RE: Subaru Impreza WRX STI Type UK: PH Fleet
Discussion
beanoir said:
I've had mine (2005 Sti Widetrack) for just about a year, bought as a winter hack to get me through the winter months when the M5 was snowed-in. It's been mildly modified and dynoed at 349bhp, but only the engine with the rest standard.
I've had some pretty quick cars, several S3s, super-sonic barges, Porsches etc, but I never expected to be quite as taken by the 'scooby as I have been. Its very quick off the mark granted it runs out of puff a bit past legal speeds but on a country b-road I don't think i've had a faster car.
Oh and i'm 40 year old fund manager with a full head of hair and a svelte 10 stone - stereotypes my arse!
Same exact spec as mine, looks amazing.I've had some pretty quick cars, several S3s, super-sonic barges, Porsches etc, but I never expected to be quite as taken by the 'scooby as I have been. Its very quick off the mark granted it runs out of puff a bit past legal speeds but on a country b-road I don't think i've had a faster car.
Oh and i'm 40 year old fund manager with a full head of hair and a svelte 10 stone - stereotypes my arse!
Edited by beanoir on Monday 6th May 20:43
What exhaust is that? RCM, Milltek?
yonex said:
Is there a safe bet Impreza, all I hear about are engine woes with them?
Sounds like you need a buying guide: https://www.pistonheads.com/features/ph-buying-gui...
You'll always hear horror stories or come across a minority of cases but overall as others have said, the 2.0 is supposed to be pretty solid. Apart from the gearbox which has weak synchros as I've discovered, but more on that next time...
The 2.5 has the reputation for being made of chocolate but then everyone I've spoken to that has had one has never had an issue. Ultimately I don't think you can go wrong with any classic/bug/blob/hawk – just look at where values are going on the classics. I'm pretty sure it was only three years ago you could get a 60K mile P1 for around £12K, now you're looking closer to £20K!
alorotom said:
Almost every Impreza I see (old and new) seems to be driven by bald/shaved head, overweight, tattood yobs - the image they portray is really bad
Pleased I never bought an STi blob eye back in 2006ish
Bald: checkPleased I never bought an STi blob eye back in 2006ish
Weight: 66kg
Yob: was when it was new /barrister by trade now
Most subaru's I see these days are driven by middle aged men, occasionally see a monster hat wearing yob vaping out the window but I think most of them moved onto Fords.
I had a look at a few non DCCD STI's before getting a heavily modified 350bhp Blobeye Wagon and I don't think the extra outlay for the STI justifies the cost with the price as there's simply too large a discrepancy.
Despite people stating that the 6 speed was bulletproof back in the day 15 years later just like any other high mileage gearbox there's going to be issues, two of the STI's I had a look at where on their second gearbox, you can pick up a five speed working gearbox for £200 whereas the 6 speeds start at 10x that!
mlcgd21 said:
I don't understand how some people say the PPP STI doesn't feel 300 hp fast, if anything it feels even more than that, because of the way it delivers its power. Before the Subaru I had a mk7 Golf R, now I also have a new Audi RS3 and a BMW 1M, and the Subaru feels at least as fast as the RS3, even if it isn't. I dynoed it at 302 hp.
The PPP map gets on the boost quite gradually compared to other remaps (gearbox sympathy?) and so doesn't hit you in the back like some other remaps.I had a look at a few non DCCD STI's before getting a heavily modified 350bhp Blobeye Wagon and I don't think the extra outlay for the STI justifies the cost with the price as there's simply too large a discrepancy.
Despite people stating that the 6 speed was bulletproof back in the day 15 years later just like any other high mileage gearbox there's going to be issues, two of the STI's I had a look at where on their second gearbox, you can pick up a five speed working gearbox for £200 whereas the 6 speeds start at 10x that!
Always wanted one of these but, with doing 18k+ a year, it's very hard to justify currently. It's a car I fear I might miss the boat with.
