Nice. We'll be there labor day weekend!

What type of Chase bays booster did you get? Sorry if I didn't delve deep enough, if you listed it. Is it the booster delete?

He got the newest one that's recessed into the firewall a bit.

float_6969 wrote: ↑

Wed May 25, 2022 9:27 am

He got the newest one that's recessed into the firewall a bit.

Yes! thank you float, it's been an extremely busy week at work. They really only have 2 options and both delete the booster. I got the dual piston with the divided reservoir, the one they came out with last fall and just shipped this spring.

Not a lot of work going on, I have been in New Orleans for 2 weeks on a business trip.

I spotted a bone-stock hatch in the French Quarter. I just never see anything out like this anymore, it's definitely someone's commuter car. Was one of the highlights of my trip.




My refurbished S15 steering wheel DID come in while I was gone though and I am very happy with the craftsmanship on this thing.

Messing around with the GoPro and i finally had a chance to set everything up and mount a remote microphone in the engine bay.



I'll try a few more with the cam in different locations. Thinking drivers rear quarter for the cam and just above the exhaust for microphone mounting next time.

Enjoy.

Soooo good!

float_6969 wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 04, 2022 11:59 am

Soooo good!

Thanks!! I think placement of the mic near the tailpipe is going to be better. I almost have this all fine-tuned for my trip out in a few months.

Happy Fourth to everyone! I ran out of driveway so the Nissan's in the garage.

Man I dig that thing.

PapaSmurf2k3 wrote: ↑

Tue Jul 05, 2022 4:13 pm

Man I dig that thing.

Thanks I love it. That's been the litmus test for my S14 though; because I STILL want to go drive it even when I have the Cobra sitting right there. They are so similar (torquey, light, rear wheel drive, handle well) but they are also so very different.

Well it was over 100 today in the shade but I had some work to get done so out I went.


I stripped down the front end and got everything cleaned up.


Little side-by-side action between the plactic Zenki headlamps and the EDM ones I've had on the shelf for far too long now.


I've hated that EMUSA intercooler since I got the car, it just wasn't super high on my list. Its WAY too tall, maybe 3" or more sat behind the front bumper support and were completely blocked, not to mention it also hung down about 2" below the bumper and rest of the car. You can see it's taken a beating over the years. Well not any more! That's a Treadstone TR8L. 1.5psi drop at full rated flow, it's about ½" thicker than the EMUSA but much much shorter. Hoping it improves throttle response but at this point that old one needs to have the fins straightened and cleaned out. If I was going to have it off anyhow, it was going right in the trash!



Fits in there perfectly AND I get my ground clearance back.




And with everything buttoned back up. For sake of 90s nostalgia I installed some 6000K dual-Xenon HID bulbs. Waiting on the connectors from WS so I can rewire the brights in.

Those headlights look way better, as does the intercooler.
I've always wanted to take an old intercooler or radiator and put some fittings on it so I can hook a hose up to it and plumb cold water through it to geo-thermally cool an area while I water the grass or something

Haha, that'd be something. I think I am just going to take the old IC out and shoot it. Then send it to the landfill.

Yeah, I never got the 'bigger is better' mentality with intercoolers. That's all volume your turbo has to pressurize along with the piping BEFORE it can build boost in your engine. I took it out last night but forgot to tighten one of the couplers so I didn't make it too far but the throttle response is definitely improved quite a bit. Another reason why I'm glad I converted over to speed density.

Agreed. Back in the early 2000s it was all about "how large of an intercooler you can fit", but half of it was obstructed by bumper supports and got no flow. Made no sense. People called me crazy when I put a small one on my 240 but I've never had issues out of it and its always had good throttle response.
Plus it opens up different mounting options.

looking good! unyellowed headlights always make a huge difference. i'm also running a small intercooler (mishimoto z-line) and never had any issues. it's rated for how much boost i'm shooting for eventually and it fits perfect behind the bumper without disturbing anything else.

if you wanna save those old headlights, wet sand & 2k clear coat and they will look just like the other ones

m tr4nch wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 25, 2022 1:38 am

looking good! unyellowed headlights always make a huge difference. i'm also running a small intercooler (mishimoto z-line) and never had any issues. it's rated for how much boost i'm shooting for eventually and it fits perfect behind the bumper without disturbing anything else.

if you wanna save those old headlights, wet sand & 2k clear coat and they will look just like the other ones

Thanks for the tip! Definitely keeping them around as back ups. I should be getting into wiring up a harness for the leveling motors next weekend. Glad to see there are people who still read compressor maps and buy their parts with consideration and intent.

Looking good man! I definitely love the updates!

ca18det_boy wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 25, 2022 6:54 am

Looking good man! I definitely love the updates!

There he is! Your name is in a lot of the credits throughout this thread. Thanks for all your contributions like the speedo cal thread you made. Helped a lot. And for brainstorming a lot of this stuff with me throughout the years.

Great progress Aaron! I usually have a slow period late August and I'm hoping to finish up my exhaust and get my intercooler setup started enough that I can at least drive the car (I have no charge piping right now). As soon as I get there, we've gotta meet up again and cruise for a bit. Been way to long.

float_6969 wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 25, 2022 9:00 am

Great progress Aaron! I usually have a slow period late August and I'm hoping to finish up my exhaust and get my intercooler setup started enough that I can at least drive the car (I have no charge piping right now). As soon as I get there, we've gotta meet up again and cruise for a bit. Been way to long.

