Hi,

Am about to convert from my second beloved Honda Civic VTi in to a Subaru. Have decided against the Escort Cosworth I have always dreamed of due to the money needed to find a good one. Also decided against an Evo due to their unreliability and huge running costs as found by two of my friends.

I am sorry if these questions have been asked 1000 times, but I would like thelp advice on the following;

I have around 12k to spend on a car and am unsure whether to go for a UK car on an X plate with 30,000 miles or an Imported STi.

I would like the car to have minimum 240bhp and an exhaust which accentuates the burble of the engine. Ideally I dont want one that does 2mpg and requires mega money to keep on the road. Instead, I would like it warrantied and covered for big potential problems.

I would also like to think that the car I choose will not loose its value like a brick or require a mortgage to insure or replace parts on.

Any help or advice appreciated

Ta DJH

You should find RB5WR's soon to be in the 12k band. For that you get a limited edition (1 of 156wr's) UK spec model that has approx 245-250 BHP on tap as standard. Add a decat downpipe and you will get more burble and approx 255-260 BHP. Unless the current owner has extended the warrenty you will be unlikely to get the Subaru extended warrenty. If you buy from a dealer that won't be selling them at 13k.

If your not fussed about the grey paint and seats you can get a V-X reg MY99/00 with PPP for less than above with the same engine spec.

With the STi's you get more power, more insurance, more fun but make sure it is checked out by someone in the know as there have been a few recent posts about engines going bang, not to say the UK's don't. Subaru dealers will not service the STI's you will be looking at.

Good Luck

A_must_read_for_all_newbies .
JDM (Japanese Domestic Market) cars need to be ran on SUL or Optimax with the addition of octane booster, as the octane in Japan is much higher than the UK, also a lot of UK Subaru dealers are not so keen to support Japanese imports.
I would suggest you go for an UK turbo with PPP (Prodrive Performance Pack), this puts the car to the BHP you want and has a performance zhaust (and MPG can be better than standard), not the loudest one on the market but makes the burble sound more noticeable.
PPP is a recognised Subaru mod so won’t void any warranty left on the car. All other mods really depend on how nice your dealer is.
Insurance and running costs depends on age and luck among other things, but they are not the cheapest cars to run. It’s all relative.
Cheers.
Ian.


[Edited by HELLOM8 - 8/27/2003 4:24:15 PM]

Funnily enough, was looking at an RB5 as I read they are the best UK car prior to the bug eye Scoob STi and except from the P1.

Do any companies do good third party warranties on UK or Jap Scoobs?

How much would I be looking to pay for a S/T WRX STi 4 door Impreza? Also, where do you guys find decent insurance premiums for Imprezas?