A few days delay, but here are a few photos of the STi rear trailing arms I managed to grab. They're not the best quality pics but I did what I could at the time with WD40 and dirty on my hands.
In all honesty, I have definitely noticed a difference. The arms themselves seem to be made out of the same material as the OEM ones and are identical in shape. However I did notice that the bushes on the STi ones look that much better which is where all the difference is coming from. They just look much more heavy duty... The rear deals with bumps, humps, holes, rocks, asphalt, etc, from the roads significantly better than before. You don't hear and/or feel as much of a 'thump' as you used to when driving over a speed hump for example.
I think this was definitely money well spent.
Things I have bought so far in order to get my car that much closer to being mechanically full-proof:
- LH front wheel bearing from a MY07 3.0R SpecB wagon (88,000 km old) - $72 including postage
- Whiteline lower control arm bushes - $125.90 including postage
- Full Bilstein suspension in near new condition (only 600 km old) - $547 including postage
I'm just waiting on the suspension to come in (Monday or Tuesday next week) and I'll be making my way to ICHIban to get it all installed. I will then take advantage of the $110 price that Pedders charge for a full front and rear wheel alignment, which includes adjustments to camber, toe and caster where applicable. After that the wagon should be pretty sweet for some time. It'll just need new shoes which is what I'll save up for next.
Absolutely cheering on how things are coming along and I appreciate all the help I've received with regards to getting parts and help. Thanks so far for that guys.