When we normally think of the Subaru STi, we think of AWD turbocharged fun. Most Subaru owners are avid about how well their car handles and how balanced it is for a daily driver. But the STi has taken a whole new shape on the stateside. While famous images may be floating around the Internet of Subarus tackling the Rally circuit, most STi’s we pay attention to are street prowlers. More recently we’ve even seen the development and the conversion of the STi to a drift car. Most importantly however, the STi is a very valid quarter mile platform as we’ve seen through ESX Motorsports’ retired Sport RWD drag car. John, the owner of this STi, has overhauled his daily driver into one hell of a street car that pulls double duty at the quarter mile track.

The unmistakable engine note of the STi can be heard from a mile away. From the factory the STi is one hell of a car and a blast to drive. With some tender love and some credit card swipes however, the STi could be a whole new monster and its fun exponentially improved. John did just that, going through various catalogs and ordering up goods while teaming up with World One to achieve the performance that he desired out of his STi. Starting with the basics is an APS 65mm cold air intake and Perrin’s V2 turbo inlet and Afta mass air flow sensor. Going towards the exhaust side of things, John swapped out the extremely restrictive stock pieces with more free flowing components from Gimmspeed, TiC and TiTek. A TurboXS cat-less 4-inch down pipe shoots out to a GReddy SP2 3-inch exhaust system. You think the STi had a unique note from the factory? John’s STi screams one of a kind now.

Though the majority of his engine modifications are on the bolt-on side, John has been able to tune the car with an EcuTek stage 2 and has torn down the strip with a 13.076 @ 103.41mph at Bristol Dragway in Tennessee. Given that there is such a huge lot of high horsepower cars rolling straight off the dealership lot nowadays, John’s STi could give any one of those a run for their money while looking good.

On the exterior, John kept it subtle and clean but equipped his STi with just enough parts to make it known that it is his. The stock heavy hood has been swapped out with a Do Luck dry carbon fiber hood fully equipped with a scoop. Bluebat brake light overlays as well as RallyArmor mud flaps act as great attention to detail pieces. It rolls on a beautiful set of Prodrive GC05 wheels in a 18x8 size in a British Black finish. Wrapped with Hankook Ventus rubber and bolted on with Rays black extended Duranuts, this STi didn’t go over the top with exterior modifications at all. In fact, we love its subtle touch and John informs us that a Do Luck carbon fiber trunk is on the way to finish it off.

Enhancing the handling capabilities of the STi is no easy task, but thankfully the aftermarket has embraced the car and has spent hours on research and development to fine tune it even more. Worx Tuning Competition Progressive front and rear springs along with their front and rear sway bars begins the suspension modifications on John’s STi. Kartboy rear solid endlinks along with Beatrush’s forged aluminum pitch mount keeps things extra stiff. With the suspension modifications in place, John did what few do – a professional all wheel alignment. Alignments are often overlooked by any car builder and pays just as essential in the role of dialing in your suspension as a dyno tune for your engine modifications.

Looking to the drivetrain next, John made sure no stone was left unturned in enhancing the driving performance of his STi. Kartboy’s shift knob and short shifter lever were bolted in along with SPT’s short shifter linkage. TiC’s Pivot bushings and shifter bushing kit keeps things nice and snug for John as he goes through the gears down the quarter mile. A series of gauges can also be seen in the interior with a pair of them sporting DEFI BF faces. Boost and oil pressure are handled in 60mm amber lit gauges from DEFI while AEM’s famed UEGO wideband air fuel gauge not only helps John tune the STi, but make sure that everything is in proper running order. The gauges are housed in a Lotek 3-gauge pod.

Lastly, John also put some attention to the in car electronics with a catalog full of parts from Alpine, Boston Acoustics and JL Audio. Alpine’s CDA-9835 head unit can be seen in the DIY JDM flat black dash while the front and rear speakers are now Boston Acoustics 6.5-inch components and 5.25-inch coaxial in the rear. A pair of amplifiers from JL Audio power the mids and highs along with a JL Audio 12w7 subwoofer housed in a custom fiberglass trunk enclosure.

This STi is just so simple and clean, it was tough to take our eyes off of it. It’s amazing how well Subaru designed this generation of the STi and with just the right aesthetic modifications it can take your breath away.