iM Feature: Danny Yee’s 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI

July 27, 2012July 27, 2012

As you get older and the thought of “real life” begins to set in, you may start to notice a change in interests as you “outgrow” certain hobbies and start to change daily activities in order to adapt and live for the future. Eventually, your taste in cars will broaden as you look for something a little more functional and practical to suit your everyday life, and look for a vehicle that will tackle the “real life” situations that are thrown in your direction.

For those with a love and passion for cars and the car modding life however, a few questions begin to surface as well. Questions like ‘how can one maintain this passion for car modding when “Life” happens?’, ‘Is it possible to balance “real life” and “car life”?’, and even a question as extreme as ‘Can someone really be finally done with cars?’

The answer to these questions like these are quite simple in the sense that, well, it’s entirely up to you. For Danny Yee and his 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI, the answers to these questions are very clear.

“Subtle and Very Unassuming.”

Without a doubt, this is arguably the first and final thought that comes to mind should anyone cross paths with this STI. In search of building a vehicle that will outperform others in it’s class, yet maintain full functionality, it’s no wonder Danny chose the STI as his latest platform. Danny, who is no stranger to creating the perfect blend of simple and aggressive, comes correct with what just may be the perfect combination of style and performance, all the whilst maintaining a practical and fully functional daily driver.

A look at the exterior of this STI and the first thing that is immediately noticed is it’s aggressive stance thanks to the KW V3 coilovers and the 18×10 Volk TE37 Super Laps wrapped in 255/35R18 Toyo T1S rubber on all four corners. What makes this car stand out exterior wise though, is the Chargespeed “Bottomline” aero kit. Such a subtle aero kit, but as Danny puts it “it’s just perfect for the car and it’s exactly what I wanted.”

Since this STI is Danny’s every day road warrior, the interior of this STI stays true to Subaru’s original equipment, with a few goodies to boot, such as an ARC Shift Knob, a Defi Boost Gauge and an Innovate Wideband O2 Kit. For a little in car entertainment, Danny added an Alpine DVD Unit paired with Alpine Type-R components.

Because Danny wanted to go for something so subtle and very unassuming, Subaru’s distinct “boxer rumble” inevitably had to go. Danny’s solution to this was a Tomei Expreme Equal Length Manifold, an HKS Down Pipe and a Fujitsubo exhaust. Add COBB’s Access Port and a tune (performed by Sunny of Airboy Tuning) and what is the outcome? An impressive 285whp/375 ft.lbs of torque. Women lie, men lie, numbers don’t lie. With amazing numbers put on the dyno, and the “boxer rumble” delete, the only thing practically heard when this car is on the streets is the HKS Super Sequential Blow-Off Valve.

With what is in our opinion, probably one of the most well thought, stylish and functional, and of course subtle and very unassuming Subarus out there right now, it’s safe to say that there are definitely some positive answers that can come from the previous questions stated above. The answers to these questions are certainly reflected in Danny’s Chargespeed STI in the sense that nothing is impossible and you may not even have to change a single thing to live the life that you want.

In order to achieve that perfect balance of “real life” and “car life”, the solution is quite simple: Life is what you make of it, and just do whatever makes you happy. Keep this in mind, and these two aspects will be exactly what they are: a part of growing up in the game they call “Life”.