In the process of Boosting my BRZ, did I miss anything?
 

Basically I'm in the middle of gathering all the parts needed to boost the 86 platform. However, I can't help but feel like I may be forgetting something or that their may be other parts to be considered. I've been from page to page reading and researching, but most my findings have been "it doesn't need much more than the bolt on kit" or the one or two people saying "consider a cooler if the car sees track time." Obviously, there has been more valuable findings, but that seems to be it for the most part. My intentions are to keep the reliability factor into play by aiding any components that may see intensive use after boost. The kit I have chosen to go with is the Works Stage 2 Tuner, and have already selected a handful of support mods. Just throwing it out there to see if there's any input that I could have missed. Along side the kit, I plan on installing:
•Mishimoto Radiator
•Mishimoto Oil Cooler
•Perrin Engine Mounts
•Radium Dual Catch Can Kit
•Grimmspeed Boost Controller
•3 Bar Map Sensor
•Delicious Tuning Flex Fuel Kit
•DW64c Fuel Pump
•DeatschWerks 700cc injectors
As well as a few other things such as a turbo blanket, a wideband guage, a oil temp and pressure gauge also. Aside from most of what has been mentioned and very clearly a form of tuning (already intend on choosing EcuTek), is there anything else that I could be considering when trying to make my BRZ as reliable as possible under boost?

Clutch.

pcv from wrx sti

Stronger engine..

Tires and brakes.
Get your spark plugs changed if the car has more than 40k miles (just so that you don't need to worry about them during tuning)
Take care of any oil leaks
Do a full fluid service on trans and diff
If you upgrade your clutch, also upgrade the clutch fork

I've been looking at the Southbend Daily Clutch that holds 315 ft/lbs of tongue with their flywheel. Is there an option that may be more reputable?

Care for explaining why?

My intentions for the build are to be reliable. Reliable enough to steer clear of any internal work for the time being, until I'm dissatisfied with the performance. I plan on only building about 8 pounds on a good tune, and possibly 10 pounds on an e85 map. Does that still sound like something that'll require engine work?

The car has the factory Brembos, will those not handle the added power? Right now my only hurdle with tires is selecting the rims that I think suit the car, I've come down to a few rims, but I figure for at least the time being I can run it on stocks very carefully until I find the right rims. So the cars relatively new, still has 6500 miles. Still good to swap the plugs out for something of quality? Or not worth the time?
Haven't seen any leaks out of the car yet, but I plan to expect it thuroughly during not only the install process, but the tuning and commuting as well. I'll be under the car nonstop until I'm confident it has no leaks. I've taken initiative to get Subarus 5w-30 oil alongside their Super Coolant for the install process, should I get some Motul gear fluid still just in case? And I haven't quite considered clutch forks. Are their significant pros to having a aftermarket fork? If so, which one?

talked a lot about if you search

stock pcv doesn't hold boost and it leaks boost in the crankcase
So you ll lose boost, pressurize crankcase, car will feel slugghish and probably helping burning oil more than it should

Brakes should be fine then, maintenance wise the car should be fine with so few miles. Usually when someone is boosting their car, it's a busted ass 2013 with 109k miles straight off of Craigslist.

Some of your component choices are low price leader options. Choose higher quality components throughout.

I like the theory the Works kit is trying, but there are big drawbacks in the hot side piping:
1. Distance exhaust has to travel between the exhaust port and the turbo. The further the exhaust pulses have to travel the more energy is lost before the turbo.
2. Complex path and piping shape from exhaust port to turbo. The OEM header is a huge restriction, then the pulses need to take two sharp turns, go through the turbo, then go through two more sharp turns. Lots of energy lost.
3. If you use the OEM header the turbo is at risk of getting wrecked by some loose catalyst blowing by. Even if that doesn't happen the catalyst is constantly being eroded (https://www.sae.org/publications/tec.../2001-01-1995/) which will mechanically erode the exhaust turbine as if it were being media blasted.

It's not going to be immediate failure but I'll bet most long running Works kits with primary cats in place have evidence of abnormal wear on the hot side. I really think you may want to consider a super charger setup if you can't go with a more efficient turbo kit.

I swapped to that clutch and 5th gear slips even after proper break in.

I see exactly what you're saying, at the moment I actually have a set of UEL Tomei headers underneath. Would that change any of these scenarios? Or would I still see exhaust pulses and energy loss?

