XRAYSPECS - 2002 - BE - L - Upgrade Everything

[xrayspecs]

El Chupacabra, X-Ray's 2002 L Sedan 5MT

WARNING PIC HEAVY!!!!!!

Update, starting on page 2 , got a new chassis, in the interest of preserving the thread not making anymore changes here. Latest parts list update of installed parts are about halfway down page 3, current build parts list here

So, way long time lurker and Subaru owner, another forum member talked me into actually sitting down and starting a build log for my Legacy. so this will be a big slug for all thats gone on with the car since I got it.

I have had my 02 L sedan since early 2014, got it in the below condition, it was a bit rough around the edges but the base was solid and didn't have any rot. Most important though was it was a Manual!!!!! it's been a slow build over the last few years and hope to keep it going. Plus had a Rebuild short block in it

EDIT, TLDR build sheet on my Legacy as of 10/2/2020

This will be a post dump to start to get everything up to date.

I keep a pretty detailed logbook and binder on the work/upgrades I've done on cars I own, makes it easier to keep the hagglers at bay when you go to sell. So i've compiled everything into a list here and the milage it was installed at:


Chassis/Suspension:
Timken Rear unit bearings (p/n 512183 ) replaced at 186K
Moog Tie Rod outer ends (p/n ES3715 ) 192k
Beck/Arnley Ball joints (p/n 101-4105 ) 192k
Beck/Arnley Tie Rods inner/rack bellows (p/n 101-7404 ) 192k
Whiteline 55mm Inner LCA Bushings (p/n W51709 ) 192K
Whiteline LCA Rear bushings (p/n W53515 ) 192k
Whiteline Steering rack bushings (p/n KSR202 ) 192k
OEM alignment specs at 193k
Cusco Racing front strut tower brace (p/n 680 540 A) 193k
Cusco Racing rear strut tower brace (p/n 658 541 A )193k
Timken front wheel bearings both sides (p/n 517008 ) at 206k
Timken front wheel bearing retainer C clips both sides (p/n RET176 ) at 206k
SKF front inner and outer wheel seals both sides (p/n 22026 & 22032 ) at 206k
Beck/Arnley replacement spindle nuts for the front (p/n 103-0504 ) at 206k
Subaru OEM steering rack from a +15MY STI (p/n 34110VA120 was supper-seeded by 34110VA121 ) at 215k
Subaru OEM steering U-Joint replacement from a +15MY STI (p/n 34170VA30 ) at 215k
SKP new equipment power steering pump (p/n sk215254 ) at 215k
Gates Hoses high pressure power steering hose assembly (p/n 365599 ) at 215k
Gates Hoses low pressure power steering hose assembly (p/n 352638 ) at 215k
Sunsong Soses reservoir suction hose (p/n 3403725 ) at 215k
Cardone power steering reservoir (p/n 3R363 ) at 215k
Motul Dextron III fluid for Power Steering (p/n 105776 ) at 215k
Derale 4 pass power steering cooler to increase fluid volume and cooling (p/n 259-13212 ) at 215k
Whiteline adjustable rear lower tubular control arms with polymer bushings (p/n KTA124 ) at 215k
Whiteline control arm lock bolt kit (p/n KCA307 ) at 215k
Whiteline upper control arm outer bushing (p/n W63397 ) at 215k
Whiteline upper control arm inner bushing (p/n W63396 ) at 215k
Whiteline control arm lower rear outer bushing (p/n W63394 ) at 215k
Whiteline control arm lower front bushing (p/n W63398 ) at 215k
Whiteline diff cradle bushing front (p/n KDT906 ) at 215k
Powerflex rear sub-frame bushing set (p/n PFR69-417 ) at 215k
Whiteline diff rear bushing (p/n KDT905 ) at 215k
ARP 3" wheel stud kit from WRX 5x100 (p/n 100-7716 ) at 215K
Subaru OEM, driver side rear lower shock bolt and nut (p/n 20550AA010 , 90003335056 , & 901000177 ) at 215K
Koni Yellows assembly part numbers below all installed at 215K:

Front Struts.
Koni Yellow p/n 8610-1447SPORT
OEM LGT Shock bodies from a BL, spring perch removed and trimmed for Struts.
Monroe OEM equivalent Strut Mount p/n 902924
Koni coil spring perch for 2.25" coil spring mounting hole opened up to 15mm on lathe, p/n 80-0000-0007
Koni Nylon 2.25in to 2.5in adapters p/n 15 29 04 003 0
Hyperco 2.5" helper spring p/n 557-CS100
Eibach spacer/coupling for 2.5" spring p/n SPACER250
Eibach 2.5", 12" long, 450#/in Coil-Over Main Spring Standard Universal 1200.2500450
Allstar Performance 7" aluminum KONI shock threaded body sleeve kit, had to take out a tenth on the internal "humps" on the lathe to get the body to fit tight on the OEM housings. p/n ALL64147.

Rear Shocks
Koni Yellow p/n 8010-1053SPORT
Koni coil spring perch for 2.25" coil spring p/n 80-0000-0007
Koni Sleeve, lower spring perch and 25mm upper spring Perch p/n 80 0000 1
Koni Motorsports N/A Nylon 2.25in to 2.5in adapters p/n 15 29 04 003 0
Eibach 2.5", 8" long, 400#/in Coil-Over Main Spring Standard Universal p/n 0800.2500400

Subaru of America Bolt Flange shock rear lower (p/n 901000177 ) at 215K
Subaru of America Washer shock rear lower (p/n 900335056 ) at 215k
Subaru of America Nut shock rear lower (p/n 20550AA010 ) at 215k


