What Comes after an Impreza??
 

So, unfortunately i am in a situation where i need to sell my beloved STI.

But it got me thinking after you've had something so powerful AND relatively practical, what comes next??!

I'm one of those that can never go backwards. Whilst i would love to have something with the speed and presence of the subaru on the road, i know, that compromise is going to mean getting something ultimately not as engaging.

It's a decision many living with an impreza day to day will likely have to make at some point. But then the question is what comes next? How do you replace a car that is practical as a family saloon but as quick as a high powered sports car?

So what are poeples thoughts. If you had a 10K budget. You had to have a daily driver following an Impreza. What cars would you be looking to buy? Ideally a saloon or a coupe (2+2).

Interested to hear your thoughts.

To give you a thought mine go towards big engined V8s - Audi/BMW. S5/S4? Bmw 550/650/M3?

Anything else?

Im 40. Family of 2. I am not one for hot hatches anymore. So it has to be something "grown" up?

Thanks.

I am thinking of a Cayman s to replace my jdm sti, but still think I will miss the practicality of rear seats, considered an s3 but they are too common, so am still at a loss, problem is the Impreza does everything very well, it's very difficult to find anything.
I may even end up with another jdm but in a hatch, I feel your pain. After ten years of impreza ownership it's very difficult.

Mercedes amg 6.3 or a big comfy 4x4 for me

I had considered mercedes but for the c63 you are way off my 10K budget. Unfortunately my budget won't allow a new car. I have no problems paying the running costs of a c63 or servicing etc. But buying one is just not possible.

I have considered both cayman and 911 as well as the Cayenne if i'm honest.

But yes its hard. Like you say, after owning such a good all rounder its difficult to buy something different that i won't always be comparing.

I had also optioned buying a newer hatch impreza, which i had previous to my STI, and it was much softer than mine. But then i'm not sure i'd be gaining much on the reason i have to sell mine. Though the wife prefers them and she hates my widetrack so that is a win :D

If you're happy with older cars and don't mind wielding a spanner now and again, E46 M3 and E39 M5 are hard to beat for the money. They will throw up from time to time a big bill of course. Or even an older V8 Merc/AMG or 1st-gen Cayenne Turbo, if you're feeling particularly brave. Otherwise as OP suggests a 650i offers a lot of V8ness and probably slightly less risk of bankruptcy.

Not sure what the aversion is to hot hatches, but if a newer car is a pre-requisite and you don't fancy the risk of ///M or AMG sized bork costs, then a Leon Cupra, Megane 250 or even a nice Mk5 GTi ED30 are all within budget and will deliver a superb drive while being a better daily than a GD Impreza. ED30 in particular is eminently tunable.

Or a Forester STi.

What kind of money are you talking about?

For me it it would be the Audi rs3 saloon, 400bhp standard, Would see 500+ with small
modifications and able to transfer all the power to the rear.
(However I'm not in a position to spend that kind of ££)

You might also find an s4 a bit too heavy to throw around compared to an s3!

Another option would be to buy a cheaper daily and make your widetrack better!

EDIT: Have just seen your 10K budget, For that money it's hard to find any performance car that's reliable and reasonably cheap to fix, I have a 2003 BMW e46 330i as a daily (nothing special really) and the money I have had to throw into that has been more than I had anticipated.

An m3 or m5 at that budget will likely need costly repairs! Even if you do fix it yourself.

Only things that interest me are older Mercs for the comfort aspect or an Audi TT Quattro 225 or V6, little bit sporty 4wd with a small amount of practicality and a nice place to be... don't care that they're a bit hairdresser as I'm man enough to pull it off :lol1: :Suspiciou just always liked them... dirt cheap too for some strange reason... considering they share engines etc with the S3. :cuckoo:

l think you should keep the scooby, and buy a "practical holdall" type car. l have an old td4 freelander, you can park it anywhere and go anywhere, and not worry, and it does everything, except fast,.... at 35+mpg, multicar insurance for both, under £500, keep the scooby for the smiles.

Great idea and really wish i could but with the wife already owning the "Family" car. For weekends away we use that and if i'm out with the family we tend to use that bar the occassional jaunt in whatever car i have. So most of my driving time is the commute so there would be little point in keeping the impreza. It woudn't get used and just be a waste.

I love to drive so want / need a car to be fun and engaging for as much as i can drive it, even if it is just my commute. But can't have a anything sports orientated as sometimes it does have t be used for kids. And by sports orientated i meant just 2 seats.

Good car and great engine, nothing wrong with that. Yes design is a bit flowery but christ its not the worst looking car on the road even for a hairdresser.

Make my widetrack better ? If i could keep it that would be the option. It's very nearly there as it is. But i just can't keep it. I really wish i could.

Performance and reliable rarely go hand in hand regardless of value you pay. However for 10k i think i can get some moderate performance items and not risk catastrophy.

I am leaning towards the b7 s4 at the moment. i have read its nose heavy but its a 13 mile commute and the odd drive to wales. i am not going to track it.

To answer the OP's thread question...

An Essex girl lol

I bought a C5 RS6 after selling my 460 BHP classic last year. My wife thinks I'm sensible now driving an estate, but when I'm on my own in the car I can have some serious V8 twin turbo fun. It's totally standard and has 450 BHP and 560 NM and pulls like a train like a Scooby driver could only dream about. Of course my Scoob would leave it miles behind on a twisty road and it's not suitable for a track day but it's great fun and ideal for running the family about when needed.

got rid of my forged newage a few years ago and had a golf r for a couple of years, which has been exceptionally good and faultless for 2 years, refreshing change from the Subaru.


