My car has a boost gauge that reads 1.4 kg/cm2. That converts to about 19 psi. How much boost can this thing safely handle? The engine number is EJ20GDW4PJ. I am guessing that the turbo is not stock. I can't tell what brand the turbo is. I am going to try to check it out this weekend just for curiosity but it is very tight in there. This car is a '95 STi and it is in Okinawa, Japan. Any thoughts? The car came this way from the previous owner.

Do acelerometers work? Anyone know a good brand if they do work? I really want to get a good estimate of the horse power, I can't find an AWD dyno here.

 

I have no way to contact the previous owner since the car came from Tokyo via dealer auction. Besides the mods that I can see, I have no idea what I am driving. Subaru here is less than helpful, all they want to do is put factory parts on it and charge a lot of money for it. They tell me the central diff and the front and rear diff are the wrong ones for the car and need to be changed. I think the Cusco paperwork and parts I found in the car must mean that in the dealer's eyes the non factory parts are "bad". I have seen a few other WRXs driving around so one of these days I will meet an owner that can look at my car and see what has been done. At least I can compare to a stock model to see what does not look the same. I will post a picture of the car and engine compartment if I can get the camera fired up and connected properly to this computer. Are there any good tech manuals that are for the older models?

Thanks for the input on the acelerometer. I am just curious to see an estimate of hp or G-force when the turbo kicks in hard. The only bad part is that it is geared so low that the top speed is really pretty low. It will get there really quick though. Are all 5-speeds geared low like this?

 

Here is a picture of the turbo. I know it does not show much but is that shroud thing normal? It lines up with the side of my hood scoop to feed air right down around the turbo along with the intercooler. I am going to get it into somewhere dry this weekend and take a good look around. Where would the stock ECU mount and where else should I look for clues about the engine management system. Can stock computers deal with this kind of boost?

I don't think I will change a thing on this car so far, it is fast and really fun. I did rip the front spoiler off in a huge puddle. Word of advise, don't drive fast through puddles that are eight to ten inches deep after really hard rains. You will rip the spoiler off your car and run it over.

It was funny though seeing it floating in the water in big pieces... funny in that "oops, that sounded expensive" kind of way.