CJAF7R

First off thanks to all those that have helped me figure out exactly what I was doing before going ahead with it, and help with what parts were required, and especially my pal Paul for helping me out with it (even tho he is an evo owner ) Iv only owned the car for 3 weeks, so it was all a bit scary for me

It was a proper ballache as well, and a large hammer and a lot of patience was required in order to get the bugger to fit, but we managed it in the end, and it works a treat, with no probs at all (touch wood).

I took a few photos so thought id make a bit of a guide for anyone else thinking of attempting it.

First off a list of whats needed for the job:

1) uprated intercooler
2) small bit of sheet ally (for sti 5/6) or if a 3/4 possibly an ally welder.
3) a few various size jubilee clips (can use most of the original ones)
4) this bit of Samco - TCS22. Around £35.



This was the original effort:



And the end result. Looks like it was made to fit. Much better!!



Obviously due to the location of the dump valve on the later sti's being on the actual I/C itself, we had to cover the hole up, and retain the original dump valve location. The ISCV is in the way for a dump valve to go where it should do on these intercooler. This is also why you need the above bit of samco!

Pretty straight forward really, just cut out an exact shape bit of ally, used loads of silicon, and used the orignal bolts to hold it in place. jobs a good un:








Next the old I/C came off. The Sti 5 I/C is much better compared to the slanty one:





Next the new I/C was tried for size....hmmmm doesnt seem to want to fit



It seems the cover that covers an engine mount is stopping it from fitting properly, so a hammer, and 10mins of loud hammering sorted that. It doesnt look like this cover matters if its bent a bit. It does look a bit of a mess after a hammering, but you cant see it once it is on. Basically all the white parts on the picture are the bits that require hammering as they stop the Y piece from fitting snug:



after a bit of trial and error it managed to fit spot on. its a very tight fit though! While i was doing this paul was testing the new samco out:



Check out those bad boy front brakes




Next the Samco had to be chopped. I cut it as far as possible to the bend so that it wasnt too short. It was a perfect fit.



Then the samco was fitted to the turbo, and the I/C slid in. This was the trickiest part. It was originally only tried it as a test run, but it managed to go so it was left, jubilee clip required for turbo/samco. (must go to halfords today)

This bit was also very tricky, actually getting the I/C and TB to join with the samco. I chppped about 1cm off the hose, and after a lot of fiddling about it finally went together. I didnt have to cut away at the TB at all which I was happy about! Then all nicelly tightned up, laughing!!





After thats all secured the dump valve went back on to its original position. I was going to make some brackets up, but its such a tight fit the I/C aint moving one bit. I think im gonna make some brackets tomorrow though just to be on the safe side

And the end result:






And thats your lot. Its not too hard a job really, just a bit fiddly. Good luck to anyone attempting it, and feel free to drop me PM if you need any advice...

time to wash the beast now

oh and a quick pic of pauls evo!! niiiiice!!!

wah

Hmmm intresting to see that you didn't do anything to the throttle body, also or is it just me the samco that runs between the IC and the TB seem to be squashed to the point where it seems to be bulgeing between the jubilee clips ???.

Do younot find with it sitting up against he bulk head that you get noise feedback through it ????




Si

gso

cool guide

CJAF7R

Just been to have a look, i think the jubilees are a tad on the tight side. its only bulging a little tho

No noise through the bulkhead either. Although I was expecting some.

wah

Good guide by the way, I'm slowley doing this mod myself and was going to mod a set of throttle bodies I have, either by cutting away some of the inlet or cutting down the right hand side of the inlet to allow the Samco to slide on further, so is it tight up against the pipe work that runs behind the IC ???

CJAF7R

yeah I was going to cut down the TB on one side, but chopped a bit of the samco off instead, It was a very tight fit, as even before the samco went on the I/C and TB had no gap whatsoever. We didnt think it would go on, but gave it a try and managed it after a lot of fiddling!

The loom is behind it, and the rail had to be unbolted on the right hand sideso that it sits above it. but its not 'that' tight against anything behind it really. its mainly the part that i had to hammer down coming off the bulkhead that was causing the problems rather than anything else.

wah

I also thought about cutting the samco down as well, will have to make my mind up at the time of doing it as there seems to be a few different ways of doing it !!!, looks good though have you noticed any for of improvement early days yet I know ???

rooferman

iTrader: (6)

Nice to see you got it on ......

