LandCruisers Follow me: Dedman’s 99 Subaru Forester

I have been a bit slack and haven’t got around to starting member journal until now but better late than never

I had been riding an 83 Honda CX500 motorcycle for a few years since getting my licence but the lack of practicality was starting to get somewhat annoying and maybe a tad dangerous…

After the motorcycle started to **** itself using oil at the same rate at petrol (not even exaggerating) and a large portion of the exhaust coming out of the radiator I decided it was time to upgrade to a car. I was going to really miss destroying people’s egos when they tried to drag you off at the lights in their sports cars and ended up getting covered in clouds of blue oil fueled exhaust smoke but the appeal of a car was just too much.

Initially I wanted something that used the same amount of fuel as a motorcycle but was big enough to sleep inside, a Honda Jazz was one of the only suitable candidates for that.

And then I bought a forester…… I have never looked back.

Here is the new car bought November 2012;

 

[Kevin]

Play safe and have a wonderful trip!

 

[idw]

Have a good one mate, I'll take you and your better half off the Christmas list :iconwink:

 

[carljwnc]

Safe travels & Have Fun!!!:ebiggrin:

Lookin' forward to this trip report.

 

[Dedman]

This thread has been very much neglected but now its time for an update on a few of the mods that have been happening.

Firstly the big one, offroad gearbox. L series low range, 4.44 final drive, helical front LSD, DCCD centre, taller 5th gear, low range oil feed.

This box is absolutely awesome, one of the best mods so far. With the change to 4.44 final drive 1st gear low range is 72% lower than standard sf 1st gear. This means when climbing hills 2500 rpm or above has almost no chance of stalling no matter what the terrain is like. For relatively rough terrain but without to much wheel spin 1500rpm is sufficient no matter how steep. The 4.44 final drive means that low range is not required at all when cruising around most bush tracks as 1st high is sufficiently low, makes travelling between difficult spots far more pleasant than when I used to have to rev heaps in 1st low and then constantly change to 1st high all the time.
The locking centre and front LSD is also great offroad and the 35:65 dccd torque split is good fun on road.

With the new gearbox I also installed a suretrac rear LSD. I am undecided on this diff yet but it seems to be pretty good. Doesnt work when a wheel is in the air but seems great in mud.

I decided to make my own controller for the DCCD as it was cheaper and as I had wound the coil for my diff my self it may not have worked with the factory one. I mounted the controls under the low range lever which is nice an neat and can be accessed in both high and low range.

Very shortly after the gearbox install my tired old ej20 decided it had had enough of life and started consuming more oil than petrol. I replaced it with a second hand one from a self serve wrecker for $200. Replaced a few seals and things then put it in. Runs very nicely and seems to consume no oil :ebiggrin:

After getting the new engine in I took the her out to Warburton and gave her a good test. Unfortunately on a very steep climb I have caused some damage to some part of the low range as I had not installed the controller for the pump for my oil feed yet. It now whines quite a lot, but fortunately seems to still work flawlessly.

The gearbox working well on a steep climb
[ame]www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXobKRV8WB4[/ame]

And through a river...
[ame]www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7ICzMn3p-Q[/ame]

After watching that last video I decided a mod to my snorkel pipework was required as currently there is no where to catch water that goes down the snorkel. I added a T junction into the pipework to create a sump to catch water and added a removable cap to the bottom so water could be removed easily if it got in there. This is a mod I should have done ages ago....

Not a good pic but oh well, hopefully you get the idea.

Today I completed the wiring for the Low range oil feed pump so it turns on only when going up hill or under hard acceleration and when the ignition is on and in low range.

Finally I added a new sticker which I though was a bit clever.

 

[jf1sf5]

Interesting build up Dedman !

Why do you have 2 controls for the DCCD ? Do you have any pic of the LR oil feed and pump ? I didn't do the LR oil feed and its still working great, without any whine, even after 1 year of use. The "T" on the intake is a good idea too, if I one day install a snorkel, will keep that in mind.

AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY !

 

[casperfromholland]

'm not jealous

'm not jealous

I'm not jealous

I'm not jealous

okay I admit! I am jealous!

man you rock!

I hope this winter to create a low budget version of what you made!
But first finish my winchbumper

 

[NachaLuva]

Awesome! Can't wait to do mine! :biggrin:

I'd also like to know what the 2 controls are for. I noticed that on that climb when you stalled it the centre diff stayed locked.

And where did you get that sticker?

