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Buying my first Turbo Subaru (Sti)


Subru

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I bet there are of these threads out there but here is another one :)

Im panning to buy my first Turbo Subaru soon (an Sti 9_9¬¬) and looking for some advice on what to look for and to avoid.

Im thinking that I want something with no more than 170000kms, V5 to v9, no engine tuning (intakes, FMIC's etc) and nothing uncertified. Does that sound right?

Should I get a pre purchase inspection too?

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34 minutes ago, Jono24 said:

You might be ruling out possibly good buys by ignoring uncerted stuff and engine tuning, just do all your homework on anything you look at is my best suggestion.

 

been through my own long winded experience with the uncerted route. it's equal parts frustrating and satisfying.. if waited for one with same kind of spec as what i got that was all certed etc. probably would have paid much more (and still be waiting). if new car has wof for a while then don't rule it out not having cert, just post up details about it and we will comment about what it might need for cert so you can budget all that in. if it has no wof and no cert, then budget in keeping insurance/maintenance for a secondary 'daily' car so you can get around until you sort this out.

 

if you want a completely mechanically stock one then that makes it a bit easier though. check how many previous owners it's had on carjam, find out about the current owner how long they had it for why they selling, if they are a club member here or not etc. each model has something different to look for but above all else don't forget the usual basic checks like maintenance records, condition of clutch, asking about stuff like oil changes/what oil they use, cambelt change, brakes/brake rotors change, rust, do all the electronics work? are there any weird noises/vibrations etc.

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The one that you pointed out in the Trademe thread: http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/subaru/auction-1303705433.htm

 

I don't think it's an STi for these reasons:

Front badge is crooked & rear badges are in weird places;

Bonnet scoop is only WRX size

 

There are no engine and only one interior pics to look at.. I'm sure they would show more things to point out

 

@calebwrx has a V7 WRX wagon, he might be able to comment further on what he knows / has found out over the time he's owned it.

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1 minute ago, Scoobydoo said:

The one that you pointed out in the Trademe thread: http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/subaru/auction-1303705433.htm

 

I don't think it's an STi for these reasons:

Front badge is crooked & rear badges are in weird places;

Bonnet scoop is only WRX size

 

There are no engine and only one interior pics to look at.. I'm sure they would show more things to point out

 

@calebwrx has a V7 WRX wagon, he might be able to comment further on what he knows / has found out over the time he's owned it.

Yea something doesn't look right, the main thing I saw was the fog lights, the Sti just has the 'sti' cover. Also the things you mentioned. I might get him to post engine bay pic :P

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11 minutes ago, Scoobydoo said:

The one that you pointed out in the Trademe thread: http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/subaru/auction-1303705433.htm

 

I don't think it's an STi for these reasons:

Front badge is crooked & rear badges are in weird places;

Bonnet scoop is only WRX size

 

There are no engine and only one interior pics to look at.. I'm sure they would show more things to point out

 

@calebwrx has a V7 WRX wagon, he might be able to comment further on what he knows / has found out over the time he's owned it.

I'm not 100% sure either. I have a feeling someone in Japan had fun playing with that car to make it look like an STI then when it came here the compliance officer didn't know what he was looking at. It has all the correct sti badges (minus front grill) but it also has some tacky ebay sti badges on the front and back.

 

Differences between wrx and STI wagons afaik are:

Seats front and rear (blue on STI with STI embroidered in front seats)

Silver surround on gear lever

different speedo with higher rev limiter

of course ecu, block, heads, intake, turbo, intercooler, intercooler water sprayers etc. (ej205 vs ej207)

6-speed trans and different rear diff on the STI vs 5-speed on wrx

STI has red inverted struts vs black standard struts on wrx

swaybars larger diameter on STI

 

STI wagon still has Subaru 4pot/2pots same as wrx, not brembos like on STI sedan.

STI wagon still has steel lower control arms same as wrx, not wider alloy arms like STI sedan

 

I may have missed something but that is most of it.

 

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Everything Richard and KiwiFozze said are correct, also some things I saw in that auction:

-WRX bonnet scoop

-WRX door cards

-Halogen reflector type headlights

 

=Not an STI

 

Even if it was an STI, I wouldn't call it a bargain at that price + KMs.

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Good luck with your search for an STI.

Unmodified cars can be thrashed and suffer owner neglect.

Modified cars can be very loved and cared for.

People make up all sorts of S*** when they are trying to sell cars..

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1 hour ago, pedro said:

Good luck with your search for an STI.

Unmodified cars can be thrashed and suffer owner neglect.

Modified cars can be very loved and cared for.

People make up all sorts of S*** when they are trying to sell cars..

