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Old 11-22-2021, 04:49 PM   #1
500_19B
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Member#: 524021
Join Date: Apr 2021
Chapter/Region: E. Canada
Location: Toronto, Canada
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2021 STI
2002 WRX, 2023 Crosstrek

Default 500_19B's Bugeye resurrection

I apologize in advance, as a bit of this was previously posted on other threads.

We've been fortunate to have a 2002 WRX since new. It has been a driver, through the harsh winters up here in Canada, but it has held up well (certainly helped by annual anti-corrosion treatment).

All of the work on the car has been done by us (my son and I), including three timing belt/water pump jobs, as well as a new clutch we put in this spring.

The car is pretty much stock, with just some light additions over the years (Nur-Spec exhaust, Injen downpipe, shifter bushings, group N motor and transmission mounts etc.). Stock motor, stock tune, stock suspension.

Aside from Subaru, my other automotive guilty pleasure is Porsche, and I did a pretty comprehensive refresh on a 1985 911. Anyone who is curious can check out this thread:

https://rennlist.com/forums/911-foru...-surprise.html

The 911 has been done for a few years, and I am in the midst of a 944 S project:

https://rennlist.com/forums/924-931-...s-project.html

However, that is all on hold now, while I focus on the old Bugeye.

This year, we purchased a 2021 STI and the plan was for my son to take over the 2002. However, an errant fox running on to the road led to an unexpected off-road diversion, resulting in damage to the rear quarter panel and door. I knew I had to fix this car, as my son probably loves it even more than me, and was heartbroken (and after all that the poor fox didn't make it anyway)

I got a new quarter panel from Subaru, and a door from a dismantler. Here is the quarter panel tacked in. Afterwards I finished welding fully (but didn't get a lot of in-process pictures):



I found a local shop willing to do the paint on top of my bodywork, so I was able to save some money. This is a high-end shop (always a couple of Lambos kicking around etc.). I wanted a really nice paint job, but I also needed to save costs. I disassembled the car quite a bit, as I wanted to have the door jambs, trunk room, engine lid underside etc. all painted.

Here is the car heading off to the paint shop (had to make a bunch of trips by car to shuttle over all the other parts)



Several weeks later I got the car back. I was very happy with the result.





Now the car is ready to go back together, but I am going to take the time to update a lot of items. Some highlights include:
  • Fixed caliper "Hawkeye" brakes
  • New struts (not decided exactly what yet, but leaning in the coil-over direction)
  • New ball joints, tie rod ends, strut mounts etc.
  • Aluminum lower control arms
  • Rebuild drive axles

Usually I work pretty slow as my regular work hours are long.
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Last edited by 500_19B; 11-22-2021 at 06:10 PM.
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Old 11-22-2021, 04:59 PM   #2
500_19B
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Member#: 524021
Join Date: Apr 2021
Chapter/Region: E. Canada
Location: Toronto, Canada
Vehicle:
2021 STI
2002 WRX, 2023 Crosstrek

Default

One of the other ways I was able to save some money was by having the body shop skip the finessing stage (where any imperfections such a sags, dust nibs or excessive texture are removed by wet sanding and polishing). So, this is my current task on the car. So far I have half the driver side and the hood done. The basic process is:
  • Use a nib file to take down dust nibs
  • Use 1200 grit paper (wet) and sanding blocks to take out any sags (there were only two on the whole car)
  • 1500 for orange peel
  • 2000, than 2500
  • Rotary buffer with wool pad and Meguiars 105
  • Dual action polisher & yellow pad (Meguiars 105 again)
  • Orange pad with Meguiars 205

It is pretty close to perfect now, but I will do a final polish just before I have the panels wrapped in Xpel (which will be in the spring...)


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Old 11-22-2021, 05:46 PM   #3
Scooby South
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OG05 STi
51E

Default

Congrats....:Looks like its coming out well... Looking forward to following along

Bill
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Old 11-22-2021, 06:18 PM   #4
DrTrae
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2004 WRX Wagon
Java Black Pearl

Default

Amazing work! Can't wait to see where it goes from here.
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Old 11-29-2021, 08:00 PM   #5
500_19B
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Join Date: Apr 2021
Chapter/Region: E. Canada
Location: Toronto, Canada
Vehicle:
2021 STI
2002 WRX, 2023 Crosstrek

Default

Things are already pretty cold up here, so this weekend I did not do any work on the paint, as running the rotary buffer in the cold garage is not so fun. Instead I chipped away at the hubs. While doing the strut and brake upgrades, we will also refresh things like wheel bearings, CV joint boots etc. So, I borrowed a bench-top press to separate the hubs and flanges. Took the better part of Sunday afternoon as I had to mix and match various pressing elements.

