InjentC23

Damn, I know I can't afford that.

niksmr2

I would not say that WRXs are "played out"...yes there are a lot of people in WA that have them, but that is because there are a lot of outdoor and/or rally enthusiasts around here. At least we use them to their full advantage.

InjentC23

Yeah, I guess you're right. I found an 05 Sti with 3600 miles for $28,999. Does this sound like a good deal?

Kilo6_one

be carefull modding an EVO, some dealers get real picky when you take it in for warranty work............

InjentC23

I've decided not to go with the evo. Getting a wrx instead.

niksmr2

Seems like a pretty good deal. Just make sure its not already modded! LOL...that might be kinda hard....every used one I looked at while car shopping was modded already. You gotta wonder why someone gets rid of a car after a couple thousand miles.

Maybe spend a bit extra and get a NEW 06...unless you're like me and think they are ugly

Skunk

I couldn't find a tC in town when I was car shopping, so I wound up buying a new 05 WRX premium sedan around June of last year. I couldn't be happier with my purchase. I like the tC, but I think the WRX was a much better deal.

It looks like you found a pretty good deal on that STi. The cars are extremely reliable, so I wouldn't worry too much about someone having beat up on the car. Especially since it will likely come with a longer warranty. The main thing I would look out for is improper tuning (i.e. an aftermarket intake or blow-off valve for instance, since those mods are known to do much more harm than good on a WRX/STi).

You're other consideration is probably to get an 06 WRX. The new WRX now comes with a 2.5l engine. While only rated at 230hp, people have been dynoing their new 06s and finding them to put down around 195-210 to the wheels. Factoring the AWD drivetrain loss, that puts the new WRX to somewhere around 250-270hp or so stock. I've been considering trading mine back in for an 06 because of this, and because with the new engine, the "safe" ceiling for reliable modification is probably much higher as well. I don't think the new engine will have any problem pushing 350hp. The premium package also includes leather and a security system standard now.

The nice thing about Subaru is some of the dealerships will really cut good deals. I bought my premium sedan for about $24K OTD, which is almost $4K under MSRP. I really didn't even bargain hard either, I just told them i was going to go to Acura to test drive a RSX-S and they dropped the price $1K. After about 5 minutes going back and forth trying to tell the guy I wasn't ready to make a decision yet, I just wanted to try the other car, he had lopped $5K off his initial asking price.

I had him write it down, and test drove the Acura. I started dealing with the Acura sales manager, and he absolutely refused to go under $25K. I had recently looked up the invoice on the car and it was like $22,900 I think. I flat out told him it was his last chance to make a sale (he had about 6 Type-S's on the lot), because Subaru had already made a much better offer. His response was that Acura was a higher-quality car company (Despite the RSX being mechanically identical to a Civic Si, the TSX and RL being the rebadged Accord and Legend from other markets, and the TL being a made-over US Accord) that dealt with a "higher brand" of customer, and that they weren't accustomed to negotiating much on price. I drove my WRX home that night.

I'm also really considering the Legacy GT, if I can get my hands on one. That is pretty much the ultimate sleeper car right now. Near WRX performance in a cushy sport sedan. The latest Road and Track posted a 13.7 quarter mile in their AWD sport sedan comparo. I don't know if I'll be able to swing a new Legacy though. That, and I'm suspicious that Subaru will either completely makeover the car, or incorporate the Spec B features into the standard car next year.

InjentC23

Yeah, I do wonder why whoever owned this sti got rid of it so quick. But hopefully it isn't heavily modded. I don't really like the front end of the 06's and I heard Subaru went to drive by wire on the 06's. So that's why I would rather get a pre-06 model.

InjentC23

Yeah, with such a small amount of mileage on it, I'm not too worried about it having been beat up, just as long as it still has a warranty. I had heard about bov's not being too good for wrx's. My friend has an 04 wrx and he installed a bov on it and he said he hated it. He said his shifting wasn't as smooth, so he took it off. But I didn't know about intakes being not too good. Thanks for looking out. When I got my tC I had so much planned as far as mods go, but thinking about getting an sti, I don't seem to be thinking about changing much. I know I'll get an exhaust that's for sure. But I guess we'll see down the road what happens. As far as haggling goes, my main "plan of attack" is to tell them I'm interested in an Evo, since I recently was, but I'll see if he'll go lower if I can make him think I'll go buy an Evo instead.

cmndrjamesbond

Why not get a used Z06? One of my friends picked one up for just under 30k.
Unrelated question, whats your AFSC?

