[Sniz]

hey all,
actually my Dad picked it up to replace his Jeep that got crushed under a tree Sunday.

anyone have experience tuning these things?

If he does ANYTHING, I would think a nice exhaust would be in order or a downpipe if it honestly helps the engine breathe easier. he wants to keep it "until the wheels fall off" so anything that will help relieve stress will be a plus.

he is however still a hotrodder at heart so a little extra umph wont hurt either

[Silver-Bolt]

All the 04-08 STi parts are direct bolt-ons.

[Artmasterx]

It depends, but the first could be wheels or/and tires (you never what crap tires a Forester may have). I am sure many people have done suspension mods which could help a lot with cornering stability. Sway bars are often upgraded with Subies and a cheap suspension mod.

First power mod would probably be a Cobb access port to add maps. I think Stage 1 requires nothing, stage 2 probably requires a downpipe and maybe intake... after that it starts to get involved with turbos, FMIC, etc.

There are so many Subie forum that will discuss this ad naseum, so definitely hit them up. It's basically a WRX engine, so any of those mods would probably apply unless the engine compartment is arranged a bit differently.

If he is planning to drive it a long time, I might not go too crazy with power mods... the wheels may not fall off, but the turbo might.

[SfValley335i]

Cobb for tuning...

STi IC and Turbo, should make it quick enough. You could also throw on STI springs to keep the forester from looking like a SUV.

[Muffnbluff]

Get on NASIOC and look for a used Cobb AP and a downpipe. Those two things with a protune will add plenty of power. Then down the line if he gets bored he can get a STi turbo, intercooler and injectors and get retuned.

[ben14142001]

Yeah, what everyone else mentioned. I know most people try not to run downpipes without a tune, so the Cobb should be first order to pick up.

[biz77]

Why spend the money on Cobb, when you can do the same thing with a $30 cable and laptop on this platform??? Downpipe and reflash turns an FXT into a quick little SUV. The turbo is small. The brakes are awful. As pointed out, there is quite a bit of parts interchangeability with other Impreza models, which include both the WRX and WRX STi.

[GunKata]

what $30 cable are you talking about? otherwise, yes - go to www.nasioc.com and look for tons of advice. Cobb is an easy thing to do and very safe.

[biz77]

A generic Vag-Com cable off ebay works just as well as the tactrix cable on the pre-can-bus cars to run open source tuning tools.

ebay VAG-COM cable: $30 shipped
Opensource tuning: Free
Custom e-tuning if you are not comfortable doing the tuning yourself: $100-$200
Cost half as much as a new Cobb A/P and the tune will be better than the off the shelf tune that comes packed with the A/P.

www.romraider.com
www.openecu.org

[Precision]

Cobb Stage 2 set up for power would be a solid boost (no pun intended).

Braking (stainless steel lines, hawks pads and some good fluid will be just fine)

Handling (meh, some good struts and springs ought to do the trick)

Rubber ("power is nothing without control")