Hi everyone,

Just managed to blag an 03 WRX on the company car scheme.
Desperate to make some mods, so looking for advice and where to start !

Only criteria is to make sure that anything i do won't visually impact the car too much and would be easily "untuneable" as the lease company (and my company) will toast me otherwise !!

Cheers in advance,
Soss

 

PPP!

 

Or stage 3!

 

Ha ha - very funny !!!

I was thinking of something a bit more subtle and affordable, especially as i'll never own it, just got the pleasure of driving around someone else's car for 3 years !!

 

Why are you so desperate to modify it? If you've only just got it it's not even properly run in yet!

Tricky situation. The only things that won't put the warranty into uncharted territory are things you can buy from a Subaru dealer - like the PPP.

Buying demountable tune-up bits you can take off easily is fine in theory, but if your car ever breaks down and gets trailered to a dealer before you get the chance to take them off, you could be in the sh*t. If it's the company's car, I'd leave it as is, or, as previously mentioned, go with the PPP.

 

Give it afew months of pleasure, then get it TEK'd. They'll never know

 

Where's the bloody fun in that then

Fair enough, but there must be some standard mods. e.g. airfilter, down pipe etc.

cheers

 

full exhaust, easy to reverse and sell on too, panel filter is easy too - mind your insurance though

 

It was a full exhaust that had an owner doing his load here a few weeks ago. Car had died and AA had taken it straight to Scooby dealer - with full decat system still on...

Don't think we heard how it ended...

 

I have a feeling that i heard about that too grease. (From the chief mechanic at the dealer in question) It wasnt pretty, VERY VERY expecsive in the end so i am told.

 

If you start doing little mods they will add up,especially the exhaust.Get the PPP it will cost 1600 squid and it will make your WRX faster than any 03 STI without PPP.You know it makes sense
1600 divided by 3= 533 squid per year....divided by 52= 10 squid a week...Makes sense.
Powerman

 

Lol! The PPP on a standard WRX does not make the car "faster than any non-PPP STi". All it does is make the car quicker in the synthetic 0-60 benchmark, and the only reason it's quicker is because the STi needs an extra gearchange.

In all "real" respects the standard STi is a quicker, more capable car than the WRX PPP. Not only is it more powerful, it also has better transmission, suspension, and considerably better brakes.

 

Try a wheel change ! makes a big different(from that graphite/grey alloy) .Keep the originals ,then sell em on after ,SORTED

[Edited by jimmy wrx - 9/18/2003 8:04:39 PM]

 

straight through exhaust and wheels

 

And the fact they are both approx 260bhp and the STi weighes 75kgs more .

 

WRX PPP

Power = 260bhp

Weight = 1395kgs

STi

Power = 261bhp

Weight = 1470kgs


My calculated figures bhp/1000kgs

WRX PPP = 186.4bhp/1000kgs

STi = 177.6bhp/1000kgs

 

sossage:

Cosmetic Gentle Mods

Side Strips, Mini Sill Spoilers, Colour Coordinated Sills and Stainless Steel Threshold Strips.

 

Asked the same a few weeks ago and went for Scooby sport Center section and back box, with pagid discs and pads. Car picks up a lot better, 5-10 mph faster at known points on way home but the brakes !!! WHOOOA everything flys off the seats including kids. Only slight misdemeanour from Scooby sports.
Previously changed air filter with no real difference to performance

 

Greasemonkey sounds like youve got an STI and can't bear the fact that a WRX could and might be bit quicker and if like you say the 0 to 60 are benchmark figures then you must be the only person that disagrees with them,every car mag that I have read use the 0-60 or 0-62 figures?...Handling well that might be the downfall but then that depends on the drivers ability to take it to the limit and both cars are very capable....
Powerman

 

To be honest even though a WRX PPP has a better PTW ratio than a standard STi I would have the STi and save for the PPP kit as the STI package is better IMHO.

 

Cheers for all the advice, i agree with getting some uprated brakes, although the thought of a 10 stone bullmastiff hitting me in the back of the head doesn't bear thinking about !!

Cheers.
Soss.

 

The mods you could make are TEK2 + Dawes manual boost controller. The car would feel at least 20-30% quicker with perhaps at least 15-20% increase in BHP/torque – that’s around 260-270 BHP, which on the road would almost be equivalent to a standard STi.

* TEK2 – Pro’s, "virtually" undetectable. Cons, I don’t like the idea of an ECU “exchange” as I’m sure the dealers know (or can find out from manufacturer) which serial numbers of each ECU are fitted to cars. You can actually get your own ECU “fixed” (reprogrammed) or pay for a new ECU which you get TEK’ed.

* Dawes MBC – Pro’s, exploits the car’s over engineering with regard to boost fuelling and ignition. Personally I’d keep the boost under the factory set fuel cut. Takes about 3 mins to remove and replace with original vacuum pipe. Con’s, owner needs to fully understand the effect this device has on his/her car and ensure they use the correct instruments when configuring it up and setting the target boost.
-Steve.

[Edited by stevecrisp - 9/22/2003 1:10:49 PM]

 

I'll step in before Greasemonkey replies! As a relative newcomer (3 months)and of course IMHO, he's one of the MORE knowledgeable Scoobynetters and is generally unbiased. The 0-60mph is an abritrary figure - not how the car really performs - but more about pub arguements. If it's userability/flexibility go WRX PPP (I have) if it's outright performance./handling STi* no arguement.

As for the original thread - surely tampering with your company motor could work out v expensive i.e. no job!? Better perhaps to leave as it is and spend the money on track days, especially as someone else paying for the tyres...!

 

I'm going to sound boring here, buy why mod a company car if you can't / won’t tell them about it?

Not only will your warranty be knackered should anything happen and you can't reverse the change before the dealer gets it, but your insurance will be void also. If you have void insurance you'll be done for gross misconduct and be sacked.

If you want to mod, have the ***** to ask for the change to be approved by your company - they may let you have a PPP if you say you'll pay for it. It'll be worth more when it's sold so your company will benefit perhaps from lower payments (if hired) or higher residuals (if bought). They may even pay for the extra insurance for you.

 

Had a 03-ppp for about 5 months, coverd 12,000 miles in that time, enjoyed the cay very mutch, but i felt it was lacking in some departments.

Test drove a sti-ppp, and bought it, the sti is very drivable, even daily, better brakes , better gear box , better engine, its just a better car all round.

all imho.

chris

 

Simple answer. Divorce the b*tch and find someone a little less hairy!