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Bryan's First GC build

10K views 25 replies 10 participants last post by  Spec R 
#1 ·
Hi guys! So I've already introduced myself in the introduction section but I guess here I'll go a little more in depth with my new 2000 RS. I guess I should start off saying that this is my first GC chassis and before I bought this I had a 2005 Legacy GT Limited Wagon as well as many other cars mostly Hondas, Nissan, and Toyota. I bought this car back in July of 2016 and the previous owner had already done a few cool things to the car. I'd love to take credit for most of the work but I cant and to be honest, the previous owner didn't want to sell it to me.

The body is absolutely rust free and was found over in California. From what I can tell is that it has been resprayed in the Blue Ridge Pearl (I'd rather have a white one) but the blue is growing on me. The owner had blown 2 head gaskets and so bought a newish motor rebuilt with OEM spec internals and such as well as sourcing a JDM Version 3/4 STi 5spd (non R/RA version). The body and rest of the exterior featured a JDM rear bumper with rear spats, GC8 front lip, and GC8 side skirts, JDM tails, two sets of corner lights (both orange and clear as well as fender signal lights) and an STi muffler.

The cars suspension is lightly modified featuring bugeye from and rear aftermarket sway bars, STi strut tower bar, Cusco rear strut bar, and raceland coilovers.

Interior is VERY clean. It's mostly stock but he installed a shift light for when he AutoX'd back in Cali.

The body has now just over 214,xxx miles and the engine and trans with around 80K.
 

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#3 ·
That weekend I wasted no time and painted the stock wheels a sort of bronze color. I wasn't exactly worried about the tires on them because I honestly believe they're a second hand Chinese brand and they were God awfully loud but they'll be good for winter setup or spares.

I don't think I actually too photos of the bronze setup but it's on my Instagram (@bmeyers90).

After selling the legacy I had quite a bit of money left over for new wheels and tires. I've had many heavy replica wheels on all my past cars but I want to go in a performance direction with this car because why wouldn't you??? I really wanted RPF1's but I feel like everyone and their brother runs them but I still wanted a lightweight wheel. I finally came across the Konig Hypergrams, and I'll be the first one to say that I would never own a set of Konig's before this because realistically they were ugly, heavy abominations. In fact I had a set on a 97 Acura CL that I bought 5 years ago (would eventually be the worst car investment I have ever made).

These Hypergrams are unique. They're sorta of a mix of several different wheels combined into one, and in the specs I wanted could clear BB calipers and were decently lightweight. I ordered the 17x8 +45 in the Matte gray and they only weigh 16-17lbs. I wrapped them in my second set of Falken Pro G4's, an all season tire that I ran on my Legacy. I love these tires because they don't wear very fast and the fairly sticky. I went with 235/45s but only because I wasnt able to fit 245s.

I received my wheels a week before my trip to Road Atlanta for Gridlife, which btw I would've loved to had participated in but my goal for the car is to track it next year.

IMG_7824 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
IMG_7823 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr

And currently how it sits right now. I still have plenty of thread left to go on the coilovers but I kinda like where it sits right now.
IMG_7829 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
 
#4 · (Edited)
September 30th - October 2nd, 2016:

So not a whole lot of updates to the car but my wishlist is very lengthy. This weekend I took my first trip to the Tail of the Dragon at Deals Gap, NC. I have lived in NC all my life and since I've had my license I had never been there. I went with the Gensport guys (Hyundai Genesis guys/girls) and I had an absolute blast, but, I realized after coming down the skyway that I needed brakes. I mean I knew I needed brakes before I went up there but as my brakes faded towards the bottom of the mountain I kinda figured I should go ahead and order some when I get back home.

The car handled surprisingly well. There's still a little body roll but it's manageable and the tires did decent. I will definitely be getting some Hankook RS3's next year for the extra grip!

