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Time to read 13 min
We've all sat back and thought about our lives, the memorable experiences we've had, and the choices we've made that have expanded our lives into the present state. It would be nice to take credit for every great accomplishment, every success, and every victory that has come across the path but if we further examine the details, we realize that we can't say it's all about us. Some journeys start with a push, whether it be from friends, family, or the support of a mentor, someone who has more expertise and made those mistakes we would like to avoid. Over the past year, we have outlined several enthusiasts and their stories, to understand how members of this vast, unique community are born, and come to become such dedicated followers of an iconic brand like Subaru. Keeping stories on the surface, hitting the high points, covering the general info, and not digging beneath all the details, all the inspiration, and all the encouragement, will only expose the minimum and make the tale seem like much of the same. Choosing to scrap the surface only tells the uneducated reader and most laymen what they may have heard before and care about on a very superficial level. This comes through as a bunch of information people outside the community feel they already know and understand, which is simply person grows up loving cars, person becomes driver and buys car, driver grows into a serious enthusiast, driver begins to modify car, car becomes more than just transportation, then driver adopts lifestyle and become part of a larger culture and community. Even though many of these points apply to every enthusiast's journey, that does not mean each story is the same. The beauty of being an enthusiast is the pure individuality, the unique creativity, and the first lightning bolt of inspiration that hits the soul so differently from person to person.
Over the past few months we have been discussing a few specific enthusiast stories we would like to share with the community. A few members of the Subimods team threw one name on the table that seemed to be destined for the next slot, most importantly, to document his legacy, share his dedication for modifying, to hopefully build an inspiring tunnel for others to follow. Sprouting out of the most Western region of Massachusetts, Joe Altiere came into this world surrounded by the beautiful countryside and historic majesty of the Berkshires out in the mountain resort town of Lee which is also famously known for the high quality marble that has come from its quarries since the mid 1800s and the prominent building it has outfitted throughout U.S. history. While growing up at the gateway to the Berkshires, Altiere spent many hours as a child focused on his immediate, intimate surroundings and influence from family, not the mountain ranges and the history of marble excavation. He remembers that those days of youth before high school were building blocks for his passion for cars and everything attached to that culture. "I felt very lucky growing up with my dad and step dad both being car guys.", Altiere said with gratitude. "I grew up around mostly American muscle cars like Chevy Camaros, Pontiac GTO’s, Trans-Am’s, Firebirds, and Chevy Corvettes." Joe's interest didn't tie him to only a love for pavement speed since he developed a wide view in pushing performance early on. "As I got older, due to my being surrounded by trails and woods, I first navigated to off-roading vehicles and building fun capable rigs for hitting the trails.", he explained. Altiere's launching point into the world was evident as he stepped into manhood as education would guide. "I spent a few years in Connecticut to attend High School", he remembered, "then, I spent the following 6 years in Colorado attending college."
When the first leg of his journey began, it seems ironic that he would continue spending all of his formative time surrounded by mountains. This young, potential-filled future enthusiast would spend his feeding time ingesting action filled, automotive flavored video games and watching motorsports not realizing that this spirit would soon embed itself deep in his heart before he could question "why?". Swimming through his college years allowed Joe to blend a combination of great memories, positive exposure, and pure inspiration by association to eventually create the needed spark to pave the way and solidify his journey and enthusiast future. "As I continued my automotive journey I expanded my love of vehicles to also include performance cars.", Joe confirmed his memories as his spirit steadily amplified while he was brought back to the beginning. "My first performance car would have had to be my 2006 EVO IX MR I purchased when I graduated college," he explained with pride. "Along with some friends we did all the work on the car ourselves as they were lucky enough to have access to tools and a garage while I lived in an apartment at the time.", he confirmed. It's just pure logic and common sense, as many of us know, that not one of us is born with all knowledge, but we realize that half the battle of learning and being successful as a modifier is the amount of passion applied behind the effort that eventually brings victory and rewards. "I would not say I am an automotive expert, however I have always enjoyed researching and learning about all brands/styles of all vehicles.", Altiere confirmed. "There is nothing better than the sight, sounds and smell of a car such as hearing the cold start of a modified vehicle, smells of a muscle car or especially the spooling of a turbo.", Joe said as he clearly confirms how permanent his passion burns.
