New guy with a few questions about his new '04 TS wagon

Peter.Lombardi · 10-26-2003, 09:31 PM

Hey there, well my name is Peter Lombardi and I'm a 22 year old Photo student currently residing in Santa Barbara, CA. And my newly acquired '04 TS Wagon is my first import.

I've mainly driven older cars and Jeeps up until now, my other car is a 1949 Oldsmobile kustom that I'm slowly working on. I got the Subaru bug when my little brother bought and started to modify his '02 RS. I recently moved to Santa Barbara, CA from Washington state, and I like to drive back to Washington every few months to visit family and friends. So I was in need of a new car, other than my '00 Jeep Cherokee. As I'm sure some of you know, gas prices are scary in California, and I was spending between 70-100 bucks a week on gas. Not a pretty sight for a very poor college student, so thankfully my parents jumped in and we worked out a deal for me to get this beautiful new car.

I hope that was enough of an intro, not sure whether you need to know more or not.

OK, so here are the questions I promised,

Springs, I have my brother's older RS springs, how much of a drop would I receive w/ these? I'm not sure about the '02 models, but with the '04 models there's a 1" to a 1 1/2" difference between the RS and the TS. Anybody have an idea?

Also, any difficulty in swapping out his old wheels and tires? It seems he had an upgraded set of them, as they are 17" wheels and the tires are about 3 1/2" tall, making them a total of about 24" tall, they are also wider than the stock tires on the TS. There’s not much wear on them and they look like new.

Almost done, please hang in here w/ me, and remember I'm a newby to these things.

Alright, how difficult is it to swap out the stock springs?! Will I need a spring compressor?! Should I just take it to somebody to swap them out, as I'm unfamiliar and uncertain about these new fangled modern automobiles?!

Also, what are the actual differences in suspension between my TS and an RS of the same year? Anything I should keep my eyes out for?

Thanks a lot people! Sorry if I didn't do a good enough intro,
-peter
http://www.rodnkustom.com

* Registered users of the site do not see these ads.

Malik · 10-27-2003, 07:24 PM

Welcome.

Since the really smart people aren't chiming in, I'll offer up my two cents. I'd suggest an exhaustive search of the wheel and tire forum as well as the suspension forum. Somebody has probably done what you want to do, or didn't do it because of a problem. Either way, you will probably find enough information to get some of the basic issues worked out.

For what it's worth, 17 inch wheels will probably fit the TS (the tire rack has 205/45/17 listed as an option. I can't imagine the springs dropping the car enough to cause any problems, but you never know!

Cheers and enjoy your TS.

Malik

Peter.Lombardi · 10-27-2003, 07:48 PM

Thanks for the reply man, I'll get over to cruising that wheel section of the board.

I don't get to pick up the car until tonight, I guess I'll try trial and error w/ the wheels.
-peter

mr_yellow · 10-27-2003, 09:18 PM

There seems to be an anti-newbie thing going on...

Regarding your suspension question:

Take a look on scoobymod.com If you take a look in the forums in the 02-04 suspension section, there is a thread with step by step instructions on replacing the spring/shocks with an STi set. I would assume the proceedure is exactly the same if you want to swap your shocks with something else.

blueimpreza25rs · 10-27-2003, 10:26 PM

well im a noob myself........but i dont think you can swap the springs between 02 and 04 (at least the rear ones) you would have to take the rear upper strut mounts and replace them with 2002-2003 units.

if you want lowering springs you would have to buy them for 04 specifacly (sp) whoa i cant spell!

Peter.Lombardi · 10-28-2003, 02:46 AM

Thanks guys, any sporty lowering springs you can recommend?!
-peter

QfactorRS · 10-28-2003, 08:25 AM

eiback pro-kit are known to be performant and still provide a level of comfort.

H&R are stiffer, thus less confortable.

Tein S springs have good reviews too.

you should be able to fit a 215/45/17 in there.

Q

peepshow · 10-28-2003, 09:29 AM

Well, the Prodrive springs were designed to work with the OEM WRX strut damping rates, so they should match your struts *fairly* well. Yes, I do believe the rear springs are not compatible between MY02-03 and MY04, sorry.

What size tires are on your brother's 17"s? It should be printed right on the sidewall of the tire.

FWIW, I have Eibach Pro Kit springs on my wagon and love them. Another "bang for the buck" initial mod is to find someone with a used stock WRX sedan rear sway bar and install that.

Welcome to the club and good luck.

- Trent

Peter.Lombardi · 10-28-2003, 11:27 AM

Well it looks like Eibach is the way to go, I'll go price it out today.

But it looks like I was wrong about the wheels, their only 16", I was trying to read the measurement w/o any available light source,

The tire size is P205/55R16. Thanks for the tire size Q, and peep, that's a bummer, but I figured something would be wrong w/ the easy situation.

