Yesterday, had a new set of tyres, uprated whiteline rear ARB and steel drop links fitted. Also had the geometry re-set to Prodrive settings.

Thanks to Dave @ Gatwick Group for the work; great service as always, and a shiny clean car afterwards.

First off, that's a few things all at once, so it's not easy to say which change did what. But I'll try!

Tyres first; chose another set of Bridgestone RE050. These suit my needs fine; they are very predictable wet and dry and last for ages (!). The WRX is my everyday transport, and needs to be good at everything. The old set were pretty much knackered, so I'm sure I'll really notice the new ones when it's wet. Enough about tyres (although when they were brand new and waxy they were great fun!).

The car has the Prodrive spring kit, which at the time of fitting (including geometry) made a great difference. However, I still did not like the (albeit greatly reduced) understeer characteristics.

The ARB has transformed the handling. The front end seems to grip much more, in fact the steering feels slightly more solid (this may be more to do with the geometry changes though).

I'm not going to explore the handling envelope too much on the road in general; too much traffic/idiots/plod/problems and I'm too scared/sensible/wet! Having said that, I feel roundabouts are fair game for a bit of fun; you can see what's coming, the surface is generally constant, and there's a bit of run-off etc. Keeping an eye on the fuel level of course...

So now I can corner much faster, and when the front starts to wash out it is really easy to provoke lift-off oversteer which brings the front end back in line, ready for more power. There's plenty of margin for error, and it never feels like's it's about to bite. I don't drive for lap times, so this is proper fun for me. I must've been grinning like a fool.

Turning sharply (90 degrees ish) at low-ish speeds also now feels much better, with much improved body roll.

All in all, the arb/links have improved the scoob even more. For what you get out of it, it's a very cheap upgrade. I think it's made the car more fun and safer at the same time.

I even found myself saying 'this is the last mod'.

But of course there's the brakes. Oh, and maybe a sub in the boot. Not sure about the anti-lift kit either. etc.