 

[Dedman]

I'd also like to know what the 2 controls are for. I noticed that on that climb when you stalled it the centre diff stayed locked.
And where did you get that sticker?

The front control is the %lock up. The rear is not really necessary it controls the supply voltage to the coil letting me overvolt the coil for short periods if for some reason I am getting slippage in an extreme situation.

I didnt actually stall in that video, I didnt stall on any of my attempts, thats how great my gearing is, I just run out of traction not power. Anyway I have made the controller so that it only dissconnects when the control is in zero or the ignition is switched off. No reset on restart. I was very impressed with the diff on that climb.

Sticker was an ebay job, for a few bucks I couldnt resist.

I have not got any pics of the oil feed at the moment but Ill try take some soon.

 

[Dedman]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY !

Thanks

 

[NachaLuva]

I didnt actually stall in that video, I didnt stall on any of my attempts, thats how great my gearing is, I just run out of traction not power. Anyway I have made the controller so that it only dissconnects when the control is in zero or the ignition is switched off. No reset on restart. I was very impressed with the diff on that climb.

Cool!

Would that controller work on a factory DCCD? If I can save a few bucks ($500 for the auto controller!) plus not have it reset when stalling would be great :biggrin:

 

[taza]

Yeah should do. Not too hard to build. I'll look at doing something silimar. I just made a unit to lock a subie auto gearbox to full 50/50.

 

[jf1sf5]

Cool!

Would that controller work on a factory DCCD? If I can save a few bucks ($500 for the auto controller!) plus not have it reset when stalling would be great :biggrin:

Take a manual controller, its cheaper and its nice to have a rear wheel drive Foz (35:65) when unlocked :iconwink:

 

[NachaLuva]

Take a manual controller, its cheaper and its nice to have a rear wheel drive Foz (35:65) when unlocked :iconwink:

You have a manual controller don't you? Does it reset when the engine is turned off or does it always stay at whatever setting you have it on?

 

[Dedman]

Cool!

Would that controller work on a factory DCCD? If I can save a few bucks ($500 for the auto controller!) plus not have it reset when stalling would be great :biggrin:

It will work, my only concern is I do not know what power the factory coil is rated at so my controller may burn it out. Im 99% sure it would be fine but it would suck if it wasnt.... If you could test the output of a bought DCCD controller you could build one to match without to much difficulty.

 

[jf1sf5]

You have a manual controller don't you? Does it reset when the engine is turned off or does it always stay at whatever setting you have it on?

Yes, I have the manual DCCDPro controller and it stays on the setup, unless I use the handbrake which opens the diff.

 

[Dedman]

Yes, I have the manual DCCDPro controller and it stays on the setup, unless I use the handbrake which opens the diff.

I thought about putting a hand brake switch in mine but decided against it because I would much rather have a locked diff when starting on steep hills when I have to use the hand brake.

In the event I want to do a hand brake turn I will most likely have the diff open anyway for the 35:65 rear wheel drive fun...

 

[NachaLuva]

Thats a good point, I want the diff locked for steep starts too...

I've also had to use the handbrake a few times now to control a backwards slide down a steep loose track (handbrake plus footbrake to keep the fronts from locking which doesnt slow you but you loose steering).

 

[jf1sf5]

As soon as I release the handbrake, it locks the DCCD on the chosen setup. And when going backwards on a steep loose track, I use both handbrake (mostly) and footbrake.

But I will make a small mod to keep the the DCCD locked when applying the handbrake for better control of the rear Quaife diff (torsen type) because its not that easy to apply the right force on the footbrake when uphill diagonal spin occurs….!

 

[MiddleAgeSubie]

Glad you got out on your own!

Yeah, a hole out of nowhere on a well-maintained road is precisely the kind of thing that worries me the most.

 

[MiddleAgeSubie]

As soon as I release the handbrake, it locks the DCCD on the chosen setup. And when going backwards on a steep loose track, I use both handbrake (mostly) and footbrake.

But I will make a small mod to keep the the DCCD locked when applying the handbrake for better control of the rear Quaife diff (torsen type) because its not that easy to apply the right force on the footbrake when uphill diagonal spin occurs….!

I do not care for diagonal spin since the VDC prevents that. But I love your DCCD. I am sure I do not really need it, but I am just curious if it is even possible to fit one to the 5 EAT without going broke. Maybe someday...when the car has aged...I could go beyond my current very mild "mods?" :biggrin: