djkindt Posted February 3, 2006 Share Posted February 3, 2006 Hello, I'm new to this forum and to Subarus in general. i just bought a subaru justy to drive around during the winter while my '64 vw bus sits under a tarp. I'm planning on turbo-ing my justy and I know there's a few people who have done it before here and know a bit about it. I have a few questions: -First off, how do you post pictures in the photo gallery?? -How do I build my engine to be lower compression? (I've heard of "van" pistons, but I don't know what they are or how to get them and how much they cost) -I know I will need to upgrade my injectors, but I don't know much else... I'm not a serious mechanic, but I love projects and can't wait to get started on this! I don't want to run serious boost, maybe like 6psi or so. Anyway, any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! One more thing: I am trying to do this on a "college budget"! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeshoup Posted February 3, 2006 Share Posted February 3, 2006 One more thing: I am trying to do this on a "college budget"! I don't think something like this could be done on the typical "college budget". My "college budget" barely even allots me the money I need for my weekly gas, much less enough money to turbo a justy :-p Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RenaissanceMan Posted February 3, 2006 Share Posted February 3, 2006 The nice thing about a college budget is that your time aint worth anythin, so if you can fabricate some stupid bolt rather than go buy one... you will... I have done that at least. Delta Camshafts makes an upgrade cam for your engine.. throws on a couple horsepower As far as compression... leave it where it is, otherwise below 2K you wont be able to move out of your own way. IF you run turbo, only do so if your engine is in great shape and has NO ROD KNOCK, meaning the lower end hasnt given up... Run Mobile 1 for sure... Thats the info I can give you... I'm still waitin on parts before I can start doing the REAL modifications.. (and yes your engine will like 7500 rpms) -Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djkindt Posted February 3, 2006 Author Share Posted February 3, 2006 Delta Camshafts makes an upgrade cam for your engine.. throws on a couple horsepower Would you recommend an upgraded cam for running a turbo? I heard it was better to run lower compression, at least for the longevity of the engine. As far as college budget goes: yes, I don't have a lot of money for food, gas, living expenses etc, but my priorities are in a strange order i guess! I was hoping to pick up a used turbo for cheap and probably have to "rebuild" it, and also a cheap intercooler off of a saab or something. Then fabricate all the other parts (to the best of my ability). It's all a learning experience! Thanks for your help, any other suggestions?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simple monkey Posted February 3, 2006 Share Posted February 3, 2006 Thanks for your help, any other suggestions?? fuel management. the Apex-i safc should be fine, or you could run a piggyback engine management like megasquirt or e-manage. i think in one of the past issues of Sport Compact Car, there was an article about turboing N/A cars. that would have some good info in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djkindt Posted February 3, 2006 Author Share Posted February 3, 2006 I've heard a little about "megasquirt". Is it expensive? are there other more affordable fuel management options? Thanks for all the help guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushbasher Posted February 4, 2006 Share Posted February 4, 2006 justys have a major oil pump wear problem. Pull the oil pump out (its just 3 10mm bolts to undo the cover beside the crank pulley) and check for wear on the rotor shaft. If its scored up a little bit, your motor may still be in good shape internally, and you can simply throw in a new oil pump rotor. If the rotor shaft is severely gouged then your rod and main bearings are probably scored, and your motor wont last long at all under boost. Either run it into the ground or rebuild the bottom end before you turbo. I can almost gaurantee that the oil pump will have some damage. I just looked at a justy with only 126k kms and the motor was trashed, even though the glovebox was full of receipts for oil changes and dealer services. Fuel management is the trickiest thing to get right, especially on a college budget. I plan to turbo my justy and will probably go straight to Megasquirt (DIY fuel and spark controller) If you have an EFI motor, you could do a piggyback system. If you have a carb youll have to swap an EFI intake and head along with the other little bits. Or make something completely custom. I plan on making a custom intake manifold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djkindt Posted February 4, 2006 Author Share Posted February 4, 2006 If you have an EFI motor, you could do a piggyback system. What type of piggyback system could you use? Thanks for all the help, I appreciate it. -I'm a bit concerned about the amount of oil that these justys run. Only 3 quarts! Is there a way to "up" the capacity a bit? -Also, I still don't know how to post pictures, I thought it would be easy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simple monkey Posted February 4, 2006 Share Posted February 4, 2006 What type of piggyback system could you use? Thanks for all the help, I appreciate it.