legacycentral bbs

I just bought a 93 Legacy L.Its FWD,has a 5 speed and is a sedan.I was thinking of rallying abit with it because its cheap enough that I am not to worried about stacking it (bought it for $225). I was thinking making a skidplate with 1" tube backing it or something,put in a cheap rollcage, then some better suspension componets then go rally around on mountain roads and such.

Are there any springs/struts from another subaru that would stiffen the ride up and maybe lift the car an inch or so?Does anything suspension wise need to be reinforced?

The car has a really soft suspension but it still will not let go of the road at all.The car is pretty neutral to drive even on gravel or winding roads.

Oh yea, I am working on a junkyard budget,so no $1000 coilovers or what not.

youwill ont have to strengthen the suspension, jsut get a good set of STI inverted struts and you should be gooe

STi struts won't fit a FWD





Be careful with "rallying" on gravel roads...


I strongly doubt that you have the true experience to get a car around corners at high speeds on gravel, and that your safety equipment will be up to par with sanctioned rally cars...


That, and the roads won't be closed, so it would sure suck to meet a log truck around a corner at 60mph going sideways

and the fact that this hurts the image of rallyists by people thinking we are street racers.

so then how do you practice?

uberoo wrote:so then how do you practice?

Rallycross is a good venue for practicing...but also...some of the folks that I rally with have permits with local forest landowners to close the roads and practice from time to time.

If you just want to mess around yeah why not. If you're interested in really rallying it's not a bad car either. There are some FWD subaru's out there rallying in Rally America because the rules state that new driver's have to either run FWD non-turbo, or open light class which is 4wd non-turbo. Also FWD cars are cheaper to rally and more competitive for a beginner so you get better results if you're new.
But in general the most popular car for FWD rallying is the MK2 Golf, but they are becoming harder and harder to find clean examples of. You can find a crap load of after market parts for them though.

If you're working on the junkyad budget I would find out what fits and then head on over to the Nasioc classifieds and pick up whatever swaybars/springs/shocks will fit. On my legacy I have a Trebeca FSB mounted which is 25mm. So it's a BIG upgrade and possible to find at a junkyard although I think I payed $86 for it at the dealership with no shipping charges of course.
For some reason it's cheaper to make Subaru's go fast with after market parts than it is to buy OEM stuff. There is just so much out there... people throw away turbos on Nasioc....

or you cna go to a local test day, but you will need to have a proper rally car. I play the same as the next guy on dirt roads/snowy roads, but really dont think its a good idea to put a cage in your car and go "rally around"

I am just thinking a rollcage to improve the safety a little bit,because Ive already rolled one car (just on a causal drive on a gravel road,tried to miss a dog that jutted out from a blind corner)

Would FWD 93-01 imprezza struts and legacy springs lift the car?

If you're going to do a roll cage it's pretty much going to be a dedicated rally car and you might as well go all the way because you're already spending over $1,000 on the cage.
If you just want a little roll over protection an autopower bolt in roll bar might be a better choice so you can remove it in the event you want to use the backseat or sell the car.

If your thinking about installing a roll cage in a street car, google up and do some reading on cages, race seats, harnesses and helmets. There are things you need to know and decsions you need to make for yourself and your passengers.




*Trying not to be big brother*, but read up on it.

How about a roll bar behind the front seats?Rather than a full 6 or 8 PT rollcage?

Would a rollbar help that much in a crash?

uberoo wrote:How about a roll bar behind the front seats?Rather than a full 6 or 8 PT rollcage?

Would a rollbar help that much in a crash?

Which way are you crashing? A roll cage is just that. A cage that is designed in case you were to roll the car. It will keep the roof from collapsing in on you. Especially if you have a sun roof. Get a good roll cage that have the cage running along the A pillars. The sun roof will make it easier for the A pillars collapse in because the roof will not have any structural integrity. If you have a roll cage in a daily driver. You might want to wear a helmet too. Watch Deathproof and you will find out why.

No roll cages installed in either one of these vehicles. The SRT-4 I don't know, but the STI is mine. Not trying to scare you , but just do your research and stay alive.

SRT-4
STI

the legacy doesnt have a sunroof. So a rollbar would be ineffective?

BTW heres a link to my photo album of a car I rolled just on causal drive. I stupidity tried to avoid a dog that jumped out on a corner and lost the tail then the car slid into a ditch,smashed though a 4x4 post, then a guy wire from a power line which sent the car flipping though the air. I just had a scratch from some flying glass or something.


http://s109.photobucket.com/albums/n45/ ... b%20Stuff/

thats why I would like to put some thing in,because I would be driving fast on dirt roads rather than just cruising. Allthough next time the damn dog is getting hit...

Autopower makes a cage for the Legacy? Thought I checked....

they make one for the 93-01 IMP but not the legacy.I dont know if that would fit.

Would this work as far as suspension goes:

FWD wagon springs on the rear struts to get more spring rate. then put 4wd hubs/spindles/etc on the front to open up options.

Or are FWD and 4wd front struts the same?

At this point if I can get more spring rate without lowing the car I will be happy.

FWD & AWD front struts are interchangable.

The wagon springs may provide a little more spring rate, but it's probably not going to do much.

I am going to replacing my struts with new struts soon (hopefully) are there some good/cheap springs that will stiffen the ride up but not drop the car any?

anyone know the front spring rate of 2000-2004 subaru's with the h6?

check out the suspension super sticky at the top of the suspension forum. a few of the guys put together a list with tonnes of good info on it.

Ok so Im putting 4wd front springs on FWD front struts and FWD wagon springs/struts for the back of my sedan. Hopefully that combo will get a bit more height.After comparing springs in the junkyard 4wd front springs are about 3/4" taller than FWD front springs(unloaded) and wagon springs are much stiffer than sedan rear springs...so heres hoping. new struts are only $350...ouch..

Anyway I was thinking having it aligned to my specs.Heres the alignment specs I was thinking:
Front
Camber -1* or -1.5 (which is better?)
toe 0
caster stock(I dont know if caster is ajustable)

Rear
Camber 0
toe 0
caster stock

what struts are you getting? Stock is gonna be softer than you want. For $350 I think you can get the KYB non-adjustables (forgot the model).

I think you'll probably want stiffer springs as well, I have a '92 SS which has about the stiffest springs from way back when and they're way to soft (130# IIRC). Even WRX's are only 150-160 acording to the compemendum. Only ones I think would be stiff enough are STi springs, but I think they leave you lower than stock. I hope to try this combination out this summer, might glean some knowledge.


As for alignment, I'm no expert but heres my take...

toe @ 0 should quicken steering response

negetive camber will improve traction while cornering. It's a trade-off between straightline tirewear and cornering traction. A little negative camber in the rear might help as well. Personally, I have a hard time telling off-road, but I don't get to play as much as I would like.
I think you'll notice more improvement from swaybar and spring tuning than alignment, but alignments are free.

Have you stiffened (or installed) the rear swaybar yet?

Installing the rear sway bar is definately worth while. Instead of needing to slow down for the corners, you can work with the throttle to keep the car's weight better distributed across the four tires, giving a totally more controllable and higher top speed.

-Only thing is if you hit that apex too hard, your ass flys out now instead of understeering. Adjust to have a rear bar thoroughly before you step on the throttle.

but alignments are free.

Where is this?