rob84

iTrader: (5)

And mine & Richard's were designed for the car without sticking in the window grooves were only the glass is supposed to go.

I'd never buy cheap crap for my car

x24sevenbikerx

Lovely Car, looks really good , if they werent so much i would have loved to got a Cosworth version , however i do have a nice 330S in silver

anyway i was gunna ask what exactly did you use for the GTI style grill , i was looking at getting some pinstripe tape , but i know it would just look crap, i like how bright yours shows it, is it just a sort of 4mm red hose (boost pipe hose?)

cheers

thenewgalaxy

Thanks very much. I don't share the same feeling as she is currently covered in that bloody African sand and don't have the time to clean her. Hopefully I'll find some time after Easter.

I guess you'd really have to want one to upgrade from the cracking motor the 330s is but they're on the market for low 30s at the moment.

http://www.carbuildersolutions.com/u...trim-7mm-x-5mm is the stuff you're after, I found some in a little place in Kendal a while back. It does have an OEM look about it if fitted tight, I recommend taking the grill off to fit.

x24sevenbikerx

Yeh dont get me wrong im happy with my 330s , its always nicer to have the Rarest versions tho

ah perfect that looks perfect ill keep an eye out for it in local stores or order some off there its pretty cheap , ill take your advice and remove the grill as well , so ill just hangfire till i get Zunsport grilles and Hella horns as well , get everything done in 1 go

salsa-king

what did you get stung on the R205 rear defusser?

I've ordered one from Japan. I check and rang customs for a Commodity Code for the part and the import rate is 4.5% (only!) So I've told Japan supplier to make sure its on the box when sent. https://www.gov.uk/trade-tariff

easy to fit?

thenewgalaxy

My cats have grown a bit since then

A year ago when I ordered those parts I think including VAT and all the importing fees it worked out around £550.

Bearing in mind the GR is out of production and our exchange rate is a little more favourable I'd imagine it'll be costing a fair whack less than I paid.

Fitting it was not an option for me at the time as it was barely big enough to fit the Cosworth in there let alone with me standing alongside it! I took it to CAMS and Brian fitted it in about 20 minutes without removing the rear bumper, putting it up on the ramp and looking up reveals all the bits you need to fix it to.

If you fancy having a bash yourself though Phil it comes with a set of Japanese instructions!

It's a proper mod, should have been standard fit as the back of the car looks incomplete without it.

thenewgalaxy

It's been a very busy year so far but have been pushed for time when it comes to improving the car. Hopefully come the autumn I'll have a bit more of it to work on her in my new double garage

Had a great time in the car on Saturday, met up with another Scoobynet member for lunch and afterwards went for a road trip alongside his fantastic R205.



We headed in the direction of Mangoletsi for the new STI launch and got them parked up in the showroom before the event kicked off. Unfortunately my morning of cleaning was in vain as I picked up a fair few bug splats on the way!



The new STI is fantastic by the way. I was fortunate enough to take one out for a spin and it's thoroughly impressive. More refined, faster and more communicative steering with more feedback and quieter too. The engine delivers the standard 2.5 experience - despite what people say about the reliability it is a fantastic road unit when it works - though the new car does seem to have more of a kick low down. I genuinely hope we don't see any of these cars featuring on the sticky thread on SN's main forum.

The event was also a great excuse to put some names to faces from IM and I found them thoroughly approachable, honest and genuinely enthusiastic about their new product and the way they're remaining committed to giving us the STI on these shores.

Hart

Nice progression thread, keep up the amazing upgrades. Look forward to seeing more work

Cannon Fodder

iTrader: (100)

Come on, we need to see some progress.

thenewgalaxy

Not too much going on with the Cosworth at the moment Ty, am waiting for the warranty to expire.

In the meantime I've been a bit busy with another project, maybe you heard the rumour - I'll get a pic up when I get the opportunity

Cannon Fodder

iTrader: (100)

I had heard rumours of such a project, I am sure you will modify it with sympathy to the model as you have done with the CS400.

thenewgalaxy

I dearly love my Cosworth but as many people will appreciate, its compromise lies towards comfort and brute power to achieve its goals. It remains a fantastic road car for this reason and still my favourite among all the cars I've ever owned.

Though I've been pretty busy recently I've still been on the lookout for the yin to the yang that is my Cosworth, as I've had a big space in the garage alongside it. I'd entertained the idea of many other motors but I had gained an itch I really wanted to scratch.

And then one came up - here it is!

fpan

iTrader: (11)

Nice combination, is that Tyron's old car?

thenewgalaxy

Cheers mate, not a bad pair of motors to choose from.

Yes this car used to belong to Ty, it's in stunning condition for a car of its age.

salsa-king

oh come on Richard, get that garage painted out

Cannon Fodder

iTrader: (100)

A real pleasure to see you yesterday Richard, you've got two great cars now in your possession even if I say so myself.

Your Cosworth Hatchback is a real credit to you, and I know you'll keep the S202 as well as you have the CS400.

thenewgalaxy

All in good time, not even decided on a colour scheme yet! Tiled floor too when time allows...

Thanks Ty and your old car is a credit to you too there are not many cars that look this good at three years old let alone twelve! I hope to catch up with you again sooner rather than later

Hope you enjoy the hatch, I personally think it is the best car Subaru have ever made but not many people on these shores seem to share my view.

Cannon Fodder

iTrader: (100)

Thanks Richard, I was lucky to get a good car from Japan, it can be hard to judge a car on the other side of the planet but thanks to Brave Auto I ended up with a nice car.

I have to agree, I love the Hatchback STi OK I know the engine can have problems but the drive is great, I do like the I mode for when you just want to eat up the miles. I would say that it's a great all rounder, comfortable enough to munch the miles but when you engage sport sharp mode it bares it's true nature.

