just out of interest mate, haev you tried getting a quote done for any of the non turbo`d scoobs? If, like you say, you`re not going to try doing 140 in it then you don`t really need the turbo for a good few years yet, and by then your insurance will be cheaper ;) Just because its not a turbo doesn`t make it any less a scoob.

AS has been said, check out .:ImprezaSport.net:.

my celica 2.0l is 173bhp and that was £650 when i was 21. so you might have more chance on that. Get at 94 one for under £2k uk and you might have a chance. try rover 220T its got 220bhp its a family car and group 13-14.

yeh, i did a quote on a impreza sport, non turbo, the quote was £2100 fully comp - again alot more reasonable. From now i need to wait until april, im 18 on sunday and april wil be when i have my ones years NCB. Then i can decide what im doing. But hopefully i will end up with something so mite end up at a few meets :D thanks for the replies

:rolleyes:

I know I shouldn't but I like that :)

i was 19 when i got my turbo 2000 and it was £1800 on my mums insurance as a named driver

now im 21 its £900 on my own

I got insured on my Turbo 2000 when I was 19, I had 2 accidents, 1 ncb and alot of engine mods done to it, all declared I paid £3250 for it the first year, this dropped to £2400 the foloowing year, then when I was 21 I bought a P1 and paid £1500 with engine mods again declared. It does make a big difference to wait!

Without wanting to put you off, if you are planning on spending less than £3K on the car you are going to get a high mileage import 5hitter that has been messed with, and is probably going to cost you a fortune in repairs in the first year.

Despite what some people claim, you really cant get a decent Impreza for less than £3K unless you are planning to travel the country looking at every one that is for sale.

Then you will end up paying £4K in insurance, plus the running costs ( which arent cheap ), servicing costs etc...

Looking at it realistically, you can't afford the car, can't afford the insurance and probably wont be able to afford the running costs.

I know you really want a Subaru, but at your age it is stupid - why do you think most Impreza drivers are over 25 ? ( there are a few younger ones, but they are either driving uninsured, fiddling the insurance, or paying a huge amount for it ). If you want a quicker car than the Clio there are plenty out there that wont cost huge amounts to insure and you can build up your no claims and get epxerience of driving a more powerful car until you are older, then get an Impreza.

I didn't even know they did a 2 door non turbo??? :confused:

But me too :o

Like Darren said the sport is reasonable for your age, and it makes the right noises, if you saw pictures of darrens you wouldn't tell the difference [unless he still hasn't changed the bonnet] between it and a turbo.

And Darren how the hell have you managed to get 4yrs NCB!!!!!:eek: , i felt very uncomfortable with your driving, was it luck!!!!:lol1:

Cracking first car, shame it's not a face lift, but wouldn't take much to convert.

From what you've said if you get a WRX your going to manage 1yrs driving before having to sell it, seriously £4K+, you'd need your head examining if you paid that, and the only way you can pay this is with the proceeds of you selling a £5k car, how are you expecting to pay the year after? This is why you find so many sporty 1yr old hatchbacks on the market, your 18-20s buy these cars with the years free insurance then when renewal time comes round they can't afford it.

And well done, you can ride a crosser quickly, didn't realise that was the same as driving a car.

Seriously listen to what people are saying, i wanted a scoob when i was 20, but i wasn't paying over £1500, i waited till 25 and got a Type R, you appreciate it a hell of a lot more. Good luck.

As others have already said paying more for insurance cover than the car is worth would be total lunacy imho.

There are plenty of other options available that would give you the same buzz as driving a wrx or sti.

A lot of the younger drivers seem to favour the likes of;
Toyota Starlet/Glanza as they are a small engined (1.3 turbocharged) and you'll save yourself a few quid in running costs & road tax over the year.
Or may be a Daihatsu Charade GTTI, Peugeot 106 GTI/Rallye?
With a little tweaking they can be huge fun to drive and properly modded would keep up with a standard impreza up to 60/80 ish.

I'd save your money for now, build up the no claims in the knowledge you'll be paying a lot less to keep it insured when you can afford to buy something better than a high mileage ****ter for >£3k.

If you really must have a scoob you might be lucky enough to pick up an early 90's Legacy Turbo with sensible mileage for the same sorta money. TPFT insurance should be cheaper as it’s an older car, less desirable to thieves etc...etc.

mikecardiff is right tbh, im just going to see what happens from now on then but its made me consider buying one now. Well thanks for the replies, will let you know what i end up doing. wez

Mate,

Firstly, welcome to SN!

Secondly, for the budget you have for the car, and considering the insurance costs, I really wouldn't! A major service on a older WRX will cost over a quarter of the car's value!! A WRX impot of the age you'd be looking at will need TLC and consumables replacing: a clutch change on a scooby takes 4 hours, as an example. These cars can be cheap to buy, but they are NOT cheap to run. I think this would be financial suicide for you by the sounds of it mate.

Take my advice. Keep the clio, get a few years NCB under your belt and come back to scoobies when you're 21.

Untill then spend the money on the important things at your age: Beer and pussy! ;) :D

Don't bother with the Sport models; there are better cars for the money.

Also, don't be tempted to try the old, insure the car on your dad's policy as a named driver. It's illegal!

Ns04

have to agree with Ns04 in this one

and the insurance only last for a year, next year your still gonna be well over the 2k mark.

i know the feeling of wanting a car and how much it eats at you, imagine owning one you loved then being without for 8 months :o, it hurts.

i realy think you should have a long hard think about it, running cost on an older car are gonna be big, you can expect to need to chenge the suspension, clutch, cam belts, brake pads, brake disks etc etc and its not a cheap car to run in any stretch.

my advice would be if you want a scoob that bad then go for a 2.0 awd sport, its not gonna be turbo power, but it'll be a step up from the clio, you'll have a scoob and also the insurance wont be totaly stupid.

I can second that.

I've got an M reg WRX import. Last March I got it serviced and it cost £860. That didn't even include the brakes.

Then a coil pack went. £160

Then the engine coolant temp sensor. £165

Now i'm looking at a lambda sensor. £80

Not to mention I had to replace the alarm, cos the other one got wet. £600

And i'm still riding around with the brakes, the mechanic described as "Jesus, you've been giving this car some haven't you?".

The rust inside the discs has melted!


Subaru's, ESPCIALLY OLD ONE's, are by no means 'cheap' to own cars.

so for example, if i did buy a 1996 subaru WRX, millage around 60k ish if possible for £2000 - £3000, whats common in old age subarus to go wrong and also cost for it being fixed. Like a lot are saying, i can afford to buy one and just about insure it but the running costs after could be a problem. Im only thinking about it and i need real scooby owners like people on here to advise me which you are doing. Obviously my dad isnt too impressed, he loves them himself but hes sayin the maintenance after i have had it a few months could become a problem.

Unless you find a minter, which is unlikely for your price range, you'll probbaly need any or all of the following:

Full service £600 (The timing belt interval is every 45k miles)
- Mine was £860, £360 for the timing belt parts alone as some of the pulleys needed replacing.
Tyres (after a few months) around £80 a corner?
- if they don't need replacing when you buy it!
Clutch, £??? (Mine had a exeddy uprated fitted before i bought it)
Coil Packs can go, about £250 to get all 4 replaced
Lambda, £80 - £220 (For a subaru part)
Brakes, dare I say £400 all round?

I only know the prices of the things i've had doen, as outlined in my above post.

Seriously, these older cars do take money to maintain.

If you don't mind me asking, how much do you earn a month?

Im 18 and drive a 300 bhp impreza,1 yrs no claims
insurance £3500 fully comp (very expensive) it can be done,but u dnt have much cash spare

In my experience -
Tyres £80+ a corner every 12-15k
Front brakes pads £100 every 15-20k
Clutch at 57k was £400+
Fuel was 23mpg or less
Service every 7.5k £120-£450 depending on type of service.
Mods ££££££££££££££££££££££ - because you will want to.
I earn towards £30k a year and still live with my parents, and the Scoob was still a fair dent in my wages. :D

Rough costs of a few simple things that have needed doing on my 98 car :

MOT - needed new discs and pads all round, plus a few odds and sods - came to £700.

Oil seal on the engine went - not a major problem but can happen any time on an older car. Bad thing is that if it happens the belts need changing, cost for the job was over £600.

If you buy a car that needs a major service, which is quite likely as a lot of the cheap cars are ones people are getting rid of becuase they dont want to pay for it, budget for at least £600.

Then look at the price of tyres compared to your Clio, top quality engine oil, you'll also need to run it on super unleaded, and the mpg is pretty low even if driven sensibly.

And the risk with getting a cheap Impreza is that it will be an import with no real history, possibly had a couple of owners in the last couple of years who havent maintained it properly, and could well be on the verge of something seriosu going wrong.

So if you look at the figures, you could very easily spend a third or half the cars value in the first year just keeping it on the road if a couple of small repairs need doing.

Personally I would quite like an older Ferrari - I can afford to buy the car, but the servicing, running costs and insurance are so high that it would be stupid to do it.

you have a pm!!

Would definetly recommend against a subaru of that value! Last thing you want is one thats gonna cause you problems straight away. They are reliable cars if you buy one that's been very well looked after...if they do go wrong it will be very expensive.

