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Top 5 Mods for the Subaru WRX (2015–2019)

John's top 5 WRX mods from his 2015 car: Cobb Accessport, Subispeed TR taillights, an Android head unit, wheels and suspension, and the Perrin shift stopper.

Yes — you can install This kit on the John says these mods work for the WRX, STI and Forester with a 6 min DIY job. John's top 5 WRX mods from his 2015 car: Cobb Accessport, Subispeed TR taillights, an Android head unit, wheels and suspension, and the Perrin shift stopper.

Overview

At the end of 2016 John picked the five WRX mods he liked most, filmed at a park on his 2015 WRX. Number 5 is the Cobb Accessport, the gateway mod that lets you tune once you add a J-pipe or intake. Number 4 is Subispeed TR taillights in red chrome with a clear lens. Number 3 is an Android head unit, the biggest tech upgrade you can make. Number 2 is wheels and suspension (Enkei NT03s). Number 1 is the Perrin shift stopper, which takes the slop out of the shifter. His full mod list and links are in the description.

Vehicle & fitment

Product
Top 5 mods: Cobb Accessport, Subispeed TR taillights, Android head unit, Enkei NT03 wheels and suspension, Perrin shift stopper
Shown on
2015 Subaru WRX (John's car, base model)

Always confirm fitment for your exact year and trim with the seller before buying.

Tools & parts

Tools

    Parts

    • Cobb Accessport
    • Subispeed TR taillights (red chrome, clear lens)
    • Android head unit (Dasaita)
    • Enkei NT03 wheels and suspension
    • Perrin shift stopper

    Video chapters

    Step by step

    1. 1

      5. Cobb Accessport▶ 0:18

      One of the first performance mods for a Subaru. It improves drivability and, once you add a J-pipe or intake, lets you tune for more power and torque. It also lets you monitor what's going on in the car. John calls it a great gateway mod and good bang for the buck (he's not sure about the claimed MPG gains).

    2. 2

      4. Subispeed TR taillights▶ 1:20

      They change the look a lot compared with the stock lights, which John calls a bit boring. He chose red chrome with a clear lens, and likes how the small LED diodes look like jewelry, especially with the turn signals at night.

    3. 3

      3. Android head unit▶ 2:22

      The biggest tech upgrade you can buy. Navigation, radio and Bluetooth like stock, but a huge, modern screen compared with the base 2015 radio. John says music and navigation matter, and the look alone makes it worth it.

    4. 4

      2. Wheels and suspension▶ 3:17

      Rims are the centerpiece of a car. The stock wheels looked chunky to John; the Enkei NT03s are a lightweight, rigid racing wheel, so they improve both looks and performance.

    5. 5

      1. Perrin shift stopper▶ 3:56

      It sits under the shift boot and completely changed how the transmission feels. Stock, the shifter felt loose and sluggish (coming from an S2000, the slop surprised him); now first and second gear feel much more stable, and you can tighten it further if you want.

      Tip: John shows the before-and-after play in first gear in the video.

    FAQ

    What vehicle does this install fit?

    It is shown for the John says these mods work for the WRX, STI and Forester. The Android head unit link is a Dasaita unit; check the listing for your model year Always confirm your exact year, trim and factory audio with the seller.

    How long does the install take?

    John's full video is 6 min. Plan on that much time for a careful DIY install, plus extra if you are new to dash work.

    What tools do I need?

    Basic hand tools and a plastic trim tool cover most of this install; see the Tools section for the full list.

    Does it support wireless CarPlay or Android Auto?

    Check the product listing for wired vs wireless CarPlay / Android Auto before you buy; John shows what worked in the video.

    Where do I get the parts?

    Use the buy links on this page for the unit and any harnesses John used. Some links are affiliate links.

    Is this beginner-friendly?

    The guide breaks the job into 5 steps with timestamps into the video. If you can remove trim panels carefully, you can follow along.

