Value of Subarus?

[pettersolberg29]

This is a message on behalf of my dad. He's looking to buy a Subaru but is unsure of the sort of price he should be paying.

The exact car he wants is a 1998 Impreza WRX Sti. It must be a Japanese import apparently. He has seen one for sale for 5000 GBP, and despite me begging him to buy it for that much, he isn't sure if that's value for money.

Just wondering if there are any people on here who know a bit more about the value of this car. Thanks.

p.s. feel free to delete Mods when I've got an answer if it clogs up the baord ;)

[Macd]

Anything about 5-8 Thou is about right. I would go for a Type R or an RA as they are the best. things to watch out for are : Head gaskets, Poor turbos and damaged clutches. Obviously any car that looks dodgy is a no go. MAKE SURE to have the JDM spec ECU remapped by a specialist and change the fuel pump, the ones on stock cars are shocking

[Daniel]

This is a message on behalf of my dad. He's looking to buy a Subaru but is unsure of the sort of price he should be paying.

The exact car he wants is a 1998 Impreza WRX Sti. It must be a Japanese import apparently. He has seen one for sale for 5000 GBP, and despite me begging him to buy it for that much, he isn't sure if that's value for money.

Just wondering if there are any people on here who know a bit more about the value of this car. Thanks.

p.s. feel free to delete Mods when I've got an answer if it clogs up the baord ;)
Is it on Autotrader or ebay so we can have a look?

Personally I don't see the attraction of an STI tbh unless you're really going to be using it on a track. You can get a regular turbo which is 9/10ths just as good for a good deal less. If I was going to buy an Impreza I'd buy a Series McRae because it's a good looking car and being a special edition most have been taken care of whereas STI's will have been ragged. A Series McRae has also probably hit around about it's bottom value and will probably start going up in value in the near future. You could also look at the RB5 as well which is a bit more modern and very sought after.

http://www.northlondonscoobys.com/mcrae_994%5B1%5D.jpg

As Macd said, any car which looks dodgey isn't worth a look in. Subaru Impreza's are cars which have a reputation as being fast cars so get driven by a lot of idiots who just don't care for them so finding a good one is important. Personally if I saw one with non-standard wheels, a beancan exhaust and which is lowered I would run run run run!!!!!!

Bits are not really that expensive and are plentiful on eBay and they are dead reliable as long as they are serviced well. We have a Subaru Legacy Turbo which has the same floorpan as the Impreza's up to the bugeye and aside from the rocker cover gasket leaking, the dampers getting tired and some bushes going it's dead solid and reliable.

An STI will be quicker than a Turbo but are you really in need of those extra few horsepower and a few extra's which the STI throws in like slightly better brakes, alloy front wishbones and better front suspension geometry? The Turbo is a bloody quick car in its own right and you'll blow away 95% of the stuff on the roads these days anyway. Again, my advice would be to go for an RB5 or Series McRae as these will more likely have been treated with a bit more respect. Also, try an absolute mint version which has obviously been maintained well to give you a good baseline.

[Daniel]

Also, personally I'd also keep away from cars with aftermarket gauges and so on. To me this shows someone who likes to rag the crap out of the car and whilst the EJ20 is a great engine and it can take abuse i's always better to get an unmolested car.

[pettersolberg29]

Thanks both.

Daniel - no ebay or autotrader because it is in a magazine I think. What in your opinion is the value of the sort of car I mentioned, then the one you mentioned in comparison?

[Daniel]

Well there's a series McRae on ebay for about £3k and a couple of RB5's on Autotrader and ebay for between 3-5k and upwards.

I guess 5k is probably a fair enough price for an STI of that vintage but as I said do you really need the extra bits which are really of very limited use to you unless you're on a track?

A couple of nice RB5's here :)

http://pistonheads.com/sales/1376692.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1356595.htm

Series McRae's are quite rare but usually go for about 3-4k and above.

[Jag_Warrior]

Isn't there something like the Kelly Bluebook or Edmunds in the U.K.? It shouldn't be too hard to find the high, average and low value of a car that's only about 10 years old.

But we didn't get the WRX until 2002 and the STi until 2004, I think. So I can't add anything, other than what Daniel said.

[pettersolberg29]

Daniel - thanks very much. Those two links impressed my dad a lot - I assume pistonheads is a reliable and 'good' website that we can trust, yeh? He was looking at Series McRaes but as you say they are rare so he couldn't find any which are anywhere near where we live!

As you lot seem like experts, my dad would also like to ask if you know of any insurance deals which specialise in Subarus and give the best deals. Wherever he has looked the insurance has been way too high, despite having over 20 years no claims. Thanks if any can help.

[Daniel]

Try these guys :)
http://www.uklegacy.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=95754&pid=255853&st=0&#entry255853

Also of course have a look @ www.moneysupermarket.com (http://www.moneysupermarket.com)

Subaru's will be expensive to insure though, they're typically at least group 15 for the hotter ones so insurance won't be cheap sadly.

I think with something as specialised as a Series McRae you will have to travel to find a good one but they are a nice car. There are other special like the Terzo, Catalunya and P1 but they're either not that that exciting or in the case of the P1 probably a little more than what your dad wanted to spend.

[tannat]

As a US resident I am truly envious of all the various special Subarus available across the pond....

