Matt's Levorg (Photo Heavy!)

[dubswagen]

Found some STi shocks to replace the horrible B6 Bilsteins.
Again, these were found cheap-as-chips on Marketplace:

Before/After:

The ride is so much improved over the Bilsteins in every way. Acceleration is smoother, braking doesn't nose-dive the car and entry into corners doesn't feel like you're going about to do a barrel-roll.

I was tossing up between WRX and STi shocks but after hearing reports the WRX shocks still bottomed-out on big bumps, I went for the STi.
Conversely, I had also read that the STi shocks were almost "too" stiff amongst owners of the WRX/STi platform so this was a bit of a gamble but it has worked in my opinion. I can respect that they might not be to everyone's taste for ride quality, they are stiffer of course but far from unbearable.

STI front spring rates 5.8 kg/mm STI rear spring rates 5.3kg/mm.
Again, they're not far off what most coilovers would feel like (Coils usually start around 6kg/mm F & 6kg/mm R and up to 7 or even 8kg/mm), I have Ohlins in my track STi and these are not far off the softer side of those.
It does take some getting used to, coming from the noodles that were in there prior but after deflating the tyre pressures a bit (these were at 39psi!), I've come to really like them.

Car sticks to the road really nicely. I think larger rear sway bar would benefit the car immensely if you wanted to give it a little more attack on cornering. I'm probably at a fork in the road now as far as pushing the Levorg to become a bit more capable on road or try to ease it back for more comfort. Id still like to lower the car with aftermarket springs but don't really want to have to put higher spring rates in there so will keep looking at options there.

RSR make both a 10-15mm lowering kit with 5.42/6.43kg/mm (F/R) RSR and a 5.87/6.43 Ti2000 set while the ever-popular RCE yellows are about 6.5/6.4. The RSR 5.42kg/mm front and 6.43kg rear springs would probably be the sweet spot here for a daily I reckon.

Thanks for the info.
Any idea what the spring rates are for the stock yellow Bilsteins? Can't wait to change them out.

 

[CParker]

I have an iDoing headunit in my hatch and the unit in the Levorg is actually just a cheaper AliExpress unit.
The iDoing equivalent for the Levorg was over $900 and the cheaper AliExpress unit I paid about $450 for.

View attachment 1988
Link: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005005634638378.html

I wanted to get a comparison between the two as the price was half that of the iDoing and saved me $450 NZD.

Result : Absolutely happy with the AliExpress unit. I would never go back to iDoing for the money I saved.
Support from the company I bought it from was great. They sent out a replacement faceplate as the one I had wasn't correct for my model and were very quick to help with a couple of troubleshooting issues with reverse camera.

Do you think its worth going for the 8gb over the 4gb given the $200 NZD difference? (Only planning on using apple carplay and maybe the occasional screen mirroring)

 

[Supafly_NZ]

Thanks for the info.
Any idea what the spring rates are for the stock yellow Bilsteins? Can't wait to change them out.

No idea! I scoured the internet looking for this info and nothing came up. Do let me know if you find anything.

Do you think its worth going for the 8gb over the 4gb given the $200 NZD difference? (Only planning on using apple carplay and maybe the occasional screen mirroring)

I think the price is unfair given the cost of memory chips, but that's just marketing.
Having the extra memory does help. Carplay and screen mirroring are somewhat resource intensive, more memory ensures the experience is fluid.

 

[Supafly_NZ]

Slow updates. I have lipped the front bumper.



Still on the hunt for a drivers-side WRX/STi guard so I can complete fitting the sideskirt and then add some STi skirt extensions.
I have some nice black STi guard badges to go on once this is done also.

Currently looking at lowering options for the STi shocks I have in there. Anything around 10mm-15mm would be the sweet spot.
Having to be mindful that the shocks are already ~10mm lower than all the "example" STi photos I am referencing spring packages against.

Tein High.Tech springs would lower the front 20mm and rear 15mm which would help to combat some of the mild "sag" in the rear.
Some 1/4" (6.3mm) spacers would probably take care of the rest, I'd have to measure once springs were fitted to be exact but they do come in a range of sizes.

Subaru Rear Strut Top Lift Spacers

Add a set of Rear Strut Top Lift Spacers to your existing suspension, king spring order or full suspension package to get the most lift for your off-road adventures!

get-primitive.com

 

[Supafly_NZ]

Scored some STi badges for the guards (fenders/wings).

Back to square one with trying to source a drivers side guard & inner moulding.
The wrecker I had been chatting to had sold it, my own fault for delaying. Fingers crossed one in black pops up!