Engine:
Interstate Green Top MT-35. At 160k then again at 192.5k
Rebuilt heads and short block at 160k
NGK spark plugs (p/n 6953 ) at 169k
Standard spark plug wires (p/n 27577 ) at 169k
PCV Valve replaced with OEM unit (p/n 1181080W00 ) 173k
PCV Vacuum lines all easily accessible lines, replaced with plain vacuum lines from LPS 173k
OEM Idle Air Control Valve (p/n 22650AA192, INTERMOTOR AC519 ) 173k
Felpro Valve cover gaskets (p/n VS50561R ) 174k
OEM Bosch Upstream O2 Sensor (p/n 17018 ) 174k
OEM Ignition coil (p/n 22433AA41A, UF240 ) 179k
WIX Air filter (p/n 42728 ) 179k
Borla (p/n 17183 ) SS UEL header with Felpro MLM exhaust manifold gasket (p/n MS95088 ) and OEM steel gasket at cat (p/n 224 49010 333 ) 190k
TRANS WAS REPLACED AT 192,533 SO SOME PARTS HAD TO BE REPLACED
NTK downstream O2 sensor (p/n 24598 ) 192.5k
Mishimotor Oil Drian Plug (p/n MMODP-2015B ) 192.5k
STP Air filter replacement (p/n SA9113 ) at 193k
IMC exhaust flange gasket (p/n 224 4901 333 ) at 193k
Felpro exhaust manifold gasket (p/n MS95088 ) at 193k
Cusco Radiator Shroud/Dress-up piece (p/n 684 003 AL ) at 193k
Fel-Pro exhaust gasket, (p/n 9827 ) at 193K
Fuel Filter and pressure lines replaced (p/n 33558 ) at 196.5K
After accident replaced the following parts:
Gates radiator hoses, top hose, bottom hose, and bypass hose (p/n 22495 , 22494 , 19535 ) at 197.9k
Stant OEM thermostat (p/n 48457 ) 197.9k
Stant radiator cap oem pressure (p/n 10233 ) all replaced at 197.9K
NGK Spark plugs (p/n BKR6Eix11 ) at 205.7K
Standard parts Knock sensor replaced (p/n KS98T ) at 205.8K

Drivetrain:
Front CV axles, chinese remans Suretrak (p/n SB-8011 ) at 192k
JDM Impreza 5MT transmission (p/n 71-TY754VU2AA ) (from a 98-99) with 3.90 FD, installed at 192.5K
Centric Clutch hose replacement (p/n 1513.47004 ) 192.5k
Exedy OEM clutch Kit (p/n DKN KSB04 ), pressure plate, pilot bearing, throwout bearing, and clutch disk 192.5k
Kartboy (p/n KB-003-Rear ), (p/n KB-003 ), 5MT Shifter bushings 192.5 k
Kartboy (p/n KB-025 ) Transmission mount bushings 192.5k
Standard Motor Parts new starter (P/N 17170 ) Installed at 196.5
Anchor Industries, rear transmission mount solid, filled in with 2 part urathane (p/n 9563 ) at 215k

Brakes:
Duralast oem replacements square at 188k
LPS turned rotors at 188k
Subaru OEM park brake cables (p/n 26051AE07A (LH), 26051AE06A (RH)) at 215k


Interior:
LED replacement dome light bulb installed at 165k
OEM WIX cabin filters replaced (p/n 72880AE080 ) at 179k
Driver's side exterior handle latch rod retaining clip replaced (oem unit) at 188k
Pioneer double din deck, custom pigtail made from oem/spare parts laying around (p/n AVH-P14000DVD ) at 190k
Grey Toyota Truck 5spd Hurst style ball knob (p/n PTR34-52080 ) at 193k
Mob Armor Mob Mount Switch Magnetic Large in Desert Tan at 195k
OEM fog light switch (p/n 1S7942 ) at 195K
Standard Relay for fogs (p/n RY612 ) at 195K
Wink 5 panel mirror. (p/n) at 206K

Exterior:
LED bulbs, brake, front and rear turn signal, reverse, license plate, and front running lights installed at 165k
DRL’s disabled from use at 179k
Exterior stripped to metal and repainted in OEM paint code (83N, Subaru Timberline Green Mica Pearl Metallic) base coated in two part Diamont sealer and sprayed in Matrix Systems base-coat clear coat 193k
Mirrors and grill painted SEM Trim black (p/n 39143 ) at 194k
Replaced OEM horns with HELLA (p/n 003399801 ) Supertones at 194k
JDM Rev D, B4-RSK front clip, for fenders, bumper beam, bumper skin, aluminum hood, and headlights. fully replaced headlight harness to the JDM harness for pigtails at 215k
UNK Front fender lines (p/n SU1248104 , SU1249104 ) at 215k

Wheels/Tires:
Enkei RPF1 17x8 5x100 +45. Put on at 197.5k
235/45R17 Continental ExtremeContact DW tires (these rub on full bump in the front, will probably roll the fenders to get rid of that.)


2014-03-30 12.43.12

2014-03-30 12.43.06-1

2014-03-30 12.43.31

2014-04-12 18.05.05

Previous owner at some point in its life it was resprayed on the top coat and had a terrible case of lacquer cracking everywhere but the jams and trunk underside.

first thing done was a oil change, air filter and fluids check.

you can see the massive lacquer cracking in the bottom of this picture. also +5 hp for stickers.

2014-04-12 18.04.18

It ran good for the next 10,000 miles then the ignition system and the random miss it started up, as you've gotta have fuel, spark and air to run and i had plenty of fuel pressure per the OBD scanner and id put a good filter in that it had to be the spark plugs. New spark plugs wires on the way!
From the local go fast parts store, (not being sarcastic Covina still has a small mom&pops parts store) i got new oem plugs, plug wires and a Felpro valve cover gaskets. I figured if the motor was freshly rebuilt and had reached its 5k break-in point the valves better be lashed. I get it apart and wouldnt you know it the plugs are cracked.... hmmm not so sure on that rebuid quality, they were cracked after what i was told was only 6k on the engine. got the thing back together and it ran like a top for two months then IACV also decided at 173k that it was over tired and working anymore so it got replaced with an oem on.
Also spent some time after chasing a vacuum leak on the PCV system and the PCV Valve sticking open. Swapped those out around this time too.

