The next part of Steven's plan focused onperformance. While the WRX was to have the qualities of a show car, the last thing he wanted was a trailer queen that would never see the light of day. Steven wanted to build a car to see life on the street as well as something for him to practice on the track. And since STis come quick out of the box, Steven's initial plans only called for light modifications from his buddy Mike over at Worx Tuning. Together they came up with an list which included a front mount intercooler, intake, blow-off valve, etc. As an afterthought, Steven scribbled in an HKS carbon exhaust, Bosal downpipe and a Cobb Accessport boost controller for added oomph.
With sufficient power for track sessions, the last thing we would want is for the protagonist's story to be cut short due to suspension maladies. Thankfully, Steven planned in advance, listing Tein for their Flex suspension and EDFC, Cusco for their antiroll bars, and Auto Power for a protectiveseven-point rollcage. Almost finished, Steven called Brian Fox's friends over at J-Line, Toyo, and Mackin Industries for 18-inch wheels, tires, and brake pads to complete the safety.
For the cabin, Steven talked to longtime racewear manufacturer OMP about his project. Eager to throw in their two cents, they suggested Steven get their WRC seat and steering wheel into the car for improved drivability. Brian further suggested Auto Meter gauges, Pioneer electronics, and Fosgate amplifiers and speakers to round out the interior modifications.
Hustling it through school and work, Steven managed to graduate from college with a degree in, surprise, marketing. His final thesis, however, would come after all the pomp and circumstance in the form of a low-mileage, bone-stock '04 Subaru STi purchased in the low $20K range.Working all summer and with guidance from Brian Fox, the body skills of Andrew Lander and Ron Lieman, graphics by Impressive Signs, interior by Creative Car Tunes, and all the aforementioned partners, Steven managed to finish his project in under a semester's time. The end result? The body of work before you-years of experience turned dope ride turned Super Street cover turned bright outlook for a marketing career. Not too shabby for an intern.
Basf Paint
BASF, or "basif", as we like to call them, is a huge corporation which-like a trailer park meth lab-specializes in chemicals. Of their many fields, one of BASF's core businesses is paint, where they offer multiple brands with a variety of applications.
Carizzma, the official paint of the TV show Overhaulin', is a line under the BASF R-M brand. Carizzma allows a reduction in the gloss level of the clear coat, giving you the option to produce any color in a flat finish. The technique and the product is essentially the same as any normal paint application; the trick lies in how BASF flattens out the clear in their proprietary mix ratio.
During the application process, however, there is one difference: On a regular paint job you wet sand and buff the finish when you are done. On a flat paint job, you skip that process, allowing the paint to simply air dry.
Maintenance on Carizzma is easy: Just hand wash, dry, and you're done. The paint rarely scratches because of the flat DC92 clear and you never have to wax it. Take that, Mr. Miyagi!
www.basfrefinish.com
FAST FACTS
'04 subaru wrx STI
Owner Steven Forster
Hometown Carlisle, PA
Daily Grind Marketing Coordinator at Fox Marketing
Power 344.9 hp
Under The Hood Worx Tuning front-mount intercooler kit, short ram intake, DS2 blow-off valve, oil cap, grounding kit; GT-spec radiator shroud; ARC titanium pulley cover; HKS Carbon-Ti exhaust; Bosal downpipe; MadDadz catalytic coverter; Cobb Accessport boost controller
Stiff Stuff Tein Flex coilovers, EDFC controller; Auto Power seven-point rollcage;Cusco antiroll bars
Rollers 18x9.5 J-Line 10SL2 wheels; Toyo T1R tires
Stoppers Project B-Force brake pads, brake lines
Outside Apr Ss/Gt widebody kit, GT-300 carbon wing, carbon mirrors; BASF Carizzma Colors Flat Blue; Charge Speed carbon rear diffuser
Inside Omp Wrc seats, WRC medium dist steering wheel; Auto Meter Cobalt Series gauges; Worx Tuning Ergo shift knob, dead pedal; quick-release hub
Ice Pioneer DVR 5700 DVD/head unit,Rockford Fosgate Power amplifier and speakers
Props First and foremost Brian Fox at Fox Marketing, big thanks to Mike at Worx Tuning for some killer products, BASF Automotive Finishes, Rockford Fosgate, Fujita, KC at APR Performance, Stan Chen at J-Line Wheels and Toyo Tires, Ahad at Auto Meter, Rick at Auto Power, Matt at OMP America, GT-Spec, the crew at Creative Car Tunes, Andrew Lander for doing a crazy mold job on the widebody in only seven days, the crew at Faulkner Collision Center of Carlisle for a killer paint job, Paul Guarino for helping me with parts installs, Hill and his crew at Agile AutoMotive Performance for their help and tuning, and finally Eric Hess for all the rides.
WWW foxmarketing.net; f5air.com; worxtuning.com; rockfordfosgate.com; aprperformance.com;toyo.com; basf.com; ompamerica.com; jlinewheels.com; autometer.com