smerth54

as titled above thinking of getting one 4 a bit of fun while i fix up my cabio but i have not idea what im looking for

basically ive about 4000grand whats the best model and what should i be looking for and keeping away from thanks rich

smerth54

sum one on hear must know abit about scoobys?

dp1958

ill tell you what i know about them, two of my buddys have them and both have totaly fucked engines, they were not cheap cars btw..ill say no more...

cozmeister

iTrader: (1)

I wanted one, but Mike Rainbird put me off - see if he notices this thread.

smerth54

y did he put you off wad did he say?

RS Grant

iTrader: (1)

Steer clear of the Jap Import models unless they've got an aftermarket ECU that has been properly mapped for UK fuel and any mods that they've had done... its very easy for people to say "yea I run it on Octane Booster with every tank" when trying to sell these cars that are designed to run on 101RON fuel as standard.

If I was wanting a 4k Impreza... then I'd wait and try to find a low mileage, mega-history, standard 1999-2000 UK Turbo, throwing on a full exhaust, couple of small suspension bits then getting it mapped and enjoying around 270/270 making it a really quick, reliable cross country car.


Cheers,
Grant

JohnnyB

totaly agree with grant, stay away from imports.

unless you import it you self and had the ecu mods your self.

smerth54

oh rite so the jap imports wouldnt run very well on uk fuel then?

so wad ones are imports then cos i get confused its the turbo 2000 ones and aint the wrx ones uk aswell?

fordsportjay

iTrader: (6)

what he said above.....or you will get a bug eye one for 4k if you want smething newer..

Ginge !

i run a import with no fuel mods that im aware of,,,, ive held my car at 140 to 150 a few times,,, been to the ring done a few laps ect and still no melting of the engine,,,, though the cars fuel bill is astronomical !!!!

HONESTLY i would avoid the uk spec cars, buy a v4 sti and spend the extra grand on a new ecu and mapping, you would get a MUCH better car !!!

if only i had a dongle to bluetooth the photos of my shed then you might be abke to appriciate it

ps: mines just a V3 sti but v4 has the same good cams/head but also has the better dash !

smerth54

yea but i dont facny spending to much money on it just want one that has a bit of power cos its just sum fun 4 the weekends

Ginge !

you can spend 2k on a car,,, then spend 2k on it when it goes wrong or just fuck it off OR you can spend 5k on a car,,, get everything done and then just spend cash on maintanace

this is comming from a bloke whos scooby stands him in just over 10k

smerth54

yea i understand that im not goin to buy a cheap shed, but if i was buying one ide want one that was all done but hadnt been mess around to much

TurboShed

Just buy a Sapphire. Nice and easy, no headaches.

Ginge !

ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

RS Grant

iTrader: (1)

There are different names for different shape Imprezas, they are:

Classic Impreza = 1993-2000
Bugeye Impreza = 2000-2002
Blobeye Impreza = 2003-2005
Hawkeye Impreza = 2006-2007
Browneye Impreza = 2007-Present

Classic shape UK Imprezas will be advertised as Turbo or Turbo 2000... if you see a Classic shape with WRX or STi in the name then its likely that its a Jap Import model which comes with higher insurance premiums, higher running costs (octane booster or a grand for decent ECU and mapping) and potential for engine trouble due to previous owners cutting corners.

Imprezas onwards, so Bug, Blob, Hawk and Browneye, were available in the UK as WRX models.

For what its worth, I've had 4 classic shape Imprezas.. all of them have been UK Turbo models due to the ability to trace history and insurance seeming to be almost half what the Imports were going to cost at the time (thats changed now I'm older). I'm scanning through my photobucket just now, so being a photo whore, I'll throw up a few pictures of the cars I've had which look every bit as good as equivalent imports IMO.
















Cheers,
Grant

smerth54

okiess thanks for your help m8

smerth54

i think im gunner go for uk model any way cos of insurance costs

Ginge !

then what ever you do NEVER drive a sti import classic then as you will realise what a difference the cars are !

smerth54

lol y wads the differencee in them?

petey.

the jap imports have a few different bits and bobs to the UK models and are a bit pokier IIRC.

my dads currently selling his bug eye wrx wagon, he's had it about 9 month just gets bored quickly, only wanting 3k for it.
its completely standard, and never misses a beat. you really dont have to worry about them blowing up unless its been owned by someone whos abused it, turned the boost right up and expected it to be fine.
it was/is his daily driver, its thirstier on fuel than a boggo 2.0 car but not half as bad as what people say, they grip fantastically, and handle better the faster you drive.

RS Grant

iTrader: (1)

....my first Impreza, the silver one above, wasn't re-mapped and still running stock boost but had a full-decat exhaust (never knew much about them 6 years ago) and ran consistent 13.3 on the 1/4 mile with average terminals around 102mph.


Cheers,
Grant

smerth54

not after a wagon any way idealy ide like a type r or a p1 but im never gunner get that for the sort of money ive got, but will c what the insurance cums out on the uk and jap ones

petey.

lol! just re read my post makes it sound like im trying to sell you it, i was just giving you a bit of an idea of how they are day to day haha.