2014-10-27 08.43.38

2014-10-26 16.14.08

2014-10-26 16.02.52

and it ran great, and all was good till i got backed into in the market parking lot....

Had a guy back up into me, because he wasn't checking his mirrors, and wrinkle the rear drivers side quarter panel. oh well just cosmetic.

2015-04-13

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Also around 180k the front O2 sensor decided that it no longer wanted to be apart of the band and stopped reporting the right signals. It was CHRISPY! got replaced with a OEM Bosch unit.

2015-05-13 18.11.36

It also developed a HOT engine miss…. Must be the coil pack, replaced that with a new OEM unit and at the same time put a cabin filter in the dash and disable the Daytime Run light as i was tired of it prematurely burning bulbs up.

2015-09-19 15.27.29

Looks like the previous owner never bothered to put a filter in or clean the trap….vacuumed it out and put a new filter in!

2015-09-19 15.27.11

It took a bit of research as the Legacy L isnt as posted on as the GT, but i found the wiring diagrams and found that for the L’s its the Blue and Black pin in the dash harness plug that powers the relay for them. I pulled the plug apart removed the pin from the connector, coffined it in electrical tape and put it all back together and no more DRL’s

2015-09-19 15.58.10

2015-09-19 16.04.57

2015-09-19 16.05.52

About a month later the plastic keeper that holds the door handle rod in place in the Driver side door decided that it was time to go, had to pull the door apart and change the little rod keeper, which for a 2$ piece is a major pain!

2015-09-19 14.08.59

Drove the car till 187k the rear wheel bearings were toast. Did both back ones with a little help! Replaced the whole units with Timken units, and boy it was like night and day with the car.

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2015-11-15 17.37.13

to PT 2

[xrayspecs]

PT 2


2015-11-15 17.37.26

At 188k the brake pads started squealing, while I wanted to go with some street performance pads wasnt in the budget so replaced with like oem duracrap pads! Had the rotors turned by the LPS and drove it some more.

Picked up a Borla UEL header for the 2.5L from another forum member on here for the price of a ebay knock off. The unit was still New in box! Never been run! Sweet. Now just need a cat back and it'll really sound good! Future plans still here. I did have to change to a 2.4 Miata filter on the car with these as one of the previous owners added the sandwich oil heat exchanger that goes between the filter and the engine block, this wasn't a factory option on the L’s as far as all my research has lead me to believe. I stick to 3.5k oil intervals so not worried about its dirt holding capacity.

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While doing the header swap noticed that i had torn boots on the inner CV’s….. Using the well ive got it apart might as well do it all approach i sprung for Moog Tie-rods, Beck Arnley ball joints, inner tie-rods. Whiteline LCA bushings, inner, outer and steering rack bushings. Also replaced the Front CV’s with the LPS recommended chines remain front axles…. I held on to the green oems just in case as they didnt require a core back… Replaced them all in a day, nothing like spending a sunday on the cardboard cursing at dirty bolts.

2016-05-12 23.09.00

2016-03-24 18.09.56

2016-03-25 01.09.38

2016-05-12 20.34.22

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In the middle of all this had my second kid, got laid off and the plans for the car slowed down.

Had it aligned, and Boy does all new tight parts really perk these old BE’s right up. Had a lot of fun running the canyons here when i got a chance too.

We went on a trip to visit the Grandparents and introduce the new offspring and it made the trip just fine.

2016-05-26 14.46.20

However when getting ready to leave there was a very loud bang and crunch. Well turns out these old 5mt’s occasionally like to spit the center diffs VC’s retaining ring out ouf its holder when they get up in mileage. And with my luck the 1:1 rear output gears decided it was a good plan to have that clip for lunch. And werew missing a few bits of teeth. After making a few calls and a lot of googling figured out that the cost of these gears and a new VC would be in the 600-800$ ballpark depending on how far down the rebuild rabbit hole i wanted to go. And it looked like at some point the transmission had water in it, the gear faces had rust spots.

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I figured oh i'll just get a pick-a-part unit and new rear main and slap that in, and drive away. As i’ve done numerous times with volkswagons, fords and chevys.
Nope, joke was on me, turns out the L sedan i had was provided with a 3.90 Final drive. And short of getting a transmission and rear axle packaged together everything else was 4.44’s and 4.11’s. After a lot of calls and emails, i found a LKQ in fresno that had one 3.90 that showed it was pulled from a L, sweet, i ordered it, it ships and shows up, NOPE! The damn thing is out of a outback and has 4.44,s worst part was they dropped 80k miles off the listed miles. when i searched the vin# from the car it had been pulled from (it was listed on the pallet tag) i found a chased google page showing the car had well over 200K and had been auctioned for mechanical damage total. That took a whole week of phone calls and arguing with LKQ to get shipped back… they said they found another one but when it showed up it had a 4.44 as well. Back it went… lucky enough for me my grandparents have a large shop I was able to flat tow the car to and leave at while i searched for a new transmission.

2016-06-08 14.15.41


Ive also got my 51 Ford stored there till i have room to bring it home!.

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In the middle of this got lucky enough to get tickets to go see the filming of the Grand Tour in Apple Valley for there Los Angles episode! Got to meet all three of the Muppets! That was a hell of an experience.

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TWO jdm transmissions later… that had 4.11’s and 4.44’s i got a pulled one from a JDM 3.90 impreza from a LA importer.

It was during this time my brother name the car El Chupacabra because of it being so damn rare to find parts for and it was all ugly from the paint and dents!

Got a whole list of goodies for installation as well.
Kartboy poly shifter bushings and trans mount bushings, new oem clutch hose, downstream NGK O2 sensor, Excedy OEM clutch kit and Mishimoto magnetic oil plug.

Spent my 2017 newyears weekend paying tribute to the gods of speed and octane.

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Got it all back together, had it aligned and its been running great since.

Also upgraded from the OEM tape deck to a double din Pioneer unit i had kicking around. Its old but sounds better than the tape deck did! I might have to spend some money on upgraded components!

