The new STi

[SWortham]

Well I did it. It took a lot for me to finally bite the bullet. But I bought the ugliest car I could find -- an '06 STi...
http://www.gldomain.com/STi/2006-07-03/IMG_2783_800px.jpg

http://www.gldomain.com/STi/2006-07-03/IMG_2763_800px.jpg

I still have the Elantra. I'm going to be swapping a few parts and selling it before too long though. I'll start another thread in the marketplace for that when I get started. It's been great being around the Hyundai forums and learning from all of you.

But I'm not leaving yet. I'll continue to hang around... I can't just leave.

- Steve

[robs02elantra]

Congrats on the new car!! You'll enjoy that car!

It's not as ugly as everyone says. Well, it grows on me at least.

[SuperGLS]

Nooooooooooo!

Well, congrats. I could tell with all the racing you've been doing that you'd give up the Elantra before long.

Find me on AIM so we can talk about some stuff.

[Mad_Hatter]

Good luck man, my brother just bought one too...they are badass little cars man, lots and lots of fun.
-bill

[rckozma]

Very nice Steve. I envy you, well almost. I think that would have been my first choice for awd turbo.

[BlackElantraGT]

I don't think I've ever cared for the Impreza's styling when it first comes out, but it always grows on me. I totally envy you now... thanks for ruining my 4th of July! :(

[robs02elantra]

is that a picture of your actual STI, or a photo of someone elses?

[CTele02]

Thats gotta be his... hes taken pics of his elantra in the spot...

[03SilverBullet]

Wow.. Your like the 3rd person who sold or is selling there elantra.

[SWortham]

Yeah, that's mine. My brother & I went out and took some pics of it with his camera. We're both a little bit into photography so we jump at chances like that when the weather is good. :)

[03SilverBullet]

Got any engine pics?

[SWortham]

I need to take some engine & interior pics today. But here's a couple more that turned out pretty good...
http://www.gldomain.com/sti/2006-07-03/IMG_2743_800px.jpg

http://www.gldomain.com/sti/2006-07-03/IMG_2775_800px.jpg

[SuperGLS]

Are you going to leave the spoiler on or switch it out?

[SWortham]

I'm gonna leave it on. It's a bit of an obstruction looking in the rearview mirror, lol. But if I take it off it'll push the car into an autox class I don't want to be in.

[04GTboySC]

dude that car is fuggin sexxy i love the color... my next door neighbor just bought one a couple days ago

[mrhoaf]

my boss has one that color... and LOVES it...


too bad it's his WIFE's CAR!!!


she lets him drive it sometimes though :D

[TwiZ]

ill never be able to afford one...:(

[robs02elantra]

yeah, it's a freaking awesome car! well done

[03SilverBullet]

The car looks great, but im not feeling the wing at all.

[robs02elantra]

the wing is feeling itself though, so that's all that matters. Haha, agreed, the wing is a bit much. I'm a little surprised to find out that chaging the wing out for a different one would put you in a different class at autox.

[BlackElantraGT]

I was reading in Modified Mag last night and they said that the 06 STi consistently puts down about 20 awhp more than the 04-05 STi on the dyno.

[ilanpro]

Sweet, Welcome to the Blue car Clan. lol

[Keyan]

Nice car!

There is one for sale down the street for me with lowering springs, lip kit, cf hood+scoop, black with gold rims plus some performance mods. I wish I had the money for it.!

[hyunelan2]

Congrats! I'd personally choose the Legacy over the Impreza (can' get beyond the ugly front end) but price makes the Impreza a better value if you're really concerned about performance, IMO. I hope it serves you well on road & track.

[FordFasteRR]

awesome ! =)

Congrats !

[SWortham]

Congrats! I'd personally choose the Legacy over the Impreza (can' get beyond the ugly front end) but price makes the Impreza a better value if you're really concerned about performance, IMO. I hope it serves you well on road & track.
That's what I thought at first. But as it turns out all Legacy GT models for '06 and '07 have moonroofs which cut headroom. So the STI actually has about an inch more headroom than the Legacy and that was one of the deciding factors.

[NY2002ElantraGT]

LETS SEE THE ENGINE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
:pics2: :pics2: :pics2:

[soullesselantra]

that is straight up ****ing sexy!!! the blue commands you!!

[sleepergt]

nice car man
let me know when you or if you are going to part out your vehicle

[g35doc]

Nice ride. I would've picked black though. I have no idea what people see in the subaru blue; it just doesn't look good. :redface:

[03SilverBullet]

Nice ride. I would've picked black though. I have no idea what people see in the subaru blue; it just doesn't look good. :redface:
IMO I think that car looks best in the blue.

