hawkeye

Fair point m8 if a car handles well on the road it will probably handle well enough for the "track virgin"
agreed but if i was picking hairs 99.9% on the road

oh dear "crack" what's that i hear ohhh it's mark opening his
"can 'o' whoopass"

hawkeye

i was/am very very tempted but still have a years manufacturers warranty left on my car so at the moment they dont factor

Supercue

iTrader: (1)

Only if you're going on TG

G00ner

Technically you don't

I'm sure Litchfield do a comprehensive warranty, Subaru warranty in my experience isn't worth the paper it's written on unless you have a competent main dealer near you (unlikely).

Afterall if it takes the countries biggest Subaru dealer 4 attempts to unsuccessfully fix my suspension rattle (not the usual near side rattle like others had) why bother ?

Any self respecting Subaru specialist would have fixed it first time.

Spec C/Type 25 plus a grand for a warranty and toast the Evo

Edcase

Bah I turn my back for 2 minutes and suddenly we are on page 10!!!

probably either the strut seal worn, the upper mount needs replacing or you have a loose bolt on your roll bar. Well that was the process to cure mine anyway

MIKE WOOD - can I just ask about the choice of tyre for the WR1??? It seems to me from both looking at the tyres on the car and also seeing the performance on TG they perhaps were not the best choice? It appeared the edges overheated drastically, which contributed to much of the understeer. I'm sure we all know what a difference tyre compound / profile / pattern makes so can you tell me how you came to that choice and if things like tyre pressure were set up before the press car was delivered to TG?

Can you also tell us if the ATD system is ever going to make an appearance (I hear rumours as to where it may make an appearance.) I'd love the chance to drive it again if you ever want another objective opinion now its moved on a bit, you can easily get snowblind working on the same thing...

greasemonkey

Without wanting to put words in Mike's mouth Ed, seems as though there's a fundamental difference between specifying a tyre for a road car and one that's going to be used on the track.

You will never load the tyres up to the extent, and for the time necessary to cause that sort of heating in a roadgoing context.

In the circumstances there's nothing in the TG piece that gives any clue to the tyre's performance on the road - good, bad or otherwise.

Edcase

GM yeah I absolutely agree, but (and based purely on the evidence seen on TG) it appears the WR1 tyres are particularly bad on track. Thanks largely to the tyre wars in motorsport, there are an increasing number of tyres on the market now that are good in pretty much all circumstances...hard road use, good water clearance and also good on track (with the right tyre pressures).

My question is, given the amount of work no doubt done at the test track (which to be fair is probably as bumpy and scarred as some b-roads ) did they choose the tyres from an OEM cost perspective or a pure performance perspective??

G00ner

[off thread]Apparently it was the dampers on both sides according to Keith Price that eventually brought it, so why didn't Sparshatts find it so easily ?

There's far too much dealer inconsistency and not enough communication through the various departments IMO[/off thread]

TonyBurns

iTrader: (3)

Yup
Mike, i now own a pretty much standard MY03 Spec C (just a hayward and scott b/box and an STi panel filter).
Its a great car but it isnt for everyone (most people just want it for its out and out performance, its not just about that though, its about the cars complete ability and rawness, which most people wont like) ie no electric windows, a/c (but mine for some reason came with this ) no central locking, no boot lining, no sound proofing etc etc etc, just a steering wheel, the A-DCCD and a seat (who needs anything else )
I think that alot of people dont understand when you say its a low spec car, its meant to be, in the same way the classic RA's were, its a car for competition, not really for every day use, but then having driven all sorts of vehicles (lots of landrovers and the odd 4 tonne truck ) im use to something more "rugged".
If you ever wish me to bring this car up/down to you then no problems, i was going to ask you if you had any Bridgestone RE070's hanging around, ok they tramline like hell and seem to take a while to bed in, but ive gotten use to them now and dont mind them so much

Tony

whiteyisback

Some people on here at last seem to understand what MOST of us have been getting at.....the possibility of Prodrive/Subaru producing a real beast of an Impreza - a UK Spec or type 25 kind of car....most importantly including Mike Wood.

It's nice to see that you understand without throwing up all the usual excuses....no one on here expects miracles, it's just that there are somethings that can be done that i guess most of us cant understand why they havent been (basic suspension mods, geom changes, tyre choice, etc)...could you give us your thoughts on the reasons why your cars dont get sold to customers with a more optimized geom or better tyres, etc ?

