Campbell

Later this year, I may have the chance to buy my father's MY98 Sport 2.0 5-door, for possibly a grand below its market price (family loyalty and all that).

Yes, I'd rather have a Turbo, but finance for my new Elise will be eating the old salary quite hard by then. We need a good everyday car too, however.

If I were to use that grand saving to help fund a budget of, say, two thousand pounds - what might anyone recommend as a useful package of upgrades (brakes/suspension/performance)?

Await replies with interest.

TIA

Campbell

IainY

Trade the elise and get a Turbo!I dont think you will be disappointed!

Campbell

Thank you for the constructive advice, Iain!!

Given that the Elise has not even been *delivered* yet, I am hardly likely to consider your suggestion. It's a 3-year-long dream to own such a car, and whilst I agree the Turbo is something special, it ain't *that* special (awaits flames, naturally!)

But seriously...I think I can have a little fun at the "entry-level" to Scooby ownership with the Sport, while I save up for a Turbo in years to come. [It also hasn't escaped my notice that the Impreza ought to be due a serious facelift in the not too distant.]

I want the best of both worlds - practicality *and* a 2-seater ragtop with serious ability and looks. But I can't print money (not yet, anyways!).

So - who's got a two grand Sport tuning package waiting for me out there then?

Campbell ;-)

howardb

I believe on one of the Scottish meets, a Sport kept up with the turbo's quite easily, so I think you'll be more than happy with it and the Elise.

You may as well look at the usual Turbo mods:- exhaust, suspension and uprated pads. Theres lots of suppliers around but Scoobysport are well worth a call. So look at scoobysport box, air filter, leda 'a' and pads. Should get those for 2k.

Campbell

Thanks for the steer, Howard. I'll try Scoobysport.

IIRC, however, there was a Sport at the Aberdeen Meet which kept up by virtue of maniac driving, rather than (necessarily) actually having the grunt to do so!!

Needless to say, I'll spend some cash on driving courses too :-)

Campbell

Ian Cook

The sport on the Tour D'Ecosse did manage to keep up, but it was driver more than anything, he did say if he had been in front and not following it would have been a different matter all together. A change of backbox and airfilter will make a difference to the car, suspension and brakes will also improve things. SS Backbox and a ITG filter, will be approx 350, Suspension is about 1000 (not 100% about this) and a set of 2nd hand STi 4 pots about 400-450 will make a huge difference to stopping power. Speak to Scoobysport about all of the above there are others.

Hope this helps

Campbell

Bang on budget as well, Ian!

Thanks. Particularly the 2nd hand STi brake components, which I'd never have thought of.

petercope

Why has no one suggested a chip from Superchip or someone else? They claim a 10% power increase. Or are they no good ??

Ian Cook

Seen and heard of several cars with huge holes in various parts of the engine to not recommend chips of any kind that do not remap fuel, the Superchips one does not in fact it only fools the existing ECU in to giving more boost.

I beleive Power Engineering, and the Blitz or HKS ones are the only ones that do remap fuel at the moment, although there may be more Japanese ones i dont know about.

petercope

Ian, the car is a non turbo 98 Sport model so surely it won't have any boost to alter. Won't it work by remapping the ignition?

Ian Cook

Peter, this is a tricky one, not actually heard anything about a superchip for the non turbo version, so cant comment on it, perhaps i should have thought a bit about it before posting the last bit

I would still be very careful about chips, I know some people have run them in cars for years and had no problems, i also no of several people that have had nothing but trouble with them.

Campbell

Interesting debate emerging here.

I am open minded about chips, but of course one can be easily tricked by unscrupulous small-scale suppliers. So we need some sources of authority here.

Who has some experience of chipping a non-Turbo Impreza, then? Or, who are the leading chip vendors, at least?

SPIPE

I have a Sport at the moment & have been debating whether to buy a Turbo or a new flat. I think it might be the Turbo, how sad is that, anyway i have a query about the Turbo. Does it have bad lag as with other Turbo cars?

Steve

Miles

After being a committed Sport owner for six months (and then giving up and buying a Turbo) I fiddled about with the Sport. I put on the NA Scoobysport backbox (the third one they had made!) and a K&N air filter. The car certainly revved more freely above 3500rpm and was more eager. Never dyno'ed so I would guess at an extra 10bhp. The SS exhaust was very much louder than the SS Turbo backbox - comes of the non-existance of a turbocharger, too loud at times actually.

The 98MY is has the updated 122bhp (? can't remember exactly) engine from the Forester, the earlier cars have 115bhp. Subaru keep quiet about the change. Go and drive a 98MY back to back with a 97MY - see what I mean!!! The Sport is mechanically identical to the 2.0GL, just cosmetics differ the two.