Power Engineeringwww.powerengineering.co.ukSamco Hoseswww.samcosport.comIan Taylor Body Repairswww.paintshophorley.co.ukK&Nwww.knfilters.comForgewww.forgemotorsport.co.ukNGKwww.ngkntk.co.ukKeith Michaels Insurance0845 618 5355Scoobyworkswww.scoobyworld.co.ukjperformancewww.jperformance.co.ukSeibonwww.seiboncarbon-uk.comAmber Performancewww.amber-performance.co.ukJW Racingwww.j-w-racing.co.ukStrutbracerwww.strutbracer.co.ukAutoArtwww.autoartltd.co.ukBCwww.bc-racing.co.ukYokohamawww.yokohama.co.ukAdvanti Wheelswww.advanti-wheel.comArch Enemywww.archenemy.co.ukHel Brake Hoseswww.h-e-l.co.ukEBC Brakeswww.ebcbrakes.comRSR Tyres & Wheelswww.rsrtyres.co.ukJapspeedwww.japspeed.co.ukEibachwww.eibach.co.ukCarMats4U.comWeb: www.carmats4u.comKenwoodwww.kenwood-electronics.co.ukAvon Tyreswww.avon-tyres.co.ukWicked Wheelswww.wickedwheels.co.ukFuller Tyreswww.fullertyres.co.ukEPRwww.epracing.co.ukJap Performance Partswww.japperformanceparts.co.uk,Euro Car Partswww.eurocarparts.com

Contacts

PROJECT

SCUBERWAGON

Click on thewebsites to beredirected to

their site

We love a new project here at JP. It’sa chance to show you guys what’sout there on the market and who’saround to fit it up. This time we’vechosen a classic – the Subaru 2.0

Turbo Wagon.With plenty of products available on the

market, this is the perfect car for modifying and,along with being dirt cheap at the moment, it’sa great way to get started. One of our concernswith this model was the insurance – andsearching the comparison websites we weregetting more worried, but after a quick scanthrough the insurance ads in the back pages ofJP we gave Keith Michaels a call (0845 6185355). They specialise in Imprezas and mostother performance cars. The quote was a goodfew hundred pounds cheaper and includedmodifications up to 400bhp – what a deal! Itwas also good to speak to someone who was

interested in cars rather than someone justpushing buttons (cheers Gary).

After finding the perfect car – two ownersfrom new and in good nick – our first job was toget the car serviced and include a cambeltchange. It’s not as expensive a job as we firstthought and we eventually found all the partswe needed on the Euro Car Parts website.

The parts were ordered and were with us thenext day. We got the usual parts for the service,including leads, fuel and oil filter and a cambeltkit. Rather than changing the panel air filter, wespoilt ourselves with a 57i induction kit fromK&N, a great piece of kit that we’ve fitted tomost of our projects. We also upgraded theplugs to NGK Laser Platinums (PFR7B), asrecommended by the garage. To further add tothe performance we gave Forge a call to get adiverter valve, which is such a simple yet veryeffective modification.

We needed a garage to get all the bits on,and when asking the people in the know wewere told to contact Impreza specialists PowerEngineering. We’d heard good things about thisplace and with a four-wheel drive rolling roadthey turned out to be the perfect choice (rollingroad figures to come in following issues).

We booked the car into the Uxbridge garage,where we were met by Dan, Ian and Shaun – agreat bunch of guys who really know their stuff(and who have given us many more ideas whereto spend the money on this project!) Shauncracked on with the cambelt, which turned outto be really needed because, although the beltappeared okay, one of the cambelt covers wasrubbing on it and if it had been left much longercould have worn through.

Although a little time consuming, thecambelt swap was easy for Shaun. It’s certainlynot recommended to be doing this if you’re not

Cheap as chips! This tidy Scooby wagon wasa performance bargain for JP staffer Joel

ProjectWAGONProjectWAGONProjectWAGONScuberScuberScuber This month: A new addition to the JP fleet,and a visit to Power Engineering gets it sorted

98 May 2010 Japanese Performance

Words&Photos:JoelMitchell

100% capable, as getting the cambelt intothe exact position can be tricky. Shaun alsosuggested changing the drive belts, so weswapped them at the same time. Onceback together, Shaun did a full serviceincluding new oil, water etc. Again, this wasall needed – the oil was very dark andbeing a turbo car should be changedregularly. For a price on work give Dan acall on 01895 255699

To change the plugs, the washer watertank had to be removed, as did the air box,which was perfect as it meant we could getthe K&N straight into place. And Shaun’seasiest job of the day was probably to getthe Forge valve into place. The car doesseem to pick up quicker now, plus thesound has improved.

With the car feeling ready for all thefuture engine modifications, we haveplanned a Ninja Sports Cat down-pipe,decat centre section and race back-box, aJPerformance front-mounted intercooler andcustom EcuTek remap by the boys at PowerEngineering. Also, we plan to upgrade allthe hoses to Samco’s silicone versions,which apart from offering improved safety,should brighten up the engine bay.

For improved handling, we have plans tostiffen up the car with a set of BC coilovers,front and rear strut braces and stiffer anti-roll bars.

All will be shown in future issues of themagazine including loads of rolling roadfigures and testing opinions. Watch thisspace. �

The guys at Power Engineering helped out with the new car in the JP stable.Our Scooby had been well looked after so was pretty clean

K&N 57i induction replaced the standardairbox, and sounds way better

in association with

99Japanese Performance May 2010

Tech: Project Wagon

The Power House, 53 Wallingford Road,Uxbridge, Middlesex. UB8 2FR

ContactsPower Engineeringwww.powerengineering.co.ukWorkshop & MoT: 01895 255699K&Nwww.knfilters.comForgewww.forgemotorsport.co.ukNGKwww.ngkntk.co.ukKeith Michaels Insurance0845 618 5355

Moving on from the service lastmonth we’re ready for the first ofthe proper mods – a full stainlessexhaust system, front-mountedintercooler and a custom EcuTek

remap.After hunting around for the correct exhaust

system, we found our set-up on theScoobyworld website. The best thing about thisis we could chose exactly what kind of systemwe wanted. We ideally wanted a decat systembut still wanted the car to pass an MoT, so weopted for a Ninja fast-flow cat down-pipe, adecat centre section and RaceBox back box.As you can see from the pictures, this is alltop-notch stuff, the finish is especially high andthe down-pipe is a work of art.