Ginge !

theres more than quarter mile though when talking about cars my friend,, theres the feel when driving them that I personally go by,,,,,, and if i drove a uk car i would NEVER have got a scooby,,,, thats a FACT as its the same reason why i never bought a E36 M3,,,,, just boring to drive when i took one for a test drive,,,,, wheres my impreza is alot more fun for the imature person inside of me

though ill admit insurance is a PROPER fucker as it the price of parts and finding them also

RS Grant

iTrader: (1)

Hmmm, I agree that there is more than 1/4 mile to think of.. I just think its a fair representation of the performance, more the terminal speed rather than the actual time. On the road I prefer the way the UK cars drive, slightly longer ratios that seem really well suited to making progress... I've driven a couple of STi models (V2 and V4 saloons) and there doesnt seem much difference in feel and occasion to the UKs that I've owned. However, I would defo agree that the Type R and Type RA models are manic and a fair whack different to the Uk models.

End of the day you can't tell someone how they feel driving a car... I had that in an Integra Type R, I took a UK model out on my own for an hour on some tasty backroads and was bored shitless, then I drove a 96-spec JDM model and it felt much more lively to be in so I went for the Jap model instead.

If the OP drives both and wants a jap import... then the advice I'd give is either get a freshly imported example or get one thats had the money spent on it by an enthusiast on an owners club rather than a random STi out the trader which 'looks alright'.


Cheers,
Grant

smerth54

sum gd advice hear, well ill have to see what the insurance is like but ide prefere to have a jap model with the ecu like said, from wot your saying there more fun and this is what the cars meant to b my fun car

Ginge !

ironically i bought the first impreza that i ever drove pmsl.. looked at options and the STI has a pink badge,,,, i knew fuck all about impreza but liked the pink rear suspension parts andgrill badge,,,, there was one near to the M3 evo i was actually gonna buy and the missus wanted a Impreza so it was to shut her up, she still talks about me telling her " listen this is not a sale, dont get excited about the car as if we wanna buy it as i wanna try a few first before i decide,,,,,, then i go out in it, come back and pay a grand deposit on my card THEN go looking for insurance deals

smerth54

well a few of my m8's have had ones one m8 had a turbo 200 and the other had a wrk and an sti i think hes still got the sti atm looks lovly

fordsportjay

iTrader: (6)

ive had some very quick "standard" uk imprezas and ive had some not so quick wrx imports.
the sti's are great fun,but i blew my 54000 sti up less than 100 miles from it coming off the docks.
a late w/x uk turbo with a nice exhaust in mica blue would be my choice should i ever buy one for myself-or even a wagon in reddish blue now ive seen the pics on this thread

Sunil_FiestaRS1800

iTrader: (1)

Ive got an import wagon for sale if your interested. Has been well looked after with a decent spec and has been mapped properly with a remapable daughter board in the ecu.

Alan_D

If you want a really good car for £4K that will be reliable, fairly quick when mapped, and still fun to drive then buy a UK Turbo.

The Sti is a different car as Ginge says, but honestly I think he's just been lucky with that car. So many people buying an import and not doing as Grant says end up hating Subarus because of the trouble they have. Ideally, you'd want to have a fresh import and get it mapped before you start using it; or find one which has had that treatment.

I sold my UK Turbo which was mapped with an Apexi ECU running in the region of 270bhp for £3500. I'd spent a fortune on it, and as far as I knew it was mechanically perfect and set up properly to run on V-Power.

If you could find a sorted import for that money then fine, but if not, UK Turbo all the way.

MrBroadside

Ive a uk cataluyna in the for sale sectione quick shift in it as standard, goes very well and comes in well under ya budget, pulls very well its facelift too.

Ive had an import wrx and wasnt that impressed by it really, but one i have now is a lot faster ect..hence why ive not really hammered it in the for sale section cos i do like the car and if it goes it goes but not too fussed.

smerth54

not into the wagons even tho there only a few about just not 2 sure on them.


looks nice m8 but ive gotta sell my frst first once ive sorted the sump out, was trying to get an idea what im looking for so i can keep my eye out,

smerth54

i think im gunner get a uk model mainly for the insurance cos i dont want to b paying the roof for it

cossiebags

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofAsIIJBIfs
i love this video watch it all

fullyboosted175

if i had max of 4k to spend, personally i wouldn't touch a scooby, what about a gt4 much better car, insurance probably won't be as much either

turbo_3dr_tommy

i love this scoob vid

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHbNuyubhz0

RS Grant

iTrader: (1)

Just make sure its had the front suspension arms and figure 8 links fixed, because its £600 to do and they fail around 50-60k miles... less if used hard.

I've had a couple of the ST205 GT4 as well and agree that they're well built cars which, if standard, will go on and on and on... once messed around with, they also require a new ECU for safety if taken further than a cat-back exhaust, filter and small boost increase (1.15bar from 0.9bar standard).

Insurance was about half what I was on a UK Impreza Turbo as well, really mega cheap insurance for the sort of performance they give.


Cheers,
Grant

fullyboosted175

yep couldn't agree with more

just upgrade to apexi pfc ecu, if you start tuning