Hi guys, thought i'd introduce myself, i'm Ant i've just sold my renault 5 turbo and bought myself a very tidy '99 uk spec impreza in silver.

As i know absolutely nothing about scoobys as yet what can you guys tell me?

I'd like to eventually end up with a engine that pushes out around 350bhp, cause after driving my heavily modded gt turbo around for the last 5 years i feel the scoob just doesn't have the same grunt as that does at the moment.

i've got a decat pipe on order as the car already had a cat back stainless zorst fitted already, it also has an k&n induction kit and thats it for the engine as far as i know, whats next for relatively cheap tuning? can i turn the boost up on std injectors etc..?

 

What i can tell you is, if you'd have stuck girl in your title you would of had over a page of replys.

 

lol..seems to be the way on most forums mate..lol

 

Hi

Welcome.

Unfortunately there is no cheap way to get to 350 on a UK car. You're looking at the following:

1) Loose the induction kit, MY99s have notoriously weak MAFs that tend to give up when induction kits are fitted
2) 350 is well beyond the cabability of the Std Turbo, you'll need something like a TD05. I believe larger capacity injectors too and an uprated fuel pump, possibly an uprated regulator in addition to the full decat exaust
3) You'll need a remap e.g. Ecutek
4) At that power, the std clutch will give up the ghost, budget for a organic replacement from Exedy or AP (clutch change on a scooby is a 4-5 hour job)
5) Also expect the transmission to need upgrading IMHO, if you're very gentle it may last, but I wouldn't expect longevity at 350bhp.
6) You'll also need to budget for, a knocklink to monitor any det, a boost guage and an oil pressure and temp guage would also be a good idea.

Good luck, start saving!

If you lower your aspiations to 270-280bhp, you can do that for about 1k with a full decat and remap. Beyonf that, it starts to get expensive!

You'd do well to consult the respected tuners on here: Bob Rawle at BRdevelopments or Andy Forrest at Andy forrest Performance, Paul Blaine (sp?) at Zen performance Simon (posts as Jolly Green Monster on here).

NS04

 

cheers mate, i knew the 350bhp wouldn't come cheap or easily but it's where i'd like to eventually end up i hope..

another thing and 1 of the 1st things i really wanna sort out is the brakes..in my opinion they are absolutely crap..so i've either got a problem with them or are they just crap? any good upgrades to go for? bigger discs better pads and braided lines or is it the calipers that aren't too good?

 

Welcome mate,

I'm guessing you've got the 4 pot calipers (MY99, stamped with subaru) right? Pads and discs should see quite a big improvement. The brakes haven't really been the scoobs strong point.

 

Std 4 pots are a powerful caliper if a little heavy. The pads tend to let the side down a bit. Can be easily remedied by switching to Something like Pagid Blacks, or Ferredo DS2500. The std OE dics are fine for road use, grooved jobbies more for show than anything in this application.

There are numerous big brake kits available for the Impreza, the best are APs. How big are your wheels? Figure on £1200 upwards for 4pot 308mm kits to fit under 16inch rims to £1600 for the 6 pot monsters that require at least 17inch rims.

TBH unless you're doing circuit work, a brak upgrade of that magnitude is a bit OTT though.

NS04

 

yes i've got the ones stamped with subaru, apparently its got new discs all round, might invest in some decent pads then..as at the moment these brakes scare me big time as all they seem to do is slow you down rather than stop you!

 

To be honest m8, if your looking to upgrade the brakes and not empty your wallet ,
I'd recommend that you change the oe discs and pads for EBC Discs (Turbo Groove) and red-stuff ceramic pads (found here.. http://www.ebc-brakes.co.uk/). The pads may wear out a bit quicker than the oe items (15k against 20k) but they have excellent feel, fade resistance and stopping power. And hardly any brake dust either!

 

yea i used to use the green stuff pads on my gt turbo with a set of big discs and it stopped really really well..

 

There you go then m8, but I don't think EBC make or advise green stuff for the impreza. Spending 400 pounds instead of 1700 sounds good to me!