ivtaku7's Ultramarine Mad JDM Daily
 

Hey everyone!

I always liked the look of the 86, but when it came down to my first new car with my big boy job I bought a 2013 WRX Hatch. I loved every minute of it and enjoyed the time and effort put into the mods, but once I started down that path my concern for the longevity of the EJ started to get me stressed.

One weekend I was bored and went over to a local Toyota dealership and test drove an FR-S. I knew right away that this was going to be my next car. I got back in my WRX and knew I had a hard decision to make.

I parted out my WRX and traded it in for a 2015 Ultramarine FR-S and couldn't be happier. Initial impressions right off the lot, the gear box is so much nicer and more direct than the WRX. It's sharp around turns and the suspension isn't too rough, but not soft either. Finally, the bucket seats actually hug you unlike the seats in the WRX, which makes a huge difference in driving feel. Overall, I'm very happy with my decision and even though I miss the power some days, I'll never get tired of the way this car drives.

As it is a daily driver, my plans are to keep it simple for now with mostly cosmetic changes and upgrades. Eventually I may consider going the forced induction route, but for now I want some seat time with factory specs.

I'll update as best as I can and as frequently as possible, including pics and reviews along the way. Hopefully you guys enjoy the journey as much as I do!

Thanks,
Tom

Cosmetic:
JDM Clear Side Markers
Toyota Front Emblem
Toyota Rear Emblem
Toyota GT 86 Trunk Emblem
Grimmspeed License Plate Relocation Kit
JDM Red Steering Wheel
JDM Red Shift Knob
JDM Red Door Handles
JDM Red E-Brake Handle
JPM Coachworks Leather E-Brake Boot w/ Red Stitching
Loden GT86 Steering Wheel Emblem

Aerodynamics:
TRD Lip Spoiler (Color Matched)

Chassis & Suspension:
RCE Tarmac 0's
SPC Lower Control Arms
Whiteline Subframe Inserts
Whiteline Differential Bushings
Whiteline Front Control Arm - Lower Inner Rear Bushings

Engine, Exhaust & Transmission:
Nameless Axleback (2.5" Inlet w/ 5" Mufflers)
Whiteline Positive Shift Kit

Wheels & Tires:
Summer: Stock Wheels (Dipped Vintage Gold) & Tires
B2 Auto Designs 25mm Spacers
Winter: 16x6.5 +55 Snowflakes
195/60R16 Blizzaks

Lighting:
Winjet Headlights (Black Housing)
Morimoto 5500k HIDs
Diode Dynamics White LEDs - Trunk, Dome, Plate, and Side Marker

Updates:
Previous Build - 2013 WRX Hatch
First Week - 2015 FR-S
Turkey Day Update
Merry Christmas to Me!
Tax Return Present - RCE Coils
More Suspension Goodies
Low Life: Coilovers Installed
Wheels Spacers & Alignment

Saying Goodbye
 

In 2013 I bought my first brand new car, a WRX Hatch in Dark Grey Metallic. I was dead set on the color and drove about an hour and a half just to go get it because my local dealer wouldn't source one. The mods started pretty quickly, standard Subaru stuff, mudflaps, AccessPort, catback. Eventually I ended up with a full turboback, an e-tune, and some 17x9 RPF-1s wrapped in 255s. The car was a blast. Here's a few pictures of the different stages of my WRX.

http://i.imgur.com/zVJMZ38.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/2MCiQuR.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/3kKzws0.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/fVyJyNN.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/tstjPgG.jpg

Hello Eighty Six
 

In August of 2015 I picked up my brand new Ultramarine FR-S, 6 Speed, with factory spoiler, and wheel locks. I grabbed a Grimmspeed license plate relocation kit before I picked up the car, but the dealer was kind enough to drill the holes in the bumper for me anyway :mad0260: I had the guys over at Pro Shine Auto Appearance & Detailing Center (Natick, MA) fix the bumper for me and it looks brand new, with no hassle.

http://i.imgur.com/jYAtQUn.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/UbD8Jl2.jpg

~1,500 Mile Mods
 

So the car just hit about 1,500 miles and I've added clear side markers and the TRD lip spoiler.

