Ash_fletch84

Hi,

I'm looking for some advice of you guys as I don't really know a lot about cars and don't want to get ripped off or taken for a ride when I get a Scooby.
I'm looking to spend between £5500 & £6500 hopefully on a blobeye sti but don't really know what is available to me in this price range. A lot of cars I have seen seem to good to be true. Any advice for a 1st time buyer would be appreciated

Ash

Carnut

Hi buddy, welcome to SN.

For that sort of money any blob sti you can find is probably going to be a bit of a shed, you could get a nice blob wrx but it all depends on what you're plans are. If you like to modify which to be honest most Subaru owners tend to be these day's the wrx isn't the best place to start, at some point down the line you'll wish that you had saved in the first place and got the sti. If left standard or close to then the wrx is a great daily and with some better brakes you would be happy.

What have you had already? If you are used to performance car's then a wrx could be underwhelming, if not you may be quite pleased.

The other route is a classic but same again, what would you want it for, ie daily track or the weekend etc?

LuckyWelshchap

Hi Ash.

Generally this ^^^^^ (inc. the welcome to SN )

Your budget's £5.5K - £6.5K so I guess that you haven't owned anything near to what a Subaru can do.
If that's the case save yourself a few thou and pick up a classic or bug. Once you get used to the performance you can put the money you saved into mods. Give it a year or 2 and that might be enough (with any extra money you save up) to move you up into Blob territory.

Subaru = performance = wanting more performance = money pit.

Gear Head

iTrader: (2)

May be I am an exception to the rule. My WRX is standard apart from a sports decat exhaust system, refurbished alloys in black chrome and rebuilt front calipers with Godspeed stainless steel pistons, Kevlar pads and grooved discs all round.

I have had it for a year, it is my daily driver and I have no plans to modify it.

Despite what a lit of people say (mostly sti owners) the wrx is great all round car once you sort the brakes out, which can be done for £200 if you are handy with the spanners.

I'd much rather get a mint wrx than a ropey sti.

pedrojuan999

iTrader: (1)

if you dont know about cars dont get a scooby...

luketurb

Well the last comment was about as useful as a chocolate piston.

I have owned classics in the past and know about cars and will be helping along his impreza buying journey. As im not 'current' on imprezas, we are trying to decipher the best route to take. It seems WRX is his best bet as I cant see him modding it and he wants a good one.

Hes not fixed on a blob eye, it was just a benchmark to work from.

Any other advice or links to good cars would be appreciated.

Hed Honcho

Where have you been looking? I would avoid ebay. Usually autotrader and pistonheads are the best places to find decent examples.

Either save abit more to get around £8k for a blob eye or for you're current budget look at a classic or a bug eye sti. Although with their age I would imagine classics require a bit more upkeep nowadays.

Carnut

You say hes not fixed on a blob but still think thats the one for a daily, I've had a blob wrx and was left standard, great car's and a real good all rounder, ie comfort performance family car etc.

I don't want to tell you how to suck eggs but in case it wasn't a issue when you were last looking SOME classics are suffering badly from rust, not always visible but from the inside out on the wheel arches.

There are some good standard blob wrx's on autotrader and don't see why you couldn't get a good one via them. The main thing that seems to go on the blobs is suspension, if you know your cars then you should find any issues, if not it's not the most expensive problem to fix.

But as always good fuel and oils.

LuckyWelshchap

Don't forget SN !

luketurb

I think classics are off the agenda to age and this being a daily.

I think his best is a blob eye WRX with exhaust as that will be his best all rounder and get the noise

My choice at his budget would be a bug eye STI or save for blob eye STI.

The thought process of coming on to the forum was to find out what the best car is to get for budget and as a daily runner for someone who likes imprezas but has no real car knowledge. The performance of a WRX I think will be fine for him, but if he can get an STI that would be preferable.

He were also hoping a forum user may have one for sale as we all know an enthusiasts car is the best way to go

(I know im speaking for him, but his car knowledge is poor - sorry to say but im no longer in the impreza fold, i'm well and truly on the dark side)

oliver dufresne

Hey Ash and Luke, welcome to SN.
This forum is highly useful.

