2013 Subaru WRX - Hank Rueter

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2013 Subaru WRX

Hank Rueter

Instagram: @freshwrxhatch

Photographers: Wayne Hunter

Instagram: @hunterseyephotography

Performance Stats: 357hp / 347lbft

I live in the Richmond Virginia area. I’m a multimedia producer, cranking out video and podcast production for our clients. I participate in HPDE events with NASA Pro Racing and TrackDaze as often as I can, and I’m also a musician. Playing music live used to be a full-time thing, but now it’s just an occasional fun thing to do. I’ve been into cars for as long as I can remember. I used to draw them as a kid, and also was building models of them and collected various Hot Wheels cars for years. 

My father passed away right before I was born, so I never had a direct bond with him over a love of cars. But, I found out later in life from other family members that he was a pretty big gearhead and had been a car lover his entire life. So, it’s not a surprise that the enthusiast gene carried on to me. There were so many sources that fueled my love of cars. From video games, TV shows and movies, there was always some awesome car that I’d dream of owning one day. Bond Movies, Smokey & The Bandit, Knight Rider, Dukes of Hazzard, Miami Vice, and many more.

When I was in High School, a good friend’s father always had a really cool car or two. I’ll never forget that he had a mid-generation C4 Corvette that he modified himself. He crafted a smooth-edged throttle body intake for the intake plenum and made some modifications to the ECU on his own. I think getting a ride in that car on some back country roads in Virginia, pretty much sealed the deal for me. It was all over …. car guy for life!

I’ve had quite a few cars in my life and I managed to own some pretty nice ones at one point or another. My first legit sports car was a 1983 Ford Mustang HO with a 4-speed manual & posi-track rear end. It was a lot of fun, but the posi-track rear made it not such a great choice for my first venture into the higher-horsepower car scene. 

I’ve also had a 7th-generation Celica GTS, which wasn’t really fast or anything, but it definitely introduced me to the more refined side of JDM cars and how they’re very different from American cars in so many ways. It handled really, really well, and opened the door to Japanese sports cars for me. 

I later decided that I wanted to get into the Corvette world and ended up buying a jet-black 1990 model which ended up being a total money pit. It was fun, but after it caught on fire a few times I traded it in for a Volkswagen GTI … I think it was a 2001 or 2002 model. It was a lot of fun, but I mistakenly got an automatic. My first step into modifying cars was with this one. There was a pretty trick ECU mod done back then that would allow you to turn up the wick a little bit by having an aftermarket chip installed, that could be controlled through different click sequences of the cruise control buttons. Unfortunately, the transmission didn’t like the extra power very much. 

I decided to move on and up from there to a 2002 WS6 Trans Am, which was hands down one of my favourite cars I’ve ever owned. It was a brute with a posi-track rear end and a manual transmission. What sucked about it, is after owning it for a few years, it started to have electrical problems that were too deep for my wallet to handle, so I sold it. That one really hurt to watch drive away from me with a new owner. 

Fast forward a bit and I decided to change things up and get a WRX. At the time, I was still a part-time musician and needed to have one vehicle that would accommodate a full drum kit in the back, while still being able to double as a sports car when I wanted it to. I bought my 2013 WRX Hatch brand new in December of 2012, and little did I know how much I would grow to love it over time.

I’d always heard about the WRX modification scene, but hadn’t really given it much thought as something I would get into. But, after a couple of years of ownership, a friend’s wife set up a “HyperDrive” event for several of us to participate in as an anniversary event for her husband. NASA Pro Racing was having these events that allow you to bring your car to the track, get a classroom training session, and then a 20-minute on-track session with an instructor. I was hooked after that event!

Over the next few years, I went back to several more of these events, and little by little started modifying the car as I had the money to do so.  I have been working on the car for years to get it to feel and perform the way I think it should during full HPDE (High-Performance Driving Experience) track weekends. It’s taken a long time to get it to where it is, and I have no regrets so far. 

The longer I own it, the more I love it. It’s the perfect car for me, even today, as my days of doing a few band gigs a week have passed me by. These days it’s not a daily driver, so I look forward to any excuse I can make for myself to hop in and go for a ride. I keep a watchful eye on the calendar, looking forward to those HPDE weekends when I can really put it through its paces and benefit from all of the mods that have built up the car to be where it is today.

When I take it out and park it somewhere,  I always look back at it as I walk away. I don't even think about it at this point, but it happens every time. When I’m walking towards it to get back in, I always admire how great the finish looks after 10 years of ownership. And I love the subtle visual elements I’ve added to it, making it unique to me. 

At Cars & Coffee in Richmond, VA, I always enjoy talking to Subaru enthusiasts that take the time to stop by. Some people just give a nod of affirmation, but some stop by and ask a bunch of questions, which is great. The most shocking comment I can remember was, “I’d kill for that car.” That was definitely a new one. I replied back, “Ok, but please don't let that be me.” Seriously though, the car makes me feel like a million bucks when I drive it. All of the upgrades work so well together, I wish Subaru would hire me to spec out a rebuild of this model year as it sits right now. 

