Simply put....The JDM Subura Imprea Sti has been an awesome car from the initial inception in the early 90's producing newer and better versions of its rally inspired car. But as the rest of the world continues along the Sti liniage with a true 2.0 Liter engine, North America suddenly recieves a 2.5 L engine. Why????? Did they panic with the previous arrival of the Evo?

A 2.5 L Sti would not have been accepted in either Europe of Japan due to the heritage created by WRC and the awareness of press and fans, while us naive north americans accept nothing short of a magic number of 300hp.

It shows to me that Subura has no respect for North America-deciding to experiment in a virgin market, and to hopefully blunt the success of its arch-rival ----the lancer evolution. As for Evo Vs. Sti. Round 1 has already been decided by the **** Up of Subura of America. Better get it right next time SOA

I had created this post on the Sti message board, which should be soon be deleted due to the negative response. I know the issue is kinda outdated, but I wanted to see opionions from the Evo side.

 

i think it should be respected, they both equally great cars.

 

Nope you better respect the STi as soon as the ECMs come out with them they are going to frogleap EVo in terms of status and desirability( for the average nerd of course)

 

yea i think they are both great cars with great histories, although the us spec sti is an outcast, and in a bad way too.

 

I would definately respect it, but would be hesitant to buy because of the new motor. In my eyes, it's just a beefed up RS.

 

Why not? WRC compliance is a moot point since WRC doesn't the same kind of homologation that Group N did.

Aside from the unproven aspect of the 2.5T, there's no reason to expect it to have any less potential than the 2.0. One might argue that the added weight of the 2.5 changes the handling characteristics of the car, but that will hopefully get hammered out over time. Part of what I liked about the Evo was that while it's a 1st year US model, the basic design and engine have been around for long enough that it's "stable" and there should be relatively little surprise.

 

If you are going to be rally technical the STI sucks ballz.

If you are going to be realistic. STI is decent with a 2.5. A 2.5 motor is WAYYY better than 2.0. Theres more torque for starters.

The only reason why our 2.0 is so much better than the current 2.5 is because mitsubishi has better mechanics than subaru. They use to make airplanes.
Another reason is because our 4g63 2.0 is has been provin in the eclipse and talon.
There is not enough R&D done on the boxter motor either...

The new 2.5 motor is new but if they can get it right in theory we should see something interesting.

Can I get a V8 muscle car guy to back me up on this HAHAHA

Do not tell me you would not buy a stroker kit to 2.3 or 2.5 for YOUR EVO!!!!!!!!

 

it is an sti tuned car. sti doesn't go throwing their name on a peice of ****. yes the car has had a 2.0 forever, we're americans we like everything bigger. i think for once they just wanted us to get the more powerful version of a car. it's not as bad as what nissan did to the skyline, taking it from a awd drive ****ing monster, to a luxry sport car that looks like way too much like the 350 and lexus 430.....soa has made 2.5's for years, i have no worries about my motor(not to mention it was named one of the 10 best motors for 03), is it a beefed up rs motor? not even close. semi open vs closed deck,the list just goes on forever...anyway respect my car or not, it's still a STI whether some like it or not.

 

F$#@ the us spec sti. the evo and sti are two of the most popular wrc cars if not the most popular. subaru should have kept to the real specs of this car and not try to satisfy the hp hungry people but to satisfy the true enthusiast of these two cars. and yes this shows a total disrespect to the NA market.

what do you think mitsu did not think of throwing a 2.5 or some **** like that in our cars, but no they kept the car to its roots. a 2.0 that i have been driving unchallanged for 8 months now.

 

I heard though that they used the same gear ratios on the U.S. Sti which was kind of strange considering those were initially selected for the 2.0 motor....We'll just have to wait and see what they do in next year's model. If it was a 2.0 this year, I might have been swayed, but I'm EXTREMELY happy with my Evo!

 

yeah, its an sti that wouldnt be allowed near a track, with that off spec engine. they made that car to satisfy the " 300hp i got to get that ****" people. not the true subaru enthusiast.

anyway dont matter what i think if you like it buy it, it a good looking car.

 

i don't get this argument, really.

nobody seems to have the same complaint about the STi 22b, which "suffers" from the same lack of historical displacement-restricted accuracy. seems more like an object of alot of subie lustfetish than the "outcast" of the lot.

fact is, neither of these cars has the same direct link to their racing brethren that they did a caouple generations back. sube changed displacement, mits fiddled with the wheelbase. big whoop.

i blame the creation of the WRC spec, personally. the cool thing about group A was how close the cars were to their street versions. back then, the subie and the evo were dominant because they made the most capable street cars. now that the WRC spec cars have about as much in common with their streetgoing base car as your average NASCAR "stock" car, you find cars winning on platforms that are laughable in public trim (hello, peugeot 206, ford focus, etc).

not to pine for the good old days, but i think it's much better for the public the old way. to be competitive on circuit, your base car had to be outstanding. pretty soon, WRC class may very well look like winston cup or F1, with the winning cars sharing nothing but the badge on the hood with the manufacturer they supposedly represent.

er, what were we talking about...?


oh yeah- the sti. my advice: get on the track with one. follow it around for a few laps, and let him do the same. you'll be amazed at how little difference there is between our cars.

 

Evo and sti = 2 of the best import cars in the 21st century

 

they are the most popular here because they get the most coverage here. the peugeot 206, the citroen xsara(i think thats what they use), and the skoda cars are just as popular as the scoobies and mitsus in europe. my friend was in scotland and he said everywhere he turned there was a 206 with "206 pride" or rally graphics on it.

and i agree with gemini completely.

 

totally. when i was in spain last summer, the 206 was probably the second most common car i saw. they're friggin everywhere. and they're really junky looking little cars- think geo metro or ford fiesta. one thing i never saw (thank god) was a bunch of motorsport stickers all over one. it's hard to imagine.

i really liked the 306, though. cool cars. and the Seat (that's SAY-OTT) is another one- cool compact sedan. very competitive touring cars over there. it'll be interesting to see how the 306 does in WRC next year.

yeah, and the more i think about how much the WRC class has changed wolrd rally: remember just a couple years back, when mits and sube still used a traditional gearbox? no sissy paddle shifters, no sequential anything. just what the homologation cars had. why was mits using a five speed? cuz that's what the street version had. why did sube get to move to the six speed? cuz they converted the street version STi, too. fancy, computer-controlled traction controlled tranny. nope, not unless the street cars get it too. oh wait, that's how we (er, they) got AYC and ACD.

yeah, for a long time, it seemed like world rally was the most connected and immediately relevant form of motorsport. mitsubishi and subaru had a lot to do with that. they really pushed the boundaries of what could be done in a car sold to the public, and how closely it related to the race version, same as sport bikes have been doing for years. WRC class has put an end to that. the EVO VII was a bit of a slip from the VI, and the VIII, well, they didn't even try to base a WRC car on the VIII.

don't get me wrong, i love my car, but it's been "refined" over the last couple of generations to make it a better mass market car, just like the STi has been. that process will continue, and it will slip further and further from its roots.

ok, now i bummed myself out. enjoy this car, kids, cuz we'll never get this close to the mark again, i don't think....