[g35doc]

IMO I think that car looks best in the blue.

I do like blue (I own a tidal wave xd2). Maybe it's because EVERYONE gets an impreza in blue. I can't stand silver since it's the universal color for almost every car model.

[03SilverBullet]

I do like blue (I own a tidal wave xd2). Maybe it's because EVERYONE gets an impreza in blue. I can't stand silver since it's the universal color for almost every car model.
Yeah I hear ya man.. I owned 2 XD's in silver.

[SWortham]

Blue is the more popular color and the blue STI's are a little more expensive because of it. It's not so much that everyone buys blue but that all the advertisements, commercials, and media show the STI in the famous Subaru blue. I chose it because I like this particular shade of blue better than any other color they offer.

I'll do a few things to make the car look a little bit different than the ads though. :)

I need to get one of these front lip spoilers...
http://img276.imageshack.us/img276/9437/dsc022264ks.jpg

[southpawboston]

wow, great auto-x car. what class does this put you in (i know nothing about auto-x, yet). how soon do you plan on taking it to the track?

my work friend has an 05 STi but he drives it like an old lady... what a waste of an STi. i rode in it, and i have to admit, it had a pretty reasonable and forgiving ride for a track car.

[SWortham]

There are two autocross events at the end of this month. I'm going to try to at least make it to one of those.

And this car will be in AS (A-Stock) initially, which is the 2nd fastest stock class. Super Stock is the fastest with all the 911's, Lotus Exige's, Corvettes, etc. But the problem with the stock classes is that it allows R-compounds which I don't want to pay for.

But when I upgrade it, it'll move to the STU (Street Touring Ultra) class which only allows street tires. It also just so happens to allow some mods that I wanted to do anyway.

It does ride fairly well, although the struts are unusual for stock struts. They're actually overdamped and can be a little harsh over some roads. I'm hoping to buy some Ohlins replacement struts which have 1" more travel, adjustable damping, and can produce a Bilstein-like ride (IMO, Bilstein is the bombdigitty).

Here's an engine pic, for those asking for it:
http://www.gldomain.com/sti/2006-07-07/PICT0213_800px.jpg

[Kens GLS]

Very nice car!

[GrGaKC]

Now THAT'S AN ENGINE!!! If only I had one like that under my hood! :D

[toymachine566]

:drool: :drool:

:bowdown: :bowdown:

very nice........

[OPZ]

Hey that looks exactly like how the beta engine is!!! Engine swap anyone!?


Seriously, just kidding, but that is freakin pimp man, NICE!

[Tx_boy]

Doesnt that have a turboed boxter engine in it or is that the Legacy?

[paki]

congrats dude

[Keyan]

Doesnt that have a turboed boxter engine in it or is that the Legacy?


Box-er, not boxTer....

The engine is a flat 4. Like a v4 but they go left and right instead of up and down. :D

[SWortham]

^ Yep, 2.5L boxer (horizontally opposed) 4 cylinder. It's the same block as what's in the Legacy. Although there are other differences which I'm sure I'll become more familiar with soon enough. As far as the figures, it has a 500 RPM higher redline, and 50 hp & 50 ft-lbs more than the Legacy GT.

[OdessitPashka]

Congrats! Great choice on a new car! I always always a big fan of STI's, but still trying to get used to the front end of the new gen.

[Phiber]

Hot biscuits! Nice car!

[SWortham]

I've made my first mod (sorry for the poor image quality)...
http://www.gldomain.com/STI/V-Limited Lip/PICT0214_800px.jpg
STI V-Limited Lip Spoiler

Got it with free shipping, couldn't pass it up.

[bigkahuna2187]

looks nice. planning on doing any engine mods?

[SWortham]

Yeah, I'll probably do a COBB AccessPort stage 2 upgrade (ECU tune & downpipe w/ high flow cat). Should expect about 350 hp / 380 ft-lbs at the crank. There are plenty of other things one could do to get more power. But COBB is a very safe & dependable way to go while keeping the stock turbo.

[fifthgear]

Any interior photos? I'd love to see the inside. Wanna trade it for my '02 Elantra and a slice of pizza? :P

[SuperGLS]

First mod is an appearance mod? RICER! Ha. Looks good Steve.

[SWortham]

It's an aero mod. If you think it's an appearance mod then you're a ricer. :tongue: lol

[fifthgear]

No interior pics?

