Stock 2007 Liberty GT conversion to VF52 Plus...

[Yowie]

I can confirm that the compressor wheel in that turbo is a machined-billet work of art.

Good luck with finding a tuner that meets your requirements.

As discussed, an intercooler & throttle body hose test fit (or permanent fit) in advance of the other bits going on will do no harm and help de-bug some of the final setup.

[Stifull]

Yes I am still considering installing everything except the turbo. I got the missing "O" ring for the IC today and Russell is get in a bottom gasket for the turbo. I am just not sure whether adding all those goodies and not getting a tune is a good idea. I have a health only 50kklm engine and would like to keep it like that and doing the job twice doesn't really appeal. Russell has a beautiful fully built 2door Ver 6 STi coupe that has been sitting in the workshop fully finished with no expense spared. Beautiful sti but it too is sitting waiting for a tuner for as long as I can remember.I hope mine doesn't take that long. Waiting for a response from Coyote and in the mean time I have put some feelers out. I would love to take it to Mike at a Mike South Engineering and tuning but that's a long way and would need to go down on a truck.. I can borrow a car trailer and take it down I guess but 800klm is a bit over the top for the sort of mild upgrade that I am doing LOL....He does awesome work and has a great Reputation all over the Subaru Community in OZ..He also knows how to do the 3 stage SI drive adjustment.

[subyroo]

I would love to take it to Mike at a Mike South Engineering and tuning

Just reading about Mike on his website and he was bitten by the Subaru in much the same way that I was, the AWD traction.
A salesman took my wife & I for a test drive in a 2000 RX Liberty, he threw it into a roundabout at speed and frightened the crap out of us, amazingly the car never even felt like it was ever going to lose traction at any time, that sealed the deal and I bought the car there & then.

My one and only ride & drive in a turbo car of any make in my life was a Rally Drive 2 Cars with Hot Lap - 17 Laps in a WRX at Willowbank, I drove the WRX twice.
My wife & daughter gave it to me as a birthday present, WOW!, what a day, I was smiling for weeks afterward. I loved throwing that car around in the dirt.

[Stifull]

Lol.. Our families think alike, I have been given that " wrx experience" ( we already had 5 in our household by then) as well as the "Drift Day" and the "V8 Supercar" . They are all good fun except the Drift Experience. The Nissan had broken power steering.. You can imagine how hard that was ..I still remember my first drive in a Rex back in 94 when one of my workmates got one for his company car.. Couldn't believe it's grip in the wet...I had to wait till I retired to afford one LOL.. We had 6 children so we had people movers for over 30 years.. We still have one. I don't think I could live without one. Soo versatile..

[Yowie]

Yes I am still considering installing everything except the turbo. I got the missing "O" ring for the IC today and Russell is get in a bottom gasket for the turbo. I am just not sure whether adding all those goodies and not getting a tune is a good idea.

Installing everything except the turbo and the dump pipe shouldn't cause the need for a re-tune and will help you iron out bugs before things become time-critical, especially with the pre-turbo pipe that seems to be a bit of a devil to fit, perhaps with some adventures to be expected regarding making factory hoses connect up with aftermarket brass spigots. You would not rule out needing new factory hoses (eg if old ones split) and/or needing to extend, mess-with-etc with generic fuel hose, silicone hose, other fittings, etc.

I would assume that mating up a new turbo to an already installed aftermarket silicone pre-turbo pipe would be easy.

If replacing the factory vacuum hoses between the turbo and boost controller with silicone equivalents - you can use the old hose to pull through the new hose. As discussed I have a few rolls of Turbosmart silicone vacuum hose in various diameters that you are welcome to. Mostly black but with some blue. On my boost controller I went with a different colour for "boost side" and "wastegate side" respectively to reduce the chance of error.

[Stifull]

Good Idea using 2 colours.. I still haven't heard back from Coyote . I thought I might give Kris a call at Rising Sun to see if he know a good North Side tuner.. In the meantime I have a Swift GTi in need of a new head gasket and it is more important to get back on the road so the Liberty can wait. I have moved the bits out of site so I don't keep being reminded about it all..
The sticker kit arrived for the Peewee 80 so I spent some time getting that cut to size to fit this older model. It is the same kit that is on the Peewee 50. I noticed when I had it apart that it has the posi force system of mixing the 2 stroke oil with the fuel. I am not sure how to check that it is working. I have just been putting mixed fuel in the tank. I might just put some oil in it and see if it comes out at different rate depending on revs. I still can't believe we got both bikes for total of $500. My daughters and grand children have all had $500 worth of fun already.. LOL.. Great bikes to learn on . The 80 has 3 gears all up from a bottom neutral, and no clutch.. The 50 is just one gear and no clutch..

[Stifull]

it has been recommended to me that I should install a 3 port boost controller and the Brand recommended is a MAC.. like this ..

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/17219636593 ... %3A2047675

I have been unable to find a MAC install on my model or Rex or Foz on google or youtube, but there seems to be a LOT of grimspeed and Cobb videos. The Mac has a centre port that just filters to the atmosphere where as the grimspeed has all ports going to either intake hose or the turbo actuator and turbo housing and also retaining the Joiner/pill regulator valve in the loop... I was told that all 3 port boost solenoids were the same just rebadged but considering what I have seen they are quite different in their connections...

