TheVoices

iTrader: (5)

I am only a salesman ! They do sometimes have 'amateur hour' where they laugh at me working on the scoob but they only let me loose on anti roll bars, strut braces and the replacement intercooler.

An engine drop is 'a big job breaking out' as we say in the trade.

I do already have the manuals on CD, can get a new V9 STi cross drilled crank and matching bearings for under £550 inc VAT and delivery. I would need the sump gasket at least, how much of the engine will I need to pull in bits to remove the crank once the engine is out of the car ?

TheVoices

iTrader: (5)

I am getting mixed info from various sources, according to most of them my 2002 WRX has AVCS ?

If so I have the chance of a well priced STi V7 engine to drop in !

TheVoices

iTrader: (5)

I forgot to add that my sole claim to fame from a technical viewpoint is my ability to fix computers.

My work PC had a power supply fault whereby it would turn itself off and loose all my data.

I hit it repeatedly with the sales managers pitching wedge and got a new computer ! Result !

I wonder if the same thing works with Imprezas ?

Hmmmmmmmmmmm..........where did I put that 5 iron ?

dean_gti

Last 2 local lads round my way who had bottom ends spit their dummies out both used recon units off ebay for around the £600 mark, both are still good over a year on of hard use, both have since been remapped on bigger turbos as well.

That would be my option all day long. At the price they come in at you could have at least 4-5 units for the price of 1 rebuild.

rookymatt

iTrader: (15)

This is true, thats why i'd say fix it. Its probably a day job for a good subaru tech. Its just labour prices,
average labour per hour... lets say £100.00
£100.00 x 8 hours = £800.00
£800.00 + v.a.t = £920.00!!!
So with an "average" labour time... that means parts are £2100.00... i think not, they are specialists and are going to turn a profit on their skill. Thats why i say sod it, have the extra hasstle granted, and go for a rebuild on your own. With the extra money you save you could even uprate internals to save on future possible issues.

Jolly Green Monster

iTrader: (4)

2002 WRX does NOT have AVCS

TheVoices

iTrader: (5)

Cheers Simon, I have had the opposite answer from some fairly reputable tuners !

This is nstarting to drive me nuts, all I want to do is get the thing back on the road.

I have my company car and my wife drives the Scoob, I don't have the luxury of time to sort this out she needs to stay mobile !

ian.b

where abouts are you

TheVoices

iTrader: (5)

I work in Bolton but the car is currently in Nelson (Lancashire)

ian.b

I took my wrx 2.0 turbo out the other week with a friend, coz the bottom end went. I sent it off to Andy Williams and he put a bottom end in for me its due back tuesday. you should give him a shout I am sure he could fit it in for you !

ian.b

he is only down the road from you

TheVoices

iTrader: (5)

Cheers, he has contacted me but at the moment the complete engine solution is my prefered option if the STi lump can be done without tons of hassle.

ian.b

id put a legacy twin turbo engine in wonder if its been done before

happydude303

iTrader: (1)

i had a forged build for 3500 but if you go to certain companys no name mention they will say somthing like 5000 and your paying for there name a good forged build to take upto 400bhp should be about 3500 -4000 and labour shoul not be more then 50 an hour unless you go to subaru them selfs and they will only do standard build

TheVoices

iTrader: (5)

I know this is an enthusiast forum but how can someone contemplate paying more than the car is worth to rebuild one part of it ?

I sure as hell will not be paying £3-4k to rebuild it !

My prefered option at the moment is a complete used engine, just need to know for sure whether the Sti engine will go in easily.

Worst case scenario is break it for bits but I don't think it will come to that !

Jolly Green Monster

iTrader: (4)

your engine does NOT have AVCS and the hassle of fitting an sti engine with AVCS is not worth it imho..

ecu and wiring changes needed etc..

just get a new bottom end or complete WRX engine

Simon

TheVoices

iTrader: (5)

Cheers for the clarification Simon, did not mean to imply that you had given me duff info, just that other 'specialists' had told me the opposite !

Now on the look out for a WRX engine !

Jolly Green Monster

iTrader: (4)

I didn't think you were..

