You pay your money and take your chance on any car you but. OK buying new or newer the risks should be less and a better car could be had, but even that don't guarentee a good buy.
Take someone with you when you check any car out. Give it good check over, do some ground work before you go to see if there's anything in particular you need to be looking out for. Ask on car specific forums, i was looking at an E46 330i vert a while back and as I was already a member of a BMW forum (had a 325i E36 vert) I asked on there and was promptly warned about chasis tear on the earlier cars

 

I have an e36 M3 evolution and I love it. I've had it on track and I've driven to the tip of Scotland. It's got massive performance for the road and I've owned it for about 7 years, I wouldn't sell it. But then I am building an impreza as a track day toy. It's a completely different animal to the BMW. Personally for a daily driver I'd have the m3 over the impreza as it feels a higher quality product, which it was when it was new. But for a weekend blast, a tuned scooby is hard to ignore. It's horses for courses. But then I also have a tl1000r super bike that I ride everyday, better performance than both of the cars and I don't have to sit in traffic!
Andy.

 

Given it a lot of thought today and I think I am going to hang it out with the WRX. I know the car and so far has lived up to all expectations.

Weighing it up I could stick the wrx up for sale and put another 4-5k towards a luxury motor like the 335 or put 2k into the wrx and have something that will keep up with the 335 and keep me going for a while. I am definitely going to upgrade the head unit to quench my gadget thirst as the interior is sooo bland

I think I will modify and take it to around 80,000 miles then look to part with it. I am also under strict spending for a few months as we are saving for a house deposit so financially it seems the better idea to hold on to the wrx

 

Personally, having read the thread I think you have made the right choice. As much as I love my M3 it is expensive if bits go wrong and they are pretty expensive to modify, especially the M cars. The impreza is much cheaper to modify and repair if things go wrong. Doing things like having the plastic interior parts flocked can make it feel more luxurious as the plastics do feel cheap and aren't tactile as they are.
Andy.

 

Cheers, I'm going to start collecting the parts again then service and map the wrx. Forgot about flocking not sure on the feel is there any other material? I am also deeply considering having the seats covered in leather to be honest

 

You could have a re-trim using alcantara which is the suede material you find in top end sports cars. A leather and alcantara interior could make the inside feel pretty luxurious.

 

hmm good shout, had alcantara in my civic type r, that on the dash would be nice

 

You could probably buy a leather interior cheaper, have one in mine but it's not exactly up to German standards.

 

This is a T shirt I have. First off if you have the cash for a 335i , you don't really need to consider the WRX . The 335i is a very fast car and it has the latest technology. Next to nobody will modify it as its not going to be easy and nobody will pay big money for one with mods. So at this point either go buy a 335i and you will enjoy it and keep your hands clean. Or you buy an Sti and you have a match for it on 0-60 . If like me you don't have a load of cash. Then sure start with the WRX , to get to 330bhp you will need a fuel pump, 550 cc injectors , a bigger turbo (mines a 300$ TD05 16G ) but loads out there or on here , you will need a decat uppipe (safer ) and if you like them a exhaust that flows a bit better. Mines a Prodrive exhaust with a sports Cat. Then you will need a Re-map , Anything above 300bhp you need the larger Turbo below this threshold you can work with just the re-map and some exhaust changes. 280bhp is usually a good target for Exhaust / uppipe/ mapping. Event at 300 bhp you certainly won't be going past a 335i BMW , at 350 bhp you will be level with them and at 400 they are behind you . More important to this is what do the mods cost. Well i can say I went from a MY05 PPP WRX with a decat uppipe /larger TMIC / 500 injectors / Turbo and Mapping for a shade over 1000 pounds, to bring me to 330 bhp You will not do it cheaper. But its a bargain for a quick car . As it only cost 4k to buy.

However , IMHO you can write the car off if you don't do something about the suspension and the brakes . Personally I think they are death traps with std caliper/discs that warp / dodgy std struts that go klonk after 30k miles. So you will need to modify these before you go over the 280 bhp mark otherwise you will only be quick in a straight line and any Fiesta / Focus will slow down quicker and go through the twisty bit better than you.

So Plan to spend 1-2k for the suspension and bigger brakes. Right so at this point i hear everyone say oh so you spent 2-3 k over the price of the WRX , why did you not just buy an Sti .

Answer because its fun putting all the bits on and tweaking the car the way you like it . That's what we do .

 

Been looking around for an impreza SL interior and found a few for not so bad money aside from the head unit the interior will be the last stop as performance is priority no.1

 

This I like...to the point and exactly what I need to do. Completely agree with the brakes, even at std power I think they are worthless. I have probably spent around £600 so far and still need a few parts plus map

what are the options for brakes and suspension??? Not really keen on killing the bank for top of the range equipment but an upgrade to match the power is enough for me

 

Brakes, you can pay a fortune for them. My M3 has Tar-ox 6 pots with big rotors, they cost some previous owner over £3000 new (I have the receipt). Personally, I think if you go for top spec brake discs and pads and completely change the brake fluid for a high quality one that you would be surprised at how good your standard brakes are. Otherwise you are looking at STi brakes or aftermarket kit which can become expensive. Suspension, before going with coil overs read plenty of posts as many people say fitting them ruins daily drivers as they become too stiff. Look at going for the same struts and springs as the ppp STi's. but look to polybush everything and fit new arb links.
Andy.

 

Complete bo11ox Matt

Ive owned plenty of Impreza's(8 in total) classic and newage's WRX's and STi's so this is from a OWNERS opinion of both cars, my last STi was running 380bhp 412lb/ft and never once did I get wheels spin in 1st-3rd gear, and if you are getting wheel spin, maybe you need to look at what tyres you are running!!

