Have decided I'm getting a Scooby again. Change of job means no more company Vectra. But am at odds with myself over what one to get

Now I can see that I can get a brand new UK-spec WRX for £16k at Alliance Car Imports or Motorpoint. 5 years ago I had a MY98 Classic (UK Turbo 2000) which was wonderful. I need to test drive the new WRX - but I really want to make sure I'm not disappointed with the new WRX.

- Does the WRX have the same rally car feel?
- Is the WRX still grin-inducing or has it become a bit of a porker?

As I see it I have two options

1) Get the new 05 WRX (I don't like the bug eye versions) and hope I like it for 3 years
2) Get an older Classic which I know I'll love and save a few grand. But would I wonder if the WRX was better?

An STi (any version) is really not an option as I'll be working at client sites and I feel its a bit clichéd/tacky turning up in something as outrageous as a STi. Plus all the ones I see have been modified and I don't like the sound of the running costs associated with a classic STi.

I kid you not I've spent longer being concerned about a car purchase than I did when I bought my house (which only took 2 hours on a Saturday morning).

Any advice from Scooby connoisseurs is much appreciated??

 

Could always get a blob eye wrx and get it ppp'd if warrenty is of concern. If not, go for ecotek, apexi fc etc. You'll gey a lot more for your £££.
The newage wrx's are not as quick as the old classics due to carrying an extra 200KG! However, with the extra weight comes refinement, something seriously lacking in the classic ( I have an sti 4!).

All turbo scoobs are bl*&dy quick cars in the real world, and, if later on, you feel it could do with a bit more oomff, 280-300bhp is available for around £1200.

As you said, for your line of work, an sti is not really visable, so my advice would be a 03/04 blobeye wrx.

 

you need a q car, understated classic wrx something like this



but seriously test drive an 05 they are suppose to be really good

 

Can't honestly call myself a connoisseur, but FWIW: I've got a 6 week old WRX - went through exactly the same thought process - I'm frequently at customer sites so I thought the STi would look a little OTT. Also, although I've not driven the STi I've been informed they make less comfortable long-distance cruisers than the WRX due to harder suspension and more sensitive steering. If you were really set on an STi then I think going for the darker silver (crystalline grey?) STi and swapping the gold alloys for silver would be less 'in-your-face' than the classic blue & gold look!

Anyway, back to the WRX - I've been delighted with it - loads of fun along country roads and a very comfy cruiser (if slightly more noise due to the AWD than other cars I've owned recently). Yesterday I was playing taxi for a relative and did two trips from Northampton to Ilford and back - got out and felt as good as I used to after a long drive in my Auto S-Type Jag.

As for outright speed - it feels bloody quick, but as I get more used to it I start finding myself considering the Prodrive upgrade (although it seems expensive compared to other aftermarket ECU / exhaust improvements). Round corners I bottle it before the car loses the plot every time.

Overall I'm delighted with the vehicle, but not driven older Scooby's to compare. I think it looks perfectly smart enough for business use (and love the stlye of the latest incarnation). The stereo and speakers are dire - I've upgraded the front speakers and put a JVC unit in. Also added tracker, snooper + radar detector and bluetooth nokia kit. I'd say get a WRX, and Prodrive it if you feel you need to - at that point 0-60 is supposed to be 4.8 secs - adequate I'd have said!!! The only downer is the first 1000 miles - it's just dying to go over the 4000rpm! I managed to get to first service in 10 (long) days!

Phil

 

Just bought a MY04 WRX, after coming from a MY00 Classic with 300+bhp and a Audi TT 225, in the space of 3months, I sold the scoob in December and bought a Audi TT and regretted it, so went back to the scoob WRX cause I wont get insured on a Sti, but it still gives me that smile that I missed with my old scoob, and its much quiter I cant even hear the engine, But at the end of the day a scoob is a scoob it dont matter if its a WRX a Turbo 2000 or a WR1 there all bloody quick (apart from a sport.)

 

im stuck with an sti5 at 37 least you have got something to look foreward to

 

Without being short and sharpe (it is late).. think about it like this:


The designing and the engineering behind the car is a progression. With every model and every year that passes they change and upgrade and improve the impreza. The differences on the WRX over the years is amazing. So they just keep getting better and they all feel that damn amazing

Go for new shape WRX and you be more than happy i can imagine

 

Because im 22 ive got loads to look forward to, Kids, marriage and a mortgage, so i might as well have a nice car now, cause in a few years time I dont think ill be able to afford it, and the girlfriend already wants us to get a house together, but im running out of excuses, i dont want to grow up.

 

My wife reckons that I have not grown up yet .... A 4 door practical saloon/wagon is all you'll need (hopefully) .. even better get a car that's a few years old so the mortgage is still on! Anyway, the older you get the more likely you are to know how to keep yer license intact and enjoy the toys at the same time (sti5 & zx-10r for me!) Plenty to look forward to - I could not afford to run a scoob, eat and train my liver when I was your age Having said that I is now thinking of saving for that porsche (37 now) for when I am bald, 50 and divorced.

 

News!!!

Have provisionally bought this little thing



UK MY99 with PPP. Has a dump valve fitted - so that's getting taken off. Are they easy to remove?

 

Dead easy, you just need the original item to refit.
Enjoy the car