    John's Subaru WRX

    More photos →
    Which taillight is your favorite? Digging through some photos, totally forgot I had this many taillights in one periodMeanThe time I tinted my taillights. Clear on the left, tinted in the right. I didn't like the look so I took it off the same day

    Photos from @ngooyen on Instagram. Follow for more.

    Full transcript

    Show the full transcript (56 lines) +

    0:00All right, I'm at the park right now. So I have some kids in the background having some fun

    0:04But change the scenery. Hopefully you guys like it. I'm gonna go over the top five mods that anyone can do through the car

    0:12Subaru specific, but

    0:15Your car maybe you'll like it too

    0:17There you go

    0:18All right, so with this one everyone knows what it is. It's the Cobb Accessport

    0:30If you know if you have a Subaru, this is one of your first go-to mods when it comes to performance

    0:36It increases drivability. He says it increases MPG. I don't know about that

    0:40But let me just tell you what I think of it. It's a great gateway kind of drug

    0:44You

    1:01Rev hang with our cars so

    1:03Get this and with this thing if you decide to get a J pipe intake

    1:09Etc. You'll be able to tune with this bad boy and get more performance

    1:13It's a really good bang fore your buck when it comes

    1:16Horsepower and torque and just overall monitoring so you know what the hell is going on in your car

    1:20These aftermarket tail lights look real nice

    1:29It's the Subispeed TR tail lights

    1:31Changes the look of the car a lot

    1:34The stock tail lights they look okay, but they look very camry-like or just kind of boring in general with these tail lights you can

    1:43a lot of dimensions and when they light up at night and

    1:49The turn signals and all that jazz it looks badass

    1:53I have the red chrome with the clear lens which is the one I wanted of course. That's why I ordered it

    2:00It's just looks so good, and you can see the little a little LED dial

    2:05Diode on people don't like that look, but I think that they look like a little diamonds and a little bit kind of jewelry

    2:10So I think would it look better with a diffuser maybe but those little LEDs

    2:16Really do like it look like jewelry and I like jewelry. So there's that

    2:22all right the next mod is of course the

    2:28Biggest tech upgrade you can buy for your car. It's gonna be the head unit whether you go go for a pyre near next

    2:33This is the Android head unit great values performance. Really opens up what you what you

    2:39You can do in a car

    2:40With this I have navigation of course you have radio bluetooth like your original stock

    2:45But just look how it looked compared to the base model 2015

    2:50the screen's huge it looks super modern and when you're bringing your passengers hop in and they're like

    2:55What it can do this it can do that

    2:57Your car is gonna basically be like a Tesla with all the features you can have in this thing even better

    3:03So it's a great mod and something I highly recommend because when you're in a car music

    3:08Music's important navigation is important and just overall aesthetically it's so pleasing highly recommended

    3:17Something that can completely change the look in my opinion the centerpiece of a car is their rims

    3:24You get whatever rim you like here is the NT03s and

    3:29yeah, it's kid screaming, but they look good and

    3:35Just change the look of the car completely the stockers

    3:39Definitely didn't look very performance see look pretty chunky to me with these wheels you have

    3:45great

    3:46aesthetics and performance because the Enkei NT03s is a racing wheel, so it's light weight and

    3:52very, very

    3:56You know what they call it rigid under the shift boot there's something called the Perrin shift stopper

    4:06It completely changed the way I felt about the transmission

    4:10It used to be very sluggish in my opinion what people would say I guess it would be very loose

    4:16When you're shifting the first

    4:18It just feels so much better

    4:20And as you can see there is very little play you can tighten even more if you want

    4:25That's the beauty of the shift stopper, but I have like this so you can just kind of throw it in

    4:30Before it used to be like this. So this is without the shift stop. Are you can you see that slop?

    4:35First gear that that's coming from an s 2000 to the WRX. I'm just like what the hell

    4:41This is in first gear. This is not in neutral. So now in first gear feels a lot more stable

    4:47Same with second

    Machine-transcribed from the full-length video and lightly cleaned (product names fixed). Watch the video for exact wording.

    Next step

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