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.