Project Aspen STi

[Nis01]

DD / NASA-X B / STU / HPDE Beater.
'05 Aspen STi.






^^ Thanks Evan for the track shot.

Exterior:
Pillarless Grill
Partial Debadge
V-Limited Lip
JDM Tail Lights
Wingless :wink:
20% Tint
Rock Chips and Chipped Windshield :x

Interior:
Schroth Profi II-ASM Harnesses
Turbo Timer
NRG Hood Dampers
Autospeed Dead Pedal
JDM Hazard Switch
WC Lathe Copolymer Shift Knob

Drivetrain:
K&N Filter (Hacked Silencer)
Borla XR-1 Catback Exhaust
Kartboy Short Shifter
TiC Pivot Bushings

Suspension:
Whiteline 27-29mm FSB
Whiteline 22-24mm RSB
Kartboy Straight Endlinks
PDE Front Camber Plates
V2 RCE Springs
Group N Rear Hats
Whiteline Rear Camber Bolts
Performance Alignment

Braking:
Goodridge SS Brake Lines
Ferodo DS2500 Pads [Autocross / DD]
Hawk HT-10s [Track Duty]
Titanium Shims
Motul RBF 600

Wheels/Tires:
GOLD Stock BBS with 225/45/17 RE070s [DD]
GOLD Rota Torques with 245/40/17 RE01-Rs [Track / Autocross]

Parts awaiting install / on order:
TiC Bushings:
- Tranny Xmember
- Rear Diff. Mount
- Outrigger
- Shifter Linkage Bushings
Front Cowl Braces
Whiteline Subframe Bolts

Events:
BRR-SCCA Auto-X [Verona / 4-10-06]
BRR-SCCA Auto-X [Verona / 10-22-06]
BRR-SCCA Auto-X [Verona / 3-11-07]
NASA-MAIC [VMP / 4-08-07]
NASA-MAIC [VMP / 5-13-07]
BRR-SCCA Auto-X [Verona / 6-09-07]
NASA-MAIC HPDE 1 [VIR-North / 7-28/29-07]
TrackDaze Novice [VIR-Full / 8-30/31-07]
TrackDaze Novice [Summit Shenandoah / 10-6/7-07] {Registered...}
NASA-MAIC HPDE 1 [Summit / 10-13/14-07] {Registered...}

Will continually be updated with new modifications, events and event comments. Thanks for taking a look.

[Maengelito]

nicey nice shea. even though you're wingless, the car is still hot. i'll be askin you a few questions as soon as i'm ready to make some mild upgrades to my STi as well

[ScottyB]

very nice writeup! you've forged a really nice upgrade path and have alot of items i'd like to get on my car someday! if i had an STi, it would probably be set up alot like yours.

this is a pretty lame question considering the extent of the modifications you've made, but what performance mod made the biggest difference for you? just curious.

[Nis01]

this is a pretty lame question considering the extent of the modifications you've made, but what performance mod made the biggest difference for you? just curious.

Performance wise I'd have to say the first modifications I ever made which was the sway bars. I've tried a couple setups and I like the adjustability and stiffness of the bars I currently have on the car. I may be moving to a new designed stiffer bar up front for better turn in but I'm very happy with how the car feels. Understeer is almost completely gone unless I totally scrub a correct turn in spot and I can even get the rear around in a predictable manner. Its the only modification I've done that I still distinctly remember as changing the dynamics of the car for major improvement. This added with the springs and some negative camber up front (camber plates) has made a major improvement with minor cost/modifications to the car.

Thank you for the comments. It was your project thread that inspired me to make this thread so I can remember what I've done to the car. :lol:

[Dave]

Shea raves about the sway bars, so I'll bet thats what he'll say was his favorite.
Nice writeup and I must say that I envy your methodical modification plan. I like to throw lots of stuff at the same time, rather than test each thing out seperately :-). I also really like that you've already signed up for 2 more track events; it's a slippery slope, and it looks you've fallen and are rolling down the hill... :-)

[Nis01]

I also really like that you've already signed up for 2 more track events; it's a slippery slope, and it looks you've fallen and are rolling down the hill... :-)

The track bug has bitten hard... put a nice hurtin' on my wallet too. :lol:

