Considering a Impreza 2.0 WRX Turbo - Few Questions!
 

First of all I'm new, so hi! :thumb:

I was browsing the internet last night and came across a few lovely examples of a Impreza 2.0 WRX Turbo. Standard, 2003 model, 40k miles, FSH for £5.5k which seems like a good deal to me! I don't know much about them, how reliable are they? (pretty decent I'm guessing), anything in particular to look out for?

I currently have a 2.0L Honda Prelude, which I average about 29-30MPG (about £68 to fill and 340 miles). I'm happy paying that on fuel and don't really want to pay much more if possible! I know MPG shouldn't be my first concern if buying a Scooby, but I want to know how much it would cost me. According to autotrader, the combined MPG is 30.9 (the same as autotrader says for my Prelude). Now if that's true, I'd be over the moon! I don't have a heavy right foot either, just would like the odd "spirited" drive when the weathers good!

Cheers,
Steven

Hi Steven,

I have had my 52 plate 2.0 WRX for 3 weeks and am over the moon with it, especially since I added the Milltek Exhaust :D
When driving normally - and I mean normally as opposed to like a granny - I am seeing 32mpg, though obviously this can dip when the foot hits the floor.

Mine is a 52 wagon with FSH and 80k and I paid £2.7k from a dealer and it is in fantastic condition

Good luck with the purchase ;)

It's relatively low mileage is a bonus but in the current climate (their prices are dropping like a stone!), I'd say around £4.5k would be a good deal if you can get them down to that.

For the petrol, you're looking at more like 250-280 but you can hit 300+ depending on the routes you drive and how you drive it.

32mpg? That's pretty decent, I would be happy if I could get that!

I doubt they would knock £1k off it to be honest, maybe a few hundred if I'm lucky. 250-280 is a bit lower than I was hoping for. How much is that to fill a tank?

Hi Steven :luxhello:

Ive got a 2003 wrx, same as your looking at. costs me nearly £70 to fill up with Tesco 99 and normally average 250ish miles to a tank with mainly town driving, ive got 300 to a tank but only with motorway driving.

As said if you start getting heavy with your right foot then the needle drops like a stone, ive gone through a full tank in less than 150 miles whilst out on a spirited drive. I'm sure its possible to get that figure lower aswell.

But i like to think of it as smiles per gallon :D

In that case I wouldn't say that it would be a bargain (and there are most likely better deals around) but if you're happy with the price you pay and the car you get then that's all that counts!

It would be around £65-£70 to fill the tank and as I say you can get higher if you're not doing town driving and take it steady, but in reality 250-280 is a good estimate to go on.

my mate has just payed 6.7k for a 2003 sti so a wrx should be around 4 - 4.5k and i payed 6k for my 2005 wrx wagon 20 months ago so 5.5k is expensive unless it has some goodies i;e its a sl or is a ppp if its a standard one i would leave it theres loads about there a wr1 going on here for 6.5k if you can stretch to it

About the same here.
Stage 1 WRX with 280bhp - motorway driving I see maybe 300 max but generally between 220-250 depending on how I drive it. To be honest I got the same mileage out of it before the mods so it hasn't made much difference to me - fuel wise it's NOT a cheap car to run, but parts and service wise I find it cheaper than my old Toyota, and 10x cheaper than some of my German chariot driving colleagues at work!

If you do buy a PPP don't pay much more than the standard car as on a WRX all you're getting is a backbox and a samco-esque Y pipe hose on the intercooler - some have been known to not make anywhere near the power the 260 ish bhp they're supposed to.

If you're thinking of modding I'd advise if you can afford it - save and get an STI as you get better suspension, brakes and engine for starters (including the less fragile 6 speed).

I used to average between 19-25mpg in my 03 wrx when I had it, can't see how you can get a lot better than that tbh, my my05 jdm sti is very similar although not as good on a run due to lower gearing,

I was hoping it wouldn't be as low as that. What kind of driving style was that from?

My Prelude doesn't cost me anything at the moment, and a WRX would be about £125p/m for 4 years, which is relativity cheap. I was just hoping the MPG would be the same. I love the look of them and the power, but 19-25MPG would kill me :confused:

Just to Put it in perspective, I've got a 97 classic, I do town driving all the time and have to admit I put my lead boot on a few times in a week, I get about 18 to 20 mpg. It's shocking, but it's the price you pay for that lovely noise that comes out the back end.

Personally If I could go back I would have saved a bit more and got an STI.

You can get approaching 30mpg on a steady run but nearer 20mpg with short journeys and around town so depends on your mix of driving but don't think you will average near 30mpg unless all your driving is cruising on the motorway. Best to be realistic now rather than regret it later. I was lucky never had a car that does more than 26mpg so am used to it but must be a shock to people moving from family cars to scoobs.

very dear that for a 2003 impreza someone the other day let his go for 2850 :( very cheap i sold mine for that and it was 51 plate

If MPG is a concern, have you ever considered a sport? Alright so you don't get the same burble but it really, really doesn't sound bad. I'm not sure what the MPG would be as I can't drive mine for another 6 months due to insurance restrictions and being too young.. but according to AutoTrader it'd be 40mpg combined. Plus you can change the exhaust for a.. louder one.. official Subaru too :)

You said you liked the look of them.. which is has got (Minus the scoop but hey, you can add that!) and the power.. it's no slouch at 160bhp but not exactly "Ohhh sh*t" throw back in your seat fast either. But then, what could you get that's like that for the MPG you're looking for anyway?

http://is01.thegumtree.com/image/big/54683645.jpg

Just a suggestion.