As I’ve made updates to the exterior bits of the car, I’ve always tried to keep it tasteful and in line with what I think would look good if it were still in production today. I really liked the little details that were brought in on the S209 model, so I pulled in some of those light red accents to make my cars look pop a bit. Aside from that, I’ve added some functional aero pieces that give me a little more downforce on track and they happen to make the car look really good as well.

The main lighting elements have also been updated to a standard that I feel keeps up with new cars, using plasma and LED headlights, with some red demon eyes for fun. I also installed some new rear lighting assemblies that transformed the stock fitment into a more modern visual style that compliments the car very well.  And lastly, depending on the time of year, I’ve either got some gunmetal wheels wrapped in 4Ss for Summer and track time, or silver ones fitted with some high-performance all-seasons.

What do you think?

Please leave your comments in the comments section at the bottom of the page

Build List

Engine: 

• 2.5l EJ
• Process West TMIC
• Cobb Stage 1 + Package - AP and SF Intake / SF Airbox
• Blouch 440XT - Ceramic Coated / Upgraded Housing
• Cobb Silicon Turbo Inlet
• Mach V - 3 Port Boost Control
• Injector Dynamics Injectors - 1050cc
• AEM Drop-In Fuel Pump Upgrade (340lph)
• IAG Street Series Air / Oil Separator
• Killer B Optimal Oil Pan Package / Pickup Tube / Baffle
• Invidia Catted Downpipe
• Invidia Q300 Exhaust
• Prosport Equal Length Header and Up Pipe
• Denso Iridium Spark Plugs - EJ25 - 1 Step Colder
• Grimmspeed Turbo Heat Shield
• Grimmspeed Alternator Cover / Silver

Exterior:

• APR Carbon Fiber Lip
• HT Autos Side Skirts, Rear Spats
• Perrin Gurney Flap
• Circuit Demon - OEMassives w/ Demon LEDs
• Spyder Rear Tail Light Assemblies

Interior:

• SMY Gauge pods
• Prosport Turbo, AFR,  & Oil Pressure Gauges
• Billetworks Weighted Shift Knob

Wheels:

• Mach V Crucials for Summer
• Mach V Wicked Awesomes for Winter

Suspension and Brakes:

• Whiteline Rear Sway Bars 22mm adj
• Whiteline Front Sway Bars 24mm adj.
• Kartboy Endlink Combo Pack
• Tanabe Strut Tower Brace
• Racecomp Engineering Super Street 1 Coilovers
• Whiteline Rear Lower Control Arms
• Whiteline Power Steering Rack Bushings
• Whiteline Anti-Lift Kit
• Grimmspeed Master Cylinder Brace
• Stainless Steel Brake Lines
• STi Brembo Brake Kit
• DBA Street Series Rotors

Who did the work?

I’ve worked with some of the best shops on the East Coast, IMHO, to get my car to where it is now. Mach V in Sterling, Virginia, has been instrumental in helping me to update the car over the years. They modified and tuned the engine and took care of all of the earlier mods. GNG Performance in Ashland, Virginia, has also done some really great work on the car, helping me to get the STi Brembo kit installed and the Racecomp Engineering SS1 coilovers installed and adjusted. I can’t thank either of those shops enough for their attention to detail and for doing everything just right.

Future Plans

I’m not sure what will be next for the car. At some point, I will likely upgrade the block and also either upgrade the 5-speed internals or get a 6-speed swap done. As it sits now, the power is set right at the sweet spot for the transmission, and the blast plates I installed have been doing a great job keeping everything together.

Advice/Tips

The most important thing about these cars, with the age they’re at now, is the service/ownership history. If you can find a one-owner car with a documented service history, I think that would be the holy grail. And as far as ownership of a WRX goes, I think oil changes and oil levels are the most important things to stay on top of. Also, not lugging the engine plays a big factor in engine longevity. 

Keep out of boost until the oil is up to operating temperature. Not the coolant temp … the oil temp. And don't get into boost while the RPMs are under 3k, as a general rule. If you're accelerating on a hill in 5th or 6th, you may want to downshift to help out your motor. The EJ engine doesn't handle the load well under those conditions. A proper tune and keeping track of knock and DAM numbers are also very important for keeping these motors running and happy for a long time.

Shout Outs

I’d like to thank the CLUB WRX forum and NASIOC for all of the great information over the years. Some of the people on those forums have been so helpful, and the resources those platforms provide for the enthusiast community are invaluable. And a big shoutout to Dan @ Mach V /fastwrx.com and Colin and Kate @ GNG Performance.

I’ve met some really cool people at Cars & Coffee events, as well as on our local RVA Subies Facebook Group. The Subaru community is full of great people that, for the most part, are always helpful and ready to either lend a hand or offer advice to others, either inside or outside of the WRX world.

Dream Car

At the moment, I’d have to say a C8 ZO6. Certainly not as practical as the WRX hatch, but for pure, modern performance, I think that’s the #1 car on my list.

Second up would be the Audi RS6 Avant, and third, the Cadillac CT-S V wagon. It’s been out of production for some time, but to have one of those and send it to Lingengelter Performance for some upgrades, would be an absolute dream.

Please leave your comments in the comments section at the bottom of the page

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