Help need ideas

[00tegrity]

Hey Ive had an integra for about 18 months and just got a 2002 subaru wrx. I am lookin for possible upgrades to it but not sure what to do. Not realy familar with the all wheel drive. Also I was hopin to get any helpful tips on drivin and maintain the car from ppl who have had on a while.

[freakray]

Did you look through the FAQ?

[SabreKhan]

Tires (not necessarily wheels), sway bars, endlinks, UP, DP, exhaust (not intake), cleared headlights, tower braces, V-brace, camber settings, toe settings, ECU, turbo, headers, control arms, brakes, intercooler, hood scoop, etc, etc, etc. The WRX is infinitely upgradable. How much money are we talking? What applications? What SCCA class do you want to be in? Is it a street-rod or a racecar? Help us help you.

[00tegrity]

Sorry bout my vagueness i have looked through the faq and got a little bit. Like the part about the intake. I am lookin at about 2k or so i plan to get better tires maybe even switch to the 17' STI rims. What is a good tire for these wheels? Also suspension. I know coil overs and spings are the best way to go for that. How is the STI upgrade is it worth it or should i look aftermarket? Also strutbars what are some decent ones and should i go front and back or do they make that much of a difference. Short throw shifter does it make a difference and should i get the sti version or aftermarket. As far as engine preformance other than exaust i think i will wait on that untill i know more about the WRX, but if there are any minor mods that wont cause me problems. All i am really looking for is some improvements that will improve the cars preformance a little while keeping the drivabiltiy and reliability, relitivly intact.

[lordvektra]

The answers to all your questions have pretty much been answered better than I can answer them, do some searches at www.clubwrx.net and www.nasioc.com. clubwrx is awesome I hang out there a lot, I cant stand posting at nasioc (a lot of a holes) but they do have useful info. Just make sure you com back to AF

[SabreKhan]

ClubWRX.net is a good WRX forum. NASIOC is good for research, but it's too crowded to have a good discussion with people, and its search engine sucks. As for the STi stuff:

STi wheels: There's ongoing debate about wheel size and what's better and what's not. My personal opinion is that the BBS STi wheels look better, but are too expensive and don't enhance performance enough to warrant cost. There's debate as to whether they enhance performance at all (larger rotating inertial mass due not only to greater weight but also weight concentration further to the outside of the rotational body... complicated physics). They provide better grip, but may slow the car down. They do look really cool, though.

Exhaust: I just put a Flowmaster muffler and 3" custom alumized steel pipe cat-back on mine, and it sounds great (save all your crap about the crush bend and the Flowmaster for my other thread, please). It also smooths out the powerband considerably. $200. If you're looking for performance, a straight-through turbo muffler (Magnaflow and others) will work better (I got the Flowmaster because I liked the way it looks better). Another, free exhaust upgrade is to de-cat your up-pipe and down-pipe, though that may make you smog-illegal. I haven't done this, but everybody says it's great.

Short-throw shifter: I got the STi/SPS one, and I love it. The one from Subaru is the one to get, too. Its design leaves the knob at the same height and uses all the stock hardware. It feels great and shifts great, so I'd definitely suggest it. Other short-throws change stuff around, so they could be good, but buyer beware.

Chassis: Get the rear end stiffened up before the front end. Stiffening up the front end will only add more plow. A rear sway bar is the most popular way to do this, but a rear V-brace (strut-tower brace with a piece that connects to the bottom of the car in a V shape... it makes a triangle) will also stiffen it up. You can also get control arms and all sorts of other neat stuff. If you get a swaybar, though, you might want to look into getting upgraded endlinks for it. Whiteline seems to be the most popular company that does this stuff. Greddy and some others make good stuff, too.

Suspension: The STi springs are an upgrade from stock, for sure, but for real performance save up for some good coilovers ($2000 or so). The Prodrive springs are also OK. The suspension on a stock WRX is actually pretty good right out of the box, but it can always use improvement, and Prodrive, STi pinks, and Tein are good stuff.

Here's what I would do with $2000 if I had it:

Turbo-back exhaust: $200-300 for a custom job
Up-pipe clearout: FREE
Whiteline rear sway bar & links: $300
Street wheels & tires: $800
Autocross tires for stock wheels: $200
Gauge pod to replace center clock (Oil temp, EGT, and water temp... I already have a turbo gauge): $400