Hello FFR 818 peeps! I'm Devin, have been lurking here for over a year, planning my 818c build, and my wife ordered the kit for me as a Christmas present! (Yes, she is a pretty awesome wife). Should be delivered just prior to my birthday in early March, so it is likely going to double as a birthday present as well!

I wanted to get my build thread started, as my kit completion date nears. 818c kit will be completed at FFR 2/17/2018, being delivered by Stewart to Albuquerque, NM. I am not aware of any 818 kits in New Mexico, so this should be the first in the state!

I am 30, MS in Mechanical Engineering from UNM, and was also Lead Engineer on our 2012 UNM FSAE team, so am pretty familiar with what it takes to build a car, and am privy to suspension design and terminology. Just wanted to get that out there to provide some context when it comes to Q&A (and so if I say something stupid, you all can feel free to call me out without any hesitation!)

My goals for the 818c are to have something totally unique that I can tell people "I built it". Will mostly be used as a mean street machine, but will also frequent SCCA solo events, and Track days as I can accommodate. (We have a small local track with a decent infield course, but I hope to get out to some of the regional road courses on open track days. Some of the features I have chosen are certainly more "racecar", but I personally would rather keep my 818c more racecar. It may be a bit rough on the streets, but to me, that is part of it.

Power goals: 400-450hp (400+ ft-lb)


My kit details:
818c LHD, un-coated chassis, 2-way adj. Konis, wilwood pedal box, street splitter, street spoiler, diffuser, canards, rocker extensions, vinyl dash/door panel kit, carpet kit, trunk kit (yes, took full "advantage" of the end-of-year sale)

Donor: It started as 2005 STi, but have ended up selling and buying a bunch of stuff to piece together my "ultimate" parts bin:

Parts kept from the 2005 STi:
Front aluminum lower control arms
Front and rear hubs
Brembo calipers and rotors
ABS
Wiring harness & ECU (will likely get an iWire harness once everything is laid out appropriately)
And a handful of miscellaneous other parts, but thats bout it thats left! lol!

Remainder of required parts:
Rebuilt shortblock with forged internals
ej207 big port heads chambered for 2.5L
Fluidampr
12mm JDM oil pump
Mishimoto Rad & hi-flow fans
Gates Blue Racing Timing belt kit & water pump
OTL Performance Coilpacks
IAG TGV deletes
Top-feed fuel rails & ID1300x injectors
DW300c Fuel Pump
Tomioka twin scroll header & up-pipe
Blouch TS 1.5xtr
Zero db AWIC kit
Mishimoto 19row Remote Oil cooler setup
JDM RA 5-spd transmission (4.44) with Cusco 1.5 Type RS (also have a spare RA with the Factory helical LSD)
Moore 2.0 Blast Plates
Stage 1 HD clutch
ACT Prolite Flywheel
MR2 Sw20 Shifter
Zero db bellcrank shifter
SPC adj. Rear lateral links
TSS FAB Rear trailing arms (should have a decent amount of clearance for wider wheels)
2015 STi 13:1 steering rack
Eibach 3-way adj. rear (now front) sway bar (also have factory RSB)
Superpro Anti-lift kit
ProDrive STi Gauge Cluster
Miro 111 18x8.5 +35, 225/35r18 Federal SS595 fronts, 18x9.5 +40, 255/35r18 Federal 595 RS-R rears

Am surely forgetting some things, and I will try to keep this list updated for contingency.

I know I will have to modify the hub-to-upper A-arm bracket to accomodate the STi hubs, but that should be no big deal. I also read about some modification required to run the 13:1 STi steering rack, but that was not detailed very well, so that will take some on-the-fly engineering. ABS will likely be a pain, but I think it is a necessary evil, given the weight of the car, and brembo front calipers. I wish I could track down a Racelogic TC setup, but since they have discontinued them, I haven't seen one for sale in the past 18 months. I someone knows of a comparable TC setup, please advise!

As for the fuel tank, I am planning on running e85, so I am hesitant to purchase the boyd tank right of the bat, due to capacity concerns. However, I don't know if I qualify as a "sasquatch", but I am 6'1", 230lb so legroom, etc. is one of my worries. A front tank isn't out of the question, but want to avoid the dynamic CG movement as the e85 is slurped by 1300cc injectors!

Please feel free to question or comment on anything here, I will not take offense, and enjoy getting as many opinions as possible on this stuff, especially from those that have already experienced it themselves!

If you notice anything that doesn't make sense, or you think won't work well, say something! I feel that is where the most constructive convos on forums stem from.


Anyways, I will start posting pics when the kit arrives, including the obligatory "unloading" shots.

Thank you all in advance, and I am super excited to get started!!