 

Exactly

 

Pre purchase might tell you something you've missed, it also might miss something vital and leave you with a false sense of security

 

If you're planning to do it up, buy one already done up and save yourself some coin, or buy a dirt cheap neglected project to refurbish - no point buying a mint stocker to then spend several grand more on doing the basic modifications everyone else does anyway

 

If you're planning to leave it unmolested, buy from a dealer with a comprehensive warranty (double points if you get it pre modified with that same warranty, then you have some wiggle room for fiddling)

 

And ignore the "reason for sale" - people sell cars because a) they need the money (house, travel etc) b) they want to buy something better/different, or c) there's an issue and they want to flick it. Private sale is always buyer beware no matter how trustworthy they may seem. Except me I'm like totes legit babes 

 

Oh my strongest bit of advice is try driving a few other options - don't just get your heart set on this one model and look for the best example you can - you might drive something different and go oh hory sheeit this is way more "me". Please see: a million examples of import owners turning V8 or what have you. My workmate had his heart set on his dream car - he got it (R32 with 25DET) - 3 weeks later he's swapped for a 180sx 

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15 hours ago, Subru said:

Yea something doesn't look right, the main thing I saw was the fog lights, the Sti just has the 'sti' cover. Also the things you mentioned. I might get him to post engine bay pic :P

 

:/ My STI has fogs, so does Batbaruman's

 

That wagon is either an STI or someone has spent a bunch of money trying to pretend it's one, looks to have the 6-speed and STI interior.

 

That said, the wagon's didn't get Brembos, and are narrower than the sedan.

 

HID's were an option I believe, just it was an option that nearly every car got.

The only thing I would be a little suspect about on that car is the wonky grill, wrong bonnet scoop and possibly wrong headlights = maybe it's had a minor frontal at some stage.

 

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Thanks for the advice, I have been looking around for a few months and researching a bit and definitely have an open mind in terms of what version/body type to get, I might look a few more modified cars with the basic mods so I can save myself some cash, always planned to buy one with exhaust, bov etc.

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Everyones missed the chassis code.

 

That car could have had a frontal, but its definately an sti because chassis code (gga is wrx /20k, wheras the GGB chassis is sti)

 

Sti wagons got gtb style gold rims

Steel front arms

Shorter rear arms

Narrow body 

(falls into a lesser tax bracket in Japan because its narrower)

4 pots. 

Hid's were an option, as were fogs 

 

Mechanically (motor trans etc) and interior is identical to the sedans.

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Awesome news that you are looking for a suby! like all the others are saying don't fall into the trap of not buying a modified car or one with 150kms etc. there are some gems out and about that people probably think the worst about.

 

I fell into this trap with my V7 STI, My former friend owned it and it had just come back from the mechanics with a 'hole bunch of work done' to say the least. The car latest a couple of hours before we took it to get checked over and it needed to be rebuilt.

 

People don't care what they say to sell things so like the others have said drive and view a few, look for service history etc no major signs of up and coming work and go for that :) 

 

Best of luck!

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also, find a mechanic you trust that knows Subarus to have a look at anything you are serious about... I've had very mixed results with VTNZ etc... not sure who the go to is in Wellington, but someone on here will be able to answer.

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21 minutes ago, willisnz said:

also, find a mechanic you trust that knows Subarus to have a look at anything you are serious about... I've had very mixed results with VTNZ etc... not sure who the go to is in Wellington, but someone on here will be able to answer.

 

If you are based in Wellington, I only let the guys at Prestige motorsport / Llama engineering work on mine and diagnose problems. Could see if they would be happy to look at a car for you? would highly recommend them.

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2 hours ago, Inked said:

Awesome news that you are looking for a suby! like all the others are saying don't fall into the trap of not buying a modified car or one with 150kms etc. there are some gems out and about that people probably think the worst about.

 

I fell into this trap with my V7 STI, My former friend owned it and it had just come back from the mechanics with a 'hole bunch of work done' to say the least. The car latest a couple of hours before we took it to get checked over and it needed to be rebuilt.

 

People don't care what they say to sell things so like the others have said drive and view a few, look for service history etc no major signs of up and coming work and go for that :) 

 

Best of luck!

It is good news :) 

good tips , ty :) 

1 hour ago, Inked said:

 

If you are based in Wellington, I only let the guys at Prestige motorsport / Llama engineering work on mine and diagnose problems. Could see if they would be happy to look at a car for you? would highly recommend them.

okay I may take it to them for inspection or whatever, Cheers.

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1 minute ago, Inked said:

Also one other thing, I have a mate selling a V8 wrx V-LTD just had full rebuild with proof and receipts. if you are interested flick me a message its not STI though. Sorry! clogging up your post ha ha

All good :D

Is there are trademe link for his car or anything? Would prefer to Buy an Sti tho.

