I know there are many threads about this, but I thought I would ask based on what my needs are --
to date this is the order of my mods
1 - window tints
2 - fog light covers (1st month I had the car a rock broke one of me foglights
3 - kartboy short shift kit with brushings
4 - rear adj sway bar
5 - kartboy rear end links
6 - accessport (still waiting for it...)

As you can tell I am trying to keep it warrenty friendly (it's my 1st new car).
So I know the typical answers -- 1st you will say tires, but I want to use the stock ones up 1st, then will look into 17's and some good rubber.
Uppipe and turbo back exhast - but I really don't want to get a tix for removing the cats and have to worry about smog and things like that. plus I am kinda a greeny and already use way too much gas and the WRX is only LEV, so I hate to pollute more than I need to -- at least till this becomes my seconds car in a few years...
I like the stock height, don't want it lowered, like the idea of offroading.
How do 17's look with stock height, fender gaps tacky?

with that being said, what are some ideas for some reasonably priced mods...
I was thinking -- front swaybar and links? Spings? pully? Speakers? Cat back? brakes? (are they worth it for street driving?)

I have never autox, but may sometime in the future... this is my only car and I drive 96 miles a day (ouch)... mostly for nice windy roads and freeway onramps...

Besides tires, what is the next WRX weakness to address? Ideas are very much welcomed and thanks for your input in advance.

 

high performance driving school mod, perhaps?

the mod that follows you for life...

 

Well, you said you don't want to lower the car, so springs might not be the best way to go. I had 17s with the stock ride height, and at the time I didn't mind it, but now that my car is lowered a bit, I really hate the way it looked before

A good spring (for both handling, quality and the fact that it really doesn't lower your car much) is the STi pink spring. I have these and they're great. I still take speedbumps and steep driveways pretty fast - no scraping yet and I've had them over a month.

For increased handling and no lowering, maybe you could find some after market struts that will work well for you. That should stiffen up the ride a little. Try the KYB AGX struts - they're great for street driving.


If you wanted to stay stock looking and mostly legal, you could check out the Borla Hush cat back exhaust. Or maybe replace your up-pipe. Stereo and speakers would be a good way to go too, but I'd rather have performance over tunes

 

upgrade your brakes. Get a catback if u want to hear the boxer rumble a bit more.

 

Driving school -- that's a good idea, since I have no professional driving experience.
You like to STI springs? that's a good idea, as well as struts, how much did the STI springs set you back installed?

Brakes, for street driving, do you find upgraded brakes really made a difference?

Also, cat back gains are small right? just a sound mod?

Uppipe removes a cat, so I am a bit nervous about it...

 

for just plain old street driving or spirited street driving I'd say you don't need a big brake kit like brembos or anything.

But a big improvement can be had by just doing say.....ss lines, brake pad. Maybe some nice rotors.

I plan to do this in the future myself. You can do good pads and brake lines for around $200. Get some good fluid while you're in there.

I'd say get a cat back.

And wheels even though you mentioned them yourself....they will be one of the biggest things you do both for appearance and handling.

I keep hearing good things about the STI pinks. On that note the pinks are different to the stock STi springs.

I am thinking of doing pinks or prodrives on my wagon. I drive in the snow and like to get crazy in it if you look at my gallery picks so I don't want to be too low either. haaa.

 

If you jus remove one cat you will still pass smog with ease! Removing 2 cats you will still pass smog I believe. The wrx has 3 cats, if you get pulled over a cop would look if your running catless I believe not if you took off some cats. A cop more than likely will not even know if you take one off (which I recomend doing the uppipe), but as far as your next mod goes I say springs, wrx gap is way to big! and if your looking to keeping your warranty I dont see u getting too far. Maybe just slapping on a few things for looks.

Maybe if you turn to performance and dont know what to do you should follow maybe some performance packages set ups, vishnu has stage sub zero 1, 2
Turbo XS has like stage 1-4
Then cobb has a few packages, and vendors like suby dude are comming out with there performance packages.

 

Wrong, you can't tamper with anything considered to be emissions equipent. Basically anything other than a catback is emissions quipment. Removing any one cat is grounds for a ticket to the ref.

 

Yea true but if you change your up pipe, the odds of a cop knowing that would be probably 0.00005%, and if you remove your up pipe you will still be able to pass smog.

 

Get yourself a JDM STi uppipe then. Looks like a stock uppipe, but is catless. Smog refs will never know.

Get yourself a black set of Samco Intercooler hoses after the uppipe. And a dual tip catback exhaust, so its cop friendly. Then maybe a MBC and a boost gauge. The MBC can be uninstalled in minutes and you can go back to looking stock. You can also get a reflash on you ECU, and Subaru will never know.

Kurlee Daddee
(THE ORIGINAL)

 

^^^ all for that too.

 

Cool, you guys gave me some good ideas... I figure in a few years when I can make my WRX my weekend driver or 2nd car I can do a full TBE and COBB stage 2.
For now I am thinking uppipe as suggested, they say intercooler hoses are good for 5-10hp alone?
Then when I burn through these RE92's I can get some good rubber and maybe wheels.

Brake lines - I can install brake pads, but are the actual line difficult to do with little experience?

Question -- with a stock car, it is worth doing the COBB stage 1 accessport? or should one really wait for the TBE?

 

yeah, cuz once you get the TBE, you can reflash it to stage 2.