What Modifications Should I Make To My '04 WRX Sedan?

I bought it new, and waited until the warranty was up to do much to it. The end of the warranty came and went, and I still have done very little to the car.

So far, I have taken out the ram air scoop and air intake silencer, and flashed the ECU with a Cobb AccessPort, which has since been stolen. (I changed the base map to performance mode for 93 octane before that sad, sad morning).

I don't intend to ever get rid of the car, and I don't currently use it as a daily driver. It's just been so close to stock for so long that it's time to make some modifications. I'd like to start cheap, but see a lot of potential for this to become a larger project down the road. Of course, I'll post any changes I do make here.

Any suggestions?
by John Beltz Snyder on Dec. 15, 2009 - 2:44 p.m.
  • John Beltz Snyder
    Inspired by the diet on which Winding Road intern, Jeremy Cargill has put his Porsche 944, I thought stripping some weight would be a good place to start. I've toyed with the idea of deleting the rear seats. Have any of you done this to your Impreza?
  • Steven J. Ewing
    Gold wheels, obviously.
  • check out the nasioc forums... do the basics first, intake exhaust, get another accessport, or even better use OpenECU or RomRaider and do your own reflash, I know for a fact you can get the Stage 2 maps off Nasioc or from someone (a stage2 wrx is stock plus intake and exhaust)... I may even have that map on my laptop as I type. The do an intercooler, either an STi top mount or go front mount, top mount is stealthier however a front mount will pave the way for a much bigger turbo and performance later. However an STi top mount is always a good bet. Then throw on a vf39/vf43/vf48 off of an STi and once again reflash the ecu and you'll be making some darn good power... With a good map and high boost you could easily be up to 270 at the wheels... with a 20% driveline loss that puts you at over 300 at the crank.