Round 2: My 2015 Galaxy Blue Journal

Grinder34

Track Monkey
With the 105, I think there are people out there who've gone all the way to an 11-42! With your old Mares i put an 11-36, but I dont remember what the front chainring was. I had to get a new chain, and couldn't cross chain too much or the chain would rub. I opted for chain rub (too long a chain) vs ripping the derailleur off the frame (too short).

Suffice it to say, that a new rear cassette is on the list of things to do.
 

Alin

Diehard Car Enthusiast!
[MENTION=652]Grinder34[/MENTION] , I appreciate the history lesson. :tup:
 

Alin

Diehard Car Enthusiast!
That seems like a great area to venture off into!

Was this somewhere in PA?

Tell us about your adventure!
 

Eagleye

Tinkerer
That seems like a great area to venture off into! Was this somewhere in PA? Tell us about your adventure!

Yeah still in PA, up near Williamsport

Just taking a few days to hang out and hike with the family.

Not much planned.

We rented a cabin through Airbnb for $89/night, tough to beat for a nice little place with everything we need.

I’ll take some pictures to post.

FADD189F-0839-4D9C-97F3-18C43F7D4BE3.jpeg
 

Eagleye

Tinkerer
Hello boys and girls, finally a note worthy update here. I had a great (almost 1 hour) conversation yesterday with Geoff from Cygnus Performance about suspension. I'm going to have a little more back and forth with him today but I think I will be ordering a set of the X-1 coilovers with hyperco springs. They seem like a perfect fit for what I am looking for since my struts are starting to fail. Geoff's scope and depth of knowledge made for a great learning experience and even without any experience with his products I feel confident in what I will receive.

I am also going to look into getting a Cobb intake + airbox and going to the Stage 1 + sf Cobb tune. I'd love to dig into some performance upgrades but am trying to stick to my plan of replacing things as they fail or need replaced. So when the motor shows signs of weakness I will plan a large scale project at that time to address the motor, turbo, cooling, and exhaust. Otherwise I think I would risk doing the same mod twice. I am still happy that I installed the Whiteline springs a couple years ago because they allowed me to find a good ride height and see what all would be involved in a larger scale project.

More updates coming, including final coilover specs, once I place my order.
 

Eagleye

Tinkerer
Order placed!!!

Full specs of my order:
  • Cygnus Performance X-1 Comfort Edition Coilovers
  • Application:
    2015-2021 Subaru STi
  • Front Top Hats:
    I will install my own OEM Top Hats
  • Spring Rates:
    Neutral Spec Rates
  • Spring Brand (Please Select):
    Hyperco Silver
  • Base Color (Lower Mount & Top Hat):
    Black
  • Spring Perch & Lower Mount Locking Collar Color:
    Blue
  • Add Long Travel Option:
    Yes
  • Add Rear Rebound Extenders:
    Yes

Let's go!!!
 

Eagleye

Tinkerer
And I can’t help myself... just added the bottom locking rings to help prevent ride height adjustment slipping and make any adjusting/rebuilds easier (less possibility of the ring seizing)
 

Alin

Diehard Car Enthusiast!
Hello boys and girls, finally a note worthy update here. I had a great (almost 1 hour) conversation yesterday with Geoff from Cygnus Performance about suspension. I'm going to have a little more back and forth with him today but I think I will be ordering a set of the X-1 coilovers with hyperco springs. They seem like a perfect fit for what I am looking for since my struts are starting to fail. Geoff's scope and depth of knowledge made for a great learning experience and even without any experience with his products I feel confident in what I will receive.

I am also going to look into getting a Cobb intake + airbox and going to the Stage 1 + sf Cobb tune. I'd love to dig into some performance upgrades but am trying to stick to my plan of replacing things as they fail or need replaced. So when the motor shows signs of weakness I will plan a large scale project at that time to address the motor, turbo, cooling, and exhaust. Otherwise I think I would risk doing the same mod twice. I am still happy that I installed the Whiteline springs a couple years ago because they allowed me to find a good ride height and see what all would be involved in a larger scale project.

More updates coming, including final coilover specs, once I place my order.
53801c.jpg
 

Alin

Diehard Car Enthusiast!
Last night I bought a used Cobb turbo heat shield on Ebay. It will need some TLC but I got it for $35, I figure if it helps under hood temps even a few degrees it will be worth the effort. Anyone use the heat reflective tape? @Batmobile_Engage @HolyCrapItsFast Does it work or just look pretty and make people feel better?
A heat shield is the only thing that I DON'T have. :lol:
a88fff45ecbc78e399c26e8105620c5c.jpg


A turbo blanket will alleviate majority of the excess heat. In addition to the heat shield that you purchased, I heavily recommend also purchasing a turbo blanket. :tup:
 

Grinder34

Track Monkey
Years ago I did a bunch of research and convinced myself that heat-reflective tape was an excellent idea. I also convinced myself that the standard gold stuff auto places sell is over-priced and under-performing. I ended up getting some of this after reading a bunch of spec sheets: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B003HKRFB2/ But I don't think I ever installed it. The bonus of the stuff I got is you can get it in a bunch of different colors if you want.
 

