dragula53

Yeah, I half considered stopping by the honda dealership after taking the STi for a test drive. although I think I would have been looking at an accord hybrid if I went for a honda. What an interesting hybrid. Fast, and thrifty on the gas. (s2000 is a hot car though). The new civic is also very nice. Honda has a pretty solid reliability reputation, in addition to all of that.

unpocoloco

The Civic Si wasn't out when I was car shopping. That would also have seriously complicated the mix. Definitely a good move by Honda!

Steiner

Congrats on the new STi...or I guess for '06 it's now officially "STI", in all capital letters. There's something about AWD and a boosted 300hp motor that makes you love driving again. If you're not into the big spoiler then check out NASIOC.com. There's always WRX owners looking to trade. As far as the hood scoop, well ya gotta go FMIC and then you can ditch it. LOL. Enjoy the car and keep it on the road. BTW...

Evo > STI

dragula53

Actually, from most of the reviews I have seen, almost everybody says that. But they also say it is so close as to be almost irrelevant. and you can't go wrong with either choice

but screw them too!

heh.

it's all good.

the Evolution is a fine car.

as is the rx-8.

Spyder_doo

I'm seriously thinking about doing the same thing....I've been looking at evo's and sti's here lately and I really think they'd make a good alternative to the rx-8. Dont get me wrong, I dont think they are anywhere near as beautiful as the 8 but it's time to move on. I've been looking for a while but nothing else on the market even seems to appeal to me.

Animagix

^ on the same boat, I know how you feel. Only problem would be the speeding tickets, it'd be hard to resist all that power to be a civil driver, especially in the beginning.

rkostolni

I test drove the STI after I bought my 8. Had I drove it first, I might have ended up going with it. I think they're ugly as hell, but man are they fast. It was way more than I was expecting. But, in the end I think I made the right choice. I think the 8 is much better looking inside and out. Now with the FI upgrades I think I have around the STI's power, so best of both worlds, just cost a little more. I also like that no one will expect it, whereas everyone knows an STI is fast.

VikingDJ

Initially when the RX8 came out, and I got mine, the people I'd run into would always say "WOW, THAT THING MUST BE REALLY FAST ". No one believed me when I told them my ugly little STI will bury the RX8 in a race. I guess now everyone knows it's not nearly as fast as it looks. It will be very nice to see the RX8 bumped up nicely in power. It simply looks too hot to not be as fast as cars like the STI, and Evo. When making the switch from an RX8 to an STI or EVO, it's really saying that performance is more important to you then looks, because you are giving upa lot of looks for a lot of performance. I used to line my STI and RX8 up together, and the STI looked like a cheap little econo toy compared to the RX8. Still, though performance is the key for me as well, but if the RX8 can be sold to make power near that of STI, it's a no brainer which car to buy.

sti_eric

Fixed

unpocoloco

The thing is...95-99% are you able to race your car? No. Not without getting or at least risking a ticket for speeding. Even a fast launch from a red light can get you nailed for drag-racing (even if you weren't) or reckless driving (even though it isn't). So, I'd rather have something that looks good 100% of the time but loses in a race 1% of the time. I just think we all get too caught up in the statistics for more, more, more. It's hard not to.

Damn, I gotta get to work.

dragula53

I'm not trying to race.

The RX-8 looks nice (really nice). it is also a great car to drive.

The RX-8 also has quite a bit faulty about it's design. That's really not up for debate either. The renesis runs too rich, sucks too much fuel, and doesn't deal well with cold weather.. or hot weather.. or being shut off before warming up.. Don't mistake this for bagging on the rx-8. I miss having people come up to me and licking my car.

