So i haven't updated this in about 2 years -_-, but I haven't given up on modding the RS.
It's been a rough couple of years (being unemployed SUCKS) but finally getting back on my feet is allowing me to seriously considering buying parts. I decided I don't wanna be cheap about parts, to an extent, because I want my car to be the best it can be. Still deciding whether or not to mod it accordingly to if I should RallyX/AutoX it or just keep it a DD and pick up another car, but I have a strong feeling about this car and do what I can for it. I would like to take it to events, but I need opinions on this subject... Should I just keep it alive and going or can I seriously start competing when the time comes; Do Automatics have racing pedigree?
I've been getting more and more into driving offroad and experimenting different driving methods... powerslides, drifts, Scandinavian flicks, etc. and I'm starting to get a better feel for competitive driving. I've yet to hit any event or go to a track, but I want to make sure I have the confidence to drive quick-witted.
As far as the car goes itself, it's been in good shape. Within the last 3 years, I've been careful with her and kept up with maintenance. Whatever money I was able to spare, I would take her to the Pine Barrens for some fun (and I KNOW that anything can go wrong in a split second, but believe me, I wouldn't go over-the-edge offroading on dirt paths... Not trying to be a Ken Block, but trying to learn better driving). I don't know exactly what I wanna do with this car, but all i know is I want to keep saving and saving, and buy things when I finally realize what I want to do.
NOW ONTO PART STUFF!
Many people are telling me "TURBO TURBO" but I'd like to stay NA and see how far I can get... plus I'm extremely dumb with knowledge on turbos
Now I've watched endless ENDLESS clips of exhausts and exhaust setups on youtube, and as much as I'd love to have a 3" inch pipe exhaust, I don't think it'd be good to have for me. As i go offroad, I hit all types of bumps, jumps, and I believe that the muffler would just eventually snap right off. So for that reason, I'm trying to stay within a reasonable size and light... I've been looking at borla catbacks and am being pretty set on them (If anyone knows something similarish size, please let me know... I wanna have open options). Thinking of also going with borla reps, reason being.. I love that Subaru rumble, I know getting EL headers would give me slightly more HP, but come on, I could never turn away from such an extraordinary noise (with the MS3 HFC). And thus I am leaning towards to this setup (Please give me some feedback, criticism, anything helps)
As for as suspension goes, I'm still quite noobish in this area, haha. Some of my friends are saying go for coilovers, some say get KYB AGXs, I just don't know why they say these things. Just looking at prices, the AGXs look like I can keep an eye on, but coilovers are expensive lol. I need to do a bit more research on this subject and see what fits best, and people also tell me to aim for adjustables. I would need something (for now) to be live-able as a DD and weekend warrior (from time to time) so i'll start researching this carefully.
Exterior wise, Ohmygod... when I first got my car, all I wanted was a Ver5/6 STI wing and that's it LOL. But now, coming to a more useful sense, I might keep it as is. I was thinking of a Panda-look with a CF hood and CF wing (saw this on Bakemono's site) and thought it would look amazing... still considering it, but I'd rather work on performance before I make 'er all pretty. but whatever changes I do, I want to aim to make the car lighter. Also picking up front and rear strut and sway bars, just gotta get the right sizes
Rims, Tires, Seats, Seatbelts, Intake are also common interests but can be waited on.
So this is just about as far as I've gotten, If I buy parts, I plan to buy them as the set (headers, cat, catback or brake pads, calipers, rotors or such). Hopefully I can keep updated with this and will post as things go along (and not again after 2 years lol). If you read this, I thank ya for reading this and if you have any opinion on what should be done first, please let me know!
Thanks guys!
-SanjayP