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Old 01-12-2010, 01:19 AM   #147
sponaugle
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 4498
Join Date: Feb 2001
Chapter/Region: NWIC
Location: Portland, Oregon
Vehicle:
WRX H6-3.0 Turbo
www.surgelinetuning.com

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Quote:
Originally Posted by LittleBlueGT View Post
Any updates?
I thought I would post a small update. The cliff notes version is: It still works.

I just passed 25,000 miles on this built engine. For reference, it is a block I put together in my living room. New case, new crank, Weisco pistons, Carrillo rods, ACL bearings. I set the ring gaps super loose (looser then I should have), so I have more blow by then I would normally want. The only downside of that is my catch can system collects a bit more vapor and oil.

I was thinking while driving home today about why this engine has lasted so well, given my usual history of breaking things. 25,000 miles is not a long life for an engine, just a long life for an engine in my hands. Here is what I came up with:

On the plus side of reliability:

1: I have tuned the car on the dyno perhaps 4 or 5 times in the last 1.5 years. That has allowed me to catch some small tuning errors, as well as keep the AFRs well dialed in different temperature. I do road logging perhaps once every few weeks, and have made a few tweaks here and there.

2: I have not made very many changes over that time. I switched to bigger injectors, but that is about it. Everything else is working well, so no need to mess with it. I have 2 other cars I am always changing, so I decided to keep this on with a single setup.

Since I have 1000 cc injectors, I have headroom. Since I have headroom, the map is richer at higher boost. If I overboost, I have plenty of fuel. I also have a 5 bar map sensor. This means I have boost cut. Boost cut is a good thing.

3: I have been good with oil and oil changes. Most oil changes have been with Amsoil, some Rotella, and one Motul. I have ran a 20w50ish weight the entire time, regardless of weather. I do a compression check at each oil change, as well as clean out the boost tubes, inspect everything, check coolant, etc.

4: I have oil pressure, temp, EGT, AFR, and Boost on gauges right in my line of sight, with a conditional alarm. I always notice AFR while driving around, and if things are off, it catches my eye.

5: My oil pressure is 86psi at 7200 rpm. That is a good thing. It is a shimmed 11mm pump, with 20w50 oil.

On the minus side:

1: I drive the car nearly every day.. rain, snow, cold, hot. I remember starting up the car in 2 feet of snow in my driveway last year, as well as a number of days in the teens (which is cold for Portland). Pretty much every day seems sustained 3/4th pulls, as I live out in the country.

2: Other then the oil changes, I don't spend much more time on the car. I do check the oil level on a regular basis, but have been caught a quart low a few times.

3: Sure I have SI drive, but the car pretty much lives in S# at 23psi, 400whp.

4: I use launch control to impress my friends, and I have a lot of friends.

As far as consumables so far:

Average MPG: 14.1, a total of 1773 gallons of 92 octane gas (average cost of $3.11), or $5500.
Two sets of BFG KDW 275/40R18s, now on a third set with BFG KDW 285/35R18
One set of brake pads and rotors.

As far as the tune goes, on the street it seems to run a bit richer then on the dyno, which is a good thing. It is always around 10.9 to 11.1 at redline, and midrange perhaps a tick or two leaner. I have my accessport on the dash in eye range with knock correction displayed all the time. If I notice a tick, I investigate. Over the 1.5 years, I have tweaked timing a bit based on knock that only seems to occur in long 4th and 5th gear pulls.

The GT30R is still performing great, spool up is as good as ever.

Jeff Sponaugle
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