As I venture futher into motorsports with my 2016 Subaru WRX STI, I try to find modifications that will help improve areas of performance to help reign in this car a little more. Most of my modifications have been centered around improving engine performance and handling characteristics but I decided to tackle braking performance this time. My car is still on stock STI Brembo 4-Piston Calipers with OEM brake pads but I decided to help those out with this APR Brake Cooking Kit for the 2015-2017 WRX STI.The kit replaces the plastic fog light bezels in the front bumper with carbon fiber panels. These special panels retain the stock Fog Light and Turn Signals in the bumper while adding a funnel that channels air through the bumper into a hose that redirects that air to the backing plate/dust guard on the back side of the brake rotors to cool them down while driving. The idea is simple, but the execution is a little tricky. Even with the supplied instructions, things weren't as cut-and-dry as I was expecting.
Fitment of the Carbon Fiber bezels was not perfect but, thanks to three bolts that anchor it in place, they were solid once they were fitted properly. There are still a few minor gaps and areas that I had not expected, but they're not noticeable. Also, the instructions and templates for trimming the bumper cover and crash bar were mostly correct, but additional trimming was needed to get things to fit properly. No instructions were included to explain how the ducting should be routed or where to attach things beyond the Carbon Fiber inlets, so we had to get a little creative. This was especially true for the drivers side as the windshield washer fluid reservoir was in the way. Still, we managed to get around this on our own, though I would've preferred additional instructions to rely on.
Still, once everything was installed securely, things stayed in place and they've been working great so far. No other fitment issues, rubbing, or quality issues have come up and the whole kit seems to be quite robust while still being lightweight thanks to the carbon fiber used for the inlet and outlet construction. I'm quite happy with the end result and can't wait to push this car further!
