Fonzey

iTrader: (5)

Hello All, new member but I've lurked around these parts on and off for a few years with casual interest. This is half introduction post, but half advice seeking post.

The Subaru Impreza was a bit of a childhood hero for me, and I've got a bit of a Scooby itch that I think it's time to scratch. Im 25y/o now with reasonably cheap monthy outgoings, but I'm looking to move into a larger house last next year/early 2014 so maybe now is the time to have a bit of fun.

My current car is a 2010 60 plate Civic Type R, totally standard but absolutely mint - I'm a bit of a wanabee detailer and seem to spend more time cleaning it than driving it, but I love it.

I've had the car for a year now, I'd intended to keep it for another 6months to a year and think about a move late next summer. I wouldn't say I'm bored with the Civic, it still makes me grin when I get a bit of clear road but I've constantly got a nagging feeling that I could have a lot more car for my money if I went for something a little older.

My preliminary research suggests that I want either a Blobeye or a Hawkeye STI, but the 2.0 engine seems the more popular choice which I think "bullies" me into a blob. I've been informed of the sought after JDM spec blobeyes and I've seen a couple of examples on pistonheads/other forums which do look stunning, and the extra features are definately attractive to me.

As for budget, I think I could maybe push £11,000 when selling my car. I'd happily spend every penny of that on a Subaru but anything under that can be put aside for any hidden costs (I'm a bit paranoid when buying used cars) or maybe some mods.

I'm only doing 70miles per week in my car, so the running costs of an Impreza aren't of too great concern - but the thought of never seeing north of 20mpg still scares me a little bit to be honest I'm currently paying £45p/month on my CTR insurance and a dummy quote for a 2006 Blob STI (standard) came in at £56p/month... so I've got room to spend a bit there if needed. Apparently going JDM will blow the insurance up, but I've not looked into that properly.

I'm torn between wanting to find a really nice tidy one, or a tastefully modded one. There's no question buying pre-modded is more cost effective, but I don't want a 400bhp screaming monster! Just something tidy and lightly modded with plenty of room for further improvements if I feel the need to do so myself.

There seems to be quite a price gulf in the examples that I'm looking at, between 7k and 12k. The 12k ones are mainly obvious, massively modded and 10's of thousands probably thrown into them - but I've seen some very impressive cars struggling to fetch 10k, is there something I'm missing and something which makes these cars sub 9k in value or 11k+?

I'd like any words of encouragement, particularly if anybody has any experience of both the FN2 Civic and an STI Impreza - but I'll also welcome anybody trying to talk me out of it or talk me into trying something else.

I've yet to drive an Impreza, so a local test drive is very high on the priority list.

So yeah, Hello!

blackvenom

You seem to have your " head on" and havent gone head first into it. Yes petrol can be at issue but then again any 'sports' cars have this issue, I would say test drive a few before you buy, I went for a uk car due to insurance but I do regret not getting a jdm special. But I wouldn't be without mine now I have it.

Dan-

as mentioned above! but i can say i have driven quite frequently the Fn2 and ep3 type r that my friends own, i own an 05 blob sti and when i drive the fn2 type r it feels like a 1.2 now serious lack of torque in them! but dont get me wrong i really do like them still

for the type to buy i spent the extra and brought a standard non abused one!

i find the late 04 -05 blobs with dccd seem to hold the money better, i do not regret not going the JDM model mainly being 21 the insurance would have r*ped me but the fact you lose the burble that makes me love the cars so much!

as for hidden costs i may be wrong but i think i read that the 2.5 suffers from head gasket failure so its a good idea to upgrade the head bolts and gasket that costs around £1500-£2000 ?

Hope this helps you slightly Dan

Fonzey

iTrader: (5)

Thanks gents, much appreciated.

Is there a surefire way of identifying DCCD cars? Is it all cars between a specific age or something that would need checking properly? There's a minefield in the FN2 world with finding a car that's got LSD - apparently all 59 plates onwards had it, but it turns out that quite a few didn't... so without going and trying to do donuts on your testdrive, you needed to lookup the VIN with Honda

I've also seen a few Blobs advertised as "Widebody" too, is this something I should be looking out for - and again how identifiable is this from reading a classifieds page?