Absolutely! I have my GoPro all worked out so I can get some good footage of you while we're at it.

Yes!

Working out the rest of the leveling circuit. Should have something to post by next weekend. Some progress pics and I'll make a circuit drawing once I get everything sorted out since there don't appear to be any comprehensive guides on this, and I'm not paying some dude $200+ to build a wiring harness using like $40 in parts. Nope.

Things I learned this week:
1) In the late 90s early 2000's Subaru bought some of their switches from Nissan
2) The headlight leveling switch/circuit is the SAME between the euro S14s and the '02-'05 Imprezas (I believe, still verifying this)
3) The parts are a LOT easier to find when you type 'Subaru' instead of 'Nissan' in Google.

Just look at this leveling switch I got from an '04 Impreza. I'll be damned if I can find anything for an S14. (Funny looking 'Subaru' logo...)


Doing a rough mockup to validate switch contacts but this bad boy fits PERFECTLY in the S14 console right where the mirror-position switch is. The only discernible difference I can see is the screenprinted graphics on the cover.


Also doing some work on the cooling system. Digging through the FSM I came across this.


That motor's just so happy. I love Japanese tech-manuals. Tell me you're not making the 'Booooo....mmmm' sound in your head now.

Hahaha its so awesome.

I have the genuine S14 switch if you need to do any comparisons, but mine looks just like that.

Ah, thanks! The contact points match up with the diagrams I've got so I think they are one in the same. I've got some pretty good progress on the harness. I'll verify everything works right then I hope to have a pinout with the wiring diagrams this weekend

I got to work last night and got a few things on my short-list done. I've been wanting to get the power steering reservoir away from the turbo for a while. My fluid has been getting REALLY hot and it makes the steering wheel kind of heavy, aside from the fact that I don't want it boiling over and catching fire on the manifold. I ordered a Chase bays PS cooler kit and a coolant reservoir while I was at it.


I didn't want to put even more stuff in front of the radiator, I've got an oil cooler and intercooler in front of it already, so I found some space in the driver's side wheel well. Little tight in there with the IC piping. I've got an OEM fender liner I'll trim down to cover/protect it here.


Just fabbing up the supply hose from the power steering reservoir to the pump. Thanks again to my buddy for the Koul Tools, they really make -AN line fabrication a ton easier.


So I replaced the OEM S14 coolant overflow tank with the Chase Bays unit and that gave me room to mount the power steering reservoir up there too. Stole this configuration from ca18det_boy because I like how clean and functional it is. Now I can pull everything back out again and clean and spray the inner fender well to hide all of those scratches.

No pics, but I also drained and replaced the transmission gear oil with some fresh MT-90 (GL-4) and I replaced the diff gear oil while I was at it.

Aaaand I validated the pinout for the euro glass headlight leveling circuit and did a DIY thread for it so, if you're one of the other 5 people that have a set of these and DON'T have a harness and would like to make one for yourself, head over >HERE< for the DIY thread.

Hahah one of the other 5 people that have them. That got me.
PS reservoir relocation looks good. I've heard mixed reviews on the chase bays stuff though... lots of people say they leak.
I get a little weepage out of their ABS delete kit right at the master cylinder too.

PapaSmurf2k3 wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 13, 2022 9:58 am

Hahah one of the other 5 people that have them. That got me.
PS reservoir relocation looks good. I've heard mixed reviews on the chase bays stuff though... lots of people say they leak.
I get a little weepage out of their ABS delete kit right at the master cylinder too.

Haha yeah I could word that better. I feel like most people that already have them shelled out for the harness already or don't care. I figure some day it'll save someone like me a bit of time.

So, I haven't had any issues that I didn't cause myself with the chase bays stuff. I just redid the lines at my steering rack when I installed the cooler and, while I did have a bit of weepage there it was because I didn't get the fittings fully tightened into the rack. I have had 0 issues with my brake or clutch lines. I will say I was skeptical about their included crush washers so I have used my own copper ones. Maybe that's the difference?

Just firmed up the front swaybar to middle setting (rear is softest) and with the cooler install the steering is perfect. Responsive but not nervous. I love it. I need to find somewhere safe to drive it a little closer to the edge and see what the behavior is like but it feels pretty balanced. I'm expecting some light understeer at the limit I can dial in with throttle on exit. I'm very very happy with where everything is though.

It's been a while. I believe I floated a valve into a piston last fall on the #3 cylinder. The S14 has been sitting in my garage ever since. This build log is going to be a bit vacant for a bit while I acquire funds for a heart transplant but I have plans for a nice stout 6 speed and a few extra liters of displacement. I'll probably start this back up when I get the current drivetrain removed and up for sale as I prep the engine bay. It's going to be another long journey but I love the chassis and I'm really excited about where I'm going.

In the meantime I've picked up a new upper radiator mount that I'm looking to get installed with some rivnuts which will make the process of removing and installing engine/trans much easier. I guess I'll be relegated to playing with the cobra while I save and acquire parts. Already have a new carb planned for this spring. and some basic tune up projects. Hope everyone had happy and safe holidays.

Well damn. That sucks man. I haven't tried to get a KA for a while. Are they still dirt cheap?