sasman

Drove the 7 the other day for about 170 miles mostly over twisty's in Devon, great roads and really wanted to like the car, but it just left me knackered out. I know you can't drive flat out all the time but I do about 20k a year mostly on these roads, "not for work just fun". I'd say the car is slightly faster than a standared WRX but it only had 2k on it so that will improve, on the motorway fine just slightly harder, in town no problem but going quickly on B roads it was a handful, the front diff spoilt it in my opinion dragging me all over the place, it was probably 5% faster than the WRX but 5 times more likely to end up in a ditch. I'm not saying this because i havn't got one, I wanted to order it but it was too much, ok as a second car if you've got a nice ML320 to relax in but every day?. the EVO must be a nightmare. So tell me you get used to it, or maybe the diff on this one was tight, i've driven with a locked diff on rearwheel drive before "no not a banger" so I don't mind it being twitchy, Took me six months to get used to the light "was that deisel" steering, and now they've made it heavy again damnit. The stupid thing is I know I will still get one in the end but does it grow on you if you push it hard. PS. do any of the early STI's have LSD's in them.

Andy W

Personally I find the handling to be a major step forward, Just when I would expect the nose to drift or to spin the inside front, the front diff causes the nose to tuck in and put the power down.
I have only done 500 of the 1000 mile running in so I am still getting used to it but I like it a lot!!!

Just my opinion of course (which might not be worth a terrible lot)

Might be that this car suits my driving style.

Andy

Jeff Wiltshire

I took one out the other day for the first time...and comparing it to my MY00..

1. Brakes are vast improvement (almost as good as my Porsche)
2. Build quality much better
3. Handling was OK but not great
4. Acceleration seemed slightly better but not 'Oh my God' P1 style.
5. Typical Japanese damper set-up ...'jiggled' over every single road imperfection, appeared to have too much dampening and not enough spring rate. The ride quality is aweful.
6. Six speed box is very nice except the spring between 5th & 6th caught me out in the downchange (selected 3rd by mistake).

Overall better than the outgoing model but doesn't make me want to part with any money. IMHO of course.

Jeff Wiltshire

Double post

[Edited by Jeff Wiltshire - 3/14/2002 9:44:09 PM]

KenG

Mine has just passed the 3K mark after a 400m round trip today, a mixture of motorway and A/B roads. Suspension is certainly better than my MY00 with Prodrive Eibach/Bilstein (which I always regarded as the dog's dangly bits) and certainly less tiring on long journeys. Of course the seats are way, way much better for any journey, long or short.

I personally find it handles the bumps well, including my pet hate, those plastic speedbumps found in some service areas and supermarket carparks. I don't find the ride particularly 'jiggly' except at very slow speeds on badly surfaced or cobbled roads, but that applied to my last two Scoobs as well.

I am not convinced about the Bridgestones, and when they need replacing it will be with Toyos. It is my only gripe so far.

Ken

wilf

Sasman,

Sounds like for many scoob owners your review is a reason to buy a new STi over the MY01 WRX.

I like the MY01 WRX but found it slightly too soft and easy to drive fast. IMHO ride is a bit floaty and steering needs more weight.
If the STi is as raw as you say then it could be just what old scoob owners are looking for.

Dizzy

come on guys hurry up n own one for 12-24months so I can buy it off you at prices I can afford

sasman

I know what your saying Wilf, I had a 00 for a day and it is more raw, but that front diff is a handful, The tyres complained even if you took a corner 10mph slower than the car was capable of which makes the limits a bit hard to find, although a day isnt nearly long enough. does anyone drive there's quickly on B's or are you all still running them in.

pwebb

glad I'm not the only one to find the ride hard/nervous on b roads and that the sti is hard to drive quickly - requiring a lot of concentration + effort. Sure you could live with it and those seats are nice - but it aint a relaxing way to get from a to b quickly - I'm not sure that I would want every journey to be a challenge. I too drove a very new + tight(300 miles)example and will probably try one again when it is more run-in - the power was a bit absent as a result...I don't mind a car being raw if it has mental power like older jap spec stis - the new sti7 needs more urge to justify the poor ride and heavy handling. Meanwhile I will stick with what I have thanks

Paul W

Trout...

After getting out of my STi V I thought the STi VII was very composed and compliant - certainly felt softer than the V. Overall I liked the chassis a lot.

In terms of tiredness - when I first got the STi V a trip of 100 miles would make me feel like I had just gone ten rounds with Tyson, well maybe Bruno - but you get used to it. We are talking high performance cars here - if you want comfort and relaxation with pace - buy a Mercedes.

Trout

PS I am an old fart as well and still want the rawness!

sasman

That's exactly the point pwebb i'd by it if it was a rocket but it's not, i doubt it's any faster than the WRX 5%, perhaps when run in and if not i'll have to try a ppp'ed, decated when there available. 320 gi gi's should make it worth while and more of a steed than an excitable pony .

Dave T-S

sasman
I am reliably informed that changing to 18's and decent tyres takes a lot of the sting out of the Suretrac front diff.

I agree with you, it can be a handful accelerating out of bends especially in the wet, but I actually find it entertaining

It makes you respect it, but a lot of them will end up backwards through hedges - but that's not the fault of the car!

A decat makes it fly - i'd say then about 50% faster than a WRX not 5%