I have a passion for cars. Have done ever since I was a little kid. You could have a half million dollar exotic or two thousand dollar missile pieced together from junk you scraped together from a wreckers, I like them all. While I was was in Boise Idaho, Ryan Nielson stopped by my friends house in his wildly stanced 2011 WRX and not wanting to miss an opportunity, we promptly found a quiet lot to do a spontaneous shoot at.
Ryan has had the car for a little over two years now and it’s already undergone three major facelifts in that short period of time. He bought the car stock from Las Vegas and wasted no time getting it back to his hometown of Salt Lake City in Utah to start dressing her up.
As it sits today, the wild styling of the Mountain Rider body kit consisting of front and rear bumpers, side skirts and aggressive fender flares gives the car presence wherever it goes, causing little crowds to pop up no matter where it parks.
Airlift V2 air ride suspension along with Cusco lower control arms and Racer X Fab upper control arms are responsible for the extreme stance
Ryan opted for an Invidea N1 turbo back dual exhaust system and finished them off with a pair of tips from a Dodge Challenger which gives the back of the car a more refined look than your typical can styled look you are used to seeing.
All of the aero are courtesy of Strafe Design, where Ryan also happens to work. The front splitter, rear diffuser and subtle skirt trim all complement the look of the car without overdoing it.
Strafe Design also manufacture aluminium window vents to add an industrial element to the build.
Ian of Strasse Sport sorted out the paint for Ryan, laying down a flawless Laguna Seca Blue. To their knowledge, this is the only Subaru in the country to sport this colour.. They also gave the tail lights a subtle tinting.
Once they had colour sorted out, Plus Soap is the only care care products that Ryan trusts to keep the car in show condition. “I can drive to a show and get covered in dust and bugs, but just give her a wash with Plus Soap cleaners and wax and it looks like the paint is still wet from the booth.”
Adding to the visual overload is a set of custom Work Meister M1 three piece wheels that are a crazy 12 inches wide with an offset of -70 and finished with an ice white center and metallic silver barrels.
Once the wheels were wrapped in a set of 265/35/18 Falkens the stretched out rubber is fitted, adjusted, inspected and then re adjusted to get that perfect fit into the guards.
“People think that you just buy some crazy control arms and max out the camber as much as possible, but that’s not the case” Ryan told me. “There’s a lot of test fitting and adjusting done to make sure that the wheels sit in there right, or you’ll just wreck the guards when you air out your suspension. I love the hate I get from people who claim to be car enthusiasts but a quick to tell everyone else how build their cars.”
No doubt, this is a pretty wild looking WRX and after cruising around for a couple of days, seeing the way people just flock to have a look at this far out looking ride… Ryan has definitely created a car that gets everyone talking.