I figured a few of them were, as I was trying to save a few dollars here and there. But this far in, what's a few extra more bucks

Have you then found a replacement clutch? Or dealing with the same one? How often does it slip, and is it bad?

I hardly use 5th gear (weekend warrior and cone chaser), so it hasn't proved to be a severe hinderance. Only time I notice it is those one off random highway pulls. I did manage to slip in third once on an autocross course, so lets hope that isn't a common thing. I know I'm not exceeding the 315 ft/lbs that it holds. Southbend is just being a pain in the ass when it comes to warrantying it because they believe I either wasn't hard enough on break in, or I was too hard and burned the clutch up.

I'd love to replace it, but $1000 for parts+labor just isn't in the cards right now.

You'll still see the reduced throttle response. There's an argument to be made that the water cooling intake length counteracts that, but there's no replacing your exhaust's time to expand as it travels towards lower pressure when you make that first request for more torque. The cat issue is mitigated if you're catless, and the header will probably flow better.

OTOH why not sell the header to recoup some additional costs from bumping up to a higher quality kit?

I'd swap these:
•Mishimoto Radiator
•Mishimoto Oil Cooler

With this:
https://www.counterspacegarage.com/j...gt86-scion-frs

Sorry for the extremely late reply.

But, do you really need the PCV valve if you have a Check Valve already on a catch can?

This is the one thing I'm still not sure about to this day.

you shouldn't need it, but you d better have it anyway
cheap and effective

I think Works recommends a different spark plug with the turbo. I assume colder, but just give 'em a call and ask, they might even be included in the kit. If you talk to Jeff, tell him Dave wants his car back ;-)

For a daily driver clutch they recommended an Exedy stage 1, but that was backordered so I ended up with a Competition stage 2. They also recommended the Verus clutch fork and pivot. The stock fork is prone to failure, especially with stiffer aftermarket pressure plates. The parts are around $200 and very little extra labor to install during a clutch job. Worth it for reliability in my book.

As for Motul; It's a noticeable improvement. I doubt you need to change the gear oil early because of the turbo, but I highly recommend you give Motul a try when you change it.

no..
 

Nor will it likely need a clutch at those power levels.

People love to say how weak these engines are, yet there have been as many or more rod failures on stock power levels as on boost which SHOULD lead a logical mind to the probability that it was a quality control issue rather than a generally weak rod issue. Especially considering that many have gotten over 400 on stock blocks without issues.

The problem with a quality control issue though is that it's a crap shoot when adding power. Although if you were unlucky enough to get the shitty rods, it's just as likely that running it stock will have the same end result, so whatever.

I would love to see how much power can be gotten with just a rod upgrade and some ring gap. I would bet over 500 reliably.

I have my first engine that, (on stock power levels), spun a rod bearing, which I eventually plan on doing the above to to find out what it will handle.

Jaden

You could probably save some money on the radiator with a CSF unit. I've got one on my car and it keeps great temperatures in traffic and on the track. Never even come close to overheating whereas my car overheated here in the south from the factory. They actually produce the Jackson Racing oil cooling radiator as well.

https://csfrace.com/product/subaru-racing-radiators/

That actually seems very compelling and much less hose to run with a all in one unit rather than each unit separate. I'll be doing my research on these extensively. Thank you

With the way the Radium kit actually ended up being fitted, it had I believe 3/8 hose running into the PCV valve fitted to the manifold which is a 1/2 fitting, so the PCV valve is still used because it converts from a the 1/2 to a 3/8 on the other end if that makes sense? The instructions for the dual catch cans were extremely unclear. I ended up needing to run to the auto parts store for more hose

Jeff has actually been the one handling most of my order for the turbo kit. It's been a bumpy process but we are getting there. I suppose they don't get many people requesting different turbo options, so things have been needed to be adjusted along the way. But I expect a call very soon in the next few days informing me that my kit has been revised and has been sent out. I'll be sure to let Jeff know Dave's looking to get his car back:lol: As for the clutch, Exedy you say is what they suggest? I may have to dig a little deeper into them, I've come across them. Just didn't know if it was worth the click or not. Also the clutch fork and pivot most certainly doesn't sound like an awful idea considering what you said, it's something I can easily do while installing the clutch. Now for the spark plugs, I'll definitely have to ask when I get that call here soon

I've heard quite a bit about how these cars actually love to make power stock. It's just how you go about that power. I didn't know much about the rods being more a quality issue than a material/strength issue. That's knowledge that eases the mind quite a bit. I'm sure there'd be a significant increase in the power threshold if the rods and piston gap were nicely mated. I'm sorry to hear you spun a bearing, but at least now that means you can dive right in and start doing some serious power adding!

