I just wanted to take a quick moment to wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Thank you for supporting the Subaru Performance Handbook by joining our mailing list in 2008. We have enjoyed the successful release of the 3rd Edition this year covering all models up to the MY08 range and look forward to continue to be able to provide you with the great information to help you out.
We have already seen the release of the 2009 WRX here in Australia and we will continue to update the book with great information throughout the New Year keeping you up to date with top info on the latest models as soon as they are released.
Many are lucky to get some extra time off work over the holiday season, it is a great time to put some extra work into your car as well. As we add new information to the book in the New Year we will probably not be able to keep the price as low as it is today - however, if you own the book - you will get access to any new updates we release throughout 2009 at no additional cost to you.
So, as a Christmas Gift, I have reduced the price to under $20 USD if you buy before the 25th December.
I just wanted to let you know that we will be kicking off the Subaru Secrets teleseminar series again soon.
After the success of the first series we have some great repeat guests coming back along with some interesting new additions.
We will be covering your Subaru from top to bottom from STi to Forester, from MY99 to MY08 - no matter what model you drive, the Subaru Secrets teleseminar series will provide you with loads of great information.
Here are a couple of the people you will be hearing from in Series 2 of the Subaru Secrets Tele-Seminars:
Ecutek: Ben Dagenais is responsible for training all of the EcuTek techs in the UK, Canada and the USA and will provide some great insights into the ECU and the secret answers to the tuning enhancements that your local tuner may not be aware of or might not tell you.
Go Fast Bits: Brett Turner from Go Fast Bits who provide a range of innovative and high-quality blow-off valves, boost controllers, pulley kits and short shifters. Learn the secrets to adjusting a BOV correctly or don’t want to understand how to correctly choose the right BOV for your application.
To find out who else is lined up and to tell us your hot topics you can sign up today at
I am going to be giving you access to some more great Grudge Match info here on the blog but I have also added some additional info about the setup of the two STi’s on a Squidoo Lens.
Squidoo is a great place to find lots of great information on a range of topics and now the Subaru STi Grudge Match is one of them.
Brett Middleton and Jim Gurieff talk about the Subaru MY08 STi Grudge Match on this recent show at Blog Talk Radio.
Listen to Brett and Jim talk about Grudge Match and the MY08 including:
- Look at the strengths and weaknesses of the MY08 models
- Why Whiteline needed to increase the bracing on the rear sway bar mounts after upgrading the rear sway bars and how the previous generations problems with the standard mounts flexing with larger sway bars on the back is probably worse in the MY08 than it was in the MY07 and MY06.
And much more.
You can listen to the recording of the show from BlogTalk Radio using the link however there was a small problem with their recording at the start of the show.
I have uploaded the complete MP3 of the call so you don’t miss a minute.
Just right click on the link below and select “Save As” to save the file to your hard drive.
Coming up on Blog Talk Radio, MRT and Whiteline are going to be talking about the Grudge Match as well as the Subaru Impreza MY08 STi and how it differs from the MY07 and MY06.
MRT Performance and Whiteline have combined to produce STi Grudge Match which compares two identical Subaru MY08 Impreza WRX Sti’s with changes to power related parts and suspension related parts on each of the cars.
Brett Middleton and Jim Gurieff talk about the Subaru MY08 STi Grudge Match on BlogTalkRadio and look at the strengths and weaknesses of the MY08 models.
STi Grudge Match featured the MRT Performance FQ08 STi with a 40kw increase in performance with the Ecutek enhanced ECU and a correctly tuned exhaust against the Whiteline P28 STi with a package of handling parts to make the car handle better, point better and have a higher level of grip.
Listen to Brett and Jim talk about Grudge Match and the MY08 including:
- How the Subaru MY08 Impreza platform has significantly changed from MY07 from an overall comfort and sophistication point of view and why Jim thinks the MY08 is more of a GT platform with a sense of rigidity and solidness that is different on the MY08 to the MY07.
- The difference in the amount of grip in the tyres on the Impreza after the change from the Bridgestone r-spec hybrid tyres on the MY06 and MY07 and how the MY08 STi has a quieter ride and a more tolerable high speed comfort level since the tyres are biased back to more of a cruisy road tyre
- Why Whiteline needed to increase the bracing on the rear sway bar mounts after upgrading the rear sway bars and how the previous generations problems with the standard mounts flexing with larger sway bars on the back is probably worse in the MY08 than it was in the MY07 and MY06.
- What the “sneeze factor” is and why its important with a direct and responsive car and if the Subaru Impreza MY08 STi passes the test.
Get ready for the release of the new Grudge Match video on 8th August 2008 by learning exactly what MRT and Whiteline have done to prepare their cars.
After just driving the Subaru MY08 STi for the first time today I wanted to give you all an update from on what I personally thought about it and the changes from the MY07. You can also grab this as an audio download if you don’t want to read it all.
Starting with the outside of the STI, it looks very similar to the body shape and chassis of the Impreza WRX, albeit obviously completely different with pumped- guards, flared rear guards, rear spoiler and things like that. One of the striking things with the model is the STI badge on the front. Interestingly, Subaru decided to change that again so it’s no longer pink; it’s a little bit more subtle and not as obvious as the previous-model STI badges.
The STI has got some vents on the side of the guards as well. It’s a little bit hard to tell at the moment, whether they effectively work or whether they’re there for cosmetic reasons. Immediately above the guard, it’s got the popular STI badge on a chrome background. Again, it’s not as pink as what it used to be—more of a deep red color.
Subaru MY08 STi Side View The front spoiler has got spotlights, unusual for an STI model. In the past, the STI has never had the spotlights, or the fog lights, depending on what we want to call them. They are there to be used straightaway and not hidden behind a fog light cover.
The other interesting thing is the new model has got the black, painted Brembo calipers front and rear instead of the previous gold ones on the old model. Some of the Impreza models such as the limited editiuon WRX;s and MY07 model had red (4 pot) calipers, whereas the STI had the (larger) gold ones. It’s got a white STI logo on it as well, so maybe Subaru decided to be a little bit more subtle in the brake department, on the way it looks as well.
Looking from the rear of the car, it’s got quad outlet rear tailpipes, two pairs of tailpipes on the other side underneath the rear bumper bar. This comes from quite a complex muffler underneath the back of the car, which is not exactly going to be something that is easy to replace and change straightaway. Talking about the right-hand drive model, the muffler’s the same whether it’s right-hand drive or left-hand drive.
Starting with the outside of the STI, it looks very similar to the body shape and chassis of the Impreza WRX, albeit obviously completely different with pumped- guards, flared rear guards, rear spoiler and things like that. One of the striking things with the model is the STI badge on the front. Interestingly, Subaru decided to change that again so it’s no longer pink; it’s a little bit more subtle and not as obvious as the previous-model STI badges.
Subaru MY08 STi Side View The front spoiler has got spotlights, unusual for an STI model. In the past, the STI has never had the spotlights, or the fog lights, depending on what we want to call them. They are there to be used straightaway and not hidden behind a fog light cover.
Looking from the rear of the car, it’s got quad outlet rear tailpipes, two pairs of tailpipes on the other side underneath the rear bumper bar. This comes from quite a complex muffler underneath the back of the car, which is not exactly going to be something that is easy to replace and change straightaway. Talking about the right-hand drive model, the muffler’s the same whether it’s right-hand drive or left-hand drive.