There will always be cheap cars for sale but from my experience you get what you pay for and I would rather pay more for a warranted car from a dealer or one with better history. I learnt the hard way a few years ago and will never buy at the bottom of the Market again. I got £5500 for my wrx about 7 months ago so maybe knock 1k off that would be a good price for a car in good condition and history and maybe a touch more from a main dealer with history and warranty. I defo wouldn't look at a sub 3k car as there must be a reason for it to be that cheap

there wasnt nowt wrong with it just coudnt sell it like me its a buyers market tbh:(

IIRC i think the proper PPP should include different backbox and centre cat pipe, silicone Y-peice, sports cat downpipe and different ECU map.... so not a bad add on over a standard tbh, altho I agree i wouldnt go paying huge amounts more for it.

According the autotrader the combined MPG of the sport is only 1MPG more than the turbo, so guess which one I'd rather have :D

I love the looks because it's not your ordinary car, just like my Preludes a bit different as well. Need to think if it's going to be too juicy for me or not, but I do love them and I DO want one! :wonder:

First thing I would be doing pal is getting insurance quotes, See if you are willing to pay the stupidly overpriced premium on that 1st, If your worried about MPG i seriously wouldnt bother buying one, truthfully ppl always say they're thirsty cars....its an understatement!
I use mine as a daily driver to and from work dont boost it cos by the time its warm enough im at work! lol and I only drive round town at night if i NEED to ha cos i know its gonna cost me £20 at least...put it this way i put £20 of vpower in on sunday and its due some more tommorrow, great you might think but ive only done 49 miles! Dont get me wrong im not moaning about it cos i f**kin love the thing, but it WILL cost alot to run
lee

Thanks Lee. Hopefully insurance wouldn't be too bad, I'm 22 with a a couple of years no claims, I'll do a few checks though!

Wow, £20 for 50 miles is terrible! Guess that's what you pay for the fun factor though. I can't think of any alternative cars, with similar specs for the same sort of money!

Oooo you're right, it does say that. Blow me down. I mis-remembered it and thought it was the Urban.. my.. that's interesting. Oh well!

The insurance would be less at least! Heh.

I can see which one you'd go for though, I have to wait till I'm outta me teens (and mid-way to 30 it would seem) before I even consider a Turbo.. oh and the gal. WRX or a loving girlfriend?

No brainer, she ain't got a turbo.

Quite happy with the fuel consumption on my 03 WRX.
I went on holiday last week with some friends down the south coast, and both started off with 3/4 tank of petrol in our cars and our fuel gauges matched each others for the week we were away. So driven sensibly the scoob was as economical as the BMW 316 that my mate was driving (guessing they both have similar size tank).

Doesn't include the down pipe mate - you're thinking of an STI PPP.

I don't think it includes a centre decat either, think its backbox and resonator only on the WRX. Isn't this on the Subaru site somewhere?

Just to clarify, the PPP map is a generic Prodrive map so whilst an improvement, it's never going to get the best out of your car - I didn't mean it to sound like it was standard :).

I used to own a wrx before upgrading to STI and whilst petrol was expensive it was well worth it,on a good day i got around 250-300miles per tank, in STi now am lucky to get 200 ! smiles per mile as people keep saying, however i did later regret not having forked out the coin for the better STI in the 1st place, just a thought
Ps insurance was only another £105 so nothing major, they both expensive cars anyways

Steven @ 22 i suspect your insurance will be £1k+. I never had a new age but i used to spend a fair bit of time on the motorway gently cruising in my uk classic at 80 ish and i was happy if i got 27mpg. In the weeks where i wasn't on the m'ways i would average 23mpg (these are calculated figures not a trip computer so are real). I never really had a heavy foot and only really had a blast here and there.
The fuel is a lot for these cars but in my experience the tyres, servicing and brakes was the real financial drain. Fook - i miss mine :D

I have a 2005 wrx running at 285 bhp and get 330 miles per tank on my fortnightly run to the south coast. This is often sitting at 90+. If I have a mad half hour in her though I almost see the needle going down before my eyes !! The fact is that all cars drink heavily when your foot is down hard, believe me it's worth every penny though !! I too would check on the insurance first though as this won't be cheap at 22 with only 2 years ncb.

I've nudged 330 driving like a vicar out of tank. 2005 wrx sl.

reality is the petrol station attendant will become yr best friend.

yr looking at very low 20's all the time for urban/town.

get on a decent run, it'll slightly improve.

given the price of fuel: and increasing insurance: purchasing the car is a doddle: actually running is the issue.

i'm an older driver and I'm failing to see the enjoyment of the cost of running it now and I have other normal cars.

its prob ok if yr at home with parents and have a lot of disposable cash, but depends if you have rent/mortage to pay etc.

having said that, awesome car- tonnes of fun. get some ins quotes and factor in annual servicing, tyres, road tax and see if it works for you.

Same here. Still get similar consumption now with 2.1 stroker and 345 bhp:D

Just thought I'd add, the one I've been looking at is a Impreza 2.0l WRX AWD Turbo. I don't know what the AWD stands for but it seems to show a higher MPG on autotrader than a momal WRX; 30.7 compared to 27.

Can anyone confirm this?