Grocery Getter
“Bags Are For Groceries” read a sticker on a 2.5RS I saw at a meet once. That particular Impreza was lowered on coilovers, which for the uninitiated means he was static. And while the debate of bags versus coilovers will most certainly rage on for a while, the sticker’s sentiment isn’t entirely true. Bags aren’t just for groceries, they’re for grocery getters too. Grocery getters like Jenny Nielson’s Forester XT.
This isn’t her first foray into the wonderful world of Subaru modification. She used to own a hawkeye WRX, which wasn’t too shabby. And it wasn’t her boyfriend’s car, which is often the case whenever a woman gets out of any nice or modified vehicle. The hawkeye was hers, as is the Fozzy. And this thing has come a ways.
As we’ve all seen, Foresters are tall. Tall enough to be classified as SUVs for insurance and marketing purposes. This is a problem for a gal who has a license plate surround that says “Stance Will Make Him Dance”. So it had to go lower. A lot lower. First came some Raceland coilovers, which for the purposes of dumping something are pretty fantastic; however, those were not to last. Nor were the wheels. First were a set of XXRs. Then those gave way to a set of Rotiform Nues. Finally she has settled on a set of STRs. The current setup measures 18×10 with a +25 offset all around. That’s a bit of wheel.
Back to the suspension. And the whole “bag” thing. If you haven’t figured it out yet, she bagged her once static Forester. Airlift was contacted and suddenly eventually the car was sporting Autopilot V2 digital bags. Stance achieved, right? Technically yes, but she wasn’t quite done.
Before the Rotiforms, and after the Racelands she got to work adding a little bit of power and noise to the car. Breathing is helped by an SPT intake, an Invidia catless downpipe, and a Blitz Nur Spec exhaust. A Go Fast Bits blow off valve relieves excess intake pressure, while making fun noises. And because it’s a turbocharged Subaru it’s totally got an Accessport and a Stage 2 tune. It’s just a rule of life.
The Regal Blue Pearl (a factory color by the way) looks lovely on any Forester. It looks more lovely one this one because she’s spruced it up a bit. There’s the factory spoiler which wasn’t there when she picked up the car. There are the 04/05 taillights which have been fitted. And most noticeably, there is the 2008 sport bumper and lip on the front of the car which help separate it from the pack.
Then there are the little details, like the headlights. The housings have been painted black, and the amber reflectors have been removed. The lights themselves were replaced with 8000K HIDs, and all of the windows are sporting 20% tint.
Also, there’s a child’s seat in the back seat. This is for two reasons: #1 she has a kid (it would be weird if she didn’t have a kid, but still had the seat) and #2 this is her daily driver. She takes it to all the fun places! The gym, work, the gym, and finally the store. Where she gets groceries, and puts them in her grocery getter.
Words and photos by Michael Chandler
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