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I just acquired a 1988 GL Turbo


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I'm a subaru fan, I own a 1997 Legacy GT, and had a 1992 Legacy. I just acquired a GL Turbo from a friend for 150 dollars. There's minor valve ticking, but I don't believe it's a terribly large problem. He just wanted to get rid of it, and I felt like buying it as a toy. Now I have a couple of modification questions.

 

My Absolute maximum goal is to get 160HP out of it, is this realistic? That's for you guys to help me with. I'm thinking about upping the boost after I get it, redoing the intake, and exhaust components. Stock it used to be 115HP. I can't find any aftermarket components for it, which doesn't surprise me at all. But I also couldn't find any documentation on what components from other cars I could use either, if there are any. Simply put, there just isn't a great following for this car. But I see some potential in what it can do.

 

I can't really find any solid facts about it, it's a 2WD, I don't know how much it weighs, I read somewhere it weighed 2500 or so pounds, if that's true, with the interior taken out, it could be fairly fast with my matched HP goal. I can't even find how much boost it puts out stock and would like to know how much I can up it to, before the ECU and injectors/pump can't supply any more fuel.

 

So the list of questions I have is as follows:

1.) How much can I up the boost?

2.) Is there any aftermarket or not Intercoolers for cheap I can put on? like maybe a cheesy one from a first gen eclipse.

3.) It's an automatic :( is there some shift kits for this tranny? I read there were on the XT-6, slim chance but I feel I should ask.

4.) New Fuel injectors, Possibility?

5.) What about the Intake and Exhaust, what components would work?

 

I guess that's a good start, and thanks a lot for your time guys, and I look forward to being a member of your msgboard.

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The ea82t motor puts out 115 hp and 134 lb ft of torque, running at the stock 7 psi boost. With a boost controller the engine can be run in the 10-15 psi range, and an intercooler is recommended by everbody, usually a top-mount, that can go in the spare-tire hole above the engine. Your cheapest bet for that is to find an IC off of a turbo car eg saab turbo, or mitsu starion etc at a yard. A front mounted IC can also be done though. Some people have modified their MAF to give more fuel, and run richer all the time, I'm not sure of the real value in that. The auto tranny you speak of is a bit of a dog, and if you're going for performance your best bet is to switch to a manual 5 spd, you should be able to get help from other who have done this. I'm pretty sure the 150-160 hp goal can be reached without internal engine work, and not too much money spent.

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Ok sounds great, I have a request in to some junkyards for maybe a Legacy Intercooler. Im' thinking about boosting it to 10psi tonight until I can get an intercooler. Does anyone have any idea how much they weigh? I can only find one site and it said 2500 pounds, if this is true, with everything pulled out, it should be an awesome car.

 

Thanks in advance again guys.

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I looked inside the door, and it stated 3200 lbs or so with 840lbs load (the maximum) so 2560, so i was pretty close. This excites me, now I just have to get it up to 160HP over time (I want to match my 97 Legacy GT's HP as much as I can), and change the tranny, which I have yet to find instructions for. Does anyone know how much Torque it would be at if it's running 160HP? In other words has anyone dynoed this engine with the modifications needed to do that HP?

 

I haven't really done anything to it yet, tomorrow I start my project. I have a Boost controller, boost gauge (I'm shooting for 10PSI or maybe 11PSI if I feel lucky) and a A/F Gauge so I can monitor it. If anyone knows any good exhausts I could use, and what size would be the best I would greatly appreciate it. I'm looking into cheap intercoolers right now, but Minnesota junk yards suck. I've looked on http://www.car-parts.com but haven't found much in my area, might have to mail order. Also about the Top Mount IC, do you guys just cut holes in the hood and manufacture a Hood scoop? or is there a better way to do it? And has anyone figured out a good place to put it on a front mount setup? Thanks again for the help.

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DC

I have a few of the mods you speak of

Here is a pict of a few, I run a croba style hood scoop on my 87 wagon, seems to do a fair job I have many temp sensors (air filter, throttle body, oil, H20 ect) all with digital outputs

http://www.westol.com/neper/willyengwdescsmall.jpg

 

email me if you have any questions

neper@westol.net

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I'm not Mr. super turbo mechanic or anything, but I'll chime in here with a few experiences with my 86 Turbo GL:

 

1. To get going toward your hp goals and make the thing run a whole lot better in general, I'd say get a new downpipe and exhaust made first, before anything else. Makes a big difference across the board. You can have back-alley muffler shops do this pretty cheaply, and it opens up the high end of the car tremendously. If you can get a new crossover pipe (header), that also makes a huge difference. I'd estimate 15+ hp gain from all that, maybe even more. Power curve does not drop off so much at higher rpms, which makes the car a lot more fun to drive.

 

2. In order to increase the boost beyond 10psi you need to disable the boost cutoff. Up to 86 this can be done by plugging a vacuum/boost line near the solenoid, but after 86 it needs to be done electronically, and I'm not sure how to do that exactly but a search here would prolly locate the info.

 

3. Having said the above, unless you intercool it, I would not go beyond 10 anyway; you'll get knock and ping, even if you richen it a little (I did and I recommend it as a safeguard), unless you back off on the timing, which negates some of the hp gain, and makes it run like a dog (no power) when off boost. This problem improves if you do the crossover and exhaust work, because part of the deal is that with the stock system the boost just has nowhere to go, and does not get out of the head quickly enough. (I hope I said that right....)