After the choice was made, the order wasplaced and we took delivery of the system thevery next day. Great service from Scoobyworld- thanks guys.

While indulging ourselves, we continuedlooking for goodies and decided to replace theexisting top-mounted intercooler with a largerfront-mounted version. Prices for these vary, soit’s worth looking around. We eventually optedfor a JPerformance intercooler (at around the£300 mark this kit is good value) so we clickedthe “add to cart button” and waited eagerly forthe kit to arrive. We didn’t expect too muchfrom the kit as it was one of the cheaperversions, but we were very impressed with thequality once unwrapped in the office... then toget it all fitted.

We went back to Power Engineering inUxbridge to have the parts fitted and get somerolling road figures. The technicians at thegarage were keen to get the parts fitted andsee the results, but first we wanted to get thecar on the rolling road so we could see whatkind of power we were pumping out. Strappeddown, the Subaru went a couple of runs beforeIan, the brains at the control of the dyno,informed us that not only was the power downon the original 218bhp, showing only 209bhp, itwas also over-fuelling.

Being a little disappointed we were evenkeener to increase the power, so it was over tothe two-post ramp to remove the old exhaustand down-pipe. To get the old down-pipe off,the intercooler had to be removed as did the

Below: The stock top-mount intercoolergets unbolted, along with the exhaust.Right: On the dyno the car produced 273hpand 290lb ft torque

ProjectWAGONProjectWAGONProjectWAGONScuberScuberScuber This month: Goodies! A new exhaust and front-mountintercooler liven up our Scooby’s flat-four thumper

100 June 2010 Japanese Performance

101Japanese Performance June 2010

The Power House, 53 Wallingford Road,Uxbridge, Middlesex UB8 2FR

RACEBOXIf you're looking for a great-sounding, highperformance exhaust that is never too loudor intrusive, the RaceBox is the perfectchoice.It features a 3.5in rolled-in tailpipe withintegrated baffle on a high-flow silencer.Produced in mirror-polished 304 stainlesssteel pipework, with RaceBox logoemblazoned on the tailpipe. The RaceBoxlooks perfect on both the Classic and NewAge Impreza. And it comes complete with a5-year warranty.Designed specifically to provide the bestof both worlds: zero cabin drone on cruise,yet great flat four soundtrack at higher revs.Available for Impreza Turbo 1993–2006(all models inc WRX, STI and 5-doorwagons).

ContactPower Engineering

www.powerengineering.co.uk

Workshop & MoT:

+44 (0) 1895 255699

Scoobyworkswww.scoobyworld.co.uk

Workshop & MoT

Tel: 01509 266 400

jperformancewww.jperformance.co.uk

turbo heatshield, which itself needed to bemodified to accommodate the newfast-flow cat. The old down-pipe wasunbolted from the turbo and the lambdasensor unplugged. Once all the bolts wereremoved, the Subaru was hiked up andShaun moved in with his spanners.

The whole exhaust was removed in amatter of minutes, then the new down-pipewas positioned and the rest of the system

The full exhaust was the easiest re-fit, with the onlymod being reworking a heat shield

Tech: Project Wagon

in association with

102 June 2010 Japanese Performance

SITTING PRETTY

Well done if youspotted that the car

now sits lower, all

courtesy of these

awesome coilovers

from BC Racing. Full

report in next month’s

issue of your favourite

Jap magazine. For

more info on the kit

check outwww.bc-racing.co.uk

bolted together like a dream. Never beforehave I seen a system fit together so well.With the down-pipe bolted back on to theturbo and the lambda sensor screwed intoplace, it was all sorted.

While the car had been up in the air, Ianhad already got to work on removing allthe fixings for the bumper to gain accessto where the nice new shiny intercooler willbe placed. Once the intercooler wasroughly in situ, the boys started to threadthe pipework into position (not an easyjob...). To make life a little bit more simple,

The kit needed a little tweaking, but it was nothingthe guys at Power Engineering couldn’t handle

The size of the intercooler hasimproved flow higher in the powerband - torque is now very punchy

103Japanese Performance June 2010

they cut some of the pipes and fixed themwith flexihose to give a little more space.After a bit of fiddling, all the pipes were inplace and the intercooler fitted securely. Ofcourse the bumper then needed to bemodified to allow the massive intercooler tofit snugly behind. All measured and maskedup, Ian got to work – trimming the back ofthe bumper.

While all this work was being carried out,all that was on our minds was how muchpower we were going to get. How muchcould we get out of it with the remap?So, with the bumper back on and every bolt

tightened, we moved back over to therolling road where Ian got to work with thecustom remap. First the standard EcuTekfile was uploaded and the car was given arun, then Ian got to work adjusting all thefuelling levels along with lots of other stuffwe didn’t really understand...very cleverstuff! Also, now the boost could be turnedup, Ian changed the boost restrictormanually from a 1.2 to a 1.05.

So, the final figures... we achieved273bhp and a massive 290lb ft of torque,not too bad at all. The car is now pullingreally strong and apparently should be

better on fuel – not likely though as wecan’t help giving that awesome exhaust ablast. It sounds superb but not too loudfrom the inside - it is a daily driver after all. Iwould recommend this system to anyone,although some might choose a smallertailpipe for a more subtle rear end. Ofcourse if you wanted a little more powerScoobyworld offer other systems includingdecat down-pipes. Check outwww.scoobyworld.co.uk.