Before putting the new bearings in, everything will get re-painted.



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Old 12-01-2021, 11:20 AM   #6
1VIPWRX
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Chapter/Region: Tri-State
Location: some where in NY
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03 03/07
yellow

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very nice man
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Old 12-02-2021, 10:24 AM   #7
fortuned
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Can't wait to see the finished product
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Old 12-03-2021, 09:55 AM   #8
500_19B
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Member#: 524021
Join Date: Apr 2021
Chapter/Region: E. Canada
Location: Toronto, Canada
Vehicle:
2021 STI
2002 WRX, 2023 Crosstrek

Default

As I mentioned before, one of the ways I have tried to save a few bucks on this project was to do all the bodywork and prep, and then deliver the car and the separate parts to the shop who then painted the car but did no finessing (as agreed). So basically, I picked everything up straight out of the paint booth.

Overall, I was very happy with the paint work, and I am slowly working through the finessing. On the weekend I was looking closely at all the small parts (e.g., mirror outers, door handle pieces etc.). I had only looked at this stuff in a cursory way originally. As it turns out, there was one unexpected issue. The fuel filler door had one edge (the rear facing edge) which did not get good coverage and the primer was showing through the blue. In a normal circumstance, where the shop would do all the work, they would have caught this while putting things back together and corrected it.

Here you can see the issue. Presumably, it would not be that obvious as it is normally a "hidden" edge, but it would bug the crap out of me for all eternity.



Choice 1 was to take it back to the shop. Probably the normal thing to do, but not so easy due to the shop's location and my work schedule. Also, the deal with the shop was I paid for hours and materials, so there might be a discussion about that, which I did not want to have.

Choice 2 was to fix it myself. I've done my share of auto painting and I happened to have a small amount of 02C WRB base and good quality 2K clear & hardener. So I masked up the door, scuffed the problem areas, shot on the base, and then carefully cleaned back the edge with reducer to be able to get a good blend and then applied two coats of clear (all using an airbrush instead of a conventional gun).



The result looks really good. After removing all the masking, this is the door as sprayed. I can't feel the blend at all... I'm a little surprised at how good it already is (it is still to be polished).




Last edited by 500_19B; 12-03-2021 at 06:25 PM.
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Old 12-09-2021, 02:13 PM   #9
cartwheels4amile
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Member#: 190405
Join Date: Sep 2008
Chapter/Region: SCIC
Location: Lake Forest, CA
Vehicle:
1991 Legacy Turbo
Pearl White

Default

Looks like it's coming along nicely! I'd love to give my 02 a fresh paint job and fix all the little body imperfections it has gotten in the 20 years it has been on the road, but that's not in the budget right now, haha.
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Old 12-09-2021, 11:21 PM   #10
scottyb34
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Location: Fort Collins CO
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2002 WRX
Black

Default

Nice, how much did doing the pre work save you? I did an STI swap on my 02 wrx last year and now that I have a fun amount of go, I was looking to get a little show. Been a little hesitant to spend the money though.
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Old 12-10-2021, 06:07 PM   #11
500_19B
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Location: Toronto, Canada
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2021 STI
2002 WRX, 2023 Crosstrek

Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by scottyb34 View Post
Nice, how much did doing the pre work save you?
It is a hard question to answer, because I did a time and materials deal with the shop that did the painting. So, what I saved was the time required to do all the disassembly, bodywork, prep-sanding, after-paint finessing and re-assembly.

I have not finished the last two steps, but I spent a ton of hours on the bodywork and prep. I did not track, but it was probably over 100. However, a professional shop would do all that much quicker, probably by orders of magnitude. The rate I paid for the shop's time was CAD $75/hour. Let's say they would have been able to do all the work I did in 40 hours (which is a really loose guess), then it would translate to $3,000. I think 40 hours is low though...
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Old 12-23-2021, 11:38 AM   #12
500_19B
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Join Date: Apr 2021
Chapter/Region: E. Canada
Location: Toronto, Canada
Vehicle:
2021 STI
2002 WRX, 2023 Crosstrek

Default

Been chipping away at getting some more parts prepped and refinished. Here is the latest batch, which is primarily the bearing carriers, rear brake backing plate, hub flanges and the brake calipers:



The brakes were actually in quite good shape, but to be cautious I removed the pistons to inspect (they are perfect) and will put it back together with new seals.

Here are some pics of everything just after painting. Each part was done with a 2K primer, base coat and 2K clear top coats (for the calipers, the decals went on before the final clear coat). Special shout-out to DrTrae who just did his Hawkeye brakes and is kindly helping me out with the rear seals!