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Also two years later finally had the rear quarter panel pulled all of the big dents fixed. Stripped the whole car to the metal as i didn't want it to lacquer crack again. Then had it two respraided in the factory Green Metallic, dam does it look good when its been polished. Went with Matrix Systems Base Clear. Its now just a 10mph-10ft car instead of a 50-50 car! Lol. Ill have to wash it and get some good photos with my DSLR since the light in winter in So-Cal is always so damn good.

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Last thing ive done recently is black out the front grill chrome and paint the mirrors trim black Good ol Sem 39143 Trim Black!

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Its been a lot of little things. I'll do my best to keep this thread updated with its progress as i have a lot of little things on it I still want to change.

[xrayspecs]

part 3

More Pictures of doing the clutch swap, you can see where the torn inner CV boots let the grease fling to, all over and since its normally a daily (aint about that show car clean life) I didn't bother trying to scrape it out of every crease. just wiped what i could off before putting everything back in.



New Clutch and pressure plate and pilot bearing all going in.
IMG_20161231_135338

Kartboy poly shifter bushings going in, it was super stiff putting everything back together, really made me glad to be doing this with the transmission out as it would have been a lot of cursing at the car if id have tryed to do this on jack stands and around the transmission.
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picked up a new shift knob to replace the OEM one, I never liked the feel of it or the shape. the way it lumped and was asymmetric i would constantly scew/unscrew it while sitting in traffic. plus the lack of a jam nut always made it loose if i squared the H pattern up.
I picked up an aftermarket Hurst Knob that was meant for a Toyota Truck. It fits perfectly and brings some hot rod nostalgia to the cabin, not to mention has a jam nut.

20171212_075309

but damn i need a shift boot now. just gotta borrow a sewing machine!

20171212_075325

Picked up some parts from another user on here.

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Front strut tower brace and rear strut tower bar and radiator shroud piece, part numbers in the breakdown sheet at the top.
Nothing like some extra spicy JDM goodness added to the car when you can.

Started with the rear strut bar, was easy enough to put in, pulled all the items out of the trunk and then remove the four 14mm bolts in the chassis, put the plates in and then bolt the bar up.
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SPEED HOLES EVERYWHERE.
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The rear trunk liner did require a trim to fit back in properly back in place.

20180106_175448

All back together, i know my floor mat is super greasy from hauling car parts around for ages.
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Next was installing the dress up piece, easy enough, two 10mm and two 13mm fasteners on the cross beam and radiator support out, piece installed and then repeat in reverse.
I know my engine bay is dusty, she aint a show car.
20180106_175923
20180106_181520
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[xrayspecs]

Part 4.

Last item was the front strut tower brace, this one took two tries as i wasnt paying attention and put the left brace on my left facing the car not the other way round, and had to do the left side twice.

was quick enough to do, the plates and bar went right on after pulling the strut tower nuts off.
20180106_184539
20180106_184549

After driving with it on a quick canyon run by where i live, not sure if i notice any major gains with the parts, but were quick enough to install in an hour.

A quick beauty of her as she sits right now.

20180105_164742

since replacing the transmission, ive had a backfire in the exhaust. when i put the car back together i was lazy and reused the header to cat gasket, and also noticed that at some point along the cars life someone had welded new cats in and welded one of the flange bolts to the pipe. Cut and hammered the weld/bolt out, touched up the cut and mating surface of the flange with a hand file and put it back together. Runs great and no more backfiring, it should help with the bid dip in mpgs too i have seen since the swap.

20180127_153941
20180127_163138

updated the horns from the OEM units to Supertones. Ive used supertones in the past on offroad trucks and buggies. they get the point across better than anything short of air horns.... which i might add anyways because LA.
ignore my dirty car, its impossible to keep clean where i work. but they bolted right into place where the oem units were, since the factory uses a relay and fuse that can handle these just fine. I just made ground jumpers to ground the horns and used the factory hot lead for power. the drivers side went right on no problem and the bracket fit in the factory notches to locate the horn no problem, but to get the passengers side to fit without modifying the harness just takes flipping the Hella bracket to the other side from how they come then just bolting it on.

i made some quick and dirty ground jumpers to go from the post to the mounting bolt as the oem ones ground through there frame/bracket.

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OEM units that were removed.
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after bracket flip and mounting them, bracket bolt is a 12mm.
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and my dirrrrrrty car with the supertones peeping through the grill now.

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Got some driving lights. My go big or go home attitude may have gotten the best of me as I thought there was room behind the grill to add these. Might make a rally bar or bumper mount them anyways.
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got tired of how the ram mounts look/work etc and switched to a Mob Armor mount, lot nicer package and goes right on the dash no more window sticky shit, plus now its easier to watch Dashcommand or GPS.

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Oil change and replacement filter, conventional 5-30wt and filter, i sould really do a relocator and front mount oil cooler with the borlas right up on the filter.

Also started the installation of the fogs, ordered the dash switch and relay. just need to add the actual fogs.
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strut brace that I had installed, was having an interference issue with the hood, to the point I can see on the top side where its meeting.
picture of the bottom of the hood where they hit.
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Cheap easy solution was a 1/2" piece of stock from scrap at work and 4 longer M8x1.25x30mm fasteners to stand the back of the hood off the hinges. these work for a rev 1, will have to make and trim up a second set that matches the hood hinge and isnt just strait bar stock.
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[xrayspecs]

Part 5

I have been hording parts to rebuild the rear end with all polymer, should have everything to do that soon. so will have the whole rear sub-frame out and all rubber replaced, then the front and back set ups will match.
Need to also get a steering rack as the unit in it has decided to start leaking out the passengers side that will get done soon.



The starter did give up the ghost in January, so replaced the starter with an oem unit. Also while i had the starter out replaced the clutch slave cylinder soft line with a new oem unit and bleed the clutch and put in new dot 3 fluid. Since im also a im already doing this anyways type of person i replaced the fuel filter and hoses on while in the engine bay.