I am not a mechanic or good with Cars but have enjoyed 2 blobeyes.
First was WRX wagon, 2nd JDM STI which I have currently.
It is better if you understand the cars workings, but not essential, you do need a good local person though who knows scoobys.

WRX would be a good starter, things that were dissapointing about the one i had was the limited rev band, you could mod it to free it up a bit, mine felt tight. And the shock absorbers loose their lubrication and make a faint knocking noise like somthing is loose, I think you can change them to an aftermarket version, but dont change them and fit standard scooby ones, they all go eventually.
The STI is all together more hardcore, heavy go kart like steering, lower, harder and of course faster.
The STI is our second car so we enjoy it, but we have a Forestor as a family car.
If it is your only car I would also consider the WRX wagon, pretty good allrounder. make sure the Cam belt ha sbeen done recently or allow for that if it hasn't.

Lastly i would say that a scooby is not trouble free motoring, be prepared for that, but they are unique and have many +'s, and after you have had one or two, it is hard to live without them.

ditchmyster

iTrader: (7)

Hi guys and welcome, well you got one thing right coming on here for advice.

With that sort of budget and lack of experience / knowledge I also suggest you point him in the direction of a WRX, you should pick up a nice tidy example for that sort of cash.

I'd avoid modded ones and instead look for one with the Prodrive Performance Pack or PPP as it's commonly known. Ups the power to circa 265bhp then with a slight brake upgrade, a couple of cheap handling mods and a geo set up it will do everything an STI can for a lot less money and he will keep his teeth and kidneys in tact too.

They are a good all-rounder as well as not being too garish. I have the Wagon version as practicality is a necessity for me with my daily driver, but they are a little rarer in PPP Wagon format.

As above, regular oil changes are essential in the service history and just make sure it has decent tyres with plenty of tread and that the brakes are in good condition along with the cambelt being up to date, as that little lot can lead to an expensive bill in the region of £1k if you get hit for it all at once.

Above all i'd say take your time and wait for the right car to come along, don't be too concerned about milage as they wear it well if looked after properly, and as you rightly say an enthusiast owned car is always a better bet, stick around, do a bit of research to bring yourselves up to speed and keep an eye on the for sale section.

Happy hunting.

romford-boy

I'd be tempted to pop in and look at this:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classifi...5500?logcode=p

derek sti

I wouldn't cheshire performance.overpriced.

ditchmyster

iTrader: (7)

Cheshire car sales or is it performance.

Barge and pole springs to mind.

See what I mean about sticking around and doing some research.

ditchmyster

iTrader: (7)

I'd get in touch with this guy if you want a nice enthusiast owned Blob STI.

https://www.scoobynet.com/subaru-444...p-320lbft.html

romford-boy

Lol, I'm sure he will be happy with a WRX

Ash_fletch84

Thanks for all the advice, its a great help

ditchmyster

iTrader: (7)

Yeah then totally contradicted myself by posting a for sale add for a modified STI.

I stand by what I said, but it's a nicely priced enthusiast owned car, I guess there are always exceptions to the rule.

JWalle

I've owned my Hawk WRX for just under a year and it only moves at the weekend sometimes but every time I get in I can't help but grin at the torque. I paid £6500 for mine and over time went full decat with remap to get 270bhp and 365lb/ft with upgraded Godspeed discs and pads.

I know everyone moans about the engine but mines been faultless plus I love the look.

gregwill

iTrader: (1)

Hi mate, with that budget I would be looking for a nice bug sti (prodrive) I had one as my first Scooby and I loved it !!

Personally if you do plan on modding it I wouldn't go for a wrx. You could find a very nice bug sti with your budget and then you wouldn't really need to to much to it. Its just a much better car to start with, more power out the box better brakes ect that's my opinion and what I would do in your situation.

dabiscuit

I sort of wish I had done what this gentleman above suggests. I got an 06 WRX hawk for 5500. 54k on the clock a very clean standard car. Yes it has the dreaded/loved 2.5 block, but it runs really well and I am looking to mod it to about 350bhp then weight reduce it.
I simply prefer the look at the Hawkeye, and you know what it's a blank canvas and it will be me and all me that will have made it into what I want.

BBB3

iTrader: (7)

The SCOOBYNET calculator said that car was brought by Cheshire performance for £3000