gpatmac

iTrader: (3)

For those of y'all who don't know, I have the 257 block w/stock internals, wrx heads, and green. I own the STi heads, but had been holding out on installing them for two reasons. I had half an intention to port the heads, but lately I think cost vs benefit points towards strapping them on as is. I also didn't put them on because I couldn't identify the source of an oil leak on top of my block.

Turns out that the leak is actually blowby. The cylinder pressure/gases that are escaping past the rings is to the point where I had oil being squirted out of a breather. As a note, since I still have the WRX heads on, I have that additional EJ257 breather with a 10" hose on it but vented to atmo. It is the source of the oil shooting out.

Which leads me to needing to define some decision points.

My pistons and rods may be fine, but my suspicion is that the oil rings gave out. I'll do a compression test tonight to find out.

I've never been against buying forged stuffs...maybe against the cost; but if the stock stuff would have held up, I'd have been very happy.

Due to my job, funds, wife...this is a much more involved decision that what would it would appear on the surface. My mega, racing-styled, street car is starting to move along the spectrum towards race car in that the level I'm taking it to guarantees a trade off of a potential decline in reliability. Bottom line, I'm bummed.

Summary: Have too much blowby, which leads me to believe that at best, my rings might be shot; at worst, a piston's been chipped. I don't notice any decline in performance, so I'm knocking on wood that there aren't any damaged valves.

....from another thread. Reverse is gone in my v7 6mt.
....from yet another. I own US STi heads but can only narrow the cam-type down to JDM STi. Unknown version until I get some calipers and cross walk my findings against what Sponaugle has posted.

I love my car.

808subaru

iTrader: (16)

good luck with the coolest wagon i have ever seen....

gpatmac

iTrader: (3)

Thanks, dood.

v rod

yo pat,

what do your plugs look like? have you done a compression check or leak down test? hope it's nothing too serious.

gpatmac

iTrader: (3)

I took it to Subaru today and found out that their tech (singular) is as cool as Subsonic is. Anyhow, he roadtested it and the amount of oil that is spewing out of the breather (I bought an APC to stick on the end of that hose we plumbed into the 'additional' ej257 crankcase breather....my first APC mod) I've blown a ring.

Ron Williams from APR quoted me CP pistons w/ rings @ $550. I'm going to shop around a bit for rods.

v rod

dude, that sucks but does give a reason to upgrade. maybe this is a blessing in diguise considering the hp your after. might as well do the rods as well.

btw, check out efi101.com

they are going to be in indianapolis!

gpatmac

iTrader: (3)

REALLY? SWEET!

Yeah, the game plan is shaping up as thus...

Buy a clunker (but one that is worthy of taken on the mantle of 'project car' once I get the WRXSTi to where it needs to be.)

Put aside, like, $200 each week or two.
Buy a cherry picker. $159.
Buy pistons (CP or Crawford) $550 from APR (w/ rings), or Crawford $559 (w/o rings - $110)
Ron says that he'll balance and shotpeen my crank for $225 or so.

Then comes the whole rigamarole of doing it. Right now, as far as I know I'll be doing it myself.

I'll look into that efi.com, thing though...although while I know I'd learn something, I have a feeling that it will probably cost as much as I paid for my UTEC, and working some spare time to go will obviously impede on tearing my engine apart.

v rod

sounds like you got a good plan coming together. hope it all works out.

look at chibby goku and all the issues he went through with his car. it all worked out!

gpatmac

iTrader: (3)

Yeah, but I know that he'd still like to see a 11.99999.

v rod

patience, grasshopper!

he might have if it were december or january.

.:: 808 STi ::.

iTrader: (7)

good luck...

gpatmac

iTrader: (3)

You're PWing.

.:: 808 STi ::.

iTrader: (7)

gotta love it...

STiNightFall

iTrader: (18)

you know what pat, i've come to a similar problem, but i don't see where my oil is squirting out, where do you see the blowby? is it in your intercooler hoses? i was taking mines off just recently, and Justin(wrx_boy) told me that the amount of oil i had in my hands were more than usual?? this afternoon when i was tightening my hoses, i took the pipe going to one of the end tanks, and i had a really slight small puddle of oil, i don't remember it being that bad? Justin told me it could possibly be my turbo, that i'm leaking oil because my oil seals in the turbo is possbily bust, not too sure, i'm boosting, but i'm also fluttering, not very bad, but sometimes i get a spike, i fixed my leak in the intercooler, but now i don't know where it is.. sigh, makes me wish i had an STi

gpatmac

iTrader: (3)

Sorry Andrew. I thought that I answered this and now that I'm rechecking, it doesn't show my post.

Anyhow, blowby is normal. How much is the key. There's no standard that says how much is too much, but what I've learned is that I believe each type of rings have a different tolerance for varying levels of boost. My rings, for example, didn't like to see above 21 psi.

A few weeks ago, I pulled the post turbo IC pipe and the pre tb pipe and just about shat myself. I didn't have any idea why I'd see so much. Now, I've literally got oil coming out of my breather it's so bad.

Clean out your IC pipes as best as possible. Clean out your catchcan. Then do a compression check/leakdown test. Pretty simple and straight forward (of course it equates to being as hard as changing your plugs.)

Post up what you find.