Project Domino: Lightened Bumpers

we ordered some lightened bumpers for Domino the other day.  They are not very expensive, roughly $75 each.  What is the difference?  I would guess maybe 20 lbs less weight each.  Essentially the lightened bumpers only provide enough support to having something to attach the bumper covers to.  Apparently they provide enough crash protection...if you lived in Japan since they are roughly the same as the JDM GC bumper frames.  The pictures explain more clearly what they are about than I can in words.

Here are the part numbers if you want to do this to your USDM GC Impreza RS:

57760FA680 - Lightweight Bumper Beam Front 93-98 Impreza

57760FA400 - Lightweight Bumper Beam Front 99-01 Impreza

57760FA192 - Lightweight Bumper Beam Rear Impreza

Lightened front bumper frame on top, stock on bottom.

Rear lightened bumper frame on top, front on bottom.

Rear.

Front installed.

Project Domino: GD Radiator Install

The new CXRacing radiator is in.  It was made for a GD chassis, but we talked about the differences before in a previous post.  Here is a picture on my GD chassised 2005 Saab 92x AKA Saabaru.  There is actually 5" or so more space between the radiator and the engine in the GD as compared to a GC8.

Note the lack of space in Domino.  Also the version 8 STI twin scroll header doesn't make it easier.

Since there isn't a lot of space, and this radiator is about 0.5" thicker than stock, we had to be creative.  First we ditched the awesome aluminum radiator shroud that we had bought for the project because it added 0.5-1" more thickness, and positioned the right fan right where the exhaust manifold is.  We put the fans directly on the core without the shroud using the included special zip ties included for this purpose.  We positioned the fans all the way to the top, and that was just enough to provide sufficient clearance.

Both fans affixed.

What the zip ties look like on the front of the radiator.

As you can see, there still isn't a lot of space.

Another angle.

We had to drill holes through the beam to get the brackets to work with the GD radiator.  We use the Perrin radiator mount..because it was the cheapest at wholesale .  We had to cut of a chunk of it to get it to fit the CXRacing radiator.  The next mod will be the Perrin logo delete sharpie mod.

Here is the hose installed.

The bottom radiator hose.

This is how you get the hose to fit.  In case you felt nervous to cut the silicone hose, it is fine.  It is super easy to cut with sharp razor blades.

Asuka wants a shifter too.

I figured; what's good for the goose is good for the gander.
Domino got a Cobb shifter, thought Asuka would like one too. 

With Domino stealing all the headlines as of late, the poor girl was starting feel left out.

Proyecto Domino: GrimmSpeed Adir Oil Separator Review

I got around to installing the GrimmSpeed air oil separator.  We used this same piece on our last project car as well.  I like it because it doesn't take up a lot of space and uses the oil filler to return the oil back into the system.  I also like it because it didn't prevent our last project car from making power.  It seems to "work" ... although ... I haven't taken apart the intake of the other project car recently, so I can't be 100% certain their isn't oil build up.   Aside from the space constraints, I would probably just recommend the Cosworth part instead, but they are harder to fit if you are rotated, etc.

So, you can see here that it replaces the oil filler cap.  This actually makes it hard to add oil unless you use a funnel.  I think that limitation should be noted as a con.

Here it is hooked up to the left side of the motor.  The two sides of the front vale cover ports are hooked to this line.  It is connected to the right port of the AOS.  Note: GrimmSpeed did not include this tee.  Consider this another con.  If you have a stock top mount, then the y pipe on top would be used instead.  Really?  Who has a stock top mount with the stock y pipe such that they don't need a tee?  GrimmSpeed maybe saved a buck or two in BOM.

Here it is hooked up to the crank case.  This is what is connected to the left port.

The front port here on the right valve cover is what is connected to the tee.  It is hard to see in the pic, but the place where the crank case used to vent to the intake is capped off.

The center port on the AOS connects back to the intake like this.

GrimmSpeed was super generous and provided an extra foot or two of heater hose.  Thanks guys.  I would have preferred you provided the tee connector I had to go buy.

I also repaired he hose on the far right.  Mine case cut for some reason.

Project Domino: Short Shifter

We installed the Cobb short throw shifter the other day.  The cool thing about the Cobb part vs the rest, is that both the throw and the height are adjustable.  

If you want to see the details of how to install, you can check out Cobb's install guide.  Plus, there are probably 100s of YouTube videos as well.

The only odd thing that I would add is that they didn't include a fresh new bushing for the whole near the 'C', so I had to push out the old one an reuse it.  It got a little mangled in the process.  Also they didn't include any grease for the ball part, but I had some extra grease laying around from other parts.

Here is the old one with the cable removed.

The Cobb one in from the left side.

Here it is from the right side.

Also, some wiring progress has been made.