The Chief

Just a query,

Looking into getting back into Scooby ownership and i knwo this may sound daft but i prefer the looks of the standard WRX to the STI, (well with a set of decent alloys anyway) Not really into the big massive spoilers, plus they tend to be a lot cheaper - but i've heard all sorts of stories concerning the Big Ends and weakness of the 5 speed box where as the STI seems to be pretty bullet proof and have the stronger 6 speed.

I had my big ends go on my Classic which resulted in an STI block being fitted and have seen loads of newage WRX's in Prosport with Big ends that had gone.

If i bought one i would only have it lightly modded, 300bhp max!!!


Opinions please.

Thanks.

Barnesy

Speak to Adam at Autotechnica, he's seen a few newage wrx engines let go.
He has a couple in his garage for spares.
Asked him last week and he's never seen a newage sti go pop.

jaytc2003

iTrader: (1)

Thought that the wrx and sti share the same block/bearings. Its only the rods and pistons that are different

The Chief

maybe so but they are forged aren't they?

Hmmm not looking good for a WRX

Midlife......

iTrader: (2)

I drive a bugeye WRX at over 350BHP and have had no engine issues yet

Most newage (2 litre) modded WRX's tend to have more in the way of gearbox and clutch problems.

I guess it depends on how you drive and look after them....bugeye WRX's are cheap as chips to buy but not cheap to run. It's easy to get one, rag it to death, not service it and it lets go LOL

Shaun

SSCJAY

Newage STI has semi closed deck block, & the WRX is open deck, also I don't think the WRX cranks are Nitrided and the STI ones are.

STiFreak

iTrader: (4)

Why not get an STi and just change the spoiler to a smaller one or alternatively you could look around for a Spec-D.

The Chief

In a word - money.

Get a new age WRX for 8-10k where as a decent STI i'd say is 11-12k+

Henrik

iTrader: (5)

My WRX has had about 4k worth of mods thrown at it. I wish I'd bought an STI, but at the time we couldn't afford it/justify it (price diff of 5k new and the insurance would have been a *real* killer for us (22 + 23 at the time)), and the spending just continues (saving up for new clutch + gearbox)

IMO, just get a PPP STI if you don't want to mod much and be done with... You'll get a stronger engine, stronger driveline, better brakes, better suspension etc etc. You could probably swap the STI bootlid for a WRX bootlid + money.

Flaps

iTrader: (1)

Well it can't be that bad as Powerstation offer a 315 upgrade for it! Surely they wouldn't offer this upgrade if the clutch and gearbox couldn't take it.
PowerStation

F1 CJE UK

iTrader: (8)

zen told me that the new 06 + gearbox is good 4 350 and there are many on here with wrx with them figures.....

Mifo

iTrader: (10)

Ive got a wrx with a few mods on. You can have similar performance as an sti and its cheaper. My insurance was £600 cheaper than an sti!

an sti would have costed 3 - 4 grand more than what I paid.

Seeing as Im only 22 , buying and insuring an sti probly would have bankrupted me.

I rekon a wrx could easily take 300 bhp ,obviously with a few mods mainly for piece of mind

In a couple of years Ill be px ing for an STi when the stupid amount in insurance will come down.

Although by then fuel will be about £3 a litre I would imagine.

andythejock01wrx

I 've got a 2001 WRX with just over 300bhp.

Did quite a lot of research as to how much power and torque they could take. This is really nothing more than a "consensus", but the most widely accepted figure is one of 350/350. That's for the gearbox - the engine is closer to 400bhp.

How you drive it is crucial. It may well not cope with that power if you launch it and track it regularly. having said that, Andy F sold a 380bhp Newage WRX to a chap who has frequently launched it (competitively) for 18 months, with no ill effects !

cookstar

iTrader: (6)

Thats wrong all newage blocks are semi closed

jasonius

iTrader: (1)

This is correct, although iirc they implemented the changes on MY05>..

Pluses and minuses to both, as in the real word there ain't that much difference performance wise..!

I like the fact that everyone thinks mines just a WRX and not worth bothering with (unwanted attention etc..!), but also the faces of those STI drivers that do try it on... priceless..!

However, with hindsight I'm not sure I'd follow the same route now that s/h STI prices are so cheap..

Depends how bothered you are by the attention an STI will attract..!

The Fixer

I have a newage WRX wagon running 351/350, no issues at all with the Semi closed deck block or anything else. The gearbox is fine at 350 ft/lbs as well

DirtyScooby

Agreed

The equivalent Stage 1 street legal upgrade for a MY01+ costs £1549 with 270bhp or the unlegal track version with a decat instead sports cat for £1299.

Stage 2 315bhp is a lot more at £2299 and £2049 respectively!

So you could pick up an early bugeye WRX for 5-6k spend 3k for the upgrades and then have a properly set up WRX for 8-9k which could show many an STi up and with standard internals!

SSCJAY

2.5 or 2.0? Could have sworn I took an open deck out of a 2001 last month

cookstar

iTrader: (6)

I was told all newage were semi closed, well the 2.0 at least, 2.5 I dont know

ian10

you can pick a eary sti bugeye for 9k which is what you have spent on a wrx after modding.Which has all the other extras such as better interior gearbox etc......,plus it will hold it's money better when you come to sell it. People loose thousands on modded cars.

cookstar

iTrader: (6)

agree with the above, with all my mods now and price of my WRX i could have bought a T25

jasonius

iTrader: (1)

^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Ahh, but where's the fun in that..?

cookstar

iTrader: (6)

true, but at least it would be worth something now

dunx

iTrader: (3)

Did anyone tell Mifo's insurance company he's modded it ?

I thought a modded car would be hard to insure at 22

No contest really, Sti is about the same to service, so spend it now or buy loads of bits over the coming months/years....

Dunx

P.S. Dunx believes a good driver in a WRX will hammer a tired old git in an STI, and my mate is gonna prove it !

scoobyboy

sti's do go but not as easily as wrx's i've lost count of the amount wrx's i've done but only 3 sti's so far one of which was a wr1.
plus the 2.5 is open deck or at least on the foresters it is along with the wrx's

andythejock01wrx

--------------------------------->

Flaps

iTrader: (1)

So what are the actual differences in the engines then?

Scoobyfirsttime

Thinking there must be an experienced/professional tuner on here that could summarise the main differences between a standard STI and WRX. This would be helpful to a large section of this forum as i'm sure there are a lot of conflicting "facts" that have been stated to confuse people.......

From my point of view would be interested in seeing like for like comparison i.e 5 speed and EJ20......

Any takers.......?

Darren

Flaps

iTrader: (1)

I'm often sticking up for the WRX on this forum because I get the impression that a lot of people don't think it's a 'proper scooby'. They forget it's only 40Hp/40Nm down on the STI and there's only 0.4 seconds difference from 0-62. I don't see that as being that much, but the saving on purchase price is! Also, regardless of which one you got, if it's standard you would have to spend money on it to get 300hp.

SPIDERWRX

WRXs can be made/modded to be faster than sti ....
and the 5 speed is faster than the 6 speed....

but if you want more than 350bhp buy a sti.

but if you are happy with 225 to 350bhp buy a wrx