Wednesday, December 06, 2006
from my web page, as it is going away
2002 Subaru WRX review
ok, I got mine 2 ½ months after they came out. I got the short shifter, and the suspention package, they refused to install the suspention.
I payed a speed shop $750 to install the suspention, they only left one bolt loose that I found 2 weeks later, it did some dammage, but not much.
I tried 2 air intake systems, first was the cold air intake from AEM, it had interferiance problems near the filter and 10K miles after the install I noticed a hole in the filter, the second one is from HKS, it was a short intake, when jumping my car (and the suspention I have lets me do that quite well) the intake came up and slammed into the fender hard enough to brake the mass air flow sensor. Five days later (and $300) I got the new airflow sensor from subaru.
Let me make this clear it took subaru 5 days with express ordering to get the part.
I put back the stock intake.
I added cusco frame bracing, triangle in the rear and the type 2 front lower brace, and the upper brace that had no ajustments and went way around the intercooler. I have never had any problems with these parts, and love the way it handles now.
I put halk hp+ brake pads in the front, they worked very well, despite the horible noises they made, then I stopped from 137 on gravle and realized the value of a ballenced brake setup, I am suprized I am still alive. I then put in the stoptech stage 2 brakes for the WRX, this works very well.
Due to the friction surface on the stock cluch being defective, I also put in an execdy 2 plate clutch, it worked well, was very driveable, other than the force needed to press the peddel in, if I was sick, I had a hard time of it. It lasted 45 thousand miles before I could not disengage the clutch anymore, the master cylnder had broke, I replaced it, and it helped for a few weeks, then the problem returned, so I took the transmission out, the clutch fork (or clutch piviot lever as the subaru parts counter called it ), was badly dammaged, I went to subaru on monday morning at 7:30am and aked for one, I brought my vin # and the old part. They said they could order it and have it in by thursday. On thursday they sais it would be in monday, on monday I got the wrong part. So when thay tell you if they use your vin # they will never get the wrong part for your car, they are not correct. Any way, after another 5 days (express ordering) I put my car back together with the exedy single plate cluch and stock flywheel. It is so easy to drive now. The duel plate cluch was almost warn out anyway (needed new friction disks). I miss the accrleration from the lightened flywheel.
I have broke suspention parts, and lots of other little things because I drive my car very hard, but other than air filters and oil filters, it would seem that the subaru parts department keeps nothing in stock, most things are 5 days away with express ordering, and 7 days away with standard ordering.
The car is perfect, I could not ask for anything more, but waiting 40 days a year for parts means I have to have a second car in order to own a subaru for a primary car, and this is a car with less than 60K miles and between 3 and 4 years old. I will never buy another subaru.
Due to this I was planning on driving to the mitsubishi dealer (I was still at trader joes) to get an EVO when my brother called and told me the top 5 cars that hurt people the worst in wrecks, and the lancer was one of them. So I guess I will keep my subaru and my old mitsubishi eclips.
So, carfull of your mods, it is very good stock, and don't plan on subaru having any parts on hand, and I am thinking Nissan for my next car, but I like AWD.
