We exchanged handshakes and talked for a little around Mike’s car, learning a little more about it. I know we say this a lot, but it’s really cool to finally put a face to a car we see on Instagram all the time. I could probably speak for all of us, but is definitely one of our favorite things about doing this whole MFortyFive thing. We drove around and scouted out some shooting spots, but were having trouble finding decent lighting in the park that we paid to get into. The midday lighting was pretty harsh with hardly any clouds so it made it a slight challenge to get pictures that weren’t washed out. We later found a spot outside the park that was decent so we made it work. Mike’s 2006 WRX wagon is one of my favorites I see on social media from time to time.

It’s simple, aggressive, and looks so good from all angles. Mike has done the popular sedan front fenders and the LIC rear flares to fit a meatier tire set up like his 265s which is NOT a common modification on wagons. He’s done a significant amount of work to it.

About fifteen minutes into the shoot we ended up leaving the area to try another location so the photos could be the best they could be. Mike had in mind an abandoned glass factory, which turned out to be quite the spot. It seemed like a location out of Call of Duty or PUBG. We almost spent more time exploring around the abandoned factory than snapping photos and “interviewing” him about the car. Mike knew a good bit about the factory and we were so fascinated at how the workers just left everything there like they would be back the next day – pretty crazy.

Back to the car. One thing that confused me for a while was the color. For the longest time I never really looked closely enough and just assumed it was the typical World Rally Blue with a slightly darker saturation added to the photo.

Little did I know, the car is actually wrapped in 3M Gloss Dark Blue Metallic. Honestly, a great choice in my eyes and Mike did it all himself. I really love a slightly OEM+ color – I might be biased. One thing that really stood out to me on his car is the color matched Greddy Gracer front lip. It’s one of those lips I think is a must for the hawkeye generation – kind of like the Cusco GT lip for the blobeye generation.

For wheels, Mike has 18″ x 9.5″ Rays Gram Lights 57DR wrapped in 265/35 Federal 595 RS-R tires, giving the car much more capable speeds around corners.

For suspension, Mike has done ISC coilovers, Cusco and ISC camber plates, and one of my favorite modifications, the Whiteline adjustable sway bars, just to name a few. Under the hood he has the stock EJ255 power plant on a VF48 turbo. A Grimmspeed AOS, Koyo radiator, STi pink fuel injectors, GFB blow-off valve, and many other bits make this WRX a very lively and fun street car.

His interior hasn’t been left untouched either with bits like a Sparco leather steering wheel, Bride Digo seats, STi gauge cluster, a 2015 STi arm rest, galaxy-wrapped headliner, and much more make it a pleasant place to be.

I asked Mike why he chose a Subaru in the first place, “I’ve always loved rally cars growing up, but something caught my attention with Subarus. The sound and looks of them of them I just loved. I remember seeing a pretty-much-new World Rally Blue bugeye that was modified and that’s really when I started looking into these cars.” Mike got his wagon around January of 2016 just about stock. The car has a come a long way in almost three years. Mike’s favorite thing about the car is the boost, but also loves the handling and all-wheel-drive.

He no longer daily’s the car but when he did, he had a blast doing so, especially in the Midwest winters. His favorite modification to the car as of right now would be the discontinued LIC Motorsports rear flares. A very popular fender upgrade, which you don’t see them on wagons too often, but it works quite well to flow with the rest for the car. Mike is actually at 154k miles on the original block as of now, which leads me into his future plans. A closed-deck set up and STi drivetrain is in Mike’s future as well to make things a little more exciting and interesting. We had a blast hanging with Mike. We ended our shoot with him by doing some rollers in our usual fashion.

I really started enjoying rollers and learning through CJ how to properly shoot a car in motion. Huge thanks to Mike for agreeing to meet up with us, grab some photos, and exchange stories about our lives with the cars we enjoy so much. To keep up with Mike’s WRX wagon and all of his shenanigans give him a follow at @aayyy_wrx on Instagram. Can’t wait to get back up the Midwest and hang with everyone sometime in the future!

