Bill Ng is one lucky SOB. Forget about the fact that his WRX is here with us because it's also going to be part of something that we all personally admire: Playboy. Sure, a spot in Super Street is pretty good, but stacked against Hef? Comparing us against them is like 10,000 spoons when all you need is a knife. Just remember that, Hugh, so the next time we come barging in on your parties we won't be mistaken for the valet attendants. And, Bill, stop sniffing the spot on your car where that pretty model rested her backside.
So how is it exactly that Bildo-as he likes to be called-is blessed with such luck? Does he keep a rabbit's foot in his pocket? Light incense when the "smell" becomes unbearable? Probably none of those; it's just more of being in the right place at the right time. Take, for instance, the body kit and graphics, the first stage of this hotboxin' wonder. Just before the '02 SEMA show, Mackin Industries needed a booth vehicle to display some of Volk's latest wheels, but the car needed to pop. After all, it was just a Plain Jane until then. The solution was easier said than done as Volk Racing Japan is currently campaigning its own WRX in the Super Taikyu racing series, which is also one of the main promotional vehicles for the Gram Lights wheel line. Essentially, the car would take on a full replication of the original, from the body kit right down to every piece of vinyl graphic. The Gram Lights body kit and rear wing is a new addition to the Rays Engineering product line and has been fully tested in a wind tunnel by the Kagaisen Institute, the designers of the kit. That means that those carbon-fiber air ducts actually serve a purpose and are not there just to look pretty, then fall off when the double-sided tape wears out.
By the time you read this, you should be able to order both the kit and the rear wing if you own a WRX. In fact, it looks so close to its Japanese counterpart that we initially mistook it for the original at SEMA. At the time, we knew we had to have it because we knew everyone else would want one too. Super Street scores yet again.
As part of the Mackin buildup, a majority of the products it distributes have been added to the mix. To match the aggressive body kit, a set of Espelir sport springs have been used to lower the chassis. Those bright-orange wheels are a set of forged 17x8.5 Volk Gram Lights, which have been fitted with a set of Japan-only Yokohama Advan racing slicks. Another Mackin highlight is Project . Here, a set of its slotted rotors and racing brake pads have been used for improved stopping. Completing the rest of the exterior is a set of JDM headlights, which have been retrofitted for a HID kit from McCulloch.
Although Bildo's WRX is a Doublemint twin of the Volk car on the outside, its engine modifications are like the pairing of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito in that cinematic milestone Twins-one just isn't as tough as the other, and in this case, the Sube Doobie Do is not as powerful. But like a bodybuilder on the program, the car is working its way up with initial upgrades such as the GReddy intercooler kit with custom chroming and intake system from Injen. Relieving pressure from the turbo is a GReddy blow-off valve and plumbed to the radiator hose is a sensor for the GReddy water-temp gauge. The exhaust is part of the new Espelir line as well as the turbo manifold found under the hood. To reduce parasitic drag, Bildo had an AEM lightweight pulley installed.