I did however manage to pic up some Enkei RPF1's in 17x8 +45 with Continental extreme contacts in 235/45R17, there is a little rub on full bump.






Well got one week out of the RPF1's, had someone cut me off in traffic and brake check me hard. was a 20ish mph rolling hit but still did a fair amount of damage to the hood/core supports/lights and crash beam. ill have to get it to a frame shop to see if its still strait or not and decide what to do.






but i pulled the front end out, hood, core support and put the car on a frame jig *(checking and the chasis was still straight and undamaged)

replaced the radiator, hoses, thermostat, and rad cap and got the hood mostly straight, and am driving it again.

i need to replace most of front clip (hood, bumper, grill, and lights core support.) but the bumper core was unbent/touched. so on the look out for a JDM rev D front end.

[xrayspecs]

Part 6

Got a front clip like i was on the look out for.

At the same time i replace the power steering system im going to be finally fixing the crash damage with a full front clip i have coming in. cant wait to have it all together and painted to match.





The rack and pinion had been leaking a bit since before the fender bender. the leak finally killed the power steering pump when it got cold this winter. with everything going on finally have time to get all the parts together and tear into replacing the entire power steering system. Based on information from various forum threads on here and elsewhere i went ahead and got a +15MY steering rack to replace the OE unit. I also put in a while back a 5 panel wink mirror i made brackets to adapt to the OE visor mount point, I need to make another rev that has slots so i can get more adjustment on the mirror. I have always had these on my cars in the past and they kick ass for improving the rear visibility when driving.

Wink mirror brackets made two like this.


Mirror in place.


Installing the +15MY steering rack is pretty straight forward.... cleaned under the hood first so wouldnt be so dirty to work on.



You can see the failed seal on the passengers side that had been leaking since probably right after i completely rebuilt the front end a while back. it only recently got bad enough that it killed the pump. Went through the Simple Green cleaning this all up.



pull the pump, hoses, belt and power steering pump.



clean everything, and install the new power steering pump.


Steering racks next to each other after removing the old and busted OEM unit.



to get the newer steering rack to work with the OEM steering shaft you have to use the +15MY steering ujoint. the splines on the steering pinion are different than the ones on the 02 pinon so this piece has to be upgraded. i used Part number 34170VA30 from Subaru. ill get a picture of the new ujoint in place here shortly. the part number listed slides right onto the splines on the steering shaft with no problems.



the other major item is you have to open up the subframe, the power steering rack wont clear on the driverside without doing this. its a bit of trial and error of test fitting till you've gotten enough out of the way. size of the hole I made



the passengers side of the steering rack I reused the Whiteline bushing that i had installed on the previous rack ,and reused the OEM clamp and hardware.

***the other major item that i did address (didnt grab photos of the process) is you have to take about 1/2" of thread off of the inner tie rods on the +15MY STI rack. And about 3/8ths off the outter tie rods to get any toe in when you align the car, just cut and chase the threads. follow this guys instructions if you are going to do it yourself. https://forums.nasioc.com/forums/sho...php?p=42773116

*****NOTE the OEM BE outer tie rod ends, I installed previously part number ES3715 FIT onto the +15MY STI inner tie rods. in fact they look IDENTICAL dimensionaly to the ones that were on the steering rack assembly i purchased. I choose to reuse the MOOG units for three reasons, the wrench flat was in a different position (this lets me cut down the tie rod with no loss of the wrench flat area), they were still in great condition, and they have grease zerk fittings that allow me to service them every 10k or so.


I Currently the rack is in the car, however i need to reclock my steering wheel and finish the hoses.

The OEM power steering hoses fit onto the +15MY STI steering rack, see below for test fit before i started the installation, no need for any crazy custom hoses like i have seen on all the other installations of this steering rack.



will let everyone know how it transforms the car after its all in and aligned.

[xrayspecs]

Finally got around to getting the proper hardware for the longer fasteners needed on the drivers side.

I had picked up low grade fasteners to test fit everything when installing, however I guessed wrong on the fastener lengths. so after test fitting and measuring I ordered some M10x1.25 in Class 12.9 fasteners (70mm/80mm length), washers and lock washers for that side, i also measured up the spacer and got a stand off for the step side of the steering rack that was needed.





Steering rack installed clearance around the opened up steering rack.




now that everything is installed and in its proper place found out the +15STi steering knuckle is too long for the BE/BH chassis. see the below for side by side. I thought there might be enough splines on the steering shaft that it wouldn't be an issue. But now that i have the correct length bolts that is not the case and the shaft will need to be shortened. Based on what I have measured ill need to make it about 1.5"~2" shorter to match the overall length of the shaft that was removed. Kinda stuck on this install till I get this shortened and welded up.





The engine kept throwing a code for knock, took a spark plug replacement, and a new knock sensor. when I had pulled the old one off, it had a massive crack across the sensor, and testing bad with a multi-meter. All the LPS had in stock was one from a WRX, fit and has worked just fine.


Also had the wheel bearings on the passenger side front start to howl really bad.
replaced both front wheel bearings, seals, C-clips, lock nuts and the sound in the car decreased drastically.







Slowly chipping away at this project, between work, house projects and family not had much time the last few weeks to finish it up and get the BE on the ground.

Cut down and got the STI u-joint shaft to the correct length. right now need to get some time to TIG it back up.

first cut of the OEM weld out

Fit check on the rack and steering column.



Installed the power steering cooler in front of the grill, and test fit all the hoses this location is temp with this front clip, when I swap the JDM front clip ill move the location and hoses to a permanent place and build a proper bracket for the cooler...

- - - Updated - - -

So got the Ujoint installed today, and took it around the block, with just an eyeball alignment HOLY COW is this steering rack an improvement! also with no more rag joint you really do feel more of the road through the steering wheel. so much for NVH!

I'll have to get out the tape measure and align the car so I can drive it to the shop for a proper alignment soon.
New shortened 15+ STI ujoint next to the original one with the rag joint.