By Zach Osborne – @momentum.rs

Mike’s Full Build List:

Engine/Performance:

Stock EJ255 with VF48
Grimmspeed AOS
Koyo Radiator
Mishimoto Racing Thermostat
STi Top Mount Intercooler
STi Pink Fuel Injectors
Perrin Cold Air Intake
Grimmspeed EBC
Subtle Solutions Turbo cChimney
GFB BOV
Killer Bee Oil Pickup and Baffle

Wheels/Suspension:

Rays Gram Lights 57DR 18×9.5
Federal 595 RS-R 265/35r18
ISC Coilovers
Cusco Front Camber Plates
ISC Rear Camber Plates
Whiteline Front & Rear Adjustable Sway Bars
Whiteline Endlinks
Cusco Front Strut Bar
Whiteline Rear Strut Bar
Subframe Lock Down
Whiteline Differential Bushings
Whiteline Anti-lift Kit

Exterior:

3M Dark Blue Metallic Wrap
LIC Motorsports Rear Flares
OEM Sedan Front End
LED C Headlights
JDM STi Side Skirts
Rear Wiper Delete
STi Rear Diffuser
APR Carbon Plate Surround
Greddy Gracer Front Lip

Interior:

STi Gauge Cluster
Cobb V3 Accessport
ATI Triple Gauge Pod
Subtle Solutions Gauge Pod
Cobb Short Shifter
VMS Carbon Shift Knob
JDM Red LED HVAC Controls
JDM Hazard Button
NRG Hub & Quick Release
Sparco Leather Steering Wheel
Bride Digo Seats
STi Floor Mats
2015 STi Arm Rest
Galaxy Headliner Wrap

The post A Car Meant to be Driven: Mike Myers’ 2006 Subaru Impreza WRX Wagon appeared first on MFortyFive.

Over the last month or so my car has been under the knife getting some changes done. Since getting a warehouse/office space with @projectpriime I’ve been seeing more and learning more about vehicle wraps and the positives and negatives. My paint was in pretty rough shape believe it or not. News flash, anything can look great over Instagram. I had swirl marks everywhere, dents, and a bunch of imperfections. To get a proper detail it was a lot of money… a lot of money. One day I traded my RS hood for a silver WRX hood which is how all of this started. I talked to the guys about wrapping my hood black temporarily until I decide to paint it and/or wrap the whole car. We talked and I came to the realization that a full vehicle wrap was the route I needed to take if I wanted my car to truly start looking better. I personally am not the biggest fan of wraps. When I hear about or see a wrap, I immediately think of an “internet build” – crazy flashy color, 3 piece wheels, bags, etc. I’m not hating… it’s just not my taste. We settled on the @averydennison Gloss White. White goes with any color wheels and looks so good all the time. I learned about the benefits of wrap and the negatives (honestly not really any negatives). I told the guys they could take their time with the car since they have a crazy busy schedule shooting commercials, event coverage, etc. Here we are over a month later. The depth and color looks just like paint without the headaches of owning a freshly painted car. I could not be happier. During the wrap I ended up swapping out my red Recaro seats for one Bride Zeta 2 as well. I was really itching for a fixed back and have heard great things from fellow Zeta 2 owners. I also had the rear half cage and Hella horns powder coated a silver diamond which is perfect to accommodate the white. I also sold my SBC Enkei RPF1s and just ordered new wheels through @thomsonsss at @systemmotorsports which should be here in a month or so. So excited for this change. Still so much to do before the big Tail of the Dragon trip as well as Simply Clean and/or Subaru Mega Meet. Huge thanks to everyone who has been involved #MFortyFive

Zach Osborne – @momentum.rs

The post MFortyFive Journal Entry – Zach appeared first on MFortyFive.

