58 replies to this topic

[JimH]

and 4 mpg and the octane booster and the repair bill when the engine turns into an oily grenade.

[Gedi]

Servicing is generally reasonable, you get a full warranty and they are remapped for 98ron fuel, so no octaine booster required. The track car is £7k less than a VXR so it would take a while to lift to a point that they leveled out. The one with all the toys inside is £2k less. I'm not saying it a better car, as you buy taking into account what you want out of the car. Therefore I have a tuned VXT. I'm just stating figures to show that Some Subarus are monsters and very good value.

[Purebob]

Gedi thats what i don't understand about your consideration that the VXT is slow compared to your old Scooby. 300 horses yes, 33% more grunt than a VXT at least BUT 30% more transmission loss, and at least even in the case of the type C an additional 650 kgs, 730 kgs more weight in any other scooby. The weight & transmission losses means that surely theres only a small difference in deliverable power bwteeen a VXT and a 300-320 bhp Jap scooby. How can you explain the massive differential in performance you experienced, mate? Not challenging, just trying to clarify ! I can understand how a scooby might FEEL faster as you can feel the weight transfer etc, but I just don't see a HUGE measurable difference in performance??

[garyk220]

I've even heard reports of it passing GT3's on track, which leaves out little VX's somewhat in the distance.

One of Vauxhalls press VXTs passed a GT3 at Knockhill a few months ago. No mean feat, since the maximum speed on the 2 short straights is less than 110mph. It was being driven by a young guy who races XR2s, and he reckoned the Porsche driver was detemined not to let him past.

From my experience at Knockhill, a NA can out accelerate a WRX. A standard VXT can easily pass a STI. This is accelerating uphill from a 35mph hairpin to a 105mph top speed, before braking for a 70mph bend, so corner speed differences are largely irrelevant. The only time I've been on track with a Japanese Type C Imprezza, was at Cadwell Park, and it was pretty damned fast, even round the bends, sideways

[Gedi]

Not challenging, just trying to clarify ! I can understand how a scooby might FEEL faster as you can feel the weight transfer etc, but I just don't see a HUGE measurable difference in performance??

To be fair, my scooby was probably producing around 340bhp. I used to quote it at 320bhp to make sure I didn't over estimate it, but I suspect it was higher. It was never rolling roaded as such, as all my management work was done on the road with a laptop hooked up via the OBD.

Secondly my scoob had the TypeR close ratio gearbox with a tall 5th. This equated to a top speed of around 95mph in 4th @ 7250rpm so the speed in which it would get there was breath taking.
Also my TypeR had the DCCD, which meant I had a mostly RWD car as this is the way I always drove it in the dry.

Thirdly, in terms of grunt, it ran up the strip in mid 12's (dependant on air temp) which is around a full second faster than the VXT. on a 1/4 mile run, a second is a large margin when your going under the 15 second barrier.

Also in terms of the way the car felt when pulling hard, it was so aggressive that you literally couldn't lean forward in your seat. Maybe slightly exagerated, but if you let go of the wheel, you would have to back off the accelerator before you could comfortably move your hands forward to grasp it again.

To back up what your saying, the turbo charger on the TypeR was much larger than that fitted to the VXT, so the spool up time was much greater, thus producing more lag. The power curve was very different to that of the VXT. This could give the feeling of more power, but the STI engine was able to hold onto that power through to the limiter @ 7250 where the VXT would tail off much earlier. In fact my rev limiter was raised to 8250rpm after the remap to make use of the power higher up the range (although I rarely went that high for prolonged periods )

Maybe its all just in my head, but when I swapped my TypeR for my VXT I was absolutly gutted at the lack of performance, hence my reason for going to AmD within the first month of ownership for a stage 2 remap. I want more now, but its a big jump in cash from a S2 to an S3 and my money is building up for a larger deposit for a house

[ShinyAndy]

Isn't this thread about going round corners though.. not living your life a quarter mile at a time ?

[Gedi]

not living your life a quarter mile at a time ?

lol.

