Want some feedback from Impreza owners
Discussion
Hello PHers. I've been having a good think today, about my next car. I was originally thinking of getting an E36 328, but I've already had one, and I really think I should try something different, so, I'm kind of drawn towards the Impreza. I've never had a 4WD car before, and I do love the noise the Impreza makes.
So, I think I'd be after an STI model. I want a properly quick car, not something half baked, so I reckon that would fit the bill.
Would £2 - £3k get me a good one.
Whats insurance like (I'm thinking it'll be eye watering, but I'd love to be proved wrong).
Not bothered about MPG as not a daily driver; but it would be nice if I could get 30 on a run. Possible?
What they like to drive? Fun? Comfy?
So, I think I'd be after an STI model. I want a properly quick car, not something half baked, so I reckon that would fit the bill.
Would £2 - £3k get me a good one.
Whats insurance like (I'm thinking it'll be eye watering, but I'd love to be proved wrong).
Not bothered about MPG as not a daily driver; but it would be nice if I could get 30 on a run. Possible?
What they like to drive? Fun? Comfy?
I've recently looked at the WRX 2.0 model, with about 220bhp.
I considered long and hard, but I can't justify paying out over three times what I currently pay for insurance.
My Fabia (Which isn't THAT much slower!) is £650, Scooby £2200.
I have a mental block for insurance over £1500.
I know how insurance works, and can see the justification behind the figures. Seems mental though.
It's a shame, I love that "worble"
I considered long and hard, but I can't justify paying out over three times what I currently pay for insurance.
My Fabia (Which isn't THAT much slower!) is £650, Scooby £2200.
I have a mental block for insurance over £1500.
I know how insurance works, and can see the justification behind the figures. Seems mental though.
It's a shame, I love that "worble"
Edited by HBFS on Saturday 5th May 11:12
I bought a 2001 wrx wagon a month ago. It's not as quick as other car's I've owned in a straight line but show it an a or b road & you'd have to have something pretty tasty to keep up with it. Not as dramatic
as my fiat coupe 20vt so its probably quicker than it feels. Its also very practical, comfortable & spacious.
MPG has been about 25 with mixed driving half town and half a road.
One of the best cars I've owned, the sti model must be incredible! For reference, mine was £1600 with 115k on it with Subaru history, totally stock.
as my fiat coupe 20vt so its probably quicker than it feels. Its also very practical, comfortable & spacious.
MPG has been about 25 with mixed driving half town and half a road.
One of the best cars I've owned, the sti model must be incredible! For reference, mine was £1600 with 115k on it with Subaru history, totally stock.
Edited by Paulm4 on Saturday 5th May 11:20
TameRacingDriver said:
Over £1k insurance would rule it out for me. I'm 33, clean licence (but 6 point in the last 5 years).
I have 5 points and a fine to declare within the last two years, even at the age of 22 it doesn't effect insurance too much.Apparently points through a single conviction will often only make the policy go up by 5%, points through multiple convictions often makes premiums rise by as much as 20%.
Best thing to do is put your info on confused.com and fiddle around.
My quote for current policy started off at £2700, but I bought it down to £1100. All with Elephant through things like: Adding two women over 50, putting the policy on a low mileage (Then adding more miles to the policy later on for a 1/4 of the price) pushing the voluntary excess up etc
Insurance costs me £275 (per year, not per month!)93 WRX with 320 ish bhp - modified just about everything.
So you can get it cheap if you are mid thirties, 15+ NCB and have a gold plated post code
An Sti for that money is going to be a 95-98 model and things will go wrong with it from time to time at that age.
You may squeeze 30 mpg on a gentle run, but it'll never be any better than that. low-mid twenties more likely.
Watch out - there's a whole heap of crap out there. Low number of owners is essential really.
So you can get it cheap if you are mid thirties, 15+ NCB and have a gold plated post code
An Sti for that money is going to be a 95-98 model and things will go wrong with it from time to time at that age.
You may squeeze 30 mpg on a gentle run, but it'll never be any better than that. low-mid twenties more likely.
Watch out - there's a whole heap of crap out there. Low number of owners is essential really.
