In pursuit of a little more noise, my next modification was the fitment of a non-resonated centre pipe.

Upon fitting my newly purchased TSL Group N Exhaust, I realised that my Prodrive Backbox had at some point in its life been ripped apart and gutted. Naturally, I decided to take a closer look and try a DIY repair.

Rallytech are a company based in Thailand offering a selection of parts for Subarus. I managed to bag a header (coolant) tank spacer kit from them, so here’s a couple of quick snaps.

Although a genuine STi model, my Impreza was unfortunately missing the most important visual thing – in my opinion – that the STi variants feature. That huge high-rise rear wing STi spoiler.
Here I finally get my hands on one.

The Winter weather and many cold starts have really taken its toll on my old standard battery. Being such a vital part of a car, why skimp on cheap battery? I bought myself a Bosch S4 024 battery to really bring the Impreza to life.

The Winter weather finally took its toll on my poor old wiper blades, so I decided to fit a set of fancy Bosch Aerotwin wiper blades to the Impreza.

Always a fan of Osram branded bulbs, I decided to swap over my old tired headlight bulbs to a set of new H1 Osram Nightbreakers.

New Uniroyal Rainsport 3 tyres; quite an expense, but one of the most important features of a car. Tyres are the only thing that provide contact with the road, so you need to make sure you’ve got good quality rubber at all times – especially on a 4WD Subaru Impreza.

I’m a huge fan of expensive sound systems. Unfortunately I’m not able to afford multi-thousand-pound systems, so I aspire to get somewhat decent sound on a budget and by self-installing.

New car parts! This time it’s a set of Genuine Subaru Wind Deflectors, or ‘Side Visors’ as they’re officially called. Let’s get them installed:

The inevitable has happened. Not too long after fitting my HT Autos splitter, I’ve only gone and broken it!

Following a recent service by my local Subaru specialists Zen Performance, it had been recommended that an upgrade to decent silicone hoses makes a very worthwhile upgrade, both in looks, performance and preventative maintenance measures.

Because racecar, right? Truth is, I don’t track my car, so I’ve got absolutely no practical reason for installing a TRS Tow Strap. I just like how they look to be perfectly honest.

Just a small modification this one, but to further reflect the STi heritage of my Impreza, I thought I’d take a look at fitting a new front STi badge to replace the original Subaru emblem.

Love them or hate them, you can’t deny that tinted windows have quite an impact on the styling of any car. I’m a big fan, and in early 2014 decided to tint the windows of my Impreza.

Known as one of the highest quality aftermarket part producers in the UK, HT Autos have a reputation of providing some real nice bolt-on kit for Subarus.
And I couldn’t help but purchase one of their newage Front Lip splitter kits.

Starting now on the front-end of the Impreza, the first job I need to take care of is to replace the horribly large front numberplate with a smaller, neater item.

There are really no shortage of options when it comes to breathing mods like an air filter on cars, but I prefer to keep it simple. And you can’t go wrong with a K&N Panel Filter.

Thanks to a discounted group buy over at Scoobynet I couldn’t resist the lure of a set of hydraulic bonnet dampers, something I had previously fitted to my MR2 and had been very impressed with.

Just a small thing I like to do when exploring a new car is to check the oft-forgotten cabin filter. This is the last line of defense between you and the outside world when it comes to having a pleasant interior.

At the closest opportunity, which naturally meant on a dry weekend, I did what any new-car-owner should do and gave the Impreza a thorough clean! In credit to the previous owner it was already in a rather tidy condition, but there’s no better way of getting to know the inside and out of your new car than getting up close with the polish.