As for the WRX being a better car then the STi, Yes it can be a better car then the STi, but your bolting STi parts to your WRX, and your spending a lot more money getting more power from a WRX, where as the STi already has a good base platform to start off with.

400bhp WRX vs 400bhp STi then there wont be anything in it, but you would have spent so much money getting the WRX upto that power and keeping it reliable, Standard vs Standard then the STi will always be the better car, and you already know that Matt.

As for gearbox ratio's, Which gears do you find longer in the WRX???

Manual transmission gear ratios: WRX
1st - 3.454
2nd - 1.947
3rd - 1.366
4th - 0.972
5th - 0.738
reverse - 3.333
final drive ratio - 3.90

2004-2006 manual transmission gear ratios: STi
1st - 3.636
2nd - 2.375
3rd - 1.761
4th - 1.346
5th - 0.971
6th - 0.756
reverse - 3.545
final drive ratio - 3.90

 

this any good? Recommended them by someone on scoobycity

http://www.mtecbrakes.com/subaru-impreza-4-pot-calipers-left-right-pin-spring-kit-black-edition-brake-discs-and-mintex-brake-pads-front-kit.html

 

They look alright, standard 4 pots which will be nice and box fresh. Mintex discs and pads are pretty good but you can do better.
Andy.

 

What sort of money should I be looking at for brakes? I'm not savvy on what to look for, any examples you can suggest with value for money in mind?

 

Higher the number longer the ratio lol and an STI will need 480bhp to start beating a 400bhp to 115ish or 400m. I've proved it to death and I can't be arsed reiterating it anymore.

It's now set in stone for all the google searches.

 

There are a myriad of options mate. I wouldn't go for after market callipers if you want to keep the costs realistic. There are two key things to good powerful brakes. These are heat dispersal and the theory of levers. The first one is obvious, it's why big powerful cars had vented brakes discs. But have you ever wondered why they also have bigger rotors? This is partly to assist with point number one as a greater surface area allows for greater heat dispersal and after all that is what brakes do, convert kinetic energy into heat but the second reason is because the further out from the centre point of the disc that the calliper bites it has a greater leverage than being closer to it. If you imagine trying to lift a large weight using a small lever it'd be hard to do but by using a longer lever it becomes easier. The same physics apply to brakes. So, I would suggest looking at Godspeed as they do a big brake conversion (335mm) giving you big rotors but by using spacers for the stock 4 pot callipers means that the kit costs only £550 inc vat compared to several thousand if you went for a big caliper and disc conversion like my M3 has. Okay, t won't be as good as the full conversion (including big callipers) but will be a big improvement over stock, even more so if you fit refurbished callipers as they are essentially new. You'll get a damn good brake set up for not a lot of money. I sure there will be plenty of people saying you should fit the Brembo gold STi brake set up and these are very good but a used set seems to cost around £5-600 and these won't have been refurbished so you'll still need to factor that in if you want a factory fresh feel and also discs and pads.
Andy.

 

do you have a link to this kit? I think my calipers will need a refurb tbh

 

If you google Godspeed subaru big brakes it comes straight up.
Andy.

 

so it does thanks very much off the top of your head....know anywhere that does a decent caliper refurb kit?

 

I think they offer the refurb kits mate. I hope the info i gave you helps.
Andy.

 

spot on mate cheers. Will be buying that brake kit once the performance mods arrive

 

 

Good man! Don't forget to do a full brake fluid flush when you do it.
Andy.

 

Indeed will upgrade the brake lines to cater for new fluid and ensure braking efficiency, put dot 4 race fluid in my type R with a brembo kit recommended on honda forum and nearly went through the windscreen first time I properly used them after bedding in

 

Haha, I remember using the brakes on my M3 after I first got it, I did the same thing!

 

Been down this too , always new fluid / braided brake lines / decent pads

Budget must be set first / Decison on wheel size also needed

Option keep std calipers ? use a big conversion set on front 500-600
( I went to Godspeed for 335mm 32 mm thick retaining 17 inch wheels)

Option throw off Stds in favour of S/H Brembo's ( Sti ) huge improvement , Look in the traders areas on here for a set . Breakers on here have them every day. 600 maybe less if not mint

Option try to save for a Set of new KSports also 6 pots larger discs around 600 need to check that price

Option save longer for something like a set of large AP's / Stoptech
1-S/H 2k new

Your not done yet , you should also do something to the rears if you are a spirited driver as by now you have a lot of bias to the front. Im going to fit the Subaru H6 rear discs plus adapters to bring caliper out a shade budget 200 to mine and stay with std calipers to avod trouble with the TÜV . but i would advise if you can to get a two pot rear , maybe Brembo 's you will have a more balanced F-R bias , without changing it with an extra balance /valve ****. budget 250 +

 

Definitely option 1 and will refurb my current calipers as I think they need it plus i want to keep the std wheels, aside from a sti spoiler I want the car to remain as standard looking as possible (a wolf in sheeps clothing theme)

The rears will be done in the future, I don't track or drive on windy roads much, my main commute is to work is 9 miles one way consisting of 7 miles of straight A roads and 2 miles of town driving. Weekend driving is pretty much the same, I live in the most easterly point of england we don't have much in terms of roads but the A12 that runs pretty much all the way through is where I will have most of my fun

 

With regards to suspension, if I am totally honest the standard set up is exactly how I like it...bit goldilocks...not too soft, not too hard and to me.. not too much body roll so that will be the last venture if I go that way at all