[2010hatchman]

I just got this car a few weeks back. Questioning whether I should go short ram intake or the aem intake with the water shut off valve. Am in Kentucky and there are moment where there is serious rain.
Will probably be doing kartboy short throw kit, and front and rear tower arms/end links first.
Any insights would be appreciated. Had a first year bug eye sedan years ago but never had the oppprtunity to mod it. Thanks in advance!

 

[2010hatchman]

Btw it was a true find. Previous owner has a trailer hitch on it with the the cord for tail lights. No mods at all. Probably trailered a jet ski or something. Not to mention it’s a hatch wrx with a 2.5 liter.

 

[WRX-maniac]

Welcome and congrats on your new to you wrx! I would highly suggest the aem intake. Without doing more mods though you will not be seeing any real performance gain. Just get to hear the turbo noises. Basically it is a sound maker when used by itself with no other mods.

Very important thing to note here, your wrx WILL have to be tuned to run that, or any intake, safely. I am pretty sure that cobb has maps for the aem intake for your year. if so, you will need an accessport and load the aem stage 1 map to it to be flashed to you car.

 

[2010hatchman]

I appreciate the input. I wanted to put an intake in on my old bug eye, was told it was a bolt on with nothing more needing to be done. This is my daily driver, the exhaust is still stock and quiet, and I like the sleeper vibe it gives. I had thought I would get a small 5-7 hp boost from that alone. Will look into Cobb.
It’s totally stock, so I want to do things smart, not waste money, and keep my tranny in one piece,

 

[WRX-maniac]

A lot has changed in these cars over the years. The old bugeyes you could throw an intake on it and not have to worry about a tune. Now pretty much everything performance wise has to be tuned for, with the exception of a catback exhaust. One good thing is that the wrx transmission after 2008 no longer is the "glass" tranny that plagued the old wrx's. In 2008 they upgraded the wrx tranny with LGT gears which made it a good bit stronger, still nothing close to an STi tranny, but much better than the 02-07. People are running 350-400whp all day long with nothing more than an upgraded clutch.

 

[XJman]

I appreciate the input. I wanted to put an intake in on my old bug eye, was told it was a bolt on with nothing more needing to be done. This is my daily driver, the exhaust is still stock and quiet, and I like the sleeper vibe it gives. I had thought I would get a small 5-7 hp boost from that alone. Will look into Cobb.
It’s totally stock, so I want to do things smart, not waste money, and keep my tranny in one piece,

Anything that's engine management is MAF based will need a tune for any change in the intake. Because it's sensing a temperature change at a specific point and calculating air from that based off of fluid dynamics changes in that will negativity impact the reading.

Where are you in KY? I'm about 10 minutes south of Cincinnati

 

[2010hatchman]

Hey thanks. Montgomery county, about 40 miles east of Lexington. Am guessing u know of a good place to get one tuned?

 

[XJman]

Turn in concepts in Cincinnati. 100% worth the drive.

 

[2010hatchman]

Thanks again for ur input. Do u happen to know if they have a four wheel Dyno? Am assuming they custom tune but the website is scarce. Looks like a short throw shifter will be my first play, then the Cobb AP. Then An intake/use the OTS map, then get it tuned to my needs. Any idea what a custom tune costs?

 

[2010hatchman]

Pardon my idiotness, found their Facebook and viola! 4 wheel dyno. ?‍♂

 

[XJman]

You don't need a Dyno tune for an intake. Call them. They are the nicest, most helpful, and pleasant people to work with.

Tell them what you have, what you want, and what you can afford. They will help get you where you want.