Trying to figure out the knock?

This Mystery JDM EJ207 sound is quite intermittent. Well, it used to be and now is just screaming I need a rebuilt as far as I’m concerned 🙁

Quick history on who, what and how this all came to be. Got a WRX in 2001 after ordering one when I learned that they would be available in the US 🙂

I had a ’97 SVX LSi at the time and didn’t like driving an automatic. Heard about the WRX and ordered one along with trading in the SVX on the spot to take advantage of the offer the dealership gave me.

Anyway got the WRX and of course the factory 5-speed transmission broke 2nd gear while driving down Rt18 one night right after it went over 50k and the factory warranty was done. So I searched eBay in 2004 and found a JDM 6 speed transmission with a 2.0 engine attached to it. Won the auction and when I went to install it I learned the the lil 2.0 was some form of 2002 STi Rally engine. So not being able to find the info I needed for wiring the AVCS I cut a deal with Rallispec to do the install for me.
Then with just a front mount intercooler and a turbo back exhaust with a catalytic converter installed to keep it legal, it would pull 12.5@110 in the quarter with the AC on. Not too bad for an untuned stock engine back in 2004 I thought.

I then decided to upgrade to a Forced Performance Green Turbo to be stupid and go faster 😎 With a leaking header it made 405 at the wheels and destroyed my stock clutch. I then wasted my money on an Exedy Hyper Carbon Twin Disc Clutch. Biggest mistake and waste of money ever as after the 1000 mile break in all it would do is slip! As soon as you came into boost at anything over 4th gear it would let the engine go to redline because it couldn’t hold just 405whp 🙁 Exedy said “Oh we have no idea why it slips and you bought it so TS”…BASTARDS!

I then went with a Tilton Twin Disc bronze puck clutch. It held almost too well as it was an on/off clutch. No real ability to slip the clutch out of a light or in traffic. It eventually failed in that a disc lost the splines in one hub. However, Tilton sent a new clutch to replace the failed one that went bad after 10,000 miles. Again Exedy sucks avoid them at all costs!

Anyway now that I had a clutch that would hold and a new eBay header that didn’t leak I started upping the boost. Went all the way to 32psi and we did a road tune to diagnose why it was claiming miss fires with the CEL light at intermittent times? The timing was backed down and the knock sensor was tuned out of the picture but, it would still flash the CEL light?

Then since it has a JDM ECU that does not read ODB2 for inspection, I parked it for a year and half in a parking lot. Eventually, I got a letter in the mail telling me to get this unregistered car out of the lot. It wouldn’t start for some reason now? Seems whatever is in the gas these days ate the rubber hose in the fuel tank 😯

So now that I towed it out to the garage it is at now and replaced the Fuel Pump. It’s time to figure out what this engine noise is and most likely rebuild the engine…

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