But I also think you lose in a race a lot more than 1% of the time.

sti_eric

Let's see...

autocross: check
drag strip: check
road course: check

Yep, I guess I would have to say I race my car. And, on the street, I am able to take my car to its performance limit by mashing the gas pedal, while 98% of RX-8 owners who claim that their car is faster in the twisties or on a road course will never take their car to either and will never come close to the handling limit of their car. I sure get a lot of enjoyment just by pressing the gas pedal. Do you get a lot of enjoyment by telling people on the internet that your car "looks better"?

smrx8

iTrader: (1)

I think this will make you happy you bought the car

http://videos.streetfire.net/video/4...608E3838AE.htm

saturn

That is exactly right. I don't need to "run nines", but there is such a huge gap in how fast this car looks and how fast it really is. It's the opposite of the Evo which looks much slower than it really is (for someone who misses the giant wing and just thinks it's a sedan).

I guess that's why the 350Z sells so well. It's sort of in between the RX-8 and Evo in terms of looks and performance. I guess if they really did give the RX-8 a good bump in power, tons of people would buy it and it wouldn't be such a head-turning, unique car. Oh the irony of it all.

Chrisbert

You can hear the BOV on the shift in that video. Cool.

bascho

That race played into the strengths of the STI......so it was kind of unfair. That Lambo was built for speed not quickness.......race those two cars up to 150mph and I think the Lambo would kill that STI. However, it is amazing that a $40K 4-door sedan could beat that $180K Lambo in any challenge.

dova

i feel so much better now to know that im not the only one...thinking about other car ... my situation is different i love the rx8, i have a 2003 frontier that i been wanting to trade. i been looking on the sti theres a 2005 one w/3000 miles for $28,000 blue..(color is so similar to wb) i have my rx8 and i will be keeping it my that will be my wifes daily driver and i looking in to the sti... my questions are should i buy this used one or should i wait like 6 months and buy a new one $ 33,000 and is insurance price like the rx8.

I love the rx8 too I get all the same compliments people give me high thumps and smiles u can tell they r stering... but same problems and im not complaining * gas like 13mpg
and no power. the other thing which is my fault i bought the automatic.... tham shifters on stering wheel the look so nice ...

Ike

It's your call, if you know the cars really well and know what to look for as far as mods and signs of abuse then a used one isn't such a bad idea. If you're not sure on that stuff then it's probably best to get something new.

Also, you'll get plenty of positive feedback from other people in an STI or Evo, I get people going nuts over my car at least a few times a week.

Distortdguitar14

I test drove a new WRX and a new RX8, my opinion i hate how the new subarus look, i like the 2002 look the best, and i probably would have gotton a 2002 wrx if it wernt for the fact that i got the option to buy a new rx8. WRX has a great amount of power especially at low rpms but my opinion the RX8 is the perfect car for a guy like me and hopefully no bull **** with repairs happens down the road cas i had a bimmer before this and my golly that was rediculous. Kept repairing it till finally the engine needed a rebulit ( of corse a bmw v8 rebuild is 10,000 ) hah. So baught this. Couldnt be happier

bascho

^ if the 2002 had the round headlamps....then I'm with you on the looks of the 2002 vs the new STI.

Ike

I agree as well, my WRX was a '03 so it had the same looks as the '02 with a couple updates and bugs worked out. I don't hate the '06 look, but I don't love it either. I will say, the '06 WRX is a better car than previous models in many respects and if I had the choice of an '06 or the bugeye I'd take the '06, it's that much better.

bascho

What about changing out front clips on these cars? I know on Mustangs you can change out fenders, hood, lights and front cover and make a 1985 look like a 1993. Is the '06 STI a completely different animal from the '03 or is a similar change possible?

Ike

It would be quite the undertaking since the entire frontend is different. Sure it could be done, but with the cost I don't think it would be worth it unless you have a lot of money you want to throw away.

bascho

I was thinking more along the lines of a swap with an owner of a '03 that wanted to look like a '06. Basically the only investment would be labor.......but it sounds like they might be too different for this mod.

Ike

I'd be shocked if you could find a bugeye owner that was willing. Also, I don't think it would just bolt up and would probably require some custom work.