Installation of the side markers is pretty simple. Using a flat head screwdriver just find the tab located in the middle behind the marker and they pop right off. Then it's just a simple swap and they snap back into place.

http://i.imgur.com/VwkGK7h.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/DPDbAaO.jpg

The lip spoiler was also pretty easy to install. It did not come with double sided tape as advertised, but I bought some and applied it to the underside. There was a pretty clear outline/indent for where the tape is supposed to go, I just followed it all away around the underside. For additional security I drilled to holes in the spoiler to match the mounting points for the OEM wing and secured the new wing with the OEM screws.

http://i.imgur.com/vn7iv35.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/f6yUe4Z.jpg

3,000 Miles - Interior Mods and First Oil Change
 

Thanks to @FT86 SpeedFactory, @JPM Coachworks, and @nigel-jdmparts I was able to secure all the JDM interior bits I wanted to transform my FR-S into a proper 86 (or at least pretty darn close). I sourced the 86 Steering Wheel badge from FT86 SpeedFactory, the e-brake boot from JPM Coachworks, and all the other red bits from Nigel. The parts came a lot faster than I thought they would and all in perfect condition. Unfortunately, I didn't take any progress pics, but a little before and after.

Before
http://i.imgur.com/kyh73sk.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/lp0Z818.jpg

After
http://i.imgur.com/39iug4x.jpg

First oil change is scheduled with the dealer since it's free, but we'll see if I keep going back or choose another route. I always did Valvoline Synthetic and an OEM filter on my WRX and may continue to do the same for this car, but open to suggestions.

This is going to be the time of year when you will miss your WRX. Other than that, great choice!

I sold my hatch to buy a crv for our winters in new england lol though i dont have my brz yet im working for it now, nice pick up though plans on other mods? and i would have murdered the sales people drilling holes for the plate -_-

Yeah, I wasn't too happy with the dealershit overall, but they were one of the only ones with an Ultramarine that was manual and I was dead set on the color so I kinda put up with a lot of their BS.

Right now I don't have any plans. I start grad school in January so we'll see what my funds look like, but maybe some wheels, tires, and springs when the weather warms up. I'm also thinking of grabbing a set of JDM or 1.0 headlights and wrapping the tails with red vinyl.

Yea i love that color on both twins, sucks the discontinued it, apparently due to lack of sales is what i've read here, and sounds about the route i want, want to keep it as a fun weekend thing. Chances are ill be buying mine private sale due to dealers being idiots and id rather have a quick and easy process vs the hassles of dealing with them.

I'm with ya on going private, or at least finding the right dealer. I had a lien on my WRX so I didn't really want to deal with the hassle of private sale, so trading in was supposed to be easy, but ending up being a pain.

Once I install the axle back I'll probably do a little shoot and update on my plans for the Spring :thumbup:

nice man ill be here for updates lol running out of time though winters just around the corner :bonk:

Nameless Axleback & Winter Wheels
 

A little Turkey Day update. Some warm Northeast weather gave me the opportunity to throw on my Nameless Axleback and my winter set of wheels & tires. The exhaust is the 5" muffler version with a 2.5" inlet. Winter wheels are snowflakes off a second generation Legacy 16x6.5 +55 offset. They fit perfect, with about a centimeter of clearance on the brake calipers. Tires are 195/60R16 Blizzaks.

http://i.imgur.com/MfhaAc4.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/TIdXbzj.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/yXCZR63.jpg

Merry Christmas to Me!
 

Merry Christmas everyone! As a little gift to myself I picked up a set of Winjet Headlights from @fteightysix along with the Morimoto HID kit and DRL Mod. The install was very straight forward and the lights are a perfect fit. I decided to hold off on doing the DRL mod at the moment because I kind of like the look of it without them always being on. Overall, I couldn't be happier, especially now that I've completed the majority of my JDM conversion.

http://i.imgur.com/vaoDcXu.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/1bpOg9r.jpg

Tax Return Present
 

Well I decided to use some of my tax return money to pick up a set of Racecomp T0's. Thanks to Myles @Racecomp Engineering who also helped me to order all the necessary bushings/parts to maintain OEM geometry and make the most out of a daily driven car. Can't wait to put them on and get an alignment!

http://i.imgur.com/28U57ku.jpg?1

More Suspension Goodies from Whiteline
 

Well now that it's finally warming up in the Northeast I've been able to get under the car and make some improvements to the cars handling. When I order the coils the guys over at RCE helped me put together a list of all the parts I would need to get the most out of the car as a weekend toy. In addition to the coils, I've added SPC LCA's, Whiteline Subframe Inserts (KDT922), Whiteline Differential Bushings (KDT925), Whiteline Front Control Arm - Lower Inner Rear Bushings (W0509), and the Whiteline Positive Traction Kit (KDT926).

