I don't blame you mate prices have gone insane. Where are you looking, ebay has one just under £45k but its really low mileage.

 

ra wont lose money if You mod it with taste ,if its an investment is the one to go - You will be to scary to crash it to notice difference between two on b roads
its just 70kg lighter -You can easy take off 40kg from jdm sti and make jdm sti better road car for a money difference
for me biggest improvements over UK car are 8k redline ,quick rack ,twinscroll setup and other ratio gears
red spec c blob price at Hurst is crazy

 

It's been a steep learning curve so far!!! decided for JDM, ideally Spec C or RA, saw the one on Hurst but seemed expensive, just gota keep my eye out I guess.

 

found this 15k almost 100k miles ,not sure its possible to import one cheaper ,prices went up in last few weeks
https://www.lancerregister.com/threa...e-2005.578939/

 

If you’re interested I can point you in the direction of a freshly imported spec c. I don’t know much about the car other than it’s white and done 60k miles. Its a motorsport 16” model so is rare. I think it has an exhaust and coil overs but otherwise standard. It was offered to me 2 weeks ago for £15k. He may still have it if you want to take a look.
PM me if it’s of interest

 

Just to add some further information. The motorsport edition in standard form isn't a true spec c when compared to the road going version. Let me explain why, brakes, wheels, interior etc are not spec c. The reason for this is because it was advertised and intended for teams to buy and use. Depending on the event/race the things mentioned would all be changed. So if they started out with the normal spec c things like interior would be changed for FIA bucket seats, different brakes and wheels for the race. The main things needed by the teams would have been the car with engine and gearbox.

Its is still a spec c but will often be different. A lot of people have bought the motor sports edition and added the bits back on. But just be aware thats the case

 

Yes, just as Nossy says, they are poverty spec cars. They have WRX brakes and interiors. They are sort after though and command good money.

 

do not bother with motorsport edition

 

A lot of the bits aren't WRX, they have literally been placed there to be place holders because they would be replaced in competition.

Have a look at this, the owner changed the seats and a few other things (no disrespect to the owner) he change the bits needed so why spend extra on a spec c. Sharing to give a better understanding of what it is. I think the reason they are more sort after like @adam.pah said is due to the name. When you hear spec c motorsports edition you think spec c but a more enhanced edition (think spec c RA) but it really isn't. They are targeted towards the racing teams so motorsports edition does make sense.

https://www.scoobynet.com/members-ga...tion-16-a.html


With it being advertised and sold to sports teams what do you think the level of abuse it would have had. In this case it would be imperative to check all the auction data. SOme were bought brand new from Japan and sold here so were always a road going car. I'm also assuming some buyers in Japan might have been offered these if they were sold out of the normal spec c.

 

most of motorsport ed. have no folding mirrors ,no electric windows and list goes on
i will go other way for moded spec c or ra , You can sell moded parts taking car back to oem with some cash back
i sold brakes ,rcm exhaust ,coilovers - back 2.3k spent 1k for oem bits
could sell wheels ,defis,anti roll bars will have over 2k on hand plus sought after oem car for sale

 

I’d personally have a motorsport edition over a regular Spec C. They are even rarer and even lighter - manual mirrors and windows only add to the stripped-out special feel and are much closer in spirit to the classic RA than newage RAs are.

Don’t suppose the car for sale is owned by a fellow in Swindon?

 

I the reason they are sort after is solely down to rarity. Most of these will have ended up as rally cars so finding an original is very rare indeed. Assuming that most will have been modified by their owners (like the one I mentioned), you may end up with a very capable car. The only weak point on these cars is the 4 pot wrx calipers, otherwise they are as stripped out and light as you can possibly get. I certainly wouldn't want a standard one but a modified one could be a very astute buy at the right price. It's not like its tough to put it back to standard if you really want to. Considering that fresh import RA's are now going for in excess of £28k, the £15k example I mentioned might be worth a look.

Tom had a hawk one arrive on the same boat as my RA so I had a good look round it. It was on ebay for £28k but it's not there anymore so it may have sold. I had no interest in it as it was just a standard motorsport car.

 

If you're worried about folding mirrors and electric windows then you're looking at the wrong car.
The spec c is supposed to be a stripped out rally ready car. If you want luxury then go for an S204 instead.

 

any spec c You can reverse to motorsport edition and vice versa, i dont bother with spec c wrx🤣
have jdm and im happy with as i can mod it how i like it and wont lose a penny comparing to s204 (or like You did with UK blob) or ra where You will lose money when You start mod it
no one will buy motorsport edition for 15k , better to start with spec c or ra shell
s201 is rarest so what ,cost nothing comparing to 22b

 

I don't think you understood my comment.
I also don't understand your logic as when you modify any car you will never get back what you put in, including a JDM car.
I sold my UK blob for 20% more than I paid for it, so in theory I made money on it.
People will and do buy the motorsport editions and they pay a premium for them.

 

There is no logic in Yours comment as i did not look for motorsport edition than i can not be worry about it.
To enjoy and hold a car value there is no sense for individual with motorsport ed.
What You did not catch? i bought mine with mods ,could sell them all for 6k taking 56k miles jdm back to oem and sell it for 12k. over 6k in my pocket , or could put those 6k back and mod it to my liking what i did, like i said better to buy a car with mods and all bits fitted, simply.

You bought UK blob ,moded it and simply You lost money when You sold it, You admitted You lost money at for sale section ,i have no idea why are You talking about 20% gain.
No one is after motorsport as rally finished for imprezas, to track or hill climb it better start with a shell and put sq. box sachs suspension etc

 

 

But your opinions really haven't added anything for the original poster, who is looking for 2.5l advice. I gave up when you said you could mod a standard sti to lose 40kg and be as good a road car as a spec C RA. There are plenty of enthusiasts who would fight over an unmolested motorsport spec C. What was your name last time you were on SN, as you obviously know Adam's threads from before you joined a couple of weeks ago?

 

Looks like "fawor" is back in all his glory. Rejoice.

 

To be fair it's all good info. I'm up on the Cosworths just not Subaru's so as I'm starting from a noob perspective any info is good it's then just a matter to filtering as needed - probably should also have the thread title amended to "STI buying" advice

 

If you are looking for a very clean Spec c Ra id consider letting mine
go, its a very well kept car summer weekend use only, standard apart from an Hks tmic and a Milltek exhaust 69k miles

 

the 'Motorsport' edition cars with the 16" wheels do NOT have the wrong brakes on, they were produced to homologate the "gravel" brake set-up required for the grpN cars running 15" wheel / tyre combo's in the production category.........

this is basically a variant of the late classic STi RA Subaru branded 4pot / 2pot set-up