303Lurch

My son and I did a 9 day grind last month to convert his 93 t-leg from a 4EAT automatic to an 02 WRX 5sp manual transmission. Because of bbs.legacycentral.org with all the previous documented  experiences, how-to’s, and Q&A postings we where able to put it together, start it up, and drive it down the street on the first try.

Holy crap!!!! This car was fun with the automatic but the 5sp manual makes it scream! The auto really ate up the horsepower.

During the swap, we also did a bunch of preventive maintenance. Front wheel bearings and seals, lower ball joints, new Bosch universal O2 sensor, new OEM temp sensor, new right side front axle that blow out too soon (14 month old autozone shit). We also did the rear oil seal.

I would like to offer a special thank you to these guys for their posts and/or websites:

• Josh’s electrical and entire website http://www.surrealmirage.com/subaru/swap/electrical.html
• IronMonkeyL255 06 WRX conversion http://bbs.legacycentral.org/viewtopic.php?t=33345&highlight=wrx+swap
• skid542 02 WRX conversion http://bbs.legacycentral.org/viewtopic.php?t=38720&highlight=wrx+swap
• Cross member http://bbs.legacycentral.org/viewtopic.php?t=37748
• Clutch hose http://bbs.legacycentral.org/viewtopic.php?t=36374&highlight=damper+clutch+master
• Engine oil seal replacement – http://bbs.legacycentral.org/viewtopic.php?t=34149&view=next
• Speedo replacement http://bbs.legacycentral.org/viewtopic.php?t=29825
• Transmission oil seal how to http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?p=25498815

My biggest screwup was not changing the pinion flange on the WRX differential to the old T-leg flange. I did not figure this out until I was attaching the driveshaft. That cost me 4+ hours to remove the diff, switch the flange and reinstall. It was clearly document in other posts but I simple missed it.

The next screwup was not jacking up the front of the motor when removing the auto tranny. That automatic transmission is one fat bitch! I played see-saw for a few hours until I figured it out. Again clearly documented in the haynes manual but missed by me.

Things that I learned but may not have been documented or the documentation is confusing:

1. You need two new 100mm upper transmission bolts. I used part number 800510060.

2. I used clutch pressure plate bolt part number 800508310

3. I used flywheel bolt part number 800610740

4. The driveshaft for the WRX is too short on the second half so you have to split it and use the front pinion half and then put the t-leg on the back half. I did not figure that on out until I was fitting it in place.

5. I stripped out one of the old auto transmission mount body nuts. I had ordered the WRX bolts for those locations just in case I need them… but I reused the old bolts because the WRX bolts were different. But when I stripped one mount I was able to use this bolt to self-tap the mount and securely tighten the bolt.  Part number 901030002

6. The two bolts for the front cross member is part number 901000112 which is interchangeable with 20540FC110.

7. You need to attach the shifter joint spring pin before you install the transmission. I ended up having to bolt it with a locking nut and bolt instead.

8. You need to get the lower exhaust hanger. Part number 44021AA090. I modified the auto one but I do not like it. Last time I was at UpickUPay I got one off an NA 5sp and it fit perfectly.

Pain in the Butt Issues:

1. Removing the flex plate bolts required removing the throttle body. Then the bolt heads started to strip on two of them. Lost 4 hours on that crap.  6 point small socket a must…

2. Pedals required a lot of work to fit. This has been documented in other posts.

3. Playing see-saw getting the auto transmission out.

I end up ordering all the clutch hose parts from Jegs for $46.

• HOSE 14″ -3AN STRT X STRT (11555-635003) $9.99
• 10 MM BANJO BOLT (361-977517) $4.69
• BANJO 3 TO 10MM (11361-997631) $8.99
• #3 TO 10MM BRAKE ADAPTER (11799-641431) 11.99
• Plus $10 shipping

Here are some pictures from the conversion.  Click on them to get a larger image.

WRX Flywheel with mild hot spots before machining.

WRX flywheel after machine.

I removed the IC to get to the transmission.

Auto transmission out of the car.

Auto tranny vs 5sp tranny.

The transmission is out.

Flexplate that the torque converter connects to.

Drive train (Differential, axles, and driveshaft) out.

Auto shifter removed.

Under the dash pointing to the TCU. Just left of the steering column.

5sp pedal installed. Not as easy as it looked.

The T-Leg's 3:90 diff on the left and the WRX 3:55 on the right.

More missing drive train and me under the car toward the front.

New Exedy clutch installed.

Hydraulic clutch components.

Hydraulic clutch complete.

Here are some pictures from a WRX TD04/TMIC conversion my son and I did on his 1993 Subaru Legacy SS Turbo.  We did this conversion a year ago (July 2008) and I do not remember every step.  Of course bbs.LegacyCentral.org has complete documentation of this conversion by many different people.

Here is a picture of the Saab TMIC (top mount inter cooler) that was our first mode.  The Saab TMIC required us to install an MBC (manual boost controller) and boost gauge to adjust for more boost pressure.  I highly recommend this as a excellent first modification to a T-Leg.  Click on the pictures to get a larger image.