Pretty pleased with how this stuff came out...










Last edited by 500_19B; 01-26-2023 at 01:32 PM. Reason: typo!
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Old 12-23-2021, 01:05 PM   #13
DrTrae
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Member#: 454659
Join Date: Sep 2016
Chapter/Region: MWSOC
Location: Loves Park, IL
Vehicle:
2004 WRX Wagon
Java Black Pearl

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Oh, heck yeah! That all looks great! Can't wait to see it go back together. I need all the motivation I can get, haha.
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Old 01-06-2022, 06:11 PM   #14
500_19B
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Join Date: Apr 2021
Chapter/Region: E. Canada
Location: Toronto, Canada
Vehicle:
2021 STI
2002 WRX, 2023 Crosstrek

Default

The one thing I didn't disassemble was the door handles (I just removed them). The paint shop did though, which was great, but I ended up with a box of the parts and had to figure out how they go back together. There are small differences in the moving part of the handle between driver's and passenger side, but once I figured that out, the rest was straightforward and I have the first two back together...



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Old 01-06-2022, 07:30 PM   #15
Redbeard404
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Your paint work is amazing! Is that the blue OEM correct? Looks a bit darker. I love it.
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Old 01-07-2022, 12:03 PM   #16
500_19B
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Location: Toronto, Canada
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2021 STI
2002 WRX, 2023 Crosstrek

Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Redbeard404 View Post
Your paint work is amazing! Is that the blue OEM correct? Looks a bit darker. I love it.
The lighting in my basement definitely does make the handles look dark in those pictures...

However, in normal light, the paint color looks spot-on. I had a handful of original painted parts that I replaced (and thus did not send the originals to the paint shop)... one door handle and one exterior mirror, both with damage. Comparing those to the new paint, I can't discern a difference in tone. The paint shop did use 02C WRB and tested on a spray-out card, so I am pretty confident it is close.

Interesting thing I learned was that at some point, Subaru changed that blue slightly from the 02C two-stage (that was on our '02) to a three-stage pearl with a new color code (K7X)...
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Old 01-07-2022, 08:00 PM   #17
Scooby South
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OG05 STi
51E

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Very nice... can't wait to see it all together and going

Bill
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Old 01-10-2022, 09:30 PM   #18
500_19B
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Join Date: Apr 2021
Chapter/Region: E. Canada
Location: Toronto, Canada
Vehicle:
2021 STI
2002 WRX, 2023 Crosstrek

Default

Chipped away on a few things over the weekend...

Aside from finishing up the other two door handles, I finally managed to press in the new wheel bearings...

I had painted the backside of the hub flanges with some epoxy primer and 2K base/clear. Not having enough black base on hand, I went with the dubious choice of Porsche guards red for these hidden parts, as I did have some of that base...



I was not 100% sure on the grease that the new bearings came with (both in terms of quantity and quality), so I cleaned & degreased the races and rollers, and then re-packed them with gallons of Lucas Red 'N Tacky:





The pressing of the new bearings and installation of the myriad new seals in the right way seemed to go well and these parts are ready to go when the new suspension goes together. When that finally happens I will coat everything with cosmoline for added protection.





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Old 01-11-2022, 09:35 AM   #19
D-Rodman
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Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Long Island N.Y.
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02 Bugeye JDM STi
OBP BLACK

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Great quality work, everything looks excellent. Thanks for shearing.
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Old 02-06-2022, 05:13 PM   #20
500_19B
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Join Date: Apr 2021
Chapter/Region: E. Canada
Location: Toronto, Canada
Vehicle:
2021 STI
2002 WRX, 2023 Crosstrek

Default

It has been a pretty cold winter so far, so I have not been out in the garage much...

I have been puddling around on a few things... The pistons from the brake calipers were all in great shape, and I put some epoxy paint in the inner voids just for useless style.



Thanks to DrTrae, I had the seal kit for the rear calipers on hand, so I was able to get the rears finished off.





The other semi-notable thing that has happened is I finally decided on what to do for the suspension struts. RallySportDirect had a sale on the FactionFab F-Spec coil-overs and I took advantage of that.

I know they are not high-$ level items like Bilstein, but I gotta say I really like how they look out of the box. We set the preload and our initial ride heights (a little less than 1” lower than stock on all four corners). The quality of the fabrication, welding and finish are very good. Of course, it won’t be until we hit the road that we can evaluate how they function. That said, what we are replacing are original struts with high mileage, so it should be at least OK on a relative basis.





Went with the F-Spec, which has some compliance in the strut mounts, unlike the FR-Spec, which are solid mounts (but with adjustable camber).

