Flaps

iTrader: (1)

It is hard to deny that owning an Impreza isn't what it used to be and i'm trying hard to justify keeping my car.

Subaru pulling out of the WRC was the first killer for me, that's why I got in to the brand and why I wanted an Impreza in the first place.

There are very few posts on here (gone are the days where you would see a post in the morning and then find it on page 3/4 later on that same day) and the few cars I see on the road are mostly 'chavved up' ones driven by people who look like they can't afford the insurance.

Fuel, insurance and road tax has gone up. A tank (214 miles) now costs nearly £90 (Optimax was £1.49.9 on Monday), road tax is £460 and no doubt the insurance will have risen too come renewal.

I still think my Hawk STI looks fantastic and drives amazingly but there has got to be a point when ownership begins to make less sense and I think for me that point may be now. Sad to say that i've been looking at the Seat Leon FR and the Mazda 6 Sport, both diesels that I believe would save me an estimated £2200 per year, yet produce reasonable 0-62 times and 500 miles per tank

Is anyone else thinking about getting rid? £2200 is a lot to spend just to be able to say I drive an Impreza is it even that good a thing to say anymore?

When will you say 'enough is enough'?

joz8968

iTrader: (13)

Never!

rich666

Nope lol

Daz89

Sometimes feel like i've had enough, but then I get in it, stick my foot down and find myself justifying the cost haha!

Flaps

iTrader: (1)

Just done some insurance quotes on the other two cars, it's more like £2,500 less over the year in those! That's more than I earn in a month and would be like getting almost getting a £4k increase in my salary!

mestonian

Just sold mine as with commute distance, spending best part of £400 a month on fuel, and the astronomical insurance costs, i'll be saving around £5,000 per year. I do miss the car, but quite frankly my WRX was a 2003 Blob and cost me £3,500 - i was spending £6,000 a year on fuel/insurance alone and that's before upkeep/repairs/tyres/mot/servicing, etc, for a £3,500 car? Didnt make sense to me. I didnt enjoy it enough to justify the costs to be honest. For now i've bought a little diesel megane that's doing the best part of 700 miles to a tank, insurance has gone down by 70%, and repairs are cheap as chips if ever needed and it does exactly the same thing as my impreza did, get me to work and back, albeit in much less style but guess what, at the same speed

MattyB1983

iTrader: (51)

I have moments like this chap. Just a few weeks ago I woke up with the intention of braking my car to try and recoup some money.
The sun was out so took it for a swift drive down some local country roads.

Now spent another £500 on it since then....lol.
Yes they cost alot to own, but hey, we are only here once and life is so very short.

smithy86

i kind of agree with mattyB1983...or if you dont want to sell/break then just buy a cheap run around.im sure most of us could spend the money elsewhere or just **** it up the wall.

type-rob

bob bob bob bob bob bob bob

MalcB

Mine's up for sale . Already got a Seat Leon FR Diesel (170BHP with loads of torque). Good fun to drive as well and 45 - 50 MPG. As you say very few Impreza's around, certainly in these parts. I've only seen 2 in the last 3 weeks

DT-SPD

iTrader: (7)

I agree with what you are saying, it is hard to justify an Impreza.

From my experience of running a Golf TDi 170 ( pretty much same as a Leon FR ) it doesnt compare to a Hawk STi. Yeah they are quick and over 100k miles I averaged 50mpg but the acceleration, grip and noise is way off Hawk STi levels.

This does raise the question of how much performance is needed, I find that outside of deserted roads ( such as Scotland, Wales etc ) I can't really use the power of my Hawk STi and would prefer the 50mpg from a Leon FR.

Difficult decision, not one I want to make at the moment so keeping my head in the sand re. costs.

pooeater

would not dream of running an impreza as a every day car, for me there toys only

sonic93

iTrader: (16)

same as i think like that then i stick a sc40 billet ,gt specs , harvey up pipe, new inlet, injectors and remap lol .
keep thinking about a s2k hmmm cheaper running but insurance hell of alot for what they are. i got van for cheap motoring tho and for work . i do love it but do cost far to much

jayallen

iTrader: (31)

I called it a day after the shed i bought from here! Enough was surely enough...Currently looking at different cars.

GordonC

Man up!