 

[Roeland van Staeyen]

Painted the interior trim. Previously they were quite worn, scuffed and well.. not black.

View attachment 1916

View attachment 1917

Also fitted some eyelids, still waiting on my front lip to arrive:

View attachment 1918

Hiya, did you remove the door trim to paint it? If so how did you do it, tried it myself but couldn't figure it out.

 

[Supafly_NZ]

Hiya, did you remove the door trim to paint it? If so how did you do it, tried it myself but couldn't figure it out.

Here is a video :

 

[Haydz26]

hey mate what size exhaust tips did you go with? presume there 2.5" slip on inlets and around 3-3.5" outlets?
got the same mufflers sitting in the garage and wanting to do the same thing. about to order the garnish pieces from japan.
do youhave pics of the finished rear end with garnishes in place?

cheers

 

[Supafly_NZ]

hey mate what size exhaust tips did you go with? presume there 2.5" slip on inlets and around 3-3.5" outlets?
got the same mufflers sitting in the garage and wanting to do the same thing. about to order the garnish pieces from japan.
do youhave pics of the finished rear end with garnishes in place?

cheers

I've not got the exact measurements on me sorry so wouldn't be 100% sure but you'd only have to put some verniers over the STi pipes you have already to verify sizes since you've already got them there though.
Note: they do have to be the same size outer diameter as the OEM ones since they sit so close together as a pair.

The tips I bought were actually a touch too small to fit over my exhaust tips so I ended up grinding and sanding down a few microns from both the inside barrels of my new aftermarket tips and outside of the STi muffler tips so they'd mate a little nicer and then hammered them on as best I could til they sat level and at the right distances.

 

[Supafly_NZ]

I am looking at spring options now. Naturally I've put all options in a spreadsheet.
Conditional formatting on the spring rate columns gives indication on the value in relation to stock STi. Green rates will generally feel softer, red firmer.



This isn't an apples for apples comparison for a few reasons :
- These are progressive spring rates which are incredibly hard to put a single value against
- Manufacturers have amalgamated most STI/WRX spring offerings so the advertised drop measurements are generally applicable to WRX (less drop on STi).
- Things get even more difficult when you factor in the VA's bump stops which are designed to be dynamic and part of normal compression as opposed to a traditional hard-stop.
- These are going into a Levorg and not an STi (Consideration for added rear weight to be had here too)

However, the above table does give a pretty good idea of what to expect and the available reviews of each spring across various forums are mostly on-par with the data shown. Again, tricky subject as reviews are of course subjective so you have to expect some outliers here.

 

[Supafly_NZ]

I realize most of my photo attempts have been pretty poor since my car is filthy in literally every photo I have uploaded until now.
I washed it today with the intention of grabbing some photos on the flat to play around with height options in photoshop.

Also I scored some Konig Ultraforms (18x8.5 ET35 on 225/40/18) so needed an excuse to clean it and try them on.
I will sell on the Enkei PF01's. I have wanted to step down to a 40 profile tyre for some time and these Konigs popped up dirt cheap.
Some 5-6mm spacers are also on the cards here.

 

[tom397]

Next up was the exhaust. I have early starts (4.30AM) and live in a relatively quiet neighbourhood so goal here was to have something that had a nice tone but didn't lower eyebrows.

I opted to try out an STi system since these OEM exhausts are a dime-a-dozen on Facebook marketplace here in NZ:

Of course, the rear STi tips would not fit under the factory bumper (and important to note here: they also don't extend out anywhere near as far as the single-tip Levorg one does).
Cue the "Quattlo Muffler Garnish" from Shining Speed Japan and a bit of work with the angle grinder and dremel:

Now, these garnishes are originally designed to go together with a "single to dual", sleeved exhaust tip conversion which is unfortunately discontinued and I was wanting to use the STi tips anyway for the extra sound, so end result meant that the tips sit a little inside the rear bumper since the OEM tips are non-adjustable.

I also scored a genuine STi Levorg rear diffuser so that went on at same time:

Back under we go with the angle grinder:

The chrome tips come off nicely, as they are only spot welded in a couple of places, leaving a metal sleeve which will later house a clamp-on style exhaust tip (4x) from AliExpress:

I took sound clips with a few variations of the exhaust :
- OEM Levorg midpipe / Levorg tailpipes (The levorg as we all know it, quiet)
- STi midpipe / Levorg tailpipes (Extremely mild increase in exhaust note, barely noticable)
- STi midpipe / STi tailpipes (Marginal increase in sound, however brings a very annoying "booming" drone from 1,200-1,500 RPM with the CVT transmission, purely because the pipes sit right under the rear bumper (EDIT: Confirmed after removing stock tip garnishes and replacing with longer ones above: 30/11/23)

