WRX Turbo on a ‘98 Impreza RS

Note, this is archival info only posted for informational purposes-the car is long gone!

It all started when I bought my '98 Subaru Impreza RS. I was already into the rally scene, having campaigned a Group 2 Honda CRX for a couple of years. I knew I wanted to turbo my RS, but how?! There were few kits at the time, and not a lot of information on the web. My goal is a quick car, but a reliable daily driver at a fairly low boost level.

I found out about the i-Club on the internet and it turned out to be both a blessing and a curse! There was lots of great information, but also lots of ways to spend cash. I got burned in a turbo group buy by a company named JC Sports, in Colorado. Turns out they took our deposits and never delivered product. Buyer Beware indeed! :-(So, I decided to turn to fellow i-Clubbers to help me turbo my RS. There are lots of great sources of information out there. Go to the i-Club and DO A SEARCH! :-)I bought my parts piece-meal. Here's what I'm used.

• EJ22T turbo block from Exeter Subaru
• 2002 WRX stock TD04 turbo
• Walbro 255lpm fuel pump
• Saab900 Intercooler
• Saab blow-off valve
• Up/Down/Intercooler pipes from Unique Motorsports
• Oil supply and drain lines from ISR
• Performance Torque converter from ProTorque
• Omori Gauges
• TIAL 35mm external wastegate
• Silicone hoses from Bel-Air Composites

So, what are the difficulties in using a stock WRX TD-04 turbo? The compressor housing needs to be rotated counter-clockwise(looking at it from the front of the car), so that the Unique Motorsport intercooler pipe works. This is accomplished by removing the large circlip that fixes the housing. It's big and difficult to remove, but once off, the housing rotates freely.

When the housing is rotated, it needs to be rotated enough so that the coolant lines for the turbo can go back on. The upper and lower lines are connected to each other in the center, and I cut them so they can be rotated slightly.

In the picture below, you can see the Tial 35mm wastegate down below the turbo. The main engine harness connectors sit right above the turbo housing, so some heat insulating will be in order. Despite increasing the horizontal length of the uppipe about .5", the down-pipe still rests on the transmission.

The air filter, made from a cut-down cold air intake works well. The angle of the turbo is slightly off, causing the pipe to hit the valve cover a bit . The up pipe may have to be bent laterally a bit in order to keep this from becoming a problem.

Everything sitting where it should, but nothing hooked up!

Side view of the engine bay. Everything fits-just!

A big thank you to Eric Wages for helping wrench on the car, moral support, and humorous banter! :-) I hope to start the car by this weekend after we get the vacuum lines, coolant lines and electronics wired.