-I'm a bit concerned about the amount of oil that these justys run. Only 3 quarts! Is there a way to "up" the capacity a bit? -Also, I still don't know how to post pictures, I thought it would be easy! as far as piggyback, there are many options, but on a budget, megasuirt or greddy e-manage would be your best bet. those go for around $200 used on ebatmotors, and sometimes less. as far as "upping" the oil capacity, all i can think of for that is an oil cooler, which will also help the longevity of your engine, and your turbo when that comes into play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RallyJusty Posted February 4, 2006 Share Posted February 4, 2006 Wow, I think you just weld a turbo onto the existing exaust manifold (steel and cast can be welded, but expect cracks unless you are very particular about your welding job), buy some plumbing bits from a hardware store for the oil supply (off of the oil filter) and oil outlet (drill hole into oil pan as high as is safe) using more brass fittings, use the heater hoses for your coolant water supply, and run it till it explodes. I inherited a few turbos from subarus that went the way of the dodo bird, or were changed out for something fancier. They gave about 6 to 8 psi (8 when I wrapped out that poor turd)so find the cheapest turbo from what ever junkyard special you come across. the smaller the better. I had a '59 Ford faillane in college. I cut the roof off of it and had a blast. When it became a pain in the rump roast the store, I had the wrecking yard come get it. I heard they used it around the yard for years. A college car project is disposable. Something this dumb wont get the chicks, so make it fun, not pretty. Also, I didnt blow up my car when I turbo'd it doing what I said above. If thats all you want, do it cheap. If you want a real car that will be much more trust-worthy, do what everyone else is saying. As for the injectors, I used the stock injectors, and used a pair of needle-nose vicegrips on the return line as a fule pressure regulator. I pinched the pliers until the engine stopped pinging... others have made much better systems. Mine involved late nights, a lot of redbull, and those imortal words " that's a stupid idea, what would you do THAT for?" and I did it with parts from the dumpster, and what ever was laying around after real work was done on someone else' car. Troy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djkindt Posted February 7, 2006 Author Share Posted February 7, 2006 Okay, I think I need to find some sort of medium between Troy's post and the more expensive way to go. I priced Megasquirt (on ebay) and it's about $300. I really need something for cheaper to manage my fuel. So any suggestions on that would be great. Also, still haven't heard anything about posting pictures on this site, is it possible? I'm still open to ideas and advice. Thanks for all the help!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RenaissanceMan Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 As for the injectors, I used the stock injectors, and used a pair of needle-nose vicegrips on the return line as a fule pressure regulator. I pinched the pliers until the engine stopped pinging... others have made much better systems. Mine involved late nights, a lot of redbull, and those imortal words " that's a stupid idea, what would you do THAT for?" and I did it with parts from the dumpster, and what ever was laying around after real work was done on someone else' car. Troy TROY YOU ARE MY HERO! ROFLMAO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RenaissanceMan Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 OK now for a serious post... a while back someone on the board adapted an early CIS-E system for their EA82 and apparently it worked great once it got all squared away. I was thinking this would be the perfect system for a justy cause that one extra "4th" cylinder output you simply plug off.. (or add it to your wet NOS system ) If you can find a good donor car, like a mid 80's scirocco, or FOX or something... just grab everything and the fuel pump, shouldent cost you more than 100 bucks when you get everything adapted, to adjust the basic open loop mixture, all you do is turn a screw on the flow meter thingy... -Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott in Bellingham Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 Hello,I'm new to this forum and to Subarus in general. i just bought a subaru justy to drive around during the winter while my '64 vw bus sits under a tarp. I'm planning on turbo-ing my justy and I know there's a few people who have done it before here and know a bit about it. I have a