Bobs fault, he pushed me off track (excuse the pun)

I hate that film, but it just goes to show that even the American 1/4 mile cars are no match for the Jap cars. Even ones with horrible paint jobs.

[ShinyAndy]

You love the paintwork Installed a flamer kit in the T yet ?

[Gedi]

Installed a flamer kit in the T yet ?

lol, no. My names not Jinder. I never understood flamer kits and VTA dump valves.
However my scoob did spit small blue flames on gear changes when hot

[ShinyAndy]

Wikkid Getting back on subject I still do not believe that ANY scooby modified or not would be quicker around a track than a vx unless it was wet of course. Saw many JDMS blow up on track as well as 2 or 3 22Bs [-]. All this homemade mapping and octane boost requirements may be fine on the road for occasional WOT but on track the temperatures get too high and then it's just a matter of when not if !

[Purebob]

OK I understand better now. The VXT does have a really soft delivery possibly to minimse the effect of big boost swings on the mid engined chassis. Its not dramatic in its effect, certainly not like that charismatic boxer lump can be in the Scoob. 'Krobba ! Krobba ! I am surprised that your scoob should've been a full second quicker up a strip than a VXT though. Off the line traction will be better in the Scoob BUT not by much if the VXT was launched properly IMO. I still reckon theres about the same power on the floor in a 340 bhp , 1600 kgs Scooby as a 200 bhp standard VXT. Making the power peakier or at least more 'immediate' might restore your perception of speed but it will make the car harder to pilot ( as on a VX the throttle inputs affects the chassis attitude at least as much as steering and braking IME!) so while you may FEEL quicker, you might travel slower on anything other than a drag strip. BTW did you have any handling mods on yoru scoob apart from the dynamic diff ?

[Gedi]

The TypeR was 1260kg. RE handling, apart from a rear strut brace, no, The TypeR suspension was already uprated over other STI models. Considering most owners don't track them they are generally left alone. It was a harsher ride than the VXT and some TypeR owners opted to bin it in favor of the slightly softer and more forgiving P1 setup. I suspect this was derrived from wives with backache and no teeth left.

[Gedi]

wow, thats a nice spec Who did the work? Mine used to run 1.5bar. upping your boost to this level should put you into the teritory you mentioned. Do you still have the standard WRX VF22 turbo which is stopping you going above 1.2bar, or do you have the STI TD04/05 ?

[Purebob]

A standard P1 or even a prodrive RB5 would do me ! The only 'rep I drove with that kind of poke as a Mitsu FQ-300. That was viscerally fast, though the engine wasn't as musical as the Scooby. I'd be dead within a year if I had one of them on the road, I know it. Remember when the little Hammond lad said 'I am a god of driving !' while spanking that Bowler wildcat on TG? THATS me in a rally rep.. very dangerously overconfident ! Naughty mods

Edited by Purebob, 05 July 2004 - 11:34 AM.

[Gedi]

An RB5 has too many doors, not enough power and was sold in the wrong country.

P1's are great but lack the raw feel of the TypeR.

Go on, say it, you want need an STI5/6 TypeR V-Limited

[JimH]

All this stuff about the different Subaru Impratza models is easily understood if, like Gedi, you live with your parents and can memorise thousands of useless facts. For those of us for whom the Impratza is a brutalised, over-developed shopping car that uses suspension which was considered cutting edge when they bolted it to a Beetle in 1971 the countless models can become bewildering.

Fortunately, someone else has made this handy cut out and keep guide so you know exactly has cut you up.

[davehutchinson]

Most of the work was done by a company called Powerstation in Cheltenham.

The current Turbo is a Turbo Dynamics MD270 roller bearing VF series, but it is going back to TD to be moddified, when it comes back I will get the car remapped and I am hoping for 400, but would settle for a safe 380 rather than a risky 400.

I was at powerstation on Saturday. Ask them next time about the supposed 260+bhp VXT that made a piddly 212bhp. A serious amount of power to lose just on different rollers...