[Macd]

The 1998 Sti is supposed to be the best one they ever made. The series mcrae is a UK spec car and is abit underpowered and the interior is horrible but its a very rare car. The rb5 is probably a better car. The 2 door ones are awesome.
have a look at these
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1370373.htm <- Rebuilt engine. Superb value
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1354123.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1333337.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1264360.htm <- Plenty of power with forged internals, again awesome value.
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1363294.htm <- Forged internals again 320BHP and is probably good for another 100BHP

[Daniel]

The 1998 Sti is supposed to be the best one they ever made. The series mcrae is a UK spec car and is abit underpowered and the interior is horrible but its a very rare car. The rb5 is probably a better car. The 2 door ones are awesome.
have a look at these
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1370373.htm <- Rebuilt engine. Superb value
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1354123.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1333337.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1264360.htm <- Plenty of power with forged internals, again awesome value.
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1363294.htm <- Forged internals again 320BHP and is probably good for another 100BHP
It's hardly underpowered. The Legacy we have only has 200bhp and is heavier than the Impreza and it's fast enough. Like I said if the OP's dad is wanting to take the car on track then having more power might be of benefit but a Series McRae will be plenty fast for the road.

[pettersolberg29]

Thanks both. It is only needed for road use so the RB5 or Series McRae looks a better option.

[Macd]

Thanks both. It is only needed for road use so the RB5 or Series McRae looks a better option.

http://www.series-mcrae.co.uk/

:)

[Daniel]

Thanks both. It is only needed for road use so the RB5 or Series McRae looks a better option.
Pictures for sure if you get one :)

[Daz]

I've got the UK Turbo 2000 in standard form. As a quick and practicle road car it's awesome. Had it 4 years now and if I had to change it don't know what I'd buy instead.

[Daniel]

Nice Series McRae on Pistonheads :)

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1414920.htm

[Daniel]

Forgot to mention there's also one for sale on Autotrader which currently has a non-standard wing and alloys but they're also for sale with it.

[JRodrigues]

We've has 2 Turbo's at home, a '97 and a '99 and they were fantastic. Absolutely loved them, especially the first one. If I were you I would go for the McRae Series or the RB5. A special series is always something to go for. The '97 Turbo had 211bhp but they were enough. The car only weighed 1200 kg.
Here's a nice site with some special editions from 1996 until 2006 and some great advices on mods: http://www.iwoc.co.uk/contents.html

[pettersolberg29]

Thanks guys. He is still looking, and test drove a P1 recently and loved it. I got to test drive it too (I'm only 18 and have never driven a good car before!) and it was awesome. Going back to my rusty old Polo felt a bit lame!

Daniel - have you got the link to the Autotrader one? My dad was looking not 10 minutes ago and din't see it. Thanks.

[Daniel]

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/200951348436872/sort/priceasc/usedcars/make/subaru/postcode/ch53uz/page/1/keywords/mcrae/radius/1500?previous=%2Fsearch%2Fresults%2Fusedcars%2Fpos tcode%2Fch53uz%2Fradius%2F1500%2Fmake%2Fsubaru%2Fk eywords%2Fmcrae%2Fsort%2Fpriceasc%2Fpage%2F1&logcode=p

Dunno if that works.

Silly headlights, spoiler and wheels but the spoiler and wheels are available with it and you won't have a problem getting some headlights. Oh and the IMO horrible graphics (I think they're graphics!!!!) can be taken off easily I'm sure.

[Daniel]

Thanks guys. He is still looking, and test drove a P1 recently and loved it. I got to test drive it too (I'm only 18 and have never driven a good car before!) and it was awesome. Going back to my rusty old Polo felt a bit lame!

Daniel - have you got the link to the Autotrader one? My dad was looking not 10 minutes ago and din't see it. Thanks.
The P1 is by all accounts one of the best special editions your can buy. The only thing I would say is that the P1 is blue like thousands of other Impreza's which seems to make it seem less exclusive and special whereas the RB5's colour is great and the Series McRae is also not a common colour either.

[pettersolberg29]

I agree about the colour - my dad doesn't care. Just wants a good car after suffering for the past 25 years or so with cars like Vauxhall Astramax vans and countles Nissan Primeras!

The RB5 is lovely in my view - one of the truly great looking road cars that is affordable. We'd all like a Lambo or Ferari but few of us can.

[Daniel]

I agree about the colour - my dad doesn't care. Just wants a good car after suffering for the past 25 years or so with cars like Vauxhall Astramax vans and countles Nissan Primeras!

The RB5 is lovely in my view - one of the truly great looking road cars that is affordable. We'd all like a Lambo or Ferari but few of us can.
Yeah :) Although Subaru's are not my cup of tea in some ways you can't argue with how capable they are. Another bit of advice I would give would be that if any bits on the car get tired then think about buying better bits. If the bushes get tired then buy poly bushes, if ball joints and tie rod ends get tired see what you can get. The GC Impreza Platform was around for a good 10 years + in one way or another so upgrades are easy to come by.

[Jag_Warrior]

As a US resident I am truly envious of all the various special Subarus available across the pond....

The same thing struck me as I looked through the various pics and links.

What I love about my WRX is how incredibly tuneable it is. Parts (compared to more exotic makes) are quite reasonable - not as cheap as for Hondas, but not as bad as Porsche parts.

The tuner market was red hot in the U.S. until the recession hit. I can't understand why Subaru was so slow to jump in, and really never has given us the special edition cars that other countries seem to get. So, Honda has just eaten their lunch. And as much as I'd love to get another Suby when this ones time is up, the new WRX/STI's are butt ugly (IMO). I'll definitely have another AWD monster - these things are PURE all weather fun! But right now, I guess I'll go with an Evo or maybe an Audi, unless Subaru restyles the WRX/STI again before I go shopping. I'd much rather have another Suby though!