No one is saying that the WR1 is a failure, sure u made the car exactly to the spec and and from my drive agree that its a good car point to point on UK bumpy roads. It still doesnt help that the equivelant EVO handles that little bit better (not sure thats the right word) and that Subaru currently already give us a 300Bhp understeering Sti. Think a few (or even a lot) of us were hoping you'd produce an "on tap oversteering 360+ bhp type of beastie"...(stroll on GM to quote me yet again..lol)

Mike, reading "We too would like to produce the ultimate Impreza......" is music to my ears. Maybe one day you guys will be given the opportunity by Subaru to do just that....i do honestly see a market for a more focused, track oriented impreza, after all why do so many of us go to such gr8 lengths, spending thousands on aftermarket mods ?...one view you could have would be that all that money spent on modifying could line the pockets of Subaru/Prodrive if they made a car like that in the 1st place.

Lastly, it's interesting seeing the results of the poll on here - it's clear for all (GM, Subaru and Prodrive - take note!) that most of us place most importance on Ultimate Performance.....almost 61% of us in fact.....

Come on Mike call IM/Subaru and suggest to them that there might be a few people out there that would buy something a bit "hotter" than a WR1, i think u guys with all your competition experience would love to make such motor.

MikeWood

It's not a case of finally realising what everyone wants, we've known that since day one and I'm not talking the last couple of years, I'm talking about BEFORE the Impreza became famous. We are bigger petrol heads than you give us credit for.....

To answer some of your points, the geometry is optimised for ROAD use and the tyre we use is what we consider to fulfil the criteria we set for ROAD use. There seems to be a lot of talk about producing a track focussed car as well but there is a major sticking point here in that Subaru UK do not condone people taking the micky out of them by abusing their cars around a track and expecting Subaru to pick up the cost for the parts that fail prematurely as a result.

Some perspective needs to be applied here to the numbers as well, 61% is a nice majority but it's still only 107 that voted and how many will actually stump up the cash?


The discussions are ongoing and have not been influenced in any way by this thread.

Mike

Daz34

For those that want Prodrive to provide a track focused car perhaps thay should ask Mike Wood what sort of deal he could do on a Prodrive Ferrari 550 GTS Maranello.

Darren

whiteyisback

sorry ....I didnt mean to sound patronising, i'm sure u cant help me from wondering though whether or not u did truely understand what most people expect from a Prodrive fettled Impreza - judging by some of the comments on this thread (and those previously).

I guess it all depends on personal choice (!?) I dont necessarily agree on the tyre choice of Subaru/Prodrive or the suspension settings (apologies - u already know this by now). As said several times b4 a few relatively minor tweaks by Powerstation, etc can make very noticable, positive differences to the basic handling of the car....more neutral and far less understeery on the limit....and without ruining the cars compliant ride. Come on Mike, the biggest handling gripe - the understeering trait of the impreza CAN be erradicated without creating a lawsuit pending oversteering monster. Even day to day ROAD driving and not track driving, an understeering performance car can be a pain in the **** and not as much fun. LOL...I know for a fact you quite like to get the tail out when driving...lol.

Surely even 107 people voting counts for something and gives you some insight as to what we want. Moderators - cant you make this poll more noticable on the site ?...i think it would make interesting reading and whi knows might prove worth while.

thats a shame....would like to have thought that the biggest Subaru forum might get a closer look by the manufacturer (and Prodrive) for some sort of customer feedback....i do think that Subaru impreza owners are a certain type and that maybe they tend to look a little closer at the cars they buy then the rest of the mondeo/vectra driving world.

Lastly , thanks for taking time out to get involved in this thread. Makes even more sense to be a member of this already good forum (there u go Mod's - I've kissed **** now PLEASE make that poll a tad more noticable...lol).

TonyBurns

iTrader: (3)

I also believe they work with a certain Formula 1 team also, now that is a track based car

Tony

MikeWood

I think you misunderstood my comments about this thread not influencing us. I didn't mean that we wouldn't take any notice, I meant that we already knew and have done for some time


On the subject of geometry, you will find that our recommended settings aren't very different to Powerstation's settings and we certainly don't 'tame' them to stop the lawsuits.

Mike

TonyBurns

iTrader: (3)

Mike,
Have you voted?

