Autox got me thinking: Time to make this car handle

[NemesisEJ22t]

Hey everyone, i just autocrossed the Legacy for the first time on Sunday and i was very surprised at how well the stock suspension did. There are a few things that i really noticed (besides my horrible driving) that i think need improvment. Overall the suspension felt surprisingly neutral under most cornering, there was no real understeer until the track warmed up. The biggest thing i noticed was the tendency for the front to dive under heavy braking more than i expected, which would unsettle the car and make it oversteer more than i'd like. Turn in response also seemed a little vague, i'd like to improve upon that if at all possible. Body roll was also definately an issue, but with the stock suspension in place (including original struts), I really wasn't expecting a stellar performance here. I have been thinking about a few things i can do to start myself off in the right direction here, and I'd like your input.
Ideas for suspension, tell me what you think:

-KYB AGX struts

-Some type of lowering spring with a higher spring rate (progressive rate would be nice for streetability, and not very low, this is still my dd/winter car)

-New suspension bushings everywhere, urethane where possible (I saw the Energy Suspension Master kit somewhere for 93-01 imprezas, would this work for us?)

-Falken Azenis tires whenever my Falken 512 "race tires" finally cord out

-Find a set of front strut mounts (upper) from a junkyard, make a mold of them, remove the old rubber and replace it with polyurethane for some cheap homemade mounts

-Bracing would be nice to keep all the suspension geometry closer to where it's set, but i am running on limited funds for the time being so i'd like to do the most important areas first

These are my basic ideas, i think minus the tires and bracing which would come later i could do this all for $650 which is within my price range. Does anyone have anything they could add that would be a very good idea (besides an autocross school, i REALLY need that, i'll post the vid of my run up soon, lol) or subtract anything that is unnecessary? Thanks for the help.

[evolutionmovement]

A smaller sport steering wheel will drastically improve steering feel. A hard shift knob will do a similar job for shifting (mine is a wood knob from Home Depot, a little over $1).

Steve

[LegacyT]

A small steering wheels make a world of difference. I have an 1997 impreza STi RA wheel in mine. Its one of the best mods ever.

Mark,

[Brat4by4]

Those are both for "feel" and don't actually make the car handle better...

The struts and springs are gonna finish off your total cost unfortunately, and that's if you put them in yourself. The front endlinks are important, as I personally found out. And the rear strut bar DOES make a difference as I also found out personally about a month ago. Endlinks are gonna be about $60 shipped and the rear strut bar can also be had for about $60 or so.

And I would just save up for STi top mounts. You would do massive damage and risk your life if you do the top mounts wrong.

[NemesisEJ22t]

Brat, you do have a point about the top mounts, i got a chance to really look at them today and realized the STi mounts would be a better idea. I never thought about the endlinks up front, i have been hearing noise up around there too that sounds like sway bar, i think i'll add those to my list. For the struts and springs, i will probably go to Ebay, my buddy just bought some struts from the same guy, and there's nothing wrong with them. He also has springs for a decent price as well, but i don't know if i really need the springs, the stockers appear to do their job quite well. As for the steering wheel, it is something i might consider down the road, but right now i am content with whipping the original one around a little bit. Thanks everyone, anyone else have any input?

[greg donovan]

what class are you gonna be in? 650 is tough but you can get some good stuff.

look here for some parts:

http://www.teaguesauto.com

alot of gc chassis stuff will fit our cars. im not 100% sure but i think all of it will fit.

i also highly reccomend the GN strut tops. as well as GN engine and tranny mounts.

i have both the gr2 and agx on my cars and they are both great. however, i set the agx in the middle and have never changed them in 3yrs.

perrin and whiteline both make good adjustable rear swaybars. but if budget is a factor i would just change the endlinks first the stock ones flex alot.

if you want a bit more power get a light crank pulley. i think the perrin one is probably the best. most places sell it for about 125 shipped.

you are definatley going to want some better brake pads eventually as well. i have the deluxe pads from Primitive racing. price was about 100. they dont fade like the old oem ones did when they got hot. and get some heavy duty brake fluid too. i think that helped more than the pads did on my brake feel. i use wilwoods high temp stuff. but make sure you get the DOT number that is compatable w/what is in the car now. if i remember right you should have DOT 3 in your car now and DOT 4 is compatable. but ask you mechanic to be sure. or maybe some one here knows for sure or i can just get off my butt and go out to the garage and look for myself.

[NemesisEJ22t]

I am not really looking to be competitive immediately as i am in street mod due to the intercooler and MBC. However, i want to have the suspension at least there for me to learn on and hopefully be competitive one day. The brake pads are on their way out soon, so i will be replacing them with a decent pad compound. The brake fluid is DOT 4 but i replaced it over a year ago, and i think it needs to be bled at least because the pedal is getting rather spongy again.