So as most of you know my car has looked a little wack lately and you might be asking why or saying nothing but “sweet 240RS” – I couldn’t agree more. I recently acquired a WRX hood which is aluminum instead of the factory steel hood that is actually a pretty significant weight difference. I ordered a KSTech vent instead of the factory hood scoop – better ventilation and looks sweet. The car will be getting disassembled for a color change starting Monday of next week by my good friends at @projectpriime. I love Regal Blue Pearl but it needs a serious amount of work to bring it back to it’s full life. The half cage will be going to powder coating during the wrap as well. My Recaro Speed seats are sold and I’ve gone with a more simple fixed back seat I’ve wanted for a long time. So much more to come in preparation for Tail of the Dragon and @iamsimplyclean Daytona. Be sure to follow the progress at @momentum.rs

Zach Osborne – @momentum.rs

The post MFortyFive Journal Entry – Zach appeared first on MFortyFive.

We got to the beginning of the trail and CJ got all situated in the back of the Element, ready for some off-road rollers. I really enjoy driving off-road so I was having a blast. We stopped a few times for some still shots with the wild Florida background and to chat about some of the key parts that make this crazy Outback into what he has envisioned it to be. Joel explained he has an Anderson Design Fabrication 2” lift with Front King and RalliTek overload springs to get the ground clearance he needs on more advanced and technical trails. Usually you see the popular Method Race wheels on most off-road Subarus these days but he went with an OEM+ route – 2016 WRX wheels with 245/65/17 Falken Wildpeak A/T tires which give it another 1” lift as well.

The whole underbody is equipped with Primitive Racing triple armor plating which covers the front, mid, and rear differential to protect the underbody from rocks or anything he may come across on his overland adventures. As we started getting further into the trail, Joel radioed us informing of an optional water crossing. As expected, he showed off his trail-baru going through a pretty deep spot of water. He made it look effortless with it being the 2.5 flat-4 with the other variant being the more powerful 3.6L H6.

My personal favorite modification Joel has done would have to be his rack set up. Mounted to the factory Thule crossbars, he has a Yakima MegaWarrior Basket with a spare tire mount, custom fabricated attachments for his ARB 2000 Awning that not only has the awning itself, but Joel upgraded to the Deluxe Room which turns an awning into a little living space. Unfortunately it was too windy for Joel to pull it out so we could get a picture but man, are they ever cool.

8.5 miles in, we ended up making our way to a small lake with nothing but algae and lily pads on top. Apparently it’s an extremely popular alligator breeding ground and all you could hear were alligators grunting and thunder in the distance. Not to mention see a bunch of alligators cruising around in the water.

A typical afternoon thunderstorm was closing in on us and we were, as I said, 8.5 miles in on the trail. We decided it would be a good idea to start heading back to the main road since we had a front-wheel drive Honda Element that would probably get stuck in some of the lower spots if it were to downpour.

We stopped at a few more neat spots for some still shots but our stomachs were starting to growl, as were the Florida skies. Joel had one more stop in mind on Lake Okeechobee where you could see a great portion of the lake on top of a big hill. CJ quickly grabbed some shots of the Outback so he or us wouldn’t get eaten alive by the mosquitos, which are a big problem down in the Okeechobee area.

Roughly 20 minutes later, we made it to a local restaurant for some brews and burgers. Over dinner we learned Joel has had 2 other Subarus before his current Outback, one of them being a 2012 STi and the other a 2009 WRX. We were curious why he’d rather have an Outback over the more exciting and/or typical WRX or STi’s. He said, “It’s utilitarian for everyday lifestyles. You can throw anything at it, especially for my work – load it up with aircraft stuff and travel farther than a WRX/STi.”

“It’s very fuel efficient as well – another reason it’s super adaptive to any terrain once you slap a lift kit, all-terrain tires, and other modifications that are included on my build. This heavily-modified overland Subaru gets 22-24mpg on the highway, compared to a lifted Jeep Wrangler which gets 15-18mpg.” Joel and I bonded over our love for the Toyota Tacoma’s and 4Runner’s talking about how bad we both want some. Joel says he’d love to do an overland build on a Toyota 4×4 but he said it’s so hard to justify spending another $10k on something that doesn’t get as good of gas mileage and is just as capable as his Outback – he’s right. Joel has a good bit of future plans for the Outback as well.