I'll say i have, and it wasnt for the top one either
If you have 2 cars then you can use the scoob as a second car, if you only have one scoob and no second car then you want a good compromise and not a bone shaker.
Look further than just 0-60 and 0-100 times peeps, all round ability is better than just one area for every day useage.

Tony

PS, Mike DO you have any RE070's knocking around for a small charitable donation?

greasemonkey

Lol, ticking a box is not the same as putting down a deposit on a car. I doubt 107 people have even posted on the thread, so the vote doesn't in itself mean much.

You also seem to be assuming that Scoobynet users = genuine cross-section of UK Subaru owners.

As mentioned further up, do you honestly think this board represents a cross-section of UK Subaru owners? I'd suggest that the majority of people who buy their cars through the official dealer channel don't even know what Scoobynet is.

K9VYN

i'm just glad Subaru manufactured the Impreza full stop!

forget being outgunned by Evos getting crap crap write-ups or TV coverage. my car looks great, goes great, and gives me a big grin every time i...

hear the flat four rumble,
plant the throttle,
slingshot out of a bend,
turn some heads,
go to a meet,
get a wave from other owners,
help another owner,
etc...

and its just a lowly MY95 WRX... (with the obligatory mods of course)

SirFozzalot

K9VYN - Well said mate! I think I have to agree!

Jza

Hey Mike - thanks for your replies.. kind of puts things in perspective

Jza

pxr

I have to agree, I started looking at the wrx last yr, but decided to go for Audi TT (225bhp). What a mistake!!!!!!

Jan this yr I bought my 1st wrx with ppp kit. Which some git helped in writting off in april. I've just got my 2nd wrx but without a ppp kit on.

But it still leaves the biggest smile on my face every time i drive it

hawkeye

has anybody thought about getting an imprezza and approaching prodrive to create something special for them???

forget the warranty and see what they can do (within reason)

im sure prodrive have a good idea what can and cant be done without opening up the engine......indeed Simon Lines has a classic with a new age engine in it

hmmmmm maybe I should be the Guinea Pig if prodrive were up for it I would!

paul

greasemonkey

It's a non-starter for two reasons:

1) You wouldn't be able to afford it. Creating a car like the WR1 where the development cost is divided by 500 cars is one thing. How much do you think you'd pay for a one-off?

2) It would be commercially insensitive for Prodrive to supply roadcars into the UK market independently of IM. Indeed, their contract with IM/FHI may prevent them from doing so.

Of course. However, Simon's car is Simon's car, not a "Prodrive project"

For the reasons stated above I'd suggest it's very unlikely to happen. No harm in trying though.

Supercue

iTrader: (1)

Yeah you, me and about 2million other Scoob owners LOL




PS Can't believe this threads still running

hawkeye

thanks greasemonkey

I realised most if not all of your points above but it was just a thought, im sure prodrive have tried out different approaches and know what can and can't be done.

However with the knowledge they have and assuming that warranty wasn't an issue I do wonder what could be created for let's say £10000 + cost of donor vehicle

New JDM sti with dccd @£25000 + £10000 to prodrive = £35000 .... £5000 more than a Wr1 but I wonder what it would be like?

hawkeye

yes i realise that too BUT has anyone actually asked them????



Mike im game if you are i'll put my money where my mouth is!!

Supercue

iTrader: (1)

Phone up Mike and ask him Paul I'm sure he'll come up with something if you have the bucks to back any project.

Worst he can do is say no

hawkeye

They have however already carried out a lot of development and will therefore know what goes and what doesn't therefore development costs as such will be reduced


Agreed i think this would be the mute point, however im sure if they really wanted to they could, only they could answer this.
i realise this but was merely pointing out that "they" as a company and it's employees obviously experiment with vehicles
no harm in trying agreed although the harm in trying would most likely me looking a Di@k

paul

hawkeye

i think i may wait for a day or two


a. because if mike's read this i'm sure he's in-consolable and creased up with
laughter

b. Is probably flying down to the pub in simons car to drown his sorrows

c. Lost the will to live due to ANOTHER of my posts

OR

He may have a moment of madness and take me up on the offer

paul

LoneGranger

Cant help but think that the 2.5 providing natural unblown addtional torque and thus blown wide range of torque (acceleration) is a good thing and it would be nice to see a Prodrive option.....

As for the flat 6 with twin turbo..........

Any news on the first performance model with this engine - I would happiliy accept 400 lb ft from 2000rpm!