I'm 30 and pay £888 to insure mine with 3 points.
You can get 30 on a run but i average around 25mpg most of the time.
Its not an ideal long distance cruiser although it will do the job better than a small hatchback etc and the seats are very supportive and figure hugging for those b-road encounters.
Best bet is to go for a test drive and see how you get on. For me looking through the windscreen at the bonnet scoop as the seats grip you tight and you fire up the boxer and hear the burble which turns into a growl still gives it a huge sense of occasion.
Dont buy the first one you see unless it is really good, it took me months of searching and lots of viewings to find the right one for me.
You can get 30 on a run but i average around 25mpg most of the time.
Its not an ideal long distance cruiser although it will do the job better than a small hatchback etc and the seats are very supportive and figure hugging for those b-road encounters.
Best bet is to go for a test drive and see how you get on. For me looking through the windscreen at the bonnet scoop as the seats grip you tight and you fire up the boxer and hear the burble which turns into a growl still gives it a huge sense of occasion.
Dont buy the first one you see unless it is really good, it took me months of searching and lots of viewings to find the right one for me.
VinceFox said:
Just to throw a spanner in the works (albeit is a biased one) if you're looking at speed and like the 328, have you considered an m3?
Actually, yes I have... but a good one isn't cheap (i've just been looking on the classified section). I have had an 328 so worry it'll be too similar (just faster). Though to be fair, being similar to my old 328 isn't like its a bad thing - great car.But now someone else on this post has just mentioned a Fiat Coupe.... hmmmmmmmm tempted... and the Alfa GTV V6
TameRacingDriver said:
VinceFox said:
Just to throw a spanner in the works (albeit is a biased one) if you're looking at speed and like the 328, have you considered an m3?
Actually, yes I have... but a good one isn't cheap (i've just been looking on the classified section). I have had an 328 so worry it'll be too similar (just faster). Though to be fair, being similar to my old 328 isn't like its a bad thing - great car.But now someone else on this post has just mentioned a Fiat Coupe.... hmmmmmmmm tempted... and the Alfa GTV V6
VinceFox said:
I'm sure others will have opinions on this as well, but imho if you're spending circa 3k on a performance car and buy wisely i would suggest the m3 might be less financially ruinous than the impreza to maintain/improve.
The opposite of this is true. Like for like condition wise the m3 will cost much more than an impreza to maintain. Edited by rb5er on Saturday 5th May 12:03
I've currently got an Impreza GX (as a money saving exercise whilst I move house). Much like the blobeye WRX of it's time except with a N/A 2.0L engine instead of a turbo charged one. On the plus side, it's much cheaper to run, and you get the normal Impreza handling experience too. Not bad for a little runaround! I'm enjoying it, but I will be buying a Mercedes SL in a year or so once I've moved and got my finances back together.
Mind you, I've driven plenty of Imprezas over the years, and would definitely own another, thirstier model in the future. At your budget, most STi's you see will either be old, written off or have starship mileage. The 'old' STi's will be imports, brought to the UK at a time when the STi was not offered here. That wouldn't put me off getting one, but factor in higher insurance costs and regular undersealing work to keep it in good condition.
At your sort of money you're more likely to find a good WRX. Quick enough in a straight line, but the real pace comes in over bumpy, twisty roads. Imprezas are very comfortable forday to day use, though they might not satisfy german plastic fetishists who insist on touching everything in the cabin. The seats are lovely, you'll usually get a nice MOMO steering wheel too.
Mind you, I've driven plenty of Imprezas over the years, and would definitely own another, thirstier model in the future. At your budget, most STi's you see will either be old, written off or have starship mileage. The 'old' STi's will be imports, brought to the UK at a time when the STi was not offered here. That wouldn't put me off getting one, but factor in higher insurance costs and regular undersealing work to keep it in good condition.
At your sort of money you're more likely to find a good WRX. Quick enough in a straight line, but the real pace comes in over bumpy, twisty roads. Imprezas are very comfortable forday to day use, though they might not satisfy german plastic fetishists who insist on touching everything in the cabin. The seats are lovely, you'll usually get a nice MOMO steering wheel too.
