear tire and front fender......

[A.J.]

Yeehaw!!!

(Mod list updated)

[A.J.]

DAMD steering wheel installed.



Thanks Shane, looks awesome.

I'll post a picture when I'm done driving it. 

[Asstuna]

DAMD steering wheel installed.



Thanks Shane, looks awesome.

I'll post a picture when I'm done driving it. 

Oh good, I was busy all day and never got a chance to check if you were happy with it.

[otakusan]

DAMD steering wheel installed.



Thanks Shane, looks awesome.

I'll post a picture when I'm done driving it. 

Ahh... so you got it    have to see this in person sometime.. thinking about picking one up also 

[A.J.]

Giggity Thanks again Shane.




And then this happened sometime today...




Yup, a screwdriver bit... Hopefully I can find a used matching tire...

[Alex]

Thanks! You found the bit I lost for my screwdriver!

That really sucks though. But at least you have that awesome DAMD wheel now. I want one soooo badly or maybe a Prova D shaped wheel. But they are so expensive

[jellynuts]

Giggity Thanks again Shane.

The look on Shane's face when he installed that in his car was priceless.  As was the body parts he said to express his joy!  Good looking wheel AJ  

I want one soooo badly or maybe a Prova D shaped wheel. But they are so expensive

Wurf it

[A.J.]

So since my car is out of commission for a bit, I decided to do something that has been on my to-do all winter. Remove the intercooler and see just how bad my turbo outlet hose has gotten.

The news is not good. I won't be putting it back on until I get a new one. uckfaying worm drive hose clamps...





Might also be time to look into a catch can or AOS... Looks like quite a bit of oil, but only down by 1L over the 6000km interval last time (seems normal?).

In other news, I shoved a patch in the uckfayed up tire. Seems to be holding pressure for now, but the sidewall is screwed (small bubble forming) so I hope I don't have a blowout. If it holds it should last at least the rest of this winter, maybe next winter, too.

[A.J.]

Well.... Digging this up from page 5...

I haven't really done much to my car since I've last posted, except drive it... This summer not so much though, back in April I threw it up on the hoist for an oil change and discovered a badly leaking power steering rack. I pulled out the rack and didn't do much about it until a week ago. I finally ordered a replacement rack from Scott Subaru in red deer (beat rally Subaru's price by $200 and then gave me a WSC discount!), I highly recommend them for parts.

So I now have in my possession a 2015 STI steering rack. Physically they are the same as the older generation, but its the insides that count. It will improve the steering ratio from 15:1 to 13:1.

My plan is to get it installed this weekend and then hopefully be back to driving my STI as soon as possible.

[jakesubie]

Good choice on the 15 sti rack. I'm curious to hear if you feel any notable difference.

[A.J.]

Well I haven't driven the car in almost 5 months so I'm not sure if I will notice it. But if you want to do a side by side comparison sometime once its installed let me know and we can make that happen.

[A.J.]

Well, after some time of trouble-free daily driving I've now got a possible big issue. 

I did the timing belt replacement a couple months ago, changed a couple other things while I was in there. I've been smelling coolant intermittently since then, but I just thought it was due to what was spilled and burning off of the engine. Well, this morning as I pulled into work I got a strong scent of burning oil, followed by some smoke that was lingering longer than exhaust fog. I checked the oil dipstick and it nearly popped out due to crankcase pressure (normal I guess?) and the oil looked suspiciously milky... So I think I've got a bad head gasket to deal with now. 

I guess I'll be pulling the engine sooner than I had hoped. Does anyone have any links to good DIY threads or tips and pointers for an engine pull and head gasket repair?

I was hoping to be able to do this in the warm summertime, not the -30 we've been plunged back into... but oh well.

[A.J.]

