new subaru owner in AV/Socal!

[fordnick3]

Hey guys! Im Nick, i just bought a 2002 impreza wrx on 4/5/12 and so far i love it! its all stock except for an exhaust and blow off valve, its got 149000 miles. and it does need work but i got it for a good deal so im real excited! i look forward to checking out everyones cars and meeting new subie people!

here are a couple shots

lol i used to have a 2003 civic ep3 and got tired of that real quick. went from this

to this

[Calvinball]

Welcome!

[Mikie13]

Find a stock BPV...

And Invidia G200 CBE FTW!!!!

Can we get an engine pic?

[11blackwrx]

Welcome

[fordnick3]

thanks guys! and Mikie13 where would i find a stock BPV? and yea the exhaust sounds really good but in my opinion might be a little too big.. lol and the previous owner took out the cat so i need to buy one

heres an engine pic

[fordnick3]

By looking at that pic ^^ can anyone tell me what intercooler that is? I heard its not stock.

[Mikie13]

Just search around classifieds (Nasioc is the best bet) for a stock BPV, 02-07 WRX or STI will fit.

The intercooler actually looks like an 08+ STI version as it doesn't have STI stenciled on it and it's wider.

You have an aftermarket heatshield over the turbo which would lead me to believe that it has an aftermarket downpipe (also considering you said the cats were removed...and thus meaning it is not a stock car, as you stated).

Now it makes one wonder if it has proper engine management.

[fordnick3]

ok i will!

wow ok well thats good if he managed the engine for it right?

the exhaust i know about and am not happy with.. i am going to buy cats as soon as i can. and the engine light is on because of the no cats...

that is really scaring me now.. i have no idea what this guy did to it. he told me the only thing he did to it was the exhaust and BOV. but im seeing alot more now.. if i take it to get tuned will it ensure that im running a good set up? after i take off the BOV an put cats on.

[Mikie13]

ok i will!

wow ok well thats good if he managed the engine for it right?

the exhaust i know about and am not happy with.. i am going to buy cats as soon as i can. and the engine light is on because of the no cats...

that is really scaring me now.. i have no idea what this guy did to it. he told me the only thing he did to it was the exhaust and BOV. but im seeing alot more now.. if i take it to get tuned will it ensure that im running a good set up? after i take off the BOV an put cats on.

Yeah if the check engine light is on, that more than likely means there is no engine management (meaning that the ECU wasn't tuned to optimally run for the parts added).

The good thing is, you have a Bugeye. They can actually run fine if you don't have it tuned for the downpipe (portion of the exhaust connecting between the turbo and the CBE or CatBack Exhaust, in this case the G200). But you aren't seeing the gains that you could if you did have it properly tuned.

Where you are located will determine whether or not you can get by without having cats in the exhaust. In NJ, you just can't have a check engine light showing. But when you get tuned, that will clear the CEL...so you don't have to worry about replacing the downpipe back to a stock one.

Bottom line is...I'd take it to a local reputable tuner, let them sort out what's on the vehicle. Replace the BOV with a stock BPV...then get it protuned. It will end up running much better I bet, and will be more of a blast to drive!

[fordnick3]

wow that sucks..

ok well thats comforting.. but i definitely want to tune it to get the best performance i can. i just have other parts of the car that are priority like the horrible brakes.. lol

Im in CA. im most likely going to replace it and put cats on because i want to legally pass smog. lol

alright well ill definitely do that! and whats the difference between just a tuned and a protuned? im not looking to spend a fortune.. lol im a college student with a part time job :P

[fordnick3]

Update: Now that I've had it for about two weeks, I have found quite a few problems with it. All the cats need to be replaced and i need to smog it to put it in my name. It's got an oil leak somewhere, a fuel something problem, AC compressor is out (summer is gunna suck if I don't do that soon), leaking front passenger shock and both cv joints are badly cracked. Whoo this is fun.. Lol and I just bought all new rotors and pads cause those were bad!

[11blackwrx]

sorry to hear about the problems

[Mikie13]

Unfortunate to hear...does it even have cats if the TBE was swapped out?

[Drews]

Update: Now that I've had it for about two weeks, I have found quite a few problems with it. All the cats need to be replaced and i need to smog it to put it in my name. It's got an oil leak somewhere, a fuel something problem, AC compressor is out (summer is gunna suck if I don't do that soon), leaking front passenger shock and both cv joints are badly cracked. Whoo this is fun.. Lol and I just bought all new rotors and pads cause those were bad!

If you find a good tuner, you should be able to pass a smog test. Although since you're in California I would purchase hi-flow cats. You wont lose a ton of HPs over it and you'll pass smog easier. Where is it leaking from? I'd check the valve cover gasket on the passenger side since they tend to start leaking because it gets to hot over there because of the up-pipe. How do you know the AC compressor is out? Is it just not blowing cold? The compressor isn't going to kick on if the system isn't charged enough. Try recharging the system before replacing the whole compressor. Struts (not shocks) are easy to do. If you're on a budget, just go get some monroes from Autozone for 50 bucks for the time being. CV joint's should be fine as long as they aren't making noise yet. I'd replace those last. At least you'll get to learn!

[fordnick3]

If you find a good tuner, you should be able to pass a smog test. Although since you're in California I would purchase hi-flow cats. You wont lose a ton of HPs over it and you'll pass smog easier. Where is it leaking from? I'd check the valve cover gasket on the passenger side since they tend to start leaking because it gets to hot over there because of the up-pipe. How do you know the AC compressor is out? Is it just not blowing cold? The compressor isn't going to kick on if the system isn't charged enough. Try recharging the system before replacing the whole compressor. Struts (not shocks) are easy to do. If you're on a budget, just go get some monroes from Autozone for 50 bucks for the time being. CV joint's should be fine as long as they aren't making noise yet. I'd replace those last. At least you'll get to learn!

yea thats my plan is to get some high flow cats on there and just run it like that.. it is close to the turbo i cant quite pinpoint it but that sounds probably about right, well yea the compressor didnt kick in at all, and it has no cold at all.. oh ok good to know! and yea the struts im not too worried about, cool thank you so much for the help. and im very much looking forward to learning!

would anyone happen to know the reason it kinda sputters if i rev it up to pull away from a stop ill go up to about 3k let it go down a little and when i rev it up again it kinda skips and sputters but only if i rev it up let it go down and rev it up again while its on its way down... ? should i be worried?