[BlueRush]

Unbelievable car man. Good choice with the lip, must add like 10hp! jk. Looks good.

[Cypher]

how do those potenzas feel?

[SWortham]

No interior pics?
Sorry, none yet. I'll try to take some soon. I'll need my brother's camera to do it though...

how do those potenzas feel?
Very, very stiff. They are incredibly responsive even at speed. They grip pretty well too, so no complaints there.

I've really been punishing them too. At the last autocross I was probably over the limit more than I was under the limit.

Oh, and I have to trailbrake a lot to avoid the dreaded understeer on corner entry. The suspension upgrades I have planned should help with that. Although it is fun to make those changes as a driver to work with what you have.

[Cypher]

are they the ultra high performance protenzas or the lower level ones? i looked into them awhile back but i needed tires bad so i just broke down and got the kumhos. i want ot get those falken RT615s next summer after i wear these down.

whats trailbreak for those who aren't auto-x gurus ;)?

[SWortham]

They are a max performance tire. 140 treadwear. I won't be buying them again, because I don't think the value is there. I'll probably get Falken RT-615's as well.

Trailbraking is when you brake lightly even after you've made your turn-in for a corner. It can be very effective to make use of all the grip your car has to offer when your car naturally understeers. If you do it with the right touch, you can cause the rear tires to slide just as much as the front tires, as if the car was neutral. The tricky part is that everything has to come together just right when you're also relying on trailbraking to slow you down enough for the corner. A lot of times if you don't time it right you'll go wide and miss the apex. But I'm still getting better at it.

[SWortham]

I finally got some pics of the car in action...
http://www.autocrosspictures.net/ERAutocross082706/ER082706_528.JPG

http://www.autocrosspictures.net/ERAutocross082706/ER082706_243.JPG

[robs02elantra]

Steve, I was just looking through this thread, getting my hopes up about having my own STI in the next week or so, and I was wondering, what kind of gas mileage have you been getting? Are you able to keep control of yourself when you're not autocrossing in order to keep a semi-respectable MPG?

[Pete03GLS]

the only thing i dont like about it is the redesigned front end... the lights... the bumper... ehhh..... altho, i do love the NEW NEW 2007/2008 wrx's, honestly the station wagon version looks much better than the sedan one. i forget what the site is, but the station wagon looks awesome!1

[robs02elantra]

there is no 07/08. The 08 is a completely different design to the 07, and in 08 they don't make a station wagon anymore, they make a hatchback that looks more like a ford focus than a wrx.

[Pete03GLS]

there is no 07/08. The 08 is a completely different design to the 07, and in 08 they don't make a station wagon anymore, they make a hatchback that looks more like a ford focus than a wrx.

i wasnt 100% sure on the year so i just said07/08. and yea. thats what i meant, i didnt think it was a hatch tho.... w/e tho man, i like it!!! n thats my point

[saturn]

spy shots (http://www.autoblog.com/photos/subaru-impreza-wrx-sti-spy-shots/298294/)

[Munky]

spy shots (http://www.autoblog.com/photos/subaru-impreza-wrx-sti-spy-shots/298294/)

UGLY spy shots.

[saturn]

they purposely cover up the lights and body styling to hide what it is.

I think it'll look sweeeeet.

[robs02elantra]

you don't need spy shots. Your local subaru dealer already has the 08 models in stock. I sat in one on friday and it was ugly as sin

[saturn]

they already have the 2008 STi ??? I only saw the impreza... maybe I need to run back over there.

I think it looks like a more aggressive elantra hatch. AWD and a little more horsepower/torque are the only things I wish my elantra had...

[robs02elantra]

no, they don't already have the STI, but if you look at http://www.roadandtrack.com/article.asp?section_id=15&article_id=5214 you will see that they are saying it will be the same body as the hatch, with a diffuser on the rear roof.

[SWortham]

Steve, I was just looking through this thread, getting my hopes up about having my own STI in the next week or so, and I was wondering, what kind of gas mileage have you been getting? Are you able to keep control of yourself when you're not autocrossing in order to keep a semi-respectable MPG?
Well, I've never been one to keep track of my mileage even though I should. So I'm not sure. I will say that you can see a drastic improvement in mileage when driving a turbo'd car if you can keep your foot off the go-pedal and use cruise control a little more. The difference between cruising and boosting 17 psi is huge when it comes to fuel consumption. Case in point: my friend drove the crap out of my car to an autox event a couple weeks ago. He was able to burn off about a 1/3 tank of fuel for our 50 mile drive (constantly accelerating and decelerating the whole way). That comes out to about 9.5 mpg.