Looks like I may not have a blown head gasket after all. I'm thinking it was just a frozen PCV. Checked the oil this morning and it's clean, and no oil or bubbles in the coolant. I'm going to keep monitoring it to make sure no symptoms re-appear. I guess I got lucky 

[deedz]

Looks like I may not have a blown head gasket after all. I'm thinking it was just a frozen PCV. Checked the oil this morning and it's clean, and no oil or bubbles in the coolant. I'm going to keep monitoring it to make sure no symptoms re-appear. I guess I got lucky 

Good to read, I hope you got lucky. The frozen PCV is way too common, often resulting in catastrophic failures. A few years back a buddy of mine (and old member on here, URABUS) was commuting just over an hour away everyday and back for school. Froze the PCV on the highway and by the time there was any signs of it, it was far too late. It lost roughly 2/3 of the oil capacity all out the exhaust. Early morning drive too, so he didn't see any smoke of course. At least it was all warranty, being a 2011 WRX Limited at approx. 30k km back in 2013.

Do you block off your hood scoop at all in the winter months? With the itshay temperatures we see for a good portion of the winter, I started doing this on my Forester as a precaution. Still more than enough cold air making it's way in from the front, especially from -20 to -40 hahah. Airboy had a good reminder post on here or FB (maybe both) not long ago about some winter precautions.

[A.J.]

At my last oil change I figured out the cause of my coolant smell. One of the bolts for the thermostat outlet was loose. Probably loosened by mistake when removing the timing cover (it's right next to one of the cover bolts), and it never got re-tightened or checked during re-assembly. After tightening I haven't had an issue with coolant smell, so all is good there

In other news, my wife just got a new car. Factory ordered 2019 MINI Cooper JCW. It's an awesome shade of blue and is so much fun to drive. The down side of this is that I now want a new car. I've got over 175000km on my STI now since I use it as my daily driver. I really like the car, and it's done well for me so it pains me to consider replacing it, but all of the new techno gadgets in newer cars these days is amazing and at the end of the day, it's an 8 year old car that's quickly approaching 200000km. I've started looking at all manufacturers for something worthy of a successor to the STI. Here's the highlights so far (In no particular order):

Audi RS3
Ford Focus RS
Mercedes CLA45AMG
Kia Stinger GT
VW Golf R

I definitely have a favourite on this list *cough*RS3*cough* and it's not an exhaustive list of options. The requirements are: Fun to drive, competent in winter (AWD highly favoured), Manual would be nice, but dual clutch transmissions are taking over in this segment. I don't really have a set budget yet, but seeing prices that start with an 8 make me cringe, so that's probably my top end...

On a related note, if anyone is interested in a conservatively modded 2011 STI with 176000km thats slightly rough around the edges let me know

[LilDrunkenSmurf]

As someone who just did a ton of research, and ended up on a GTI, can offer the Genesis G70 as a better option over the Golf R? I love the Golf, but the price tag on the R is just not worth it when you compare it against something like the G70. It definitely feels between brackets. Way more than a GTI for ideally just some more power, and AWD, but not quite as much as some of the nicer luxury sports sedans. Also G70 > Stinger GT.

[canehdianJ]

I'll second the GTI

I have some sholeasays old DCT GTI.  It's grey and had a bunch of weird stickers on it

 

[A.J.]

GTI is FWD only right?

[10secdream]

GTI is FWD only right?

Yes

[LilDrunkenSmurf]

GTI is FWD only right?

Yes, but now the LSD and power package come standard in the base, rather than being a separate option. You seem to be looking 1 class higher than the GTI, and I feel that the Golf R straddles that line between the GTI and the S3. Considering you're looking at an RS3, I feel like a G70 would be a better option (than even the Kia Stinger GT).

[A.J.]

I drove a TTRS (same engine, trans and quattro as the RS3) at the Audi dealership last night... Holy crap its insane. Could definitely get used to that.

I feel like a GTI would be a step backwards from the STI, but that could be more of a perception than anything... The STI is still so good that its hard to justify a step down or a lateral move... Going up a class definitely makes the decision to change more valid (and easier to swallow).

[LilDrunkenSmurf]

Which is why I'm saying you should look at a G70 over a Golf R. I'm not recommending a GTI at all.

[A.J.]

Which is why I'm saying you should look at a G70 over a Golf R. I'm not recommending a GTI at all.

I just checked out the G70, Q50 and Stinger GT online and they all seem too big and 'old man' ish for my tastes at this point...