I wasn't going to do a build thread as I didn't think I needed major modifications. But looking back all the minor tweaks over the years have built up. Actually, it has still been less then two years. So here we go...
When I got my Forrie it was the only SG series II that I could afford on my uni student budget and despite a few minor problems (lack of oil and radiator fluid) it was still so much nicer than any of the series I's that I test drove. This was my first car and has still been my only car. I originally got it because I wanted a 4wd that was still nice to drive.
After reading through the forum my first mod was my DIY mark I bashplate which I installed before doing any offroading.
Did a few surf trips and a few trips with forum members. Meeting a lot of great people on here, some of them with an insane amount of very helpful knowledge. The forester proved to be a very capable car off road even in its pretty much stock form. I wasn't going to do any mods as I didn't think I needed them, how ever my bash plate was slowly turning into a bashed plate as I was doing a fair bit of scraping.
So then came the lift. Opted for 1" strut top spacers, mostly because they were cheap, but also because i wanted to keep the half decent articulation of the standard springs. If anything, I'd want softer suspension, as I travel light, with further travel, but there don't seem to be any cheap options for that.
Car looks way better with the lift in! Proportions really suited the car, this is how Subaru should have sold them as stock. At least the newer models come with decent ground clearance.
Now, most the tracks I do are with minimal scraping, occasionally I wish I put a 2" lift in, but I haven't really "needed" it. Since was doing less scraping the DIY mark II bashplate came along.
https://offroadsubarus.com/showthread.php?t=5671
Another DIY job was the easily removable window mounted CB ariel.
Car was doing and looking great. Got the Red XS up one of the tallest sand dunes in Australia first attempt, while Land Cruisers and Patrols were running out of power 1/8th of the way up. But the next thing to fix was the approach angles. I only saw the plastic bumpers limitations as a guideline, hence the scrapes and holes in it. A SubaXtreme bull bar came up for sale locally for a decent price and was in my colour! This was far too good an opportunity to miss.
To be continued...
When I got my Forrie it was the only SG series II that I could afford on my uni student budget and despite a few minor problems (lack of oil and radiator fluid) it was still so much nicer than any of the series I's that I test drove. This was my first car and has still been my only car. I originally got it because I wanted a 4wd that was still nice to drive.
After reading through the forum my first mod was my DIY mark I bashplate which I installed before doing any offroading.
Did a few surf trips and a few trips with forum members. Meeting a lot of great people on here, some of them with an insane amount of very helpful knowledge. The forester proved to be a very capable car off road even in its pretty much stock form. I wasn't going to do any mods as I didn't think I needed them, how ever my bash plate was slowly turning into a bashed plate as I was doing a fair bit of scraping.
So then came the lift. Opted for 1" strut top spacers, mostly because they were cheap, but also because i wanted to keep the half decent articulation of the standard springs. If anything, I'd want softer suspension, as I travel light, with further travel, but there don't seem to be any cheap options for that.
Car looks way better with the lift in! Proportions really suited the car, this is how Subaru should have sold them as stock. At least the newer models come with decent ground clearance.
Now, most the tracks I do are with minimal scraping, occasionally I wish I put a 2" lift in, but I haven't really "needed" it. Since was doing less scraping the DIY mark II bashplate came along.
https://offroadsubarus.com/showthread.php?t=5671
Another DIY job was the easily removable window mounted CB ariel.
Car was doing and looking great. Got the Red XS up one of the tallest sand dunes in Australia first attempt, while Land Cruisers and Patrols were running out of power 1/8th of the way up. But the next thing to fix was the approach angles. I only saw the plastic bumpers limitations as a guideline, hence the scrapes and holes in it. A SubaXtreme bull bar came up for sale locally for a decent price and was in my colour! This was far too good an opportunity to miss.
To be continued...
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