InjentC23

Not really a Z06 fan too much. I'm more of an import car kinda guy. My afsc is 1t151(aircrew life support)

niksmr2

Make sure when you start playing the numbers game with them, that you discuss the TRADE price first. In my case I have been offered a really good deal on my trade, before I even start negotiating the price of the other car. Then they might try to lower the price of the trade once you start negotiating. Stay firm to the original offer. This worked for me.

BTW....what color are you looking to get?

heyitznosaj

I wish I could upgrade to a WRX too. If you are planning on parting out your exhaust ill buy your midpipe if the price is right. Do you have a hi-flow cat and resonator on it?

InjentC23

Thanks for the advice. I'll make sure the price on my tC is set before we get into the price of the sti. I'm looking to get a blue one. Blue's my favorite color.

InjentC23

Sorry bro, but the midpipe was custom made, so it was welded right behind the "factory" cat, and then welded up to the HKS muffler. It sucks that I can't really go back to stock without having to pay money for someone to put the stock exhaust back on. So I guess the dealership's getting my HKS exhaust. Also sucks that it was the most expensive single part I bought for my car and I can't get some kind of money for it. Oh well.

InjentC23

Here's the link to the one I'm interested in. Doesn't appear to be modded. Now that is one long a$$ link. hehe
http://autos.yahoo.com/usedcars/deta...89SW1wcmV6YQ--

Skunk

Yeah, the main thing with the intake is that the stock setup is extremely high-flowing, it's easily good for up to 500hp. The most gain you're going to see from an aftermarket intake is maybe 1-2hp. That coupled with the fact that almost every single aftermarket intake that makes that small bit of power requires relocating the air sensor. The stock air sensor isn't good at detecting those changes and correcting for them, so you usually run into fuel issues. If you HAVE to do something to the intake, the best bet is to just remove the snorkel and silencer.

The external blow-off valve is pretty much the same way. The ECU expects the blow off gas to be recirculated. When the BOV vents that air off the ECU still injects the same amount of fuel. Causing a momentarily rich A/F mixture and subsequent loss of power.

The first upgrade for the STi should certainly be a turboback exhaust (and uppipe if you can swing it) and reflash. That's good for around 40hp and 70lb ft of torque to the wheels, maybe slightly more. It will also give your car that evil Subaru boxer engine rumble. There are several good tuning companies and routes available including:

Cobb:
http://www.cobbtuning.com
Vishnu:
http://www.vishnutuning.com/wrx.htm
Turbo XS:
http://www.turboxs.com/

I personally recommend Cobb, although a lot of people prefer the TurboXS/UTEC route.

You can learn a lot of great information at the North American Subaru Impreza Owners Club forums:
http://www.nasioc.com/
And Club WRX:
http://www.clubwrx.net

InjentC23

Thanks for the info. Yeah a TBE is gonna be my first upgrade. Might be a dumb question, but I am new to FI, so by just getting a TBE does that raise the boost? And if it does, by how much? If I just get a TBE should I even worry about getting a reflash? Or would it be better for the car if i did? As far as Bov's go, will I be better off just sticking with the stock BPV? I should probably be asking these on a Subaru forum, but you sound pretty knowledgable.

Skunk

On it's own, the TBE doesn't really raise the power by much. What it does is widen out the downpipe which allows the turbo to spool quicker. The result is much less turbo lag, more power down low, and maybe 5-10hp gain. It's certainly not enough to hurt the car, but without the reflash you might be running a little lean at low RPM. With the Accessport reflash you gain another 40hp or so and should run with good a/f throughout the powerband.

The nice thing about being new to f/i is how much gains you see from your mods. I helped my buddy install intake/headers/exhaust (about $1000 maybe) on his base model RSX and he probably gained about 15hp to the wheels. By comparison a month later I bought the Accessport ($600) for my WRX. And with just that (I still don't have my TBE yet), I gained 25whp and 29wtq. Hell with a bone stock WRX and less than $3K in mods (TBE, uppipe, VF34 turbo, STi injectors, reflash) you can push 325+hp. With the STi and less than $2K you're at 350+hp. And believe me, with AWD, even my current 265hp is enough to hold it's own.

InjentC23

Thanks for all the great info bro. I look forward to putting it to very good "AWD" use very soon.