Boost issue

Thoughts:
1) What type of boost controler are you using? Electronic or manual? If Electronic, check your wires, splices, etc. Makes sure they were soldered and shrink wrap was used to seal. You don't want moisture or loose connections. If manual, make sure everything it tight.
2) Have you traced every vacuum line to search for loose connection, split line, crimped/kinked line/etc? Also make sure any T-Connectors are not the source of a leak. Don't look at just those connected to the turbo. Vacuum leaks elsewhere will impact you. If any connection seems questionable, just replace the line. Be very anal about doing this one at a time. Do not cross lines or you will hate yourself in trying to straighten it out later.
3) Not sure if it will help with the Subie, but with older EFI Z's, unplug the wiring harness from the ECU, clean the connectors and plug them back in. It works like a reboot on your computer. You can get the cleaner at RadioShack.
4) Subie guys that like mud, snow and water: Check every last connector under the hood. Clean all of them. Same cleaner as above. If you want to continue to drive in mud, go by a truck.
5) After all that, you could start looking at MAF/AFM/whatever is on a Subie.
6) If you haven't done so, get onto a good Subie forum, do a search for BOOST LEAK or BOOST STUMBLE. Post the some info there and hopefully someone will have had the same issue and get back with a good solution.

As you work through this, make sure you get us some good notes back so we can rule things out. Keep us updated! Good luck.

Dang Casey I think you have some bad luck with cars!

I know on the S2000 if the speedo is messed up (I installed a pulse modifier for a wheel size change and did it wrong the first time) it causes problems for the VSS (vehicle speed sensor) and the car would not VTEC and hit a fuel cut at about 5200 rpm. I guess this is a "safe mode" that the ECU goes into if it thinks there is something wrong.

Apparently the wiring diagram in the Helms manual was a little off and when I tried to drive the car for the first time, the speedo read 0 and the gas gauge went up and down with the speed of the car.

I have no idea if this would be the same on the WRX, but it may be something to check. Do you have a check engine light or anyhting?

When you get it all fixed, make sure you let us know what was wrong so we can add to the knowledge base.

Keep dumpin' bucks dude. It will be tip top soon and it will be time to drive!

$350 is not bad considering the damage.

IF you do all the maintenance yourself it would last longer and cheaper.

How about the Boost issue?

YAY!!!!

oh I cant wait to hear what the new problem with it is tommorrow

you're getting a little negative. Give Stinky a break. At least for a week.

nothing is ever truely free


well, except my Handicap Parking sign

I'm happy for you Bud! Let's celebrate!

could you ask them if they want to change two front wheel bearings on a Lexus GS? I'll pay 200 for labor.

Well it's about time! Is there a noticable difference between now and when you took me out in it?

I love Sargent Road!!!
doing 100+ on it feals like being Valentino Balboni on the tiny back roads of Italy

just look out for pot holes EVERYWHERE and people, cars, and animals

oh Im shooooooooooooocked


PS.
please stay 100ft away from my Diablo at all times
I dont want it to catch whenever desease you're spreading to all your cars

Shit! What have you been doing?

Stop shooting NOS!

When the mechanics were working on your car, they may have bumped something an it just popped loose. You need to crawl under the hood and check every last vacuum line to make sure they are snug. Double check all in the area they worked.

If a line is not tight, it will leak. If you have enough line, simply trim the first tiny bit off and reattach.

Once you find the suspected leak, do not stop looking at the rest of the connections. Look at ALL.

Most of the time they use cheap rubber hoses for this stuff and over time with some heat the rubber gets hard and brittle and cracks.

I replaced all my vacuum lines with high quality, high-temp silicon hose and haven't had a problem since. I have a ton of this stuff laying around here Casey so if you want some of it let me know. You can have it for free.

Don't know what boost gauge you are using, but I've had good luck with AutoMeter.

What is full boost for the WRX? Are they known for being approximate psi, or dead-on psi?

You may already be thinking it, but just in case...sort out your current issue before you start adding/changing other things around. Will save you some trouble shooting frustration.

Casey...How'd the car drive the rest of the day? Still holding boost?

For those following this thread, we pulled the intercooler and found a split vacuum line. There was plenty of extra length, so we trimmed it just below the stretched/split portion and plugged it back together.

Also another connector was not on solid. My guess whoever was under there before was a touch sloppy when removing/installing the intercooler and had wiggled the connector loose. Surprising since it had a tightened hose clamp. Figure that had to have taken some force to knock loose.

After that, we buttoned up the engine and sent Casey out for a test. We were all cracking up as he pulled back up with this big ol' grin on his face. Sure sign of Full Boost. Said it was holding solid 14psi.

So if its still holding boost, he got his ride fixed and we filled his belly with somegreat BBQ and he got to hang out with a bunch of Z folks. Not a bad day.

oh now casey hanging out with "Z" people
I see how it is!

Maybe not for much longer. He let us fix his car, he ate our food and not once did he come on here afterwards and give any credit to all the hard work and success that we had in helping him get rolling again?

And now we learn he was out running around in his WRX last night. Oh the humanity of it all. Geeze...his job was to keep track of the loose bolts and nuts we removed. Which by the way, he did very well.

it NEVER
ends!!!

its goes on and on my friend
some ricer started driving it one day
not knowing he was phucking it up
and itll continue shitting out forever
casue its casey rice mobile

and over and over again

Casey...Shoot, I was hoping the things we found would solve it. I think you have something else happening that's not boost related.

When you did your test run afterwards, several were discussing that it sounded like something else might be wrong. But not sure what it was. You exhausted our knoweldge of the WRX. Might need to get it plugged into a diagnostic unit. Either get it to a Subi dealer for the diagnostic or I suggest you get to a WRX forum and post ALL the problems you are still experiencing.

I wonder if there's some issues with leaning out, knock sensor, programmed govenr, fuel flow issue,...just trying to think it out.

Forums can be like that. Searching is time consuming, but its important to go read what's there. Sorry, but you need to spend some time reading or pay someone to look at it. Not the news I want to have to tell you. Sorry.

I think they're leaning toward fuel issues, but no one was 100% sure. Cheap possibility would be to pick up a bottle of Lucas Injector Cleaner and pour that in the tank the next time you fill-up. I'll try to hook-up with Jeff and see if he remembers what his thoughts were.