There have been many conversations between Subaru lovers in our community that begin with or include an obvious statement something like, "So, how did you first get into Subarus?", or, "What was your first Subie?". This is almost asking someone to show their membership card, perform the secret handshake, or whip out the keys to the kingdom. The answer is not really a right of passage, (maybe for some of the most obsessed) but it is a very important launching point for those who have invested plenty of blood, sweat, and tears to reach their personal goals and live their dreams. There is not one identical experience, since all are based on something personal and inspirational leading to this point. Joe's motivation is similar but his desires were unique based on the early exposure and influence he spoke about from those days in the Berkshires. "I grew up fascinated with watching rally racing, particularly Colin McRae driving for Subaru," he remembered. "Spending many hours playing the Colin McRae Rally video game, I developed a love for the look, sound and performance of a Subaru." This joy cultivated within Joe's heart for years constantly reminding him that someday he will be behind the wheel of reality and the platform he admired so deeply as a boy. Grown to become a family man and father himself, the thoughts still lingered, but finally brought his dream to fruition, but not without some heavy emotional measurement. "My decision to purchase my first Subaru came with mixed emotions as I was put into the position to purchase a car after losing my 2015 built Camaro 1LE in a total loss.", he explained. "My son, who was 9 at the time, and I constantly talked about an STI being a potential next car. So we purchased a new 2021 Rally Blue STI Limited as my first Subaru.", Joe said proudly. "I really wanted a white one but as I just came from a white car and also Rally Blue being the iconic color for Subaru, we decided to go with the blue." The next piece of the puzzle was put into place. Together, the Altiere family chose an STI as their first Subaru.
Recently during a conversation with an experienced enthusiast, they said with boldness and pride that they had owned and modified over 21 Subarus in their lifetime. Hearing this would undoubtedly prompt even the most uninterested observer to surmise that this individual is not only dedicated to the brand, but also passionate about the love they had discovered years earlier when buying, owning and driving their first Subaru vehicle. It must be said that the majority of Subaru owners have been bitten by a unique and highly inspirational bug that pulls them in emotionally forever. Once his decision was clear and the dedication journey had been launched, Altiere jumped on the boat and went for the long sail leading him and his family to something new just a few years into the future. By December 2024, Joe and family had chosen another vehicle and made serious plans about its future. Purchasing their 2019 Subaru STi in a private sale in Brattleboro, Vermont began the next phase in his journey and brought him to a new level of appreciation for the modification process and the investment behind every component involved in the transformation. "The car was bone stock when I purchased it so with the help of close friends, we installed all the parts ourselves," Joe explained with gratitude. "Getting together with friends in a garage talking shop and working on some type of project is exactly why I love modifying and owning my cars.", he added. "I feel extremely lucky to be surrounded with amazing people that not only want to work on projects together but more importantly take the time to include my son in the process." At this point on his path, Joe could only think about success and avoiding failure, so his choices, the support at hand, and practices he learned from previous experience paid off ten fold with little to no issues. "We were very fortunate to not run into major issues," Joe said. "Having amazing friends that have been working on their own Subarus for around 20 years made the planning and installation process much more seamless than I could have expected."