 

I believe that with full exhaust redo and 10 psi you'd be at around 140 hp or so, maybe a little more. Intercool it and go to 12/13 psi and you'll be near 160. To safely go any more than that, you are going to need engine management (computer) to control fueling more precisely. I've heard tales of 200+ hp on stock internals with a slightly larger turbo (from WRX or SAAB or Volvo), intercooling, engine management, and hotrodded injectors, but I'm not sure about what you'd expect in reliability.

 

In my own case I was happiest with the car after all the exhaust work, and actually reducing boost from 11/12 down to 8 or 9.

 

Good luck with the car...have fun.

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Above 10 or 11 psi boost the clutch started to slip on hard take-offs from lights and also at other times. This particular clutch is probably toward the second half of its life, but in any case it made me nervous, so I backed off the boost a bit. I dont think the standard clutch for this car holds much pressure, and I did not want to put it to the test, due to $$$ concerns.

 

Skip or one of the other UberRooMechanics might have some more useful info on what the clutch can stand.

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Alliturken: Neither am I, I'm learning as I go. I only have limited knowledge of how, in extreme detail, turbos on our engines work (in other words where all the vacuum tubes go and what they do). But I'm learning as I go. The info you gave me was extremely helpful thank you.

 

As it turns out, I first started this post the day before I got my car. It turns out to be an 86 like yours, which means it was doing 110HP instead of the 115 stock. About that boost cutoff fix, do you in detail know which vacuum hose it is? I'm also trying to figure out where to pipe in the boost controller, since I don't have a haynes book yet I can't figure out all the hoses.

 

I also have an Automatic, I don't have the manual, but sometime next summer if the car proves to last that long with the minor mods I've done, I'm thinking I might try to do the tranny swap people talk about. If I can find the instructions. I doubt there are clutch upgrades for our cars, but any info on that would be helpful as well.

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Boost Cut: Look between the air filter box and the strut top. There are two round plastic solenoids (one over the over), ea with one vac line plugging into them. The top one is the boost control sol......do not mess with that one. Bottom one is the boost cut sol. Just pull off the short vac line goining into it, and cap it or screw a bolt into it. Done. Again though, careful going over 10 psi until you intercool and richen it. If you MUST do it, back off on the timing about 4 or 5 degress, but that does negate the power gain some. Listen out for ping and knock....I'm pretty sure you'll have some.

 

BTW, I have spoken to the guy who built the original RX rally cars for SUBARU in the 80's; he says with the stock Turbo you are just blowing hotter air above 12 or 13 psi and not gaining power.

 

Boost controller: Pull off the small short hose going from turbo to wastegate actuator...if you look across the top of air filter box, toward the turbo, you will see the hose. Mount the controller there. Be sure to get the "IN" and "out" hoses going to the right place.....OUT goes to the wastegate side. I found a pic to attach, (after this pic was taken I added a zip tie to stabilize it against the intake tract):

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Don't forget to unbolt your muffler, and take the intake silencer out of the inner fender well. You can also cut the bottom of the airbox out, leaving a lip for the air filter to sit on of course, which will bypass teh silencer, ande will make the car make cool turbo sucking noises, as well as improve spool-up time and throttle response.

 

Also check out http://www.subespeed.org/ he's got some good info in his FAQ section.

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OK Thanks a lot Alliturken, you've been a really huge help. I figured out where it all goes, although I haven't applied it yet. Last Saturday we actually cut the intake box hole to make it much larger.

 

Need to figure out a good option to redo the exhaust eventually. My exhaust manifold (what I've been spending 80% of my time on this car with) is screwed. I want to get a cheap used manifold for now, just so I can see how the car drives before I throw more money into it. And Subaru listed it at 400 dollars almost and then said that they don't even make them anymore, heh. We tried patching it once, and tried again tonight (going to let it sit overnight), so I can at least get an idea of how it runs. But I'll be trying to get a used manifold online before this much needed 3 day weekend.

 

http://www.car-parts.com has one from a 1989 Subaru GL Turbo for 50 dollars but I'm not sure if it'll fit the 1986, does anyone know?

 

About upping the Boost, yeah I agree 100% that upping the boost past 10PSI is a bad idea without an intercooler. I also have an A/F gauge that I'm going to install so that I can sort of gauge how the engine is doing.

 

BTW if anyone wants a good source of what the different Stock intercoolers look like go to http://www.turbomustangs.com/intercoolers.htm . They have pictures and some dimensions of a lot of the cars out there.

 

Oh and your http://www.subespeed.org link doesn't work :(

 

Thanks again though!

 

I'll post some pictures and do step by step page for other newbie’s like me in the future.

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Exhaust: If you ask around locally, I bet you can find a muffler shop from the "wrong side of the tracks" to do the stuff cheaply, even the manifold pipe. I found a guy here locally who made me a crossover/uppipe for less than $200, and he did some pretty nice work on the passenger side of it to direct the flow into the upipe. Take in pics of what you want and negotiate. Here's one.....this is the pic I used to get mine made:

 

X-pipe

 

By the way I believe the stock one from the 89 turbo will fit the 86. Not 100% certain, but cannot think of any reason why not. 89 was same engine, slight differences in heads maybe, but still the same exhaust port bolt pattern. That seems like a bargain if in good shape. The stock part is HIGHLY restrictive, though.

 

I think the subspeed link will work if you drop out the first e. I dunno if they are still in business, tho.

 

Let us know how it goes.

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