few questions: -First off, how do you post pictures in the photo gallery?? -How do I build my engine to be lower compression? (I've heard of "van" pistons, but I don't know what they are or how to get them and how much they cost) -I know I will need to upgrade my injectors, but I don't know much else... I'm not a serious mechanic, but I love projects and can't wait to get started on this! I don't want to run serious boost, maybe like 6psi or so. Anyway, any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! One more thing: I am trying to do this on a "college budget"! my nephew put a turbo in a Geo Metro , Its not to hard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djkindt Posted February 7, 2006 Author Share Posted February 7, 2006 If you can find a good donor car, like a mid 80's scirocco, or FOX or something... just grab everything and the fuel pump, shouldent cost you more than 100 bucks when you get everything adapted, to adjust the basic open loop mixture, all you do is turn a screw on the flow meter thingy... -Mike Thanks Mike! What do you mean though by grabbing everything?? I'm not a master mechanic, but I'm alright at figuring things out with a little guidance. Thanks again. I'm getting very anxious. I predict that when I get my bus in daily driver shape again, I'll bring the justy in the shop and go at it. I'm excited to drive the bus again, and to get this project rolling! Still can't post pictures though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RenaissanceMan Posted February 8, 2006 Share Posted February 8, 2006 CLICK ME Heres a link to what I was taking about with the CIS that Noah put on his car. You might find it very interesting -Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djkindt Posted February 8, 2006 Author Share Posted February 8, 2006 Thanks Mike! That helps a lot. I guess I'll go junkyard searching this weekend! Wish me luck, Dylan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djkindt Posted February 10, 2006 Author Share Posted February 10, 2006 Hello Thanks for all your help so far. I'd like to keep this thread alive since I'm sure there are more people out there with some info to share, and also some people who are probably interested in turbos for their justy too! -Still looking for ideas on lower compression. van pistons? what are they? where can i get them? how much?? -also, fuel management. I think i'll be trying to convert to rabbit or fox components (Thanks mike), but will i still need some sort of management system for my car? is there a cheaper route than megasquirt or emanage?? -Still can't figure out the photo scenario... Thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushbasher Posted February 12, 2006 Share Posted February 12, 2006 There are plenty of ways to rig it to dump some more fuel in. for example you could rig up a vw CIS cold start injector to a pressure switch to start when you hit say 5psi. Quick and easy, and wont give you the perfect mixture but will keep it rich and stop it from blowing up. Is your car EFI or carburated, and what is your goal? Do you really care about longevity, or are you approaching this as a fun way to blow up a beater and scare some ricers in the process? On the subject of van pistons, IMO not worth it for your situation. Plenty of cars (justys and others) have been successfully turbo'd on 9.0:1 compression. Unless you want to run really high boost its not worth it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madkow007 Posted February 12, 2006 Share Posted February 12, 2006 Posting of pics may not be working right now. I think they maybe working on the site. Alot of things are not working as they should be. You could link to your pics if you have them someplace lke photobucket. or check with the mods to see whats up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djkindt Posted February 12, 2006 Author Share Posted February 12, 2006 Is your car EFI or carburated, and what is your goal? Do you really care about longevity, or are you approaching this as a fun way to blow up a beater and scare some ricers in the process? Thanks, that was a helpful post. My car is EFI, so I have that going for me at least. I do car about longevity, so I will only probably be running very little boost. I do want to scare some ricers though! Any suggestions on making this setup easier on my little engine?? Also, thanks for the post about the pictures madkow007. I'll just have to wait til they take care of it! Thanks again everyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djkindt Posted February 16, 2006 Author Share Posted February 16, 2006 keep it alive! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simple monkey Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 CLICK ME Heres a link to what I was taking about with the CIS that Noah put on his car. You might find it very interesting -Mike Great idea. Too bad you could get the mechanical lifters off of the engines with CIS too, indestructible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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