I ran an old shape 5 door turbo for 4 glorious years all the usual wows about it . only problem being bachache on a long journey Something to do with my old siatic back.
Local dealer demonstrated the latest WRX which is definitely more comfortable but something not quite right.
Dealer said most buyers comment like this but soon come to appreciate the changes.....I bought it ... maybe it was the Prodrive headlights or I weas Drunk at the time.!!
I hate it after 2weeks I just want to see the back of it .
i cant love this car with the passion and enthusiasm I had for the old model...its just bland by comparison.....yes its more comfortable and perhaps the brakes are a bit better but UGH..NO.
SO now I have for sale this beautiful blue 6months old ,less than 5k miles WRX I need an old model low mileage never raced or rallied (much)
Anybody else with the same views.
Well guys n galls it now looks as if 'er indoors wants a H***A s2000 so its chop for WRX & H2000 for 'er and turbo for me....
see you in cary street...the old guys will know what that is !!
This ia a great family see some of you at Castle Combe.27 th

[Edited by Clive Toung - 7/5/2002 10:16:20 AM]

 

Nobody ever had to make excuses about the MY99 being slow. It was only the MY00 with the AE802 ECU and the WRX being obese. And these STi Type UKs at Knockhill were not much better... I thought this wonderful new STi would be right past this trackday rookie maybe I'd better drive one so I can be enlightened and make excuses about that being slow as well They did seem to corner well though, but the margin I could pull out on the straights made them seem like standard Elises they were so underpowered. And my car would only be about 270 BHP tops on a realistic dyno.

[Edited by john banks - 7/4/2002 8:04:17 PM]

 

I too ran a classic 5 door before I got a P1 and the new shape hold no magic for me in any way except comfort. But how much is a good drivers seat? £500-£1500!!!
Matthew

[Edited by Great~taste~Bloke - 7/4/2002 9:01:47 PM]

 

No, X Scooby, I think you are spot on. Subaru have tried to broaden the appeal of the Impreza Turbo by making it a little softer in order to make it more attractive to the family man maybe. And in a way they may have succeeded. I see more WRX's when I m out and about than I do Turbo's. Plus the fact it suits me down to the ground now I m reaching middle age

Yorkie

[Edited by Yorkie - 7/4/2002 8:26:55 PM]

 

I don't really car about slight differences in speed. I've raced on normal roads an EVO6 and Pulsar GTI which the bloke said afterwards had 300bhp. I've got a UK300 and on pretty straight roads kept right up with them. Maybe on a track after 20 laps I'd have noticed a gap of a few meters. But I'm not a race driver and don't think I'll be on to many track which is why I bought a car with four doors and a big boot. 0.6 of a sec to 60 means sh*t I'd rather compromise that rather then safety.

[Edited by Pete_UK99 - 7/5/2002 1:48:19 PM]

 

To be honest I decide to take the financial hit as I brought my MY00 new the day after going to Motorshow 2000. The import was roughly the same price as the MY01 WRX with a PPP kit fitted. It comes down to personally choice in the end. I have enjoyed scoobs, on my second , and would love to stay with the marque for the next one. I went to look at an EVO7 recently and didnt like it again personal choice but I can understand while people do. The new and classic have the same name but are aimed differently IMHO. To spend large amounts of cash on these cars you have to be happy you are doing the right thing. For me at the moment that means keeping my MY00 and enjoy the money spent and mods put on it and waiting for the next offering . Gotta hand it to Subaru though theres always the next special edition to look forward to .



[Edited by chrisp - 7/5/2002 8:16:33 PM]

 

Gladly swap a MY01 9 month old Classic shape Sport for your car

 

wot would you want to swap my '98 uk turbo, red, morettes, smoked indicators/side repeaters, large spoiler, chin spoiler, full TSL exhaust, ITG filter, never abused, 28k?

 

Alcazar you still got those wheels for sale?