All in all a great day out for theproject wagon and big thanks to all atPower Engineering. �

For more info on the Scuber Wagon check out our

website www.japaneseperformancemagazine.co.uk

The front-mount intercooler gets rid ofthe heat soak problem of the top-mount, but requires bumper mods

Tech: Project Wagon

Well, what a month! After a fewmonths of sorting the engine out,we thought we’d have a go attaking care of the handling andthe braking.

First we had to find the perfect suspensionset-up. We ideally wanted a coilover kit withplenty of adjustment and a system that not onlyperforms but also is suitable for everydaydriving on the road.

Flicking through the magazine, we cameacross BC Racing’s advert and thought we’dcheck them out further. The kit had good write-ups, looked absolutely awesome and had all theadjustment we needed; damping, spring rate,ride height and camber control, and at around

£650 was a bargain. We’ll take a set.Now to sort the brakes. On all the projects

I’ve run, I’ve always fitted uprated EBC discswith Yellow Stuff pads, the Subaru will be noexception. They always work perfectly and fitstraight on with no messing (apart fromremoving the paint from the inside of the reardisc, so the handbrake doesn’t bind) – also,while replacing the discs and pads we wantedto renew the lines using stainless braided brakehoses from Hel.

So once again I jumped into the wagon andheaded round the M25 to visit the guys atPower Engineering. This was a job they werereally keen to do, all nice new shiny bits toreplace the standard bits and to get the car set

up properly.Shaun got to work removing the old

suspension – a simple job. Then literally slottedthe new set in place and bolted up. Also aseasy (well, they made it look easy), the padsand discs were removed and the new goodiesbolted on. The braided hoses replaced the oldones and new brake fluid got rid of the old –which was much needed. They made all thislook easy but of course they had the luxury ofhaving the car at head height and all the correcttools to hand.

Once all the parts were in place and the

ProjectWAGONProjectWAGONProjectWAGONScuberScuberScuber This month: Coilovers, brakes and fresh rolling stockcompletely change our Scuberwagon’s looks

104 July 2010 Japanese Performance

The BC Racing coilovers work well on the road forour family hauler, and are reasonably priced

Words & Photos: Joel Mitchell

in association with

105Japanese Performance July 2010

New discs and pads from EBC and a set of HEL braided steelhoses sorted out our Impreza’s inadequate brakes and awesomeBC coilovers got the ride sorted

Tech: Project Wagon

The rims look great but it’s theAdvan tyres where the difference

has been made on the road

July 2010 Japanese Performance

wheels back on, the car was lowered down– we wanted the car to be low but hadn’tadjusted the height yet, so this was atemporary run. The four-poster lift went aslow as it could but the car remained on it...Too low? Nah. Get the trolley jack out. Thecar sat perfect for our taste. Nice and lowand still no clearance problems. Whenordering the kit, we’d asked for it to be setup for road use, so the springs are softenough to be used as a daily driver – eventhis low. If you want to go on the track youcan opt for a harder spring rate. There isalso a simple damping adjustment at thetop of the unit.

Next on the job list was to get the carfour-wheel aligned. Again, with all thecorrect tools this was a piece of cake forthe Power Engineering boys. We opted forthe car to be set up to Prodrive’s settings.

Now to give the car a blast, rememberingnot to jump on the brakes as you shouldalways bed them in gently. Theperformance of the suspension wasbrilliant: firm enough to handle but not toohard that the wife had to get the sports braout. The drive home was good; you knowthat new car feel when the essentials arenew and set up right.

A couple weeks on and everything isstill perfect, so we’re all happy. The rideheight is good, the suspension is spot-onand the brakes ready to perform whenneeded. Nah. Let’s go and change thewheels, mess up everything again.

We were due to be attending JapFest afew days later, so got on the phone toAdvanti Wheels and ordered a set of theirSG40 8x18s with a 45 offset. We were toldthey could be a struggle to get on but life’stoo easy without challenges.

Of course, we had to have the finestrubber to match, we’d tested the Advanrange before and now Yokohama hadreleased the Advan AD08s. What a greattyre – pretty much a road-legal slick. Whenthese turned up in the office, everyone

Four-wheel alignment was needed afterthe coilovers had been fitted, to optimisesteering and suspension geometry

ContactBCwww.bc-racing.co.uk

01274 683633Power Engineering

www.powerengineering.co.uk

Workshop & MoT:

+44 (0) 1895 255699

Yokohamawww.yokohama.co.uk

Advanti Wheelswww.advanti-wheel.com

Arch Enemywww.archenemy.co.uk

Hel Brake Hoses

www.h-e-l.co.ukEBC Brakeswww.ebcbrakes.com

RSR Tyres & Wheels

www.rsrtyres.co.uk

106

107Japanese Performance July 2010

wanted a set. Without even testing them, weknew these were gonna be good.

So to get them on... First we poppedover to RSR tyres in Coulsdon to get thewheels and tyres paired up. Fitting them onto the car was a little bit of a struggle. Wehad to raise the car, no questions. (Such asimple job for the BC coilovers though).Then the plastic inner arches had to comeout. Then we made the schoolboy error ofgetting the hammer out to sort the lip of thearch but got them good enough (it was nowthe night before the show, and we reallywanted the car on our stand). We finally gotthe car rolling, a little higher than we hadhoped, but could get to the show. We lost alittle bit of rubber en route but nothing

too bad.Once the show was done with, we

needed to sort the car out properly – did weneed to go back to smaller wheels?No, that’s not the Jap spirit.

After speaking to a good friend, AndyRedmond, who is currently competing in theBDC, he recommended a company: ArchEnemy. Already warmed to the companyname, I gave them a call. They sent out theirnearest franchisee Paul Brownless. Luckily,Paul is a reader of the magazine and is wellinto his Jap cars, so was perfect to get thejob done, quoting ‘We make the car fit thewheels, not the other way round.’

Paul got to work rolling the arches andslightly flaring them too – I could barely see

the flaring and the rolling was spot-on.A little bit of Dremel work on the bumpersand he was confident the wheels would notrub – I wasn’t so sure, but gave him thebenefit of the doubt. Giving the car a quickspin, I was amazed that he was spot-on. Nomore rubbing – my new tyres had beensaved. The only problem is I now need toalign the wheels again.