He mentioned a new custom stainless catback exhuast, an upgraded set of bigger brakes, a dual battery setup for more power supply needs for things like a travel fridge, HAM radio, and outside surveillance lighting. After a solid day of off-road adventures and fun, I was dreading the long drive back home in the now dirty Honda Element. We had a blast of a day driving through the southern Florida terrain. It definitely makes me want to do more coverage on off-road prepped Subarus in the future. Huge thanks to Joel for meeting up with us and taking the afternoon to hang out. Check him out on Instagram at @fl4tout772 to see and learn more about his overland prepped Subaru Outback.

By Zach Osborne – @momentum.rs

Joel’s Full Build List:

Wheels/Suspension:

Anderson Design Fabrication 2” Lift Kit

2016 Subaru WRX Wheels

Falken Wildpeak All-Terrain Tires 245/65/17 – 1” Lift

Front King Overload Springs – .75” Lift

Rear RalliTEK Overload Springs – .75” Lift

Exterior:

SSD Rally Lightbar Bracket

Yakima MegaWarrior Roof Basket with Spare Tire Mount

ARB 2000 Awning with Deluxe Room and custom attachments

Aviation Radio Base Antenna

Round 8” LED Light Pods – 4

JDM Grill

Trailer Hitch with 1UP Super Duty Bike Rack

OPT7 LED Low Beam and Fogs

Partially Smoked Taillights

Primitive Racing Triple Armor Plating Package – underbody with SnoShield cover

5% Tint – Rear

15% Tint – Front

Miscellaneous:

SPT Oil Cap

Optima Redtop Battery

The post Not Built For Soccer Practice Runs – Joel Hernando’s Overland Prepped Subaru Outback appeared first on MFortyFive.

From a distance, I saw a set of MFortyFive door stripes on a World Rally Blue bugeye WRX and knew it was our friend Jaden. It was super cool to see another homie repping the brand, so I had to go snap a picture!

After we got through the gates I was very overwhelmed – in a good way that is. To my left was the former 2015 Isle of Man STi, which was now modified by Prodrive to run down a bobsled course in the Swiss Alps, and it did – sporting some battle scars to prove it.

To my right, was a white 2018 Subaru WRX with Sharpie signatures all over it for a pet charity fundraiser that a donation was made to on behalf of every signature. We all had to sign the car, because who doesn’t want to write on a car to help out the doggies?

I started making my way through the energetic crowds to figure out where I wanted to start in the sea of Subarus. I ended up getting over to the Subaru USA cars, made up of an extremely mint hawkeye STi, blobeye STi, Impreza 22B STi, and a few other significant models. I couldn’t get over how cool it was to see a bone stock, out-of-the-showroom Subaru collection – makes me appreciate the owners who are satisfied with how they came from factory and haven’t modified them. Props to you for keeping and preserving a car that doesn’t have many clean OEM examples left!

I love seeing a car in person that I’ve only seen on social media. An example would have to be Renz’s 2018 Subaru WRX STi that was parked in the show section. Something about this car is just so appealing. Maybe it’s the not-so-common Work M.C.O Racing Type CS wheels, the stance, or just those factory highlighter yellow Brembos, I love the way this car looks – simple, yet aggressive. I ended up talking with Renz for a little, and hopefully in the near future we can link up again and get a Limelight article going.

I made my way over to the IAG booth while Ethan was talking with some folks and CJ was running around getting all the photos he can. I couldn’t help but absolutely drool over this Forester. Between the engine bay, the custom ‘15+ STi exhaust, the aero, and everything in between. An absolutely perfect Forester to shut down a show.