Flaps

iTrader: (1)

Snap! I use mine as my daily drive, It's only 6.5 miles to work and recently I haven't had the opportunity to give it some. It's not very comphy on short drives either

chopperman

Owning an Impreza just for transport reasons makes no sense what so ever. If it's also your hobby and passion it starts to make more sense.
I dont find maintenance that much dearer than it is for most cars and i pay the same insurance i did for a 2001 st24 Mondeo. Mpg is the main issue but i don't do high mileage so it's more a whine than an issue.
I have no plans to ever sell mine even if it ends up sitting in the garage for most of the year.

jayallen

iTrader: (31)

After 7 Imprezas spanning over 12 years its time for another change...

Budgie

iTrader: (4)

So what would you spend the 2.5k a year saving on?
If its disposable income then have what you want and enjoy it
I know I do.
There are a lot of wealthy people in the graveyard

dunx

iTrader: (3)

As they are now worth so little, I'll stick with mine, or a two door maybe...

dunx

P.S. Make's little sense if you are a WRC fan doing high annual mileage.

Micheru

Had a similar discussion with friends.

Why do we drive fast cars? For me it's the feeling of the acceleration, handling, the overall experience. We do things to enjoy ourselves.

Why would I want to save £4k a year on petrol costs? So I could buy something else that gives me enjoyment? Seems two paths to the same place for me. If it got to the point where I couldn't afford my car, I'd be wondering more about how to make more money than how to save it, that's just me though and I realise people are in different situations.

L.J.F

iTrader: (31)

Mine is mainly a garage ornament that comes out when i fancy putting a broad smile across my face. I would be bored and pining for another if I sold up......

Moley

iTrader: (9)

What's the point in earning money if you can't enjoy it.

joz8968

iTrader: (13)

Luckily for me my round trip to/from work is c.11 miles. I prob do only 70-90 miles per week on average. It's my daily transport AND my 'hobby' (sort of).

Hell, The Four Hamsters of the Apocolypse would have to come-a-scampering for me lol, before I even think about considering offloading her... Not after all the dosh sunk into her thus far!

wrx9181

iTrader: (2)

Bit of fun for me
It's a toy and never fails to make me laugh or smile
Yes it's a shame they no longer wrc but maybe the brZ will open a few racing pedigree doors etc as has been given an amazing write up.
I know it's not a 4x4 rally slag , but Subaru dont do that anymore.
It's the way of the world at the moment and we all need to move with the times.
Anyway where's my keys lol

DT-SPD

iTrader: (7)

I agree, mine is weekend toy but even then it's getting hard to justify the costs.

thunder8

iTrader: (1)

Mine was off the road for 5 mths over the winter, but drive it as much as possible ,my other car is a French boring **** heep ,

So I'm not selling mine , and my budget is not that good ,but I still spend on it ,this mth I got a Sti strut brace, aero catches,blacked out crystal lights from mattyb1983 and just ordered the same in side lights

Flaps

iTrader: (1)

It would probably go towards a better house, family holidays and a few cheaper smiles on my face. It would still get spent

Rob Day

iTrader: (78)

Without reading all the replies, Id say if you need to justify the car due to financial reasons then its got to go..... you can always return.

Ive been there with the selling of Subaru thing, Sold one to justify moving to a larger house to help ease the cost of living for the first year whilst work was carried out, but soon returned.

As for Insurance I would speak to Gary (KM) as my quote for this year has to be one of the best yet for me, and apparantly prices are going up.........

Tax is a joke, there is clearly a cut off point at which they rob you for having a younger car (April 2006 is it?), however Ive had a few Impreza's now, none of which have been in the high taxaxtion class.....

Services are all down to who you know IMHO, I trust my mechanic and he is very fair with price and always done a thorough job using the best ingrediants.

Fuel costs is a pain, but again its all down to how you use your car. I do no more than 6k a year so I dont find it too hard on the pocket, plus we have an Oil burning 50mpg family bus which helps. We might as well accept that fuel will soon be at £2.00 a Litre for both Vpower and Diesel soon, so this needs to be factored into your budget too.

If you said to me I could save £2500 per annum with changing to a cheap insurance, cheap tax, higher mpg with basic servicing costs car and be happy driving it then I would be with you, but the reality is I would probably be miserable

I have also worked out the sums for an Oil burning/LPG converted Warrior/pick up with funds also to run a track car, and it doesnt work out very well. I actually got the point of purchasing the Warrior https://www.scoobynet.com/other-marq...ht=Rob+warrior but again it didnt work out for me, it would have cost me more in the short/mid term.

Sorry for rambling

Rob

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

I said over a year ago if I had another problem with the car I was going to sell it. The car is getting new valves, springs and gaskets and I'm still keeping it. Next time its gone