So, all in all, a great month for theSubaru. Everything worked out perfectly;the 18s were a struggle to get on but I thinkwere worth the trouble. Be interesting tohear what you lot think. �

Fitting the 18s wasn’t straightforward, with archclearance and lip rolling needed

Tech: Project Wagon

After fitting the wheels and suspension lastmonth, we needed to head back toPower Engineering to get the wheelalignment sorted. It hadn’t moved

massively but there was no way we wanted thebrand new Yokohamas to wear unevenly. Theboys got the gauges on the wheels and set itaccordingly. Sorted.

While there, we spotted an Impreza with acarbon bonnet – now, we love this look, so

once back at the office we looked into gettingone for Project Scuberwagon. Not only will thismake the vehicle look super tough, it’ll alsoditch weight up front.

Looking around, the company that keptpopping up was Seibon, and after a littleresearch I was informed their panels are asuperb fit. How true this turned out to be.

We ordered the bonnet from Seibon’s UKdistributor, Amber Performance. They had a

choice of two, one a CW style – mainly for carswith FMIC, with the backward facing bonnetvents, and the one you see here – the OEMstyle with an STI scoop. The scoops can alsobe bought separately if you want to change oneor simply replace the standard turbo version.

Once the enormous box was unpacked, we

ProjectWAGONProjectWAGONProjectWAGONScuberScuberScuber This month: A carbon-fibre bonnet, STI scoop and apurposeful OMPstrut brace add dynamics and impact

108 August 2010 Japanese Performance

The Seibon bonnet lost us weight and we added thehuge STi scoop - available on its own

Words&photos:JoelMitchell

found the bonnet to be an extremely well-built,light-weight work of art.

Back to Uxbridge we went, and after only amatter of minutes the old heavy steel bonnetwas off and the carbon replacement bolted intoplace. The only bit of modifying we had to dowas to cut the back of the passenger-sidebonnet vent to make room for the FMIC pipes(had to do this to the standard one too).

Once all in place and after the perfectionisttechnician Harry had buffed it up with someDodo Juice, the car had been transformed, andin the sunlight the carbon-fibre weave glistened.We also ended up removing the mesh from thescoop to toughen the look, which is just apersonal preference.

Also this month we bought an OMP front topstrut brace from Strutbracer – if anyone’s in themarket for any kind of brace, check out these guys– they have a massive selection for all makesand models. See their website for more details.

After ordering the brace, it turned up thenext day, luckily in time to take it with us to thegarage, not that it needs to be fitted by aprofessional – we were just a little lazy thismonth. It was fitted in seconds. Not onlydoes the brace stiffen up the front end, it alsotidies up the engine bay and injectssome colour.

109Japanese Performance August 2010

Adjustable strut braces are a good idea. They allowfor variation in fit and give some preloading

NEXT MONTHMore Seibon! Yes, we’re addicted. Thebonnet fitted and looked so awesome wethought we’d treat ourselves to a little more.Also these wings come 10mm wider so willclear our 18s. The old wings have caught acouple of times so are looking a little untidytoo. Make sure you don’t miss it.

ABOUT SEIBONSeibon Carbon specialises in the designand manufacture of high-quality carbon-fibre automotive body components such asbonnets, boot, arches, and aerodynamicbody additions, eg rear spoilers and sideskirts.

The company was founded by genuineautomotive aficionados and debuted in theautomotive aftermarket industry in 2003.Seibon realized that there was a demandfor top-quality, durable carbon-fibrecomponents among other like-mindedenthusiasts, so they set out to create thebest products in the industry. The productsare stylish and functional. Everything ismade from deluxe French or US-madecarbon-fibre, and is rigorously-inspectedduring a multiple-step quality controlprocess. Their in-house design teamintroduces and maintains proprietarydesigns for a wide and growing variety ofsport compact applications.

Their quality shows: Seibon Carboncomponents have been featured intelevision shows, in movies, at racingevents, on magazine covers and at nationaland regional auto shows. More importantly,Seibon carbon-fibre parts continue to bedemanded by knowledgeable enthusiastsall over the world. With dealers located inthe United States, Canada, the UnitedKingdom, Korea, Greece, Russia,Switzerland, Dubai, Singapore – amongothers – it competes on a global basis andin its home market is a member of theSpecialty Equipment ManufacturersAssociation, participating in the SEMAshow each year.

See their advert on page 109 or visittheir website for more details on all theproducts they make.

CONTACTSeibonwww.seiboncarbon-uk.comAmber PerformanceTel: 0845 260 0015Web: www.amber-performance.co.ukEmail: sales@amber-performance.co.ukJW Racing (Seibon UK Distributor)Tel: 0845 1232829Web: www.j-w-racing.co.ukEmail: sales@j-w-racing.co.ukPower Engineeringwww.powerengineering.co.uk+44 (0) 1895 255699Strutbracerwww.strutbracer.co.uksales@strutbracer.co.uk

Tech: Project Wagon

in association with

This month we continued the carbonstyling with an awesome pair of Seiboncarbon-fibre wings. This is not purely forstyling or even to save weight (althoughthey are loads lighter than the old steel

ones) – we actually needed these wingsbecause they are 10mm wider. The Advanti18in rims were causing the Yokohama rubberto rub on the arch, even with the arches rolled.I could have raised the car a bit but, in myopinion, that would have ruined the stance.After the great service we received last month,

we ordered the wings from the same place asthe bonnet: Amber Performance. They turnedup the very next day, packaged safely.

Luckily for Power Engineering (our garagein Uxbridge), these wings are made superbly,and really were simple – literally unbolt the oldones and re-bolt these into place. As thesewings are designed to fit with the plastic innerarches (which we’d already removed to allowmore clearance), they had a larger inner lipwhich we removed with a dremmel. Simpleenough but a little worrying. The only other

modification is to drill out the holes forsidelights. Harry, the technician at the garagehad no problem with this as he just checkedthem against the old ones.

