04-26-2014, 11:49 PM
Sooooo... no more ZX5. The deeper I dug into gremlins and noises, the worse it got. No rear defrost grid. TCS sketchy. Still decent clunks in the front even with most of the suspension and steering gear either checked or replaced. It's a shame as I just dropped in that nice Eibach Pro Kit Plus from Todd, too. 
Another contributing factor was Randy leaving FSWerks. That's a huge blow to their custom tuning field, and it made me uneasy with the idea of continuing the project as it was planned.
And with all that considered, I went car shopping. Target values for the new ride were:
- slightly larger than the Focus if need be
- fuel-efficient at least on the highway
- AWD/4WD system for surviving as a DD up here in the winter
- automatic for my fiancee to finish learning to drive in (side note - she's getting much better at driving the Jeep, which is already modded to hell and not easy for a novice to roll in)
- moddable as I cannot stand stock anything
Once we considered all those factors (and had a nice little fight about why I wasn't buying a Civic or a Lancer), it really boiled down to one choice: something Subaru-made. I had found her a decent 08 Impreza hatch, NA, clean... but it sold within days of just checking it out. However, they had a 06 Legacy GT sedan on the lot, and it was auto too... hmm...
Yup. Bought it. 250/250 stock, 5-speed auto made by ProDrive, sport suspension, 17" wheels, obv AWD, loaded except for nav (which I won't miss given the size of the slot for the screen). Went back on my "no payments again ever" rule as it was kicked down in price by myself and then got decent trade-in on the evil Focus.
It's already running a COBB intake and Stage 1+ tune, Stage 2 is pre-loaded for when the COBB 3" downpipe and custom 3", Magnaflow-based cat-back goes on next week. After that... DONE. Maybe new tires to replace the new Sailuns on it which are actually not that bad. Might run them for a season and see how they hold up.
Outside chance - going to Ottawa or Barrie/GTA for a custom Stage 2+ tune for 18PSI and see what that gets me. Stock is 13.5PSI, currently tuned for 15PSI and can hit 14.3 without a cat-back. Should hit the target 16.5PSI for Stage 2 nicely with the DP and cat-back.
It's a pussycat around town when not in sport mode. Intake noise is a tad loud but I don't have the airbox lid on the COBB airbox - fitment issue. Shipped the right one, just need to work it out with them next week.
Sport mode or full sport-based manumatic? HELLO ACCELERATION AND FURY.
Love it. Might upgrade the rotors and pads, but the bite and travel is nicely setup. Corners damn flat for stock too.
Nik - now I know what you get in your WRX, albeit flavoured differently as I'm auto.
Another contributing factor was Randy leaving FSWerks. That's a huge blow to their custom tuning field, and it made me uneasy with the idea of continuing the project as it was planned.
And with all that considered, I went car shopping. Target values for the new ride were:
- slightly larger than the Focus if need be
- fuel-efficient at least on the highway
- AWD/4WD system for surviving as a DD up here in the winter
- automatic for my fiancee to finish learning to drive in (side note - she's getting much better at driving the Jeep, which is already modded to hell and not easy for a novice to roll in)
- moddable as I cannot stand stock anything
Once we considered all those factors (and had a nice little fight about why I wasn't buying a Civic or a Lancer), it really boiled down to one choice: something Subaru-made. I had found her a decent 08 Impreza hatch, NA, clean... but it sold within days of just checking it out. However, they had a 06 Legacy GT sedan on the lot, and it was auto too... hmm...
Yup. Bought it. 250/250 stock, 5-speed auto made by ProDrive, sport suspension, 17" wheels, obv AWD, loaded except for nav (which I won't miss given the size of the slot for the screen). Went back on my "no payments again ever" rule as it was kicked down in price by myself and then got decent trade-in on the evil Focus.
It's already running a COBB intake and Stage 1+ tune, Stage 2 is pre-loaded for when the COBB 3" downpipe and custom 3", Magnaflow-based cat-back goes on next week. After that... DONE. Maybe new tires to replace the new Sailuns on it which are actually not that bad. Might run them for a season and see how they hold up.
Outside chance - going to Ottawa or Barrie/GTA for a custom Stage 2+ tune for 18PSI and see what that gets me. Stock is 13.5PSI, currently tuned for 15PSI and can hit 14.3 without a cat-back. Should hit the target 16.5PSI for Stage 2 nicely with the DP and cat-back.
It's a pussycat around town when not in sport mode. Intake noise is a tad loud but I don't have the airbox lid on the COBB airbox - fitment issue. Shipped the right one, just need to work it out with them next week.
Sport mode or full sport-based manumatic? HELLO ACCELERATION AND FURY.
Love it. Might upgrade the rotors and pads, but the bite and travel is nicely setup. Corners damn flat for stock too.
Nik - now I know what you get in your WRX, albeit flavoured differently as I'm auto.
