Draco-REX

The weak point on the 02 WRX is the gearbox. Partway through 03 they strengthened the gearbox, but the 02s are considered the "glass" transmissions.

So nice.

So... wait.. this was built for/by a muffler shop, and they couldn't route the exhaust pipe into the EXHAUST PIPE? WTF?

FPV Quadcopter racing looks like so much fun. I'm sorely tempted to pick one up. But I don't want another hobby..

Looks like more than one weld failed.....

They've gone global!

Two things: 1. Subaru's EJ engines seem to LOVE drinking Mobil 1. A lot of people have seen excessive consumption with M1 which went away when they changed to a different oil. Rotella T6 5-30 Synthetic is popular in the Subie crowd. Other good choices are Amsoil, Redline, and Pennzoil Platinum. 2. Do you have a catch can or oil separator? The flat engine design has a tendency to puke a lot of oil into the breather lines when you drive hard, especially when cornering. A catch-can is always a good idea.

If I ever want to share some misery, I'll make you guys align the BRZ. :gabe:

This is why the Miata is such a great car to start with. You have great handling, but not much power. You have to learn your lines because you can't use the engine to make up for lost momentum. So it makes you learn how to be smooth and keep your speed up. OP: I started RallyX with a WRX. While a great car to compete in, the power meant I didn't have to learn my lines as well. It took me a long time to unlearn the bad habits I picked up. I wish I had started with a low powered car. So whatever you choose, get some good tires and just run it stock. Learn the car, and more importantly, learn yourself.

I knew somehow they'd be back. Those three are a money tree. Anyone who signs them will be making cash hand over fist.

It's VERY hard to go wrong with a Miata (unless stance yo!).

Found the speed bump! http://i.imgur.com/iue6GUr.gifv

Software today, especially operating systems, is WELL beyond the point where someone, or even a team of someones, can be sure that all avenues of attack are accounted for. Just like the only way to be sure you won't knock up a girl is to keep your dick in your pants, the only way to be sure a system won't be attacked is to cut it off from any outside contact. Since that's not possible (unless you like expensive, overly-complex paper weights) any system can be compromised. And frankly, when it comes to data security, 1% vulnerability is the same as 100% vulnerability. Like a car alarm, The Club, and other anti-theft measures, you can deter the small-fry, but the big sharks will still get your shit.

..other than the fact that Microsoft is no longer supporting XP (well, unless you have millions of dollars laying around like the DOD), so any new exploits will not be fixed.

I LOL at people who think using a Mac is any different. You're just as vulnerable. "Security by Obscurity" is not a valid method. The only reason Macs aren't as attacked as Windows is their lack of market share. Chrysler's system is almost entirely proprietary, even more than a Mac, and there's already a way to fully attack them. If the true Crackers really cared about Macs, you'd have just as many attacks.

..by a Hellcat. The Hellcat X. 805hp, 800tq. Twin turbo/twin screw compound charged. 1 of 1 ..for only $3. http://dreamgiveaway.com/dg/challenger Oh, and they'll throw in a 1970 Challenger 440 R/T for a beater....

Subaru's in a bad position right now. They're a very small car maker, but they've had the biggest growth of any. Their production is stretched to its limit, and they are having trouble meeting demand for their most popular cars. I have a feeling that their drop in quality is due to corner cutting to get few more cars out the door. If that the case, the only solution is to build more capacity or pull back production. Either way, I don't see the quality going back up in the near future. ZB's due back this week. I don't know if he will jump right back into work (most people wouldn't, but knowing him I wouldn't be surprised if he did). So I may not get a look inside the engine till next week.

Some people hide their irreplaceable vintage cars away. Some people drive their irreplaceable vintage cars on perfect days. Some people race their irreplaceable vintage cars. And then there's these guys:

It's looking like it wasn't a starvation issue, but a manufacturing defect.

That picture is from Element Tuning. The two pictured were brand new replacements. Ah well.

These are two brand new ones: Warning: huge image http://elementtuning.com/store/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/ElementOEMRockerManuf.jpg I'm starting to see why Subaru's quality rating has dropped recently.

More news. It turns out I might have fallen victim to a rare defect effecting the pins that hold the rockers in place. If so, it wasn't an oil starvation issue, and Element Tuning has a solution. Man, I really hope that's all that happened.

The guys manning ZB's shop let me put it on an empty lift so I could get a look under the engine. ..so much oil.. It's going to suck to clean. Anyways, got the skid plate off and I didn't have to pull the header. Looks like someone over on FT86Club.com called it: Nailed it. I'm going to go out on a limb and guess oil starvation. The course at the event was very right-turn heavy, including a banked turn. With no downforce or slicks I didn't think I'd have to worry about this, but that doesn't seem to be the case. Hopefully someone's figured out a solution to this, or I'm just not going to be able to run at Kil-Kare again. So, if I'm somewhat lucky, I just need a head and I'm back and running. When the engine comes out, I'll know for sure. But for now I don't think I'll be needing the replacement engines I've sourced.

I'm not exactly happy about this, but being pissed off isn't, going to change things. And besides, I put a blower on an engine with 12.5:1 compression, overdrive the blower, and then switched fuels to E85. I only have myself to blame. Even knowing the risks, I was still confident because there are numerous people using the same setup for track days where the engine will see far more stress. So I'm very curious about what went wrong. Don't know yet. I may climb under it Thursday after work. But I'm sure it's not a rod since that should be fairly obvious (gnomes with sledgehammers).

Jared Leto as the Joker. He has some really big shoes to fill. While the role isn't "cursed"... it does carry significant risk. I hope he does well. Oh and Harley Quinn.. :megusta: