New job, new state, new car, flocking!

[I Like It Sideways]

Head gaskets, timing belt, and water pump have all been replaced.

I followed several DIY's from RS25, and did lots of asking questions.

DIY Head Gaskets

Newer DIY

Part #'s for Gaskets and head bolts

DIY Timing Belt

Timing Belt Alignment

Torquing sequence for water pump - make sure to get a new gasket

Overall, it took 4 days to finish, from removing the engine all the way to start-up. Not to mention 1-2 days of cleaning up the work, double checking, and literally tying up loose ends. I hope I never have to do the HG's again. And if I do, I will be leaving the motor in. Nothing was truly difficult to do, simply time consuming. Like the torquing sequence on the heads.







Next on the list for long-term maintenance will be to rebuild the bottom end.

Edit 5/6/08

Latest from a recent shoot:

[kreitz3]

Sexy heads.

[I Like It Sideways]

Yes, they are sexy!


The inner CV boots on the front half shafts decided to let loose their guts.


So it's time to replace the axles with remanufactured axles

$65ish at Pep Boys, with a $47 core charge.



Need to remove the two strut-knuckle bolts along with the nut that holds the tie rod end onto the knuckle, so the knuckle can be wiggled around enough to get the axle out.

Others have simply removed the knuckle from the A-Arm as well, and left the knuckle attached to the strut.

Old vs. Newer Old

[I Like It Sideways]

Picked up a set of Bilstein coilovers (fronts only) at a recent rallycross. Free to try out, so I will be throwing these on soon. 250# springs, so I will be swapping my 225# to the rear of the car... I hope it won't be too stiff. I need more travel in the front however, so it might prove to be the right thing to do.

[kreitz3]

Will your top hats work on those?

[I Like It Sideways]

Haven't found out yet.

But for my birthday, I will be finding out

[M_anstrom]

Originally Posted by I Like It Sideways

Yes, they are sexy!


The inner CV boots on the front half shafts decided to let loose their guts.

My left front CV isn't too far away from that...

[noisycricket]

I drove my Subaru for 20k with no inner CV boots in the front. The first 5000 miles were the worst, with the grease slinging off onto the converter (STINKS) but after it was all gone, it was fine...

I take better care of my cars now.

(er, except for my VW, which has had grinding rear brakes for almost a year now)

[I Like It Sideways]

Haha Pete, we'll see if my front left CV joint lasts... I replaced the front right, but the front left is torn as well now.

A re-cap of this season thus far.

It has been a good one, we have been fairly successful at rallycrosses, and the car has put up with tons of abuse, as my girlfriend and I both race it at rallycrosses. The engine has held up, and still runs strong. Not bad for a $300 motor.

The suspension seems to be holding up, I'm still happy with my spring rates and dampers. I think I will attempt to modify the bilstein coilovers to fit my knuckle/hub assembly, because I am dire need of more travel in the front.

At the last rallycross, a divisional, a friend of mine and I blew the front main seal, and put the car out of the race. That has been the first mechanical failure at a rallycross thus far, over 3 years of rallycrossing. Not too shabby.

So far this year I have taken 1st in the Ohio Valley Region in M4, and also 1st in the Great Lakes Division. I'm currently hanging onto 1st in the Western Ohio Region, but a friend of mine, Seth Miller is currently threatening that lead in his new WRX. It will come down to the last event of the Western Ohio Region to determine who takes M4 for the year. It will be a great battle!

[kreitz3]

I will be there to try my best to distract Seth.

[I Like It Sideways]

Time to invest in something hopefully better suited for rallycross




I'll be picking these up in the next week.
The tires are worn, but I'm going to give them a shot at the upcoming rallycross so long as it's not too cold.

As soon as these puppies are done, it's Silverstone S525M time

[Serialk1llr]

Hey Sideways,
Just of out curosity, about how much would do you think you have invested thus far in car/parts and any work you have to have paid to get done?

[409industries]

Damn! This guy is getting geared up! I didn't realized you did your own HG's thats impressive

[I Like It Sideways]

Hey Serialk1llr, I have a running list of what has gone into the car, including work done by a stealership, maintenance, and all the goodies.
In all it amounts to about $7200.

Aaron - Thanks! After the "mishap" with the stealership, I was not going to throw away money to have them do work I wanted to learn how to do. I didn't want another head looking like this:


Or end up missing a piece of the landing again...:




It helped quite a bit to have a 2nd car as a daily driver.

[Lachlan]

How are my rally wheels treating you? Those michelins are built like tanks, man. hurry up and buy my 8 so I can get a new rally beater

PS, if you want to shudder, how about finding something like this?