I am thniking about buying a used wrx, not the sti. If you guys could help me figure out what to look for i would appreciate it. I would bur an srt4 but I drive them all the time for free and I really want all wheel drive for my personal car
There have been a couple technical service bulletins. Either make sure they've been dealt with or have them done yourself when you buy it. One has to do with clutch chatter and one has to do with leaking fuel lines. When you test drive, feel carefully for any problems with the synchros in the tranny. A lot of buyers suffered from "can't drive AWD" and tried dumping the clutch for a hard launch, and they were damaging the transmission.
They're pretty solid cars, those are the only things specific to the WRX to watch out for that I know of (I had one for a couple years).
Yeah, watch the clutch. And like all cars, be careful buying a car that has a lot of 'performance mods' done to it. This could mean bad tuning, engine problems, quirks, or sheer abuse. If they modded, they probably raced it.
Otherwise, have fun with it. The WRX is a great car.
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"The people should support their Country first, their Military second, and their government only when they deserve it" -unknown
yeh iwas gonna say 20,995 is expensive. esp when the new one retails around 23k. for 18 seems to be good price. i personally dont know how to tell if a new car is been ragged. but its a wrx and someone traded in after 13k im sure its ragged. esp if it was off lease or something.
Yeah, I haven't seen the vehicle yet all I have done was look at pic on their web site. I ran a carfax and everything checked out there but that won't tell me whether the car has been abused
If they won't tell you, then it probably has been abused. Should it still be under factory warranty? I dunno. I love the WRX but for a bit more, you could be sporting a new one. just my opinion.
How would they even know how it was driven before they got it? And yes, it will still be under warranty.
Just for comparison sake, when I preordered my '02 back in Feb of '01 (they were released in March of '01), I paid $20,950, IIRC (plus or minus a couple hundred), for the car (not including tax, title, license). So I think the same amount for a used one is too high.
For some more comparison, a friend just bought one with similar miles as the one you found for $17k, I think. I traded my '02 in with 33k miles for $15k.
make sure car is still under warranty and has gone through there shop. run your hand on every joint of the car feeling for very unmoothness in the paint. this means it was painted. take a good long 5-10 mile test drive and feel the car out. try to feel the car out for anything that feels wrong. your offer is very resonable for that car. watch out for the finance rate. check with your local credit union on what range you should be in for that car. check it over every wear over and over.
used cars have a story to tell if you look at it long enough. asked who and how old owned it before and why they traded it in. i traded in my 02 wrx with 20K miles for 15,5 so that price for the 03 is good. like others said watch out the the tsb on clutch and trans. suby is very bitchy about what they fix. if anything goes wrong your fault or not return the car to complete stock and report the problem asap. i had a dealer try to pin my bov on causeing my pass side sway bar endlink to bust as it was a "performance item" i told them to stfu and fix it before i called a lawyer and they did.
Number 1 enjoy the car!!!! it's awesome fun in the turns and seats never give up holdin you in. lookin out over the scoop is just a good feelin knowin whay lays underneath!.
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canadian_srt4 "as long as vednors keep making parts, my car will always be on a hoist."
I am a huge Subaru guy, so I will definately tell you to go for the rex. I personally have an STi, but my little brother has a WRX and it is a solid car. The only problems that it has ever had was a stripped out synchro in 4th(only because he learned how to drive a stick in it). The Subaru 5spd is not a bad tranny and the only cars that have really had problems have been the 2002's. The clutch is not a problem(one of the most durable stock clutches). Good luck on buying one and if you have any questions about modding the car(especially suspension) the pm me. I have had plenty of experience with scoobies.
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