Customization challenges

Atty. Jerome G. Neri
The Scrutineer

I HAD the privilege of customizing a car for a client. I liked this build as it was complete in every aspect of its customization. The owner knew exactly what he wanted. It had to have style, function and performance.

The car is a Subaru Legacy GT turbo. From the showroom, the car had a very executive look. It did not seem to match the owner who is a young gentleman. What the owner wanted was to make the car more aggressive, less formal, while keeping its elegance.

To achieve this, a subtle change in its looks was in order and nothing could be more perfect that the Tommy Kaira body kit. A body kit alone will not make the car instantly look good – it has to be complemented with nice correctly sized wheels and the proper stance.

The challenge of this build was the car’s functionality must be preserved and performance improved despite the accessories added to it. On top of that, the owner wanted a darker color and a finish better than original.

There is no denying that the car with the body kit looks really awesome with 20-inch wheels and a very low stance. The problem with the 20-inch wheels was that it compromised the acceleration and braking of the car. The problem with a very low stance is that it just will not work with our roads.

To address the acceleration problem, an aftermarket exhaust was added and the car was given a custom ECU (Engine Control Unit) tune by Group B Automotive and Tuning. This increased the horsepower of the car by 80bhp, which was more than enough to compensate for the added weight and bigger wheels.

The brakes were improved by installing a D2 big brake kit. The 295mm rotors were replaced with 350mm rotors, the two-pot brake calipers were replaced with eight-pot brake calipers and the rubber brake lines were replaced with braided brake lines. The results were extraordinary –the car had unbelievable stopping power.

The tune and the brakes completely overcame the disadvantages brought about by the 20-inch wheels, and in fact even improved acceleration and braking performance over stock.

D2 airbag suspension was installed to solve the stance problem. With an airbag suspension, the car’s ride height can be adjusted at the push of a button, as coil springs are replaced with airbags. Thus, when the car is parked, it is only a couple of inches above the ground. On the other hand, running the car’s height can be adjusted up to six inches from its lowest setting, hence, giving enough ground clearance for our very imperfect roads.

Lastly was the paint. Group B Automotive and Tuning used the high-end De Beer Refinish automotive paint. An interesting shade of gray was picked by the owner and the result was a very deep gloss where reflections are in high definition.

The end result is a nice car whose function has not at all been compromised by its mods.