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31 minutes ago, Subru said:

looks pretty good man, and prodrives are sexy as hell!.. plus it's a bugeye so you'll be part of an exclusive group of extra cool CS members :) looks good from the photos, i say go check it out on the weekend then make an offer. personally i wouldn't pay 16k for it with those k's on the clock. @Prodrivebugeye bought his recently with around 100ks , how much as yours just to give Subru a ballpark figure?

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8 minutes ago, Batbaruman said:

looks pretty good man, and prodrives are sexy as hell!.. plus it's a bugeye so you'll be part of an exclusive group of extra cool CS members :) looks good from the photos, i say go check it out on the weekend then make an offer. personally i wouldn't pay 16k for it with those k's on the clock. @Prodrivebugeye bought his recently with around 100ks , how much as yours just to give Subru a ballpark figure?

Sweet, yea gotta love the bugeyes with the roof air vent (roof scoop I call it :)). Might that a further look at it, I live in wellington and thats in auckland so a bit hard to view it unless im very keen... One question, is 160000 kms quite a lot? I want something fairly reliable and would 160000 be fine? (assuming no underlying issues) 

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26 minutes ago, Subru said:

Sweet, yea gotta love the bugeyes with the roof air vent (roof scoop I call it :)). Might that a further look at it, I live in wellington and thats in auckland so a bit hard to view it unless im very keen... One question, is 160000 kms quite a lot? I want something fairly reliable and would 160000 be fine?

160k from a careful owner is completely different to 100k from a owner who thrashes his car and doesn't change oils as often as they should so more proof you can get about work done to it over the years the better when you paying that much.. #YMMV xD

 

having said that, mine is almost at 170,000, bought it at 164000 - i was fine with it because i knew the previous owner since uni days and trusted that he maintained his car  baby properly throughout his ownership, and he knew previous owner and also said the same about that guy. when the car is unknown to you and you don't know the person you're buying it off, it's important to only trust that which you've seen evidence for and even then also budget 1-2k of maintenance over the next couple months (if not more depending on whats been done recently) for random things that'll come up as this is both a performance car and getting close to 20 yrs of age.

 

it's a good bonus that is has coilovers fitted and been certed already

 

if you like the car, contact the guy and negotiate on price first along lines of "i'm willing to pay for inspection and pay $XX for car on condition that inspection is all good" . also ask them some questions (example questions below) and see if you can get as much evidence sent back to you for your review as you can. more the merrier.

 

some of the basics to ask via email to seller

  • clutch was done 20k ago which is pretty good. what kind of clutch is it, was flywheel changed at same time, is there evidence of clutch change / what type it is? for example don't think you'll want to daily a 5puk clutch or whatever the really annoying one is.
  • general maintenance changes - mine recently started to have an oil leak from multiple places pretty suddenly, this i didn't expect but it comes with a car this old and driven for this many K's - one of my mates later told me it's common in subies this old / with this many k's. if you don't have proof of recent rocker cover / cam seal changes then maybe budget in to have those replaced when the problem inevitably starts, but do ask if that has already been done.
  • last service was at 160k, so next one is due soon - add price of oil / filter / maybe sparks / labour in to your pool of 'stuff to do soon and have money laying around for'
  • when they say major service every 10k, ask for proof and what exactly did it include. gearbox / sparks etc? brake rotors/pads? if not, when were those last done?
  • when and at how many k's was cambelt done (both mileage and age is important)
  • front tyres recently added, what condition are rear ones in? not 100% sure about subarus but heard other AWD cars can experience differential damage over time if mismatched tyres are run but a few MM of tread might not make that big a difference.. . anyway you might need to replace the rears some point in near future
  • when was wheel alignment last done (if ever). is there guard rub, test drive see how it handles on those big 19" wheels

 

edit : hibiscus coast is a bit out of my way but i wonder if any other forum members closer to the area could go check it out? i'm sure someone will come out of the woodworks, it would save you a bit of time coming up from wellington in the event it was not as good in person as it is on the adverts (happens sometimes). maybe admins will have general idea of who is where

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20 minutes ago, Subru said:

Sweet, yea gotta love the bugeyes with the roof air vent (roof scoop I call it :)). Might that a further look at it, I live in wellington and thats in auckland so a bit hard to view it unless im very keen... One question, is 160000 kms quite a lot? I want something fairly reliable and would 160000 be fine? (assuming no underlying issues) 

It is hard to judge a car by kms alone.  How it has been treated has a much larger effect on the state of the vehicle both mechanically & cosmetically. 

@Kiwi_Fozze's sti has done close to 300,000kms but I have heard of others that need to be rebuilt at at 120,000kms. 

Personally I try not to care about kms when looking at a vehicle, it matters to some extent but thinking "I want to buy a car with under 140,000 so it will be reliable" is a bit silly. Look at the car for its condition, not the odo.

 

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