I believe the drone is partly to do with the fact the tail pipes are currently 50-60mm short of where they should ideally be on the bumper.
But also the rear sound-deadening in the Levorg is awful. A trip to Jaycar saw me with some butyl, foam and mass loaded vinyl to help reduce some of this drone coming into the cabin. A work-in-progress pic:

This is currently where I've left things. The two side, flat panels just with butyl have helped TREMENDOUSLY. If you remove your rear trim and give these a tap (I have a video of mine) you will notice how these sound like the side of a tin shed. Why Subaru left these un-deadened is beyond me.

I will get back in soon and update this post with the foam added and finally the mass-loaded vinyl over top.
Of course, once the exhaust tips arrive from AliExpress and move the exit back another 50mm, this will also help.

Hi there, love the mods and def taking some notes! Just wondering did the under floor storage still fit in with the sound deadening? Cheers

 

[lerroy]

Hey mate

Ive been looking at various suspension options as well I'm on KYB levorg shocks and was considering some STI springs. The common advice on here is to get coilovers, but being in NZ resident the Cert rules are killer for adjustable suspension.

I just looked into getting 15mm spacers certified and they quoted me almost 1k, and said that the car will be fully inspected and electronically tagged. So everything locked in, I cant even change the wheels without it needing to be re-certed. not something I'm keen doing at this stage.

Seems we dont need a cert to replace springs and or shocks that aren't adjustable

What have you done with levorg and STI for WOF ?

 

[Supafly_NZ]

Hi there, love the mods and def taking some notes! Just wondering did the under floor storage still fit in with the sound deadening? Cheers

Yep the under-floor storage still fits. Deadening material only adds perhaps 3-4mm of thickness.

If you are taking a three-layer (CLD, CFF, MLV) sound deadening approach (my recommendation for any Subaru) then your storage might sit perhaps 5mm higher than before but since the two panels that sit above the storage have a channel of about 10mm you should be fine.

 

[Supafly_NZ]

Hey mate

Ive been looking at various suspension options as well I'm on KYB levorg shocks and was considering some STI springs. The common advice on here is to get coilovers, but being in NZ resident the Cert rules are killer for adjustable suspension.

I just looked into getting 15mm spacers certified and they quoted me almost 1k, and said that the car will be fully inspected and electronically tagged. So everything locked in, I cant even change the wheels without it needing to be re-certed. not something I'm keen doing at this stage.

Seems we dont need a cert to replace springs and or shocks that aren't adjustable

What have you done with levorg and STI for WOF ?

The STi is certified, currently going through another recertification for the latest iteration of modifications. Hoping it is my last as it's never fun spending thousands on changes just to make your car legal again.

Certing the Levorg wasn't really something I was interested in doing just as I don't hold on to cars long enough to justify the expense and potential "snowball" effect of throwing more mods on the car to make sure I did it "all in one go" and get my moneys worth when it went through cert.
I did consider adjustable shocks, then I also debated putting it on bags with wider wheels and before I knew it I was looking at a $10,000 shopping cart.

I'm settled on buying Whiteline springs to go on the STi shocks already in the car and leave it at that.
Gives me another 15mm drop on the already 10mm drop I got from changing to STi shocks and no need for cert.

For the amount you'd spend on spacers and certification, you could put that money into wheels that have the offset you want. That's effectively what I've just done with these new wheels. They don't fill the guards quite as nicely as I'd like (but it's better) and they were basically a straight-swap for my last set, cost-wise.

Correct, shocks that offer height-adjustment require certification (you can also get away with buying shocks that offer damper-adjustment without cert).

I'm not familiar with anyone who has put STi springs on Levorg shocks so can't confirm how it will sit but I would recommend buying springs rated to the Levorg and not the STi. There are sellers that indicate they "fit" the Levorg but I don't see any support on the Whiteline site.
For example there was a guy selling some Whiteline springs that had to cut the fronts just so it would sit level :



I made a post here about spring options for the Levorg shocks:

Suspension Options???

Hi Guys, anyone tried Bilstein B12 setup eith Bilstein B8 shocks with Eibach springs.Only lowers the car about 15/20mm.

levorgclub.com

If I had someone interested in buying my STi shocks I would seriously consider the Cusco Touring shocks (with damper adjustment) and Ti2000 springs. It would just be a much more comfortable ride with the benefit of having some adjustability for spirited driving if I wished, and no need for cert.

