Vagetarians 07 OBXT

I purchased my first Subaru back in September 2013. Its a 2007 outback xt 5 speed. First thing I did is slapped a cobb v3 Access Port on it. Immediately after I was bitten by the bug and now I cant wait to add some more modifications. I'm starting this thread to share my project with the rest of the community and keep track of my progress. I appreciate any input. Hope you enjoy!

 

Love at first sight, took this picture at the dealership right before I took her home.

http://i.imgur.com/E6xesYg.jpg

 

Mod list so far:

Exterior:

Rally armor UR flaps

XXR 522 18x8.5 +48 wheels matte black

continental dws extreme contact 245/40/18 tires

5000k HID head lights and fog lights

7.5 Watt led reverse bulbs

Interior

Dash mounted cobb AP V3

Led replacement bulbs

Performance

Cobb AP V3 stage 1 91 map

Near future

Invidia catless DP

GMS catback

Cobb cold air intake

Suspension?!?

BP TMIC mod

Plasti dipped grill and emblems

Had to get some new shoes.

XXR 522's 18x8.5 +48

continental dws extreme contact 245/40/18

(no rubbing on stock suspension at all) just in case someone stumbles on this and is wondering

 

http://i.imgur.com/SZhkgAA.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/cIuj1D2.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/guZWKTn.jpg

Looks awesome!

 

What are you planning on for suspension?

Looks awesome!

 

What are you planning on for suspension?

 

I haven't done enough research about it to really decide what I want. A JDM 3rd Gen spec B sounds like an attractive choice to me but I'm not sure if I want to go that low or not.

I have the same color OBXT and I have been wanting to get the flaps! Possible you could upload anymore pics? Thanks much! Looks good!

Same color as well for me. How much did you pay for it?

I haven't done enough research about it to really decide what I want. A JDM 3rd Gen spec B sounds like an attractive choice to me but I'm not sure if I want to go that low or not.

 

Great start to your build! I too picked up an OBXT last fall (2005 5MT in Champagne Gold).

 

In regards to the suspension...Here is a good sticky on the topic from our friends at subaruoutback.org:

http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/81-wheels-tires-brakes-suspension/28368-2005-2009-outback-suspension-faq.html

Thanks for the link cerebral, I'll check that out ASAP. I'll take some better pictures for you guys this weekend and load them up. I payed 17.2k at 72,000 miles before taxes. I probably searched for a year to find one of these in good condition. Seems like every one I looked at looked like it was abused so I had to jump on this so soon as I saw it. The dealer had it for sale for two days when I made the purchase. I think I got a good deal?

Thanks for the link cerebral, I'll check that out ASAP. I'll take some better pictures for you guys this weekend and load them up. I payed 17.2k at 72,000 miles before taxes. I probably searched for a year to find one of these in good condition. Seems like every one I looked at looked like it was abused so I had to jump on this so soon as I saw it. The dealer had it for sale for two days when I made the purchase. I think I got a good deal?

 

Seems like you probably got a decent deal...but it really depends on the location. I bought mine in August 2013 with 75k for $12,300...but it's older than yours and there is not really a very high demand for Subarus in SE Michigan (which is dominated by GM/Ford/Chrysler vehicles) compared to PNW...

It's amazing how these cars keep their value.

I'm not sure what your plans are for your car (I bought a Gold 2005 OBXT last year). I put on stiffer King springs all around (overload in rear) to preserve ride height for off-road situations and get rid of the dive and sag with braking and acceleration. I replaced sway bars, links, and bushings with whiteline variants. I'm pretty happy with the outcome

I'm not sure what your plans are for your car (I bought a Gold 2005 OBXT last year). I put on stiffer King springs all around (overload in rear) to preserve ride height for off-road situations and get rid of the dive and sag with braking and acceleration. I replaced sway bars, links, and bushings with whiteline variants. I'm pretty happy with the outcome

 

+1 on suspension bits. I would also add this too

+1 on suspension bits. I would also add this too

 

That's a good point. I actually broke off the sway bar mounting bracket on my car (right below where it attaches to the body). After doing some off-roading I started hearing a 'clank' over bumps and had a weird feeling in the rear tires. I ended up drilling some holes in some angle-iron (to allow bolts to go through) and welding it up to both sides to reinforce the factory mounts. I suppose it would have been better to just add the upgraded mounts in the beginning.