I have the car booked in for the first week in August for a tune. It's going in next week to have some new colder plugs installed. Yes I know, I am going to install all the goodies myself but get someone else to do plugs..LOL.. Subievolution look after me very well so I am happy to pay them to do things and supply parts even if it is a few dollars dearer. You gotta look after your friends...

Meanwhile, a short time later....
So I have been talking with a member (and seen many pics) who has the centre port simply going through a filter into the atmosphere and the other end which can go to the intake hose, has been blocked off at the intake.. This diagram by Madman has that as being #1 and off to the side and NOT the middle one as on the Mac...Several of the adds showing the Mac.. ALL have the center port having the filter.. Is the diagram of a different brand and therefore different plumbing..





EDITED a couple of days later ...So this seems to confirm what a LOT of other statements have agreed with..(includes diagram..)

https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generation- ... es-874031/

[Stifull]

The MAC boost controller doesn't come with a plug to attach it to the loom plug so I am just using a Narva Connector (similar to anderson plug) they are strong water proof etc and easy to assemble. So I will cut the connection off the loom and install that . The Cobb and Grimspeed Boost controllers are MAC as well but they have their own sticker and charge over $200 for them but for the extra $150+ you get the plug..

The Mac controller has 2 black wires... the loom has a Red and Blue wire ... My Question is can either of the black wires go to the Red or Blue or must they be the correct way.. I think it is just a pressure sensor I think but if it didn't matter which way the wires went, why would they use a plug that can only go on one way ??

[Stifull]

Answer compliments of GC8 club....>>>> Mac solenoid valves are not polarity sensitive ....as well. I can put the new vacuum hoses on the turbo and connect them to the MAC (without the "PILL"), use the "to atmosphere filter" on the MAC and block off the unused connection to the intake hose , BUT just leave it disconnected from the loom for the drive to the tuner. That sound easy.. I am soo glad I have taken my time ( I am not known for my patients, just ask my wife..) to sus all this out before starting the install. I have learnt soo much in the last 3-4 weeks. I have put all the bits out of my sight so I don't have to look at them till it's time.. Feeling more confident every day. Will be nice if I can get all this done and tuned and not blow up the engine in the process.

[bigBADbenny]

Why run the return to atmosphere?
Its still going to be unmetered air, in a maf tuned car.

[Yowie]

Rightly or wrongly, it's very common.

On my understanding it is bleeding off (to atmosphere) a small amount of excess boost air.

"Slightly too rich" is not a danger condition (cf. "too lean"), plus I imagine any effect would be tuned-for when the tuner is testing different load points on the dyno with a wideband sensor up the car's backside.

[bigBADbenny]

Absolutely the first I’ve heard of it.
It seems like an oddball choice given there’s no practical advantage, and an available return.
Or am I missing something?

[Stifull]

The Subi shop recommended the MAC 3 port boost controller and they all seem to come set up with a filter to vent to atmosphere. If you buy the Grimmspeed or Cobb, apparently they are the MAC with their own stickers on and they come with the connection that fits the stock loom wire to the stock boost controller and 3 brass connections and a filter if you choose to go that way BUT.. They are 4 times the price of the stock MAC. I got the stock MAC for $47 and I have an Anderson plug ready to attach. By installing it with all the other goodies, as long as I don't plug the power in to the MAC, it will be safe to drive because it will only respond with waste gate boost so I wont have to be freaking out during my 80 minute drive across Brisbane to the tuner. You can see the 2 types of filters that they come with on these adds... https://www.ebay.com.au/sch/i.html?_fro ... +&_sacat=0

Had I seen this when I was looking in ebay to get one the other night I would have got this one as it comes with all the connections including the one to the stock subaru controller harness.. and choice of 3 hoses or 2 hoses and vent.. This add also shows in detail how the boost controller actually works, and the various install options .
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/22447255322 ... ctupt=true

[bigBADbenny]

Bargain lol!
Disconnecting the ebcs will throw a cel, not sure if it will cause full limp mode.

The usual method of staying out of boost eg wastegate pressure only, is to connect a hose from the compressor boost reference straight to the wastegate nipple.

I’m very intrigued why anyone would vent the ebcs to atmosphere.
I guess I’ll have to google that one.

Have you mentally prepared yourself for low expectations from a vf52 on 98, stock fuel system & pressure plus 16psi max?

I’d say the final power figure will be way less important than how the car actually drives.
Regarding the latter it should be nice and smooth to redline, and your stock auto will be happy.

Ps: I just noticed this thread is in 2.5i section.
Perhaps Ric would be kind enough to move it to 2.5T

[Yowie]

The threaded holes in the ebay boost controller are likely to accept "barb other end" fittings if a person really wanted to connect to ported vacuum.

Have you mentally prepared yourself for low expectations from a vf52 on 98, stock fuel system & pressure plus 16psi max?

I don't know where I picked up the above dyno sheet, but in my notes it purports to be a Vf46 vs VF52 dyno graph for an auto Liberty.

Assuming the graph is otherwise "apples to apples", 16kw / 11% would be noticeable as would the longer legs at the top of the rev range.

Stiful is likely to notice more of an effect going from pretty much "stock" to "VF52, aftermarket dump pipe and tune" (among other changes including fewer intake restrictions and 3-port boost control). A tune on its own would wake up the stock setup, but this combination of parts/work should be a very nice improvement in my opinion.

On my understanding the stock fuel system is not maxed-out by a VF52, but would be keen to hear more if it is. Presumably the selected tuner would know.