Do it, you will have a great time. Get a well done STi and you will feel like a driving God.
I miss mine a lot. As for insurance, if it is a limited mileage toy try CCI, no one else could touch them for a limited mileage policy last time i checked, but as i used it as a daily I went with A-plan thatcham.
Most will be modded, on the list of mods you want are Brakes and a bigger than standard intercooler (the OEM one is not great).
Any increase in power should have been achieved with the right amount of care and beware of any high (over 330bhp) claims on the original turbo, it is possible but not reliable.
The best advice is drive/get a pax ride in one, ask about on the scooby forums and someone will probably be able to help.
ETA, and although contrary to what baronyx says you can get a very good classic STI for £3K, although you might have to venture to scabbynet.
I miss mine a lot. As for insurance, if it is a limited mileage toy try CCI, no one else could touch them for a limited mileage policy last time i checked, but as i used it as a daily I went with A-plan thatcham.
Most will be modded, on the list of mods you want are Brakes and a bigger than standard intercooler (the OEM one is not great).
Any increase in power should have been achieved with the right amount of care and beware of any high (over 330bhp) claims on the original turbo, it is possible but not reliable.
The best advice is drive/get a pax ride in one, ask about on the scooby forums and someone will probably be able to help.
ETA, and although contrary to what baronyx says you can get a very good classic STI for £3K, although you might have to venture to scabbynet.
Edited by omgus on Saturday 5th May 14:19
Cool, sounds good.
I dont mind an import... my old Eunos wasn't any more to insure than a UK model, and my JDM Integra R and MR2 Turbo were both very insurable for what they were.
Its good to hear they're comfy too... I really want a good all rounder.
Is 30 MPG possible on a run then? I don't mind it getting fairly crap MPG when hooning, because the way I look at it, most cars give rubbish MPG when hooning, but if it wont even give 30 MPG on a run then it would be a bit s
t for the times when I do go on city breaks (which I do quite a lot)... if it was a couple of MPG under I could probably just about live with it... but I'm guessing they all need SUL too! My MR2 Turbo only gave 25 MPG on a (slow) run which frankly wasn't good enough, even though it was a good steer.
I know the M3 can do 30. However, its likely to be over my budget, unless of course its worth saving for?
I dont mind an import... my old Eunos wasn't any more to insure than a UK model, and my JDM Integra R and MR2 Turbo were both very insurable for what they were.
Its good to hear they're comfy too... I really want a good all rounder.
Is 30 MPG possible on a run then? I don't mind it getting fairly crap MPG when hooning, because the way I look at it, most cars give rubbish MPG when hooning, but if it wont even give 30 MPG on a run then it would be a bit s
t for the times when I do go on city breaks (which I do quite a lot)... if it was a couple of MPG under I could probably just about live with it... but I'm guessing they all need SUL too! My MR2 Turbo only gave 25 MPG on a (slow) run which frankly wasn't good enough, even though it was a good steer.I know the M3 can do 30. However, its likely to be over my budget, unless of course its worth saving for?
omgus said:
ETA, and although contrary to what baronyx says you can get a very good classic STI for £3K, although you might have to venture to scabbynet.
As in a UK car? I've seen plenty of nice imports for that sort of cash, dated from the late 90's. The first UK STi's at the bottom end of the market are fairly tatty though, and they're creeping about at that price. Still, you may find a diamond in the rough. Edited by omgus on Saturday 5th May 14:19
Taken from my readers cars thread about economy. It is worth noting i do have a heavy right foot.
It is worth asking in the scooby forum in jap chat, they will be happy to discuss ridiculous fuel consumption and argue about who can get 35mpg due to their driving skills.
omgus on his scooby thread said:
Petrol My record is an entire tank in 74miles(about 7mpg), i average 200miles for every tank and the highest i have ever seen was 300 on a long and very slow motorway run.
Worth noting the JDM cars have a pretty short ratio gearbox, anything over 70ish is on boost, A car with a bigger turbo is often more economical on the motorway due to not spooling up as easily. It is worth asking in the scooby forum in jap chat, they will be happy to discuss ridiculous fuel consumption and argue about who can get 35mpg due to their driving skills.
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