STI Glenn

What a pair awsome

thenewgalaxy

Thanks Glenn, I think so too.

Bit of a boring update this, but a back to back comparison of a Newage RA and Hatchback STI (albeit one fettled by Cosworth) may be of interest to some.

Having phoned Gary at Keith Michaels earlier on in the week to arrange insurance (and have a good old chin wag) I finally got round to taking the S202 for a spin today, and then went straight into the Cosworth for a blast along the same route too.

I have always been fascinated by the S202, it is a completely different car to any of the other high profile special editions - they seem to benefit from everything being chucked at a standard car to make it special (leather seats, creature comforts etc) whereas the S202 seemed to have everything taken away (not even fitted with airbags or any way to adjust the rear view mirrors from inside the car).

So on the road the S202 is initially a quite unnerving experience. From cold you can hear the injectors ticking like they're in the headrest behind you and every bump on the road transmits the sounds of the suspension working, along with a jolt through the thin seats that though comfortable, seem there only because they have to be. The steering at slow speed seems very heavy and the clutch is sharp. Crawling along in traffic is not especially fun, and there seems to be no torque below 3000rpm. You can't pull off in this car without a little throttle.

But then when the car has warmed up and the idle lowers, the burble becomes a purr and the car's mood changes. Finding a quiet stretch of fast road with some corners reveals everything you need to know about the S202. The engine loves to be revved, and through the wide titanium exhaust comes a fantastic bark over 4000rpm that loves to be held to well beyond 7000rpm. The acceleration, though quite fierce, gives the sensation of being more impressive than it actually is due to its delivery and combined with the information through the steering wheel and rifle-bolt gear change makes the car feel very connected. Even on the stock map mine has, pops and bangs audibly fill the cabin when the engine is flexed.

Grip is impressive (far in excess of the three UK Newage STIs I have previously owned) but what sets it apart is the turn in afforded by the aggressive caster and light weight. Sharp corners are despatched with consummate ease and unusually for a Subaru the rear is very playful, oversteer on tap is easily accessible and does not seem difficult to control. Down the twistiest roads the UK has to offer, this machine must have few equals.

Jumping into the Cosworth afterwards feels like a huge step up. The cabin seems much larger and the leather seats are incredibly comfortable. The smaller steering wheel turns with less effort and lacks low speed feedback. Noise inside is much diminished but the car is louder on the outside and has a far more aggressive noise at idle. The clutch is heavier and an aggressive rasp from the cone filter accompanies gear changes when the engine is on boost.

What amazes me about the Cosworth is that it sometimes feels detached and even slightly pedestrian. But looking at the speedo reveals that rapid progress is being made. It is only when pushing the car to antisocial levels that it suddenly comes to life - almost like normal road speeds are not worth bothering with - the familiarity of the experience in the S202 finally becoming apparent. But it consumes the gears with alarming ferocity and glides over the road surface even when you feel it should be struggling. Most impressive of all is the awesome stopping power, a short and sharp shove on the brake pedal wiping off speed in an instant. It would take something very impressive to keep up with this car in most conditions.

There is no doubt that both cars are very quick but it is obvious that one is dynamically more capable than the other. It is also obvious that neither could ever be the other - one is a raw, street legal track car and the other a comfort-orientated GT with an abundance of muscle. Both utterly fantastic and both brilliant at what they do.

john1979

I like this write up, there are a few bits that hit the nail on the head having just moved from a Newage (but with a 2.1) to a hatch myself. The comfort and the smoothness of the power delivery are most notable.

Do you know which turbo cosworth used on the cs400? I'm already looking at changing mine.

John.

thenewgalaxy

The Cosworth uses a rotated GT30 by Owen Developments. Ideally my car needs a custom map to get the best out of it, and is something I'll be addressing when it is out of warranty next year.

STI Glenn

Great write up ,my old S204 was not raw like the S202 but the handling was fantastic the grip would turn a useless driver into a good one

john1979

I had no idea the cosworth used a rotated setup, every days a school day.

thenewgalaxy

Absolutely matey, this is the hallmark of a great car. Both of these cars are capable of flattering any driver but the S202 deserves a little more respect IMO as it has lower limits than the Cosworth, oversteer with relative ease and has much less tech keeping it on the Tarmac.

I've said it before but I am amazed that car is still for sale. It's absolutely mint.

Neither did I until I spoke to someone at Owen about it last year. The guy on the other end of the phone was talking about angles and wheels and nearly caused my ear to heal over.

fpan

iTrader: (11)

Nice write up.
I've said it before and will say it again, our cars have too much grip to be enjoyed at the national speed limit where they feel boring as you said, one can have much more fun in a car that has 130-150bhp and has almost half the weight, give me a 205 GTi/106 GTi/Rallye anyday.

As it has also been mentioned, you don't need to be a good driver to drive a Subaru fast so in that sense they don't help one progress as a driver.

This article sums up what I feel (and the problem of too much grip our cars have) really well: http://www.pistonheads.com/news/defa...?storyId=30602

It's not about lap or A-B times but fun factor on everyday driving.

thenewgalaxy

Cheers matey

Absolutely right, I try to buy cars that have a certain fun factor for their class but even those that the motoring journos rave about these days are often very dull. I've already had more fun in the S202 than I had in my 911 in four years...

A warning for anyone with a roof vent by the way. I was, with a passenger, flying along earlier and a conker fell off a tree into the road in front of us. It bounced about five feet into the air, clipped the corner of the bonnet scoop and flew into the roof scoop, bouncing off the latch and hitting me in the side of the head!

strawberryhead

great pics big fan of them

juggers

iTrader: (1)

Great write up Rich! You thought about becoming a motoring journo!

STI Glenn

Immy some input on driving these cars from you would be nice as you have them all thanks