But you know, anything is better than the skinny stocker 15's on my TS now.

Thanks again guys,
-peter

Peter.Lombardi · 10-28-2003, 02:54 PM

Also, what about alignment? Does anybody make a camber kit? The Eibach is in development, and won't be out until who know's when.

I also have a question about coilovers, who makes them for my ride? And what's good.

Should I post this in the suspension section? I think I'll do that as well....

-peter

armand1 · 10-28-2003, 05:51 PM

Just one thing I would suggest: since you're getting a brand new car, I would drive it unmodded for 6-12k miles (6 months or a year) to "shake it down" and make sure nothing is wrong with it. once you start modding, you start running into the possibility of being denied coverage under warranty for systems related/affected by whatever you modded. Another advantage is that you'll get a good feel for what the unmodded car drives like, so you'll be able to feel better how each mod affects handling once you do it.
(If warranty isn't an issue for you, ignore my first argument).

outback_97 · 10-28-2003, 06:03 PM

Congrats on the TS, you'll enjoy it. We put WRX wheels on our '03, and this improved the handling and looks over stock. BUT... the rolling circumference is a few inches larger, so if you go this route you're changing the gearing and speedometer / odometer slightly... only about 2%, but it is some difference.

TS 15" = 195/60/15, WRX 16" = 205/55/16, IIRC. A 50 series tire on the WRX wheel would be closer to TS stock.

Steve

10-26-2003, 09:31 PM	#1
Peter.Lombardi Scooby Newbie Member#: 46100 Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Santa Barbara, CA Vehicle: 2004 TS 2.5 Wagon Aspen White	New guy w/ a few questions about his new '04 TS Wagon... Hey there, well my name is Peter Lombardi and I'm a 22 year old Photo student currently residing in Santa Barbara, CA. And my newly acquired '04 TS Wagon is my first import. I've mainly driven older cars and Jeeps up until now, my other car is a 1949 Oldsmobile kustom that I'm slowly working on. I got the Subaru bug when my little brother bought and started to modify his '02 RS. I recently moved to Santa Barbara, CA from Washington state, and I like to drive back to Washington every few months to visit family and friends. So I was in need of a new car, other than my '00 Jeep Cherokee. As I'm sure some of you know, gas prices are scary in California, and I was spending between 70-100 bucks a week on gas. Not a pretty sight for a very poor college student, so thankfully my parents jumped in and we worked out a deal for me to get this beautiful new car. I hope that was enough of an intro, not sure whether you need to know more or not. OK, so here are the questions I promised, Springs, I have my brother's older RS springs, how much of a drop would I receive w/ these? I'm not sure about the '02 models, but with the '04 models there's a 1" to a 1 1/2" difference between the RS and the TS. Anybody have an idea? Also, any difficulty in swapping out his old wheels and tires? It seems he had an upgraded set of them, as they are 17" wheels and the tires are about 3 1/2" tall, making them a total of about 24" tall, they are also wider than the stock tires on the TS. There’s not much wear on them and they look like new. Almost done, please hang in here w/ me, and remember I'm a newby to these things. Alright, how difficult is it to swap out the stock springs?! Will I need a spring compressor?! Should I just take it to somebody to swap them out, as I'm unfamiliar and uncertain about these new fangled modern automobiles?! Also, what are the actual differences in suspension between my TS and an RS of the same year? Anything I should keep my eyes out for? Thanks a lot people! Sorry if I didn't do a good enough intro, -peter http://www.rodnkustom.com * Registered users of the site do not see these ads.

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10-27-2003, 07:24 PM	#2
Malik Scooby Newbie Member#: 29272 Join Date: Nov 2002 Chapter/Region: TXIC Location: Houston, TX Vehicle: 2002 WRX Wagon Blue	Welcome. Since the really smart people aren't chiming in, I'll offer up my two cents. I'd suggest an exhaustive search of the wheel and tire forum as well as the suspension forum. Somebody has probably done what you want to do, or didn't do it because of a problem. Either way, you will probably find enough information to get some of the basic issues worked out. For what it's worth, 17 inch wheels will probably fit the TS (the tire rack has 205/45/17 listed as an option. I can't imagine the springs dropping the car enough to cause any problems, but you never know! Cheers and enjoy your TS. Malik

10-27-2003, 07:48 PM	#3
Peter.Lombardi Scooby Newbie Member#: 46100 Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Santa Barbara, CA Vehicle: 2004 TS 2.5 Wagon Aspen White	Thanks for the reply man, I'll get over to cruising that wheel section of the board. I don't get to pick up the car until tonight, I guess I'll try trial and error w/ the wheels. -peter

10-27-2003, 09:18 PM	#4
mr_yellow Scooby Newbie Member#: 39983 Join Date: Jul 2003 Vehicle: 2003 WRX Wagon Silver	There seems to be an anti-newbie thing going on... Regarding your suspension question: Take a look on scoobymod.com If you take a look in the forums in the 02-04 suspension section, there is a thread with step by step instructions on replacing the spring/shocks with an STi set. I would assume the proceedure is exactly the same if you want to swap your shocks with something else.

