Adjustable strut and spring advice or which car?.

[1 Lucky Texan]

I dream of buying for myself (The OBW is actually my wife's car) an Impreza wagon.

 

I don't have a lot of money so under 9-10K is probably the limit. I have aline on an '00 OBS MT with about 55k miles on it in my price range.

 

The problem seems to be, lack of/poor info on what mods I would be able to do to it. I know it would never be a 1/4 miler and really, I'm resigned to not caring a lot about that. BUT (yes it's a big but) it appears that KYB AGX adjustable struts MAY not be availble for that vehicle. Yes I know I should start with sway bars and I intend too. I don't really want it slammed either - maybe less than an inch in the springs and I will probably get 16inch wheels with some 40-45 profile tires/whatever to get another 1/2-1inch lowering(don't care about the speedo).

My real question is, if I want to get 15-20-25% stiffer springs on adjustable damping struts for an Impreza wagon - is there a different model I should buy than an OBS? Is there a different brand of strut? The info is quite confusing and the OBS is almost the 'bastard child' it seems as far as mods go. I want a barrel of monkeys fun to drive daily driver (with a dream of trying rally/autox at least a coupla times) that hugs the road. I'd like it to be a wagon but if the struts aren't upgradable maybe I can be talked into a different model. The 2.2l is fine for me - don't really need headgasket problems on top of saving my $ for occasional mods.

 

any advice appreciated!

 

SORRY -SORRY - edited to reflect MY 2000 not '02 sorry

[alias20035]

Originally posted by 1 Lucky Texan

I dream of buying for myself (The OBW is actually my wife's car) an Impreza wagon.

 

I don't have a lot of money so under 9-10K is probably the limit. I have aline on an '02 OBS MT with about 55k miles on it in my price range.

 

The problem seems to be, lack of/poor info on what mods I would be able to do to it. I know it would never be a 1/4 miler and really, I'm resigned to not caring a lot about that. BUT (yes it's a big but) it appears that KYB AGX adjustable struts MAY not be availble for that vehicle. Yes I know I should start with sway bars and I intend too. I don't really want it slammed either - maybe less than an inch in the springs and I will probably get 16inch wheels with some 40-45 profile tires/whatever to get another 1/2-1inch lowering(don't care about the speedo).

My real question is, if I want to get 15-20-25% stiffer springs on adjustable damping struts for an Impreza wagon - is there a different model I should buy than an OBS? Is there a different brand of strut? The info is quite confusing and the OBS is almost the 'bastard child' it seems as far as mods go. I want a barrel of monkeys fun to drive daily driver (with a dream of trying rally/autox at least a coupla times) that hugs the road. I'd like it to be a wagon but if the struts aren't upgradable maybe I can be talked into a different model. The 2.2l is fine for me - don't really need headgasket problems on top of saving my $ for occasional mods.

 

any advice appreciated!

 

Kevin Thomas turned his OBS into a virtual WRX, and would know a lot about the possible mods. He checks in to this forum from time to time (I know he posted back in Oct/Nov). Do a search for his posts/replies. His OBS is white with the black racing stripes and was featured on the Motorweek Impreza 22B special as well as some other videos floating around on Kazaa.

 

As far as I know the OBS can use the regular Impreza struts and sway bars. The OBS did not seem to get much of a ground clearance increase (if any) unlike the Legacy model.

 

My KYB table shows that the AGX will bolt right on to the older OBS, and I can confirm that the GR2 will fit because I did one a while back (so the AGX should too).

 

I don't know too much about the 02 model, except that the underpinnings of the car did not get many changes from the earlier model (none were needed, the car was already good).

 

Working on the suspension and brakes before migrating to engine upgrades is a good idea. Its more fun to corner fast than accelerate in a straight line anyways!

 

The 02 has the Phase II EJ25!! Only the 99-01 models had the Phase II EJ22 engine, while the earlier model had the Phase 1 EJ22.

[1 Lucky Texan]

Sorry - that shoulda been MY 2000 that is for sale locally. NOT '02 as originally posted. '99-'01 have the higher (slightly) output 2.2l

 

Yeah - there is some indication the struts are 'appropriate' but some sites specifically exclude the OBS -weird, or perhaps discontinued.

 

thanx for replying

[1 Lucky Texan]

anybody else?

[Setright]

Texan!

 

Sounds to me like you should look to Germany for your new suspension. "H&R" makes springs that lower slighty and stiffen progressively, without being so hard that it makes daily driving a pain in the back.

Sure, they also have a range of super stiff springs, but save that for track only.

 

They also make spring/damper kits.

 

http://www.hrsprings.com/

 

They are very popular over here, and are held in high esteem. Especially since many European roads are in quite a bad state, we need compliance to allow for all those potholes!

 

On an unrelated note: I would recommend Bridgstone Potenza 720'ies. They grip well, wet or dry, and handle very predictably. Somehow they combine this with a tendency to last long and wear evenly. Trust me, I have thrashed the heebee-jeebees out of mine and they have avoided the worn shoulders that so many other tyres give in to.

True, they are not the absolute last word in outright grip, but the feel/handling/predictability allow a lot of smiles per mile

[1 Lucky Texan]

Thanx! Um - the Impreza Outback Sport seems to be the chassis with the least attention from companies making aftermarket perf. equip. Much information is confusing. I have read about Eibach not lowering much - but the real issue is more like, are springs and struts sold for Imprezas REALLY appropriate for the OBS? I don't even have the car yet, but they are a little more common in my area than the RS, (I may drive down to Temple to look at a '00 MT OBS). Does the USDM OBS go by a different name in Europe? I will investigate H&R - perhaps putting them on some KYB GR2s is good enough for my purposes. The IDEA of the AGX adjustables is appealing - just don't know I'd really use it that much.

thanx