Factory Five 818R #85
66 Days: Building SEMA’s Rawest Mid-Engine Subaru
In late 2014, AEM Intakes pitched a challenge that sounded nearly impossible: take a bare, mid-engine Factory Five 818R tubular steel chassis, transplant a donor WRX powertrain into the middle of it, and build a world-class show car for the SEMA Show in Las Vegas. The deadline was a brutal 66 days.
Working around the clock under Six Star Cars in Greeley, Colorado, Keith Pizio and his team turned the garage into a relentless operational hub. Near the end of the sprint, sleep was optional, but the clock was sacred—Keith made a point to ensure he was actively wrenching on the chassis every single day at 8:18 AM and 8:18 PM.
When the curtain raised at the Las Vegas Convention Center, the yellow-and-black 818R sat dead center in the main AEM Intakes booth in the Performance Hall.
Most SEMA builds are hard-parkers destined to live out their lives on carpeted display floors, carefully wiped down with detail spray before heading straight into storage. 818R #85 was never going to be one of those.
The second the SEMA lights went down, the car went straight to work on asphalt, serving as a raw, unfiltered R&D bed for track testing, custom fabrication, and high-downforce aerodynamic development.
Fast forward through a decade of continuous evolution out of Ruckus Garage, and 818R #85 has transformed into a terrifyingly efficient, 2,200-pound mid-engine weapon. Stripped of driver aids, power steering, and fluff, the lightweight chassis relies on pure mechanical grip and raw driver input to carve through corners.
Sitting right behind the driver's head is a turbocharged Subaru EJ257 flat-four, breathing through a Garrett GTX3071R turbocharger to push a relentless 420 horsepower to the rear wheels. Managing the force is a 16-bit Subaru ECU running via a COBB Accessport V3, wired into a custom iWire chassis and engine harness pinned for 02–03 WRX architecture.
Keeping a mid-ship turbo boxer cool under heavy track loads is no small task. Thermal management relies on a high-flow Davies Craig EWP115 electric water pump governed by a dedicated PWM controller and display, backed by OEM Subaru cooling fans, an AEM 400LPH fuel pump, and a Grimmspeed 3-port boost control solenoid keeping the power band predictable.
Today, 818R #85 serves as a rolling laboratory for active technical partners like Zebulon MSC, Vermont Sports Car, Kartboy, Eaton Motorsports, and ZF Design; alongside foundational support from industry legends like Garrett, Wilwood, iWire, and COBB.
Whether it's ripping up the pavement at Wicked Big Meet in Connecticut, packing the paddock at Boxerfest in Pennsylvania, or chasing split-seconds in Get Fast Events trackcross and Mid-Atlantic hillclimbs, 818R #85 is built for one thing: running hard, and proving what happens when real engineering meets pure track passion.
Tech Specs
Vehicle & Chassis
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Platform: 818R Tubular Steel Chassis
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Layout: Mid-Engine, Rear-Wheel Drive
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Race Weight: 2,200 lbs (with driver)
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Aerodynamics: Zebulon MSC "Full Monty" High-Downforce Package
Powertrain & Output
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Engine: Turbocharged Subaru EJ257 Flat-Four
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Turbocharger: Garrett GTX3071R
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Power: 420 WHP
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Boost Control: Grimmspeed 3-Port EBCS
Electronics & Management
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ECU: Factory 16-Bit Subaru ECU + COBB Accessport V3
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Harness: Custom iWire Chassis & Engine Harness (pinned for 02–03 WRX ECU)
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Sensors: AEM MAP, AEM IAT, COBB Ethanol Content Sensor
Cooling & Fueling
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Water Pump: Davies Craig EWP115 w/ Standalone PWM Controller & Display
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Fuel Pump: AEM 400LPH Fuel Pump
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Cooling Fans: OEM Subaru Coolant Fans
Technical Partners & Sponsors
Active Technical Partners
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Zebulon MSC — Custom Aerodynamic Design & High-Downforce Composite Package
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Vermont Sports Car — Heavy-Duty Engine & Transmission Mounts
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Kartboy — Continuous Drivetrain Support & Custom Shift Knob
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Eaton Motorsports — Trackside Support, Fluids, Motul Engine Oil & Brembo Brake Fluid
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ZF Design — Custom-Built Performance Gearbox
Foundational & Legacy Partners
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AEM Intakes — Cold Air Intake System, Custom Wrap & SEMA Booth Livery
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AEM Electronics — Digital Gauges & Engine Sensors
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COBB Tuning — Accessport V3 Engine Management
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iWire — Custom Wiring Harness Architecture
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Garrett Turbo — GTX3071R T3 0.63 A/R Turbocharger
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Turbosmart — RacePort 50mm BOV & CompGate 40 External Wastegate
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Davies Craig — EWP115 Electric Water Pump & PWM Controller
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Wilwood Brakes — Front & Rear Big Brake Kit
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Zero Decibel Motorsport — Transmission Block-Off Plate, Custom Filler Neck & Titanium Dipstick
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Grimmspeed — Ported & Coated Intake Manifold, Ported & Coated Exhaust Manifolds, Crossover Pipe & Uppipe
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Falken Tire — SEMA Debut Motorsports Rubber
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Competition Clutch — Performance Clutch, Pressure Plate & Lightweight Flywheel
Subaru WRX Powered Factory Five 818R Kit Car to Be AEM Intakes SEMA Show Booth Car