 

From what I have read and my own personal experience so far (MY99 Turbo to MY02 WRX) the cars don't loosen up until after 5000 miles or so. Mine feels a little looser at 4500 but still a way off my old Turbo which as far as I recall was tight and slow at first. Don't forget you are jumping from a fully loosened Turbo to a tight engine. The acceleration is more linear so this also makes the car "feel" slower, but in reality I think it pulls strong for longer in the rev range rather than a short sudden but short lived burst of acceleration which gives the impression of faster acceleration. It certainly pulls hard above 5000 rpm. Give it time I am sure you will appreciate it in the long term. Why not get PPP fitted ? The aircon also saps power and makes a difference in throttle response. I switch it off when I fancy giving it a blast down my favourite B roads

Yorkie

 

be careful you may get flamed for saying things like that afterall you have to go with progress

progress i dont think so it has been said before but i think subaru got a little mixed up with old bugeye not sure about what market to aim for and ending up with too much of a comprimise

oh well looks like we will both be getting flamed

 

i am 40 next month is that middle age i dont know i suppose the old phrase you are as old as you feel comes to mind

i have to admit everytime i get in a freinds car or taxi it makes me feel how raw my my00 is noise comfort build quality etc..

but everytime i pull up in a taxi outside my house the taxi drivers say can i swap my car with yours

then i realise that i have something special

 

Trouble is not matter how loose it gets it still 150kgs heavier than the classic shape for the same bhp you cant get away from that. A PPP MY01 (178bhp/ton) is about the same as a standard classic (177bhp/ton).

A PPP classic (195bhp/ton) would cause an STI type UK (180bhp/ton) to think twice. When we start talking about classic imports you are looking at 220+bhp/ton.

Basically for an STI 7 UK to achieve the same bhp/ton as an STI5/6
it would need 320bhp. If you lightly mod your STi5 to say 300bhp, (exhaust and filter) and you are looking at 350bhp in an STi7 to have the same PTW.

6 cogs I hear your cry, just look at JF's gear ratio thread for the RA and R ratios .


All My01/02 owners seem to point at handling but the classic is/wasnt too bad it certainly developed a good reputation. I know things move on and I was quite happy to accept that but power to weight it certainly hasnt moved on and IMHO ha moved backwards.

Build quality yep fair enough but I would expect that cars get built better as they evolve doesnt mean performance must suffer because of it.

All the competition are getting more and more power so wheres ours . A civic type R and clio 172 had a far better power to weight than an MY01 WRX and hasnt got the 4WD transmission losses to cope with either .

IMHO I think if it had been 250bhp straight out the factory with a PPP taking it to 280bhp all people would have moaned about would have been the lights.

I love all impreza turbos but I just want the best for the marque and the standard model needs more power IMHO.

chrisp

 

Very well said crisp. Hit the nail on the head in every respect. I can see why Subaru did it, they built the name with the first car and with that reputation sucked in a greater amount of people (who found the first car too raw and comprimised) with the WRX. Good for Subaru's finances, bad for enthusiasts. Not that I'm saying the WRX is a bad car by the way!

 

I have to agree with the remarks in between my posts. It's a lard bucket with no glitz! Retreating into the flame proof bunker now!

 

MY01/02's have far stricter type approval to get through, that explains 90% of the criticism that ppl throw at them.

I'm very happy with both the new Imprezas that I have brought,
if I was looking for a weekend car then yes a P1/STi5-6 would do me nicely, but for bashing motorways the new shape is hard to beat.

 

The STi7 is IMHO the best Impreza yet but it is suffering the penalty of excess weight from increased body/chassis rigidity. This has resulted in a car that feels more grown up and solid and is better for this. It also much safer (does this matter to anyone apart from me?) as was demonstrated in a recent USA crash test which rated a MY01 amongst the best in its class.
The power to weight ratio does imply that it is not as fast as previous STi's or indeed Classic PPP cars but this misses the point. What Subaru have produced I think is the car the WRX should have been. The engine spec, chassis design and superb brakes indicate that this car has great potential. Euro emissions regulations have prevented the manufacturer from giving this car the power it deserves. The proposed PPP will exploit a loop-hole in this regulation and produce the 'real' and ultimate STi.

D.

 

I have to agree with all of the constructive comments on here. I certainly miss the raw appeal of my MY99, but only for a short period of time, like a good blast on a Sunday afternoon or whatever. The WRX is a good compromise of performance and comfort (the ride is much better) and it makes a brilliant car across country when getting from A to B quickly much like the Turbo but with less grunt, but much more refined. At the end of the day it is down to personal choice and what you want from a car.

I loved the Turbo, but I now prefer the MY02 for my needs

(Must be feeling old)

 

iv'e just had a test drive in a wrx with ppp and a sti. i really hoped for something special but i was glad to get back in my 99my and feel the acceleration. everyone is expecting great things from the forthcoming ppp for the sti. if it doesn't happen where do we go from here? i like my scooby and dont really want to change manufacturer.

 

kenneth that is what i have been saying to myself where do i go from here even my wife sais you will be gutted when you have to move on but i suppose you have to sooner or later

 

I got my new shape wrx about 2 months ago, its done 18k - owned by a friend so loosened up.

