Category Archives: WRX

Motor Trend’s Mini-Video of the 2015 Subaru WRX

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Now, this specific video irritated me.  The other Motor Trend reviews (the WRX and Focus ST comparison and the CVT WRX review) were much better and he didn’t go off on some media vendetta in those videos, although there was a bit of it in the CVT review of the WRX.  This one irritated me so much that I left a rather nasty comment on YouTube about it:

+Jonny Lieberman kinda irritating that you keep mentioning the lack of a hatch in your video.  You wasted a LOT of time in that video harping on shit that has nothing to do with the car that you’re driving in the video.You’ve a rather subjective hangup and it marred the review…if you can’t stay objective about things, maybe you need to let someone who doesn’t have a Subaru background review the car?  Review the freaking car and not Subaru’s motives…if I wanted that, I’d keep reading the B.S. on NASIOC.  We already know the hatch is gone and we already know Subaru’s decision on why…no need to keep stirring that pot (too much stirring screws up the dish).  Loved you in the other reviews of this car…hated you with a passion in this one.

I don’t expect everyone to agree with me on this, as I know the hatch fans have been bitching about the lack of a hatch since last November.  It’s time to move on, though.  It’s kinda late for Subaru to change their minds and it will probably take a very long time to get another hatch on the drawing board.  No, it is not as simple as most people say it is…those people have no understanding of designing a product and this isn’t as simple as cutting up or adding material to the sedan’s structure…trust me, if that were the case, there wouldn’t be the issue of a lack of a hatch.

Lieberman pissed me off because he immediately went on this “no hatch” tirade and wasted valuable video review time.  Then he was saying like, “Subaru alienated 50% of their buyer base”.  No matter what decision they made, they’d have had to cut some fat somewhere…it it weren’t the hatch guys that would’ve been pissed, it would’ve been the sedan guys.  With my project management experience, I understand that in order to have a bang-on end result, sometimes we have to give up some things as the price for success.  Too many people (and journalists, obviously) live pipe dreams and tend to want things their way, without compromise or exception…that’s sometimes a real problem in today’s society and is probably why us Americans have so many issues that most countries don’t have.  It’s sad.

I hated Lieberman’s whining so much in this video that I feel he tainted the whole video.  I was iffy on if I would even publish it here…I hated it that much.  For someone with his background, he’s awfully whiny about the lack of a hatch.  He claims he owned the original USDM WRX (which, ironically, wasn’t a hatch, although they did have wagon versions).  He also beat the fuck out of the proverbial dead horse by mentioning how ugly the 2015 WRX was (another highly subjective comment).  You know, I’ve seen better reviews on Jalopnik (and that isn’t saying all that much).

STI-specific Walbro Fuel Pump

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So, I’m currently conducting research on the parts I want to install before I go to get tuned.  One of the parts is a Walbro 255LPH fuel pump.

In my quest of knowledge, I decided to check several import shops for this part.  I found this link.  It’s a $98 part that comes with an install kit.  It also has a customer review section on that page.  There are several reviews that mention that the factory housing had to be modified a bit for it to fit.  Dunno if I like that, but if I can understand what area of the housing needed grinding, I can fortify myself with that knowledge when the time comes for me to swap out the stock part with the Walbro.

One of the reviews also stated that the install kit was a waste of money and wasn’t needed.  He’s probably right, as I remember doing a direct swap when I bought a Walbro for my Talon back in the day…it was a direct swap and no install kit was needed then, either.  This link is the Walbro without the install kit.  it also has a linked video (which I’ll embed in this post) and a review that states there are YouTube videos that show how to modify/grind the factory housing.

 

EDIT:

That video was LONG and INVOLVED! Good grief. I don’t remember the Talon’s swap being that complicated. The video didn’t show the modding of the housing but did state that IWSTI had a write-up in their How-To section about modifying the housing. I looked for it and found it here.

Jalopnik Reviews 2015 WRX!

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So, I discovered a recent review of the 2015 WRX by Jalopnik. It was an ‘okay’ review…read as a bit amateurish, IMO. There were a few comments I didn’t like (I left responses), such as, “this car looks boring” when they were discussing the Detroit Auto Show debut. When all you have to do is look at cars on display, that whole day can be boring, no matter what you’re looking at.

The review is here. I linked it because I’ve linked many others as well, but to be honest, this really wasn’t an exceptional review…it’s not that the car was “boring”, but more that the author’s comments weren’t really descriptive. They really didn’t test anything about the car…they just drove it around in snow for a week and commented on that experience. Meh…that’s not what I look for in reviews.