As I said, I'm happy with my FN2 so I'll spend as long as it takes to find the perfect Scooby

bustaMOVEs

iTrader: (31)

Tbh the jdm and uk models are not too bad if you go with the specialist insurers on here like, Keith micheals, sky, green light etc.
If you get a jdm model you can even get a hawk with the 2ltr engine instead of the poor 2.5 in the uk versions.
The widetracks came out late 2004 I think which is the one to have IMO for revised handling and like you say not all have dccd so check before you buy if that's what you want.
P.s the jdms have cheaper road tax than the uk models too.
Good luck in your find and welcome

Dan-

to sport for the DCCD the easiest way is to check on the speedo clock you will have 6 or so boxes in the middle fuel and temp gauge also down by the handbrake there will be a slide dial, but as far as im aware from 54 all type uk have dccd! and JDM have them from all years!

the widetrack you talk about is again from 54 and have got rear arch extensions fitted with an extra track of about 2" on the rear, makes for a much better handling car

Dan-

all i know about the fn2 which my mate would never shut up about and thats the championship white model he has actually got the lsd, heard about that for about 2 months :P

stedee

iTrader: (4)

jdm all day long. 2litre twin scroll. spec c maybe

bustaMOVEs

iTrader: (31)

Search on here mate, generally has good cars
http://www.hurstcars.co.uk/used-cars

Pramas

grab the s202 from hurst cars if funds allow, awesome car and i think the former owner is on this forum, was well looked afer

bustaMOVEs

iTrader: (31)

Think that sold ages ago, hurst has a habit of leaving cars on there that have sold for some reason I've noticed unless they are back up

juggers

iTrader: (1)

Could of had a hawkeye JDM last week which went for 10k belonging to a member of here was an absolute bargain!

Funny enough the Bodski who bought it couldn't wait to get rid of his FN2

https://www.scoobynet.com/subaru-444...e-wr-blue.html

Fonzey

iTrader: (5)

Aye I've been through the classifieds and there are a few corners I've missed out on recently, just goes to show there are some mega bargains to be had.

I'm going to see about a local test drive I think to make sure that I'm making the right decision, then I can think about selling the FN2. Once I'm confident the FN2 will sell I'll happily trek the UK to find the right Scooby, so all finds suitable to my requirements are welcome in this thread!

Thanks all

seado180

Hello mate,

I had an FN2 back in 2009 for 18 months. Currently running a JDM 2002 bug sit 2.0 twinscroll as a second car.

1. The interior will be a let down from an FN2 - but thats not why your buying the car so no worries there i would say the seats are good at least!

2 You will notice the difference in mpg between the two and frankly this is the sole reason the scoobs are so cheap as people are scared of the mpg. Mind you unless you vtec the hell out of your type r everywhere anyway then maybe not so much so.

3. You will get more people trying to race you than in the FN2.

4. The car is another league in performance terms and easier to make progress as it with the torque of a turbo.

5. The scoob will handle and also ride better than the FN2 (unless you modded it) standard was pretty dire i thought.

Cheers,

Fonzey

iTrader: (5)

Thanks Seado, some nice pointers.

I don't VTEC it that much to be honest, only because my commute doesn't really allow for it (7miles @ 40mph behind a lorry most of the time!). I'm used to 27-29mpg out of the FN2, unless my GF takes it to her parents and comes back with 40mpg on the trip computer?!

I doubt i'm doing more than 5k miles a year though, so ultimately the MPG isn't of great concern.

I'm actually quite a big interior fanboy, so that will hurt a little bit as I love the inside of an FN2. If I can sell the FN2 without dropping it to a silly price though, it might free up some funds for a nice retrim inside a Scoob - something which I'd be more inclined to spend money on rather than alloy wheels or a remap.

ditchmyster

iTrader: (7)

Hi and welcome, if all your doing is pootling then you will easily see 25mpg and more, get a set of gauges boost, oil temp and pressure, keep it off boost and the mpg won't be any worse than the civic, it's on boost where the fuel gets supped, and the lorry you speak of will be no problem in a scooby and the three or four other cars in front of you will be breezed by in a couple of seconds.

As for car choice as mentioned above 05 wide track sti is the one to go for, you should pick up a nice one well under your £11k budget, when you find a car post the link and we will all give you our collective opinion, your doing the right thing in taking your time to find the right car.

