The last big parts from the STi

A brisk November day in Maine. Nothing a few layers of thermal wear and cursing on the ground underneath of a rusty mess of a Japanese sports car can't fix!

I pulled the differential and rear suspension out of the STi. It was a huge pain because many of the threaded nuts for the subframe bolts broke off inside the frame tubes, meaning I could turn the bolts, but not loosen them. Some creativity, violence, and cutting was used to solve this problem.

Diff is not far from its new home..

Also separated the transmission from the bundle of front end items I have going on. Going to have to clean all of this stuff up before it goes back in. The STi 6sp transmission is heavy! Especially compared to the 5sp out of the RS. I can totally see why all of the serious time attack Subaru race cars opt for a built 5sp over the 6sp.

Dismantling the STi

After a full racing season with the STi, it's finally time. I feel like I've just given this car its make-a-wish dream where it got to pretend to be a race car despite its stage 4 cancer. RIP little STi and thanks for all the laughs.

Let's get started by ripping the motor out. I'll be pulling the motor out on its own so that I can work on rebuilding it over the winter. It looked like it was burning a little coolant and is due up for a headgasket job anyways.

Removing the engine was a PITA. The bolts holding the downpipe on were all seized and many had to be cut. And the external wastegate blocks my access to the bellhousing bolts. I'd have taken the wastegate off but those bolts were, of course, also seized. Eventually by crawling on top of the engine and using my smallest 14mm wrench by hand, I was able to get all of the bolts. After some violence in separating the engine and trans, I declared victory.

The engine is disgusting. Corrosion everywhere, cracked pipes, worn tubing. It's amazing that this car felt as fast as it did because there were so many exhaust and boost leaks. I'll clean it up and rebuild it to the best of my abilities. Hopefully there are no surprises waiting for me inside..

Next up is the trans and front suspension. It was pretty straightforward except for the rust. Some violence was needed here, too. Note I was unable to separate the U frame and the subframe because... rust. Looks like I'll be using that 2.5rs subframe after all.

 I got to take a look at the clutch. It would seem that 40ish 1st gear full throttle launches where I let the clutch rub for a while were not good for the clutch. Who would have guessed?!

Also discovered the car has a titanium exhaust. Neat! Someone cared about this car at some point. Will have to get that hole welded up.

And here we have the reason for the body swap in the first place. Finally with all of the panels removed, I can finally see that my hunch was correct about this STi's body being DONE. I am amazed that it was still as stiff as it was. I never would have guessed it was this bad by how the STi felt to drive.

As horrible as the rust is, I guess it's nice to know I'm doing the right thing. Someone talented with a welder and a whole lotta time on their hands might be able to save this STi. But that's not me.

Dismantling the 2.5rs

I decided to spend the summer stripping the 2.5rs so that it would be ready for the swap in the fall. That way, I could continue autocrossing the STi right up until its scheduled demise.

Here's me having a blast in the STi up in Bangor-

The car is FAST and I can't wait until I don't have to worry about rust with it.

So let's get started on pulling the 2.5rs apart. I love Subarus because I'm not a very good mechanic. Subaru seems to plan for this by making the car very easy for me to take apart. Thanks Subaru

Just pull this big plug here..

aaaand the engine, trans, and front suspension are out.

There was a little more to it than that, but it was surprisingly easy. I opted to go from the bottom which was a nice way to do it since I was leaving all of the running gear together as a package. I did have to take the intake off of the engine because I couldn't get the car high enough off of the ground though. I'll be selling the engine and trans because they are of no use to me.

Next up was the rear which was a little harder because I had to undo the handbrake without destroying it, but it came out without too much fuss as well.

You can see some surface rust on these parts but for the most part everything is free of rust, and DRY. Really dry. The whole underside of the car is covered in this really fine silty dust. I'm guessing this acted as a desiccant for the frame and is partly responsible for why the car has no real rust issues. The silt layer is very hard to wash off. Not even blasting with a garden hose takes it off.

I may wind up using the subframes from the 2.5rs if the ones that come of of the STi are too rusty. All GD Impreza sedan bodies and subframes are identical, but I will need to switch the bushings over to STi spec if I want to retain that tooth rattlingly stiff ride.

Next up will be the interior, fuel tank, and ALL of the wiring. Every last wire except maybe the doors have gotta go because the STi is special and needs its own happy wires. I will probably wind up using the 2.5rs interior in the end because I like the black interior better. And maybe someone will buy my worn out STi interior things.

The Swap Project - '05 Imprezas

Introducing my swap project. Here's the gist..


2005 WRX STi with built motor that I bought for cheap because it's VERY rusty

+

2005 Impreza 2.5rs with no rust that I bought for cheap because the motor is blown

=

A not rusty STi equivalent car that I can track relentlessly.


Over the next few posts, I will be stripping both cars down to bare chassis and then putting together one good car.

The STi when I bought it-

The 2.5rs when I bought it-

Both of these cars have a lot in common. They are both black from '05 which means they have the same paint code. Good for me because I won't have to paint anything to match. They both have totally blacked out windows. They are both wired for bigass trunk subwoofers... And they both have rude things written on their windshields.

Luckily that is where the similarities stop. The STi supposedly has an IAG block, bigger turbo, and lots of bolt ons, but is so rusty that I am surprised it didn't have some sort of structural failure. And the 2.5rs is the least rusty Maine Subaru I have ever seen. The 2.5rs does have some dents though. So I'll have to figure out how I want to solve that problem..