Saab TMIC on a Subaru Turbo Legacy

Relocate radiator fill tank next to the ABS controller.

New radiator fill tank mount.

I removed the engine cover intake bracket.

Relocate the windshield washer lines into the hood spacing.

Relocate all the hoses under the pivot mount.

Relocate the igniter next to the cruise control actuator.

Modify the firewall pivot mount so the IC's inlets fit.

Remove the old turbo.

Original turbo w/90 degree bend.

Exhaust header into turbo.

WRX TD04 turbo installed.

TD04 turbo coolant connects are located a bit different than the original turbo.

Radiator hose with a 90 degree bend. Pep Boys #71593CS

Now you have to modify the EVAP vacuum lines for the turbo to IC (radiator now IC) hose to fit.  See the turbo picture above.

Tree EVAC cut.

Replumb the tree EVAC higher up with a new hose.

Here is the cut radiator hose that in now an IC hose.

Turbo to IC hose fitting. I used an exhaust pipe adapter 1-3/4ID 1-5/8OD Pep Boys # 548552

Modifed IC inlet pipes with fitting adapter.

Bottom view of IC with modified inlet pipes and fitting adapter.

2002 WRX TD04/IC with a gretty BOV.

This is an update on the original post Subaru Legacy Turbo WRX Exhaust Upgrade. These are some picture of how close the downpipe from an older JDM WRX come to a 91-94 Legacy automatic transmission. Click on the pictures to get a larger pic.

Here is a up shot of the pipe going into the turbo.

I ran into this 404 error on an ASP.NET page with a new install of IIS v6 on a Windows 2003 R2 install. Searching lead me down the wrong path of Microsoft Help and Support page http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/248033 . One step that was missing is to check in the IIS MMC to make sure the Web Service Extension has ASP.NET set to ALLOW. This should have be set when Microsoft.NET was installed, but it was not for some reason.

My son’s car is a 1993 Subaru Legacy Turbo sedan. This car was the predecessor to the WRX in the USA. The old Legacy shares many components with it’s modern WRX cousin. This makes it very easy to get performance parts that are made for the WRX but will fit first generation turbo legacy sedans and wagons. Check out bbs.LegacyCentral.org for the best information about 91-94 Turbo Legacys.

My son loves this car and it is so easy to hot-rod. Already we have put a Saab top mount intercooler (TMIC) with Hallman Pro manual boost controller (MBC) and boosted the turbo psi from 7.5 to 10.5.

Next he wanted the throaty sound of a modified WRX. Any after market WRX exhaust system will fix one a 91-94 Legacy Turbo with some modifications. High end exhaust systems range from $600 to well past $1200 for a turbo back system. Cat back systems (Catalytic Convert back) are a little less. After much research at bbs.LegacyCentral.org and browsing eBay, I found a 97-00 JDM and AU turbo back system for $150 plus $75 shipping. I used an ebay 10% off coupon to get it for $205. Not bad… but I was taking a bit of a risk.

The biggest downside of this system is the thin steel. In Colorado it will last for years but anywhere else it will rust quickly. At first glance it looks like a perfect fit. However, the Legacy exhaust is about 5″ longer and the new downpipe (DP) cuts over to the middle too soon. Unfortunately, the DP had to be modified to fit next to the automatic transmission. I think a 5sp would not have this problem. I drew on the following picture to show the differences and where you will have to hammer for the transmission fit.

Click on the picture to get the big readable image.

These pictures were taken after I took the exhaust off to upgrade the turbo and add a catalytic converter back. I had to cut 1/2″ off the top transmission mount tab and re-weld it. The bottom transmission mount tab had to be notched on top.

The O2 sensor is further back on the downpipe so I had to cut than lengthen the O2 leads. The above photos show the different location of the O2 bung. For the O2 wire extension I used small naked wire crimps from NAPA with heat-shrinks then wrapped by the black cable cover.

Note the missing turbo shield. I had to modify it and put it back on because the turbo was melting the wiring near it. Once we got the downpipe fit completed we moved to the cat-back fitting.

The major mod here was the right side muffler hanger. It was heated with a small torch and bent to the correct angle. I also used longer rubber hangers to make the four hanger points fit.

The above photo shows the WRX exhaust is missing 5″. The fat round piece in the downpipe is a fake catalytic converter and I need a real one for Colorado emission testing. Basically, I cut out the fake one and put in a temporary straight pipe extension until I could order the correct catalytic size.

After much research and measuring the stock catalytic converter I found a perfect fit at Eastern Catalytic. The 3″, no air, 14″ overall length cat is for a Ford Ranger. The part number is 70330. I forgot to take a picture of it off the car but here it is installed.

As you can see I am a bad welder. Here is what the exhaust looks like under the car. I does hang a bit lower than the stock system. So some speed bumps are an issue with the muffler.

The results were better than expected. Like my son said, “It puts a smile on your face.” This video was taken before the cat was installed.

With the cat on it is a bit softer and some of the rasp is gone. Check back in September for the out come of the WRX TD04 and TMIC upgrade.