legacycentral bbs

Ok, I picked up a Saab all metal one, made a connecting pipe, bought some silicone connectors and plumbed it all in. Before the IC, the engine had a bit of a front to back movement when you let off/ get on the throttle. Now with the IC crammed in there, the movement is practically NILL.

NOW< if you have the Saab setup- is yours seriously tight, or is it just me?

Second- the lack of free movement by the engine has me wondering if that is a bad thing.

Third- if anyone has the Saab cooler and not put it in yet- I can suggest doing what I did ( with a few changes that I should have done, because it looks neat and works smooth.)

( Total cost- intercooler-$35, silicone hoses-$65, connecting pipe( made of thin walled steel)-$5, clamps and hose to extend the DV-$25- grand total- $130) ( Blood- two tablespoons, sweat- one quart- tears- non yet )

It is real tight... I had to trim a little bit off mine just to get it to fit.

Mine's real snug too, that's one reason they're nice.

I'm about to go install mine . Hopefully I can get my FCD installed tonight too!

WOOO! PASSED EMISSIONS!

My plastic 900 IC is so crammed in there that it actually dented the lip above the engine bay on the firewall. I don't think it could fit in any other way, but now that its dented it seems to be held in there better, and doesn't hit the firewall anymore, so i'm just going to keep it the way it is.

Mine is right up on the firewall. I can hear it vibrate against the firewall at idle and WOT.

I may trim a little off of the outlet on the IC so I don't have to stress about how much (little) it protrudes into the TB.

The thing was QUITE snug in there when I test-fit it in there. It was pressing up against the back coolant fitting in the tank pretty hard. I'm gonna have to keep an eye on it to make sure I don't break something.....

Mine is snug as a bug.

Had to remove my strutbar to put it in and also will be trimming some of the IC so it doesn't touch the hood.

It's not a saab IC mind you but it's still snug

Mine was so snug that it pushed aganist the coolant tank nipple and bursted it so me and a friend cut out part of the bottom and I have no leaks. Will a stock WRX fit better than the SAAB 900? I might just go to a front mount.

move the coolant tank.



The main problem is the silicone reducer from TB to IC, they're usually entirely too long and cram the IC up against the firewall. I trimmed both ends of mine as much as possible while leaving enough straight silicone to clamp down on and its still tight. Had much more room when using that Home Depot 2" sewer pipe coupler stretched to fit over the TB, since I was able to trim that down to basically nothing. The silicone reducers take entirely too much length to change diameter. What we need are 2.75" -> 2.25" reducers with a quick change in diameter, and the IC clears the firewall by about a half inch.

As it is now though I just dented the firewall in with a nice problem-solving hammer and it works. I'd like a shorter reducer though...

My coolant tank nipple broke also, but I put in a quick 90* down bend and now it has a half inch of clearance between it and the intercooler. I thought about moving the tank , but this was quick and easy. It was only that hose that was rubbing, and now it has free movement.

if you'll notice, both the 1/2" fittings on my tank broke too. Currently JB weld and some structural metal I placed on the inside of each holds them on... but I just got a new coolant expansion tank from the dealer. Theres $130 down the drain. But I dont know how long the JB weld will hold... so I kinda had to eventually.

Anyway yes the intercooler was mainly resting on the top 1/2" fitting but even with a bend I didn't like it being so close to that fragile tank. I took the washer bottle out and used that real estate to mount the tank. Then I got a $14 washer bag on eBay from a '67 Mustang and fit it behind my passenger headlight. Then used one of those universal white plastic barb adapters to connect the stock pump to the bag and there she blows.

Intercooler also resting on a foam-covered clutch fluid neck. Waiting on a replacement from the dealer so I can cut it down without risking a disabled Subaru if I mess it up. Then maybe I can fit a small fan on it to stave off heat soak.

Them damn expansion tanks are way too fragile!

By the way, the intercooler touches the actual tank when its spaced properly from the firewall. When I had the Home Depot coupler on there and the reducing length was short, that tank was much more in the way. I like the coolant tank over there

I just completed my WRX coolant tank.

Built a "roll cage" for the tank, and mounted it where the battery was. I put the battery in the trunk and she works just fine .

Doesn't look TO pretty, but it does the job pretty well, and that's all that matters to me.

Theres an idea too... I still want to move my battery to the trunk, it'd make that area much more open under the hood.