syy0628

I didn't know S*** when I first got the car, so I bought the cheapest penal filter at SCA, So I think it might have killed the MAF. One thing I noticed is that the footwell gets very hot very quickly on boost, much quicker than it used to be. All the intake piping seems ok, and since I am getting 13psi boost, there shouldn't be any big boost leak. I am not sure why code 52 is there, I changed my brake fluid and clutch fluid not that long ago, the level is good, handbrake is working well. Will it trigger the code 52 if the handbrake is used when moving? I use handbrake quite a lot in the wet. I think I will change the MAF and filter first, and then it doesn't fix the problem, I might get an O2 sensor from pick a part turbo legacy, are they the same part? Where can I get an OEM Subaru MAF sensor and air filter for a reasonable price? Thanks for all the help.

Yes, the CEL will go away after a restart, I started to get CEL two years ago, not long after I used a cheap air filter. But it's very rare. Once a month. However, now I get CEL almost every the other time driving over the Auckland harbour bridge. A brand new car certainly does not do that, so there must be something wrong. I don't have an AF ratio gauge, it's quite scary to think the car could be running lean. And it's quite embarrassing when you are driving with friends around, talking about how awesome the car is, and the CEL comes up.

Hi, My my99 WRX has been throwing Check engine light on boost uphill lately. The car pulls alright doing 0-100 or wide open throttle in 2nd gear and 3 gear, but if I get it on boost a little bit when going uphill at highway speed(say 4th gear at 90kph over the harbour bridge), I get a check engine light every now and then. It started doing this 2 years ago, but now it's more frequent. I get code 23, 32 and 52 in diagnostic mode. The code 32 was always there, but the code 23 and 52 is new. The car drives fine off boost and I get 8L/100km on longer trips so I think the O2 sensor is alright, and the exhaust smells normal. The car smells a bit rich on cold start. I was under the impression those car use MAF on cold start, but only O2 sensor at operating temp, and then use both on boost to calculate AF ratio, so I kind of think the MAF is to blame for the check engine light? But how to explain the Check engine light only come up when on low boost for long period of time rather than on full boost? I have sprayed MAF cleaner a few times but it doesn't seem to help. I am running a cheap panel air filter with the standard airbox. The car is NZ spec with ej205 completely stock apart from sway bars, it has 280000kms on the clock, I am not driving the car until I fix the problem since I really want to get to 400000kms on this car without open the engine. Any thought guys? Thanks in advance.

Didn't find much about it, found on some Russian site that the phare2 1.5 and 1.8 engine's heads is different to the phare1 1.5,1.6,1.8 engine, the timing belt is longer, the roller wheel is different to the phare1 engine, and all phare2 SOHC seems to use the same timing belt kit. So it is more likely to be an interference engine. On my WRX, I once did the timing kit with only 60000kms and 6 years on them to be safe (overdue based on time), everything was in good condition, even the timing mark on the belt is still visible, so I guess in nice nz climate, you can probably get 100000kms or 10 years out of your Subaru's timing kit quite safely(it was a Gate kit), if it was done properly together with all kind of "while you are in there" stuff. (I end up putting this used kit with 60000kms onto my buddy's cheap NA legacy, I looped the water pump turbo outlet and inlet, and It is still working fine after a bit more than one year.) But on this Impreza 1.5 according to the writing in the engine bay, the belt has only done 80000, but the noise and the burnt smell really resembles a wobbly pulley killing the belt somewhere in there. I got the car for $500, so $500 timing kit seems to be a bit too much. hence looking for proof that I don't have to fix it right now. I can be really cheap when it comes to cheap beater car.

I almost hate the info floating on some google search result, I was working on my e36 a few weeks before, and the info from some US forum are so misleading, that I spent hours taking things apart only to find that it's not there. On euro-based forum, people will kindly point out the market of the car, and if it is LHD or RHD. On US-forum however, they just assume they are the only human on earth. what makes it worse is that you can't tell it is US forum from the URL like you can for the rest of the world.

Thanks for the reply, but those wikis were edited by American who does not know there exist a 1.5 EJ engine in the first place. And north-American market never got the phase 2 ej15 and ej18 engine, so from their perspective, all Subaru phase 2 engine are interference. I think the phase 2 ej18xs are still none-interference as I have read those from somewhere. Those engine with such short Stroke and low compression ratio don't really make sense to be interference.

HI, I have a my98 imprezaCZ beater with ej151 engine, Does anyone know if they are interference design? I can hear chirping noise coming from the timing cover area and some burnt rubber smell when the engine is warm, I suspect the tensioner is gone. I know that ej18s are non-inference, but what about ej15s, Can't seems to able to find much info about ej15s since it's a JDM only engine. Thanks.

Hi, my my99 wrx start to have the same symptoms as described above, but it only happens when the car have been driven for at least one hour(before that, the 5th is nice and tight), after some hours of highway driving, the stick start to move front and back. (Goes forward when let off the gas, goes back when reapply gas. it pops out the most when I go downhill without gas and when I reapply gas at the bottom of the hill, it pops out) Could it be the main shaft nut coming loose? Thanks

How much would it cost to do a dyno? I plan to check leaks around blow pass valve(I have cleaned throttle body and didn't replace the blow pass valve gasket) and check the waste gate pre load. Then may be go for a dyno. There are some model with the same engine and turbo combo that is running 250 ps from factory. To achieve that level of power, (from 220 to 250) do I need to get it tuned by professionalor i can just play with the waste gate preload? Thanks

Thanks for the reply, this is my first car, I went holy S*** when I first got it, but now it is less exciting. I just got a boost gauge installed, I am reading 18 vacuum at idle, and around 12psi of boost, my car has a 160kw ej205 engine with td04 turbo, is that level of boost normal for a old stock car? I read somewhere that a stock wrx should have around 14psi boost?

A more generalized version of the question above How can u tell if the turbocharged car's power is at the normal level without going for a dyno?

Hi, I have owned my MY99 WRX wagon for about nine months now, it is stock apart from strut brace and swaybar. The car is much faster than the Suzuki SX4 I used to drive back in China, but a mechanic (who have driven lots of subarues) told me that the car is definitely low on power. "I don't feel any boost at all" he said. And I also feel the car is a bit slower than when i first got it, it used to have the blow pass valve noise when let off the throttle, but I haven't heard it for quite some time. I can still hear the turbo spinning up from around 3000rpm if the window is closed What might be the problem? I also noticed the rpm drops to almost 500 sometimes when idling, and then it goes back to normal.(about once in a week) My idea is to install a boost gauge and see if the boost is normal. Does anyone have ran into this kind of problem before? any advice would be helpful, thanks

Hi, I have sent u a pm on monday about the swaybar. thanks

Hi, I would like to get a whiteline 22mm adjustable rear swaybar for my GF8, do u still have it in stock? thanks

I am in Auckland, can I put two spare wheel under each rear wheel (pull the handbrake and put in gear)to replace axle stands? Or use two scissor jack under the rear shock mount?