Bob Rawle

Remember that the engine moves quite a bit under accelleration and deceleration so if its wedged on anything thats fixed wrt the engine you could be in for problems

bob

JTM

Im just about to undertake the very same conversion to my 93 WRX RA (only difference will be the water spray)and have a few questions:-

The Samco TCS22, I take somewhere like Demon Tweeks will have this off the shelf?

The Sti intercooler I have has no fittings ie y piece, can I use the fittings from the standard WRX intercooler? If not anyone know where I can Source?

Anyone know if the WRX waterspray is the same as STI?

Would rather if possible have some sort of bracket support, has anyone out there fabricated brackets yet, and have a copy or extras?



Oh

Looks good m8, have you noticed any difference yet orr is it 2 early?


Cheers

James

CJAF7R

I went on a 10 mile drive, gave it some stick and its seemed to pull really well, altho i did have extra passengers in the car. I will test it on my own today. there was no feedback through the bulkhead at all, altho I am planning on making some brackets up today just to be on the safe side.

Bob, do you mean if its resting against the bulkhead then the engine might not be able to move if it needs to? Ill have another look today see how it actually sits.

JTM - I ordered it from scoobyparts, but iv seen it available at quite a few places. Just type the part code into google UK and see what somes up I imagine DT will sell them though.

Is your current I/C the slanty one then? if so im not sure if the Y piece will work, as the angle of the original i/c means that the y piece is angled different. the sti Y piece is solid alloy as well over the plastic one. might be worth trying to source one if poss.

im not sure about the water spray, sorry.

Brackets, im hopefully making today. if successfull ill post some pics up!

flat4

all look very familiar good to see you got it done

JTM

cheers 4 that m8, let us know about brackets...

Meanwhile the search goes on for a y piece.....

anyone got one..


James

CJAF7R

Bit of an update. Driven the car a fair bit now, the only time iv felt/heard any feedback is when i start the engine, but i think it is just touching the metal bar slightly thats resting above it (not 100% what it is) when the engine starts.

There is actually some gap behind the I/C, the only part that is touching is the Y piece on the bit that was bashed.

I had a quick go at a bracket too, but only on one side for now as the other side is a bit more tricky. the I/C is solid as a rock. I used the standard mount for the old I/C:



Also fitted a Zero sports under bonnet scoop/vent as well today. Just need to get the water spray wired up:





p.s that air filter is coming off asap. Does anyone know how long it takes for a filter to be delivered from sti racing? its been about 11 days now!!!

JTM

Any particular reason for replacing the induction kit?

James

CJAF7R

its just crappy and old. iv always been a fan of uprated panel filters in standard airbox's on all my cars so am going the same route! the K&N really is poop! lol

Carl Davey

iTrader: (3)

Quick Q, is the ZS duct wider than the top mount core?

CJAF7R

i lowered the bonnet as far as possible and looked under and it looks bang on the same size as the intercooler matey

Carl Davey

iTrader: (3)

I laid mine on top of my intercooler before i fitted it and the edges of the duct overhang the sides of the intercooler by well over an inch each side. I was going to modify my duct so all the airflow through it was directed onto the intercooler core rather than around the edges of it.

I've double checked my duct against yours and it looks identical...



I really just wanted to make sure i have the right duct for my car.

CJAF7R

your probably right then mate, if you tried it beforehand. I only had a look under the bonnet when it was just bout shut, and it did look like it was bang on the correct size.

Neil_G

Good thread and very helpful.

I'm going to fit a 98IC to a 94 WRX soon so it'll come in very handy.

JTM

Right, just about got everything I need for this very same conversion, only thing is my used sti 6 intercooler came with no alloy y piece, dont suppose anyones got the part number handy, cause I know im going to have a nightmare going to Subaru to order it.

Cheers

James

DaveC1

I'm about to start the same job(sti 4 ic on an sti2) Is there any way to get my strut brace back on after or am I dreaming?

ticky

I managed to get my sti carbon strut brace on without any problems.

DaveC1

Brilliant article. why dont you get stuff this useful in magazines?

STI5300

iTrader: (4)

Very helpful article I also wonder if I would be able to fit my Whiteline strut brace which runs along the top of the rear bulkhead at the moment. What strut brace do you think it would be possible to fit.

MartinT

do you know if a strut brace will fit after this?

AlanPPP

iTrader: (2)

Would this still work with an STI3 intercooler?? Harder easyer?

Marx Mcrae

iTrader: (4)

CJAF7R...Did you buy that car from someone is sheffield/rotherham??
Just asking cos I know the car. It was absolutly immaculate when i saw it last

Tizer

has anyone got a copy of this guide with the pictures? or know of any other good guides.

I did print it to pdf but i lost it when my hard drive failed