Clark Turner of Chandler, Ariz. has a penchant for speed. No stranger to the world of automotive machines, Turner is a performance engine tuner and dyno operator for Vivid Racing and can be found blasting through the streets on his old school '91 GSX-R 1100. If being a speed junky wasn't enough to cause Turner's automotive insurance company to pee in their pants, the purchase of a brand spanking new 2002 Impreza WRX in December of '01 should have been just enough to seal the deal.
Some say Subaru Impreza's have become the new Civic. We Subie owners often respond by saying, "Kiss my ass." Turner thought of his newly purchased WRX as a fresh new canvas, ready to be etched upon and molded into the car of his dreams. For Turner, it wasn't just about looks, but rather, it was about building a reputable machine that would hang with the big boys on the streets, yet maintain an acceptable comfort level that most race cars could never simulate. With the vehicle fresh off the dealer lot, it was only a matter of time before his first modification slowly evolved into a full-fledged project car.
After a few months of spirited driving sessions around town in the simply modified WRX, Turner decided to take the car to the next level, fortifying the entire engine from the ground up. It should be noted that the Subaru 2.0-liter engine has a tendency to grenade at the 300-350 wheel hp range. Using his employer, Vivid Racing, as the main source to track down hard-to-find engine components, Turner began plucking various pieces from different Impreza models. The 2.0-liter block was tossed aside and replaced with a new 2.5-liter block tied into a set of JDM spec C Type RA cylinder heads. For those who don't live and breathe the world of Subaru, the spec C cylinder heads are only available overseas and sports perhaps one of the biggest factory ports available to date-the factory 2.0-liter heads pale in comparison to the RA heads. Using a pair of ver. 5 limited edition STi camshafts to force feed the beast, Turner built his Frankenstein motor using a custom-ported spec C intake manifold, Type RA manifold risers, and finished off the block with ARP fasteners and STi head gaskets. With much of the engine building taken care of, Turner took a comfortable seat on the cold concrete flooring for hours at a time splicing and dicing between two wire harnesses using the spec C version and factory WRX setup to work correctly with the AVCS system.
With the gist of the engine build near complete, the next stage in Turner's quest for added speed and horsepower was selecting the perfect turbo for his ride. Too big of a turbo will cause serious boost lag, while too small can choke your engine of potential horsepower. After performing some careful research, Turner selected a GT35R ball-bearing turbo to feed the belly of his beast. Classified among the T3 turbo family, the GT turbo sports a 1.06 ceramic-coated A/R housing, offering a perfect balance of engine response and power output. To keep boost levels from surging to dangerous levels at high RPM, a TiAL 44mm external wastegate was positioned onto a custom fabricated 3-inch downpipe and exited out the rear bumper through a GReddy EVO2 exhaust canister.