preparing my car for stage rally

[wrxisthebest]

ok, i own a 2003 wrx.. currently it is Protuned with Bosal divorced wastegate, gutted midpipe, custom 3" cbe, helix up pipe, perrin intercooler hoses. thats all for power. Protuned using cobb's protuning software by DbTuned in Roseville. 201whp and 207 wtq at 120 in shop temp lol.

Suspension: JDM STI Pink Springs and JDM STI Pinks Struts. Cusco rear sway bar.
kartboy short throw shifter

i am thinking about slowly converting my car into a stage rally car by the time im out of college(3 and 1/2 years left)

if i could please be told what i should change, what order i should do things in and what is best...

this will help me much!

thank you
ryan~

[MrToad]

If you are serious, consider Randy Zimmer's GC8 build manual. It's an excellent starting place for the Impreza and more comprehensive than trying to patch together info from other builds posted here and on the other rally forums. Manual info available below. May seem pricey but I think it is worth it, particularly if you're starting from scratch. You also must become familiar with the rules and classes of whichever organization you want to compete in before investing any money.
JT
http://www.randyzimmer.com/video/

[Jard]

Originally Posted by wrxisthebest

ok, i own a 2003 wrx.. currently it is Protuned with Bosal divorced wastegate, gutted midpipe, custom 3" cbe, helix up pipe, perrin intercooler hoses. thats all for power. Protuned using cobb's protuning software by DbTuned in Roseville. 201whp and 207 wtq at 120 in shop temp lol.

Suspension: JDM STI Pink Springs and JDM STI Pinks Struts. Cusco rear sway bar.
kartboy short throw shifter

i am thinking about slowly converting my car into a stage rally car by the time im out of college(3 and 1/2 years left)

if i could please be told what i should change, what order i should do things in and what is best...

this will help me much!

thank you
ryan~

Start saving your pennies now and have an up-to-date cage built when you get out of school.

You are probably looking at like $8,000.00 or so for a cage and some extras.

[wrxisthebest]

hmm.. doesn't sound bad.. thanks for the info guys...

[I Like It Sideways]

The cheapest: Buy a car that is already built.
Keep your WRX as a daily driver

The hard/expensive/long route: Build your car. Expect to spend 5 months or more building your car if you are starting from scratch and don't have friends who have friends who have friends.

For now, buy the Zimmer manual... a few DI'ers have the manual, and lots of people on SS.com swear buy it. It will give you an excellent idea of what you need to do to build your car.

[wrxisthebest]

ok.. cool..

well i have 3 and 1/2 years to do it, so im down for doing the hard way!

[albascoob]

What events you planning on entering, how many a year?
What class would you build to?

Have you competed in rallycross?
Tried a TSD yet?

The list of what to change is long but if you are determined to get started now I would start by selling all your performance parts and spending the money on a cage and proper suspension. Having said that if you are looking to be ready 3 years from now, your current parts may probably be trashed by then anyway...

Set a budget, save money then build.

You'll be amazed at the abuse a rally car has to sustain on stage. Build it to be safe, strong and reliable.

Just my 10 cents.

This was my list of part priorities in building a production spec car...
cage/chassis reinforcement
seats/harnesses
suspension
brakes

Just to give you an idea of cost and time. I did all the work myself except the cage and it was still well into a 5 figure build on top of the cost of the car.
The project was completed in less than 5 months.

[DR1665]

Buy Randy's book.
Set a budget and stick to it.
Find rallyx action in your area and start networking.
Find stage rally action in your area and start volunteering.

[wrxisthebest]

i do rallyx, and my next event i will be entering into the Rally 4 class..

stage rally in my area is hard, but it is possible to find.. lake tahoe area has some i know, im gunna talk to a guy at the rx events to ask him cause he does stage rally

my car is paid off, so i just need to start working at it...

[wrxisthebest]

but yet again, it is my DD and will be for 3 years too, so doing the slowly is the plan...

[409industries]

If you want to be rallying sooner than later... buy a previously built car. But if you're set on building... then make it happen!

READ THE RULE BOOKS! Do you know what events you are planning on doing? If so, get the appropriate rulebooks online (NASA, RA, etc) and read them backwards and forwards many times. Most people are going to start in a stock or PGT class, so be sure that anything that is already done to your car is going to be compliant with the rules.

Save money, save money, and save money. It takes more than you think to get a car built (i am learning this first hand).

Go to as many events as you can, volunteer, help with teams... just get out there and talk to people. knowledge is power.

David, i didn't know your build was 5 months. That's quick IMO.

[albascoob]

Yep, actually it was just less than 5 months. We tore the car down in early January and ran Rally Tennessee in May. I don't like long, drawn out projects. I just get bored. I prefer to dive on in and tackle it all at once to keep my motivation. Besides, I find driving more fun than building!

Having said all that, I spent the previous year researching cages/parts/rule books and creating an excel sheet with a budget (because the wife made me!). We also did a couple of rallies in a Golf Gti to get the feel for the speed again and be sure that we weren't going to kill each other on stage. Although I've been around rally for many years getting to know what people over here in the US use for parts was a learning curve. I was lucky. I landed in MI where you can't go a couple miles without bumping into a rally car owner but you can go out to events and talk to people. See what they are using and learn the weaknesses of your chosen car. Subarus make awesome rally cars but they do have their weaknesses. As Aaron said, knowledge is power and I hope we can share some of that knowledge here on DI and help people get into the sport. I drove my WRX as a DD for 3 years before it went all stage crazy so we're kinda in the same position. When you have more specific questions we'll all gladly try and help but check out our blog, there might be answers on there for you. Continue to build on those handling skills at local rallycrosses. You can never have enough seat time and you can do this without even having to mod your car so it's kinda like a bonus...

I'll lay down the sensible dad card now (because I can, well in February. The Alba Rally baby is on the way...woo hoo!).
There was no way I could have afforded to go stage rallying straight out of school so if you can, go for it but build sensibly. It's only a sport, don't go into debt for it. That would be daft. It all comes down to prioritising a 'life budget' and doing the right thing by yourself for the long term. Someone who's been in this sport longer than I've been alive once said to me, "If you don't have the commitment or patience to save money to build a rally car, you probably won't have either to see you through finishing it." Having seen many unfinished projects, I'd say that was fairly accurate.
Rally will still be here when we are all long gone. Ok, lesson over!

[wrxisthebest]

lol.. thanks man, ya i understand the whole if u can afford it go for it, thats mostly y i want to build it over a couple years..

basically i will be buying stuff slowly, and saving and buying, and saving, and at the end of the three years i plan on having everything i need hopefully for the class i want to get into and install everything and go for it. ya know?

[albascoob]

Originally Posted by wrxisthebest

lol.. thanks man, ya i understand the whole if u can afford it go for it, thats mostly y i want to build it over a couple years..

basically i will be buying stuff slowly, and saving and buying, and saving, and at the end of the three years i plan on having everything i need hopefully for the class i want to get into and install everything and go for it. ya know?

I'm with you. Keep us posted.

[Jard]

Throw away everything you know about Subaru suspension for the street. That's probably going to be one of your big costs right there...a set of real rally-spec coilovers.

Originally Posted by albascoob

I'm with you. Keep us posted.

^^^^

What are you guys using as far as a suspension setup?