The RASpec Impreza is a 2002 Subaru WRX “bugeye” chassis purchased in 2011 and fully restored from 2013 to 2015. The car was built by DENT Sport Garage and German Performance Service in Massachusetts.
I built the RASpec Impreza as a cross-campaign race car capable of competing in time attack, time trial, hillclimb and wheel-to-wheel racing series up and down the East Coast.
This car was originally purchased in 2004, and gradually transformed from street car into full race car. The build was done iteratively informed from performance metrics at races.
Chassis
The chassis is a 2002 model year, GDA/B code.
The restoration began with a complete tear-down. Everything not welded to the chassis was removed, tagged and inspected. Anything not required for racing such as the interior and OEM suspension was sold. Anything worn was cataloged, and new factory OEM replacements were ordered (such as chassis gommets and rubber window seals). The paint and rubberized under-body weatherproofing was removed by media-blasting and sanding. Next the chassis was fully seam-welded. Finally the roll cage was built and the car was freshly painted white.
- WEIGHT: 2762 lbs
- CAGE: SCCA multi-point rollcage
- Seam-welded chassis
Engine
The RASpec Impreza engine is a JDM EJ207 WRX STI 2-liter engine running the Tomei 2.2l stroker kit. The Tomei 2.2l stroker kit was chosen as it is complete with pistons, rods and the lightened, custom journaled crankshaft. The heads are sourced from a JDM Spec-C WRX STI that come from the factory with larger ports, and factory polished.
The engine was built to tolerances provided by the team running the Cusco / Tomei / Voltex Time Attack Impreza as they use the same engine stroker kit.
The intake side has a custom fabricated front mounted intercooler (design is inspired by the Subaru Impreza WRC S10 design) pressurized by a Garrett GT3076R turbo using a TiAL GT30 turbine housing to feed the reverse mounted JDM STI intake manifold (no TGVs).
The turbo wastegate is a TiAL MR-R 44mm. The turbo uses the TiAL V-Band Clamp and Flange System to allow full 306 degree rotation for optimal turbo positioning.
- JDM WRX STI EJ207 block
- JDM WRX STI Spec-C heads (Ported & polished)
- JDM s202 Spec-C valve covers (wrinkle red)
- Tomei forged pistons 92.5x79mm (2.2l stroker kit)
- Tomei forged rots (2.2l stroker kit)
- Tomei balanced crankshaft (2.2l stroker kit)
- Tomei bearings
- ARP head studs
- Cosworth 275 degree cam shafts
- Spark plugs NGK BKR7E (stock #4644)
- Garrett GT3076R (A/R 0.82)
- Tial MV-R 44mm external wastegate
- TiAL GT30 Turbine Housing
- Cosworth oil pump
- Oil starvation baffler
- Mocal oil cooler
- Crawford Performance Air/Oil Separator
- Koyo aluminum radiator
- Griffin front mount intercooler
- Stainless custom exhaust by DENT Sport Garage
Transmission
- 2006 Subaru WRX STI 6MT
- ACT 6-puck clutch
- ACT ProLite flywheel
- STI axles
- Cusco transmission mount brackets
- Cusco transmission hard mount bushings
- Center diff controller DCCDPro Delux DCCD controller
- Front LSD: STI
- Center LSD: STI
- Rear LSD: Cusco RS 1.5-way
- Kartboy short shifter linkage kit
Suspension
- Stance GR+ 3-day adjustable coilovers
- Cusco 3-way adjustable rear sway bar
- Pillowball swaybar end links
- Whiteline adjustable rear lateral links
- STI Front control arms
- 6Gun Racing Ball joint extenders w/ tie rod ends
- ARP Long wheel studs
- Whiteline control arm anti-lift kit
- VOLK CE28N Time Attacks 17” x 9” 5x114.3 +30
- PF Performance Friction 2-piece floating rotors w/ aluminum hats
- PFC Brake pads (#0460.01.15.44 132mm x 61mm x 16mm)
- Stainless steel braided brake lines
Fuel
- SARD Fuel surge tank (trunk mounted)
- RC Engineering 1000cc injectors
Electronics
- Vi-PEC ECU
- Ballenger Motorsports AFR500 Wideband O2 Air Fuel Ratio monitor kit
Exterior
The exterior is stock, with a few OEM components. The front bumper is running the “Double Lip Combo” setup. The upper is the 2002 Prodrive V2 lip and the lower is the 2006-2007 V-Limited lip.