While replacing the wings, we treatedourselves to a set of crystal-clear side lightsand clear front indicators. We ended upordering the new lights from a great company,AutoArt Styling Limited (www.autoartltd.co.uk).

ProjectWAGONProjectWAGONProjectWAGONScuberScuberScuber This month: Joel’s got the carbon-fibre bug, addingwings this week. Next stop: carbon-fibre pants

102 September 2010 Japanese Performance

Wings were relatively simple, the new ones being astraight replacement

Words&photos:JoelMitchell

They have a massive selection of lights andaccessories for all makes and models. We alsoordered the clear side indicators but the newSeibon wings haven’t got the hole for them –there’s no way we’re gonna mess up the lines tofit them.

All the lights were fitted up and completelychanged the look of the front of the car, makingit look much more modern. While focusing onthe front end we removed and painted the frontorange vents black in order to ‘lose’ them.

Recently we visited the JapShow at Santa

Pod, where the car was well received on ourstand, which it shared with the drift car of AndyRedmond, part of Team Scream – a great bunchof guys. Andy and the team are doing really wellat the moment and I’d like to send them my bestfor the upcoming events. Watch out for theseguys! Next season, hopefully, you’ll see them atthe top of their game.

The JapShow was a great success, it wasgood to be involved with the show and meetingreaders and advertisers. Watching the stripaction is always fun too, although the sunburn

wasn’t quite as welcome!Big thanks this month to the guys at Power

Engineering for getting the car sorted. And alsoto Jason at Amber Performance for packing thewings so well.

Next month we aim to finish the front end withanother bit of Seibon carbon-fibre – a frontsplitter this time. Yes, we’ve got the bug, andwe’re not satisfied yet! �

103Japanese Performance September 2010

The Guys at Power Engineering with our ProjectWagon now fitted with clear sidelights and indicators.

CONTACTSeibonWeb: www.seiboncarbon-uk.comAmber PerformanceTel: 0845 260 0015Web: www.amber-performance.co.ukEmail: sales@amber-performance.co.ukJW Racing (Seibon UK distributor)Tel: 0845 1232829Web: www.j-w-racing.co.ukEmail: sales@j-w-racing.co.ukPower EngineeringTel: 01895 255699Web: www.powerengineering.co.ukAutoArtTel: 01926 460203 / 01926 888 664www.autoartltd.co.ukEmail: info@autoartltd.co.uk

Tech: Project Wagon

in association with

This month we’re finishing up the frontend (for now anyway!) with a Seiboncarbon-fibre front splitter. We loved thelook of the wings and bonnet (fitted inthe last couple of issues), but wanted to

add just a little more to finish it off.Again, we got on the phone to Jason at

Amber Performance to place the order. There’sa couple of splitters to choose from; we optedfor the CW style – the simplest of them.

Once the splitter was received, we jumpedin the wagon and got to Power Engineering,and, while this is a simple job to do which most

people could get on with themselves, wherewe’d fitted the intercooler, the bumper wasgetting a little twisted, hence it made life a littletrickier.

The boys at the garage got to work straight-away, removing the bumper and firstly trimmingit to fit around the intercooler better. With thebumper off, the splitter slotted straight intoplace; a couple of screws at each end to keepit in place and it was completed, all we had todo was fit the bumper back on and admire thecarbon-fibre sparkle. Not only does the splittertie-in with the other carbon-fibre, it also makes

the car look lower, wider and meaner.The guys at Power Engineering were

impressed with the quality of all the Seibonpanels – so often bodykits and aftermarketproducts need much modifying to get intoplace, but not with these panels.

We’re not sure of the weight saving with thecarbon-fibre parts, but they have overcome acouple of problem areas for us and they fit.Pics don’t really do them justice; they need to

ProjectWAGONProjectWAGONProjectWAGONScuberScuberScuber This month: A Seibon carbon-fibre splitter, plus interiorupgrades to add a little extra comfort

112 October 2010 Japanese Performance

There was a choice of front splitters but we wentwith the smoothest

Words&photos:JoelMitchell

be seen in the flesh – or just order your own.Thanks again to Power Engineering for gettingthe ride looking so sweet.

Getting back to the office on a high, wereally wanted to treat the car to a couple ofluxuries. The interior of the car was stillcompletely standard, including the stereo. Aswe wanted to listen to our iPod/iPhone in thecar we looked around for a decent head unitand eventually settled on a Kenwood CD unitwith direct plug-in USB port. A simple but greatunit, the fact you can just plug straight in thefront and control the iPod from the Kenwood

unit is great. Also we upgraded the speakersand got a slimline subwoofer with built-in ampfitted. All installed, it sounds superb.

The other treat was some new mats. Okay,not the most fun part in a car, but these canreally help make an interior. Wanting somethingspecial rather than just poorly fitting versionswe visited CarMats4U.com – a site dedicated tomaking custom mats. You can choose from amassive range of colours for the mat and trim.Ordering these from their website was sosimple. We opted for black versions; theyturned up and fit well plus looked plush.

We really recommend this site! Go have a lookat www.carmats4u.com. Also because theyhave keen prices.

Looking to the future, we’ve been indiscussions with Scooby Project’s Keith Rigbyabout a possible stroker kit and have just sentthe original 16in alloys off to Wicked Wheels tohave a refurb. We also ordered some Avon ZZ3low profiles. Make sure you follow the progressin next month’s mag. �

in association with

113Japanese Performance October 2010

A new Kenwood head unit and slimline subwooferplus speaker upgrades have improved sound

CONTACTSeibonWeb: www.seiboncarbon-uk.comAmber PerformanceTel: 0845 260 0015Web: www.amber-performance.co.ukEmail: sales@amber-performance.co.ukJW Racing (Seibon UK Distributor)Tel: 0845 1232829Web: www.j-w-racing.co.ukCarMats4U.comTel: 01754 763457Web: www.carmats4u.comKenwoodWeb: www.kenwood-electronics.co.ukPower EngineeringTel: 01895 255699Web: www.powerengineering.co.uk

Tech: Project Wagon

This month is a bit of the case of ‘Outwith the new – in with the old’. Wefancied a bit of a change ofdirection. We wanted to wind the BCcoilovers right down and get a Euro

Look on the Impreza.It’s been turning cold in the last few

weeks, and in an area where they salt theroads at the slightest touch of frost, wewanted to keep our 18s protected and forsummer use only. So a refurb of the original16s was on the cards.

