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Subaru Impreza WRX
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I asked him, why not buy the 540i right out of the box ? It would provide everything that he had done to his 530i and be factory warrantied. He made some lame statement about the 530i being lighter (even after the forced induction) when compared to the 540i, and that would be better for handling. Would I do that if I were spending my own money ? Never.
As for myself, if I had a manual WRX and if I felt that my needs would be satisfied only with an STi (after the STi reaches here), I would buy the STi....not try to make the WRX something it is not. I would think that the performance of the WRX should be more than enough for almost anyone. Of course, the STi offers a lot more than the regular WRX (only one aspect of which is the additional power), unlike what many of us think, and is definitely worth more. If Subaru is able to hold the price under 30K, it would be a raging bargain, to say the least. But I might almost certainly prefer to retain the WRX (assuming I owned a manual-WRX), with a lot less jarring ride in the real world (when compared to the STi) and much lower insurance rates.
I played the game a long time back of wanting the newest and the best available, and lost a lot of money in the bargain. Now I would settle for the best available right now (and pay cash for it rather than leasing or financing), and run it into the ground before being tempted into a new-car showroom again for a purchase. Newer models will come and go but my bank would be jingling with the coins I saved by sticking on with my purchase and not being tempted. When I am ready for a new purchase (>250,000 miles later??), I will buy the newest and the best, then available. I may not be riding in the "newest Automotive kid on the block" always, but my bank (or investments) would love me all the more for it. Just my 2c.
Later...AH
-Dennis
-mike
I'm adding a Momo shift knob (saving the original) to go with the steering wheel and a set of SP5000s for when the RE92s wear out. A ProDrive or STi exhaust might be nice for when the standard exhaust needs replacement, but that's about it for me.
Using Mobil 1 fluids and an STi exhaust is enough to raise the hp to 240 or so without voiding the warranty--and still get you into plenty of trouble to lose your license in record time if you want
--RA
How do you figure?
The performance exhaust frees up engine back pressure and in the WRX would produce maybe 10 extra horses. Again, just my estimate. Am I wrong on this? Anyone having some dyno tested data, it would be good to know.
http://www.subaru.net/usproduct/ppartsfaq.htm
At any rate, here's a link to a great article to the Aussie online mage, AutoSpeed, where they put on parts of the APS system (sold by Cobb as its Stage 1) and dyno'd power results after each one. Read the article, and you'll see that after installing a 3" diameter (stock is ~2.25") TURBO-back exahust system with only 1 hi-flow exhaust (the stock exhaust has 2 cats after the turbo), the dyno showed there was nearly NO peak horsepower gains! There were, however, some low RPM power gains. In fact, until they installed the Unichip for computer engine management, none of the mechanical modifications had much effect on peak HP. I think it's pretty easy to deduce from this that the STi MUFFLER alone will have negligible effects, if any, on power gains.
The article:
http://www.autospeed.com/A_1054/page1.html
The dyno printout:
http://www.autospeed.com/image.html?LOC=%2Fimages&IMG=1054_18&REZ=mg
In all, I think the $770 price of the STi for the sound alone is outrageous.
-mike
-mike
But the point is that the Mustang and Camaros dont really compare to a WRX. Not only are they different vehicle types (coupe only, RWD only, etc), but on little things, like included equipment, and fit and finish, Ford and Chevy are still inferior to the WRX. No doubt about it.
The up-market models of these cars, the SVT Cobra and the SS, are about $7K more than their based model, so they can wind up close to 30K.
Granted either of those cars will hand a stock WRX its [non-permissible content removed] in the 1/4, and at the track, but the point is, different car. Not AWD, not really small, or as light, and not sedans.
I think SOA did their homework very well and the demographic is really well defined and segmented, and its not the Mustang/Camaro crowd. I dont think the average age of a WRX buyer is anywhere near 25, in fact Id say its probably over 30. If anything, Id say they see their closest competitor for the STI as the Evo, if it indeed comes over. Whether or not Mitsu can sell the Evo for under 30K is totally unknown. Given the offering, 30K seems to be the low end of a reasonable price. Remember, even a Passat costs 30K these days.
The economy is slow and manufacturers are at a point where they're giving cars away at 0%. Not to mention the competition like the sub 30k 350Z, G35, EVO VII, Dodge SRT, and the other new models that will undoubtedly appear in the next couple of year. I suspect that the STI will definitely sell for less than 30K.
Except when you consider that Subaru is offering incentives that are definitely on the conservative side, when compared to US automakers. subaru.com shows special financing (2.9%) available for 2001 models and "select" 2002s. Given what is becoming a concensus opinion that the economy is at the bottom now (let's keep our eyes on the next Fed meeting; if they decide to keep the prime rate stable it'll indicate they anticipate an imminent recovery and don't want to superheat the economy) I don't forsee Subaru chopping their prices (and profit) to the bone when the STi debuts in North America next year.