10-27-2003, 10:26 PM	#5
blueimpreza25rs Scooby Specialist Member#: 21821 Join Date: Jul 2002 Chapter/Region: Tri-State Location: Jersey Vehicle: 2008 Cadillac CTS4 Black Cherry	well im a noob myself........but i dont think you can swap the springs between 02 and 04 (at least the rear ones) you would have to take the rear upper strut mounts and replace them with 2002-2003 units. if you want lowering springs you would have to buy them for 04 specifacly (sp) whoa i cant spell!

10-28-2003, 02:46 AM	#6
Peter.Lombardi Scooby Newbie Member#: 46100 Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Santa Barbara, CA Vehicle: 2004 TS 2.5 Wagon Aspen White	Thanks guys, any sporty lowering springs you can recommend?! -peter

10-28-2003, 08:25 AM	#7
QfactorRS Scooby Specialist Member#: 30495 Join Date: Nov 2002 Chapter/Region: NESIC Location: RMV timeouts, Boston	eiback pro-kit are known to be performant and still provide a level of comfort. H&R are stiffer, thus less confortable. Tein S springs have good reviews too. you should be able to fit a 215/45/17 in there. Q

10-28-2003, 09:29 AM	#8
peepshow Scooby Specialist Member#: 1777 Join Date: Jun 2000 Chapter/Region: South East Location: Charlotte, NC USofA Vehicle: 2005 LGT #92 FZippy	Well, the Prodrive springs were designed to work with the OEM WRX strut damping rates, so they should match your struts fairly well. Yes, I do believe the rear springs are not compatible between MY02-03 and MY04, sorry. What size tires are on your brother's 17"s? It should be printed right on the sidewall of the tire. FWIW, I have Eibach Pro Kit springs on my wagon and love them. Another "bang for the buck" initial mod is to find someone with a used stock WRX sedan rear sway bar and install that. Welcome to the club and good luck. - Trent

10-28-2003, 11:27 AM	#9
Peter.Lombardi Scooby Newbie Member#: 46100 Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Santa Barbara, CA Vehicle: 2004 TS 2.5 Wagon Aspen White	Well it looks like Eibach is the way to go, I'll go price it out today. But it looks like I was wrong about the wheels, their only 16", I was trying to read the measurement w/o any available light source, The tire size is P205/55R16. Thanks for the tire size Q, and peep, that's a bummer, but I figured something would be wrong w/ the easy situation. But you know, anything is better than the skinny stocker 15's on my TS now. Thanks again guys, -peter

10-28-2003, 02:54 PM	#10
Peter.Lombardi Scooby Newbie Member#: 46100 Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Santa Barbara, CA Vehicle: 2004 TS 2.5 Wagon Aspen White	Also, what about alignment? Does anybody make a camber kit? The Eibach is in development, and won't be out until who know's when. I also have a question about coilovers, who makes them for my ride? And what's good. Should I post this in the suspension section? I think I'll do that as well.... -peter

10-28-2003, 05:51 PM	#11
armand1 Scooby Guru Member#: 10309 Join Date: Sep 2001 Chapter/Region: NWIC Location: Seattle, WA Vehicle: '02 OBS 2-tone! '95 Montego Miata	Just one thing I would suggest: since you're getting a brand new car, I would drive it unmodded for 6-12k miles (6 months or a year) to "shake it down" and make sure nothing is wrong with it. once you start modding, you start running into the possibility of being denied coverage under warranty for systems related/affected by whatever you modded. Another advantage is that you'll get a good feel for what the unmodded car drives like, so you'll be able to feel better how each mod affects handling once you do it. (If warranty isn't an issue for you, ignore my first argument).

10-28-2003, 06:03 PM	#12
outback_97 Scooby Newbie Member#: 30874 Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: salt lake city, ut Vehicle: 0897 OUTBACKS and 2003 TS wagon	Congrats on the TS, you'll enjoy it. We put WRX wheels on our '03, and this improved the handling and looks over stock. BUT... the rolling circumference is a few inches larger, so if you go this route you're changing the gearing and speedometer / odometer slightly... only about 2%, but it is some difference. TS 15" = 195/60/15, WRX 16" = 205/55/16, IIRC. A 50 series tire on the WRX wheel would be closer to TS stock. Steve