CarBoyCam Posted December 31, 2020 Share Posted December 31, 2020 Hi all, Thought I'd document the minor upgrades and additions I add to my 2017 WRX STI as I go. I've never had a Subaru before this one as some of you will have seen. Only had two cars before, both of which were Vauxhall Corsas. It's always been a dream of mine to own a Subaru since the days of watching McRae/Burns/Solberg in the WRC with the Impreza when I was younger. I bought this car in October of this year (2020) just before the national lockdown took hold. I'd been waiting for a 2017+ WRX STI to pop up in WR Blue for a while. Mainly because they're bearable to tax compared to the older cars. Also wanted the blue as I knew I wouldn't be happy had I bought a grey one. The car when I took ownership only had a couple of non-standard parts. Wind/rain deflectors all round. Axle-back muffler delete (unsure of make but I think it's one from Nameless in the US). Subaru silver exhaust trim pieces. Here's a pic as she was on her first outing to Caffeine & Machine. Found some Japanese friends whilst we were there. 😄 Ever since buying the car I knew one thing had to go right away - the wind/rain deflectors. They obscured your view slightly and also on damp mornings caused water to drip into the car when the windows were down. Not ideal! With a bit of help from the girlfriend, a heat gun and some minty Morrison's dental floss, they were gone! WD40 also helped clean up any remaining goo. Much better looking without them in my opinion. Private plate also went on the car as well. Next up was installing something to help prevent the intercooler from being abused any further by stones which Roxy inhales through her bonnet scoop! For this I bought an Intertek intercooler guard from VIP Motorsport complete with red STI logo. Love the look of it and I don't mind if it gets beaten up. Would rather that then bent intercooler fins! Next minor change was the Wiper Blades. They were starting to smear and had likely been on the car for a while. Decided to not buy Subaru ones and instead bought some silicone ones from PIAA for that proper rally car look. 😂 Now, the last thing which was on my immediate list was to get the factory head unit out and replaced. Reason for this is that I missed Apple CarPlay more than I thought, that and the fact the factory one seemed to constantly hang, freeze or altogether forget what I was playing through my phone at the time. Decided to splash out on a Pioneer AVIC-Z930DAB unit as it has a nice flush bezel on the screen, has customisable lighting and can do wireless CarPlay on top! Bought all the required adapters etc. to retain factory steering controls and also keep the factory USB ports functioning. Installation was a bit of a pain (especially tapping the handbrake wire) but we got there in the end! It's so much better than before and I'm really happy with the way the centre console looks now. Next up on the list is replacing the muffler delete as it's a bit too loud and 'asbo' for my liking. Decided to get COBB Tuning's stainless cat-back system to replace it. Read lots of good reviews and it seems to be a bit less rowdy but also still allow the boxer rumble. Also looks the part too. Not sure when it'll be delivered but it'll be worth the wait! Will be sure to update you all when I have more progress, but so far, I'm absolutely loving the car and it's everything I've ever wanted. Proper old-school performance with a massive wing! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay762 Posted January 2, 2021 Share Posted January 2, 2021 Agree with the wind deflectors, found they restricted visibility too much on my hatch particularly when going around islands, also PIAA wipers are always my first mod on any new to me car as they just work so much better that oem wipers 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarBoyCam Posted January 2, 2021 Author Share Posted January 2, 2021 I used to have some deflectors on both my Corsas I used to own. But they were Team Heko ones which sat in the gap where the glass for the window went. This meant they weren't as bulky and didn't get in the way. Just found the ones on my STI were a bit too big. Also didn't like the way they're stuck onto the doors on the outside. Looks a bit cheap in my opinion. Had PIAA wipers on my previous cars too. They certainly don't look as well designed as the Subaru ones, but silicone wipers are so but better than rubber ones! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarBoyCam Posted January 21, 2021 Author Share Posted January 21, 2021 Had a much anticipated delivery arrive earlier this week for the car! VIP Motorsport managed to get me a COBB Tuning SS 3" cat-back in around two weeks. It's getting fitted a week Tuesday and I can't wait to hear what it sounds like! 😄 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay762 Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 Nice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarBoyCam Posted February 4, 2021 Author Share Posted February 4, 2021 Finally got the exhaust installed this week thanks to a local garage near me! Absolutely loving it so far! It's nowhere near as loud as the muffler delete I took off, but throttle response is improved and the car is much more refined but still sounds like a Subaru should. Very high end piece of kit this exhaust and it looks the part too! Apologies for the filthy state of the car... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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