Jason's 818 Build Log (Delivery: April 2014)

[bnr32jason]

My build idea for right now, just with different wheels (Volk TE37's or something similar)

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/521670_520870951295931_1674510825_n.jpg

Parts currently in my possesion:

EJ20G Engine (will be getting fresh partial rebuild with all new gaskets/seals)
Power FC ECU
VF36 Twin-Scroll Turbo
STi Brembo brakes front/rear
Recaro Seats (from Evo IV)
Misc parts required for the completion of the kit


Things I want to do:
Rear spoiler (custom, not as high as the 818R wing)
18" Volk TE37 wheels or something similar
225 front 255 rear tires Advan AD08

Much more information to be added as I gather more parts and it gets closer to my delivery date. (Still a year away :( )


For $4000 I essentially stripped down a wrecked 2005 STI Spec-C (Japanese spec with 33,000km on it) for nearly all of the parts I need for the 818. This includes Brembo brakes, VF-36 twin scroll turbo, headers/uppipe/downpipe, complete suspension minus the rear lower control arms (damaged), aluminum front LCA's, 5x114.3 hubs, quick steering rack, etc. Although I did not get the engine from the Spec-C because the owner of the car wanted it as a spare for his replacement. What I did get was a complete but disassembled V4 STI EJ20G engine that he had in his garage along with the complete engine/chassis harness and a PowerFC for tuning.

Now I know that the 818 kit was not designed for STI so I'm leaving myself with two options here.

Build Option 1 (preferred):
Use all of the parts I got, including all of the STI 5x114 stuff. I want to do this because I've already got all the parts but also I really want 5x114 for better wheel/size/offset choices and the better overall setup compared to the 5x100. This option will likely require custom machine work which is beyond my ability, so it all depends on what needs to be done and how much it costs to see if this is a viable option. Rebuilt EJ20 engine with VF36 twin-scroll turbo. Sell my V4 transmission for a 2006-07 transmission with more appropriate gearing.

Build Option 2:
Sell the complete 5x114 setup and pick up a complete suspension setup from a standard Impreza and then upgrade what I need to. This upgrade will include front and rear Wilwood brakes and aluminum lower control arms for reduced weight. I'll still be using the engine, transmission, and turbo setup from option 1.

[bnr32jason]

While my delivery date is a long ways off still, I did take the first steps today in starting my build. I picked up an excellent condition V4 STI RA 5-spd transmission with 4.44 final drive and factory helical front LSD along with all the DCCD stuff and the rear R180 diff for $450! Best part is I can sell all the DCCD stuff including harness and ECU's and the rear diff for a few hundred bucks and essentially only pay $150 or so for the transmission.

This transmission is quite rare, comes with factory cryo treated gears and a significantly thicker 1st-3rd for extra strength. It's 4.44 final drive, so compared to the acceleration of the FFR test cars (which I believe are using 06 WRX transmissions with a 3.7 final drive) the acceleration should be brutal! I'm not a Subaru expert by any means, but from my research this is what I have gathered.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8389/8497047168_2fd7da5555_b.jpg
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8109/8497045806_5d77091ee0_b.jpg

I will clean it up very well and probably paint the casing silver.

[fateo66]

Not to burst your bubble because that is still a great deal but I do not think that tranny had the front LSD

http://www.gearhack.com/myink/ViewPage.php?file=docs/Subaru%20Transmission%20Chart

[bnr32jason]

See, it seems different sites say different things:

http://www.subarujdm.com/JDM_Subaru_Impreza_WRX_STi_Manual_transmission_rat io_chart.html

This one says if the transmission with this serial number came from a RA model that it does have the front diff.

I wish there was an easy way to test if it has it or not. Open diffs and helical diffs will both spin the axles in opposite directions when not under load, which I have verified with this transmission. However if I try to hold one side in place while spinning the other side, they both spin forward, so I *think* that verifies the LSD, but I'm not 100% sure on that either.

The only way to know for sure is to open the transmission up, but I've never opened one before so I'm not sure if I want to. Do you know of another way to check?

[bnr32jason]

Something I am going to do at some point, probably right away, is to run a 430 Scuderia style exhaust system coming out of each side of the license plate.

http://image.europeancarweb.com/f/9052884+w750+st0/epcp_0802_06_z+ferrari_f430_scuderia+rear_view.jpg

Will running the exhaust VERY close to the transmission cause any heating issues or anything?

Seems like our rear bumper design is perfect for that style exhaust!

https://www.factoryfive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/818rear.jpg

[fateo66]

I'll look when I get home but I bet if you pull out the front axle stubs (assuming the the HLSD can do that) you shouldn't be able to see all the way threw.

[fateo66]

If you pull out the axle stubs and they look like this then it is an open diff.

http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x310/fateo66/20130222_165529_zpscb94c0e9.jpg

[bnr32jason]

My tools are fairly limited and I'm not lugging this thing to the base auto hobby shop, so how difficult is it to remove by hand?

[bnr32jason]

Hit paydirt today. Got pretty much everything I need, and then some, for $2000!