Ujoint installed finally, although I did mess the timing up on the shafts so I'll have to take it apart and fix that this weekend. no broken clock spring though which is good.



took a 1/4" off each outer tire rod to get the needed ability to get some toe. both the tie rod outer and inner shafts have 1.75+/-.05 thread on them and I used a thinner jam nut to achieve toe in.



Finally back on the ground.




Not for long though! finally dug every part out of everywhere in the garage for the next project.



slowly chipping away at my want to do list for this chassis.


pulled out the ujoint and painted it with some black enamel paint as in my excitement to drive the car. I had skipped that step putting it all back together, waiting for the paint to dry also gave me some time to adjust the toe back to reasonable enough to get it to the alignment shop, and straighten out the steering as it was majorly misaligned.



car is now in backwards for the next step, will be pulling the whole rear subframe off the car.



Started on pulling the whole rear sub-frame. No rush on this since Ill have to get a press for a few of the bushings.

first step, disconnect the exhaust, two 14mm nuts and bolts. I dont even try and take the axle back off as its so rusted (OEM) and just pull the whole mid pipe and it off together.



disconnect the driveshaft from the diff.



then the only things left holding the whole sub-frame in are the dampers, abs speed sensors, park brake cable and rear brake lines. Its been a while since I have flushed the brakes, so i just disconnected the hoses and will bleed the brakes later. I should probably get new soft lines anyways, since I'm already doing the work.







PRO TIP, Put all your ebrake springs/clips/pieces in a baggie and write what side it goes on the baggie in sharpie. less looking for lost springs later



to get to the subframe bolts disconnect the sway bar, it gets it out of the way.



also, what 20 year old rubber bushings tend to do. can't wait to have them all replaced and not blown out.




everything is loose, and ready to drop.

[xrayspecs]

Sub-frame is out, so many crusty bushings, got all of the links loose and time to start putting the new urethane ones in. lots of PB blaster and cheater bars to get bolts and nuts that havent moved in almost 20 years loose. time to start planing adding shop air to my garage.









Finished stripping the rear sub-frame of the links and hubs. My plan is to put new bushings in the sub-frame, then put the sub-frame back in, then add the diff back and build the suspension back into the car as i get the bushings into all the links. I really should upgrade the sway bar and shocks/springs.



since I plan on installing the whiteline adjustable control arms, I am putting on the toe lock bolts in.

Original OEM adjusters.



The lock kit next to the oem eccentric bolt adjusters



Temporally installed in the sub-frame till the arms go in.



I haven't got a press in my home garage yet and my work shop is full up with work so cant exactly sneak a subframe in to press bushing in and out right now without getting in trouble. Resorted to how i've done it before in the past.

started with the diff bushings as they were already 90% ripped.

Start with cutting out all of the guts of the rubber you can out of the bushing.



then you need to use a metal blade or high TPI bald for the next step. put the saw into the bushing and start cutting, you want to cut through the metal of only the bushing. you want to make 3~4 notches all on the same side about 1/2" from each other. use a chisel/punch and hammer to peal the bushing back where the notches are located at. take care not to gall the face on the subframe when doing this.




the bushing should look like this once you start to get it pealed back, just keep beating it with a punch till it pops out.





when done right, shouldnt take anymore time than using a press and the proper jigs.





for my next trick press the bushings in with no press... but need to knock the rest of the subframe bushing out.

Been busy with work lately, however managed to get some more of the diff bushings out.





installed KTD905 Into the outrigger. Almost done cutting and chipping the stubborn subframe bushings all out so I can put the polymer ones in.



Subframe Bushings out, after almost 20 years they really really really really didnt want to come out of the subframe without a fight. I have zero body rust, but the subrframe bushings had some on the bushing that was really keeping them in. They all pretty much look like this one once they came out.



sub-frame all ready for the new Powerflex poly bushings.



Bushings fit perfectly. cant wait to see how they transform the car along with all the other bushings.






Rear most bushing on the trailing arms is out and working on getting the bushings out of the upper links.

[xrayspecs]

The pile of old crusty blown out rubber



the Powerflex bushings are a money fit, getting the old ones out by far took the most work.



lower front bushings in place, follow the directions as they are different sizes and go in a certain way.





Lower rear/outer bushings in, these also are different sizes and go in a certain way. the pin holes go vertical on both sides.





just need to finish with the upper link and rear diff bushings itll be reassembly time.



Finally found some time and a break in the 100+ days to get the rear diff bushings installed into the subframe. The finish on the KDT906 bushings isn't the greatest and the sharp metal edge of the bushing was digging in and causing the bushings to not start square to the location. some time with a small die makers file and it helped a lot. I put a chamfer on the leading edge of the bushing band helped a lot, i also used some assembly grease and froze the bushing to shrink it a tad.

A piece of 5/8" grade 8 all thread is a great replacement for a press if you have the patience. I used a 2" x 3" pipe fitting as a stand off/support to pull against with the bushing, i didn't want to wreck the sub frame trying to pull against the thin wall tubing the bushing resides in.







Now i just have to put it all back together.

Subframe is back in!

Diff bushing crush tubes all lubed up and inserted.


put the front dogbone in so I could lift it up with the jack. not pictured some 2x4's so it would lift evenly.



Subframe in! Bushings look great and cant wait to see how they improve the car.




Now to finish installing the rest of the arms and torque it all to spec.

[xrayspecs]

once the subframe was in and settled i toured to spec, will be checking it again after a couple hundred miles for any settling.

upper arms have all new bushings and are in.



remove the little trim piece, two 12mm fasteners to get access to the bolt to stick a torque wrench on it.







Set the adjustable arms to match the OEM track and toe arm lengths to start with. gets it close to the ballpark to start for when you go in for an alignment. i used the oem arms and bolts to make sure they matched up before snugging the arms up for installation.





everything installed and torqued to spec, waiting on the trailing arms and hubs.


driver side trailing arm and hub install.





install should be done this weekend if the heat wave doesnt get to bad.

all new shinny rear subframe and trailing arm bits are installed and torqued to spec. she looks good, cant wait to get it on the ground and aligned.

only thing left to do is put the brakes back on, and bleed the brakes.

after than itll be on to the install the JDM front clip.