The question was where to send the 16sto get the makeover treatment. After a littlesearching around we came across WickedWheels, a company dedicated to the art ofmaking your rims sparkle again. They evenoffer a collection or mobile refurb service,but we wanted a powdercoated finish,which meant the wheels had to be takenaway, though smaller repairs and lightrefurbs are offered on the mobile service.After discussing the options, we ended upon the colour scheme seen here: a dark-

grey centre with a polished lip. The finishedwheel looks very impressive indeed and thewhole process took under a week. A greatservice for all of you driving around withkerbed alloys. Call the guys at WickedWheels, and you won’t be disappointed.

As the old tyres were the standardprofile, we used lower versions to get thecar sitting right on the tarmac. But we weremore than happy with the grip offered bythe Avon ZZ3s that were on the car, so wewent for the same but in a lower profile. A

ProjectWAGONProjectWAGONProjectWAGONScuberScuberScuber This month: Joel creates a drain coverremover with a lower ride height. Mad.

114 November 2010 Japanese Performance

Words&photos:JoelMitchell

Original 16s had been slightly kerbed, but

this is a relatively easy refurb for the guys

at Wicked Wheels

quick look on Avon’s website revealedthere were two smaller profiles to choosefrom – either the 205/45 or the 205/40,(originals being 205/50s). We decided onthe lower of the two and while we were alittle concerned at the reduced height,when they turned up we knew we’d madethe right choice. The ZZ3s are awesometyres, not only do they perform but theyalso have a great pattern. Quoting fromtheir website, the tyres have ‘a rim flangeprotector to guard your expensive alloywheels against kerbing damage’. Hopefullythis will help the alloys when the wife getsbehind the wheel!

To get them on, we tried out anothermobile service: Fuller Tyres, a mobile tyresupplier/fitter based in the Surrey area. Ourschedule was such that we needed them tocome to us to get the tyres on and they didso at a great price.

Now the wheel/tyre combo was ready

we removed the 18s to reveal theadjustable BC coilovers. We wondered howlow we could go? We roughly worked outthe springs could go down about twoinches, and winding the coilover platformswas simple. With the wheels on and the carlowered, it sat perfectly. Lucky or a well-thought-out plan? You decide. The onlyproblem was that the jack got stuck so wehad to resort to an old VW Golf scissor jackwhich is lower than the Subaru one.

Giving the car a quick drive to make sureall was well, it handled brilliantly, which wassurprising considering how low it is. The BCsand Avons combo work very well. It will begood to hear what you think of the look.

After being well pleased with ourselves,we wanted to reward our good work withsome more carbon, starting with somelovely carbon-fibre mirrors. We’d beenlooking for some for a few months, wantingto match the Seibon bits. We ended upordering ours from JapSpeed. The mirrorsturned up the next day and were fitted inminutes. They really are fantastic quality.

115Japanese Performance November 2010

Craig at Fuller Tyres sorted out the removal ofthe old rubber in favour of the new Avon ZZ3s

Check out the finish! We’ve had more thana few

comments asking if these were aftermarket!

CONTACTSAvon Tyreswww.avon-tyres.co.ukJapSpeedwww.japspeed.co.uk 08450 212 312Wicked Wheelswww.wickedwheels.co.ukFuller Tyreswww.fullertyres.co.uk 01483 755445BC www.bc-racing.co.uk 01274 683633EPR www.epracing.co.uk

Our experience with the ZZ3s has been reallypositive in the past, so it was a no-brainer for usto use them again on the 16s

Tech: Projects

The next goody was a set of carbon foglight covers (so far not the cheap month wewere looking forward to...). These areactually quite hard to find, but we knew theywere out there. We ended up getting themon EPR’s (EP Racing) website, a crackingsite for all Jap models. These, like themirrors, were a quick mod, only taking acouple of minutes. We love the look of themand they just add to the other qualitycarbon-fibre bits.

All in all, it’s been another great monthfor the Scuberwagon – a change is alwaysgood. And the new look certainly turned a

few heads at the recent JAE show.Planning ahead to future months,

discussions are still ongoing with KeithRigby (Scooby Projects) regarding a strokerkit. A full set of Samco hoses are still waitingto go on, and we’ve just ordered acompetition clutch from Scooby World,hopefully getting the car ready for morepower and even a bigger turbo at somepoint.

Also, we’ve just ordered some wheelspacers from JapSpeed to get the wheels alittle more flush with the body, check out theresult next month.

We will also need to make some time forthe bodywork, of course. Or what’s left of itafter fitting the Seibon carbon panels. We’relooking at the possibility of removing all the‘extras’ such as the rear spoiler and roofbars, to give a cleaner (almost base-model)look to the wagon. But it is quite involvedgetting these off while keeping the carlooking in good shape. This means we’researching for a bodywork shop near oraround the Surrey area to help us out. Ifanyone out there wants to get involved,drop us an email to joe@chpltd.com orjap@chpltd.com.

116 November 2010 Japanese Performance

JapSpeed mirrors have almost the same area

of reflection as the stockersMore carbon! EP Racing fog light covers havehelped smooth the Scooby’s fussy front end

BC coilovers have allowed us to play with the rideheight to our heart’s content

Afew months back, we opted for anOMP strut brace to stiffen up thefront end. It gave a surefooted feelto the handling and, after lookinginto this further, we thought we’d try

out a lower brace to match.After a positive experience with

Japspeed last month (ordering carbonmirrors), we searched the site and foundthey do their own brace at only £69. Thealuminium lower H-brace was fitted up in

minutes by the Power Engineering guys: areally easy job, if you can get to theunderside of the car, that is.