I usually find myself going pretty fast around corners and using plenty of throttle for corner exits on the street (the car makes you do that). So I'm sure I get awful city mileage but I'm a pretty tame driver on the highway so I may get decent mileage there.

[saturn]

I like the seats in the evo.

[robs02elantra]

Well, I've never been one to keep track of my mileage even though I should. So I'm not sure. I will say that you can see a drastic improvement in mileage when driving a turbo'd car if you can keep your foot off the go-pedal and use cruise control a little more. The difference between cruising and boosting 17 psi is huge when it comes to fuel consumption. Case in point: my friend drove the crap out of my car to an autox event a couple weeks ago. He was able to burn off about a 1/3 tank of fuel for our 50 mile drive (constantly accelerating and decelerating the whole way). That comes out to about 9.5 mpg.

I usually find myself going pretty fast around corners and using plenty of throttle for corner exits on the street (the car makes you do that). So I'm sure I get awful city mileage but I'm a pretty tame driver on the highway so I may get decent mileage there.

The car does make you do it...you are right.

Thanks for the info though.

[saturn]

the car kind of pushes you into corners due to the AWD... makes you want to push it more. I know what he's saying.

[SWortham]

^ Yeah it's a combination of a lot of things. The car is pretty stiff and mine has big sway bars, camber plates, and Ohlins struts so it handles quite a bit better than a stock STI. I got rid of a lot of that corner-entry understeer the car is known for. And then there's the rear-biased AWD which is actually even more effective than an Evo at pulling you out of corners. So it just feels wrong to go slow around corners.

[saturn]

my girlfriend has a legacy, not even close to your STi, but it's extremely fun to drive.

[robs02elantra]

I just filled out my credit application for the car. Find out tonight!

[SWortham]

Awesome. The worst part is the break-in period. Those first 1,000 miles of keeping it under 4K RPM's are torture.

[robs02elantra]

well it is used. Just off lease, so I don't have to worry about that break in period. We know the guy that had the car before me, and it was babied, never taken on a gravel or dirt road, never beaten, no scratches or anything. And best part is it's off lease so there was no modifications allowed at the time. It has 45000 miles on it.

[SWortham]

Nice, very cool that you know the owner.

[saturn]

just released today

[Cypher]

what the hell is that?

[SWortham]

That's the new '08 STI WRC concept. It's still not necessarily the final product.

Still, you should expect both the WRC car and the production STI itself to look similar to the '08 WRX (5-door variant) (http://blogs.cars.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/04/03/2008wrx3.jpg) but with some wider fender flares, and a wing of some sort.

Despite the fact that the new STI may lose some of its edgy look, there's plenty of technological advancements to look forward to with it. For one, it'll be based on the Legacy chassis which is a much newer chassis with a more efficient use of material and excellent torsional strength for its weight. So even though it's growing a bit, the chassis will be far stronger and the car itself should be a similar weight to the '07 model and perhaps weigh less than the Evo X. You'll also see a multi-link rear suspension, longer wheelbase (more comfortable ride), and most likely more power and better aerodynamics as well.

[saturn]

I think it looks really cool. definitely not the old STi WRX/WRC but it's cool.

[SWortham]

Yeah it does. I've seen so many renderings, supposed concept photos, etc, etc up to this car's release though that I think it's about time to see the real thing, lol. But this photo is more believable than past photos. I fully expect the WRC version will look cooler than the production version.

[Silentwolf]

Well, in the STI vs EVO war. This time my vote goes to the EVO. Pre 08 STI always got it from me. Now Post 08 is the EVO. So much that i want to check one out when it comes to the dealer.

[SWortham]

I'll wait until they're both out to make my decision. But it's very possible that in 4 years time I'll buy yet another STI. The STI in America will still have these advantages over the EVo X...
- 0.5 liters more displacement
- low-center of gravity thanks to a low-slung boxer engine
- better weight distribution thanks to a longitudinally mounted engine & transmission
- rear-biased AWD

What advantages will the Evo have? Looks? Possibly better seats? Well, looks and seats don't win races. :tongue: Ah, the old Evo vs STI war, it's all in good fun.

[robs02elantra]

well, I got approved for the STI (conditionally) and was taking some extra information in for the finishing of the contract, when I decided that this wasn't the best decision right now. I've can canceled the contract now and got my deposit back. the dealership was actually pretty cool about it, and just said that when I was ready that they would still be there. I hope to be able to afford something similar after a couple of years of owning some property.