Last edited by 500_19B; 08-11-2023 at 11:29 AM. Reason: typo!
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Old 02-06-2022, 05:17 PM   #21
500_19B
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Join Date: Apr 2021
Chapter/Region: E. Canada
Location: Toronto, Canada
Vehicle:
2021 STI
2002 WRX, 2023 Crosstrek

Default

But then today, we finally had some warmer weather (a high of 2 degrees Celsius, which is not bad.

I took advantage to get some things done in the garage. The main mission was to get a lot of the rear suspension disassembly underway. I was expecting the long lateral link bolt to be a problem. They were not easy, but not super-bad either. They are a little rusty, but probably not bad for 19 years of Canada and the $%@# salt they pour on the roads in the winter.





Actually, the underbody looks pretty decent. Mainly because I sprayed it every year.





However, the hub carriers and the strut housings are pretty rusty, so it is nice that I can replace all that. The rear axle was "stuck" in the hub flange on the drivers' side, so I had to use a puller to nudge it out.



The next step before I completely drop the hub and strut is to disassemble the parking brake, but my hands were getting cold so that will be for next time.

Last edited by 500_19B; 01-26-2023 at 02:42 PM. Reason: typo!
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Old 02-22-2022, 06:34 PM   #22
500_19B
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Join Date: Apr 2021
Chapter/Region: E. Canada
Location: Toronto, Canada
Vehicle:
2021 STI
2002 WRX, 2023 Crosstrek

Default

Temperature was steady around +1 or so over the weekend, so I took a day and made a solid dent in the remaining disassembly. All of the suspension, front and rear subframes, knuckles, differential etc. is out. A lot of this will be replaced with new stuff, and the rest will be refinished. I have a broken subframe weld-in nut that I have to deal with, but aside from that, everything was pretty trouble free, but it was a long day. This is how the driveway looked in the afternoon (and this was not all of it...)



This feels like a war on many fronts now, as I feel like I have a million things to do at once!
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Old 02-22-2022, 09:43 PM   #23
DrTrae
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Join Date: Sep 2016
Chapter/Region: MWSOC
Location: Loves Park, IL
Vehicle:
2004 WRX Wagon
Java Black Pearl

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Awesome job! Making some great progress there.
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Old 03-04-2022, 07:47 PM   #24
500_19B
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Member#: 524021
Join Date: Apr 2021
Chapter/Region: E. Canada
Location: Toronto, Canada
Vehicle:
2021 STI
2002 WRX, 2023 Crosstrek

Default

I have a lot of work to do to prep items such as the subframes for paint, and I have started on that, but taking all the old cosmoline and accumulated crud off is not a fast operation.

As I disassembled things, I collected all the hardware that was in decent condition and sent it out this week to be yellow zinc dichromate plated. There is a company about 45 minutes away from me that does industrial plating, but they are very agreeable to take on small jobs and I have gone to them a good number of times over various projects.

To increase the odds of a good outcome, I clean the parts with a steel wire wheel beforehand. This is looking into the top of the pail that I took to the shop (the pictures are a little deceptive, as you only see the top of the pile, but it is actually quite a hefty pail...):



This morning I picked the parts up, and they look really good:

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Old 03-10-2022, 01:55 PM   #25
500_19B
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Member#: 524021
Join Date: Apr 2021
Chapter/Region: E. Canada
Location: Toronto, Canada
Vehicle:
2021 STI
2002 WRX, 2023 Crosstrek

Default

So I am chipping away on two fronts:

1) Cleaning & prepping the fender wells and other underbody areas to eventually re-coat.

2) Prepping all the parts I took off from under that car (that are not being replaced) for paint.

Both tasks are messy and labor-intensive...

As an example, here is the rear sub-frame as it was after removal:



Although it was in pretty good shape overall, there is corrosion here and there. When I first bought the car, it had the dealer undercoating which is not really any good for a whole host of reasons. After a few years I got smarter and started spraying the underside myself annually, which has done a good job. But at that point, there was already evidence of Canadian winters on the suspension parts.

So to prep the parts I first remove all the built-up dirt and residue with degreaser and lots of scrubbing and some work with a drill-mounted wire wheel.

Here are a few of the other parts in my driveway immediately after degreasing and taking the loose paint etc. off with a wire wheel:



Next, I have been glass-bead blasting the parts, trying to take away the corrosion and get a good painting surface. I am just using a siphon blasting gun, so it is slow and there are some areas that will still need more attention to get completely ready for paint. That said, the parts are already a lot closer to being ready for paint. Once I finish the surface prep, I will push out the old bushings and then start the painting (maybe in about a week). I will be painting everything with epoxy primer and 2K black.

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