The car does feel more stable whencornering hard – we’re waiting to get on thetrack to really feel a bigger difference.

While on the Japspeed website, wefound a pair of 20mm wheel spacers for therear. These were just what we needed toget the car’s stance sorted because, havingfitted the refurbished original 16in wheels,

they sat in too far. We wanted to achieve amore pronounced Euro look.

We weren’t too sure what size spacerswe needed for the front, but after trying the20mm on, we decided these would beperfect all around. Luckily, a work colleaguehad a set of Eibach spacers going spare,

ProjectWAGONProjectWAGONProjectWAGONScuberScuberScuber This month: It’s all go again on Joel’sImpreza – can anything stop this man?

118 December 2010 Japanese Performance

Note how close the brace is to the downpipe - itclears but it’s worth looking out for if you run alarger pipe from the turbo than OE

Japspeed brace will help front end rigidity,

improving the feel of the car while cornering

Words&photos:JoelMitchell

so we got these on, too – the quality ofboth spacers is superb and, being my firsttime using them, I was really pleased withthe ease of fitting and the overall finishedresult. The car even handles better, too.

Spending a month with the low-profileAvon ZZ3s has been a real pleasure. Withthe roads normally being wet in thesewinter months, the car still has all therequired grip.

Now I’m happy with the wheel/tyrecombo and the stance, I thought I’d turnmy attention to getting the car not justclean, but really clean.

Polish and cleaning substances, in myopinion, have changed a fair bit recentlywith the likes of the ‘quick’ detailer spraysdominating the show scene. They are soeasy to use and always give a greatfinish – I normally use Rapid Detailer fromAutoglym at shows to get the car looking

great after the drive. But this time I wantedto give the car a real going over, so I wentwith Autoglym’s paint renovater, finishing offwith the Super Resin Polish. The wheelsbeing newly refurbed, they only needed agoing over lightly, while the tyres got a gooddose of Instant Tyre Dressing. In myopinion, Autoglym is still the best out there,and I know this because whenever I try adifferent brand I always seem to bounceback to its products. All treated, the car nowlooks great – we’re really happy with thefinish on the project, even though it’s onlyreally as it was from the factory, but cleaner.

Next month, we’re hopefully going to getthe Samco hoses finally fitted and get theengine cleaned up to match the exterior. �

119Japanese Performance December 2010

The new spacers help to edge out the wheelsso they don’t look so tucked under the body

CONTACTSJapspeedwww.japspeed.co.uk, 08450 212 312Eibachwww.eibach.co.ukPower Engineeringwww.powerengineering.co.uk+44 (0) 1895 255699

The 20mm spacers from Japspeed and Eibach are

works of art - easy to fit andthe results speak for

themselves

Avon’s ZZ3s tuck nicely into the arches and have

handled all the weather conditions we’ve thrown

at them

Tech: Projects

This month has not been so muchabout the modifying but more apreparation and maintenanceworkout. Firstly, the powersteering was getting tough, so a

quick tighten of the alternator belt wasneeded. This helped for a couple of days,but then needed doing again. A couple ofturns later the bolt snapped on us!Looking further into it, the belt was at fullstretch and in need of replacement.

The belt was easy to find as Euro CarParts sells them for just £9. While at theCrawley store we thought we’d pop intoJap Performance Parts – literally justaround the corner – to see if they had aspare bolt.

A quick chat with owner Saj and therequired bolt was found. Sorted. But wecouldn’t leave without a quick look

around this amazing site to find somegoodies. For those of you who aren’taware of JPP, they are similar to abreaker’s, but don’t be fooled becausethis is a top-notch site that’s perfectlyorganised in selling everything second-hand for Jap cars. OEM or aftermarket –you’ll find whatever you’re after here.

Firstly, I found a second-hand parcelshelf which was in absolutely perfectcondition. I’d tried to find one of thesepreviously without success, even oneBay. I’d also been on the search for adebadged grille. Saj showed me aselection of different styles. One was aperfect V5 STI version that someonesomewhere had modified to remove thebadge

Both parts were fitted straight away.The grille, being white, needs some paint,

ProjectWAGONProjectWAGONProjectWAGONScuberScuberScuber

120 January 2011 Japanese Performance

Debadged V5 STI grille works well, but should it

be black or blue? Rear parcel shelf had been

hard to find, until we dropped into JPP

This month: It’s almost paint time onJoel’s Impreza wagon

121Japanese Performance January 2011

Jap Performance Parts in Crawley has a ton of

OEM and aftermarket parts. A bit of an Aladdin’s

cave, but very organised

Jap Performance Parts is a family runbusiness founded in 2003, leading theway and specialising in second-handJapanese cars and spares.

Based in Crawley, West Sussex, it cansupply a range of parts for the Evo,Impreza STI, Integra/Civic Type R andSkyline GT-R/GTS and offers next-daydelivery to UK mainland and normally a2-3 day service within Europe. It promises

to offer a level of customer service andsatisfaction unsurpassed in the onlineparts community as well as provide aservice tailored to the individual needs ofthe customer.

Browse the website atwww.japperformanceparts.co.uk or pay avisit. You can look at their tuning parts,breaking parts or cars, and you may find thevery part you have been searching for.

Tech: Staff Cars

Jap Performance Parts

as does the bumper (now with thewasher jets removed). So we’ve bookedthe car into a local body shop, IanTaylor Body Repairs in Horley.

