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Hubs, Spindles, Poltec lateral links, Poltec Adjustable Rear Endlink, Cusco Trailing Arm, and H&R Coilovers all reinstalled. That means in my rear end all rubber has been removed, spherical bearings replacing all suspension links to the chassis and hubs, and Whiteline Polyurethane Rear Diff Bushings for where the subframe connects to the chassis, and TIC Rear Diff Race Bushings to solidify the mount of the diff itself. I'm very excited to feel how all this work has tightened the feel of the rear end of the car. Strength, Durability, and the lack of flexibility all work together to make sure all motion is transferred through the dampener, making the suspension work more effeciently as well as increasing confidence and predictability at the limit of adhesion.

Pardon the picture quality, it was getting late but was trying to get a little bit of an update in.


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Another view showing the suspension links

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I'm a little concerned with the fitment of the cusco trailing arm to the hub. Of course it is just finger tight, but I really don't think its supposed to be that loose. I'm going to send this pic to the vendor, see if I got pulled the correct one, hoping it will be a simple fix like that.


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Another love package of parts from LIC Motorsports. I have chosen to use the Greddy Infometer Touch as my gauge solution for the car. I really wanted to go with an AIM digital dash display, but it wasn't in the budget at this point. I have heard great things about this unit, and relied heavily on the recommendation from Adam and Noah at LIC. Adjustable user settings, audio and visual warnings whenever the threshold has been exceeded, and with the add on sensors, the ability to monitor oil pressure, oil temperature, water temperature, water pressure, boost pressure, etc. While you could probably get by without these gauges on merely a street driven car, if you plan on pushing the limits of the ej205 at the track, it is essential to have an easy to read and accurate gauge setup. The audible warning feature is essential IMHO, as it allows you to be aware if a threshold has been exceeded without taking your eyes off the track. To try to get around the 5 speeds inherent understeer characteristics (front heavy/front engine car with the stock open front diff) I will be using a multitude of parts to try and convince the car to rotate in a controllable manner. I will be using a 27mm adjustable whiteline rear swaybar, as I prefer to use stiff swaybars to limit body roll and convince the car to rotate and use softer springs to enable the suspension is pliant enough to absorb the bumps of tarmac street canyon runs. The rest of the parts are pretty basic and continues with the theme of tying down the drivetrain to increase response, predictability, and confidence when driving at the limits of adhesion.


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Well, when I see a good idea implemented intelligently, I incorporate it into my build. In an effort to increase my cooling systems effectiveness, I will be venting my engine bay with these Run Cool Hood Louvers. Originally got the idea from Turn In Concepts, these will suck air that has already been used to cool the various heat exchangers out of the engine bay, lowering its pressure, which increases the pressure differential between the engine bay and the front of the heat exchangers, which will allow more air to flow through and cool the radiator. Combined with my Koyo high capacity radiator, Crawford water pump, radiator ducting, and higher pressure radiator cap, should drastically increase my cooling systems effectiveness. Here is a perfect example of how a number of small fixes almost always is better than one big fix, and how the ultimate in fixes is when you combine the big fix with a number of smaller fixes. As a side benefit, combined with some other front end aerodynamic modifications, should help streamline my car and improve the overall vehicle aerodynamics. I couldn't justify spending the money on a vented carbon hood to lose a minimal of weight over the nose of the car since the stock aluminum hood is very light, and liked how these looked on the turn in concepts car. Thanks for the idea TIC.


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Hopefully my front end will look similar to this:

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Time for some progress to be made on the car instead of just dumping $$$ into piles of parts on the ground. Installed TIC Rear Differential Bushing Race version and was blown away by the ease of the install. The OEM bushings are disgustingly soft, while these new ones are extremeley rigid with no play from hand squeezing- just what I wanted. These will prove essential to direct feedback and throttle inputs. As is well known with TIC products- very knowledgeable, professional, takes the time to answer questions about future goals, speedy delivery, and ultimately a well designed/engineered/thought out product that fixes and upgrades the oem part but has oem type quality control. The product fits like a dream, and if more products had the TIC attention to detail there would be a LOT less botched or frustrated installs. Anybody in the market for Subaru parts should definitely consider this shop.


