Considering the Prodrive spring upgrade for my 03WRX wagon. Thing is I live out in the sticks and a lot of the roads around here are quite rough B-roads. I don't want to lose all the ride quality however and wondered whether it would make the ride too harsh.

I hate how much my wagon rolls, especially when pushing on down narrow roads - compared to my old 306GTI-6 the scoob seems much harder to confidently place when turning in, and seems to 'unload' more when exiting bends making it wander a bit. Will the Prodrive upgrade help this much??

 

know what you mean mate, my modified 205 gti was very direct like a go cart. My impreza, as fast as it is doesn't handle as nicely, wallows all over the place. Time for some suspension upgrades I think.

 

If its anything like the classics - putting on an uprated adjustable rear anti roll bar improves things no end. [ And some solid drop links if they still use the plastics ones as standard ]

 

I have, well more like suffered! See here http://bbs.scoobynet.co.uk/showthread.php?t=344520
Ride quality is definitely worse after having them fitted, crashing and banging over rough surfaces.
Took it back to the dealer and he says it'll improve when I fit 18's.


Jason

 

Excuse my ignorance but I would have thought 18's would make the ride even harsher due to the lower profile tyre sidewalls

How would it improve things??

 

I asked Mike Wood at Prodrive the same question!
From what I can gather, the car is set-up for 18's but supplied with 17's, probably to extract more cash from the punter!
I'll let you know what I think when the 18's go on.

Jason

 

18's are on, wrapped in Goodyear's finest and the car is transformed!

Jason

 

Excellent news!! I still don't understand why switching from 17's to 18's can improve the ride

 

Me neither but it has!
A technical explanation from somebody in the know wouldn't go amiss.

Jason

 

I have a WRX (not STi) and found the ride quality improved with the spring kit. Much less bounce on uneven roads and the ABS doesn't kick in as much as it used to when braking on rough surfaces. I'd recommend it.

 

I've an STi PPP and over the last few months have incrementally fitted 18'' PFF7's with Pirelli P Zero nero's, Prodrive springs (+ geometry), front strut brace and rear strut brace. The car is nothing like the original one I bought. Handles superbly with much reduced understeer and doesn't 'bob' around at 80mph like she annoyingly did at first. Next step is solid alloy drop links and Whiteline ARB. Why do folks strive for more power all the time when you have a motor that has a suspension which obviously doesn't optimally handle what power it has? This begs the question of why don't they set up the car better as standard instead of extracting extra cash from us to make it do what it's supposed to? Another point is that I've read varying reports about the effect of strut braces on a newage STi, most of which state 'not much difference' or 'stiff enough chassis without them'. In my experience it made a hell of a difference. I don't think this is 'just coz I bought them I want them to work' phenmenon. I wasn't going to fit them but got the opportunity of Jap import STi products for much cheapness, otherwise I wouldn't have done it. Glad I did now.

PS In answer to the question, I live on mostly rural roads and it excels on them.

 

I have an MY03 WRX, Eibach springs, powerflex rear drop links, front strut brace, and i live and use rural roads too, i love it! The only problem i got is the springs are knocking slightly so they gotta sort that out as i dont know what is doing it.
BUT, the ride is not crashy at all. In fact, even my missus now likes it better as a passenger! It turns in corners like f00k and is just awesome.

 

My springs (front) also knocked and its taken 2 trips back to the dealer to fix them. All is well now and bumps have that 'hard rubber' feeling when you go over them with no knocks.

 

i've got an 04 wrx with the prodrive springs

get them

the ride quality is barely any worse at all and the improvement in handling is large, once you have the geommetry done. Much less understeer, less waviness at motorway speeds. Improved turn in.

 

My car has them and i find it a better ride than my previous WRX, which was standard.

I'd speak to your dealer about it, they might let you test one of their cars with it on.

Chris.

 

Any idea what stopped them knocking? Gimme some clues for when i go back

 

Do you have the standard 17" wheels or have you switched to 18's? Just wondered whether the Prodrive springs only work well with the 18's? Same question to Chris's Scooby too

 

Look at the last post in this thread.

http://bbs.scoobynet.co.uk/showthread.php?t=351385

Cheers,
Hugh.

 

http://bbs.scoobynet.co.uk/showthread.php?t=348181

I put some comments on here along with others that you might find interesting. I still think that with the Prodrive springs the ride is still a touch too soft. I'm running stock wheels and tyres (F1s 34.5/32.5 psi) and I can imagine that 18's might just firm it up a tad and feel slightly better.

Still a big step in the right direction though and there's some bumpy, crappy roads on my regular routes. Smooth roads were never really a problem before but are better by a long way now.

 

No idea about the springs but changing the rear droplinks was a great mod for next to nothing. The back of the car is much tighter and doesn't wag or wallow through the twisties - and I live in Devon so the roads are rough!

 

Thanks Jerry. Your comments have pretty much swung it for me, especially as yours is an 03 wagon like mine I had wondered about how the Prodrive springs effect the wagon as it is a bit softer and more prone to roll than the saloon to start with. Sounds like just what I need!

I just need to decide where to get them fitted now. I'm assuming that I can get them fitted somewhere other than a Subaru dealer and not void my warranty??

 

'I just need to decide where to get them fitted now. I'm assuming that I can get them fitted somewhere other than a Subaru dealer and not void my warranty??[/QUOTE]

It's only my opinion of course. To put it into perspective, it's still softer than a standard classic by a long way. And it's not a huge expense if you really don't like it.
I'm hoping they'll do a damper set to match the springs.

I had my dealership do mine, all Subaru parts and work, no effect on the warranty.
If that's not for you, there's Powerstation down West or TSL up 'North', both of which are highly recommended by many.

Where you at?