RUITERMAN WRX

In 2012, Pukekohe drifter and owner of E&H Motors, Carl Ruiterman, swapped two wheels for four and proceeded to continue his drifting antics with great success — albeit not for competition. Carl’s V11 WRX hatch made drifting look easy and, as the years went on, Carl tried his hands at bit of grip racing, including Leadfoot. However, for the past few years, while Carl has focused on off-road racing, we have sadly missed this show pony WRX. The good news is: this car is now back on the road, with more power and with a new direction of time attack.

The boys at E&H have developed a stroked 2.1-litre engine, which produces 650Nm of torque from 3600rpm and all the way to redline. Carl tells us they stopped at two bar, which produces 597kW on Gull E85, but there is plenty more in it with the new BorgWarner EFR8374 twin-scroll turbo.

The block itself features HKS pistons, and Carrillo rods join custom E&H-spec camshafts, oversized valves, and extensively ported heads. The WRX has also received extensive oiling modifications, with ported galleries, a ported oil pump, a crossdrilled crankshaft, and a specially designed catch can that uses vacuum to keep oil from storing in the heads and returns it to the custom gated sump quick smart.

A new inlet manifold has also been developed, shifting the trumpet location and moving the traditional throttle body position to ensure even distribution across all four runners. The radiator has been shifted to the rear, with a water sprayer system, side air ducts, and a Davies Craig EWP 150 controlled by the Emtron KV89 ECU.

“This is the single biggest improvement we have made to the handling of this car. Both the balance and the braking have been greatly improved by shifting the radiator,” Carl explains.

The addition of flares has meant that 18x11s with 295s at all corners provide plenty of grip, and Carl is eager to see how brother Hans goes behind the wheel, as Hans is stepping into the driver seat and plans to develop the car with some aero — exciting times ahead.