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Rear Diff bushings installed


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In an effort to further strengthen chassis rigidity I have included TIC fender cowl braces in my build. These replace the stock flimsy oem ones (although kudos to subaru for even triangulating the fender with a brace, many other imports don't even take that step), but these are nice and beefy and rigid in comparison to the stock ones which I can flex with my bare hands. To further strengthen this connection, in the future I will be welding these braces in place to further strengthen the chassis. Here is the original install if no other modifications are performed.


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I was not happy with the OEM harness routing in the fender well so decided to modify the wiring path some for improved protection with my reduced ride heaight and hard driving style. The last thing I wanted to do was have my rapidly spinning tire shred my wiring harness at full bump, so I rerouted the wiring harness on the side of the fender cowl, which should tuck it between the fender and frame upon reassembly. All new drilled holes were hit with a quick dose of spray paint to eliminate any rust issues down the road. If all goes as planned on reassembly, this should be a safer and more robust setup down the road. Hopefully this will fit under the fenders upon reassembly without issue. I did a similar modification to my 240sx with good results and little problems, so I hope to continue the trend here.


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And of course the other side


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Some more progress made today. Whiteline rear 27mm swaybar installed. Weird little quirk about the install that I could not find much about online in the forums, concerns the swaybar d mounts. The Whiteline bar, while 27mm in the center narrows down to 24mm on the side to mount to the chassis. I am using the upgraded sway bar mount, as with any increased rear swaybar under aggressive driving could result in failure of the oem mounts. The 27mm bar comes with mounts with a ridge on them, these turned out incompatible with the upgraded swaybar mount, not correctly mounting and dislocating portions of the bushings. So instead of shaving these down, I recommend just using a set of 24mm swaybar mounts, which I had available from my previous swaybar. Fits the swaybar perfectly and fits the mount as good as with the previous bar. I have never been overwhelmed with the fitment of the mounts though, I have tried the trick of flipping them backwards, and this is the closest to oem level of fitment, although it is stil not entirely up to my oem standards.


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Started final reassembly of the rear end of the car. Tighten up all the hand tight bolts to final torque spec. Spherical endlinks all bolted up and torques down.


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Whiteline Rear Subframe Lockdown dolts installed. Hopefully my rear suspension will be suffeciently rigid for hardcore performance use, if not I will be dropping the subframe and paying a local fabricator to seam weld the rear subframe, just don't have it in the budget at this time. I really wish I could weld, the majority of the chassis would have been seam welded, and especially the front crossmember as well as the rear subframe. Oh well, gives me another project in the future.


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Cusco trailing arms installed and torqued to spec. Fitment turned out to be a non issue, and my concerns unfounded. The bracket collapses down under the torque and fits the hub perfects. Not sure if it is because of my other adjustable suspension arms being made from either steel or chromoly and not flexing down as far a aluminum or what, but these arms seem to fit perfectly, and knowing their track record in a competitive race environment, seems cusco knows more than me about suspension arm construction.


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DerekB707

iTrader: (21)

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Well, finally arranged time with crazy work schedules and got my transmission reinstalled and mated to the engine. Very excited about this, will allow me to start reinstalling components of the front suspension. Was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to mate the transmission back up to the engine. With the pitch stop removed you can get a surprising amount of play, and by jacking the front of the engine you can tilt it downward in the back, giving you much more working room to wiggle the transmission in. With two people, it was very easy to mate the two together. On some makes of cars reinstalling the transmission can be an absolute bear, so kudos Subaru, thanks for making it a relatively easy install.


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Kartboy rear shifter bushing and group N tranny mount getting ready to join the kartboy front shifter bushing currently installed on the car. Was pleasantly surprised by the difference in shift feel the forward shifter bushing made in the drivetrain. Of course, I probably should have installed the rear bushing before installing the transmission, but it won't be difficult to install with everything else installed. For those that haven't felt the group n tranny mount bushing already in person, this thing is beastly stiff. I wish I had a before and after comparison isolating this part. I was surprised at the feel of the forward shifter bushing, I can only imagine the effect the difference the tranny mount will do.


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Can you say my tranny mount was due for replacement


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