I'm 20 and I would say at least wait a while. The difference in my driving in just 3 years on the roads has changed dramatically. I'm a motorsport enthusiast myself and growing up I just loved anything with wheels...first mountain bikes, then trials, motocross and karting. My first year and a half on the roads was insane...driving to the absolute limits of grip, my cars bouncing round corners sideways etc. Never had any serious incidents, but from what i've learned so far, your own car control is the least of your worries, its the unexpected things that happen...tractors pulling out in front of you etc, or other people overtaking. Anyway am not tryin to lecture as i'm only 20 myself :lol1: , but driving a 1.2 on the limit is fine and if a situation arises where u have to stop suddenly it can be done as your not travelling at a very high speed anyway....But imagine goin round a gradual blind bend on the limit of grip, left foot on the brake in an impreza and theres someone just pulling out they're drive not far from the exit....it doesnt bare thinking about. :(

I finally get a quick road car and I dont drive it fast :lol1:

Sorry for boring you all.

Alan

If you really want cheap insurance and have a old relative with full no claims who trusts your driving then there is a way.

Buy a run around, lowest insurace group possible. Then insure this with CIS, they offer the clause that you can drive any car not owned by you with 3rd party liability only providing you have the owners permission (every other company I tried said I had to be 25 for this condition, even then some did not offer it).
Now you have cheap insurance and can drive any car not owned by you legally, with the owners permission, 3rd party only.

Get you relative to own and insure the scooby (if they are a good driver and reasonably old living in a decent area this will be under £300, car now covered for theft) and your free to drive it whenever they give their permission according to the law.

There are a couple of issues with this, first you have to buy and maintain a second car which is not cheap. Second your only covered 3rd party on the scoob which means if you crash it they wont pay a penny for your car.

I don't personally like this way of doing it, and many on here will argue this type of thing is the reason premiums are so high.

I'd say in defence of doing this, I have never had a crash since passing my test at 18 (6 years ago), driven a subaru for 3 and a half years and probably done about 100k miles in that time. I consider myself a safe driver and take great care in urban area's and on busy/wet/cold roads.

The real reason insurance premiums are high is two fold. First people who drive uninsured dont get locked up and as such continue to offend, crashing stolen cars pushing the law abiding's premiums up. Second people are allowed to pass the driving test way too easily. If it takes 10 times to pass you should not be behind the wheel of a car. I'd personally suggest you get 2 shots at it initially, then you should only be able to take it once a year. If you can't mug it up for that your dangerous.

I'd also suggest a choice to anyone caught without insurace. A £10k fine or a genuine year in prison. There is no excuse for not having insurance.

I'm as fed up with paying stupid insurance as everyone else, unfortunately untill we drum the law breakers and idiots off the roads we'll get clovered for their inability to stop having crashes.

As I said, its a stupid way of going about things, but its legal providing you have the owners permission and it means I can drive my relatives subaru from time to time and not have to pay the £4k insurace I was quoted 3 years ago. Paid £3k in insurace for both cars between me and a relative and its probably cost me about £500 a year to run a cheapo car about with a £800 purchase cost. Overall I'm about £7.5k better off now and legally insured on the subaru so even if I do total it, Ill still be up. Stupid but thats the way the police and insurance companies have cooked it up between them.

mines a fairly modded wrx wagon import, im 22 now. i got it when i was 21 and im paying £2000 fully comp with the AA. ive got 3 yrs ncb and 1 speeding fine. i waited for a while first. not as long as others though. it was a shock how fast it was, scared the shat outa me. id previously owned a 1.1 106 and then a 1.9td transporter (mopeds were seriously faster. definately get more driving experience.

Who are you insured with?

I didnt say you couldnt drive mate but there is a big difference between a corsa/saxo which is what most majority 17 year olds drive to a wrx but if you do decide to get a sport is it really worth moding it all to make it look like a wrx/sti because that will bump up your insurence also.

My Nephew is 18 and he keeps asking me to take him out so he can learn to drive in it :eek2: Cause he really loves the cars so I know why you are trying your best to get one.

I forgot.. try adding your dad or mum to your insurence if they drive it will knock the premium down by 100 quid. :wonder:

I wish you all the best. :thumb:

That person in the renewal thread sounds like a very smart and upstanding gentleman… :thumb:

1st of all mate just because we are young does not make us straight forward bad drivers, tbh I have probably got worse in the last few years as my confidence with the car has grown and as the mods have been added I have become more of a racing driver in my mind and probably not in my ability.

You have to ask your self would you be happy with a slower model and then changing it in a few years time or even modding it as I did with my WRX which sometime this year will be a STI eater :norty: . Or would you be better saving your money and then in a few years time getting a real Scooby ???? don’t think there is a right or wrong way to go, would I have been better waiting and getting an sti , ??? Am I glad I have had the enjoyment of my car 4 2 years , easy one yep…


Good luck with the insurance, give bell a call they sorted me out in year 1 …..

what defines a real scooby then? whether its got a turbo or not its still an Impreza, what makes it less real?

ive got a bug eye scoob...

WRX,

Insured it as TPFT last year when i was 22

That was with a CD 10 and SP30, 7 points in total.

£1500, admiral

Mark.