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

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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

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After 5 Home Depot trips for miscellaneous hardware bits and patiently waiting for my Recaro Pole Position and seat accessories to arrive from 3 different parts vendors, I finally installed it (Only took like a month lol). I sit maybe 5-10mm lower compared to the OEM seat, which is good because I dislike how low @momentum.rs ‘s seats are, just personal preference. I might lower it one notch after some more seat time, and obviously I don’t slide side to side anymore because of the more aggressive bolsters. The shoulder bolsters are semi aggressive too, to the point where it’s uncomfortable keeping your right hand/arm on the center arm rest. It’s more comfortable keeping both hands on the steering wheel and/or the shifter. I feel more engaged with the car, and based on the seating position/angle, the shifter is now in the perfect location for my hand to reach. Also, I now have a better feel for the pedals, because of how the seat shapes the lower part of your torso and legs. My rev-matching is now easier than before, and it’s easier to do it more consistently. I don’t have a need to recline the seat back or forward, and I feel my core working now. Oddly enough, it’s a very comfortable seating angle at the same time. Just overall, it improves my posture, shifting, and improves the driving aspect of the car. 10/10 would buy again.

CJ Kiser – @tryhardsti

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I don’t think I’ve posted about this thing yet so here it is, my Oswald Performance aluminum lightweight bumper beam. I installed this right before our Tail of the Dragon trip last month to shave some weight off the front of the car and to replace my heavy and rusty original crash beam. Installing this aluminum bumper beam was very straightforward and they even include a fancy red tow hook! I left mine on for added racecar points. This bumper beam only weighs 6 lbs compared to the original one, weighing just under 28 lbs. That’s 21 lbs removed off the very front of the car, which improves handling and makes the car feel slightly more nimble in corners. I didn’t get to feel the full effect of these changes since I had just installed about 5 other things at the same time, but I truly believe this piece makes a difference. Plus it looks cool! I got mine after reading good things about it online and seeing @tryhardsti with his made me want it even more. I love doing the little mods that make an impact on handling!

Ethan Pfab – @supwagon

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To start off a new approach to MFortyFive, here’s my first major journal entry. Over the weekend I got around to doing a bunch of work I’ve been trying to do for a while. About a month ago I mounted @tryhardsti ‘s old 265/35 Hankooks on my 18×9.5” Work CR Kiwamis, knowing that they definitely wouldn’t fit since I was on air. Due to that and the direction I was leaning towards with the car, I ended up getting some brand new Fortune Auto 500 coilovers with 9k/7k Swift springs. Naturally, I ended up doing all the work the last free weekend before our next Tail of the Dragon trip. Needless to say, I am amazed by the quality of the coilovers and the fitment I was able to achieve after all the work it took. I’m running tons of negative camber up front (265s on a WAGON fender) and a little less in the rear since I’ve got the RPG flares now. The Tomei hangs much much better after readjusting it as well, I just need to fix the exhaust leak at the downpipe. Another cool addition is the @endless_horizon_fabrication fire extinguisher and bracket that mounts to the passenger seat rail. Definitely feel better about having one with me during intense driving! I tried to do my Whiteline Front Roll Center kit but the first bolt I tried to loosen snapped completely in half… Corrosion ftw. That’ll get taken care of this week, then I’ll be converting all the lights to LED and I should be all set! Can’t wait to show off all the new stuff I’ve done the past few months at Tuner Evo this weekend!!! Come find me if you’re there!

Ethan Pfab – @supwagon

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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

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The night before the trip for TougeFest was honestly a bit stressful since we all had things we wanted/needed to do, and not a lot of time to do it.  I started off by changing my oil.  I always use Rotella T6 oil since it is so highly praised within the Subaru community, even though it says it’s heavy duty diesel engine oil on the container.  I also use Subaru’s engine oil filters because sometimes OEM parts are best.

While all the oil was out, I installed my new Fumoto oil drain valve.  I was originally skeptical about having a drain valve as opposed to the traditional drain plug, but it had so many good reviews that I felt comfortable trying it out.

Once the oil change was done, I threw on my Megan Racing H-brace.  I happened to pick it up earlier that day off Craigslist about 45 minutes away.  I was eager to see if it made any difference, and since I only paid $40 for it, I figured why not, right?

This was pretty easy to install, it just bolts right up to the subframe and control arms to add in some rigidity between the left and right sides of the car.  After the H-brace, I remembered I had to add in spacers to my pesky front sway bar endlinks.  I recently installed a Whiteline front sway bar and endlinks, and although the quality is great, the fitment wasn’t.  Maybe it’s just the way wagons are with this stuff, but I had a pretty hard time connecting the endlinks to the sway bar because they were at such an awkward angle.  The spacers definitely helped correct the angle, thankfully.

The last thing on my to-do list was to swap wheels.  As much as I love my Works, I needed to throw on my WRX wheels for the intense mountain driving that would take place over the next few days.  This was mainly because I run stretched tires on my Works; they’re 215/40/18 Nitto Neo Gen tires on a 9.5″ wide wheel.  The WRX wheels I have are 8″ wide with grippy 235/45/17 Bridgestone Potenzas – much more suitable for mountain driving.  They also make the ride a lot smoother too!

After my stuff was done, it was time for CJ to take care of his to-do list.  He was planning on changing his oil, installing his V3 Cobb Accessport vent holder, installing new shifter bushings and a new rear pitch stop mount.  He got a majority of the work done while I had my car up on the lift, but we switched spots for him to change his oil.  The Accessport vent holder is an awesome addition to the interior.  It holds the Accessport in the perfect area to quickly glance at while driving, and the cold air from the AC blows on it to keep it cool.

If you’ve ever replaced your shifter bushings, you know the difference it makes.  The shifts feel so much more solid and notchy, and it makes the overall driving experience feel better.

The rear pitch stop mount was probably the most tedious thing on the list.  It wasn’t too difficult and didn’t take too long, but it involved taking off the top-mount intercooler.  The rear pitch stop mount holds the rear of the engine stiffer than the OEM mount, therefore keeping everything in place under hard acceleration.  It’s another great way to make the car feel more solid.

Last, but not least on CJ’s list was to change the oil.  He’s always used Mobil 1 Full Synthetic oil in his STi.  Obviously it’s a good idea to have fresh oil when tearing up the mountain roads at high RPMs all day.

Preparing for a road trip with your car can be important, especially on a trip like this.  We wanted to make sure the cars were ready for the abuse the next 1,500 miles would bring, so proper precautions were taken.  Fresh oil, checking tire pressures, swapping wheels, and throwing in a couple new parts all helped us conquer the roads with confidence on our trip.  Be on the lookout for the full write up of the trip coming soon!

By Ethan Pfab – @indecisivewagon

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