THSCC Forums

Here is the setup on my 2000 2.5RS. I decided to post it here, since my AT&T account is going away, and the file I've posted there has been deleted, and since so many people are getting older Imprezas for rallyx. The car handles better than ever on dirt and is easier to drive quickly and precisely than it's ever been, so if you want to know for sure that it's not the car that's slowing you down, just clone it. Feel free to post questions or your experience with other parts, too.

EDIT: I'VE CHANGED A FEW MORE THINGS, AND IT'S EVEN BETTER NOW. SEE BELOW IN BOLD...

Whiteline anti-lift kit – helps the front end follow the contour of the ground & maintains traction under deceleration and acceleration

2004 USDM STi struts and 2007 WRX springs – cheap, great damping, spring rate is softer than the STi springs I had on there, so it doesn't bounce around in the slower stuff anymore and the springs add about 1/2" of ground clearance/ bump travel, close enough to stock design to work (with minor modifications) on the RS & other older Imprezas, decent on the street (a little bouncy on I-40 but fine on back roads and other interstate highways such as 64 and 95).

Eibach camber bolts added to front strut lowest mounting point, full negative camber with factory bolts and added bolts, zero toe – maintains camber when cornering, which keeps the tread – not the sidewall - on the ground

Eibach camber bolts added to rear strut upper hub mounting location at full negative camber; the STi struts add + 1° of camber in the rear, so these take them back to approximately where they were with the stock bolts

17mm rear anti-roll bar from 07 WRX – not too big to allow independent suspension travel but much less roll on the street than with stock 13mm bar; just the right size for rotation into and out of tighter corners. Testing on hard-packed high speed sweepers showed better rotation with a slightly larger (20mm) bar, but in the tighter stuff the larger bar made it rotate less - and the tighter stuff is more important.

SuperPro polyurethane steering rack bushings – minimizes side-to-side movement of steering rack when changing direction

STi Group N engine & transmission mounts + pitch stop – removes almost all slop experienced when applying/ lifting off throttle

DIY rear diff support bushings – reduce clunking of rear diff when applying & lifting off throttle

Kartboy shifter bushings (front and rear of shifter) – more precise shifting

DIY cold air intake with K&N filter in stock filter box

the Magnecor spark plug wires expired and were replaced with OEM at half the price

stromung midpipe with 05 Forester XT axle-back – better sound (but quiet on the highway) and a few hp (?)

Subaru 4-piston front calipers (the gray ones) with Hawk HPS pads – great feel, great braking

Hawk HP+ pads in rear – more aggressive than front pads for more rear bias

Rocker switch on dash to turn off ABS – and unlike the WRX, the RS ABS can be turned off and back on while the car is still running

03 WRX front seats – lots more support, but they could be a lot lighter and slightly lower. CG Lock installed on driver’s seat

Rally Armor mud flaps – protect the paint from rocks and stuff

Skidplate made by Keith Vail, traded from Brian Herring – covers the oil pan

Lightweight bumper beams, ordered through Southern States Imports (a club supporter) - total of about 50 lbs off the car if you change both

Exedy performance clutch and ACT lightweight flywheel - 14 lbs vs. 26 lbs for OEM

Odyssey PC625 battery - 23 lbs lighter than the stock battery

Raceline RL-7’s with 195/65/15 Kumho R700 rally tires for rallycross and 2000 2.5RS wheels with 205/55/16 Avon Tech M550 A/S street tires for daily driving and playing around in the dirt (they also make great S04 class rallyx tires).

So that's why you're so fast!

Can you share with us the best places to get all this stuff?

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Mike Whitney
whit32@gmail.com, 919-454-5445
V10, V8, V8t, I6, I6, V6, F4t, I4, I4, I4, I4, I2, 1, 1

No.

I'm glad I printed all of it off before you deleted it then.

Thanks for sharing you info so freely Kevin. Most of the fast guys (nationally, not locally) aren't be that open about their set up. I plan on doing most of that to my Impreza over time.

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Todd Breakey
STS 42 - 1992 Sunburst Miata
Dammit!
"You souldn't play leap frog with a porcupine. You might get hurt." - Eliza

Can I have your car? I'll give you a quarter for it.

Don't say I never gave ya nothin

http://www.nogumracing.com/whitney/RS_rallyx_setup.doc

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Mike Whitney
whit32@gmail.com, 919-454-5445
V10, V8, V8t, I6, I6, V6, F4t, I4, I4, I4, I4, I2, 1, 1

That right there is the reason Kevin is so fast. He had the ultra trick KVM skid plate on there. Only that one is black not the uber cool yellow one on the Legacy.

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2010 Honda Fit Sport
Couple of bicycles

Most of the new stuff I got from www.boxer4racing.com

The used stuff was either from nasioc classifieds, or I heard about it from somebody who heard about it from somebody else, or I took it off of another car I own or something.