As for Neons, I'm frankly tired of people dumping on the car I just happen to drive. I've put ~68K on my '96 ACR, and the only mechanical break I've had was a bad battery a few summers ago. Lately the car has begun displaying odd behavior, but a tune-up should take car of that. I've driven it through multiple NJ winters and there's not a sign of rust anywhere on the body. The interior hasn't suffered a tear, crack or scuff.
The Neon might be on the Consumer Reports list of "Used Cars to Avoid," but there are LOTS of higher-priced vehicles on that list; vehicles that should be of much higher lasting quality. Yet nobody bashes on those higher priced vehicles that retain their value as badly (or worse) than a Neon. Why? If a Neon retails for $15K and loses 80% of its value after 6 years, and another vehicle retails for $35K and loses 80% of its value after 6 years, which car has cost its owner more?
DjB
I looked at subeesound and the only thing decent they had was for the last model impreza. I also checked a couple local shops and they said the WRX is too new to have any custom-fit (stealth) hardware. Should I wait for aftermarket, or get the Subaru sub/amp? Does anyone know if you can hook up two (one under each seat)?
Thanks for your help.
Paul
--RA
The STi "muffler" really won't add any h.p. You need to go with a turbo back exhaust and lose a couple of cats to add h.p.
edit: RA - Are you talking about turbo-back or cat-back?
I was at the dealer for service the other day and you wouldn't have any clue that the economy is slow.
I had to wait in line to test drive the WRX. At 35, I was the youngest one there. A couple ahead of me were in their late 40's/early 50's. Before them was a guy in his early 50's.
-Dennis
Back on the NorthEast regions, the wagons sit at the dealerships. You can get a WRX wagon for a little above invoice $20,000 to $21,000.
I wonder if urethane shifter bushings will increase the feel of the stock shifter. If feels sloppy for a direct linkage, still feels more sloppy than Toyota's cable linkage. Truely odd.
TWRX
They also said you can expect a 1.1% increase in fuel economy. That means you save about $9 on a $900 annual gas bill. That pays for 2 quarts of Mobil 1 right there. Hey, I tried to tell you guys this was good stuff
--RA
-juice
Last winter was really bad here. After two consecutive weeks in the teens, I changed the gear oil to Amsoil standard synthetic. No grinding and I just get in the car and go, no matter what the temp.
-Dennis
-mike
Are you guys saying that Mobil is an unethical and untrustworthy corporation--that they would LIE to people over their 800 numbers about their products? I don't think so. They have built a reputation over many years and I don't think they would sacrifice that integrity to make a bogus claim regarding some minor hp gains.
Finally, Mobil 1 as been around now for 20-25 years. People aren't complete idiots. They're not going to buy a product for $4.50 a quart if they could get exactly the same benefits from something that cost a $1.29! You get what you pay for. In the case of Mobil 1, you get better flow characteristics at start up and longer engine life--that's why people continue to buy it.
--RA
You must be kidding, right? A large corporation lie to its customers? Hire PR people and marketing folks to use an angle that makes their product sound better than it really is? It can't be true! ;-)
-juice
-mike
any difference. Looks like the ASP set-up has only one cat behind the engine instead of two-maybe that helps account for the slight gain.
-juice
Also, why do you think car makers like Porsche, Corvette, Viper, and M-B all use Mobil 1 as factory fill in their new cars? Why do so many race teams including Penske never use anything BUT Mobil 1--it isn't because they just like to throw their money away for the fun of it!!! They know they are getting a better product that will make their engines perform better and last longer!
-juice
But they did drive a BMW 325i for one million miles, changing the oil and filter every 7500 miles--they showed pictures on their web site of what the engine looked like after they broke it down--very clean and most of the engine parts were still within new car tolerances!! But I've never seen a commercial for Mobil 1 talking about this--it's a mystery to me why they don't get the word out a little more.
--RA
IMO, the clean engine is more likely due to good gasoline than good oil.
-juice
-mike
-juice
-mike
Any how, the funny thing was that a mechanic pointed out that it would actually have been better to have the engine sieze sooner, doing less damage.
-juice
-mike
-mike
-mike
Stephen
Been there, done that! That's why we bought two Subies this time around, I don't know that they'll be any better, but they can't be much worse! It's an economic thing.
In fact, just now talked to Mobil again and they confirm this 100%. They can't make a written guarantee about a 1% improvement because there are just too many different types of engines with too many driving variables. But they did say there are independant SAE tests out there that show Mobil 1 superiority over conventional oils and even some other synthetics in a wide range of performance categories and they do have their own proprietary tests that show the 1% improvement we are talking about.
--RA
After all, sythetic oils do have some superior properties compared to regular oils.