my boss is about to pull the trigger on a 2002 jdm sti bugeye. ive got a classic so no experience of these but he wants me to go have a look at it as i have a subaru. any owners can give me some pointers to look out for on this particular model? any model specific problems? ive done a search here but nothing much came up. thanks for any help.

 

anyone? im going to look at it tommorrow. cheers

 

Should be pretty quick as std, make sure it pulls hard. Mine was intermittently flat and turned out the neutral position switch was faulty (they're plastic and wear) you'll know if it's right as they feel different to the classic with the avcs. The avcs is disabled if the nps is faulty and the car would feel smooth and flat rather than picking up harder later in the revs. Mine feels like a different animal to a uk car or classic Sti so it should feel quick, especially with the jdm gearing.

Check for knocking rear shocks. Rust on rear arches.

Not a lot different to your car as far as checking goes.

 

thanks m8, mine is 315bhp on a td05 but doesnt pull hard until 3300-4000. i think the jdm sti comes with a vf30? would this spool quicker and feel a bit quicker than mine? also is it a 5 or 6 speed box in these? im thinking its a 5 speed? ive just had sti v5 suspension fitted on my wagon from a type r so will know how the suspension should feel. do this year suffer from knocking rears? i was told its the later cars and not the classics that suffer from it. will check all the other usual stuff ie arches etc. thanks for your reply as im going to look it over this afternoon.

 

Rust around back arches

 

6 speed box if its got a 5 its not a genuine sti or its had a box change

 

6 speed box I believe.

 

Yep will have a 6 speed box. If there's a 5 speed there then walk away.

Make sure it's a proper JDM car, rear wiper is an easy spot.
Usual checks apply, rust at the rear arches, unusual noises etc etc. Just make sure the history is good and services have been kept up to date.