i have a freind with an 03 wrx with intake, and a turboback. about a month ago he went to the track and ran his car after about 3 runs the 4th run he was half way down the track and he just lost power make long story short he blew his engine the dealer said the #3 cylinder is done. my question to expert out there is should i be worried about my 02 wrx cobb stage 2 upgrade with stock intake. i heard that the #3 cylinder tend to lean is it true. do i need a equal flow fuel rail? or cobb fix the problem with the acessport? NEED ANSWER ASAP!!!!!

 

Bump

 

your fine. while the number three cylinder is notorious for being the reason of a blown engine, most people run their cars extremely hard with no issues. my friend is running stage 3 and his engine is perfectly fine. just keep up with maintenece and dont go too extreme with mods and there shouldnt be a problem.

 

I think the reason that happend to your friend was his intake, wrx's do not respond well to aftermarket intakes. Especially if his car was not tuned properly, could have been a huge reason. If you are using a well tuned map you should be just fine.

 

intakes, especially a CAI will make the engine run leaner....resulting in a blown engine. You're fine, your friend isn't the smartest.

 

+1, stock intake FTW!

 

much truthiness in this statement the stock one is good for something like up to 400hp, and then it'll start to hinder the cars performance. If you really want the sound of of a short ram intake, get the SPT one, although cobb maps will not work with any aftermarket (SPT included) intakes

 

I don't think the intake was the issue -- it may cause someone to lean out, but only if they failed to tune the car. Anyone with access to ECUtek or Protune (something more flexible than an Accessport map or a unichip) can tune around A/F mixture issues or MAF issues with the intake quite easily. You haven't told us much, however. For all we know, your friend could have been running 23psi of boost with a manual boost controller and dumping tolulene in his gas tank. We need more info for a diagnosis.

The #3 cylinder does not run lean, it runs HOT. It is nearest the turbo, obviously, and is getting exposed to that excess heat from outside the block. Certainly running richer and adding aftermarket fuel rails to ensure a steady flow of fuel will help prevent the extra heat from causing detonation, but that is serious overkill for a mild stage 2 setup. Some basic tips to prevent a #3 kaboom:

1) Don't take off your turbo heat shield, no matter how cool it makes your engine bay look to have a big naked turbo. Same goes for your DP heatshields -- put them on, dammit!

2) Get a professional tune, period. When I had my car tuned my radiator temps (and oil temps) and my peak EGTs went DOWN, and yet my car gained 96 whp. 45 minutes on a dyno can add YEARS to the life of your modded car, vs a "home tune" with blunt instruments (Accessport, unichip, EBC, MBC.)

3) Upgrade your intercooler. Most say this is overkill with the stock turbo, and it might be, but the cooler that air is when it reaches the turbo, the more power you will get from the resulting boost and the less chance that you'll get detonation in the cylinders. The STI intercooler (US or JDM) is a cheap and easy WRX upgrade (with a tune!) and is a nice safety cushion to have when turning up the boost a wee bit.

 

someone stole my turbo heatshield

well, I never got them back after the up/dp install and I didnt get them back before he moved :rotfl:

I should buck up and buy one

 

I've actually got TWO installed; the stock one, and a Cusco heatshield off eBay for $22 that shields the intercooler from heat soak on the bottom left edge. Subjectively it has made a big difference, but I don't have any actual temp data to base a conclusion on.

 

MEILERS my friend was running stock boost and he doesn't have the heatshield on his downpipe. u think my car would be fine with the acessport or it would run better if i get s larger top mount intercooler like ebay brand and tune? thanks guys for helping me. and my friend is getting a brand new motor from subaru

 

The accessport is a really, really safe and mild tune. You can't change out the intercooler and still use an accessport; you have to stick to exactly the changes that the accessport is designed to handle.

If he blew up cylinder 3 on stock boost, he must have been doing something else really, really wrong (like running low on oil or coolant). That is an anomoly, not a normal thing.

I would avoid the cheapo eBay intercoolers at all costs. Penny wise = pound foolish, too important of a component to allow a chance of failure.