You know me too well Dave. I don't talk about 'em that much... its just the fact they are one of the few things I've actually modified on the car. :wink:

[Nis01]

The STi has survived another track day and I am even more impressed by the performance of the car. Ran the TrackDaze event which was excellent with tons of seat time and plenty of space to stretch the Subies legs. All the cars on the track were plenty fast which left tons of open laps and very few trains. I had a great instructor that was excellent at pushing me where I needed to be pushed. I was definetily on the gas a whole lot longer around the track and compressing my braking zones although only a few times did I really full out get on the brakes. I did manage one off at the end of Turn 1 but I was only going about 10 mph and just sort of rolled off the track realizing there was no need to attempt a 2 off save. The last session I was soloed off and that was really a lot of fun and I could really see where all the instruction was paying off as I was forced to tell myself what I was doing incorrectly.

The uphill esses are a lot of fun at speed. The most courage I could muster was a 105 exit speed but I only actually looked down that one lap. End of the back straight I could redline 5th which is ~ 135 and it was excellent to bear down on the brakes and loop your stomach approaching into the next turn. Unfortunately I was going through about a HALF tank of gas PER session. hock: The brakes performed wonderfully, I could really get on them with tons of confidence and never did I overstretch their limit although I'm still looking to build some brake ducts. The RE01-Rs had a TON of grip in comparison to my WAY over heatcycled RE070s. I'm becoming much more comfortable with trailbraking and controllably rotating the car to avoid the dreaded Subie understeer. This car impresses me more and more and I didn't realize how fast I was moving until my instructor pointed out the fact that I had lapped a few cars twice and a lot of nice comments from other drivers.

All in all I am really impressed with this group and I plan on attending more of their events in the future. Currently I really like how the car is performing but not sure how much more I'm willing to put it out on the track. Quite a few times I was left in the dust by some upper hp cars *cough*Ferrari, Camaro, etc.. *cough* down the straights. Its quite rewarding get the point by and leaving them in the dust through the infield and checking the mirror half way down the straight to see them just making it around oak tree. Looking forward to the NASA Summit main event but now I just may have to sign up for TrackDaze Shenandoah. :lol:

Unfortunately my instructor looped his 993 into a tire wall off of the same turn he was warning me about every session.. Turn 10. Luckily he was alright and was still able to instruct me for the rest of the day. Props to him for being such a good influence.

[WRXtranceformed]

Nice man, I'm glad you're really enjoying that car to the fullest! Be safe out there!

[Goodspeed]

Nice write up Shea, when are you getting that DP you always talked about (was it ever made?)....40 horses from a piece of pipe sounds pretty good




And put the wing back on. :wink:

[WRXtranceformed]

I've been telling Shea he needs a DP and EM for a long time now... Maeng too!! Neither has taken my advice.

[Nis01]

Nice write up Shea, when are you getting that DP you always talked about (was it ever made?)....40 horses from a piece of pipe sounds pretty good

And put the wing back on. :wink:

The wing is staying off the car, perhaps replaced with a APR wing at some point in time if I start gutting/caging this car. I am looking into throwing on a downpipe and getting a really safe tune because the stock fuel map is so rich that I'm just gulping up gas like crazy down every straight... half tank of gas every 25-30 minute session is just insane in my opinion but perhaps thats about right?!? There has been a large amount of tracked STis that are showing up with minor headgasket problems which I'm hoping to avoid or at least keep the drivetrain under warranty.

Next plans for the car include new seats, either Sparco EVOs or Sparco Pro2000s. I liked the fit of both but it seems like the Pro2000 has slightly lower shoulder bolsters which is better for me but overall fit of both was nice... anybody have any better information on either seat? I also am looking into an autopower 4 point rollbar so I can safely run my harnesses. After that I'll be looking into adjustable suspension if something used happens to show up.

Thanks for the comments guys. Keep them coming. I have two more trackdays lined up in October which I'll give reviews of but most likely the car will be in the same form as it is currently.