Subaru Engines (EJ257) & Their OEM Tune State

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So, there’s this discussion going on at IWSTI (there are actually tons of threads like this…this is just the most recent one):

http://www.iwsti.com/forums/faq-newbie-forum/266142-2014-blown-motor-4000-miles-wtf.html

It revolves around the fact that someone’s engine blew up at the 4000 mile mark.  The guy left a ranting and short blurb that his motor blew up and he thought Subaru should give him a whole new car.  Several people asked him for the circumstances around his engine woes (was the oil at the proper level, was he bouncing off the rev limiter a lot or was launching the car, was the engine raced when cold…), but he never returned.  It is speculated that he was trolling, but the post is now spiraling into a free-fall argument of Subaru being negligent with applying the OEM tune or if these people with engine issues are at fault.  Let’s face it, people with tunes still have ringland issues, so sometimes, a tune isn’t the end-all-be-all answer…as well, the ringland may’ve already been damaged before the tune was applied.

Two posts in particular within that thread are full of knowledge:

http://www.iwsti.com/forums/3945737-post45.html

and

http://www.iwsti.com/forums/3945794-post50.html (and it includes a dyno chart with AFR measurements before and after a tune, but I’ll also post it)

Please read these links, especially if you’re worried about your Subaru’s engine.  Even if you decide to stay on the stock tune, you can still be a bit more knowledgeable about the subject-matter.

2015 WRX, Why No Hatch? – Automobile Magazine

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I continue to see bickering and arguments (and just general piss-tivity) over the fact that Subaru nixed the hatch for 2015.  So, here’s a documented reason.  Note that I’ve posted articles stating some reasons before, but I haven’t posted this particular reason (or article):

One big change that might upset some of the faithful is that Subaru is dropping the hatchback. It’s an unexpected move given that the hatchback/sedan split has been running about fifty/fifty. Subaru product planners explain that they had to sacrifice the second body style in order to get the greater degree of differentiation from the Impreza that they were seeking with the new WRX.

Read more @ http://www.automobilemag.com/reviews/driven/1403_2015_subaru_wrx_review/

FFR 818 Anyone?

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So, everyone is aware that there are Shelby Cobra kit cars, right? Well, Factory Five Racing has several kit car models but the 818 is the most recent. It is a very light-weight two-seater that is uses Subaru WRX parts (engine, suspension, brakes and such…). The 818 is the approximate weight of the vehicle in kilograms, which is roughly 1,800 lb (weight per build may vary since some people customize their builds).  They offer a street build and a racing build.

Here’s an recent article about the 818 below:

http://www.streetsideauto.com/blog/car-projects/factory-5-818-brings-good-hurt/

2014 Focus ST vs 2015 WRX – First Head-to-Head Review!

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Now, on Motor Trend’s FB page and the article’s comment section, several people stated that they thought this comparison was flawed because of the platform difference. Well, I don’t remember anyone saying anything similar last year when the cars were compared…seriously. As well, there isn’t much the WRX is going to compare to, since there aren’t many AWD cars in it’s category (cars that are at or under $30K that have 270 HP that are AWD)…but it’s been like that for years. Someone also mentioned that it should be compared to the Evo…no, the STI is the better Subaru for that.

This WRX may not be as quick as the last generation WRX in the quarter-mile, but I’ve said this several times now: it’s because of the change of gearbox (it now has a 6-speed instead of the GR/GV 5-speed manual). It has a good bit of thrust in the quarter-mile, as well…that trap speed more accurately reflects the car’s HP, IMO. It also sounds better than I thought it would, since it has equal length headers now…that’s the first video I’ve seen of a manual-equipped WRX.

The overall comparison shows that the WRX has been improved upon and is quick (pulling a peak of .96g on the skidpad and 25.3 sec in the figure 8). It bested the Focus ST in every contest of performance and also got decent enough comments in the road portion of the comparison. I’ve the feeling that this car may be getting a lot of such reviews.

Here’s the video that’s within the article. If you get bored, just skip everything and go to the last 2 minutes…you’ll love it!

http://wot.motortrend.com/1401_2015_subaru_wrx_goes_head_2head_with_ford_focus_st.html

Subaru Engine Assembly/Disassembly – Video

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If you’re curious as to how Subaru engines are disassembled and assembled, the two videos below are bursting with knowledge and pertain to the EJ257 (STI engine in this case).

What’s cool is that the person in the video is a master Subaru technician. He explains a LOT of things (with the help of the person behind the camera). As well, he explains such terms as cracked ringlands (30 minutes into the assembly video). Ever heard the term “spun a bearing” and don’t know what the term means? He explains that term. He shows what bearings are and shows the differences between forged & cast pistons (and explains the differences between the two). He also shows the damaged caused by driving these cars with no oil.

These are great videos!

Note: I’m having a hard time finding the disassembly video, but will post it here when I find it.