Roads and especially parking spots in Japan are very narrow. Consider that half the cars are Kei class, Japan’s sub compact sized car which is barely wider than a smart car., and the STi feels wide and large. Because of this door dings and dents are common on cars yet Japanese manufacturers love the clean bare doors with no protection as it gives the mirrored impression of a larger car. There was no way I was going to let my new STi get dinged on the doors so I found out that North America Subaru offered body side mouldings as an option for the STi, an option that Japan surprisingly does not have. So when my brother visited from Toronto last week I asked him to bring a set for my STi which he picked up at Willowdale Subaru at Yonge and Finch.
The install is quite straight forward and only took about 10 minutes. You just have to make sure the doors are very clean and the kit actually includes alcohol wipes too “sterilize” your doors before install. For aligning the mouldings, the kit includes templates for front and back doors that are attached to the doors. You then simply line up the mouldings with the template and attach to the car.
I originally had my concerns that the side mouldings would ruin the look of the car but after installing them, I actually like the lines they create with the side STi emblem. Without the side mouldings, the doors look so vulnerable and now with the 1cm+ thick cushion the mouldings provide, I feel a little more secure parking in tight spaces (though I usually try and stay clear of heavily congested areas). A quick and easy 10 minute install!
Excited to see how your car will look after you finish setting it up (if you ever stop accessorizing :) )!
side moudlings rock! i personally cant live without em.
nice to see your ride slowly transforming. looking forward
to seeing the project completed
seems we’ve hit a drought with golf club reviews?? I thought this was the time of year when all the new stuff was coming out and we would have so much interesting news to digest.
Thanks for comment. Yes certainly there are many new products we are waiting for and many that we will review. We are still waiting on lots of new demos and announcements down the road. Even we sometimes need to refresh ourselves and take a break from golf all the time. (^_^)
Gocchin san – thank you. I live in Canada and only find golf interesting 365 days a year. I just started reading all the Japan websites because I do plan to visit soon and will be buying some new equipment.
No problem, as you probably read I am from Canada as well.
I just posted a review by the way… plus will be another later this weekend. (^_^)
Well done. I find these so interesting. Just started reading your website this past couple of weeks. My friends really like EPON and I think they will be at the top of my list. No doubt on-off is good too as well as many others.