At the Sepang Drag Battle, this WRX covered a quarter-mile in 9.97 seconds. To put things in perspective, a 1000bhp Bugatti Veyron takes 10.3 seconds and the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 10 takes 13.6 seconds to complete the same feat.
However, lest you think that the WRX you see here is a stripped-out, pared-down race car, you could not be further from the truth.
This WRX is driven every day like a normal family sedan. The only difference is that it goes racing on a few weekends a year against the best drag cars that the region has to offer.
Racing livery aside, a cursory look around does not reveal much about this car’s potent performance – which is all the better, as this does not make it stick out like a sore thumb in traffic.
The only hints are the Movit brakes up front comprising large multi-piston callipers and dinner plate-size disc rotors. There’s also a Blitz front-mounted intercooler peeping out from behind the bumper.
A look inside the interior still does nothing for the mod fan in me. Other than a Recaro SPG3 racing seat (which is approved by the FIA for racing), a used Recaro seat from an Evo 9 MR, and the odd meter here and there, it is as stock as stock can be.
Things begin to get interesting when the engine is fired up.
Blip the throttle and the iconic boxer-throb reverberates menacingly from the FGK exhaust system, which is joined to the HKS exhaust manifold.
Popping open the bonnet reveals an organised mess of hoses, pipes and a highly modified 2-litre EJ20. In competition mode, this 1994cc 4-cylinder makes an amazing 880bhp with 2.6 bar of boost!
For an engine to run at such a high-boost pressure and produce so much power requires a lot of internal work – and this one has been stripped down and has had almost all of its components either replaced or modified.
The engine has been balanced and blueprinted. For instance, each component has been re-machined according to factory blueprints so as to achieve optimum efficiency, while the head has been ported and polished so as to maximise intake and exhaust performance.
Additionally, an Edge stroker kit and tungsten iron sleeves, Cosworth camshafts and head gaskets, Jun valve springs and titanium retainers, and APR head studs have also been added to further strengthen the engine and enable it to function optimally – especially when the car is tearing down the drag strip at maximum revs.
Further contributing to this WRX’s prodigious outputs are a Sard fuel regulator, Edge custom fuel rails with 1200cc injectors, and the all-important HKS GT3240 turbocharger.
This exceptional turbocharger features a turbine wheel made out of Inconel – an exotic material used in the aerospace industry known for its ability to withstand very high temperatures.
The inlet diameter, by the way, measures 82mm. That is 32mm more than the standard IHI unit that comes with the WRX. And in its Clark Kent mode, the jumbo turbocharger is allowed to boost up to 2.2 bar, which is already a lot more than many racecars!
Elsewhere, a PPG gearbox featuring straight-cut first and second gears, helical-cut third and fourth gears, and an ATS & Across triple-plate carbon clutch combo are more than up to the task of transferring every one of the “horses” that the engine can muster onto the wheels.
The sole purpose of this WRX is to zip down a stretch of tarmac as quickly as possible, so not much was done to the undercarriage – a set of Tein coilovers being the only addition.
I was expecting the car to drive rather poorly – a “heavy” clutch pedal with an on/off-type personality and maybe a lumpy idle. But it was nothing like that.
The clutch does need deliberate effort and the gear lever demands a more pronounced shove. But, otherwise, this beast is a pussycat to drive.
+ ENGINE/ELECTRONICS
Subaru EJ20 balanced and blueprinted
Edge ported and polished head with 1mm oversized intake and exhaust valves
HKS special trim GT3240 turbocharger
HKS wastegate (modified)
HKS racing type blow-off valve
HKS racing exhaust manifold
HKS twin in-tank fuel pump
HKS racing spark plugs
Edge custom stroker kit (compression ratio 9.0:1)
Edge tungsten iron sleeves edge custom fuel rails with 1200cc injectors
ARP head studs
Jun valve springs
Jun titanium retainers
Cosworth AVCS camshafts
Cosworth AVCS oil pump
Cosworth AVCS head gaskets
FGK exhaust system
Sard fuel regulator
Blitz racing front-mounted intercooler
Apexi AVC-R boost controller
PPG gearbox
ATS & Across triple-plate carbon clutch
+ WHEELS/TYRES
Rays Engineering 17-inch CE28N bronze alloy wheels
Toyo R888 17-inch semi-racing slicks (race)
Bridgestone Potenza RE001 Adrenalin 17-inch tyres (street)
+ BRAKES
Movít 4M6 monoblock brake kit
+ INTERIOR
Recaro SPG3 FIA-approved driver’s seat
+ SUSPENSION/HANDLING
Tein Flex coilovers
