Imp Jay

Hi all
Looking for some advice on who to go for a reliable bouncing off the redline 300bhp (if this is possible) for a my00, but want to pass emissions tests,
anybody done this, if so what spec ?
Most tuners for scoobys seem to all do the same thing , ecutek , full decat etc.. so who do i contact & do they cover the engine
after their upgrade ?.
I have heard storys of tuners walking away saying "oh it was a weak engine " after a let go although it had fsh & low mileage

am i asking the impossible ?
help needed as i have got the fabled modding disease!!!
thanks jay.

john banks

You will probably make your peak power around 6000 RPM, but this is a good thing since the engines lasts better. To pass emissions tests you need a cat in your exhaust.

For your 300 BHP I suggest:

Downpipe and backbox, keep the centre cat, lots of exhaust retailers look on the Scoobyshop
Fuel pump (Lateral peformance)
TD05 front entry turbo (Lateral performance)
Boost gauge
Knocklink (BR Developments)
3 port solenoid - from Subaru dealer or Grade A subaru breakers
ECU remap (several suppliers) or aftermarket standalone ECU

The only people you will find to cover the engine are Subaru after a Prodrive upgrade to 237 BHP.

It is my belief that detonation and excessive revs kill these engines in most cases. Hence making your power by 6000 RPM and using a knocklink.

Re weak engines... some probably are and tuning will exacerbate this.

I've not yet had an engine that I have mapped blow up, but it is only a matter of time just because Subaru engines in any state of tune do fail. Some of this is bad luck, but in a lot of cases something like a dodgy fuel pump, MAF sensor or induction kit. People don't follow my advice on the amount of monitoring I suggest and IMHO are taking risks, a lot are unhappy to buy a knocklink. The nearest I got to an engine blow up was on a car which was booked in for a map and it blew up 2 days before I saw the car. It was a decatted P1 driven at sustained high speed. Had I mapped it hopefully I would have found the problem and corrected it or not mapped it, but it probably had some previous detonation damage. How would it look if it blew up 2 days after I mapped it?

So I along with other aftermarket tuners cannot provide an all causes engine warranty. I include some "small print" on my site, and other UK tuners are in the same boat. You cannot stump up for an engine bill which is over 10 times the profit you make on a map if it wasn't your fault. The problem is likely to be showing what caused the problem after a failure.

If you can't take the risk, get a PPP and an extended warranty and stick to 237 BHP. Simple as that.

As I say, if you avoid detonation, these engines can IMHO make quite obscene power

Choose the product that is right for your needs. Try a PPP demo and see what you think. Try a few cars with aftermarket modifications.

It is my opinion that a UK car tuned to the level of a standard STi with proper monitoring should be less likely to fail than an STi on standard ECU run on super unleaded without monitoring.

That is only my opinion but I base it on seeing how much detonation some of these engines experience, forged pistons or not.

My interest in all this is that I tune ECUs...

Other tuners in the UK who remap the original ECU and could do this work on your model year are:

BR Developments
Graham Goode Racing

BR Developments also do other ECUs including the Link, GEMS, MoTeC.

RC Developments do Apexi stuff.

Powerstation do the Unichip.

Scoobysport do the new age cars.

There are others, these are the common ones.

I am sure you could achieve your target (probably with different spec lists and methods) with these tuners as well.

[Edited by john banks - 2/23/2003 12:06:53 PM]

Imp Jay

Thanks john for the reply.
my thinking on the conversion would be to source all the parts that i need , then have the work done all at once.
would this be something you could do or do you only specialise in mapping the ecu to suit the mods?
thanks jay.

john banks

I only do ECUs. I have no premises - work is mobile.

R19KET

Well Tek3's are, anyway

Mark.

john banks

You'd think the other job is mobile as well the way things are going

To anyone that doesn't follow, I am a GP, doing only Impreza ECUs for others basically funds my own go faster mods Not aware of anyone in the UK making their sole income from doing Subaru ECUs, it is too small a market. Some supply and fit other parts or have a main job as well. I stick to what I enjoy which is the ECUs

5 Type R

Unichip = Owen Developments (www.owendevelopments.co.uk)

ChristianR

iTrader: (1)

Cant fault BR Developments for ecu mapping.