- COLOR: “Audi R8 White”
- Scoote carbon fiber 2002 WRX hood
- Aerocatch hood pins
- Prodrive “V2” 2002 WRX lower front bumper lip
- 2006 Subaru STI V-Limited lower front bumper lip
- Rear wheel fenders are rolled & pulled to accommodate larger
- STI carbon front blinker covers
Interior
The interior is fairly spartan and without adornment. Only the essentials.
- MOMO steering wheel
- BRIDE Zeta-3 (Red)
- Defi BF-series Oil pressure, Boost pressure & Water temperature
- Digital A/F Meter
- Emergency battery/ignition cut-off switch
- G-Force 6 point Cam-lock Harness
- NASCAR Window Net (Drivers side)
- Beat Rush trunk bulkhead panel
Spare Package
The car comes with additional spares, hardware and accessories.
- PF Performance Friction rotors (New)
- OEM STI Rear Lateral Links (New)
- 15 gal VP 109 octane race gas
- Origin GT Wing (plane only)
History
I raced the RASpec 1.0 at COM Time Trial events, the Redline Time Attack series, the BMW Sports Car Club track events, and New England Hillclimb series.
A crash at a New England Hillclimb Race Series in 2010 ended the useable life of the “RASpec Impreza 1.0”, and I began searching for a “bugeye” Impreza to use as a new chassis for the “2.0” version of the RASpec Impreza.
In 2011 I found a “bugeye” WRX that would serve as the perfect base for a new race car. The bugeye was parted-out and stripped, and the build of my second race car began. It was only fitting that it be called the “RASpec Impreza 2.0”.
The key features of the 2.0 version that were improvements over the 1.0 version were as follows:
- Fully stripped, media-blasted, caged and seam-welded chassis in order to reduce weight and increase rigidity
- Simplify turbo and intercooler setup to reduce maintenance and increase air flow
The resulting product of the build is a car that is lighter, faster and easier to maintain than the first race car. The “RASpec Impreza 2.0” is a better overall car, it takes the best aspects of the 1.0 and simplifies until there is nothing else to take away— creating a minimalist race-ready track platform.
Significant Results
2006
- COMSCC July - NHMS
- 2nd Place - ST1 Street Touring 1 (of 5)
2007
- COMSCC Season Standings
- 3rd place - ST2 Street Touring 2 (of 10)
- COMSCC June Mosport international Raceway
- 2nd Place - ST2 Street Touring 2 (of 3)
- COMSCC July - NHMS
- 1st Place - ST2 Street Touring 2 (of 5)
2009
- COMSCC July NHMS
- 2nd Place - SPB Street Prepared B (of 5)
2010
- Duryea Hillclimb - August
- 1st Place / 4th overall - Improved Touring E (of 103)
Video
FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions
- What makes the car track-only?
Its a fully-built race car, so its been stripped to the bare essentials. This means no headlights, no wiper bottle, no seatbelts (harness only), no OEM seat brackets, no ODB-II. - What does it need to go racing?
I would get new tires, bleed the brakes and adjust the alignment. Alignment should be set to your preferences for how you like the car to turn-in and rotate. You may want to adjust the ride-height as well. - How many track miles on it?
None. The chassis has 0 track miles on it, and the engine has been freshly rebuilt. The only “time” its seen is on the dyno while it was being tuned. - Horsepower?
Currently it’s running a conservative base map dialed for 350 wheel horse power at 20lbs of boost. This tune was done at Synaptic3 Performance for a practice day where we were focusing on suspension setup and were not racing. The previous tune made 400whp at 23lbs of boost. On dyno testing its made much more at higher boost, but we’ve dialed it back to increase engine longevity. Using the same engine parts, tolerances and turbo, Cusco / Tomei / Voltex made 500whp.
2019 Update
This car is now owned and campaigned at Global Time Attack and other events by Bad Panda Motorsports.