I now have an order for a BMW M140i, for me value for performance wise on a new car its hard to beat, just over £300 per month for a 6 cylinder, RWD 350bhp hot hatch, can get to 400 with just a removeable JB box.


so for peace of mind, warranty, no worry of MOTs for a few years and a good build quality its a no brainer. So its another option to consider if you want a fast car with peace of mind, I do not miss worrying about the Scooby and when it might next go wrong, or need something doing or the constant hassle of map adjustments.

What to replace my T-25 with has been something I've been wondering about for years. Still not come up with an answer even though I rarely drive it these days.

I do enjoy driving my wife's S205 C250 though. Maybe I'm finally too old for the Scoob?

Id love to be able to get one but i don't have the money to buy new at the moment. family life doesn't allow. I do like the 1series hot's though - sticking a 3ltr twin turbo in a 1 series is just mental and i'm glad manufacturers still cater to that kind of thing.

Think at nearly 40 i am the same. I do love the look of new mercs and could happily afford the e350 cdi coupe, hell of a lot of car and comfortable. Just missing that bit of oomph.

I'm in a similar position (and age/family). We've only got one car and thanks to the increasing size of my children the wrx wagon is just a bit too small. Plus with the A14 upgrade I'm spending most of my commute in heavy traffic.
It it's tricky finding something to replace it that's big enough, good to drive and still has presence. While I appreciate the quality and technical design of the VAG/BMW/Mercedes cars they just don't do it for me. I think I'd really miss that boxer rumble.
So I'm looking at something like a nissan stagea, or JDM Legacy. Trouble is they're all at least 10 years old so will still come with an element of risk.

i had COMPLETLEY forgotten about the legacy!! Hmmm, lets see whats out there.

Have a look on the uk legacy forum. Compared to the price of a jdm impreza the Legacy's are really good value.

:thumb::thumb::thumb::norty::norty::norty::D:D:D

https://www.scoobynet.com/members-ga...spec-b-gt.html

http://torque-gt.co.uk/car/subaru-le...-wr-edition-3/

and the normal GT's are about £2 to 1.5K less.

I've seen a really tidy "tuned by STI" model for sale in my budget. Hmmm. That is tempting possibility. Only issue is that it says its had sports suspension from japan - i'm thinking coilovers and i don't want the ride to be ruined, but i'll message him.

Thansk for the infor :luxhello:

Mercedes W211 E55 AMG.

Start from £8k - get a great one for £10k.

A Justy :thumb:

E46 will be as boring as sin, lasted 6 months before i came back

:D

https://www.pistonheads.com/classifi...-coupe/6726148

10K is not a lot of budget on the type of car you know or want, why not spread the cost, rather than spunking 10K in one go on a crappy old shed?

For me I'd be thinking m-lite; BMW 135i/140i/235i/240i £300-400pm on pcp

Something like this maybe :thumb:


http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2005-JDM-S...AAAOSwuMZZNvL8

I guess i don't see 10k as being a small amount of money. I mean 10k is likely more than i am going to have and it was for discussions sake. As 10k would buy you a relatively good impreza. I wouldn't call them a crappy shed at that price.

I think my initial point was that if you had to replace a car after an impreza and needed practicality and performance were there obvious comparisons at the same price range. The simple answer i am reading is no.

You could buy a 13 year old RS6 v8 bi-turbo with circa 130k but its a ticking timebomb.

You could buy a similarly priced EVO but it would be harder to live with than the impreza and even more baron inside.

You could go for an older merc amg - hand built blocks and amazing engines but rust issues and if anything goes wrong its a huge bill.

You could get an e46 M3 - appreciating classic but not as big. not as quick. And worry about subframe dropping out or your vanos going.

So it seems there are cars out there to buy at that price range BUT the impreza ticks more boxes than likely any of them so i'm reading. Then it comes down to what you are willing to compromise on.

I haven't had a car with less than 200bhp since i was 19. I have been driving since i was 17 and that is 20 years now and in that time i've had more cars than years i've been driving and always gone up one way or another. Power and Price.

I've reached a point now where i can't do that. I don't have the money to go up. I've reached what most i think would consider a reasonable place in life and have a decent budget for a used car.

It needs to be able to fit kids. Be fun to drive. Be relatively powerful and not be like every other car on the road as i don't like the point of colour coded rolling prison cells. I want something individual and fun and different.

I could buy new i guess you are right. But 400 a month plus on top a 7K deposit. Plus 3% plus the balloon payment or take the hit on the APR. It isn't sensible. I don't see why anyone does it, never have. Never will. I get what you say, you get everything you want and peace of mind (though id question even that). But who really has 400 a month spare just laying around to spend a car - i'm not knocking anyone that does. But to me and my family that is a months worth of food or 50% of my rent. On a car doing 13 miles a day or 3000 miles a year. i just can't justify it.

Yea i get where you are coming from, but the deposit isn't that high it can be as low as £400-500 for those models and you don't need to worry about the balloon payment if you are willing to swap it for something else at the end of the contract. Horses for courses I guess.