kitch

Howdy!

I`ve presently got a WRX 53 plate impreza, had it for a grand total of five weeks.

What i`m thinking of doing is going for more power via uprated exhaust remap etc... at a cost of £1500 to £2000.

Would i be better TRYING to sell my wrx and with the £2000 i`ve got, putting it towards an STI of similar age?

What to do???

Advice appreciated.

Cheers
Mike

EVOLUTION

cant see you getting an STI of the same age as yours even with the 2k mate.


Im trying to get rid of my MY05 WRX PPP for £14,000 and im getting no interest at all, might be asking to much but my guess is is that theres no market for them at the moment.


Ad get it remapped if all i had was the 2K to spend


john

The Trooper 1815

iTrader: (31)

http://www.powerstation.org.uk/subaru_tuning.asp

Do this instead. STi figures for less than PPP.

Alan C

Mike.. I agree completely with Blue Dragoon.. your £1.5- £2k is probably best spent at a quality outfit getting it to STI power.. a little more and you can get a good handling kit too which will make a massive difference...

You may not have seen my T20 yet.. but Powerstation are the best around.

Catch me at the End of month meet and I'll show you around the car and explain their setup...

Tuts

A good exhaust and remap will see you pushing 280/280. Better than a standard sti. Yes you dont get the other bits etc etc but it is cheaper. Maybe some handling and brake mods later. With a remap the wrx box is probably better for everyday use as you aren't stirring it as much. Later on a turbo swap and you are well over 300. Just beware if you end up chasing huge power

I haven't got loads of driving time in newage stis but I think for an everyday car for a bit of motorway and everything else a wrx with exhaust and remap and a few choice handling mods really takes some beating.

Sure it isn't going to be as quick as a modded sti but then it is a more flexible car for less money. Also with the above mods a wrx can easily have more than 300/300, just see what people have done on here. Unless you are going to track the thing I bet a well sorted wrx is an easy match for a tuned sti.

N*UFO

Sorry but I can not quite agree here! lol..... Just taking my 03 STI PPP as an example, It is a very docile beast when the wifes driving, off boost it really does drive like any other car,On motorways it cursies effortlessly at all speeds and the ride is really rather good for a car with thin tyres and hard suspension, it is as good some other cars i have had, But it also has the big brakes and the neck wrenching performance when you want it! , It has I believe stronger engine and gearbox internals allowing much more tuning potential, just My thoughts............


Edited to say, The STI has the looks as well, if you like them or not is another matter!

pippyrips

only the jdm stis got the uprated internals at this age i think

RLE

iTrader: (2)

N*UFO

I kinda see where Tuts is coming from. The WRX does seem to be a little easier to live with day to day than an STi. I have a 53 plate sti (albeit modified now ppp > tsl 333 > diy mod route now running 18G turbo etc) and I must admit I doubt I could drive it day in day out to work even when it was standard. If I had to I suppose I'd soon get used to it but there are days when it grates on me.........strange but true.

You only have to look at AndyF project in the Scooby magazine a few months ago. Even his stage one mods showed that his WRX would give an Sti a clean pair of heels.........I'll try and root out my old copy if I still have it. May be of some use to you Kitch.

Certainly prefer the looks of the STI over the WRX.

Tuts

The uprated internals don't matter anyway, they only matter above 350bhp or more. The gearbox doesn't matter either for the same reason and the ratios are actually better suited to the torque.

If you are spending big bucks then an sti would be a better start but we are talking on a budget.

The other point is the neck wrenching performance......

I think you would be surprised how a lightly modded newage wrx can easily match an sti on the road unless the sti has had serious money thrown at it.

Remember just because an sti is fractionally quicker round a track means nothing on the road.

As far as acceleration goes a modded wrx can easily be sub 5s to 60 and overall the 5speed box and lighter weight mean it will out accelerate a standard or even ppp sti.

Some basic handling and brake mods will sort the rest for not much money and then you have a very quick a to b car for a lot less money than an sti.

Yes granted I prefer the sti looks but that is easily sorted too. If you add up the money you might spend modding a wrx you might just, and I mean just, be able to afford a standard sti. You would then have to spend more money on it to make it a better and faster car than the modded wrx.

ade_sti

iTrader: (2)

I would sell it and buy an STi as long as you are going to keet it standard. If you mod the WRX the mods will be worth not much when you come to sell. However a standard Sti is a standard Sti - people always want to upgrade to an Sti, WRX too comman.

Also better seats, looks - the wing - much better brakes, suspesion, gear box - it is just a better package and a bit special - only my opinion- good luck Ade

rob84

iTrader: (5)

sell the wrx and get an sti great car use mine as an every day car the prodrive short throw gear linkage took some getting used to kept missing gears but it great have also been told th engine internals can take more than the wrx version so more scope to upgrade power

Tuts

Depends on your definition of better!

As people keep saying the internals will take more power but does it matter?