Don't be too put off the 2.5 they have a very good torque spread and make for a cracking road car,and if you get one at the right money you can have the head gasket and pistons uprated and run 350/380 bhp all day, they also have longer gears which makes for better motorway cruising mpg.

Have fun looking.

Norman Dog

iTrader: (1)

If you're at all concerned about MPG, don't buy a Subaru.

Unless you're sitting on a Motorway at about 70-80 off boost, you're unlikely to get more than late teens early twenties.

Fonzey

iTrader: (5)

As I said, I don't do enough miles to be worth worried about. Any spirited driving I do is purely pleasure driving, so I don't begrudge paying for it

uk300_kev

iTrader: (2)

Not had an Fn2 but i've owned two ep3's and a dc2. I'm on my second impreza and i have to say the impreza is a much better car and a great all rounder. Not had a single problem in either impreza and the realibilty is right up there with honda.

The scoobs ride is good, but with a few suspension upgrades the handling is transformed and is very good imo (quite a heavy car don't forget) with lot's of grip from the AWD it oozes confidance. Obviously the dc2 was far better in the handling department but the flat 4 in the scoob is just pure win lol.

Mpg may seem ok around the 20mpg mark but once you actually own one and realise how much of a diffrence that makes to the wallet is scary. I average 18-20mpg around town and 25mpg max on a run out. The ctr's are great on fuel compared to an impreza

Fonzey

iTrader: (5)

Thanks again everybody. Nobody has really tried to talk me out of this yet, both here and on the Civic forums I'm on... and I even my girlfriend said I could treat myself to one after passing a certification I've been studying for at work! Anyway, I've got more wall of text for you to all digest.

I've looked at a ton of Scoobies online over the past few days, and I'm starting to think that a (relatively) untouched PPP 2005 STi is what I should be looking for.

As much as I'd love a car with £10k+ of tasteful and skilled modifications or a JDM import - it just seems to limit my options too much both with finding the right car, and then getting the damn thing insured. Annoyingly my CTR insurance is up for renewal on the 2nd of November, and I've renewed already with a company called "Premium Choice" as they happened to be cheapest on that Meerkat whatsit. It turns out (fluke) that they claim to be an import/modification specialist despite my FN2 being standard - so I thought "great", I'll stick a quote in for an imaginary Subaru. For a 2005 PPP with remap it came to over a grand for the year, which is double what I'm paying on the FN2 - other companies are more like 600 quid, so unless I can walk away from a policy mid-term(?) I'm not sure how open my options will be with these guys.

A friend of mine in is a bit of a Scooby nut (a member here I think?(?)) and he's recommended Keith Michaels - so I may speak to KM next week and ask if they can do me any "example" quotes based on common combinations of modifications. They may even be competetive on the FN2, but I think I'm commited with Premium Choice.

Would a standard car be a mistake which I'd live to regret? I highly doubt I'd be throwing big ££ into a car to modify it, would a standard PPP be enough to keep me interested for long enough? I guess nobody can answer that on my behalf. I love my FN2 still after a year, but in hindsight I could have paid the same ££ for one a couple of years older, but had a supercharger bolted onto the front of it!

£8k seems to be the ballpark for a 2005 PPP, so if I can get the £11,500 I'm hoping for on the Civic - that does free up some funds for maybe an exhaust and remap (I need to look into the modification "must haves" for Impreza's to be honest - I've no idea where to start) but I'm a bit of an interior aesthetics tart so maybe a retrim and a fancy double-din head unit would be more likely

My biggest concern now is the market, it's an amazing market to be buying a Scooby but it's not a particularly strong market for selling an FN2 - so I may be stuck with it for some time. I love it too much to drop the price heavily or give it to Webuyanycar (they will give 9.5k for it...) so I won't be rushing into a silly sale.

bustaMOVEs

iTrader: (31)

As your renewal is in nov, why would you renew now? You should cancel it and wait closer to date incase you sell your civic then gives you a good chance to get best quote for Scooby, Keith micheals, sky insurance, greenlight and so on are the people to go for.

As for Ppp, dosent really matter tbh as if you get a totally standard one you can just get a few mods on it for about £1500 and would perform better than ppp.

