Milkybadger

Hi New to the forums. and completely new the scooby world, (my research isnt going amazingly well with the fine details, quite confused lol)

I have the money and i am ready to buy a subaru impreza saloon (earlier ones)


Im looking at one in the coming week, origionally i would have liked one of the fancy WRX imports or Stis etc etc, but this car im viewing is a Uk spec 220bhp Turbo 2000 1996 P Reg

Now i can get a very very good price on the car. But i have two small issues, 1. is that its green and 2. is that its interior and exterior styling are standard for that model.

Im looking for generally what i can do to uprate the interior to the more fancy WRX/STi seats door cards etc etc dials etc etc, how i would go about stuffing a few facelift body panels on the car such as WRX rear spoiler, front bumper, bonnet etc.

what interior and exterior versatility is there in styling, range of products about i can stick in or on/change.

Oh and can anybody prove to me that you can make a Green car look good lol :P.

It comes down to, can i save the money and still have a good looking car inside and out, and not be restricted to bog standard un exciting crap


Help is much appreciated
Andy (impreza noob)

Jamee

Hi Andy,

The only bad side I can see about getting a UK Turbo 2000 is that after upgrading supporting mods, you get less BHP compared to a WRX / STI

Good luck with your car hunting and welcome to Scoobynet.

J

d4vidh

If it is a UK car then Insurance will be a whole lot cheaper than an import as will getting parts from Subaru (If need be). What are the reasons why you can get it for a very very good price? Is it mates rates. I found its very much a buyers market so there may be something out there which suits you better.

nick type r

iTrader: (2)

Welcome to the club.
It sounds to me like you plan on turning a standard turbo into a wrx or sti lookalike. You could spend lots of time and money finding the parts and spraying/fitting them to achieve your goal.
If it was me id spend a bit more money in the first place and get a wrx or even an sti depending on funds and what sort of power you are after, you could even get one in a colour you like. There are loads out there.
Can i ask how much you are looking at spending? by the time you have bought wrx/sti, seats, steering wheel, door cards, spoiler, bumper or splitter, colour coded bits, plus other stuff you might want, you would be better getting the car you want to start with.
Good luck with the hunt.

TonyBurns

iTrader: (3)

Hi Andy

The 208bhp car your looking at can change to any standard Impreza interior, the door cards are different as it depends on the model year, later ones wont fit afaik but the interiors can be swapped with the STI models with no issues
As for the green, no its not the most desirable colour but its not a bad colour in its own right

Tony

Milkybadger

Cheap as of .. mates rates and his issues with insurance.

im looking at around £1400-1500 max for an early scooby, however this is goign to be considerably cheaper than that with alot of vital maintenance such as clutch, cam belt already done ad turbo back exhaust)

When i buy cars i look at engine first tbh, as in will i have a £600 repair bill in 5000 miles, and i highly value knowing the cars previous owner.

Im looking to make the car look 'smart' better looking, secondary colour matching as in not standard but not horrbily tacky and chavvy. (haha a non chavvy subaru, do they exist?) Look like a WRX/STi.. go like a WRX/STi but the insurance etc of a UK. but tbh the insurance is only £100 ish difference so... lol! but other positives going for this car

1st idea for a green car would be to go Gold, silver or white as a secondary colour, ive seen some nice Black/whiteish seats and door cards etc for egsample, that could work and whether they will fit on UK spec turbo 2000 i dont know.

I would be more than happy with the power output of the engne with the chip being used (rumours of 4.5 to 60mph in this particular vehicle), but the chip is on a switch for the power, as in you can see the boost change on the gauge, This is new to me wiring a switch into a chip :S, im seeing personally cheaper insurance for registering a UK spec scooby instead of a WRX while still having the power on a switch for track days for example.

Anybody expand on this putting a switch into the power leg of the chip?

MattyB1983

iTrader: (51)

If you modify a uk car to look and perform like an STI then the insurance will increase dramatically. And in most cases cost more than a standard STI insurance cost. It is a legal requirement to notify the insurance company of any modifications and you will be in very hot water if not notified and involved in a crash.
My personal opinion is to wait and buy yourself a WRX or even STI. You'll spend a small fortune on a uk car trying to make it as good as a STI.
Next piece of advice and most important,, don't rush out and buy the first car that takes your fancy. Your obviously desperate to own one but take it from me, take your time, do your research and buy a good one to start with.

MattyB1983

iTrader: (51)

Oh, and don't spray it gold fella. PLEASE !!!!

Milkybadger

Haha i shant be spraying it anything, im aware of the insurance legislation and how far they go to not pay out for an accident and i have always declared everything

Mods arent putting my insurance up that much such as intake/exhaust mods/suspension/aftermartket alloys/spoilers so all of them will be declared.

