Gazza82

Evening all,

I’ve been lurking on here for a little while but it’s my first post so hello!

After a little while away from performance cars due to life, work and other things going on I’m now in a position to get myself a toy and I’ve decided to look for a nice JDM Blobeye STI.

Having been playing with Fords for the last 22 or so years (Cosworths, Focus RS’s and ST’s, RS Turbos etc........), I’m bored with them and want to try something else and a Subaru is the only thing that appeals to me. The only thing is, I don’t know a massive amount about them so I have a few questions, I’m sure they’ve been covered before so I apologise in advance!

1. What are the main issues to look for on them? I’m a mechanic by trade so I know the general things to look at, just wondered if they suffered with anything in particular.

2. Once I’ve found myself a nice one, I’ll be wanting to do some mods to it. I’m looking to aim for around 400 ish bhp as most of my cars have been over that power. What’s the best way of achieving getting to that power and what parts will I need?

3. What other mods are worthwhile doing? I’ll be sorting the suspension and brakes etc, what is a good setup for a fast road car?

4. What would be a good clutch to use? I’d like a clutch that isn’t too heavy to use as I had a bike crash several years ago which pretty much destroyed my knee so I struggle with a very heavy clutch. I’m not too worried about the clutch being sharp, just the weight of the pedal.

5. Who would you guys recommend for mapping? I don’t mind travelling or paying decent money for a good job.

6. Are there any dealers that deal in the JDM cars that you would recommend to buy from? I’ve done a bit of research and it’s definitely a JDM car that I want.

Sorry for the long first post and all the questions, I hope I haven’t waffled on too much and I appreciate your time!

Thanks very much,

Gaz

JdmSti2006

its a money pit
1.main issue at a minute is rust ,fresh import is a way to go
2.360 horses on oem car ,no point spending few k to get to 400, few members found out they had more fun in 360 oem car than in 450
3. hunt for spec c ra to avoid suspension mods ,brakes are not bad, oem with PFC discs or apracing cheap discs 450 pair, alcons around 1k just for rotors
4.exedy pink will do a job on 400 horses car-oem feel
5. best to use map from garage where You can come back when You will have an issue with map not from mobile mapper where You have to wait and maybe he will come back maybe not, TDR Warwick, FBtuning, Zen is not bad to but my car had poor map ,mapped again by FBtuning
,Scoobyclinic- or not they could sell You syvecs ecu and pothole testing Your car
6.Torque GT, Hurst went crazy with prices,some members here sell fresh imports

hedgecutter

iTrader: (5)

Wheel arch and rear suspension turret rust. But jdm all the way.

plenty

iTrader: (13)

Doesn’t have to be a money pit if you find a good one. These are simple cars with not much to go wrong compared to others of similar performance. There are no particular weak spots - as above look for rust in the turrets, otherwise it’s condition and maintenance history as with any car.

I am one of those who believes the standard JDM with exhaust and remap is all you need for the road. Then the power upgrade path includes front mount, injectors and turbo. However you will lose some driveability (more lag) when you do this.

As you are based in Herts FB Tuning in Princes Risborough is a good bet for both mapping and mechanical work.

Opinions vary with regard to suspension and most people opt for coilovers, but my preferred newage setup for the road was Prodrive S005 or RB320 springs with OEM struts which offer a level of compliance for the road that coilovers cannot match. Lots of people fit fat anti-roll bars but this was also never my preference, particularly on a blob JDM which will have a rear-biased DCCD torque split and not as prone to understeer.

adam.pah

I've just listed mine in the for sale section if you want something that's already built (will save you a lot of cash in the long run if you're doing it anyway). Mine's a UK car but is as clean as my JDM Spec C and has only done 46k miles.

Gazza82

Thanks very much for your replies guys, some useful information there

I’m going to have a look at Adams car later on today as although it’s not a JDM car, it does make sense to buy one that has all the bits done to it.

Gazza82

Well, tonight I put a deposit down on Adam’s black STI

I know it’s not a JDM car but it is such a good spec, I’d have been a bit silly to turn it down!

looking forward to collection day!

adam.pah

I think you’ll be happy with it. 👍😁

NOSSY_89

Congratulations to both of you