Fonzey

iTrader: (5)

I didn't expect to be selling my car to be honest so just got the insurance done and over with. I'm going to call them on Monday morning though to see if I can cancel the policy before it starts without being penalised.

Assuming I've still got the FN2 on the 1st of November, I can simply renew last minute online - preferably with a company which won't shaft me for moving to an Impreza.

Fair point on the non-PPP argument, but the PPP cars don't seem to be priced significantly higher than equivelant non-PPP cars, if that makes sense... so surely it would make sense to get the extra performance "for free" and use that as my baseline for modifying, if I choose that route.

bustaMOVEs

iTrader: (31)

I belive you have 14 or 28 days to cancel policy, get insured with the specialists on here like I listed above then come change over you won't get stung, hopefully.

ditchmyster

iTrader: (7)

PPP on an STI is quoted at around 301bhp, a sport cat downpipe or better sill full de-cat and remap should see circa 320/330 bhp and better fuel consumption and drivability.

I'm a fan of PPP because it's a very safe map, but better suited to the WRX as the engine internals are not as strong as the STI forged items, which many run at 450bhp without issue.

Fonzey

iTrader: (5)

Is the remap and exhaust the only addition to the PPP STI's?

It's sounding to me like the PPP isn't really worth paying extra for, as I can get more bang for buck by doing the remap and exhaust seperately, but if I find two identical cars - but one with PPP and one without, there's no drawback going PPP?

uk300_kev

iTrader: (2)

The PPP has the center cat removed/blue intercooler pipe and a upgraded ecu map basically. It does make a diffrence to a std car but a remap/exhaust/panel filter will transform the car dramatically

luke1000

iTrader: (2)

Congrats on going with your heart on this and defying common sense to experience Scooby ownership! Like you I loved the Impreza from the early days; I moved from an EP3 CTR to a 2004 blob STi a few months ago. I've no regrets, despite having to fix the dreaded strut clunk (it was a great excuse to fit coilovers ).

Reliability with the major components is good so far, apart from the strut issues.

MPG is of course rubbish, so be prepared for that. I run mine as a daily driver so it occasionally makes me grimace, but I lose the sour look as soon as I drive off the petrol station forecourt, lol. Also, my car seems to get between 18-22mpg utterly regardless of how I drive it, which practically seems to be an invitation to indulge

Compared to the CTR a standard blob STi will probably not blow you away in terms of pace - in truth it is a little flat *dons flame suit* A lot of what it gains in power over the CTR it loses in extra mass, so while it's definitely quicker it's not hugely so, and point to point over B-roads there won't be much difference at all. PPP helps, but you will almost certainly want to increase the power in the future anyway (happens to everyone it seems) so that might make PPP a somewhat moot point... As you say, it’s a better ‘baseline’, but don’t let its absence influence you too much if you find a good car without it.

You will save yourself a lot of pennies in the long run buying an intelligently modified car; this forum often has some real gems for sale within your budget.

As mentioned above another plan may be to look for a standard or near-standard car. and get some mods done yourself. There are usually a few good Scoobs around £8000-8500, £2000-3000 spent wisely on a standard STi will make for a very impressive car. Budget for coilovers too though

If you've not driven a Scoob yet, handling-wise you should find the standard suspension nicely neutral. The rearward power bias means power-oversteer is possible on corner exits; you can steer the car on the throttle. The downside to all that is they are somewhat prone to lift-off oversteer mid-corner so mind to keep a little throttle on through the apex.

By the way, while the standard Bridgestones are excellent in the dry they have surprisingly low limits in the wet...

Luke

lgtuk

Have you had a test drive yet?

The impreza is a far better car in every sense I drove my mates 59 type r for a week and was shocked how slow it was for the hype and handling wasnt that great either (compaired to the impreza anyway).

You won't look back once you get one also don't be put off by the 2.5 if your not planning to go crazy with the mods it will,be fine I had 2ltr before my current Hawkeye and myself found the 2.5 nicer to drive on the road a lot smoother power delivery and more low down torque I have had a year of trouble free motoring with the 2.5 and I regularly kick its head in

So test drive both and if the high tax of the 2.5 puts you off there are some early ones that avoid it

Good luck with the hunt

pimmo2000

iTrader: (6)

at 25 ? how the **** ?

Fonzey

iTrader: (5)

7 years NCB helps I guess.