Looking to get an STI Hawkeye
 

Hi Everyone,

I looked around for a newbie forum but couldn't find one so apologies if this is in the wrong forum :thumb:

I currently have an Evo 8 FQ300 and will be getting my first Scooby very soon - an STI Hawkeye.

Are there any tips or problems to look out for with the Hawkeyes? Anyone have one for sale (Looking for a standard-ish car for under £10,000)

Thanks :)
Russell

Dont do it unless its jdm spec or a forged 2.5 ,aint worth the trouble

The 2.5 engine is sh1te

Never had a problem with my 2.5.... 130k and still going strong :thumb:

Go for a 2.0 JDM matey...............

Check for banging from shot rear dampers and as has been said try and go for a 2.0 JDM or Forged 2.5

As above the 2.5 engine will be nothing but trouble unless your lucky. The 2.0 has much stronger internals.

Thanks everyone for the advice so far. Would £10,000 stretch to either a JDM 2.0 or a forged 2.5?

I'd like to keep the car pretty standard to be honest and won't be doing any big engine mods so would the 2.5 be reliable enough on standard power or is it just a crap motor?

ta

The ideal car would be one modded sensibly already.

My STi was a Spec D so has leather seats and black interior with tasteful Crystal Grey paintwork.

I've put the rear wings on, and the front fog lights have standard STi covers but working lights beneath. Under the bonnet lives an Alan Jeffery rebuilt forged 2.5 with standard tune. It's ready for 500+ but runs standard turbo/intercooler and Ecutek RACEROM so you have standard mapping (slightly leaner for economy) and a high boost for fun.

Under the car is a set of BC Racing ER coilovers, 6/5 long travel with helper springs for a very adjustable plush ride, and Whiteline rear 22mm ARB, anti dive kit and rack bushes.

Altogether, looks like a standard STi and is way better in every form you can think.

All you need to do is convince me to sell it.........

Sorry, you beat me to it. The 2.5's main problem is the car doesn't like full on action, and really doesn't like overboost or remapping to higher boost. The HG is not bad, but the stretch bolts on the heads do just that and lift the heads to cause HG failure.

Fundementally, it's not a competition engine. The block is semi-closed deck and stiff enough for most tuning, except really heavy duty work.

A Standard car will unfortunately do it's head gasket if you try track days as the stress is too much for them.

Is this just with the hawk eyes, or is it with earlier models too ?

Wow the jdm lovers and 2.0 purists strike again. Ok I appreciate and it's commonly known that the 2.5 suffers with reliability issues but it's not the end of the world. I've had 2.5's and they have been fine, there are plenty of owners out there who have tens of thousands of miles on their 2.5's and they are still going strong. Treated right they are a great lump for the road. Loads of low down grunt and drive ability as an every day car. Go for one but go for one with open eyes, if you can find a forged one then a bonus for you but I wouldn't let it be the be all and end all.

Remember no one will pop up posts about how reliable and rest their 2.5 is but you will hear every single horror story but half of them won't be 100% honest how it went pop, higher boost settings, run nd ragged to death etc andI am very aware of the failure issues

Like I said, mine's been great and over 130k now. Has even done 4 laps of the 'Ring and a 3000 mile Euro trip :D

Thanks everyone for the advice - although it seems a JDM STI is above my budget based on prices on Pistonheads :(. I also think it could potentially be overkill for the amount of use it will get.

I think I've seen your car for sale somewhere, was really impressed by the mileage! My evo's covered 107,000 miles but your car's got that well and truly beat :)

My 2.5 Spec D STi is on 28k and still going strong - should bloody well think so too!! Other than a very slight ticking sound on the passenger bank at tickover, she's lovely. Completely factory standard car.

I'm not sure what the noise is, could be injectors, or maybe that's just how some of them are, but it drives brilliantly and pulls like a train.

So for me personally, I can't fault the 2.5 engine. I've had it for about 6 months / 7k miles now.

I agree. There is little difference between the base JDM STi and the UK model except for the engine. I've long listened to people harp on about these cars as if we're all stupid for driving UK ones and I'm a bit fed up of it.

You can get a really nice spec Hawkeye for that money. A well run and well maintained UK should be fine. Unfortunately my hawk had been abused by the previous owner and I had problems with that car so make sure you get a car with a good history. Long service intervals or service gaps = walk away.

If you want a more special car then you can either upgrade a UK car with JDM special edition spec parts (some of them have some lovely suspension mods as standard) and get a forged engine build or try and find an import somewhere. Both options will cost a lot and don't really offer much more unless you drive the car hard.

Just a thought by the way. Having owned the bug, blob and hawk though my favourite was the DCCD Blobeye model. You may be able to get more for your cash if you shop around. I felt the Hawk rode a bit too harshly especially on RE070s and had something of a split personality compared with the blob which seemed more focussed.

^^^^

Yes those Bridgestone RE070's spell serious tramlining.
My Toyo T1 R's have stopped tramlining by 99% but could do with stiffer walls - little bit more body roll on those.

Not sure if I'll get them again for the Spec D.

Yup the "purists" strike again, but if you think its just the engine that makes the difference (well it really does, its an amazing engine to start with ;)) but that is only part of it, a UK car is close to the JDM but not that close ;) though drive both and you will see which one is the complete package, and its not the UK car, the thought of having an engine that can end up leaving you with a 2-3k bill because of engine failures isnt a nice thought and even if you forge the 2.5 you either just upgrade the basics or spend a fortune strenghtening the block whilst your at it (big money) and as the engine is pretty much the main part of the car, it is a big point (2ltr twin scrolls are amazing units :D) the 2.5 on the other hand just isnt as nice and its one unit I dont want to end up with in a car.