Batmobile_Engage

Squirrel Meat Aficionado.
Staff member
I do believe reflective tape works, but is best used in conjunction with other heat-control measures, such as exhaust wrap, heat shields, turbo blankets, etc.

I still use my factory turbo heat shield, but had to trim it with an angle grinder to get it to fit over my larger turbo. Header and Up-Pipe are wrapped completely. I might wrap the hot side of my turbo (in addition to using the heat shield) and a short portion of my downpipe, just to keep heat from radiating back up into the engine bay. But beyond 18-24", the downpipe should preferably be unwrapped so that exhaust gasses cool as quickly as possible after leaving the turbo. This will actually promote a higher exhaust velocity through the turbo.

Use of reflective tape on the intercooler and boost tube system is largely going to depend on whether the car is set up with a top or front mount intercooler. You may also want to use the tape on susceptible portions of the fuel system and pre-turbo intake tubing. I used to believe that a hood vent was a better idea when running a front mount, but now I am leaning back towards retaining the hood scoop to direct air down over the back side of the engine (and turbo) to be blown out down and underneath the car, at speed.
 

Eagleye

Tinkerer
I appreciate the thoughts guys. I think I will research it a little and give it a go. I am going to retain the TMIC as long as it makes sense to. I won't really be digging into power mods until the motor starts to tire or something breaks. I was going to do the DP and get it tuned, but ultimately I could improve the driver and suspension before moving into more power.
 

Eagleye

Tinkerer
I think I may have found a solid middle ground that will let me max out power on stock internals while staying within a reasonable budget and in line with future mod plans. I am having Jordan @definedperformance quote me a Delicious Tuning Flex Fuel kit, fuel pump, injectors, and a boost controller. Once I piece together a kit I will be planning to go with an e-tune from the guys at Delicious. This way I can retain everything I currently have and enjoy the car until something goes bad in the future. That's the plan at least, we shall see how long it takes to actually come together.
 

Grinder34

Track Monkey
I appreciate the thoughts guys. I think I will research it a little and give it a go. I am going to retain the TMIC as long as it makes sense to. I won't really be digging into power mods until the motor starts to tire or something breaks. I was going to do the DP and get it tuned, but ultimately I could improve the driver and suspension before moving into more power.
I did a downtube when i found a smokin deal on one. Then I could (while it was out...at my leisure) get a bung put on for an O2 sensor which helps with the tune (vs tailpipe sniffer or factory narrowband). I think I sold the factory one for about the same price so it was mostly a wash. Finding the O2 sensor/gauge is another expense though.
 

Eagleye

Tinkerer
I did a downtube when i found a smokin deal on one. Then I could (while it was out...at my leisure) get a bung put on for an O2 sensor which helps with the tune (vs tailpipe sniffer or factory narrowband). I think I sold the factory one for about the same price so it was mostly a wash. Finding the O2 sensor/gauge is another expense though.

Yeah, I was trying to avoid doing a downpipe, but I think it may be somewhat inevitable. I do have a wideband laying around waiting to be installed. If I do install a downpipe I am basically forced to drop another $1k on a catback as I am still stock there with muffler deletes. It sounds fantastic, my wife even agrees haha. I think I may just slowly buy parts and do the installs all at once then only have to pay for a tune. I hate having parts just laying around but it makes budgeting look better, and perhaps I will find a used deal on the turboback.
 

Eagleye

Tinkerer
Well I have compiled a pretty extensive mod list. Now I need to get my shit together and decide what direction I’m going in. Option B is that I just say screw it all, do a couple nice visual mods and spend the spring designing and building a go kart with my son. The wife seems on board so I should probably jump on that haha.
 

Eagleye

Tinkerer
The mod bug has won this time...:p

On order at the end of last week:
  • Delicious Tuning Flex Fuel Kit w/ Fuel Pressure Sensor (TGV input)
  • AEM E85 340 Fuel Pump
  • FIC 1200 Injectors
  • Grimmspeed Electronic Boost Controller
  • COBB SF Intake
  • NGK 2309 Spark Plugs
  • Cylinder 4 Cooling Mod
  • ProSport Oil Temp Gauge
Came across John Kerr in Carlisle, PA to do my tuning. I have until the end of June to get everything installed and a base map requested. My new coilovers should be in soon as well so it will be a busy Spring.
 
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