What should be my first Mod for WRX

Picking up my MY02 WRX Silver Wagon today!

What should be my first modification?

intake, exhaust, or both

after that, go with the up pipe, and down pipes from hks... mad power in those...

Originally posted by Lieuwma
Picking up my MY02 WRX Silver Wagon today!

What should be my first modification? welcome to AF!
enjoy your stay, hope its a long stay at that!
post some pics of your car when you get some.

Originally posted by Lieuwma
Picking up my MY02 WRX Silver Wagon today!

What should be my first modification?

Tires. Period. Pick up a set of Bridgestone RE730s or Kumho Ecstas. This will be the best modification you can make early on. Then, go to autocrosses and track events to squeeze every ounce of power out of the car. Then, once you feel the need to go faster, don't. Upgrade your rear swaybar to 21mm or higher. This will be the second best modification you can make.

Then, go to more autocrosses and track events. After a year or so, then go with exhaust, pipes, etc. But trust me, the WRX has plenty of power. Go with handling mods first and then, once you can corner at the cars limits without killing yourself, start piling on the speed mods.

Here is what happens when you outdrive the crappy RE92s. ;) So trust me on this. Tires are #1. Swaybar is #2. Suspension is #3. Then, intake/exhaust/pipes is #4.

http://www.trunkmonkeyracing.com/Scrapbook/20001022-01/640/20001022-013-camdenautox.jpg

I don't know why they didn't use Pirellis like the WRC car does, but they are the best, IMO.

Trunkmonkeys way is safe. But I like power, (and a rear swaybar makes you oversteer more, not always a desireable trait.) So I would upgrade the suspension and power in equal amounts, with some brake work. Here is my list:

tires
some revised suspension (built to what you want, like coilovers from our friends at Koni)
tougher brake pads and rotors
air intake
exhaust
chip (basically, pump up the boost!)

If you're talking about more power mods, do what is suggested. Intake, exhaust. The next mod you can do for best bang-for-your-bucks is to add a front mounted intercooler. THe top mount is incredibly ineffective and you should be able to pick up a stray 3-5lbs of boost that way and increase power up to 25hp with a good, large front mount. Then chip, brakes, bigger rollas, lowering, bb turbo etc.

In my opinion i would upgrade the fuel system first that way you will be able to add on other power adders in the future. my $.02

But why upgrade the fuel system before you have to? Only do it when you need to, preferably when doing chassis mods, as you will already have removed some stuff that could be in the way.

The WRX runs with 440cc injectors, and I don't think it needs any attention anytime soon. They are good for up to 300hp before they need to be pampered.

I changed my tires to Michellin Pilots. They cost a whole lot more but they grip very nicely. I took the car up to Tahoe this weekend and I was very impressed with the grip in snow and ice. The RE92's are junk.

If you want more power fast, get a boost controller, preferably an electronic one like Apex-i or Blitz. Run a modest 16 psi, and that will keep the turbo happy if you use good engine oil and avoid long WOT.

The Cobbs system is a good upgrade, but it is more complicated and I would stay away from it until the warranty expires. Exhaust and up pipes are both very effective, and the mid-range response is tremendous.

I am not a track person so I find no need to lower and beef the suspension. The chasis is stiff enough as is and I like the way the car behaves the way it is.

First performance mod that you should do straight out is to upgrade the exhaust, it's choking the system. When upgraded, the turbo will kick in at 2500rpms instead of 3000rpms. It really helps in straight line. But after that you should change the tires, stock tires suck ass on the WRX for the kind of performance and hell you're going to put through the car.

Change the tires first, I put on Falken Azenis and they really make a big difference. Of course then you might as well change the wheels :p Safety first! Take your time with the other stuff exhaust/intake etc, the car is powerful as is.

Try cobb tuning (http://www.cobbtuning.com/main.html) for some parts.

bzzzzt

hey trunkmonkey....do you work for Cisco?:)

Originally posted by JimmyOOOOO


Spoken in true rice fashion...

Intake and Exhaust on a WRX are NOT what you want to do first as far as power goes. You want to get a ball & spring MBC from www.dawesdevices.com and set it to 15 psi @ 4000 rpm in 4th gear. Then do the resonator mod. Then get an upipe and lightened underdrive pulley from www.vishnuperformance.com

Second, new tires are a MUST. The RE92s are a hazard.

Third, Do the "Grounding Mod" described HERE (http://i-club.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=141932) . This will make a very noticable difference in the way your car applies power when you hit the gas.

Things to stay away from:

1. Blowoff valve
2. K&N Filter
3. Catback only (full turboback is a good mod)

check out www.-club.com regularly for lots of great WRX info :D

Hey meathead - there is NO rice in what I said. No 'Add some stickers' or 'Get a catback system'. Besides which, a catback system will give you a performance gain (although I am against them) and my package would give much better power for dollar value. Blowoff valves are wank for the sound and lastly performance filters in the factory airbox have given a 4kW gain (dyno) and more when coupled with other breathing mods like exhaust, IC etc.

Lets not get into a discussion on rice. ozriceboy's suggestions were good.