EJ20G STi Engine (closed deck, full wiring harness and ECU disassembled completely, great condition, but will do new gaskets/seals anyways)
V5 STi Top Mount Intercooler (some bent fins, but should work just fine)
TD05H 16g Turbo in great condition
2005 STI Brembo Brakes front/rear (I'll have to buy the 2004 STi brackets and rotors)
A bunch of misc stuff from the "required parts" list from a 2004 WRX (lower control arms, brackets, spindles, steering rack, etc, etc, etc)

So pretty much I've got everything I need to complete the car minus a radiator and some misc brackets that I should be able to get from any local junkyard when I get back home. The engine of course will be professionally machined and assembled, so that's an added cost, but will be worth it for an essentially fresh engine that makes 280hp stock with the VF29 and supports the 350bhp I want without a problem.

Pics coming later. :)

[bnr32jason]

What all am I going to have to do with the transmission to get it working in FWD mode with the 818? Is it just a matter of pulling off the center differential housing and then blocking it some how? Or is it much more involved than that? I'm guessing there is much more involved, but not too sure.

[RM1SepEx]

F5 will provide everything
remove center diff and output shaft
Subaru has a locking sleeve for service (the shop offered to get me one) the kit will include one and a block off plate and the cable shift mechanism

see this example http://www.bremarauto.com/products/subaru-2wd-conversion-kit/

[bnr32jason]

Sounds simple enough, thanks!

[PhyrraM]

Your transmission is an early 5 speed. Keep it in the back of your head that you *might* need to source your 2WD conversion parts separate from FFR. I would bother with it until you receive your kit and see if the FFR parts work (or others report on it).

The transfercase had some updates around 1999-2000, and FFR has only officially promised to support '02-'07 Impreza donors.

[bnr32jason]

I guess we'll see what happens. Hopefully there isn't any major differences, but if there are, I'll figure it out. With the 4.44 FD this should be great for what I want out of the car, so I'll be doing what it takes to make this transmission work.

Reading this site though makes me think it shouldn't be a problem.

http://www.bremarauto.com/products/subaru-2wd-conversion-kit/

If their kit works with any 5-spd Subaru transmission, I image FF's kit will too.

[bnr32jason]

Brembo brakes pulled from a 05 STi Spec-C with 24k kilometers, in great shape. Was in the middle of cleaning them, along with the rest of my engine parts and it started raining pretty hard. Stupid base housing means no garage for me. I'll have to get 5x100 rotors and 04 STi mounting brackets.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8405/8647888438_0614df00c0_b.jpg

Engine parts being cleaned and prepped the movers to come pick them up with all my other stuff.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8116/8647887128_d01bfd2b45_b.jpg

[bnr32jason]

I've got a complete set of SpeedHut gauges (GPS Speedo, 10k tach with shift lights, boost, oil temp, water temp, oil pressure) that I'm considering using for this project. They've got a small custom "GTR" logo in the middle of each gauge since they were originally purchased for my GT-R, but that car is long gone. Might look funny having GT-R gauges in a 818, so I've e-mailed tech support at SpeedHut to ask how much just a face change would cost.

Also considering centralizing all functions to a custom steering wheel with some buttons. So turn signals, headlights, etc. Everything but emergency flashers. I think it would be pretty cool.

[bnr32jason]

Got my wheels in over the last couple days. I actually ended up buying 2 sets of wheels so I can make one complete staggered set. All wheels are Volk CE28N, the first set is 17x7.5 +50 and the second set has 2 18x8.5 +50 and 2 18x9 +40.

I'm going to using 2 17x7.5's for my front wheels and the two 18x9's for my rear wheels. I'll be selling the other set (17x7.5 Front 18x8.5 rear) to someone, hopefully another 818 builder/owner.

The 17x7.5's come in at 13.6lbs each and the 18x9's should weigh 16.3lbs according to the charts, but I have to get the tires off to weigh them first. The 18x8.5 should be 15.9lbs, but again I have to weigh them myself to see. I'm really glad I spent the extra money to get these wheels, they are some of the lightest forged wheels on the market and they look great in my opinion. Actually the 18x9's are discontinued so a bit of a rarity and perfect for the 818.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7316/8746036129_076b6d9bea_h.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7294/8746036093_14b4582169_h.jpg

[Xusia]

You didn't mention a price on the set you are selling... :)

[bnr32jason]

I'll post them up once they make the journey from Japan to Seattle safely. Everything got picked up by the movers today, I packed the wheels very well myself, but there's still a small chance at getting them damaged. Once they make it I'll set a price, but I think $1800 or so is perfectly fair given the condition and rarity.

[longislandwrx]

have a safe trip home.

[Ironhydroxide]

Your transmission is an early 5 speed. Keep it in the back of your head that you *might* need to source your 2WD conversion parts separate from FFR. I would bother with it until you receive your kit and see if the FFR parts work (or others report on it).

The transfercase had some updates around 1999-2000, and FFR has only officially promised to support '02-'07 Impreza donors.


you WILL need to find a Phase 2 Center Differential Housing. with Shift fork selector and Reverse Interlock.

But beyond that, you can run that transmission. I'm quite curious as to how low a gearing we can get before people have issues with 1st gear being useless.

[bnr32jason]

I'll be using a 06 WRX transmission instead. I'll be selling the other stuff.


I picked up a GrimmSpeed TMIC in a group buy, great deal! It was shipped yesterday should get here soon.

http://www.grimmspeed.com/images/product_images/subaru_tmic_0207_1_1000.jpg

[apexanimal]

^ i saw that... great price...

i look forward to seeing testing and comparisons that they do...

[longislandwrx]

My grimmspeed comes today. Glad you were able to hop on that GB. so much awesome.