I am looking at buying a subaru but was informed not to touch a 97/98 model as they had the worst ECU's and were untuneable can anyone shed some light on this?

 

97/98 what? uk, wrx, sti ???

the uk model suffers most from piston slap as does the wrx but this can hit any scoob engine....ecu's aren't capable of a tek reflash as that was my99 on but the standard ecu isn't a bad one, just not the best for tuning.

most people use an apexi, link, gems ecu if they are serious about tuning anyway.

hope this helps

the same could be said for any year scoob.....like dont buy a my99/00 as the maf is weak and can cause engine falure etc....

 

LOL... what a load of ****e. The ecus are more tricky to remap but not impossible, but then most people would fit an Apexi, Motec, Autronic, Link etc etc. To say they MY97/98s are untuneable is laughable.... have a look at 911s thread in projects and see how an untuneable MY97/98 got 407bhp with what amounts to fairly modest mods.

Tony.

 

I had my2000 uk turbo had three maf fail no problems with the engine and 99 onwards can be ecutek remaped

 

As said, very easy to whip out the OEM ECU for an Apexi which won't cost a great deal more than the ECUTek licence and mappers fees. I had a UK MY98 for 2.5 years and i'd certainly buy another.

Even 300bhp can be a possibility on a very limited budget.

 

My MY98 WRX has very slight piston slap when cold and has been like that for 2 1/2 years now running well over 300hp. Its made no diiference and hasnt got any worse.

I junked the ECU and went the Power FC route.

 

I have a MY98 car with a slight piston slap also, i have use many different setups and ECU without any problem for years.

 

I'll be using a Power FC on my MY98 WRX. Most people seem to, as it's only on 99-on cars that the ECU options start to open up.

 

I had a MY98 and it was a great car. The most expensive part was replacing the engine.....................it was fine after that though!! Make sure and get one with a FSSH.