Tony:)

Yeah they do those RE070s interesting how you've said the same thing.

After I first picked up my car (which was a Spec D PPP by the way) I was surprised at how it could snap if being pushed on less than ideal roads when the bugeye wouldn't have. Great tyres for the track maybe but probably verging a tad towards the extreme.

I had some Cooper CS6s on mine after that I liked quite a lot as they were a good all weather compromise. However having run some Toyo T1 Sports (which are a little stiffer on the side walls but not silly) on my Blob I'd say they were my favourite and most likely what I'll plump for when these Michelin PS3s wear out.

Its a trade off, it happens to any tyre with a stiff side wall, you trade a bit of ride for more grip/better handling, plus RE070's only seem to tramline when they have low tread (newer versions seem better than the originals, im on set number 3 now and they are no where near as bad as the ones from back in 2004), I wouldnt run anything else in the summer (though the Pirelli's that were on the car tramlined worse than any RE070 I ever had :lol1: )

Tony:D

What Pirelli's were they?

P Zero Nero's

Tony:)

I run P-Zero Asimmetricos on mine and find them fantastic.

Yeah mine's on here and PH but I think the mileage scares folk off, which is a shame.

I actually bought it with the thinking that the leather interior would be awesome (it is) and the car would make a great base for a big bhp engine build due to it being way cheaper than a non Spec -D STi.

Unfortunately a series of events meant we were no longer going to have the money to do that so it hasn't happened :(

Tony sorry mate but I have had both jdm and UK newage cars so have the same experience as you and yours is a valid point and opinion but I prefer the drive of the UK cars and there are a few of us out there that will say it to. I think I'm just one of few that will stand up against you jdm purists. To say that they are better end of is wrong, I listened to you guys bought one and sold it after a six months as I found the power very linear and dare I say it but dull don't get me wrong very quick and capable but it didn't do it for me hence why I sold it.

To the OP test drive them both and see what you prefer but for me the low down grunt of the 2.5 is great

Oh but I do agree with the Pirelli's they are by far the worst tyre if ever had. Horrible in the damp or wet

Having owned a UK Hawkeye WRX (ok it wasn't an STi) and a Blobeye Spec C I would have to say that for just a normal drive that the 2.5 engine is the better option, plenty of low down torque and effortless acceleration.

I had mine remapped by Bob Rawle and the remap seemed to free up the engine and made it far more pleasurable to drive and it made for a very good car indeed.

As I now own a Blobeye Spec C I think that the gearing is better for outright acceleration and the twin scroll setup makes for a more focussed driving experience, point to point the UK STi and JDM STi are totally different in how they drive and how they are meant to be driven.

I never had a moments problem from my UK Hawkeye, but I must be in the smallest minority known to man as I had to have my Spec C engine due to head gasket failure caused by the nearside head lifting under boost due to the head bolts stretching.

I think you can get problems with any car and they can all fail, perhaps I was just unlucky but test drive a UK STi Hawkeye (preferably one with a forged engine build) and then a JDM STi Hawekeye or Blobeye (might be closer to your budget) then see what you think I don't think you'll be disappointed with either. :)

After reading a few of your post's including the one claiming to have driven an R205 in the UK it sounds to me that you wanted a JDM couldn't get a JDM so decided to put JDM parts on at a later date from reading a few of your post's and are trying very hard to convince yourself that it is the best route to take for everyone else! :brickwall

No one's mentioned THE reason to go JDM though...














They have...













A rear windscreen wiper!

And a red hazard switch :)

+1 Steve and Cannon Fodder.

Osimabu you also forgot the folding wingmirrors that also come as standard on the JDM cars lol.

You've gone a bit personal and got me quite wrong there Imy. I'm in a very different and hugely more powerful financial position to fourteen months ago but I would have and could have stretched to a JDM car at the time if it had blown me away (it didn't) and I didn't feel like considering an R205 when I came to buying in September even if I do like the under spoiler and exclusivity kudos a lot. It's not your car I'm counting as the one I've driven by the way, you'd be surprised what fleetingly makes appearances on our shores of European ownership. I may be mistaken but I believe there to be an S206 in the Channel Islands.

Over the last twelve months I turned down the opportunity to buy three JDM cars as well as a Hawkeye Type 25 and hatch Type 20 in favour of a UK model because I felt that the major reason for buying a JDM-based model would be the twin scroll engine which I'm not actually that fussed about. I actually think the 2.0 twin scroll doesn't feel as quick as the UK engine and unless you're going to track it I think that the usable road performance doesn't differ so much. Another problem for me is that with some of the JDM cars the interior is pretty awful.

Despite the apparent oversupply of unsold Cosworths it actually took me over two months to find someone who would sell me a delivery mileage car that I could come and see on the day I put down the deposit, rather than someone advertising it without having bought it off IM.

Having said that the JDM cars are very nice and I'm a huge fan of some of the bits on them even quite gay things like the pink battery brace. Hence the reason I'm adding them to my car and will take much delight in doing so to improve (or unimprove) it further. But there are many parts of my car that are better than a stock R205 and I reckon mine is a better package and base for my project. Hence the reason not everyone might want to go JDM and we're certainly not daft for buying UK cars.