[.RJ]

looking into throwing on a downpipe and getting a really safe tune... new seats, either Sparco EVOs or Sparco Pro2000s... looking into an autopower 4 point rollbar... looking into adjustable suspension

Do you think it would be better to buy a 2nd, cheaper track only car in place of spending $$on mods for the STi? Just curious - not trying to beat a dead horse :lol:

[Nis01]

I have put some thought into it but in all honesty I really love the potential of this car and have no real interest in tracking anything else for the time being. I just want to get this car nice and safe for what I'm doing and if I actually get good/fast I may try finding something else... now just isn't the time. I'm hoping I can safely learn the basics in this car and when the time is right, hopefully build/purchase something else more "economical" for tracking.

[WRXtranceformed]

You could install a meth / water kit with the downpipe Shea. You wouldn't necessarily have to run a really aggressive tune with it, even though you could if you wanted to. It would give you a HUGE margin of safety at lower boost levels and your engine would actually run better / cleaner. I bet your gas mileage would increase as well on the track. Just a thought! I know you've never been keen on dumping tons of mod money into that car, but if you're thinking about a tune and want to track your car you really need to get a dyno tune. Don't use a canned tune, I just don't see good things coming from that. And if you're putting it on the dyno, you may as well have a meth kit installed and ask the tuner to keep it really really safe and conservative.

[WRXtranceformed]

looking into throwing on a downpipe and getting a really safe tune... new seats, either Sparco EVOs or Sparco Pro2000s... looking into an autopower 4 point rollbar... looking into adjustable suspension

Do you think it would be better to buy a 2nd, cheaper track only car in place of spending $$on mods for the STi? Just curious - not trying to beat a dead horse :lol:

That's always a possibility, but then it would defeat the purpose of owning and enjoying the car (for Shea). I can't see him owning that car and not taking it to the track now. What would he do with it otherwise? It would be a fun street car for spirited driving and such (which was what mine was for), but that's not Shea's goal from what he and I have talked about in the past.

I'm glad Travis is actually getting my car out to the track. It was something I never had the time or energy for, but different people have different desires for their vehicles. Live it up while you're young and don't have a wifey and kids buddy!!! That's the way I always look at it 8)

[Nis01]

You could install a meth / water kit with the downpipe Shea. You wouldn't necessarily have to run a really aggressive tune with it, even though you could if you wanted to. It would give you a HUGE margin of safety at lower boost levels and your engine would actually run better / cleaner. I bet your gas mileage would increase as well on the track. Just a thought! I know you've never been keen on dumping tons of mod money into that car, but if you're thinking about a tune and want to track your car you really need to get a dyno tune. Don't use a canned tune, I just don't see good things coming from that. And if you're putting it on the dyno, you may as well have a meth kit installed and ask the tuner to keep it really really safe and conservative.

I might start chatting with AR Fab about some kind of setup like this... I know a fellow Subie tracker just had his engine rebuilt by them with great results and they know their stuff when it comes to Subarus. Meth/water seems like a relatively cheap and easy solution to keep the car safe during tracking, just not sure if I'm really willing to get that deep into the modding game. As of right now the car has plenty of power for my driving ability... I'm more worried about the reliability and fuel consumption.

[WRXtranceformed]

Talk to the guys at Andrewtech too. They're pretty much the top of the heap when it comes to Subarus, and tracked Subarus. Andrew is just about the coolest, nicest guy you'll ever meet.

[.RJ]

I have put some thought into it but in all honesty I really love the potential of this car and have no real interest in tracking anything else for the time being

:thumbup:

[D_Eclipse9916]

I have put some thought into it but in all honesty I really love the potential of this car and have no real interest in tracking anything else for the time being

:thumbup:

Shea, I cant see you tracking anything else either... Yeah its a risk, but if thats the car you like, beat up on it. I never understood those who get nice cars and dont beat the shit out of it. If you cant afford to lose it, dont buy it all.

Shea I have also been looking at the water/meth injection and it looks like a great thing, is the headgasket blowing from the boost or the heat? Is the headgasket a stock thing or can aftermarket headgaskets fix the problem? I say dont do downpipe just yet and enjoy the car the way it is.


Those are some nasty tires man, got any pictures of your latest track event?

How many track events this year is this gonna be? You seem to be going a lot, the bug hit me too, the October event is gonna be my 4th track event this year. Arent you at 4 or 5? Amazing! I am jealous

[Chris]

glad to see you're doing as many events as you can this year. I wish I could have done more all at once, its the best way to improve your skillz. Taking months off at a time really slows down the learning process!