Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Sorting some details

T.I.C. steering rack bushings
Bushings halfway installed
We got the BRZ up on the lift recently to install some new goodies.  In the front we installed some Turn In Concepts solid steering rack bushings.  From looking at them, I worried a little bit that they would generate a whole bunch of noise/vibration/harshness, but I really couldn't feel any comfort penalty.  There's just a nice tight feeling from the steering wheel. The BRZ steering was never vague by any means, but it's just that much more tight and precise-feeling.

Extraction tool we made
Installation was pretty easy, but getting the stock bushings out took a little ingenuity on the part of our mechanics.  We ended up making a little extraction tool using a couple of bolts, some washers, and a section of tubing.  That allowed us to pull the stock bushing out by turning the bolt and using the bolt's leverage.

Master cylinder brace
Up on the top side of the car, we bolted on the Motive Auto Werks master cylinder brace.  This little item could not be simpler, both in terms of construction and in installation.  It's light, simple, and it completely stopped any excess motion of the master cylinder.  (Try taping a thin skewer or a coat hanger to your master cylinder so you can see it from the driver's seat, then watch as you press on the brake pedal!)  I confess I can't quite feel it in the pedal -- the brakes seemed pretty firm even to start with.  But I like that the master cylinder can't flex anymore.

While we were under the hood, we installed some very nice carbon-fiber-wrapped hood struts.  We really like gas lift hood struts -- they make working on the car so much easier.  Install on these was also easy.  The struts have just the right pressure to lift up the hood, but they don't spring it up so hard it's going to hit you in the chin.

The benefit is that you don't have to use the prop rod, and you don't have to worry about hitting yourself in the head with the rod and/or collapsing the hood down onto your head while working on the engine.  Not that that's ever happened to me, of course...

All the parts I mentioned above are available on our web site.  Click the hyperlinks above or below for more info.







Not everything is happy in BRZ Land.  I noticed a couple of weeks ago that the right tail lamp has a bunch of condensed water drops in it, and it's starting to get a little mossy-looking in there.  This is a known issue with these cars, and Subaru should replace the lamp under warranty.  We'll check back when we've resolved the issue.





Products mentioned in this post:
Turn In Concepts steering rack bushings
Carbon-wrapped gas lift hood struts
Motive Auto Werks brake master cylinder brace