hey guys im looking at getting another subaru, i am debating on the 08-10 wrx or a 04 to 07 sti i am just curious if anyone has owned both before. i would like to know what you liked and didnt like about them. i like the new body style but for the price i can get more hp and the 6 speed im also wondering how the 6 speed is for a dd. one of my buddys has a 08 wrx with the ap stage 2 tune and supporting mods i really like the feel of the car and everything about it, another buddy has a 07 sti wich is all stock, that also is very smooth and snappy with that 6 speed! i have driven both im just seeing if anybody has daily drove both of these cars and if you have some input. i sold my wrx last year and my truck just isnt as fun! the only mods i would be doing on either vehicle would be 3" tbe and a stage 2 tune, thank you in advance for your input!
I had an 04 sti and I really liked the 6 speed for a daily. For a daily driver the sti was just a little too noisy and rough. I have a 2013 wrx now and wish I had the 6 speed and the suspension was a little bit stiffer but it's far less noisy. It's a tough choice but I would probably go with the sti
may sound like a silly question to some but yes, very tough choice for me lol. i want the newest i can get and most comfy ride for a daily but then again i want alittle more pep then the wrx offers and i really like the 6 speed trans. i would aslo like to hold a conversation while driving down the freeway while having a full 3inch exhaust haha! i would probably do some suspension mods so i would be okay with a little rougher ride than the newer wrx but still a comfy daily. the 04-05 sti is my favorite body style btw! Thank you!
I have an 09 wrx. Bought it year and few months back and it had 14,000 miles on it, I now sit just under 40k. I absolutely love the car. I have always wanted an 04-07 sti but just couldn't find the right one for the right price, and then this Rex fell into my lap. I have driven an 05 sti only a short distance so I can't really say I know them well. But as far as my 09, I couldn't be happier.
although if i found a white 08-10 wrx hatch in my price range i wouldnt think twice, i would snatch that thing up in a heart beat!!
i now what ya mean, the sti's ive been looking at are close to 100k where i could still get the body style wrx i want for around 60k, thanks for the reply!
I was kinda playing with the idea of trading in for 10' - 11' ish white sti. But I probably never will. I see you have a srt for sale, my buddy had one before and it was a nice car.
I would think you can find something close to that. There is a current ad on Craigslist for an 09 sti with 60k miles and I think they just dropped the price to 24,500. So one year older would put ya prolly close to that 20k mark. The hard part will be FINDING what you want (color, price, miles, stock or modded)
ya this is my 2nd srt4 i love these cars but i dont drive it in the winter so i have a silverado also, dont have room for 2 vehicles, the wifes car and my z1000 with a 1 stall garage lol. i will buy another srt when i have room for 2 cars but its time for something nice now with power rear windows that i can have fun in all year round!! yes, i seen that one! and thats gonna be my battle i want a white one, i would be fine with exhaust and the ap already installed but i would perfer a stock one! im going to keep watching that hatch on cl see what happens with it cause i know its hard to find a white subbie! but i deffinetly am going to take my time to find the right one!
If you're gonna be daily driving it, want some more comfort, are only gonna go stage 2 and some suspension mods (and perhaps better mpg's)...get a wrx. Much more comfortable, esp in the 08+ body style and better gas mileage. Stage 2 and suspension upgrades will give you plenty of pep for your daily cruise and weekend jaunt. If you are interested in using the car for Motorsports or plan on going larger than a stock turbo, buy an sti and also budget for a short block. The sti is a much better platform and baseline for performance driving...in most cases, a stock sti is already way ahead of a stage 2 wrx with suspension, but at the expense of comfort and mpg's. If you're a bigger turbos are your fancy, then you would already have a stronger 6 speed. Personally, I started with a stage 2 wrx with suspension and used it for Motorsports and felt like I out grew it. Jumped up to an sti and it was that much better in stock form. I love the leg room in my 08 sti, but the more touchy clutch, stiffer suspension, (even in stock form) and short gear ratios make me drive my 2.5i around town instead. It's all up to your personal preference and future goals....but it's a good thing you are doing research and asking for opinions, as you will end up a much happier buyer with whatever you pick!
08 compared to 11+, Wide body, spoiler, bigger turbo, and slightly different suspension, yup. 09-10 to 11+, wide body and maybe stiffer suspension. Maybe some convenience package differences too.
