help, i'm quite sure you've all seen or dealt with this before but hear me out please. i have just turned from the other side (bmw m3 evo) to a standard sti v4 type r 98 and am a bit confused about what the hell is going on. i have been in touch with wallace performance in aberdeen and have been recommended that i upgrade the ecu so that i wont have a problem with uk fuel ie 98 ron optimax and the like, but at 600 pounds i thought that this would be a bit steep for not much in return in performance and as this car has been in the uk since 1998 and with all the receipts from the 2 previous owners, the amount of money spent is quite a lot, i would of thought that something like this upgrade would of been looked into before, i also have dyno tuning paperwork from Power Engineering in Uxbridge and have been in touch with them and they have said that it will be ok to run with 98 ron optimax straight from the pump without any other changes to the car........ help
i am also quite tempted to get a new exhaust as i mentioned the car is standard, the one at wallace at 300 pounds from the manifold would this just be a good option or would there be a better way to spend the money for a better end product, there is a lot of information out there and i must admit i am getting a bit confused
any help on this matter would help me sooooo much
steve

 

It depends, a lot of imports have been in the uk for a while now, without being mapped for uk petrol, (mine still isnt) so I wouldnt be suprised if it hadnt been. In general if your going to uprate the car you do the exhaust as well at the beginning as they give an easy power gain so if it's on a standard exhaust I wouldnt expect it to have been tuned.

Chances are if it was going to go, it would have gone bang by now if it's not been mapped for uk fuel and run without any octane booster- but it's not a risk I'd take myself however.

If your unhappy with paying for a remap, just use octane booster each time with optimax (either nf or millers), although Wallace havent had anything bad said about them on here that I've seen.

 

thanks for that, i have been speaking to a few people about wallace and they aint said anything bad about them, they seem to have a good reputation.

i was just trying to get a bit more info before spending about a thousand pounds if i dont need to

cheers
steve

 

Mine is a V3 STi and also been in the UK since 1998. Apart from a head gasket going some time ago, no other problems and the guy before me ran it on 97 RON Texaco SUL. I believe, if you do the oil changes and services regularly and don't redline it all day, it'll be fine. Yours will redline at 8,250 rpm and you really never need to go over 7,000 rpm max, as you lose all the torque.

On the other question, I had a Scoobysport back box and ran 273bhp & 246ft/lb at power engineering. An hour later, with a de-cat centre pipe put on, ran 288 bhp & 264 ft/lb. May help to give you an idea of the difference versus cost. De-cat pipe was £65

 

I'm in the same position as you my friend! I have had my sti 4 for over a year now. Completly standard apart from the blitz cat back. I've been able to run it exclusivy on optimax and havn't experienced any problems. Had it dynoed at PE and made 293bhp with 256lb/ft. PE told me that they don't remap the sti 4 due to concerns over reliability???? Andy F has quoted me on an apexi fc, and would like it for piece of mind. Also installed a knock-link (strongly recommended) which shows mostly greens with the occassional amber.
Saving up for the apexi ecu at the mo!

 

Might be worth investing in a Knock Link which gives you a visual indication if the car is suffering from knock or det due to using a fuel with a lower RON level than what it is mapped for.

 

thanks for that guys.

thing is i'm in qiute a lucky position, i have the cash to spend on the car but dont want to spend it if it's not worth it or not needed as the money could be spent on other things on the car.......

am tempted to put a complete system onto the car but getting rid of the cat sounds like a good start
have not read that much about the knock-link yet. what advantages does this have and more to the point what's it do????

 

It uses a sensor bolted to the engine block which listens for noises of a certain frequency, if it picks up some noise, like if the car is detting (which is a bad thing!) it sends the signal to a black box that you fit somewhere inside the car where you can easily see it, and lights up a series of LED's. If it picks up a loud enough noise it will light all the LED's and thats when you back off the throttle and seek the help of an ECU remapper!

 

was going to ask if you have had to do anything with your headlights on your v4 as i cant see bloody anything when it's dark and with a bit of rain it's a bit of a mess.

have you done anything to yours?

 

Check what bulbs are in them.

The search facility is a good. Try a search for "which bulbs" (for example) and im sure you'll find this sort of question has been covered a number of times.

 

Have to agree on the sh*t head-lights! Been told that a good set of bulbs will improve things.
If you have the money, then a remap would be a very wise move. Think of it as 'future-proofing' the car. It will also add to its desireability when you come to sell it.

 

Mine had 100/60 bulbs when I got it. They were Ok, but I was shocked at how much better it was with Morette lights.
Mind you, I only upgraded because I could not get Chrystal lights to go eith my Facelifted bumper.

My car was far from standard when I got it, and the previous owner fitted a Link ECU at 35K. the engine still let go at 42K, so He had it rebiult. Its done 24K in my hands, without missing a beat, and no booster needed.

 

A remap doesnt mean your engine will run and run and run, big end bearings seem to be one of the common reasons for engine failure.

 

ok now how on earth are you ment to look out for that? and if that does go i assume it's gonna cost a bucket load to get the engine sorted or would it be a case of throw it away and start again? i know it all depends on how it goes pop but it's still gonna cost init

 

You cant look out for it, but it is highly recommended that when the oil is changed that you disconnect the crank postion sensor to turn the engine over without it firing up. This gets the oil flowing without stressing the bearings as much.

Welcome to the wonderful world of Subaru's.

 

know what? i seem to be longing after my m3 a bit but i hoope that this will pass after a while. i know my back seems to miss it

 

Dont be put off, these are things to help make the car last as long as possible and are worth knowing and following. A mate of mine had a UK classic that when he finally got rid he had racked up over 200,000 miles in it with no major problems.

The trouble with these forums is that although they are a great source of knowledge with a lot of decent people, they can leave you feeling paranoid about your car!

 

your not kidding about the paranoia mate.

but i think with the miles that i do, about 7000 a year, that i could be ok if i look after it and do all the oil changing and stuff, i will admit though that out of those 7000 miles that a good half of those will be mucking about the back roads so looking out for all the quirkey things looks like a good idea

 

i would be more concerned on the oil you put in, as above the bottom end is likely to go on sti that year.10-60 10 -50 is popular grade on here .oil used are millers, castrol rs,mobil motor sport, Silkolene and motul .an uprated fuel pump would be a good idea .once that is done look at an air filter and exhaust system.scoobyclinic chesterfield do the chips for that car 01246 590 807
http://www.scoobyclinic.com/frameset.htm its a massive outfit normally about 20 impreza are there.good luck you will have plenty of opinions and help on here .

 

have been a user of mobil oil over the years, used to own a few jap cars in the past 200 sx, toyota gt4, pulser gtir and then went over to the germiin audi s2 and then the m3. never have scrimped on items put into and onto the motors but will keep me mind open to advice if there is anything better out there.
wots up with the fuel pump? does it not hold up well or is it just a easy upgrade to help matters

 

with more power produced the fuelpump will come to its limit and will become unreliable.i suggest you change the oil at 3500 miles i always have.

 

Same here. I use mobil 1 15w50. Change it every 3000 miles.