Are you going to above 350?

Yes the mods won't make the car worth any more but you can always sell them. Look at how many get sold on here.

kitch

Well guys thanks for your advice, its all food for thought.

I do use the car most days for getting to work, so ease of use is a must.

I`ve already spent on uprated discs, pads, braided hoses and 5.1 dot fluid from scoobyclinic, the next upgrade is/was going to be ARB and droplinks.

Then next month its crunch time weather or not i go for exhaust and remap.

Cheers
Mike

Trap2Terrorist

iTrader: (3)

I chose to go down the WRX route when I bought my bugeye WRX 18 months ago. I've had it mapped and had Eibach springs fitted and am well chuffed with how much more enjoyable (and drivable) the car is.

The main things that sometimes make me consider selling up are:
- Brembo's fitted as standard (very expensive WRX upgrade @ ~£600 2nd hand)
- STi interior (I like the bright blue STi seats and cards)
- 6-speed box
- DCCD (only on JDM's IIRC)
- I/C spray

Final thought:- if I were to change my WRX to an STi, I'd go for a JDM.

RLE

iTrader: (2)

All very good points above.
Must say when my car was mapped via TSL (333 pack) I was in the process of buying bits to add more power to the sti. Dave (corradoboy) took me out in his wrx ppp on some back roads. Despite there being some 70 bhp difference between the cars there is no doubt his WRX would have left my car standing. Driver ability apart it was a very quick point to point car. I probably could have had the run on the straights but quite frankly I'd have never have been close enough after the first corner to be in such a position.
What was the secret? Well chosen suspension mods in particular AST coilovers.

The WRX made such an impression on me I shelved all ideas to upgrade the power and bought the Whiteline goodies and AST coilovers. £1400.00 very well spent in the end. Power upgrades went back on the list after six months or so and I now have a very capable car (certainly 360 plus) but yet again these came at a cost (circa £2.3k)

Usability has not been comprimised Kitch-its a daily runner. However I just enjoy the relative simplicity of the mrs Ford at times (especially when I'm sat in traffic).

Insurance a factor to consider?

kitch

Insurance is not much of a problem (i`m 31 with full no-claims)

Think i`ll stick with the wrx and start with the mods/upgrades.
The car itself is a nice example, it was standard when i bought it so its begging for more power (or is that me )

So it looks like its off to scoobyclinic

RLE

iTrader: (2)

the very best of luck mate. You might want to put a bit extra to the side as I'm sure once you start the ball rolling it will be hard to stop!

briforbes

If I were you I would make the ARB, droplinks and any other suspension modification you may have planned a priority.

I have a JDM STI and although it is very quick, wanted more power. I fitted the Whiteline ARB and solid droplinks, and was amazed at how much quicker this made the car point to point. Cornering is so much better, and the car is now quicker in real terms than if I'd thrown money at the engine. Might be worth trying this first then upping the power to match the transformed handling?

terzo204

I must say that i am impressed that Scoobynet if finally recognising the fact that more power doesnt necesserally mean a better car and that the handling of a car is just as important as BHP.

Big gold star to you all.

GazTheHat

Yes, get the STi. It's not just the power increase that will be worth the extra money.

Worst case scenerio is you keep the WRX, spend the £2k and then you're still not happy. There's some bargains around ATM, even a STi for £13,000 in the for sale section.

Be quick!! (it's not mine).

(Then you can spend £1500 on the credit card, making the STi a rocket ship!)

pippyrips

[QUOTE=Tuts]The uprated internals don't matter anyway, they only matter above 350bhp or more. The gearbox doesn't matter either for the same reason and the ratios are actually better suited to the torque.

If you are spending big bucks then an sti would be a better start but we are talking on a budget.
QUOTE]

you can pick up jdm sti's at good prices these days. my 04 is running 350 bhp with little modding (milltek system and tek3) so for me the internals give me peice of mind - you also get much more on top. i started with a uk300 wrx with ppp - it made a good first scooby but ultimately i wanted more in every department hence why i got the sti. in the long run it would have been cheaper to ge the sti in the first place!

As trap2 said - if you do go down the sti route you get much more for your money with a jdm

Tuts

Yes I know all about jdm and all that but the point here is to illustrate to a uk wrx owner that for not very much money he can have something that is a match for an sti without having to sell up and swap cars. Just trying to dispell the myth that only stis are worth having.

Awd Chaddy

RLE

Any chance of sending me a copy of the article? If so can send you my e-mail address. Cheers!

kitch

Yeah that info would be interesting, try and send it through if you could

RLE

iTrader: (2)

Will have a look for the article guys. Can't remeber whether I gave away my copy of the magazine to a newbie on here. It was in one of the last last issue (6 or 7 cant quite remember). Had a bit on Harveys headers in there as well.

AndyF might still have the blurb if you mail him?

RMA26

Was that the one I gave you back buddy?