Although its been stated in so many ways already, I would recommend NOT getting a 2008 WRX. Look for a 09+. It depends on what you are looking to get out of your car but 08+ wrx's are larger and more comfortable. Its probably easier to find a cleaner, less abused newer wrx than the older sti. There are pros and cons to each I think you just need to decide what is more important. You may also want to consider a 06-07 wrx which has a really good brake setup and is a good platform for modifying and would be cheaper than both the options you listed.
Also (I could be wrong I'm going by what I've seen in pictures and what I was told at dealer) but I don't think all the 2008 wrx's come with the aero package (side skirts and front lip) the 2008 wrx sti does I believe but not the wrx. If you find a regular wrx with the package from 2008 it was ordered that way. 2009 the aero package was standard equip. So keep that in mind cuz with out skirts and lip my opinion is it looks horrible 09 08
Spend some time in a 96 obs, 01 Impreza, 02 Wrx Sedan, and 02 wrx wagon.. You really appreciate the LGT But I hear you.. I thought I would have sold my Leggy by now.. But I grew to really love it. It will never be Audi comfort, but a pretty okay level of "luxury" for me
ARE THEY KNOWN FOR BAD BLOCKS?! i owned a stage 2 bugeye for alittle over a year, threw it up fs and got what i wanted out of it so i sold it, man do i miss it! now the new owner is a member here also! one of the reasons i want an sti is because this year at proving grounds the road course sparked my interests way more that the drag, only thing i would have to do with the sti to compete is different brake fluid i do beleive... i wouldnt do more than once twice a year only at BIR just for the fun of it, i wouldnt be out to beat everyone in a mostly stock car either, just want to experience it lol. otherwise with a wrx i would have to do some brake mods to feel safe out there. and who doesnt want brembo brakes I do like the 09+ style better, really not a fan of the 06-07 front ends, but i wouldnt mind it if it was an sti lol, they are starting to grow on me a bit since my buddy got his sti tho. i love big turbos and external wastgates but i wouldnt be doing any of that
I race my 11 wrx mostly autocross but been around BIR on a couple of occasion. I'm running stock brakes with just better fluids, swaybars and it handles the road course fine only gets sketchy after 5 or 6 laps then the brake fade gets bad but by that time the tires are hot and slick and your nerves have wore you out. The brake fade could be mostly solved by just getting better pads and rotors, yes Brembos are nice but when it comes time to replace pads and rotors it gets spendy in comparison. As long as you looking at an 11+ WRX I think the difference in handling and looks isn't going to help decide between them, but if there is any thought of big HP numbers Then go with an STI. that's my thought but it does come down to what you may want to do whether you intend to do it or not. The only thing I don't like about my WRX is the 5-100 bolt pattern which makes finding wider wheels a little harder.
11+wrx hands down, looks 100x better than the 08-10 and dont even waste your money on an 08. WRX is a much better DD than the STi, and will have lower maintenance, insurance, and fuel costs. In my opinion, 90% of STi owners should probably have WRXs.
You can take a Toyota Prius to the race track and it will brake just fine and still have fun driving it...all about learning how to drive your car in its current form. Then once you exceed that, then upgrade. PS: "Different" brake fluid alone is not going to make you safer or much better prepped on the race track. Proper maintenance and EXPERIENCE (aka seat time) can help you to be safer and faster on the track STI's nor WRX's are known for "bad blocks" until you start pushing high horsepower with big turbos. STI's are prone to ringland failure (proper maintenance can help) and all wrx/sti's can be prone to spun bearings without proper maintenance (ie, checking and changing your oil frequently). The ultimate decision is up to you. If it were me personally in your situation, I'd probably get an 09+ wrx simply for the overall "comfort" and convenience. However some people love DD'ing their STI's and just put up with the negatives. To each their own.
From what I hear if your not planning on making a monster out of it, they are pretty tough. I've never had a problem. But then again I'm guessing I'm only around 300hp. Hope one of the guys on here with higher numbers chime in cuz id like some insight too for future reference
What is your price range? I had a buddy who was going to buy a stock 2010 sedan last week for 21,995. I found him a 2012 with 1/2 the miles that was already stage 2, had snow tires on stock wheels and then summer wheels, tint, and stereo. He picked it up for between 2 and 2.5k more.
