'94 SS Daily Driver

[Alphius]

Performance modded already when I got it, turbo, injectors, intercooler, ECU. it's plenty fast for a daily driver, but the appearance was somewhat lacking. Looks pretty stock and well-worn to me.



Now with modded grill, EDM lights w/levelers and a roof rack. Also some worn trim has been repainted already.



More to come: Lower stance? Re-painted scoop and spoiler? Blacked out trim? Window tint?

I'm focusing on making this thing look clean, and maintain the sleeper status. I want it to look like a normal Legacy to the un-initiated, but the Legacy faithful will recognize this car for what it really is; an enthusiast's painstakingly considered slice of personal driving perfection. Or at least something I can be proud of, an individual vehicle suited to my tastes.

Of course the other one is more fun around corners and in a straight line. And soon to be much faster.

[kimokalihi]

Electrical tape the chrome!

[Alphius]

Electrical tape the chrome!

I'm definitely wanting to black out the chrome for my next cheap, easy mod.

The question is, scuff and paint or electrical tape?

[kimokalihi]

Electrical tape for sure. Looks great and mine has been on for 3 years and still looking good. Albeit, I have only put 8K miles on it but it's been out in the weather the whole time.

[Danny-G]

Mmmmm third gen. Camaro. My favorite!

[Alphius]

Subaru and Camaro go well together in my experience. Glad to see someone appreciates a little American iron. The Camaro has always been my first love, and Subaru just makes sense to drive every day for a guy in the good old Pacific NW!

[Danny-G]

The third gen. is the only American car I want. I wouldn't mind an '89 IROC-Z as a summer fun time/show car and have my Legacy as the daily/winter beater. Maybe someday I'll have a third gen. Camaro. I got a Z28 badge from one that I, sadly, found in a junkyard. I gotta say I was upset seeing it there but that gave me a chance to sit in one and see if its just the exterior looks I like or the whole package. Its the whole package I like. Sitting in one felt pretty amazing, I could just picture myself going down the road with the t-tops off, windows down, and the music turned up. Someday that will become a reality for me, someday.

[Legacy777]

My uncle had an 87 Iroc (pretty sure it was an 87). It was gorgeous and fun to drive. He ended up selling it because he just didn't drive it that much and was impractical with the kiddos.

[Danny-G]

Damn thats a really nice one. I like it... alot! The small tasteful visual mods juat finish it off in my books, tinted windows and it looks like theres a stealth exhaust under the rear bumper.

[Legacy777]

I think the exhaust was stock....but yeah it was a really nice car. My uncle takes very good care of his cars, so it was in excellent shape.

[BSOD2600]

I can't wait to see dyno numbers

[Alphius]

OK, what's a good cost-effective AWD dyno up here in the Puget Sound area? I'm ready to throw down on the rollers.

Chronological order updates:

My car spending some time over on the east side of the mountains, I drive over there a few times a month. I put about 3k a month on this thing, most of it over Snoqualmie Pass on I-90.



What? Blacked out trim and a fresh wash?



Then I went up to Canada (Victoria B.C.), and brought the bikes. Ferry rides are fun! I had to trunk the bikes on the way back so I didn't have to pay the overheight charge. My rear spoiler is off for a professional repaint, the hood scoop is soon to follow.




Also, what sort of stereotypical Seattle folk drive this Subaru anyway?

[BSOD2600]

OK, what's a good cost-effective AWD dyno up here in the Puget Sound area? I'm ready to throw down on the rollers.

I've had the previous TW at Kito Auto Sport (mustang dyno). Although wouldn't call any dyno shop affordable... unless you go on a group day.

My old car is sure lookin' sexy

[Alphius]

*ahem*

What have we here?



I put a full set of "RS TURBO" badges on the old girl. Still not sure if I like them or if they're too poser.
Also, in sad news, one of the chips in my windshield is growing and cracking at an alarming rate, which necessitates a new windshield much sooner than I had planned. I will probably also do 15% tint all around when I get a new windshield on here.

[Alphius]

Heatercore, I hate you. You suck to replace.