Right now I've only had the time to do the Subframe Inserts and Diff Bushings, but the difference is night and day in terms of driveline slop. Shifting feels much more direct and the power to the ground feels more immediate. Without a doubt, I would recommend these two products to anyone.

I'll report back when the T0s, LCAs, and other bushings are installed for final impressions before I put better tires on.

http://i.imgur.com/0ZMNeA2.jpg

Summer Set Back On and Dipped
 

Before I put the summer set back on I decided to dip them Vintage Gold with a few coats of Glossifier. I'm pretty happy with the color and the way they came out. I'll probably test a few more colors before I decide on the color of an aftermarket set.

http://i.imgur.com/q3lAfNy.jpg

It's a subtle look on those rims. I have a lava I'm looking at powder coating the stock rims gold as well--just got to pick which color. Someone shared PrismaticPowders.com and maybe it'd be worth a look for you too as well.

How are your winjets doing? Was the HID worth it? Any unforeseen issues come up?

The Winjets are fine, no fogging, hazing, or condensation. Light output for the HIDs is solid and in my opinion worth it to match the bulb color to the LED strip. If I was going to do it again I might consider retrofitting them, but for now the plug-n-play kit suits my needs and the wiring is pretty tidy.

Low Life
 

Whelp, as of 4/30 the RCE Coilovers, SPC LCAs, and all Whiteline bushings have been installed. Pressing out the old bushings was a big pain in the ass, even with less than 10,000 miles on the car there are signs of rust and I'm glad some of those parts have been replaced. The SPC Toe bushings absolutely had to go in. When we got everything installed and did the first toe measurements in the rear I had about 1.5" Toe Out and that's when we determined the Toe Bushings had to go in and now I'm sitting at about 1/8" Toe In without a laser alignment.

First driving impressions are that they were worth every penny. The coils feel great, slightly stiffer than stock, but not overly rigid. I'm excited to get a performance alignment and was thinking of just going with something within RCEs recommended settings (Camber: -1° F, -1.7° R; Toe: 0 F, 1/16th Rear; Caster: 6.5° F), but I'm not an expert and open to suggestions for a car that's a weekend toy on stock wheels.

Now that the springs are settled it's dropped about 1 & 1/8" in the front and 1" in the rear

http://i.imgur.com/V7fKNiv.jpg

Maybe a typo, or maybe I'm reading it wrong, but you'll want your camber adjustments reversed. IE 1 degree rear, 1.7 front. On the first page of the meaty tire thread, Jive turkey throws out some solid alignment specs--I'd read through his advice as well.

Maybe the RCE instructions are wrong then because that's straight from them. But I'll take a look at that thread.

Wheel Spacers & Alignment
 

It's been a while since I last made an update, but I finally got an alignment and some spacers from @B2 Auto Designs to get rid of the goofy sucked in look of the car lowered on stock wheels. The quality of the spacers is excellent and overall I'm really happy with the way the car sits currently. We knew after installing the coils that the alignment was going to be pretty out of whack since there's only so much you can do with toe plates and a manual camber gauge, but it turned out to be worse than I thought. Word to the wise, go get a professional alignment as soon as possible after installing coils! I also picked up some white LEDs for the trunk, dome, license plate, and side markers from @Diode Dynamics which go really well with the headlights and definitely brighten up the interior/trunk at night.

Alignment Specs
http://i.imgur.com/i7KutGl.jpg

Before Spacers
http://i.imgur.com/OOYVPOI.jpg

After Spacers
http://i.imgur.com/J9DxH3H.jpg
Couple extra cell phone pics
http://i.imgur.com/Gqr42Wl.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/NDlse8i.jpg