rhys_1992

hi all im currently looking in to buying a scooby classic. what are the main problems to look out for thank you

Brun

Sport? Turbo? Uk car? Import?, WRX? STi?

Biggest problem by far is the running costs.

What's your budget?

rhys_1992

turbo hopefully a uk car, but will buy a import if need be. will have a budget of 1500 that will be saced and added to till i find one i like

Brun

Yikes - how many miles will you be doing per year as £1500 could easily be wiped out in a matter of months just running one.

rhys_1992

not to many as i have a daily driver for work etc. budget will go up if i dont find one will save until i find one i like.

User 21721

Rust is a common issue on classics aswell and are quite common at that budget. At that price the imports usually have been fettled with and carrysecrets odder secrets with them whereas the UK specs are usually standard, most high mileage but most are still mechanically sound. You will obviously get the wear and tear that you would with a 15+ year car and things like bushes, joints, shocks will need replacing. Don't expect a high spec car as I would be suspicious if there was an Impreza with "low mileage" "forged engine" "running xxxbhp" etc. If it seems too good to be true it usually is.

Look for a UK car if I was you as the majority of the time they can be trusted more and feel free to post a link up of which ever one you are interested in. Or look for a near standard import that has been looked after and check things such as service history, MOTs, etc.

Hope this helps.

Regards,

Subaru Collector 555.

rhys_1992

spot on mate i know japanese cas suffer with rust quiet bad, will defo look for a uk model. thank you for the advice really helpful

rscustom

Hi, UK cars rust just as bad. Rear arches can be shocking tbh. Often worse than it looks at first glance. It's not cheap to put right either if you want it doing correctly. Not sure I agree with the very high running costs, regular oil changes and the rest is just standard consumables you replace with most older cars. I have 2 classics but only use the one. It's just a weekend fun car and has been utterly reliable in the 12 months I have owned. Highest running cost is fuel but you have to be prepared for that. I average around 28 mpg with mixed driving.

Just check for the rust first and then go from there.

ditchmyster

iTrader: (7)

At the very least i'd say double your budget, it will save you money in the long run.

Tidgy

with ditch on this one, budget needs to be double to get a semi decent one, clasic prices are going upwards now rather than down.

Bear in mind your talking 13 year old + car now and it's not a bmw/merc/german with mega build quality so expect to see things like replaced engines, gearbox's etc etc

Gear Head

iTrader: (2)

As above. £1500 will buy a very rough/old Impreza.

Wait, save, buy right and enjoy. You cannot do Impreza's on a budget!

Rob669

BMW and Mercs are shocking for rust. I looked at several 330 oil burners before I found my MY00 UK Classic turbo and the German cars were newer and in much worse condition than the Subaru. I paid over £2000 for mine that's 18 months ago and it had main dealer FSH with a milage of about 78,000.

poolio74

Bottom line is classics have well had there day. They were the best imprezas by far. i.e Best looking and quicker.

But nowadays the vast majority are rotting away.

Its a shame but the facts are the facts

poolio74

I agree with the E46 beemers! I gave up trying to find one that wasn't rusty!

tim61uk

Ive just spent £2k buying my uk classic meant to have a forged engine but its getting another £1k spent on it to get it right, clutch, brakes, timing belt, water leak and an oil leak hopefully when get it back will feel much better. Think you need to have a bigger budget as said above and rust is the biggy

Pross

iTrader: (3)

I bought an import classic last year for 1250, still going strong.
No rust anywhere.
Pretty much standard apart from 3" exhaust and an induction kit.
Had to replace rear shocks, rear shafts.
Stuck godspeed discs and 4 pots on.
Its an old car, i put with the leaky boot and the draft from the windows, my gf would kill me if I sold it tho

328isport

iTrader: (6)

I'd agree with others that at £1500 you'll probably struggle, but I still think you'll pick up a cracker for under 2.5k if you do your homework and find the right car.

There are still good ones out there, and they are very reliable providing they've been looked after properly, as an example my 2 owner 1997 UK Turbo with 100k on the clock, still has its original engine, turbo, gearbox, dampers.. even the clutch is still the original!!

The main issue for classics as others have said is rust, followed a close second imo by owners not looking after them properly.