I have a piece of advice: Do not attempt to buy or use any aftermarket heatercore in your Legacy, it will not fit. Despite the savings over OEM, it will not work. I ordered one from RockAuto and tore my car apart and it was the wrong heatercore. All the parts stores around here had the wrong one as well. I ended up ordering an OEM one from 1stsubaruparts.com and it fit perfectly. Expensive, but worth it.

Second piece of advice: Yes, you can replace the heatercore without evacuating or removing the AC box. It take some finesse, but it is definitely possible.

Third piece of advice: If your dash rattles over expansion joints, tighten all the bolts that hold it in. Mine were all finger tight before this and the dash rattled like crazy, but after re-assembly and proper torque on the bolts, it's solid and quiet. A very big improvement.

[Legacy777]

That's a good tip on the dash bolts.....I've got a rattle that is annoying as hell.

[BSOD2600]

Sucks the core went . How many miles have you put on it since purchase?

Interesting you were able to get the core out w/o disconnecting the AC. When I replaced the core on the 94 TW, there simply wasn't enough wiggle room to get the box out.

[Alphius]

I was expecting the core to go at any time, really. 200-250k seems to be where they die from my Subaru experience. Sooner if the cooling system has been severely overheated at any time. I've put just over 8k on it since I bought it from you. I'm over 244k, and I bought it at 236k. My driving decreased drastically this summer, but soon I'll be back to my 4k per month regular schedule.

Not gonna lie, I thought I was gonna have to evac the A/C, but I unbolted the drier from the engine bay and unbolted the blower motor and A/C box from the firewall, then I was able to pull the A/C lines through the firewall enough to squeeze the heater box out around the lip on the A/C box.

It was definitely a job I don't want to have to do again. My goal is to replace all the wear parts on this thing one at a time until it's as good as new! Then I won't have to worry about a thing.

[Alphius]

Update: Windshield replacement today, they found some surface rust under the windshield seal from a previous shoddy windshield replacement, and some shower caulk stopping up a couple leaks! The last time this windshield was replaced, someone messed it up pretty good.

Luckily the shop I have it at is doing the right thing and fixing it all up instead of just slapping another windshield in and not telling me; they're fixing the problems instead of just taking my money and leaving the rust to continue it's dirty work.

I'm glad it's getting fixed.

[kimokalihi]

Lucky. Someone also did a shit job replacing my windshield as I recently discovered when I removed the upper moulding to paint the roof. Now it leaks. They used a ton of glue and basically used the glue to hold the moulding in place and once I removed it I guess the seal is now broken. Removing a moulding should have no affect on the sealing of the windshield. It leaks pretty bad now and I'm pissed.

[Alphius]

Yeah, that's a shitty situation for you Kimo. It always sucks when you start tearing into a car and begin finding the little things that were skimped on or repaired incorrectly. I've been pretty lucky so far with this car, just this windshield thing and a couple loose suspension bolts so far.

Can you take yours to a windshield shop and have them remove and replace the current windshield with a new seal, new clips and moldings? That shouldn't be too terribly expensive. Labor on my windshield replacement today was only about $40 or so.

[Alphius]

OK, the freshly painted spoiler and hood scoop are on and they match well! I also did a full paint restoration, buffing and polishing, and wax job on the rest of the paint with my dad. He is the one who painted my spoiler for me, he does auto paint as a hobby and has been painting semi-professionally for a few years now.

But before the pretty Subaru pics, some rust repair! I repainted a small spot under the spoiler because there were a couple rust bubbles under the paint, so that is fixed and good to go.


Then we spent a few hours with a buffer and some polishing compound followed by a coat of wax and got this!






Here's another example of his painting skills, this time on my mom's daily driver, a 1971 Chevelle. Most of the cars in my family have been painted by me and him over the past few years. My brother's Trans Am in the background of one of the pictures above is a home job as well.


Top-secret news: I have new wheels! Impulse buy on craigslist. Pictures as soon as I get them on and see how they look.

[kimokalihi]

Oh man, he should totally paint my spoiler and door handles and side skirts and pull the dent in quarter panel and paint that too.

[originalcyn]

Yeah, no kidding. I wouldn't mind getting a few things painted too. Spoiler needs repainting, and a front fender. Lol maybe kimo and i can do a group buy.

[kimokalihi]

Your legacy looks amazing now with that new polish and wax job.