This. You gon' be mad when a Yaris with a competent driver eats your lunch on a road course or a civic destroys you in rallyx. Ask me how I know... (ps: #&$@ you Jesse) What do you mean by setting the car up to "compete"? WRX takes very little to be relatively safe on a track, if that's what you mean. If you mean you want to win things then you'd be better served staying in a lower class while you get some instruction and seat time. Or if you're already there, maybe look at the rules for the sanctioning body you want to compete in and build a purpose-specific platform for those rules. We have members who can help with that. What I've learned so far about my travels into performance driving is I built my car too soon and didn't give myself enough time to really, truly learn how to drive it. I thought I was awesome and the car just wasn't fast enough. Turns out I don't know wtf I'm doing and the car is WAY faster than I need in a performance driving scenario. Think about it this way, if you didn't know about the STi, would the WRX seem like it does everything you want? You mean like TMF?
I dont think TMF had any Tranny problems, but other 08+ WRX owners have. A good number of the transmission problems only start happening at >300hp Your other point about the wrx is correct. For the money, its a fast and competent car. That being said, the upgrades that come on the STI are worth every penny of the extra $10K (ONLY IF YOU CAN AFFORD IT)
I've had my 2009 WRX since November of 2008. I have autocrossed it steady since the summer of 2009, had it at a couple of Brainers HPDE days, and at DCTC for a few of the NF sponsored events. I have gradually gotten to a mild stage 2,(intake, downpipe, full exhaust, tune, stainless lines in the front, Stoptech pads, Bilstein struts, RCE springs & sways) and have been completely happy with it. From a strictly autocross standpoint, it is not competitive once you move out of the stock classes. It is classed with the STIs and the drive train shows its limitations. I have not had any issues with my transmission (besides the pedal feels like it came from a 1970 ford pickup), the clutch is still holding up fine, (might be upgrade time ). I have zero oil consumption between my 3500 mile oil changes, will be swapping out my rotors for the first time this spring, All with 53000 miles. For a daily driver, some HPDE days, fun local autocross car I would highly recommend going with a WRX. It is is a great platform to learn with, very forgiving, comfortable for daily driving, and the aftermarket has stepped up and there are lots of new/used parts out there for the 08+.
My bad, I didn't intend to imply he had problems. He's a good resource for this topic though... FTFY. $10k buys a lot of STi-ish upgrades for a WRX otherwise, which can be applied as the driver ups their skill to the point of identifying true weaknesses in the car as pertains to their driving style. "worth every penny" is dubious if you just look at it on paper. The reliability and warranty you get by not cobbling it together yourself is where you see the value IMO.
the 6 speed is pretty much worth it alone. if you can manage to do so, find a newer sti with the subaru CPO (you can also ask subaru dealers to include this as i did), i know youre looking at older sti's, but if you look hard you enough youll find something. anyone who says the 6 speed is worse for DD is insane, as if one more gear is somehow a problem/hassle? ill never understand the logic of some people, although im pretty sure its their justification for not getting the sti.
Used 6 speed swaps are not $10k. You can get "whole" wrecked STi's for considerably less. Warranty and hassle tho... What people really talk about with 5 vs 6 speed for DD use is gear ratios, and they have a great point. That's one big reason you see people opt for built 5 speeds (think PPG) even though they have the budget for an STi 6MT. Same reason some will seek out the spec.b 6MT instead of the STi 6MT... taller gears.
thanks for all the input guys, i will post up and let you all know what i get!! seen a few nice hatch's at the burnsville subaru dealer today, anyone in this thread by chance??
I agree with you but as long as you get an 07+ STI 6 speed it will have the longer gearing pretty similar to the leggy gt spec B. I have been DDing my newly swapped 07 6 speed for about a week and so far I actually prefer it over the five speed. I find that I like 2nd and 4th gears a lot more now as they are perfect for the two most common speeds I see in traffic on my commute. Obviously this is completely dependent on my driving habits/style but that is my experience. If the gearing were shorter like 04-06 I could definitely see it being a chore to row through them so fast all the time.
i have been doing some research on the 06-07 wrx and i will be keeping an eye on them now! thanks for the info, i wasnt a fan of that body style for awhile but with the better brake setup, stronger trans, and a 2.5 rather than 2.0 than the earlier years i think i could deal with it lol! NOW IF I COULD JUST SELL MY DAM NEON!!
if all goes well i should have a car to share with you all in a couple of days thanks for all the suggestions!!
