Often times you’ll have people buy a vehicle with no intentions of modifying it in anyway. Your mind says to leave it stock, but then you dip your toes into the off-road world and it suddenly becomes a snowball effect of modifications. This was the case for Anthony McClinton and his Subaru WRX. He purchased the car in 2014 and never planned on lifting the car. Fast forward to 2016 Anthony found himself driving out to a trailhead in the Superstition Mountains in Arizona on a road that was “suitable for all vehicles.” That wasn’t the case and he found it to be technical from a stock WRX standpoint. Anthony says, “I wound up scraping quite a lot of the bottom of the car and after that trip I decided that I needed to do something.” Anthony considered getting a truck, but he couldn’t get himself to sell the WRX. That’s when the idea of lifting his car came into play.
Anthony began his research and copped himself some Primitive Racing lift spacers and King Raised Springs on Koni Yellow Shocks. With suspension taken care of he wanted more aggressive rubber for the car and with good tires comes really good wheels. Anthony opted for our Method Race Wheels 501 VT-Spec. He thought if it was good enough for Subaru Motorsports USA’s cars it would surely do this trick for him. The setup on the WRX had him realizing how much fun the dirt roads are and he even ventured into some local RallyX events. He was happy with the car, but in true enthusiast fashion he soon wanted more. Enter Overland Expo 2018.
It was at the Overland Expo where Anthony got the overland bug. Fascinated by the adventure builds, complete with built-in kitchens and storage solutions he wanted to do the same for his WRX. With a stroke of luck Anthony won a day of rally school at DirtFish and instead of flying up he made it into a road trip. In went a rooftop tent, custom full trail kitchen, storage options and an electric cooler. The trail kitchen is actually Anthony’s favorite part of the build. He says, “It’s one of those things that I am extremely proud of as I designed and built it all myself using tools I had in my garage. I haven’t seen anyone else do something to this degree in a WRX. It was a challenge to design since there isn’t much room in the back for the WRX, but I also wanted something that could house a cooler have a cooking area and storage for all the cooking stuff. The best part is that the reaer seats are still functional as seats!” Anthony drove his WRX from Flagstaff to Canada and back over the course of two weeks.
Anthony says, “The goal of my build was to blend aspects of a rally car and overland rig into one. I wanted something that would be fun to drive off road, but also something that I could go camping in. Part of me just wanted to show everyone that it was possible to do just that in a WRX, which is probably the worst platform to start off with for an overland build. I see a lot of trucks being outfitted and even some of the other Subaru models for overland duty, but I didn’t want to do something that everyone else already had. I wanted to build a unique car that no one else had while still keeping it pretty much a WRX. I didn’t want to hack into the body panels at all or do modifications that I couldn’t easily undo.”
As you can imagine, Anthony still has a lot of plans for his WRX. As far as trips go he’s hoping to make his way out to the Pacific Northwest again later this year, if not, next year for sure. He’s even looking to make his way out to Utah and New Mexico for some camping and mountain biking.
Anthony is rolling on Method Race Wheels 501 VT-Spec Rally Series wheels. You can find out more info on the wheel below.
- 15x7 et15 wheel developed for Factory Subaru Rally Team
- Solid A356 aluminum with T6 heat treatment construction
- Open 10 spoke design with debossed METHOD logo
- Stainless steel lug hold inserts for increased durability in race environments
- Strong 2100 lbs. load ratings
- VT-Spec wheels will not clear the OE Subaru STI brakes
- Wheel will clear: Subaru WRX 4-pot (up to 2014), AP Racing CP6720 calipers, and most brake packages with rotors up to 300mm in diameter
Owner: Anthony McClinton / @CrosstrekWRX
Wheels: Method Race Wheels MR501 VT Spec 15x7
Tires: Yokohama Geolander AT GO15 205/70R15
Engine: EJ255, 2.5L Turbocharged Boxer 4 Cylinder, 265hp/244ftlbs
Transmission: 5 Speed Manual, AWD Weight: 3387lbs (~3600lbs w/ tent and trail kitchen)
Suspension: Koni Yellow Adjustable Shocks, King Raised Springs, Primitive Racing 1.25” Lift Spacers
Brakes: Subaru 4/2 Pot Calipers, DBA Series 4000 Rotors, Hawk HPS Pads
Protection: Primitive Racing 3/16” Aluminum Skid Plate
Accessories: Rigid Armor Custom Fold-Down Tire Carrier; MeLe Design Firm 600 Series Battery Box with ODYSSEY PC680 Battery, MeLe Design Firm Custom Overland Battery Box with Renogy 100AH Lithium Battery and DC-DC charger; Yakima 56” Round Bars; Tepui LoPro 2; Hella ValueFit 7” LED lights (2x Driving beam, 2x Spot Beam), Diode Dynamics SS3 Pro Amber Fog Lights
Trail Kitchen: Custom Designed and built by Anthony