Riiiiiiiigghhhhhttt. I really don't understand why people are so bothered by what other people may think of them. So you might get a disapproving glance from the odd person, who cares? You're compromising your life in order to please people who will have forgotten you even exist 30 seconds after you've driven by. The only person that is losing in that case is you.
alorotom said:
Almost every Impreza I see (old and new) seems to be driven by bald/shaved head, overweight, tattood yobs - the image they portray is really bad
Pleased I never bought an STi blob eye back in 2006ish
You're pleased you've missed out on one of the most iconic cars of the last two decades, because of the image of a percentage of people who own them?Pleased I never bought an STi blob eye back in 2006ish
Riiiiiiiigghhhhhttt. I really don't understand why people are so bothered by what other people may think of them. So you might get a disapproving glance from the odd person, who cares? You're compromising your life in order to please people who will have forgotten you even exist 30 seconds after you've driven by. The only person that is losing in that case is you.
On the subject of cost I had an identical model, save for the body and wheel colour, to Ben's for a couple of years and had no issues other than a slipping clutch due to running more horsepower. Costs other than fuel was £4,311 over 28,000 miles. I averaged 28 MPG over that time with well over 30 on long trips and around 24 otherwise. Mine had a full Milltek, fuel pump and EUC remap so was pretty healthy.
Terrific cars if treated well but they do cost money for the larger services and big jobs like the clutch.
Terrific cars if treated well but they do cost money for the larger services and big jobs like the clutch.
Edited by Ved on Tuesday 7th May 13:53
Ved said:
On the subject of cost I had an identical model, save for the body and wheel colour, to Ben's for a couple of years and had no issues other than a slipping clutch due to running more horsepower. Costs other than fuel was £4,311 over 28,000 miles. I averaged 28 MPG over that time with well over 30 on long trips and around 24 otherwise. Mine had a full Milltek, fuel pump and EUC remap so was pretty healthy.
Terrific cars if treated well but they do cost money for the larger services and big jobs like the clutch.
For the performance I'd say the servicing is pretty reasonable – a clutch change on an Impreza is no more than what you'd pay on an Audi TT. OEM discs and pads are about the same cost as my old Megane; same for tax and insurance too.Terrific cars if treated well but they do cost money for the larger services and big jobs like the clutch.
Scoobyworld servicing guide is handy to see what needs changing, when and how much: http://scoobyworld.co.uk/catalog/subaru-servicing-...
Don't think I've ever got out of the 20s in MPG terms though
I had a black a 03 STI ppp. A very enjoyable car because it sounded great even stationary thanks to miltek exhaust. Debadged and despoilered it and to the non initiated it was almost stealth. Pros - ppp map wasnt great and it dynoed at around 280 then remap and ran 326. Really planted when coming out of 2nd gear corners, great seats, solid feeling gear change and rapid as hell off the line. Downsides drank fuel, paint was soft and bird poo would eat through in a matter of hours, turning circle rubbish, steering heavy (well compared to S3) cassette player ice hmmm. Wish I had modded it to 400. Would I like another - oh yes but not going to happen. Ideal setup would be twin scroll engine into wagon body with Sti gearbox and about 450 horses.
I had a Hawkeye (with forged pistons) and it got some proper abuse over my 2 years of ownership a good few track days and not a single thing went wrong with it. Not sure I’d have another as a daily though as the seats are hard and uncomfortable on any decent length trip, mine had lowered springs and the 18” rb320 wheels and was a stiff ride but was an apsolute hoot to drive down a nice road.
I found it always felt really fast as all the power came in one lump and with not much sound insulation could hear everything going on, went to a c63 after with 100+bhp and had to be going much faster in that or staring at the speedo for it to feel fast, much better daily drive though.
I found it always felt really fast as all the power came in one lump and with not much sound insulation could hear everything going on, went to a c63 after with 100+bhp and had to be going much faster in that or staring at the speedo for it to feel fast, much better daily drive though.
