STi-Frenchie

Claudius, I'm in Dept. 01, on the border with Geneva, Switzerland. Work brought me here 10 years ago, I was in England and before that, in my native Ireland. Wife and kids are native french

[Edited by STi-Frenchie - 10/5/2002 6:05:05 PM]

STi-Frenchie

I got my first scooby (STi MY02) yesterday and thought I'd throw out my first impressions, in case anyone was interested

- can easily be used for a family car as long as the roads aren't too rough. That suspension feels very hard right now and every bump in the road is transferred to you (wife is unhappy)

- due to the above, wife states she won't drive it too often (husband is happy)

- big boot (wife is happy)

- plenty of room for the kids in back (wife is happy)

- child locks on doors, windows, in the back (parents delighted)

- handling is fantastic, I noticed it when flying round a few corners my previous car has had trouble with

- goes like a rocket - much faster acceleration than I was expecting and that turbo boost will rip your head off your shoulders if you aren't careful

- will have to keep an eye out for the racers - had one on my tail 20 minutes after signing the deal. Silly **** almost caused a serious accident trying to take a line of cars when there was (a) no room left on the road, and (b) traffic was coming towards him. Cue lots of headlamps flashing. Must continue to resist the racers.

- thank goodness for the rev alarm, it's so easy to crank this thing up before the engine is properly run in

- the throw on the gearbox is incredibly short - love it, and love the clunk when it slots into place!

- braking pedal seemed to be a little bit soft, but within a couple of minutes I was used to it

- love that subtle growl from the back

- bug eyes? I actually haven't given them a lot of thought - as long as they work

- love driving along with that big blue power bulge as the view

So there you have my amateur review after 200km of driving it. I bought the right car - the wife disagrees only in terms of ride quality...she reckons pregnant women would be giving their new borns milk shakes at feeding time after a few kilometres in the scooby.

Enough of this sitting at the keyboard, I'm off out ! Vroom Vroom ! Shake me baby !

Can you tell I'm a happy camper or what?!

wacky.banana

Congratulations. Someone else who realises just how good the STi7 is. Enjoy.

Claudius

Tu exagères un peu, quand même!

Je trouve la commande de boîte assez impécise...

La pédale est toujours un peu molle quand on a l'ABS: le circuit est rallongé...

Jools

What Claudius is saying is this;

Tu exagères un peu, quand même!
"You are exaggerating and go too far".

Je trouve la commande de boîte assez impécise...
"I find the gear lever to be loose and imprecise"

La pédale est toujours un peu molle quand on a l'ABS: le circuit est rallongé...
"The pedal is always soft/longer because of the ABS; the circuit is longer..."

Lets keep it in English thinks me, or I'll throw some Jockanees on you’re A$$, then nobody will know what's been said on this board.

I'm with Mellow Yellow, good to see others discover just how good the Sti's are. Just give me PPP and I'll be happy. I hope our French friend enjoys the motor and had much fun.

Jools

towzer

Won't be long before you spend hours surfing this forum and working out what 'extra bits' to buy next.

i've had my STi UK for 4 months now and it still brings a smile to my face every day. Once you get over the first 1000 miles it really starts to become fun.

Good luck,

Phil

TonyBurns

iTrader: (3)

Ooooh!
is Claudius jealous?
Glad to see that you too are enjoying the STi7 some people just dont know a good car when they see one (fools )
Are you getting the PPP out in France too?
If you do, just dont tell the wife say this is the car just run in

Tony

STi-Frenchie

Thanks guys, I'm thoroughly enjoying it at the moment...and to answer Claudius, no I don't think I'm exaggerating too much. My last car was (flame suit on) a Ford without a turbo. Maybe ppl forget that very first adrenaline rush when you hit the pedal and the turbo kicks in...I certainly won't ! People can warn you to look out for it, you know it's coming at around 3800/4000rpm, but when it kicks in...WHOA !

Phil, my ankle-biter wants the roof vent first and the decals...I wouldn't mind a bit more pop and burble from the back end....oh, and the Prodive spoiler, the turbo boost guage, and those blue lights for the dials I saw in the styling forum looked well wicked....choices, choices

Tony, I'm not sure if the PPP is available in France. I know from other threads here that the Swiss won't uphold the warranty if it's fitted so it might be the same for France but I'll make enquiries. Might have to settle for chipping it to 303bhp and leave it at that.

I reckon I got a great deal on the car - I got a new CD player thrown in (the old one in the Frod wouldn't fit snug so the dealer gave me a Blaupunkt which fits nice with the rest of the dash), a free day track training courtesy of Subaru France and some private rally lessons courtesy of the dealer. Can't ask for more than that can you? Well....maybe a little cheaper gas prices she does guzzle a bit !

Claudius

In fact, that means "you are exaggerating a little".

Claudius

OK, you arent used to a turbo car. You'll find yourself looking for more power soon, as someone mentioned above

I usually get between 10 and 15% on new cars in France, which would equate to a little more than that, but that's still better than not getting anything like most people!

Enjoy your car, mate. [curiosity mode on] Where about in France are you, and how come you moved there? [/curiosity mode off]

Claudius

What kind of a language is that? I see you are from Scotland, is that related?

TonyBurns

iTrader: (3)

Trust me Claudius, when the scots want to speak jock they speak it and no one can understand it lol! (its very heavily accented english with some unknown/un pronounceable words )

Tony

Claudius

oh wow, sounds like a total mess. I can understand Sam, though, but he writes to me, so I guess I'll leave it at that

Dont call me, Sam!

HKSubaru

just make sure you run it in properly.

STi-Frenchie

I'm doing my level best HKS as I'd hate to pour a lot of money into a new car and then do something to wreck the engine a bit further down the road (excuse the pun). I've set the rev alarm at 4K and watch it like a hawk, shifting up and down just before that little red light winks at me (it wins sometimes but I keep trying to outwit it). I'm also following the advice of others on the boards here and keeping the revs at different levels, the speeds variable and letting the car idle for a couple of minutes after a run. Another 250km on the clock today - tomorrow, I hit the Jura mountains for a spin...that is going to be great, all twisties on the way up (La Col de la Faucille if anyone knows it), and the same on the way back down. No snow as yet up there so I can have my "limited" fun whilst I continue to learn the car.

Sue Sidal

Good for you! People seem very quick to slag this model off without giving it half a chance, about time started a positive thread about the fugly and the STi7. I've had a Jap import STi7 for over 12 months now and I think it's fantastic. Here's an example of the capabilites of this vehicle. I'm looking for a second car at the moment and have been checking the German stuff. I took out an Audi A4 1.8T Quattro for a test drive. Got onto a local motorway and got comfortable with the vehicle, had an opportunity to drop into lane 3 and give it some wellie, which I did, and nothing happened!!! A car that is considered to be one of the best in it's class felt as flat as a witches t1t....My second car at the moment is an ST24, not a bad motor and I've been very pleased with it. I drive it now and it feels like a slug on a frosty morning! I've had similar encounters with idiots who feel intimidated by the car, in a few instances the drivers have made some serious errors of judgement in their driving and were lucky to escape without causing an accident. I don't know what the answer to that little problem is. Anyway, you enjoy it and the best of luckto you.