I have a 1.8l and i got beat by a zx2 escort sport the other day (damn old ladies think there hot ****!) i need some horsepower, but i dont really know what to do with out spending 2000 for a turbo that will prolly just twist my drive shaft or something bad like that. =( i am a subbie newbie in need of help.

 

New intake- custom CAI is the cheapest, but not easiest way to go I have a sort of short ram CAI with my custom built heat shield for cold air. Big difference.

Full exhaust. Borla header, stromung high flow cat (~$570-600 for both) Get a shop to finish the cat back for you- hundreds less than name brand, same sound/performance and they install it for you Sound is unmatced by any N/A vehicle on the road, IMHO.

Then get into pullies, crower cams and fuel system if you're a die-hard 1.8er like me and want to go all out. Wish there were more of us...

I'll take a stock 2.2 Suby any day but that 2wd will almost always beat you throgh the low gears until you have at least 20 more HP than it, at the crank. AWD does affect power delivery so you just need to make your motor a beast...these 1.8s are some of the best engines Subaru made so you'll have a blast fixing it up if you're serious about it- and if you ever blow it up, you can find 'em from a junker for less than $500 usually so have a blast and keep us informed...

 

So The exhaust will have to be custom? Like take it to a shop and say "i want big headers and 2.5 inch from front to back"? If i can buy the pre built hearders what is the part number or will a 98rs rated header be compatiable with my 95 1.8? As for the pulleys should i get perrin, unorthadox and what should i get them for all the pulleys under the hood or just the drive pulley? And where would i get these? Sorry for asking so many questions its just i want to know as much as i can.

 

http://www.stromung.com/subaru/price1.htm

Cat-Back, get the intermediate pipe and the rear muffler, dual or single tip. It's expensive but one of the best...or you can go to a shop and have them do it. I don't know where to get pulley's that's my next mod...

 

The crank pully does the most- others are good with u/d pullies since they shrink down the other pullies to keep the rotations (RPM) closer to the stock numbers- a dealership should have them, if they are mod friendly. A pully search will help decide

Logoguy- get the name brand header- Borla, Cobb, Brullen, TWE and cat- Random Tech., Stromung, Catco and then have a shop finish it- 2.25 should be all you need- 2.5 prolly won't give any more usable power unless you had cams or something for way up high. Won't hurt though...

 

I knew someone (Chad) who had a 1.8l Impreza, and he built a custom turbo kit for it using a WRX turbo, Saab intercooler, and custom up/down pipes. Nifty little setup, but it still only got him up to where a 2.5RS runs stock. But if that's good enough for you, maybe try that. You can get all the parts pretty cheap, too. Check out www.uniquemotorsports.com , that's Chads page, has all the stuff he did with his, parts list, and the custom up/down pipes. I actually am in the (slow) process of doing this kit on my car.