Finally got the old girl back on the ground.

still need to bleed the brakes a few more times to get all the air out of the lines and take her in for an alignment but shes off the jackstands! after the alignment its time for some new tires.







- - - Updated - - -

Adjusted the park brakes and bleed the brakes, and put the new in transmission mount into the car last weekend and got it on the ground, took it around the block everything felt good, and went to park and the park brake cable on the passengers side broke. im going to replace both the drives side and passenger side here when the parts get in. Ordered one of each p/n's 26051AE06A & 26051AE07A. Ill add pictures when they get in.

But since now I have all the mechanical parts fixed up and repaired it was time to swap the front clip.





Stripped of the USDM Legacy L front clip and waiting on the JDM Spice I got a while back.







test fit of the bumper and lights, still need to sort out all the wiring to have the correct connectors for the fogs and the hids.



Some more work today since its finally cooling back off.

Got the core support separated from the cut off, the headlight supports should be larger that the ones on my chassis and allow the headlights and ballasts to fit with no needing to hammer it open.



also test fit the fenders, i knew the jdm trim line wouldn't match the usdm from research I had done in sli.net, but i think i have a plan for what I'm going to do with them. if it works ill post it if not ill find a passenger side usdm fender to replace the trashed one on that side.

[rkrenicki]

Wow, that is some very nice progress! Too bad you are on the opposite coast from me, I have an extra rear Japanese windscreen and wiper assembly for the sedan that would go nicely on your car..

[xrayspecs]

Thanks! yeah its been lots of little things here and there, and this summer since I now have a garage its really taken off! I would love to have the JDM rear windscreen and wiper! although the next upgrade i have planed is koni's and new springs. hopefully those will get together and go on after i finish the wiring and jdm swap!

[thenines']

I haven't seen an outside lift since I move back to Mass. from Florida

[xrayspecs]

Its nice in the cooler months of the year, but when summer in Arizona comes around its not very fun to use.

[subyroo]

Thanks! yeah its been lots of little things here and there, and this summer since I know have a garage its really taken off! I would love to have the JDM rear windscreen and wiper! although the next upgrade i have planed is koni's and new springs. hopefully those will get together and go on after i finish the wiring and jdm swap!

Holy Cow! I could retire on the money that you have sunk into your car.
On a serious note though, you have done a great job in getting the car back into good shape, well done, take a bow!

[xrayspecs]

Thanks, its not done yet, still got other plans for it after the konis and springs. currently still need to finish wiring in the jdm pigtails where needed, and adding the necessary wiring/relay so the JDM lights work properly. and finish swaping the core so that all the crash damage is fixed.

I dont have that much into it yet. I cant go too wild while its a driver! hope to have it all back on the road in the next month.

[98legwag]

Wow that is a lot of work. Well done.

[xrayspecs]

Realized its been a while since ive updated this thread the work continues on the car.
Since i have the JDM/OEM harness from the cut off, i also stripped it apart for the pig tails and all the wires need to do the HID Ballast wiring on the car. i know there are threads that detail it but ill add it here as im doing it for another up to date reference.

I also wired up in the relay and switch for the fog lights and it tested good.









its been a while since an update, with family holiday and everything moving slower than id like but chipping away at it.

instead of making a new harness based on the above, i am doing a bit more than I originally planed on. after comparing the jdm and usdm wiring diagrams, everything matches up on the following i am working on.

I am swaping the USDM MB11/12 in connector F39 on M/B for the heavier wires from the JDM harness I have (both global and USDM FSM's show 15a fuses for 9/8 and the fuses on the jdm fusebox confirm as 15amp fuses and relays) I got lucky and my front cut included all this factory JDM wiring.



Headlight LH
RL (Red w/Blue stripe) OEM wire pulled to M10 on F39 M/B for hot leg.
RL (Red w/Blue stripe) This is potted/factory soldered to the one above.
RY (Red) High Beam signal on the HID's.
B (Black) ground
4 pin connector

Headlight RH
YW (Blue w/White stripe) OEM wire M11 on F39 M/B for hot leg.
YW (Blue w/White stripe) This is potted/factory soldered to the one above.
R (Red) High Beam signal shown on the Global as Red?
B (Black) ground
4 pin connector

im also wiring up the fogs to be fully independent. i know this is detailed elsewhere but ill add details here for future.

The front cut had the radiator and cooler with the fans on it too, so took those apart and swapped the them to my car as my fan shrouds were cracked from age/crash.

old and busted.




new hotness.



Since in the summer ive had some higher than id like underhood temps when running the AC in standing traffic, go LA! I also swapped the secondary fan assembly for the primary fan assembly so now the primary/secondary fans have 5/5 blades over the oem 4/5. everything was a direct fit.

now the fans look like this, hopefully theres a bump in CFM and the temps drop a little.




The rad reservoir was newer in better shape so that got swapped as well. Overflow cap with the extra spice.





on the slowest part of any project for me, fitting the body panels, refitting them and checking fits etc so the lines are correct. lots of panels on and back off.



hopefully ill be done getting everything fitted up soon and can get the font end color matched.

Getting there, getting around to fitting the headlights, and getting all the body lines on them to match up nice. need to finish up some wiring, and relocate the power steering cooler i installed with the new rack.





test fit with the bumper cover. really like the white, maybe ill just wrap the whole thing white for a while.





Been a bit of work on the project since the last update.

I never liked the look of the chrome on the grill as they came from the factory, so tapped it up and painted the whole grill trim black. I need to do the same with the door window trims so its all the same shade of black.