It sounds like it may just be worth throwing into my car!

What might have been a more quality kit worth selling the headers for? After biting the bullet I'm seeing other kits that actually raise a brow, but of course you don't start to notice much until you're expecting or have a kit already. I'm still content with my purchase of the Works kit, but I'd like to hear what else is out there.

I looked hard at the works kit in order to maintain emissions compliance by not removing/relocating emissions equipment. In that situation it turns out supercharging is the most cost effective choice.

Of course I wasn't happy with that. Turbo noises! Thermal efficiency! My favorite kits ended up being the JSRC no-cut specifically for the no-cut option, followed by AVO for the most OEM-like setup, then the SBD kit since it's very cost effective even with some extras.

That doesn't mean you made a bad choice, I hope you love the works kit while you run it! It's the only mass produced air-to-water kit for our cars that I know of too. Air to air is often labelled the best choice but as long as the carrier liquid doesn't heat soak it's going to remove more thermal energy from the charge per square inch of core and it's got a much shorter path from the turbo to the cylinder than a front mounted option.

I couldn't tell you how much back and fourth I had been doing whilst owning my BRZ(s). I've told myself the cars to balanced to have a turbo so it NEEDS a supercharger. initially I wanted a turbo. But the more I saw and read, the more a supercharger became the more effective and efficient way of making that power. However, I've been a die hard boost creep ever since I was a child. I just couldn't see myself straying from a turbo. What got me most about the Works kit was that it was different but kind of reminded me of the old top mount style intercooler of the older Subarus. I quite liked what it had going for it and the quality they are known for. Granted it may not be the flashiest or make the purest of sounds, it just seemed like a really well thought out kit. I stumbled across the AVO kit after making the purchase and was rather surprised at how they were able to manufacture a kit rather similar to the FA20DIT layout. As for the Jackson Racing Supercharger, that would have been the go to if I had stayed on the path of instant boost.

That was 5 years ago.
 

Yeah I spun a bearing 4 years ago. I bought the replacement engine and trans for 2500 at the time, so I have a spare trans too. I've gone through many iterations of what power adder to add. Right now I'm finishing up a custom supercharger using an eaton m90 out of a buick.

Actually, technically I'm finishing up my Jetta VRT project first, then I'll finish up the supercharger. Well, not finishing, but I want to get first start done with the stand alone on the Jetta before I finish the supercharger.

Jaden

I got my car back today, and;

The Competition Stage 2 clutch needs another 400 miles to bed-in but, so far the pedal is a little stiffer and engagement is smooth enough. I think I'll get used to it quickly and it'll be fine for a daily.

I also spoke with Jeff about spark plugs while I was there. He said that because of the high compression ratio Subaru uses a "9" stock, which is the coldest plug aside from racecar plugs that cost $100 a pop. So, stock plugs are apparently good enough.

Water very much heat soaks, and will take longer to shed that heat!

Yes this is true, but water will also take longer to heat soak. Those issues can be fixed with increasing water capacity and/or increasing heat exchanger. That means more points of failure for more money, but it will work if setup correctly.

No one really discusses this, but the superchargers aren't instant full boost either. They take awhile to hit full boost pressure as well, particularly the centrifugal types (JRSC). The roots types (Edelbrock, Harrop) hit full boost a little bit sooner but have pretty poor gas mileage for your end power output.

IMO if you aren't tracking and don't have to worry about CARB turbos are more fun on this car.

You underestimate how quickly even water will heat soak, when cooling the charge from a turbo, as well as traveling through a hot engine bay to get to the heat exchanger.

This applies to the Harrop/Edelbrock kits as well.

Well, if you got a small water capacity and small heat exchanger yes, this will happen quite quickly. But what I have in bold is why the water won't heat soak.

I'll be more specific. You can increase your water capacity by getting a 5 gallon water tank and/or increasing your heat exchanger for more volume of water and more surface area for cooling. If you're sitting in traffic for a while, it will heat soak but once you get going water temps will drop to near ambient. This could also be said about any setup though. BUT this is, for sure, wayyy more work than an A2A setup though. Like I said in a previous post, it'll work if you set it up correctly. It's just more complex and work.