Simon

danny-goddard

go for it yourself bud i was quoted the same for mine, i just took my time and everything went well i ran it in for 1000 miles then after another 3000 miles i took the power up to 330bhp its been running this power for 6500 miles with reg oil changes she ant missed a beat, saved a packet aswell

yoohoo

This is one mad thread,asking questions about a subject He/She has answered already in their starter for one.Clearly this is a wind up and should really be questioned

TheVoices

iTrader: (5)

Please clarify, I am working on the principle that 'Two (or in this case many) heads are better than one'

Obviously a big spend and a big decision so input from other people may help me to make the best choice.

If you don't like the thread, you could always not bother to post ?

nick172sport

iTrader: (6)

another troll i see

dunx

iTrader: (3)

Another late night drinking session....

LOL

dunx

TheVoices

iTrader: (5)

I think I have managed to source a std spec recon engine at a good price (if the offer is genuine !)

The plan is to drop that in after fitting the VF35, STi pinks and new plugs and get it mapped by Simon straight away.

I will update the thread as things develop, thank you to everyone who offered their advice and opinions (except for the troll !)

scoobymacca682

yeah i got a crap one only lasted 4500 miles now messed up again, i got mine done at northern road engineering cost me 3600 day light robery

TheVoices

iTrader: (5)

Well, here is the current state of play !

I purchased a 'reconditioned' engine from a company on ebay (based in the Midlands)

Their advert for the item stated:


'With A Full 6 Months No Quibble Unlimited Mileage Warranty.
Our Prices Are The Lowest Reconditioned Engines & Gearboxes On the Market.
If You Believe You Can Purchase Any Like For Like Product Cheaper Let Us Know.
Sold With Sump & Some Ancillaries Not Included With Other Sellers.
Most Orders Are Received Within 48 Working Hours.
But In Some Cases Please Allow For Up To 10 Days For Delivery.
Please Contact Us For An Exact Delivery Day.
All Ancillaries Sold Or Fitted Are Brand New.
All Engines & Gearboxes Are Sold On An Exchange Basis Supply Only.
We Supply Reconditioned Bare Engines & Gearboxes With 0 Mileage.
The Following Internal Components Are Replaced With New Genuine Parts Such As;
Main And Big End Bearing,
Crank shaft,
Pistons,
Piston Rings Con Rods,
Timing Belt,
All Gaskets Including Head Gaskets Oil Seals,
Oil Pump,
New Sump Etc.
The Engine Block Is Honned,
The Cylinder Head Is Fully Reconditioned And Skimmed Prior To Pressure Testing.
We Also Reset Shimming And Ensure That All Valve Clearances Are Fully Checked.

Free Collection Of Your Exchange Engine Or Gearbox Is Available At Point Of Delivery.
Failing This It’s The Responsibility Of The Buyer To Return The Item To Us At Their Own Cost.

All Prices Include Vat.

We can also provide a full supply & fitting service plus Full engine service and free collection up to 100 miles. '


So far, so good ! or so I thought...........................

I contacted the company and confirmed that the advert details were correct, they told me they had a suitable engine ready to deliver once I paid for it.

I paid via Paypal (£1300 approx) and used my credit card so that I had at least got some legal protection if things went pear shaped. I then sent an email and ebay message requesting confirmation that it was a reconditioned UK engine to fit 2002 WRX and that delivery would be as discussed and left mobile number to contact me.

No call the next day, so called them, told me ' we are waiting for your Paypal payment to clear, might take up to 10 days'

I replied 'bulls**t, my Paypal account shows that you have accepted the funds, I didn't come up the Ribble on a banana boat !'

Once we had this sorted out I waited for the engine to arrive on Friday 17th as agreed, no show by lunchtime so called them and was told it has been collected and will arrive on Monday 20th.

Engine arrived on Monday 20th (delivered to the garage that are fitting it), no gasket set and no timing gear of any kind !

Called them and was told 'sorry about the gasket kit, our mistake, you should have it by Wednesday'

When I mentioned the lack of timing gear and belt, response was 'we never supply a timing belt in case the timing is wrong'

I referred them to their advert that says a new timing belt will be 'fitted' and asked what exactly they would fit it to with no cam pulleys, tensioner or guide pulleys attached to the engine ?

This question was obviously too complicated as it involved the use of logic, they grudgingly offered to send a belt out as a goodwill gesture, I refused as the belt on the damaged engine had only been fitted a few weeks ago.

A little worried by this response from them, I asked some more questions regarding the item description. Compare this to the advert !