Without spending a large amount of words and descriptive language to document every single component, update, and aftermarket part within Altiere's modification project, we can confirm that it is both an extensive and impressive list for even the most experienced enthusiast to behold. For everyone who is hungry for the juicy details, we have included a breakdown of the items included in his project, just to accurately lay out the history and inspire those determined modifiers following in his footsteps. Our conversations have confirmed that Altiere's raw motives and desires as an enthusiast, mechanic, and car lover are somewhat the same as many individuals we meet, but the unique string that we have mentioned is always the component that makes the inspiration come to life more brightly. His involvement with family, his gratitude towards friends and colleagues that have contributed to the success of his journey and the overall positive rewards he has taken along the way is the truth that fuels his motivation to keep going and be victorious during the steps he takes with his Subaru in the present and the future. "My goal in building my Subaru was to have a car that I could work on with my son that we would be proud to take to a show as well as the track.", he said. "My vision was to have a great looking car with very usable power and cornering ability to tackle the winding back roads of New England." Joe proves to be a great example of membership within this larger, passionate community of Subaru owners. The exhibition of family values and the desire to educate those who come after are seen not only by groups dedicated to other brands, but also to the average car owner on the street or at events. "My car journey has always been a family activity.", Joe says with gratitude. "All purchases and modification decisions are made as a family. We spend hours together researching and discussing our vision for each vehicle, detailing them together and even working on them together.", he adds. "Most importantly we make sure to enjoy them together as a family."
As you will realize after reading this list, Joe Altiere accomplished a lot during his modification journey with his 2019 Subaru STI. Review all of the quality brands and products he chose for this project and others available within the Subimods online catalog:
Finally, when we asked Altiere about future plans regarding his modified vehicle, he replied simply as we hoped, with a bright outlook for improved performance, time on the track, and more additions to bring the vehicle to the next level of head-turning potential and the respect it deserves. Subtly dreaming about the future, Joe said, "Future plans for my car would include mostly aesthetic mods. I would like to work on smaller details within the engine bay making it more car show worthy." He continued to predict the future by saying, "Along with that some smaller details such as a new steering wheel and interior monitoring gauges, otherwise I feel the car is exactly where I want it to be at this time." The Subimods team is grateful for the relationship that has been built with Altiere, his family, and his prized Subaru STI. It is rewarding to support and guide a customer along the road of their modification dreams and watch the vision grow and bloom into more than another uninspired, predictable modification. "Overall, I am very happy I chose to get my STI and that I am lucky enough to live very close to Subimods.", Joe said with pride. "I got to learn of the company back in 2021 when I purchased my first Subaru car and was looking to modify it at that time. They were always extremely helpful in providing input and guidance on my modification journey." Keeping his family and what is close to his heart at the front of his mind, Altiere added, "Physically going to the Subimods showroom as well as the Tuesday night meets got my son and I hooked on Subaru’s. My son even went home and rebuilt the white Subimods shop car in the Forza Horizons video game. As fate would have it a short few years later we now own that 2019 White Subaru STI." As Joe's story definitely proves, "The Joy is in The Journey". We hope this story inspires others to do the same.
It is the primary goal at Subimods to create a powerful channel between the growing community of inspired enthusiasts and the productive marketplace who provides a plethora of quality solutions which assist in bringing victory to their lives through the performance of their cars.
The Subimods catalog allows you to take a more detailed look at many of the quality products included on Joe’s modification list. Please reach out to our team with your interest or to ask specific questions about specific parts mentioned in this article. We would be very interested in your thoughts regarding Joe Altiere’s modification project.
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Our team works hard to support these passionate individuals and provide them with well-informed direction without losing sight of true car culture and its spirit. Subimods allows all who are interested in taking the life-changing modification journey to explore the vast selection of products in our online catalog and take a more detailed look at things that have yet to sink into their imagination.
For additional information regarding aftermarket parts for your Subaru, please visit our website and explore the section dedicated to your year, model and platform.
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Bryon Turcotte - Managing Editor/Writer
Turcotte has worked as a writer, journalist, and digital content developer for 30 years. He began his career in music journalism in 1995 then worked for several years as both a staff writer, managing editor, and a freelancer for both regional and national music publications. Over the next three decades his contributions extended beyond the music industry as he served within the realms of higher education, science and technology, manufacturing, and finance. He has been serving as a content developer and writer on the Subimods Marketing team since August 2023.