Just wondering for anyone who might have owned the non-STI or WRX models, how do the 'normal' versions of the impreza fair in terms of handling, reliability etc?? I'm curious about the impreza as it's something different to having a normal hatchback. also potentially cheaper to run.
this goes for that area of 4door cars and the newer 5door hatchbacks.
this goes for that area of 4door cars and the newer 5door hatchbacks.
ambuletz said:
Just wondering for anyone who might have owned the non-STI or WRX models, how do the 'normal' versions of the impreza fair in terms of handling, reliability etc?? I'm curious about the impreza as it's something different to having a normal hatchback. also potentially cheaper to run.
this goes for that area of 4door cars and the newer 5door hatchbacks.
Extremely reliable, but slow and heavy on fuel for the performance. They’re still permanent AWD after all. Make great runabouts in the winter though.this goes for that area of 4door cars and the newer 5door hatchbacks.
The P1 is lovely car but not without it's engine issues which are quite well documented. If it has had a rebuild or a proper remap it should be fine though. They didn't originally cope well with UK fuel and apparently had octane boosting pellets which when ran out made the engines det. The JDM STi type-R comes with the dccd which is lacking from the P1.
The WR1 is nice but more expensive than a 2005 STi Widetrack whilst being not quite as good.
The WR1 is nice but more expensive than a 2005 STi Widetrack whilst being not quite as good.
Edited by anonymous-user on Tuesday 7th May 20:23
yonex said:
SidewaysSi said:
You need a Spec C RA mate. Would make a cracking daily...
I would get one if I didn't need more space so it's a Forester STI for me.
What about the WR1 or P1? I would get one if I didn't need more space so it's a Forester STI for me.
It’s got me interested now.
https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/subaru/imprez...
https://www.evo.co.uk/subaru/impreza/6488/subaru-i...
The Japanese seem to keep the hardcore stuff for themselves so I would be tempted to import something special instead.
I always thought the Lancer was a lot more interesting than the UK Imprezas but that RA looks cracking.
ambuletz said:
Just wondering for anyone who might have owned the non-STI or WRX models, how do the 'normal' versions of the impreza fair in terms of handling, reliability etc?? I'm curious about the impreza as it's something different to having a normal hatchback. also potentially cheaper to run.
this goes for that area of 4door cars and the newer 5door hatchbacks.
I've owned 4 Imprezas, starting from about 1999 I think, so obviously I'm a fan.this goes for that area of 4door cars and the newer 5door hatchbacks.
In terms of handling, the boxer engine has quite a good, low center of gravity, and its handling is setup to understeer, which is meant to be a safer bet than perhaps neutral or oversteer should things get a little "excitable". That's easily dialled out through sway bar swap should you be so inclined, and is not expensive at all.
As for reliability, Subaru have a great reputation for reliability, PROVIDING, they are treated to regular servicing, and with a degree of mechanical sympathy. Dumping the clutch at high revs will see problems sooner rather than later with an AWD car built to a price. Lets not forget, this isn't a Porsche Turbo that cost considerably more, is made from higher spec materials, and which will take seemingly endless abuse.
In saying that, you did mention non-sti or wrx models. The 6 speed sti gearbox is ridiculously strong. Many Time Attack cars having several hundred bhp still use the standard boxes, though I appreciate as they chase bigger results, these too get swapped out.
Coming back to the more normal, non performance oriented models, I'll simply say this; farmers love Subarus for a reason. They never break.
MDMA . said:
rossub said:
MDMA . said:
Spec C Type RA Hawkeye.
Curious.... is that because you own one?Spec for the blob RA is very similar to the later hawkeye with one important difference: 66% rear bias on the centre diff versus 59% on the hawkeye. Gives the blob a more entertaining feel which is noticeable on the road.
For this reason alone if choosing a classic I’d always pick a Type R or STi RA (DCCD with 66% rear bias) versus a P1 with the 50:50 centre diff.
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