I dont know how they stand with a chip on a switch... they might not take my word that i wont turn it on on the road lol.

and any viewa about having the power leg of the chip on a switch inside the car :S

nick type r

iTrader: (2)

If it was me id spend more in the first place and get something like this, or one a bit cheaper. especially if you say the insurance is only around £100 more.
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classifi...ge/3?logcode=p

Milkybadger

yes that looks a total specimen of a car, but £2400 lols... either way you look at it... these are old cars 14yrs +, thats why im looking more at £1400-1500 max really,

This one he will sell to me for £1000

Galifrey

iTrader: (3)

You might be lucky and get one with a TD05 and can run the major_sarcasm chip (if he has any left). As along as you run 97+ fuel you should be good for @260bhp on a UK model with improved off boost economy. (switchable)

To facelift the car, you need headlights grill and bonnet I believe.

You will want the 4 pot calipers discs and wheels to fit.

Like the others, if you plan to change to a WRX/STi look I would say buy one now if you can hack the insurance difference. Modding will only increase your insurance anyway.

I went down the 1995 UK route, fitted the chip, am fitting 4 pots I reconned myself and fitted leather STI facelift seats along with genuine 17inch Subaru alloys. Major Sarcasm chip, newage coilpacks and panel filter. Car already had whiteline suspension arms, roll bars and droplinks.

She's looking good now imho

Galifrey

iTrader: (3)

I paid more than that for mine, so a good price, he could get more breaking it really, how is the gearbox & bottom end?

Any whines? Synchros all OK? Any knocking on load?

Any mods?

Mileage?

Cambelt age?

Brun

Until i knew more about this "chip on a switch" i wouldn't touch it. It could simply raise boost without touching the fueling which could mean engine ender on it's own.
If you are looking to change body panels, spoilers, interior bits etc then you may as well save for the one in the link for instance as you will be approaching that sort of money anyway by the time you have finished modding.

Milkybadger

115k miles ish

1997 reg

Cam belt done at 85k ish

Previous owner to him spoke of a bottom end rebuild.

Clutch done about 2k ago

Full turbo back exhaust stainless steel. Decat (origional cat comes with it aswell)

Uprated DV

Polar performance chip (i think thats what its called) and when switched on it definatley changes the fueling and you can see the boost goes up. because it spits a bit of flame some times and pops etc on the overun up to traffic lights etc

As for tip taps etc... i am assured it sounds fine but thats why i am going to view it in more detail just to have a double check over if any rust and if engine sounding ok


Its more, i want a WRX/STi car. but if i can get a Uk spec that will go with the major maintenance done etc from somebody i know (because knowing your engine is ok is everything) for cheap enough, then perhaps it is worth it and putting the money into making it look like a WRX STi while going like one aswell.

Very confusing lol

mrjelly

iTrader: (6)

If you mod a uk turbo the insurance is higher than an import. I previously had an MY99 kicking 326 at the crank and the insurance was twice what it would have been for an import (in fact I really struggled to get insurance) - cos the power increase is much more as imports have more to start with...
My current wagon (MY99) is 265bhp and it is very costly to insure even third party... .
(£900 for hawkeye (comp), £600 for wagon (3rd party) and £400 for octy vrs (comp) - yes that's £1900 although I do have a bad history)

midnight

iTrader: (10)

Imho, It depends who you insure your car with to be honest , my MY00 with stage 1 upgrade and all mods declared(330 bhp) cost less than £600 fully comp,yet if i used : ecar,admiral,direct line,etc it would cost me £900 for a std uk car,with some of the cheeky b*****ds insisting i have a tracker fitted .

To the op have a good look around and check the car over before you hand over your cash. My mate who works for prodrive recently bought a 1995 wrx with speedline alloys & 98k for £1200.
Also another mate bought a MY99 uk turbo with full prodrive interior,speedline alloys,fsh, & 93k for £1000 and both cars are running sweet as

Milkybadger

Where is he getting these cars from for £1000 jesus ive been looking for a month or so now and havent seen a damn sausage for £1000 that hasnt got 150 million miles on the clock lol!

sonicvr6

iTrader: (2)

hello welcome and good luck mate

Milkybadger

Im looking Ebay, Autotrader and Pistonheads. Is it worth looking at companies who just import cars? or are they not worth the hassle or price they look horribly expensive tbh

alcazar

iTrader: (2)

Just keep looking. Mate of mine just bought a REALLY decent wagon for cheap money, almost standard, but looked after.

Milkybadger

Definatly dont want a wagon :P, you could tint the windows and go ******** in the back... but tbh ******* in a secluded car park full of rapists isnt really my thing. lol


it does wind me up a little tbh, so many people asking 2k+... like what? really?.. because it has stickers?

Im taking clutch and cambelt change as basic maintenance now because so many people have it done because of the age of the cars and because it cost them £1000 they think they can add that straight on the price, i put a cambelt on every car i buy within reason

craigfturbo2000

mine owes me £800 u would instantly think nail, but its ok!!

my insurance costs me more, ive only been driving 4 years!

alcazar

iTrader: (2)

Cambelt I WOULD do, and tensioners/idlers on a Scoob, but clutch I'd leave until it went.