So, digging into my coupler problem... For some reason, the problem clamp was different from all my other clamps. Critically, all my other clamps have nyloc nuts on them. The clamp in question did not. I suspect the regular nut backed off an let it go loose.

Swapped out the clamps. Seems to be running strong again.



This lead to more shenanigans...



Been wanting a SSQV for a while. Finally pulled the trigger and got all the extras too.

Tried it all out.







The stock fin is the best...

 

Time for another AutoX shake down...



I don't remember how I did results-wise. I'm going to assume poorly. I had a pretty wild spin on my first run. But the car survived.

Some highlights







More pics

https://ibb.co/album/JWxbLv

 

Successful AutoX means back to the track!

Getting better with organizing my crap.



And trailered up again.



It was a wet day at Thunderhill. I got about 1 lap in before I biffed it.

Turns out, if you send it hard enough, they come scoop you up with a trailer.



Back in the paddock, it mostly just muddy...









Was able to get it back on the trailer without much issue.



Got a better view of the issue.



Getting it off the trailer on the other hand... That was an ordeal.



Incident is at like 5:50

 

So, I spun out and smacked a curb. Seems that the only real damage was a broken control arm. Luckily, I have my stock arms. I can swap the broken arm with a stock arm just to get it together.

To fit all my stuff in the Sequoia, I had to take out the 3rd row seats. I had the seats in the garage where I would park the Subaru. So, both cars are on the street.

I swapped out the arm on the street. There was SO. MUCH. MUD. OMG...



In general, it's a pretty standard break.





I don't think this is anything wrong with the part. Hitting that curb was going to break something. Whiteline doesn't make these particular arms anymore. They have a new version which is steel. Placed an order for those.

After swapping that out, I was pretty burnt out. I decided to leave the truck as it was and unload it the next day.

This was a mistake.

What I found the next day.



Someone broke the back window and stole all my tools.



One of my neighbor's cameras caught the act. But no real details to go off of.


Super frustrating.

 

New control arms came in...



Since I needed new tools, I was able to lean into team black and yellow.



Don't worry, I'm still not above Harbor Freight.



Registration was also due...



It was an expensive month.

Brought the car in and assumed the position.



Changed out the control arms
Changed out the brakes
Changed out the oil (I think)
Changed out the Exhaust

I want to say I had other plans to change stuffs but I tapped out before I could get to them.

Just before the trackday, I had gotten a new caliper tool. Didn't get a chance to use it. Bought it again.



Thankfully it works pretty good.

Didn't like the Dual N1... Time for R400.



Getting it all lined up. (I was not close at all.)



Also got myself a waterbroom and a new powerwasher to try to clean up the underside.

 

How it looks:



How it feels:

 

With the car back up and running... Time to go racing again. This time, the drag strip.

FYI: I have done drag racing once before. I very much so have no idea wtf I'm doing.



Part of fixing the car, I had to reset the ECU. As a result, my idle learning was nill and the car struggled to idle. This lead to it dying as I staged. So instead of revving on launch control, I was cranking the engine as the yellows lit. This made for not good passes.

First pass; (Right lane)



When I came back around I rolled up next to this Miata...



I figured out that they write the dial on the window next to the number. This Miata has 12.35 written on it... Ruh Roh. What's going on here?



Oh, it's a turbo Miata... Ok. That checks out.

All the Race Winner and RT stickers don't even register to me until looking at this picture days later.

The next pass is elimination round (I showed up late) and a guy comes up to me and asks what my dial is. At this point I have made one bad 15.5 pass. I told him 15.00...

Moving to the front of the grid, I asked the grid guy some questions;

Me: Hey, so this is elimination now, right?
Guy: Yep.
Me: If I lose, I'm done?
Guy: Yep.
Me: I gotta race this Miata?
Guy: Yep.
Me: I'm about to lose, aren't I?
Guy: Haha, yea.

Lined up with the Miata.



I got waxed.



So, that was neat.

Vid for people who like those. Got a mix of in-car and the livestream.

 

Where were we?

I usually try to post after I've found resolution to my issues... This is why my updates are so far apart. But at this point, it's been over a year. I think I need to dump something. A lot has happened, but the car currently doesn't run.

So, if anyone noticed, during the drag race, the car doesn't idle great...

I know that a leaking BOV can affect idle. I suspect the HKS bov isn’t tight enough. The Turbosmart had shims and an adjustable cap for this. The HKS has no adjustment. Figured I could take it apart and shim it somehow.