Also since I had the full front harness on my JDM cut, i took my front sub-harness apart to pull the plug lines all the way to the USDM fuse box. currently in the process of taping the who sub-harness back together. the benefit to this is the JDM plugs have a heavier gauge wire than the single bulb usdm plugs. fuse rating is the same. means no need to add extra fuses or relays into the engine bay and will look factory once finished. the only wires that needed to be spliced and resealed up was the high beam trigger lines from the cab harness and the high beam signal line. Ill scan the marked up FSM's and upload them here if anyone is curious.





also since one of the park brake cables broke, I am just going to replace both of them together. do it right the first time.



I had some help, and got the front harness all tapped back up and put in place.



while I was at it, I made the modifications to make the fog lights fully independent. so made the necessary modifications while the fuse box was loose and apart before putting it back together.

steps as follows, use the power, yellow/green line for the back washer plug, not used on the sedans. i pulled the power right out of the plug.


I split the two plugs apart so that I didnt need to make a massive jumper. tape the washer plug back up.



From the relay block in the MFB, disassemble and locate the Red/yellow wire that powers the coil side on the Fog light relay.


this needs to be replaced with the 12v power leg from the rear washer plug.
i pulled the whole connector out and tapped it up, and inserted a new connector that fit into the fuse box, the connector from the washer unit is too large to fit and will need replacement.




stuff everything back in and put it all together.





also replaced the MFB cover with some more JDM spice.



- - - Updated - - -

Since i hadn't run the car in over a year and never disconnected the battery i think i killed the battery, even the 2amp charging couldn't bring it back.



I did get new fender liners for the car got the driver side installed. the passengers side is half installed as I am missing some clips Im waiting for in the mail. I also and have some new goodies on the way that ill add here once I start the installation of them.







also took the time to put all my receipts and datasheets from the parts installed together. it sure does add up fast once youve got it all in the same place.



As this thread is a testament to the fact that i dont know any better and that when it comes to scope creep its a free for all for me.....

the next step of parts are starting to roll in and i cant help but share a bit of what i have planned to add to the ever growing list of parts.

3" extended ARP wheel studs, because i dont like how short the OEM ones are now that i have alloy wheels.



Koni struts, but make it spicy, still working out the final details for the new hats and spring lengths/rates but the parts are rolling in.

[Muse]

This is absolutely incredible!

[subyroo]

also took the time to put all my receipts and datasheets from the parts installed together. it sure does add up fast once youve got it all in the same place.

That has been my thought whilst reading through this thread, along with where does this guy work to pay for all of this.

[xrayspecs]

this has been buying parts off various places when they are a good price for the last 5 years, and doing all the work myself. doing your own labor can reduce the cost a lot on a project of this scale.

[xrayspecs]

Fixed the park brakes, and while in the rear hubs installed the rear put the 3" arp wheel studs in. they required removing the whole unit bearings to get the longer studs in. but oh boy do they make putting wheels on so much easier.

[xrayspecs]

drove the car out to the drive for the first time in a long time to wash the dust off the car.



Finished putting together the rear struts test fit together, havent had a chance to tighten them up and putting them on the car. Koni rear struts and parts, ill put a parts list together on the front page.



Finished cutting up the fronts and putting the coilsleeves on the strut bodies. need to get longer springs and new top hats before i put these together.

[xrayspecs]

finally got time to install the new shocks and front extended wheel studs. Front hubs are much less work to install the longer ARP wheel studs. no need to remove anything but the caliper bracket. pounded out oem studs and used my impact to pull the new ones on.







Front and rear struts both finally together torqued and ready to install.



Rear Konis next to the OEM's.



Front Knois next to the OEM's.



part of the way through installing.





setting it on the ground, so far like where they fit, have to see how the settle and adjust them from there.







way lower than i expected. had to use some 2x4's so i could even get the low profile jack out from under the car.



Install of the right rear! had a set back on the left rear as the nut for the shock bolt rounded off when i put the cheater bar on it, cut it off and waiting on the dealership for a replacement, should be in this week and i can finish the rear. once thats done ill be able to see how it sits, hopefully not to low i cant get out of my own steep drive.

[thenines']

Are you going to paint the new front clip? Thought, It looks good in white-never been a fan of any shade of subaru green

[mike-tracy]

This is really great work. If you are going to keep the car, I'd really encourage you to do an 02-07 generation WRX swap to it.

I rode this guy's car back in the day: https://forums.nasioc.com/forums/sho...ghlight=legacy, talk about epic transformation.

[xrayspecs]

Ill get around to painting the car to all be one color soon enough have other plans for parts before i get to paint. still got a few items i want to do short term.

as for power, I'd like to do that but not till i dont live in CA anymore, doing the BAR legal swap is just way more work than i want to take on right now.

[xrayspecs]

Frozen rear lower driver side shock bolt came in from the dealership. replacing the bolt, washer and nut as the bolt had to be cut off.

all four shocks are now installed, and the springs have started to settle, might raise them up a tad in a week or two.

Nice and shinny new oem hardware!

[xrayspecs]

New rubber is in now, cant wait to get them mounted! stayed the same size for now, not sure how much wider i can get without going up to 9" wide wheels.

VENTUS V12 EVO2 - SIZE: 235/45ZR17.



sitting static in the drive now much lower.

[xrayspecs]

Modified one of the two adjusters for the konis that I have. with the rear strut bar its a royal pita to adjust the rear rebound setting. managed to do it with some plyers and the cut down adjuster. need to find a better solution for this. its a big difference between full firm and full soft, so Id like to be able to actually find an adjustment with a proper knob.





Also got a new green top battery and installed it.




The JDM headlights i got have a bit of fog to them, spend a bit of time cleaning them up. might have to look for a second set online and buy better condition headlights in the future.

Before



after improvement but could be better.


also rolled the fenders so that i have some clearance on the outside of the tires. never had any problems doing it this way just takes a long time and a lot of patience.



New tires mounted up on the RPF1's





a small 3~5mm spacer may be in my future, there is a small amount of rub on the inside fenders after checking the fitment. but plus side the coil springs on the shocks I built clear the inside of the tire.