Re-ground crank (not new)
New bearings (ACL supposedly)
Block checked and re-used without rebore if within tolerances
Pistons cleaned and re-used with new rings
Reconditioned oil pump
Heads checked, valve seats reground, new valve stem seals and valves ground in

I pointed out that the advert is, at best, misleading and pointed out that I was not very happy. Decided to chalk it up to experience, carry on and fit the damned thing as now running out of time for the re-map.

Now on the 22nd, we had a long block assembly and gaskets. The garage fitting the engine knew we were up against things time wise because the re-map was booked for the 29th and I needed to put a few hundred gentle miles on the engine to bed it in.

Went round on Friday 24th to discover the only progress was to remove the radiator !
The boss and son were both away and the two guys left behind denied any knowledge of it being urgent !

I told them in no uncertain terms that the car was booked in for new turbo, injectors etc before the bottom end went and the deadline had always been the 29th.

Took a call this morning, broken all three of the plastic cam pulleys whilst removing them, can I supply new ones ?

Had to order these from Subaru, so another £350 not in the budget ! Not here till tomorrow so really pulling my hair out now.

Just wish I had burned the f**king thing by the roadside instead !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sorry for the 'War and Peace' post, thoroughly pi**ed off with the whole debacle now !

bmfcrash

iTrader: (14)

Sorry to hear how things are going, I had my STI rebuilt for just over 2.2k at a very well known garage, shells,hone,rings ect ect ect (inc new Exeedy clutch,modded oil pump decat downpipe).

I realise you wont want to here this, and am a little surprised that being a member here for 6 years you still went to one of the too good to be true engine builders from ebay.

Hope you can get it sorted without any more major expense, and I hope others learn from your mis-fortune.

joz8968

iTrader: (13)

Hate to say it, but there's no such thing as a "get fixed quick" solution re. Subaru engines.

These pillocks sound like fly-by-night cowboys, like Prestige Partz (nee MDKL) who supply the SMR engines.

Who knows how long that 'engine' will last. I know it's prob not what you want to hear right now, but you would've been better off taking a very deep breath, bit your tongue, and gotten a proper rebuild done by a reputable specialist up your way...

Whatever, I sincerely hope that it all works out for you and that you have a sweet purring motor at the end of this protracted freakshow.

TheVoices

iTrader: (5)

Guys, feel free to say ' I told you so'

I was trying to get the car back on the road ASAP as my wife uses it as her daily transport.

Forged bottom end builds were coming in at £2500 approx if they supplied a CDB (didn't think much point using my std block)

On top of this I had to pay to get the engine out of the car, transfer all the parts over and then refit it as well as the time factor waiting for the rebuild.

I would have wanted to fit the VF35 and STi injectors at the same time to avoid paying two lots of labour and this would have meant needing to map it to suit.

Would have ended up at about £4k ish in total and I did not really set out wanting to spend this much on the car. It's probably only worth that anyway !

The other thing which swayed my decision was how few of the engine builders take card payments, this was the only way for me to pay for the work until payday comes around.

The ebay seller seemed legit, company not a private seller, 100 percent feedback etc.

I think I should have taken my chances with a second hand complete engine, much lower labour cost and wouldn't have ended up with the bill for the broken cam pulleys.

It would have got the car back on the road so that I could return it to standard and sell the upgraded bits.

I think if I had done this I would start again with something like an Evo 8, they seem to suffer fewer engine problems until you get over 400bhp.

Love the flat four but very bitter at the moment !

Had some great advice from some very helpful guys, must mention Andy Williams and Alan Jeffrey to name but two.

Sadly I must also say that I have spoken to some real a**eholes at various Subaru specialists and breakers over the last couple of weeks, not returning calls, telling you they have items in stock which turn out not to exist, etc, etc, etc.

dunx

iTrader: (3)

Sorry to hear your unpleasant experience with these people.

"I think if I had done this I would start again with something like an Evo 8, they seem to suffer fewer engine problems until you get over 400bhp."

A pal of mine has just blown £2K on a 2.3 engine for his Ev* 5/6 (?) and with a 9 GT turbo and it mapped it's now around 500 bhp at 1.5 bar of boost, sadly even with the std. turbo it left mine for dead (STI @ 400 bhp).

dunx