IMG_9728 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
IMG_9742 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
IMG_9748 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr

A couple shots from the top of the damn
IMG_9738 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
Fontana Dam, NC by BTM Graphix, on Flickr

And a last day photo shoot with my friend Tiffany's 3.8 Genesis
IMG_9770 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
 
#5 ·
So the past two weeks since I came back from the mountains I've been researching brake ideas. I cant afford STi brembos, every time I find a great deal on WRX 4 POTs they sell when I have no money, and I was close to pulling the trigger on the ATS brembo conversion but at the end of the day it's almost as expensive as the STi swap. So Saturday morning (10-15-16) I went ahead and bought the Powerstop brake kit. It features drilled and slotted rotors front and rear and Evolution Z23 carbon ceramic pads. I will try and do the install tomorrow or Friday before the weekend and then start "braking" them in...haha get it...alrighty.

20161019_212301 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
20161019_212327 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
20161019_212424 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
20161019_212411 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
20161019_212347 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
20161019_212334 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
20161019_212432 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
20161019_212444 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
20161019_212519 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
20161019_212456 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr

I have already ordered Stoptech SS lines but not sure when they will arrive.
 
#7 ·
Rotors and pads got installed today and I definitely notice a huge improvement. They're smooth and quiet and install went pretty smooth without much trouble.

Rotors are Powerstop and pads are Z23 Evolution carbon ceramic sport pads. The complete kit came with stainless shims and new rubber pin boots (which I opted not to use and instead keep if my old ones become damaged)

I also went ahead and ordered my new clutch kit for the 5spd. Back during Gridlife I won a certificate from the guys at Super Street and Spec Clutches. The certificate entitled me to any single disc kit of my choosing, so I went with the Stage 2+ rated for 450 tq. I also ordered the ACT streetlite flywheel, new shifter linkage to fix the slop in my shifter, and also really considering the Cobb short shifter and bushings. I rocked a torque solutions SS in my legacy and I've just gotta have one in this car.
 

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#11 ·
Clutch got here on Friday. These guys got this thing to me fast. They shipped it out Tuesday! Anyway here it is. Model is SU003H (pull style clutch) for my V4 STi 5spd. Stage 2+ rated for 450ft-lbs. Now just waiting on the flywheel, linkage, and Cobb ss.

20161027_184027 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
20161027_184806 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
20161101_221516 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
20161101_221521 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
20161101_221525 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
20161101_221613 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
 
#15 ·
So I started talking to the guys over at Rally-Tech and they offered me a partial sponsorship. I ordered their P1 style fog kit as well as the weighted tubular shift knob. They also have a lot of nice aero modifications that I'll most likely order down the road. Im pretty excited for them to come in considering im still driving around without fogs -__-
 
#18 ·
Today I got my stuff in from Rally-Tech. New weighted knob is already noticeable and will have the P1 style fog covers and front bumper repainted in one shot to make everything even a nice. Will have nicer shots in a few days.

Will be doing the clutch job as well as the new linkage sometime after the holidays and Im looking for a new shift boot cause my current is fugly

20161220_001307 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
 
#22 · (Edited)
Here's a few shots from our "snow" day
Snow/Ice Day by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
IMG_3264 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
IMG_3083 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr
IMG_3260 by BTM Graphix, on Flickr

So clutch was finally put in last night. Was unable to get it done last week because of "bad weather" but it is what it is. I gotta say I already love everything. Upon review the stock clutch that came with the V4 trans was very close to failing, so really any longer driving on it would've been terrible.

I was a little worried the Stage 2+ would be a little much for daily driving but after driving it for awhile it doesnt seem like it'll be a hassle, especially after the break in time.

The turn in Concepts linkage feels like night and day. It completely changed the geometry of how it use to feel...has sort of a short shifter-esque feel to it and was a huge improvement.
 
#25 ·
Question about the wheels particularly Konig Hypergrams

I am think of running the Konig Hypergrams in 17x9 +40mm offset on my 99 GC8 with full 04 STI drivetrain swap. Just not sure if there will be clearance issues with rubbing the fenders. I know you only have the 17x8 but wanted to know how flush is it with your fenders. Thank you.
 
#26 ·
I am think of running the Konig Hypergrams in 17x9 +40mm offset on my 99 GC8 with full 04 STI drivetrain swap. Just not sure if there will be clearance issues with rubbing the fenders. I know you only have the 17x8 but wanted to know how flush is it with your fenders. Thank you.
I rubbed bad with 18x7.5 +35 and 225/40/18. I cant imagine 17x9 +40 being much better.
 
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