Find one with minimal rust issues and preferably a long term owner who's treated the car as his/her pride and joy, and I bet you won't be disappointed.

User 21721

This seems of reasonable value as it is a later model of the classics but also looks like a clean standardish import which is quite rare to find. Especially a Version 5/6 WRX.
http://www.gumtree.com/p/cars-vans-m...wrx/1065110954
It is obviously a bit more than your budget but with a bit of haggling it would probably be worth it IMO.

Regards,

Subaru Collector 555.

bmw730i

I bought an impreza for your sort of money and already it has had another 700 ploughed into it.

but in the few miles I have done in it has rewarded me well, mines at a guess 230 to 250 bhp and doesn't hang around although fwd are what i'm used to, mechanically up to now is spot on could use it as a daily as it drives that well and I drive an e65,mine seems perfect,no fluid loss no clunking/rattling and drives straight apart from the sh*t 2 pot brakes.

If I were where you are now I would of done a few things differently.

1. 4wd turbo is addictive but you must be willing to walk away if anything is not right.

2.Get a my99/00 as these can be mapped through the original ecu ,have 4 pots and a few other bits.

3.Alot of people BS about spec,I would say 60% of extras listed for my car was simply not true,my own fault for not looking/researching properly.

4. Rusty rear arches seem common inner and outer,my outer ones must have been redone as there solid although I haven't dug to deep as of yet so we will see.

5. keep saving and be picky.

Carnut

What does the 1992 mean in rhys_1992? If its age then I would have a look at insurance first if not done so already. If the 1992 is none of my business then carry on.

rhys_1992

cheers for all the advice. ive seen a few around that look ok but will be defo taking my brother with me to have a look. yeah its my age insurance aint a problem can afford the insurance, the wife has tryed to put me off but not happening yeah will defo check for rust made that mistake before yeah would prefer a uk car but not to fussed about having a import. will have to see whats around. whats highest mileage to set a limit at as got a civic coupe thats on 151k and runs like a dream. thank you

Carnut

Good news about the insurance , I was 19 when I got my first scooby and spent most my wage on the insurance mind you it was a few years ago now.

With regards to mileage I assume that people always think about the engine when mileage is mentioned. For me when buying a car I like lower mileage for two reasons, one being the engine of course but what about the rest of the car. Its not just the engine that's done the mileage, its the elec windows, seats,suspension, well everything really.

Brun

I'd sooner take a 100k motorway car over a 50k town car. How you find out where a car has stacked up the miles is the problem!

ditchmyster

iTrader: (7)

Me too, mine belonged to a motor industry engineer who checked write offs so was tooling up and down the motorway for most of the 80k he put on it, before that it was owned by Subaru main dealer now on 105k and in need of some love.

Might be selling soon though.

Carnut

+1, a lot to think about, to be honest I hadn't thought of that. But would have thought that most scoobys wouldn't have been used on motorways.

The Trooper 1815

iTrader: (31)

The problem with Subaru arches are they go from the inside out, combined with the effect it as on the top mounts and £1500 is chicken feed. Check this out.

https://www.scoobynet.com/scoobynet-...-and-rust.html

If I was you I would sit on my stash of cash, build it up and push for a late Bugeye or Blob WRX, these can be had from £3.5 to 4.5K for great examples. And don't be put off by a wagon either.

General costs can look daunting but if your able to accept what you have got, treat it right, don't scimp on quality parts, donate a kidney and sell your children, it will be fine .

As a matter of nosey-ness, how much have you been quoted for Insurance?

rhys_1992

would sell kids before a kidney yeah seen blobeyes going for 2.5k. insurance wise been quoted 157.89 a month fully comp.

poolio74

That's nearly 2k on insurance pal!

Wheres your old man to knock some sense in to you!

rhys_1992

Yeah its not much more than im paying now im paying 130 a month now. I dont rely on my mum or dad to pay insurance, fuel etc. I do it myself have since I started driving and always will.

bmw730i

ha I was the same, 2.5 v6 on L plates that I bought 11 months into a policy and was £360 for the last month which then dropped to £250 a month with full uk and 1 years no claim bonus bonkers.