We weren’t too sure whether tochange the grille to black or blue so wetested it out using some black insulationtape. We’re still not sure, so watch thisspace... �

CONTACTSJap Performance Partswww.japperformanceparts.co.uk,01293 520090Euro Car Partswww.eurocarparts.comIan Taylor Body Repairswww.paintshophorley.co.uk

122 March 2011 Japanese Performance

Firstly, I have to thank Samco for savingmy Christmas. It wasn’t all that snowthat stopped the wagon on the buid upto Christmas – that was a breeze in the4x4 Impreza, even with the low-profile

Avons the car got through all the white stuff. WhatI wasn’t expecting was a split water hose.

The day before Christmas, steam startedpouring from underneath the bonnet. Luckily, afew months back I had ordered a full set ofSamco hoses. I had always thought these hoseswere just for show – to dress up the engine, butnow I understand the importance of upgraded

hoses. Luckily for us, the hoses came off fine andthe replacements fitted straight in place. Ok, sowe’ve only changed a selection of the hoses, butwe’ll get the rest sorted as soon as possible tostop any more splitting.

So the snow didn’t slow the wagon down but itdid prevent us from dropping the car off at thepainters. As mentioned in previous reports, we’dplanned to get the car to Ian Taylor’s workshop inHorley to get the grille and bumper sorted. Weeventually dropped the car there after the snowhad melted. The plan was just to get the front endsorted but like any project we had more plans

Words & photos: Joel Mitchell

Taylor’s did a superb job of fillingthe washer jet holes, to look at itnow you’d never know they werethere in the first place

IMPREZA 2.0 TURBO – SCUBERWAGON

Front-end fix

Japanese Performance March 2011

which Ian was happy to assist with – here you’llsee the work carried out on the bumper, but moreof the plans will be shown in next month’sfeature – well worth waiting for.

Anyway, as soon as the car was dropped off,the guys in the workshop got the bumper off andgot to work filling the washer jet holes. Also,another modification was to move the numberplate back a bit – this was achieved by making acustomised aluminium bracket which turned outbeautifully and feels much stronger than theoriginal. The bumper, now painted in the originalblue, looks fantastic, a much cleaner look without

the washer jets – who uses them anyway? Ianand the lads in the workshop have done abrilliant job and have tempted us to leave the carthere for more work �

ContactsSamco Hoses

www.samcosport.comIan Taylor Body Repairs

www.paintshophorley.co.uk11b Massetts Road, Horley RH6 7PR

01293 781035

The bright orange Samco hosesnot only do the job, but also hintat a possible engine makeoverin the future

Bye, bye washer jets; hellosmooth and sexy front bumper

123

TechStaffCars

124 April 2011 Japanese Performance

So, as we mentioned last month, afterhaving the bumper sorted by IanTaylor Body Repairs, the paintworkpros convinced us to leave ProjectWagon there for some more work. The

plan was to get the car looking its best again,getting rid of the usual dents and scratches,whilst also undergoing some small modifications,one being the removal of the roof rails. These hadto be taken off anyway to paint the roof, so it wasa fairly simple job to remove them completely.The holes were sealed to make sure they arewatertight, and now we’re on the hunt for somewagon 1.6 roof rubbers...

The day after leaving the car, we popped backto see the progress that the guys had made. To

our surprise, the whole car was already strippeddown, and the guys were cracking on with gettingthe damaged panels rubbed back and repaired.

As with most bodywork jobs, we came acrossa couple of problems – one being a hole in therear arch (see below). We knew something wasup, as when we had the arches rolled the painthad begun to crack, but an actual hole was a littleunexpected. To remedy the problem, a new panelwas welded in, before being filled to perfection.

After being fully prepped, the car was given agood primering and looks awesome. For a minutewe were tempted to leave it a flat grey, but havestuck with the original blue, as we know it lookscool with the carbon. Check out next month tosee the finished result. �

Project Scuberwagon, strippedand ready for a good coat ofprimer. Perfect paintwork awaits!

IMPREZA 2.0 TURBO – SCUBERWAGON

Paint your wagonContacts

Ian Taylor Body Repairswww.paintshophorley.co.uk11b Massetts Road, Horley

RH6 7PR01293 781035

Words & photos: Joel Mitchell

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The wagon’s back, fully painted and looking super-hot. The guys atIan Taylor Body Repairs have done a superb job. The finish is spot-on and the repaired panels and ‘de-washer jetted’ bumpers lookfantastic. It’s so hard to show in these shots just how nice it is.Hopefully you’ll get to see it in the metal at this year’s events.

One of the first outings for the freshly painted wagon was a longhaul down to Devon, for a family getaway. As usual, the drive was apleasure. The way that the Wagon still shifts when it’s fully loadedto the hilt always impresses me. Until a strange burning smell creptinto the cabin, that is. Then, all of a sudden, all power was lost.After a quick look under the bonnet, I gave up and called the trustyRAC. Within the 30 minutes they quoted to get to us, Ric the RACman, was here and on the case, determined to source the problem.After a little detective work, he traced the problem to the fuel pump.However, upon further inspection, it seemed to be working fine...And then there was that smell? After a few minutes, he tracked theproblem back to the fuse box, where the problem turned out to bea burnt out juction box. Luckily, Ric was a star and happily choppedthe wires and fitted a new junction box. Sorted. What anoutstanding service! Many thanks to Ric Hallett at the RAC. Mymembership is safe there for another year... or 10.

126www.japaneseperformancemagazine.co.uk

+the garage

ProjectWAGONPROJECT WAGON IS LOOKING SWEET,SHAME THE ELECTRICS AREN’T!

Words & Pics Joel Mitchell

Subaru impreza wagon

PROJECT WAGON’SPAINTWORK IS LOOKINGLIKE NEW AND JOELJUST CAN’T STOPTAKING PICS OF IT

IAN TAYLOR BODYREPAIRS’ TIME ATTACKENTRY LOOKS LIKE ITNEEDS MORE WORK

BURninG SMELL? WHATBURNING SMELL? OH,THAT’D BE THE FUSE BOXON FIRE. OOPS!

Massive thanks to

Ian Taylor Body Repairs01293 781 035www.paintshophorley.co.ukRACwww.rac.co.uk

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