Hi guys,

After selling my Saxo recently (yeh okay!) I bought a 306 GTi-6. It's a very nice car don't get me wrong and it goes like stink, but I'm still regretting on not going for a Scooby as I originally intended. So I've therfore decided to sell my GTi-6 and go and get a Scooby.

Question is, what am I looking at getting with about £9k to spend, i.e, model, age mileage etc. Insurance isn't really a problem, I've been quoted £800 for a standard UK Turbo (which is what I'm paying now on the 6) upto £1200 for a WRX STi.

Thanks in advance.
Phil

 

There are plenty of scoobys for sale so there are bargins to be had. You could probably beat an MY99 down to those prices! If you can stretch to a 99 model car the I'd recommend you do so as its a vast improvement over the 98 car. It has 4 pot brakes, revised (and better) styling, a better interior, and so on. Someone will post the SIDC FAQ link shortly which will help a lot.

Assuming your from SSC? What's your login name?

P.S. Nowt wrong with Saxo's

 

9K will get you a decent Scoob in todays market.
Anything from a MY95 STI to a MY98/99 UK Turbo really, have a look in the for sale section here for starters.
Cheers.
Ian.

 

SIDC_FAQ
Its not been updated in while, but still a good read.
Cheers.
Ian.

 

Cheers for that. My login on SSC is PhilTolley... take it you're Imprezaboy on there yeh?

Your right, nowt wrong with Saxo's, mine handled well lowered... but just lacked power (it was a VTR) but you don't notice it until you get something quicker. Now 167bhp isn't enough

 

This weeks autocar has a scooby buying guide.

 

That FAQ is very useful! Cheers.

And I'll also be going to get an Autocar then on the way home tonight - thanks Neil.

 

Go for MY99 UK Turbo, and save a little bit for some nice mods!

 

That was my first guess Correct, I'm Imprezaboy

I might as well give you the bad news now then!! 220bhp won't be enough either You get used to it very quickly!!! I've modified to about 270-80bhp and I'm fairly content with that but there are times when I want more

In my experience the best and cheapest scoobys come up in SN's For Sale section. Peeps on here tend to be more realistic with pricing than in the classifieds. If keep your eyes open you'll be amazed at some of the bargins that pop up!

 

There's plenty for sale in the autotrader privately... but I'm a bit concerned about buying one without a warranty. Or as you say... I could look at the classifieds on this board and buy from someone who I know looked after their car.

 

Unfortunatly there is a fairly large gulf between the private prices and dealership prices! i.e. a warranty will cost you. I know some people like the piece of mind of a warranty but provided a scooby hasn't been mollested too much then they are generally reliable. Be careful of cars that have had the boost put up with manual boost controllers, etc and no mapping or other mods to accomodate it.

In you position and budget I'd try to get a private MY99 with about 40k on the clock with say a scoobysport backbox and centre section and some nice styling mods, alloys, colour-coding, etc. Don't be scared of a full-decat on a classic as they seem to be safe and also they sound brilliant

 

http://www.scoobynet.co.uk/bbs/threa...hreadid=172357

See what I mean

 

http://www.scoobynet.co.uk/bbs/thread.asp?ThreadID=166230

 

Cheers again peeps. Next question... how miles are these good for before things start going wrong? 100k? 150k? etc.

Also does fuel consumption vary between models... i've heard it can be a bitch. Although the GTi-6 is very thirsty with around town driving. 22-25mpg is about the norm for it.

 

Phil,
not wanting to bias your options but if you could just get a bit more cash together there is a late STi going in the for sale section, see:
http://www.scoobynet.co.uk/bbs/threa...hreadid=170829
I know its slightly out of your price range but it looks to have all the right ingredients, as for MPG I suspect it will be similair.

 

mail me ill find you one ....chris

 

Phil if u wana check out wot u get from the different models & aint in too much of a rush, or even if u do want sum more iminent local help say the word m8y, & presumin yer pretty local check out Next Cov area meet goes 2 Solihull 23rd Feb
Si

 

Phil,
if you think that a GTi-6 is thirsty then your in for a shock with a scoob
I had 2 GTi-6's before moving into scoob ownership 3 years ago and the GTI-6 was a damn sight better on fuel than my scoob!
You have to also consider your insurance, ie mine doubled (and i was over 30!) from a gti-6 to a standard scoob, if you have an online quote then forget about it as they normally dont hold much in the way of a "realistic" quote, and a cat1 alarm and immobiliser plus a tracking system is required by most insurers now.
Service costs will be considerably higher (2 services per year compared to 1 (or 1 per 2 years depending on which year 306 you have) and the Jap cars will need a MINIMUM of Super unleaded fuel (octane booster is reccommended though, at around 3 quid per bottle per tank).
Its a good move to go from a GTi-6 but you will be shocked at the running costs of a scoob
As for the 9k bracket..... it should get you a good MY98 model or even an MY99 (which is preferable) but Full Subaru service history is a must on this type of car (or speciallist service history) and get it HPi'd as alot of scoobs are stolen/crashed
If looked after, these cars will run forever but you will need to watch for smoking turbos, piston slap (mainly MY97/98 models), clutch judder (if its really bad but most scoobs suffer from this), wheel bearings and oil leaks (these seem to be the most common faults).
Hope that helps and you have a nice bank manager as your car probably wont stay standard for long

Tony

 

PS without any silly mods having been done that might risk otherwise realiable engine then 150k is easily achievable but a guarantee is impossible without knowing whats bin dun 2 the car like. I get around 20-24mpg just doing short runs & not much better on the longer stints depends how much of a heavy foot u have as that turbo is thirsty
Si

 

Tony - Thanks for the advice, some good points there I've taken note of.

Scooby_si - May take you up on that offer. Need to sell the GTi-6 1st so I'm not in the position to do anything imminently! As long as I'm okay to turn up a Pug that is!! lol. Just realised it's my birthday on the day of the meet!

 

Yeah m8 no problem wot so ever we usually have a variety of other sporty & sum times not so sporty motors Even had a 205 with a cossie engine in it the other year now that woz quite impressive!
Si
PS sub section 58d u aint allowed 2 bring along any too lavish b'day pressies thou as it's my b'day week b4 & i dont wana b outshone! lol

 

You may regret it, but probably not for long. You can't drive a scooby any quicker than a 306, they just accelerate harder....
Running costs, now then. I went from a diesel to my gti-6 and was horrified by fuel consumption etc... 306 to Subaru, just as much of a shock again!!!! Be prepared to be bankrupt..
They are a laugh though.
Good luck.