While walking around, we came across this World Rally Blue S204 STi clone. The one thing I could not get over was the interior of the car. The owner had real Recaro STi S203 carbon seats – the holy grail of OEM+ seats in the world of the GD chassis Subarus. I’ve heard these seats can go north of $7,000… Craziness, but I can see why.

Another car that I was pretty pumped to see in person was Graham Gaylord’s time attack prepped STi. If you are familiar with the Gears & Gasoline YouTube channel, they have covered a good bit of track footage of this car specifically at the Gridlife events, which we hope to attend soon. Graham is a very talented driver and does extremely well in the Street Mod AWD class and I’ve been rooting for him all year.

In the mix of Subarus, I came across a white BD Legacy which really stood out to me. The beautiful bronze Volk Racing TE37’s were a big part of that. Under the hood was a JDM EJ207 with a bunch of rare Abbey Road Company (ARC) products – I was really digging this thing and don’t think I’ve ever seen such clean BD before.

A couple hours went by and I realized I didn’t put enough sunscreen on. I grabbed my SubieFest goodie bag and shirt from the main booth and headed back to the car to fuel up on some water and reapply the sunscreen I desperately needed. As I walked back to the main entrance I was reminded of the autocross sessions going on by all the tire squealing. Ethan, our friend Drew, and I made our way over to check out some of the action. At that moment, I really wish I had my car with me. Autocross at an event like this makes a “car show” a whole lot more fun.

Subaru Rally Team USA was also present and not only did they start up the car, rev it, and talk about it – they even had a few team drivers go out on the autocross course and absolutely rip it. I’ve been to a few Red Bull Global Rallycross events and it’s always a treat to watch these cars go, but something about seeing it slide around in a big open parking lot was much more intriguing. This went on for 30 minutes on and off between letting the car cool down and switching drivers – I loved every minute of it.

CJ and I decided to go back out into the parking field, get some water, and look around to see anything cool we might have missed. Between the show itself and the parking field, I was extremely surprised to see how many new Type RA’s and 50th Anniversary STi’s were there.

With only an hour or so left to the event, we were all getting really tired and worn out from the high 90+ degree temperatures. The Midwest came in heavy with the Subaru scene and we were blown away. We met a few of you guys at the event which was amazing, and we know for sure we will be coming back to the Midwest in the future!

I learned a lot on this trip, but one thing that I can say for all of us here at MFortyFive is how much we truly love doing what we do. This brand is our passion. As bad as Ethan sometimes wants to sell his car for an E46 M3, CJ for an S2000, and myself for a Tacoma, we truly love Subarus and more importantly, the people who make up this amazing community. Thank you guys for the support, it’s been a long process but we could not be more amped on what’s to come for MFortyFive.

Ethan/@supwagon (Left), CJ/@tryhardsti (Center), Zach/@momentum.rs (Right)

By Zach Osborne – @momentum.rs

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The post SubieFest Midwest 2018 – More Than Another Car Show appeared first on MFortyFive.

Hey guys, figured I’d pop in and do a little update on what’s going on.  Tuner Evolution Daytona is Saturday and we all leave for Boxer Takeover 2018 on Wednesday. We have been stressing all week with getting our cars ready and in good working and looking order. Picked up my car from @meticulousmotors this morning with spark plugs and motor mounts done with no problems besides lateral links that don’t fit which is whatever. Currently my bumper is getting repainted with a plate shave along with my Cusco-style lip getting paint matched in addition to some side spats and STi fog covers. Today I have an alignment scheduled so I can finally get all my fitment issues taken care of. I still have my front and rear Whiteline swaybars I got to install before Wednesday as well. I’ve done a bunch of stuff since the last Tail of the Dragon trip that I will post more about when I have more time. Time isn’t on my side right now LOL. Come say hi at Tuner Evo on Saturday if this thing gets a bumper on it!

Zach Osborne – @momentum.rs

The post MFortyFive Journal Entry – Zach appeared first on MFortyFive.