The thing is a ***** to put back together.

Shout out to Patsko Labs for doing the 3D printing for me. Patskolabs.com











Since the rice box disappeared, I had been wanting something to replace it. I decided on a Robot Devil Funko Pop.

Drilling it out and feeding the zip ties was easier than expected.

The ties are too big, but they are the smallest I have. We’ll see how this lasts.

 

Working on some other rice related items...

I got some sweet race car door handle pulls from DID upholstery.

https://dreaminteriordesign.com/shop...-straps-wrxsti



And hell yeah, I even got a pair for the rear doors.


Also, Some time ago, I got some STi mirrors…

I initially went to install them and I learned that they were NOT plug and play like I expected.

I finally got around to making them work.

I got some tools for the job...



After futzing with it for half a century, I got one pin out.



Then finally got all the pins out.



Swapped in the connector from my original mirrors and put it in the door.



SUCCESS!!!





I undertook this because I thought it would be easy. I was very wrong.

But I am really enjoying the mix of Impreza parts I have.

 

Other random project:

My roommate had gotten new fuel jugs and an “auto shut-off” spout. Basically the spout has a vent tube in it. My old stuff was getting old, brittle and stiff. The new jugs also seemed to lend themselves to being laid down as well which was appealing to me.

Got a jug and a spout.

The spout doesn’t fit in my fuel filler.

Figured it’s just a tube in the spout. Got some tube and went to add it to my old spout.
Then got a new nice and flexible spout and added tube to that. Figured I’d share this since the tubed spout is pretty simple and makes pouring really smooth.

Summit spout with too wide end. Did not fit into my fuel filler.



Some tubing from the hardware store. Originally planned on gluing the tubing into the spout.



Decided to jam extra tube into the end and use friction to hold the tube in place.



Trimmed off the extra ends.



Done. Did it with my old spout to see if this plan would work.



Put on new jug to test.



IT WORKS.



Got a new spout from VP. Is nice and flexible. They put a mesh screen in it that need a hole poked to fit the tube. (IDK how I got the tube through the mesh but I remember it being easier than expected.)



Viola!

 

Hit a milestone! 150k! It also came with some CELs!









The plot of the ****ty idle thickens...

 

At some point, I went to fill up with gas and gas started leaking out from under the car while at the pump.

Check the fuel pump... There's kind of a hole...



Hardwire solution melted the **** out of the fuel pump lid.









Luckily it's pretty easy to buy a new lid by itself...

 

Going to try running the wiring differently. Found a bulkhead fitting made by ATL. Got that.

Bulkhead with 12ga wires.



New lid.



Trying to pick a spot on the lid to mount. Taking into consideration the ribs on the lid as well as the metal mount when it goes back into the tank.



Bulkhead has an o-ring on it so it. Should be way to seal on the flat top of the lid.



After thinking about it, the bulkhead is threaded. Why not thread the lid?



Big threaded hole.



Added Teflon tap to the threads to promote a good seal.



Threaded in. Taped threads and o-ring.



Added nut for good measure.



Feel a lot more confident with this solution.

 

I also determined that my soldered wiring was crap. Went through and crimped everything.



New deal done.



Extra wiring in here for the cross-over pump that honestly has seemed to be working well. And connectors on everything to try to make it easier to service should I need to deal with this crap again.

Fit check with the metal bracket.



Moment of truth...



IT HOLDS A FULL TANK AGAIN!




The progression of my lids...



First one was the original. This one melted in the OEM connector. Apparently this is typical, even with the OEM pump. Did the iWire style hardwire. However fuel started to leak through the OEM connector. Tried to RTV the leak, but didn't get much success.

Second one was a fresh lid and non-melted OEM connector. Did the same iWire style hardwire. This time the hardwire melted the absolute **** out of the lid.

Third time is the charm. Using ATL bulkhead. Hopefully this lasts.

 

Been driving the car around. Still not running great. But trying to get some ECU learning done.

Cruising down the highway, the driver's side of the rear bumper came off. I know some bits were missing from the curb incident at Thunderhill.

Took off the bumper and removed the Driver's tail light. Something seems missing but not sure what...



Take off passenger side light... Little more obvious...



Got a new bracket for the driver's side.



Had the lower bracket deal.



Got fresh clips for that as well.



In the curb incident, I also lost one of the reflectors. The remaining reflector was pretty sooty too. Got a fresh pair.



All back together... Looking... Okay...