The STi Group N bushings and drivetrain mounts are the cheapest from www.rallispec.com and are usually in stock.

The rocker switch for the ABS was purchased from Lowe's (switch) and Pepboys (fuseholder & wiring).

The total for all of this stuff is ~ $3000, btw - which includes the unnecessary but very pimpy $800 brake upgrade.

If I was asked to recommend springs & struts to someone who hasn't gotten them yet, and this person wanted to daily drive the car, I'd recommend getting the STi springs like I have, but instead of getting the 04 STi struts, I'd say get a set of KYB AGXes that are made for the 02-03 WRX. Similar damping, more travel and ride height than the 93-01 AGXes, and much better street ride (no bouncies). The install would go just like it would for the STi suspension, so you'd need some 04+ Impreza rear top mounts, or some of the old-style Legacy mounts like Keith has.

Feel free to ask specific questions, because I'm sure that didn't make any sense to some of you.

Crap My 93-01 AGX's just left the warehouse and are en-route. I guess I should have asked. When you say "much better street ride" you are comparing to the STi struts, right? should I be concerned enough with the "stock" AGX's travel and ride height to reevaluate my plans before I mount these and kill their resale value?

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Dustin Fredrickson
-- I'm a nobody --

I think the main reason Kevin said to get the AGXs designed for the 2002-2003 WRX is because the 1993-2001 AGX's won't work with the STi springs. This is just a guess as the springs off the Legacy and the STi springs were different.

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2010 Honda Fit Sport
Couple of bicycles

Good advice. I suspect the terrible street ride w/ the stock 04 STi suspension has to do with the very high low-speed damping of the stock shocks -- not the reasonable 250 or so lb spring rate. I wonder why they did that.

I did just order the 91 Legacy rear strut mounts for $9.95 each so I can get proper fitment -- plus I have a minor suspicion that the "hybrid" rear strut mounts are contributing to the bouncy ride, I'll see.

FYI on another note I am well on my way to sourcing what I need to build the "Frankenmotor". $200 Phase II EJ25 block w/90k miles, $80 thick head gaskets, and $150 in Delta cam regrinds *should* produce about a 180-190 HP high CR 2.5l motor with my existing heads Looking forward to building it!

_________________
Mike Whitney
whit32@gmail.com, 919-454-5445
V10, V8, V8t, I6, I6, V6, F4t, I4, I4, I4, I4, I2, 1, 1

The WRX AGXes have about an inch more bump travel in the rear, and work with the USDM STi springs. This combination makes the ride height about 1/4" higher all around than stock 2.5RS, and is much stiffer, but with more travel. That's why I would suggest them.

But the 93-01 AGXes worked fine on my RS when I had them. I was using STi Version 5 type RA springs with them. That combination was around 1/2" lower than stock 2.5RS springs, with the same rate as the 04 STi springs. Scraped the ground a little more than the current setup, but felt pretty good.

Another thing to note, in case I didn't cover it previously... comparing the STi suspension to the stock RS springs with GR2's (which are like non-adjustable AGXes at the medium setting), the STi suspension handles high speeds and hard hits better (not floaty, less body roll), while the stock/GR2 suspension handles rutted low-speed stuff better (doesn't bounce around as much). So it's a trade-off; you have to be more careful on higher speed sections or lower-speed, rough sections, depending on what setup you choose. I like going really fast.

Updated with new stuff.

Holy $%&# you and Mike weren't lying about the bouncy ride. I finally installed the '04 STI struts and springs and the ride is great except for the SUPER annoying ricer boing over small bumps. I really wonder if the funky cut up top mount is contributing to lots of the boing factor.

Has anyone actually done the '91 legacy rear top mounts w/'04 STi struts and springs to see if any of the bounce is reduced?

--Kevin H.

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2003 WRX (again!)

It's not going to make any difference. It's the struts - if you replace the rear STi struts with ANYTHING else, with that being the only change, the ride is totally different. The struts don't lube well, and so they don't slide well. You have to hit something pretty hard to make the shaft move, so the little undulations on the interstate just make the car bounce. You'd have to replace all your bushings and your tires with metal to make a difference.

Now, when I swapped the 07WRX springs on there with the STi struts, the ride became just barely on the "bearable" side. The trip to VA and back wasn't that bad, and driving around on I-64 and I-40 (usually HORRIBLE with the STi springs) became right on the edge of suckiness instead of "holy crap, this sucks." I also got another 3/4" or so of bump travel, and it's working great on any rallyx terrain I throw it around on.

If it was going to be the daily driver plus rallyx car, I'd go with the AGXes or Tokico DSpecs for the 02+ Impreza, and the 04 STi springs.