Before that I had an integra type r, which sadly went to heaven. Id been into the idea of a scooby for years and when the teg went I decided to go for it.My mate had this one for sale and it made most economic sense at the time to go for it.

I had driven the old shape a while back, but couldnt really remember how it went. However, though I love the car and really enjoy driving it I now find myself on somewhat a quest for it to be a bit quicker than it is. I know lots of people mod scoobs, but I genuinely feel it is perhaps just lacking a bit of sparkle, it just doesnt quite pull as well as I think maybe it should. It feels like perhaps it needs about 30 bhp to make it really good.

As I say I love the car and the whole group/club that goes with it and wouldnt be without this, but I feel that it hasnt entirely lived up to my expectations???

 

i must admit i liked the look of the sti jap version better than the prodrive the dealer said its easier to get prodrive though. fingers crossed for the ppp.

 

Clive, my suggestion would be to get rid of it as quickly as possible, take the financial hit and get yourself an import STI 5/6.

I assume that's what you really wanted to hear.

I once had the loan of an F40 for almost a week (true, absolutely true) and I couldn't hand it back quick enough. Uncomfortable, hard to handle day-to-day and I lay awake at nights listening for the car alarm. If you don't like a car, get rid and move on.

There are some people on here who's opinion I value, others just speak biased cr@p. Make your own mind up Clive and ignore the self-appointed experts.

Ken

 

I agree the std bugeye is not fast enough full stop.
BUT get the ppp and it totally changes it.(IF the ppp is set up properly)
Lets face it the car was meant to have 246bhp like the jap one but the 3 cats messed it all up.
I think the ppp is essential to really enjoy the car, I hated the anodyne sound of the std exhaust but now it's wonderful.

Seats still poor though and need lumbar support and reach adjust st wheel.

 

In this day and age you should have known what the new shape rex was like!! NO EXCUSES!!!!
I drove a my00 and my01 back to back before i made my decision, i definately noticed the speed difference, but i definately noticed the better build and the solid feel as well. IMO the new shape is heaps better in everyway....BUT...yes it is slower, but my unichip and other mods have easily rectified that
Cheers
aussiejim

 

Right Dr Banks thats enough slagging off this STI7 stuff. Me thinks I will have to carry my threats out and give you a wee shot pretty soon.

Dave Allan

 

John Banks, so you've had to increase the BHP on your car by 28% and your point is.......irrelevant perhaps ?

"I thought this wonderful new STi would be right past this trackday rookie maybe I'd better drive one so I can be enlightened and make excuses about that being slow as well"

Any Subaru Impreza is hardly slow......I mean it does 0 - 60 in 5.2 seconds.......that is not a definition of slow.....perhaps you should look up the definition of the word in an ENGLISH dictionary. ahhhhh but then you are Scottish.........

"but the margin I could pull out on the straights made them seem like standard Elises they were so underpowered"

That analogy just about says it all, another posting of complete crap.........

 

I'm English actually

An STi should be a barkingly fast car IMHO otherwise the magic has gone. The new STi is plainly not.

There are certain upcoming hot hatches (Clio Sport Cup about 180 BHP/ton IIRC) for half the price of an STi that from a rolling start - ie real world road/track) would give a very good fight indeed. There are a few hot hatches that would give the WRX real trouble. That was not the case with the old Scoobies. And yes I did buy a Scooby just as much for the straight line performance as for the traction because for the money it was excellent.

0-60 times are useless - just traction. Nail it in a gear and it doesn't seem to go from the ones I have seen. And yes you better well get away from Elises with power because most Scoobies can't compete in the corners on a dry track - certainly with my (lack of) skill I am nowhere near. So the comparison is useful if you want a trackday car that you can use every day that means if you are a crap driver you can at least pass a few things

[Edited by john banks - 7/5/2002 12:41:37 PM]

 

Whilst looking for my dictionary I found this, November 1997 Top Gear magazine Group Test Totally Standard MY97 UK Turbo 0-60 in 5.2 with 208bhp , how things have moved on performance wise

 

Two points:

1. I've recently test driven WRXs with and without PPP. I wouldn't have one without, it felt utterly gutless low down. With, it was pretty linear, in the horizon-attracting sense.

2. On weight - please don't forget that the WRX has an integral roll-cage, which the old model didn't have. Firstly please compare like with like (how much weight would a r/c add to an old model? I've no idea, but take it into account), and secondly you might want to consider the recent thread about rolled cars.

You're all welcome to your opinions, just my 2p's worth.

BJH