Sorry I'm a couple days late on these.

I'm not sure what your plans are for your car (I bought a Gold 2005 OBXT last year). I put on stiffer King springs all around (overload in rear) to preserve ride height for off-road situations and get rid of the dive and sag with braking and acceleration. I replaced sway bars, links, and bushings with whiteline variants. I'm pretty happy with the outcome

 

 

I appreciate the input. Honestly if I was able to find one in good shape I would have bought an lgt wagon. Although I do like the more rugged look of the outback. When I'm ready for suspension I'll most likely do a couple inch drop. I think its insane people take these nice cars off roading. I know they are some what built for "tougher environments", but come on... really? I'm just not convinced they are the best choice of vehicles for trails.

 

Here's some bonus pics of my 00 off road taco.

I think its insane people take these nice cars off roading. I know they are some what built for "tougher environments", but come on... really? I'm just not convinced they are the best choice of vehicles for trails.

 

 

http://legacygt.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=95646&d=1296087725

 

http://legacygt.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=95647&d=1296087725

 

http://legacygt.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=95648&d=1296087725

 

some of mine in lovely Moab Utah, one of my favorite places on earth! A couple months after I bought the car, I had to 'baptize' it in the red dirt. Now, I have lots of red spots in the engine bay that won't go away. But that does not bother me. :spin:

 

Lol that's the insane I'm talking about

I like the Moab pics. Over Thanksgiving at Indian Creek (Canyon Lands), my car got so crusted with mud that the color was completely obscured. After a few days out in the bush, the shape started to be a little difficult to make out also with all of the clumps attached.

 

I did ended up busting off a sway bar mount while going too fast over some rocks that were a little too gnarly (Also, might have something to do with raised + stiffened springs and sway bars)

 

I washed my car at home in order to weld new metal onto the sway bar mounts, but that red dirt gets into everything. Even my feet still get stained-red by some climbing shoes were only around Moab once over a year ago.

I got my Invidia downpipe sitting around waiting to be put in. The GMS catback is scheduled to be delivered today. As long as the weather holds out I hope to have it all ready to go for the weekend. Anyone have experience with destroying their tmic at stage 2 boost? BP mod is currently out of stock and I'm not patient enough to wait.

 

Going to install the catback with longer hangers and have the tips float underneath the bumper. I'll throw some pics up as soon as it's done with a before and after sound clip.

Quick update for anyone who cares. I finally got to stage 2. Installed an invidia catless dp. Gms catback and bullet proofed my tmic. Feels Goodman.

 

The gms catback was a bitch to install. I basically gave up and had a shop do it for me. They had to cut and reweld the flanges on the mufflers to get everything to fit right. Also longer hangers. Overall I'm pleased with the catback however I wouldn't recommend buying it just on the grounds of how poor import image racing and affiliated vendor were to deal with. I can go into a deeper explanation if anyone wants but to sum it up;

Terrible communication

Sent broken unit with missing parts in the poorest quality of packaging I've ever seen

Replaced broken unit with new unit. Still in terrible packaging. Now missing different parts.

Took two months to resolve PayPal dispute with the seller because of lack of communication

 

However it was cheap! And it does sound good. So fingers crossed it holds up.

 

I'll post pictures and sound clips later this week

in for pics and sound clip!

Quick update for anyone who cares. I finally got to stage 2. Installed an invidia catless dp. Gms catback and bullet proofed my tmic. Feels Goodman.

 

Thoughts on Stage 2?

Hey guys I've been really busy lately I'll get those pics up ASAP. Getting to stage two was extremely satisfying. The increased turbo spool makes a huge difference in performance.

 

I went with a invidia catless downpipe and you can hear the turbo scream. I am a little bit worried about my car running rich though. I'm noticing soot on the exhaust tips. Stinks pretty bad wwithout a cat as well. Will probably ad a Flowmaster high flow cat. They're only about $80 on Amazon so might as well.

 

I'm running Cobb ots stage two 91 octane map. Still haven't done any data logging.

 

First time I've noticed blue smoke from the exhaust. Not sure if it's because I redlined for a second and caused it to run rich or if it's an oil problem. Any insight would be appreciated.