And K&N Filters and full kits are some of the best in the business. A cat back exhuast helps a lot, but you can't neglect the cat itself and all that comes before it.

But all these suggestions are good, I just wish I had a WRX:D

Originally posted by Chris
Lets not get into a discussion on rice. ozriceboy's suggestions were good.

And K&N Filters and full kits are some of the best in the business. A cat back exhuast helps a lot, but you can't neglect the cat itself and all that comes before it.

But all these suggestions are good, I just wish I had a WRX:D

Thankk-you. And agreed bout the WRX thing. We have an Impreza GX, but not a patch on the real ting.

So you guys are saying blow-off valves aren't good?

I thought that the blow-off valves allows boost pressure to be relieved from the intercooler hoses when shifting? Hence the turbo stays spooled?

Someone clear this up?

Reduces turbo lag somewhat.

yes, unless im wrong that is.

Yeah, but the WRX comes standard with a BOV that vents internally.

Am I incorrect in saying the BOV is to relieve the excess pressure created in the intake after the turbo. When upshifting, you release the gas (normally), so less air is being admitted to the cylinder as the revs drop (revs stay down after shift also). But the turbo is still going really fast, pumping a lot of air in. So the air going into the cylinders is now really pressurized. This could cause all kinds of problems, especially the cool breaking-expensive-parts kind.

up pipe, down pipe, Exhaust. Very first mod as far as power goes. Next would be a Boost controller. Not a good idea to up the boost with the stock piping, (if you have the US version) there is a catalytic converter on the up pipe, when the boost is raised its been known to break and send the pieces of the cat into the motor. Bet you can figure out what happens next.

Leave the factory recirculating BOV as it is. If you've never had an aftermarket BOV before, you may be tempted to get one for 'wank' factor but you'll notice the quality of your driving when in the twisties goes down hill.

When you're giving it a bit in the hills/ low speed twisties there are many times when you're holding the throttle at a certain revs in 2nd gear especially, when going through mutiple low gear corners. If you have a BOV venting to the atmosphere it starts venting off boost while you're trying to maintain a certain rpm which makes the car go into a kind or mild 'bunny hop'.

When you recirculate it, it fells like a new car again!


Your first mods on this car should be the same on any other - exhaust and intake.

- And don't forget a boost gauge to compliment you're boost controller when/ if you fit one -

Front mount intercooler would be one of the first couple of mods also. MRT makes really good ones.

The WRX top mount intercooler is actually quite good compared to other top mounts. I'd stick with it unless your upping the boost a lot or changing to a bigger turbo - not that a front mount wouldn't be better.

Tires first. Subaru does not put the best tires on your car. Maybe Ferrari puts the absolute best tires on their cars, so when you drive off the lot, you have the best you can get. But all the other companies are trying to cut corners.

The tires are the only part of the car that touches the road, so it is the biggest area of improvement. Once you have that sorted, then you can know what you need to do next for your specific needs.

Cmotif <><

VERY VERY GOOD POINT.

Too many people write off their calls, because they have lots of power and carppy tires to put it to the ground.

u should jus get rims mang

GAUGES

driving class? mod that follows you forever...

In the July 2003 Import tuner they did a power pages on it. By adding an Invidia cat back, Invidia downpipe, and an Invidia header they gained 15 hp and 25 lbs. All for $2497, a bit pricey, but it shows the WRX could use some freeing up in the exhaust area.

really?
you are in IL, I would love to see you spank every single WRX in the winter with your lousy FWD no LSD srt-4...

http://www.scoobymile.com/
where are you in this chart???

[QUOTE]Originally posted by EJ20
[B]really?
you are in IL, I would love to see you spank every single WRX in the winter with your lousy FWD no LSD srt-4...


The snow is the only thing that will help you, and if that is what you need to have the ONLY chance in hell to win then I will be more than happy to run you in the snow. And yes I am in IL. If you think you are man enough to run in normal conditions bring it and I will own your ass!

Originally posted by hydro628
[QUOTE]Originally posted by EJ20
[B]really?
you are in IL, I would love to see you spank every single WRX in the winter with your lousy FWD no LSD srt-4...


The snow is the only thing that will help you, and if that is what you need to have the ONLY chance in hell to win then I will be more than happy to run you in the snow. And yes I am in IL. If you think you are man enough to run in normal conditions bring it and I will own your ass!

I don't know if you were aware of this, but going to other section of the car forums and flaming other makes is pretty bad for the lifespan of your membership here on AF.

On another note, the SRT may beat the stock WRX, but it has nothing on the STI, so Dodge's top-of-the-range only beats Subaru's second from top.....sucks dunnit.....:loser:

you try and buy a stl for 20 gs if you do then ill screw my tallpipe

My first time in this forum...Maybe I should stop by more often though...

Guys, the bullshit ends HERE. hydro you're already on thin ice. The rest of you cool it immediately. Cut out the nonsense, or at least get it off the boards. Swap AIM s/ns or something if you feel the need to continue the worthless bickering, I could care less what you do in your free time. but your time spent on AF is also my time and all of the other members' time, and we won't have you wasting it...Or bandwidth.