Plug

Hello and welcome, Nice looking car you've got yourself there, good luck with the rebuild. I'm too old for a type R now, I need squashy suspension and comfy seats! Cheers, Plug

Hello Ben, Firstly, good choice! I've just bought my third scooby after a 3 year absence and decided to try and find another classic (I've had one early one and one facelift, both estates). Imprezas are generally reliable cars, but - and it's a big but - they *have* to be looked after properly. Find a well maintained one and all should be well, find an abused one and it will probably turn out to be a money pit. You should bear in mind the fact that even the newest of the classics are 8 years old now and many of them on the market are well over the 100K mark. That shouldn't be a drama - some of the leggier ones are over 150K, which proves they do go if you look after them. There are a few lower mileage ones - I've managed to find a 2000 model with only 60K on the clock, and it's been maintained regardless of cost all its life from what I could tell. The last service it had (in January) was £1100 at Bell and Colvill! So they are out there, but be prepared to work to find the right one. Unfortunately, classics are now at the sort of price point where they can be bought by the dreaded chavs - where I doubt care and maintenance are top of the list of priorities. From memory (I am a bit rusty) I think the piston slap issue was specific to MY98 cars and fixed after that. Having said that, my last one was a '98 and never suffered from it. You'll find a heap more information in the incredibly helpful SIDC FAQ here - SIDC FAQ. I read all this before I went shopping for my first one, and strongly suggest you do the same! Good luck in the search, let us know how you get on! Cheers, Plug

Greetings, citizens. I used to be a regular on here a few years back when I had my last Impreza, but drifted away (not as in driving style!) after I sold it. However, after 3-1/2 years biffing around in German stuff, today I bought myself another Scooby so I shall be returning to the fold! Pick it up next week sometime, it currently doesn't have the right paperwork as the personal plate it is currently wearing is being transferred back to the previous owner. It's a 2000/W classic estate in silver, completely standard, only 60,000 miles with all the history to back it up, leather and air-con and all the good stuff. It needs a decent valet but it is incredibly tidy for its age - hardly a mark on the bodywork. It drives really well, and it was great to hear that burble again. Welcome back, old friend.. So I shall be frequenting the forums again to find out what you've all been up to while I've been away! Lots of new names, and a few old ones I see! Bye for now.. Cheers, Plug

Looks like fun.. I take it you'll be zipping round town, popping wheelies and upsetting the general population then.. Cheers, Plug

Mmmm Vicki.. Met her at a fifth gear shoot a couple of years ago, after lusting after her for years on the telly. She was happy to pose for a photo with me (which now has pride of place on my mantelpiece), I just about managed to stop my tongue hanging out. Shame she's a married woman now. Phil Churchward, you're a lucky man.. Cheers, Plug

Let's hope it ends up on Google Earth.. how cool would that be? Cheers, Plug

Spooky.. I got exactly the same result. And I'm not in good nick... lol Cheers, Plug

November 2003 was when I joined IIRC.. Not about much these days (sold the Scoob a couple of years back), but still pop in now and again. Lot of names I recognise in this thread for some reason though .. hope you're all well and thriving! Cheers, Plug

Truly vile, IMHO. The grille looks like an Audi (with a prancing horse on!), the roofline is squashed (anyone remember the Volvo 262C.. ugh), and the doors just look stupid. No design awards from me, I'm afraid. Cheers, Plug

I found out an interesting (well, faintly interesting) fact about my old Mercedes, not long before I sold it. It actually had two reverse gears. When the autobox was in "sport" mode, it used a short reverse gear (akin to first, like most cars). When in "winter" mode, it engaged a much higher ratio gear to avoid wheelspin. Allegedly, this was geared somewhere between second and third in forwards mode.. Now, given that 3rd going forwards was good for about 110, flat out in reverse in "W" sounds like it could have been somewhat interesting!! Cheers, Plug

Best wishes to you all.. happy new year! Cheers, Plug

Good work fellas, you're a braver lot than me to undertake a migration like that. Work all the hard work though - new forums are looking great! Cheers, Plug

I've got a N95 and it's quite a bit of kit. It arrived Vodafone branded, which was annoying as all it does is try to use the 3G connection for everything which costs, a lot. You can download maps onto the memory card from a PC though and then the map program doesn't have to download them all the time. Using the GPS hammers the battery but doesn't actually cost anything. You can set it up to not use the 3G at all but still use most of the toys through wi-fi instead - fine for use at home or in Starbucks. I got caught out when I first got it (albeit only £2.35 on my bill - not £650!), but it hasn't used any data at all for the last 2 months. I still prefer my Garmin sat-nav for use in the car though.. Cheers, Plug

Same as above.. My scoobs were always run on Optimax or (a bit later on) Tesco 99RON Super. I can't say that I noticed much difference in economy, but they definitely ran smoother and happier on the high octane stuff. If you're running a performance car, why skimp on the fuel is my opinion. It's not like you bought it with economy in mind.. Cheers, Plug

It doesn't look great, in my opinion. But then again, I cast my mind back.. my first Scoob was a pre-facelift classic. As it left the factory, the styling was "challenged", the interior was relentlessly dark and finished in cheap shiny plastic, nothing about it said quality.. but it went like stink and is still one of the best handling cars I've ever driven. Let's cut the new one some slack until we've got behind the wheel, eh? It might be a revelation, even if it's fallen out of the ugly tree. Cheers, Plug

Another vote for Garmin here - I've got a StreetPilot C550. Bought it in Motorworld as it was cheap (£250 - end of line model). Excellent bit of kit. Cheers, Plug

They've all been retired now, but until recently Budget car rentals used to have a fleet of Impreza Turbos in Belfast. Yours for the same price as a Mondeo! You could give them ring and see if they rent them elsewhere - they have a local rate number for reservation enquiries. Cheers, Plug

I've used Parking Express at Gatwick many times and never had a problem with them. On-site, minutes from the terminal. Park your own car and keep the keys - no spotty teenager getting behind the wheel Cheers, Plug

Greetings, Citizens. Whilst I was digging round in the back of a cupboard the other day I came across some car magazines from the '90s.. including the first Autocar road test of the Impreza Turbo, dating all the way back to 1994. I thought this might be of interest to you all, so I've dug out the trusty scanner and digitised it... Enjoy, Plug PS - look how much it cost 12 years ago..

All the best Bob. Hope you're feeling better soon. Cheers, Plug

Very sorry to hear this, always a sad time. Plug

Must belong to Tim Westwood.. Cheers, Plug

As far as I'm concerned there's only one "killer app" for any Playstation and that's the Gran Turismo series. There's no point in buying one until there's a version of GT to play on it. I'm guessing that's many months away so I won't lose any sleep in the meantime. There's also the Blu-ray/HD-DVD issue waiting in the wings.... I'll probably buy a PS3 in due course but it'll be when I feel like it. You won't catch me waiting outside Argos on release day. Cheers, Plug

We get a lot of deer round here and they don't half make a mess of your car if you hit one. What to do? You're not allowed to finish it off yourself as it's a wild animal. Best to call the local farmer as they are allowed to put it out of its misery (and I do like a nice bit of Venison). Cheers, Pllug

Felch