well hopefully by the end of summer i will be getting rid of both of my Z24s and getting a black Subaru WRX STI. i know a couple of people on the .org have traded in their cavs and gotten an STI. i have a few questions for those that are in the know about the car.
what should i look for in a used 04 or 05 WRX STI?
how can i tell if what im looking at is a real STI or one that just has all the STI stuff added to it?
any certain sounds that i should listen for, good or bad?
is it a good car to drive in the winter as well as summer, being its AWD?
what kinda of insurance rate are you getting?
and any other things i should watch out for
thanks for the info



simple minds talk about other people.
average minds talk about events.
great minds discuss ideas

i don't have a STi, but have a WRX. the sti will have hid headlights, sti interior, 2.5l engine, 6 spd tranny w/ driver controlled center differential, higher scoop and wing, 17 bbs wheels, brembo brakes, sti badging. you will be able to tell a sti from a wrx easily. you definitely are going to still pay for a used one in good condition. make sure it hasn't been overly beaten. your best bet would be to buy one off of someone that was an adult in driving their car. as for winter driveablity, they get around good in the snow with different tires than the stockers. I am pushing nearly as much hp as a stock sti and have no issues. as for your insurance, it is going to go up not knowing your age or driving history that is. you are looking at buying one of the fastest production 4 cylinders on the market, so expect an increase.

you should easily be able to tell the difference between an STi and base wrx. Even wrx's with all the pieces are still very easy to spot.

Winter driving will be good. However, keep in mind that even with AWD, pushing that kind of power can still easily get you into trouble. You will most DEFINETLY need snow tires as the RE 070 are a summer only tire, don't even try to drive in cold weather with them...you will crash.

The suggestion of looking for one which a responsible adult took care of is an excellent idea. With fairly cheap parts there will be a lot of them which have been modded a lot. I would suggest staying away from most of those.

Insurance is hard to say. If anything it will be the deciding factor as to whether or not you really can afford the STi. If you are under 25, you can easily expect insurance to be several hundred a month. I originally looked at the wrx / STi, when i got my turbo legacy, that was the deciding factor. The insurance was almost as much as a car payment on its own. This was without any tickets on my record either. Of course it all depends on so many other factors, but in general wrx's / STi's are pretty expensive to insure, no doubt about it.

Check the VIN and registration on it.


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'97 Z24
2004 JBO Bash Quick 8 Qualifier