The Zen of Using Used Parts

Bolt This On
The only involved part of installing a longneck intake that locates the filter in the wheel well (always choose the cotton K&N-style elements, as foam does not protect as well, and will deteriorate when exposed to certain underhood chemicals) is disassembling the wheel well itself. The rest is nut and bolt stuff, really simple. If you crank the front wheels hard over to the left, the front of the passenger-side wheel well becomes easier to get at. In the case of the WRX, though, the plastic fender liner is essentially a one-piece unit that stretches from front to back. Adding to the difficulty rating are about 15 fasteners that must come out to release the well liner enough to install the APS intake's filter element once the body of the unit is in place, so we yanked out the Ro-Ja forged 17-inch and Dunlop SportMaxx tire for access.


Originally equipped with a few brackets that suspend the APS intake in the engine bay, Seller Guy had misplaced a few bolts and a bracket. We hand-fabbed a slick replacement support out of some mild steel found in a box of old door hardware left over from our last home remodel, and hid the bracket in the wheel well so it didn't detract from the underhood appeal of the crinkle-red finish. The missing bolts were easier to recreate, and we scored two matching metric pieces in one of the ubiquitous drawers o' bolts that inhabit the parts bins living on our Frankenshelving. They were a little long, so we threaded nuts onto them to cinch the bolts down against the intake housing. This also left room on the bolt bodies to mount something in the future.


Prior to installation, we spent a few minutes with a cotton towel removing grease and dirt from the APS intake. You'll want to test any cleaner on a relatively unexposed area of the cleaning subject, even when using innocuous agents, so you don't blow the lovin' finish that adds so much to the part's G-Factor (that's G for Groovy). But for a few scratches (it is used, after all), the intake shined up nicely.


We had to slip the intake into place from the engine bay (not the wheel well, as other kits specify), but that was only a matter of removing the OEM air box, attached sundries and relocating a few hoses. One of the supplied APS brackets was designed with a receiver for a factory Subaru keeper that suspends these hoses out of harm's way. The OEM mass-air meter fit the APS snorkel so cleanly you'd suspect that a professional designed the intake. Even missing a bit or two, the APS intake went in easily, intuitively. Could probably have done it with one hand. Used parts rock. Now to install the 100-hp worth of other used parts hiding in the garage. Okay, some of 'em are new.