TUNING MENU
200 6 SUBARU WRX STI
OWNER KENDRICK GRAY
HOMETOWN SNOQUALMIE, WA
OCCUPATION IT MANAGER
INSTAGRAM @stibuilder
POWER 512 whp
ENGINE Balanced and blueprinted 2.5L EJ 257
flat-four built by Pacific Import Auto; Manley 2618
pistons; Scat Pro Sport H-beam rods; ported
heads; 1 mm over Inconel valves; Brian Crower
valvesprings, retainers; GSC Stage 2 cams;
Walbro fuel pump; 1 ,300cc Injector Dynamics
injectors; TiAL Sport GT35R turbo; Perrin boost
controller; Bell intercooler; TiAL Sport blow-off
valve; custom intake box with K&N filter; 4-inch
downpipe and stainless steel exhaust; Vibrant
muffler; TIG-welded turn-down exhaust tip;
tubbed front fenders; frenched engine bay
DRIVETRAIN CAE shifter; Exedy twin-disc
clutch, flywheel; Driveshaft Shop axles; carbon-
fiber driveshaft
ENGINE MANAGEMENT Cobb Tuning
Accessport
FOOTWORK & CHASSIS Custom chromoly
front subframe; JRZ RS Pro Sport coilovers;
Whiteline 22 mm sway bars; polyurethane
bushings
BRAKES Brembo GT six-piston front, dual-piston
rear calipers, 355mm front discs; Aeroquip lines
and custom hard stainless tubing
WHEELS & TIRES 1 8x10.5 Gram Lights 57G
wheels; 29 5/3 0 R 18 Toyo R888 tires
EXTERIOR Aspen White paint by Andy Kret;
extended Karlton widebody flares, carbon-fiber
roof, brake ducts; Alex Helyer CAD work
INTERIOR Six-point rollbar; Sparco Pro 2000
seats; Schroth six-point harnesses
THANKS DirtFish Rally School
diagram first and foremost...no easy
task. I learned how to weld, MIG weld,
TIG weld. I learned how to compile
measurements for CAD work, because
we came into some design areas
where the only way to come up with a
solution was to build something that’s
never been built before.”
He constructed the car to
accommodate 295 tires and tubbed
the front fenders and reworked the
sheetmetal in the engine bay. The outer
fenders are Karlton flares Kendrick
widened by an inch. Inboard, a custom
chromoly front subframe is home to
JRZ RS Pro Sport coilovers, Whiteline
sway bars, and a collection of solid
polyurethane bushings. The coilovers
feature external reservoirs—21 and
14 adjustments for rebound and
compression damping, respectively—
capped with monstrous Ground Control
camber plates. The enlarged wheelwells
are filled with 18x10.5 Gram Lights
wrapped with Toyo R888 high-
performance rubber. Stopping power
comes courtesy of six-piston Brembo
calipers that put the squeeze on 355mm
discs up front while a two-piston setup
is on duty out back. The brake system
features Aeroquip lines and custom
hard stainless tubing that is a signature
feature of Kendrick’s handiwork. “I did
all the stainless steel lines on the car,”
he tells us. “I built every tube end andbent them all myself. It’s really hard
to learn that art from a lot of research
online and a lot of practice...plain and
simple trial and error. Tube work is one
of my favorite things I learned how to do
during the project.”
The STI’s balanced and blueprinted
2.5L flat four was built by Pacific
Import Auto of Tacoma, Washington.
The powerplant was assembled with
lightweight Manley 2618 material
pistons, Scat Pro Sport rods, and a stock
forged Subaru crank. A set of ported
heads, fitted with Inconel valves, Brian
Crower valvesprings and retainers, and
GSC Stage 2 cams was bolted to the
short-block.
The Boxer is pressurized by a
Garrett-based TiAL Sport GT35R turbo
with a .82 A/R compressor housing
and a 68mm, 84-trim turbine wheel
contained in a stainless-steel V-band
turbine housing. A Perrin boost
controller regulates max pressure to
24.4 psi on E85, and a Bell intercooler
core with custom end tanks by Flipside
Customs chills the charge prior to
combustion.
But Kendrick is quick to point to the
intake system as the star of the show.
“The airbox has to be the most uniquely
misunderstood piece on the car,” he
reveals. “Most people walk up and ask,
‘Why does he still have a top mount?’
But it’s really the air intake for the turbo.I thought with a bright red K&N filter
on the top people would recognize it as
an air intake, but I guess the lines make
it look like an intercooler. I built it by
hand on the kitchen table. It’s welded,
glued, press-brake formed... It’s some
of everything... made with billet, fine
welding, CAD work on top of that. It
just kind of sums up the whole car—
whatever it takes, whenever it needs it.”
Another thing Kendrick loves
about the car is how, despite all the
modifications, it runs on a factory ECU.
“Of course, I’ve pumped up the tune
with a Cobb Accessport, but I’ve done
all kinds of wiring projects to keep as
many factory pieces as possible,” he
explains. “For instance, the cooling fans
are easy to overlook, but the ECU is
set up to control them: high speed, low
speed, primary fan, and secondary fan.
There are no check engine lights. It’s
all about reliability...the EJ started on
the very first try. The magic was there
from the beginning, and it’s just been
phenomenally reliable. I’ve been really
happy with the car.” This combo was
tuned by Tim Bailey and Lance Lucas of
Cobb to 512 whp.
The bodywork didn’t stop with
the wheeltubs and fender flares. “The
hood is really funny to me, because I
got this idea when the car was sitting
in my garage and I was looking at the
WRC car—the S9 or WRC2003—and IThe built boxer produces
512 whp at the hands of
Cobb and its Accessport.