 

[lerroy]

The STi is certified, currently going through another recertification for the latest iteration of modifications. Hoping it is my last as it's never fun spending thousands on changes just to make your car legal again.

Certing the Levorg wasn't really something I was interested in doing just as I don't hold on to cars long enough to justify the expense and potential "snowball" effect of throwing more mods on the car to make sure I did it "all in one go" and get my moneys worth when it went through cert.
I did consider adjustable shocks, then I also debated putting it on bags with wider wheels and before I knew it I was looking at a $10,000 shopping cart.

I'm settled on buying Whiteline springs to go on the STi shocks already in the car and leave it at that.
Gives me another 15mm drop on the already 10mm drop I got from changing to STi shocks and no need for cert.

For the amount you'd spend on spacers and certification, you could put that money into wheels that have the offset you want. That's effectively what I've just done with these new wheels. They don't fill the guards quite as nicely as I'd like (but it's better) and they were basically a straight-swap for my last set, cost-wise.

Correct, shocks that offer height-adjustment require certification (you can also get away with buying shocks that offer damper-adjustment without cert).

I'm not familiar with anyone who has put STi springs on Levorg shocks so can't confirm how it will sit but I would recommend buying springs rated to the Levorg and not the STi. There are sellers that indicate they "fit" the Levorg but I don't see any support on the Whiteline site.
For example there was a guy selling some Whiteline springs that had to cut the fronts just so it would sit level :

View attachment 2213

I made a post here about spring options for the Levorg shocks:

Suspension Options???

Hi Guys, anyone tried Bilstein B12 setup eith Bilstein B8 shocks with Eibach springs.Only lowers the car about 15/20mm.

levorgclub.com

If I had someone interested in buying my STi shocks I would seriously consider the Cusco Touring shocks (with damper adjustment) and Ti2000 springs. It would just be a much more comfortable ride with the benefit of having some adjustability for spirited driving if I wished, and no need for cert.

Thanks man yeah Ive been reading you post very helpful

Agree with you, after researching all and speaking to certifiers just not worth it for spacers in NZ, will look at wheels options. Rabbit hole though so hard to pick a wheel style

Was chatting on the Facebook certifiers group and confirmed adjustable dampers no issues or complete replacement shocks and spring all ok (as you have just mentioned ) I was trying to find some Tein dampers, and use either Whiteline or the STI springs for levorg stock KYB dampers but couldn't find anyone in stock, and Tein had none available and no ETA.

Have bite the bullet and ordered some HKS hipermax G dampers and springs, these are not adjustable but should hopefully improve the ride and give a 8-10mm drop.

interested to see how you go with the whiteline springs

 

[Spunkmeyer]

Mind if I ask if you have the part number for the HVAC that you used to pair with your idoing unit?

 

[Supafly_NZ]

Mind if I ask if you have the part number for the HVAC that you used to pair with your idoing unit?

Below are my notes on HVAC units:

Original unit: 72311VA000 (Stock OEM Levorg)

Some LHD Options on Ebay:
72311FJ040 (Dual Zone, Matte finish, Black Dials)
72311FJ811 (Dual Zone, Gloss Black finish, Silver Dials)
72311FJ830 (Dual Zone, Gloss Black finish, Silver Dials)
72311VA120 (From STi, red glow)

I had originally purchased a VA120 with the red LEDs but found that it was LHD and the driver/passenger controls were flipped. This could probably be remedied by re-routing the pins on the HVAC adapter plug but I opted to simply buy another unit as one had popped up cheap.

I don't have the RHD equivalent part numbers sorry but I can tell you I later purchased a RHD 72311VA171 (NZ WRX) unit which is whats currently in there now. (Soft white glow. Dual Zone, Gloss Black Finish, Silver Dials)

 

[Supafly_NZ]

Thanks man yeah Ive been reading you post very helpful

Agree with you, after researching all and speaking to certifiers just not worth it for spacers in NZ, will look at wheels options. Rabbit hole though so hard to pick a wheel style

Was chatting on the Facebook certifiers group and confirmed adjustable dampers no issues or complete replacement shocks and spring all ok (as you have just mentioned ) I was trying to find some Tein dampers, and use either Whiteline or the STI springs for levorg stock KYB dampers but couldn't find anyone in stock, and Tein had none available and no ETA.

Have bite the bullet and ordered some HKS hipermax G dampers and springs, these are not adjustable but should hopefully improve the ride and give a 8-10mm drop.

interested to see how you go with the whiteline springs

Interesting, what were the price/s on the HKS items? And where from?

 

[Spunkmeyer]

Thanks for the details, yep trying to find the VA171/VA170s proving tricky