....or do's and dont's?

I'm FINALLY getting my 1997 Impreza WRX STI TYPE R next week and have NO CLUE what so ever about imprezas, so any tips, tricks, do's, dont's etc, no matter how little or small, would be very much apprciated.

A few questions of my own to:
What's the BEST oil to use and at what weight?

What are the best spark plugs to go for (mines running 345bhp)

This water injection, i take it it has it's own water container in the engine bay, and doesn't run from the normal washer bottle (sorry for the funny, sad newbie questions)

Also, with the diff, is there a special oil i should use etc?

One thing I do know is only use optimax,at LEAST + add octane booster.

But, other than that, i'd sooooo much appreciate, as above, any tips, tricks, do's and dont's etc.

cheers scoobsters,
Matt

Hey there,
I have an sti v2 and run optimax + octane booster at all times. I also use Mobil 1 Motorsport 15/50 oil changed every 3000 miles. Apart from the usual 10miles/15mins oil warm up before booting it and the 2 mins cooling down after a hard run, you should just get out there and enjoy!
NB if you dont use a tank of petrol in less than 200 miles you ain't trying hard enough!!!!!!
Coulty

cheers Coulty..keep em coming lads.....

Firstly I would find out what has been done to it to get 345bhp thats a fair bit above standard and may need bit and pieces eg, gauges to monitor things.

[Edited by chrisp - 8/30/2003 6:49:50 PM]

You don't know anything about imprezas?

That's a risk to buy a 345 bhp one!

First advice get it checked out proper before exchanging any dosh!

If it really does have 345 bhp how long has it been in that state of tune (How many miles) and has it been done wisely?

just be careful it could end up costing big bucks!!!

Plums!

P.S. Better to buy a standard one and work up!

Have to agree with a couple of the other comments. Admitting to being clueless at the same time as getting hold of a modified Type R could be seen as going straight in at the deep end.

As has been suggested above, the first thing you need to do (and you should really be doing this before any money changes hands, is to find out whether this power increase is genuine, and indeed how it has been achieved. If I saw, for example, a car advertised with 345bhp, but didn't see a knocklink and AFR meter in the cockpit, the alarm bells would instantly start ringing as the car could have been detting its pistons off, with the owner neither knowing nor caring.

The car is almost certain to have been remapped for a safe power boost of that sort. Finding out who did it would be an excellent move.

One thing you should also be clear on is the difference between water spray and water injection. The Type R's come with intercooler water spray (not water injection) as standard. If a water injection system does exist on the example you're buying, it's an aftermarket addition, and thus we couldn't tell you whether it uses the washer bottle or an external tank...

If you are talking about the standard water spray system, it uses a separate tank located in the offside front wing. If you are indeed talking about a water injection system, that's a big pointer to the power boost having been designed and achieved safely.

The diffs and gearbox use regular 75w/90 gear oil, although there are particular types (Castrol Syntrax, Mobil 1 SHC, Redline Shockproof, Silkolene Syn5 etc.) that are known for giving good results.

Spark plugs? With that amount of power, if indeed the figures quoted are genuine, you're probably looking at NGK PFR7B's, the IFR7B iridium version, or the various aftermarket options from the likes of Blitz and HKS.

Beyond that, you should really have a good look round here to check out the various techniques regarding oil changing, warm up/warm down procedure, etc. etc. First thing though is to make sure the car you buy isn't about to eat its engine - in addition of course to the obvious stuff like an HPI check.

There have been a spate of examples here lately of people buying cars of questionable provenance, only for them to go bang within a few weeks (sometimes a few hours!) of purchase.

Odds are that this car is kosher. However, it doesn't do any harm to find out as much about it as you can before you actually hand over your cheque, especially given the fact that it's supposedly been modified.

[Edited by greasemonkey - 8/30/2003 7:20:07 PM]

Good advice greasemonkey,ignore at your peril :D hope all goes ok.... if it's got an airfilter of the type that you soak in oil ditch it ASAP as on some scoobys it has been known to knacker maf sensors and that can blow an engine , these cars are fairly reliable as standard but alter them much and you need to be carefull as pointed out previously if it aint right walk away there's loads more out there, don't be seduced by the first one ,have fun :D

[Edited by matty01 - 8/30/2003 8:48:38 PM]

if it's an import (or even if it's not ) take it to someone very reputable and have it checked out...(engine wise..)

It's going to Interpro in Bristol for a 3 hour session on the rolling road to make sure everything is ok and to get it set up right.

also, i'll be changing the oil and filter and camblet as soon as i get it.

Matt

Running 345Bhp.

How?


Think you may be disappointed!

UK fuel?

Wat MAP?

Upgrade ECU
Induction kit
Full stainless system]
Upgrade plugs and leads
Upgrade camchafts

Matt

More info necessary.

What ECU? Genuine ECU upgrade/remap or boost clamp/FCD? What induction kit, and most importantly, what cams? This in particular sounds a bit fishy - there should be no need to replace STi cams unless you are going for considerably more power.