GOLFMK8
GOLFMK7
GOLFMK6
GOLFMKV

Drove a friend's STi...

Gunkata

Drag Race Newbie
Location
Lombard, IL
haha... if power and AWD are your two main priorities (by a considerable margin to all other factors), by all means, go get one ;)
 

mitsuplexnyc

Ready to race!
Location
L.I., NY
Please OP, wax poetic on your experience.
 

bequietanddrive

Ready to race!
Location
Tampa ,FL
I drove my buddies 2008 STi. It was lightly modded (Stage 2, I think they put down about 300 AWHP). It took a little but for the boost to build but it was very fast once it did. Didn't have a chance to get on it too much though so I couldn't take advantage of all the power.

The interior is pretty shitty for a car costing that much and the car has no refinement whatsoever. The gearbox feels like shifting through a box of rocks and my friend constantly complains about how hot the car runs.

All in all it is definitely more raw than a GTI, which is pretty cool in some ways, but might be annoying on a DD.
 

maxtdi

Go Kart Champion
Location
Nor-Cal
Well the car runs hot cuz its a stage 2. Stock STIs don't have overheating issues.

Due to it being an AWD car you do get a whole lot of weird noises etc during hard acceleration and or tight turns.
 

SRT2GTI

Banned
Location
Pewaukee, WI
I put money down on one, before I bought my GTI. I was a little scared off by the piston ringland failures 08+ STis are plagued by. It didn't help the delaership changed the ETA dates on me seven time as well. I'm very happy with my GTI.
 

Gunkata

Drag Race Newbie
Location
Lombard, IL
runs hot? not familiar with that - had two Stage 2 STI's, don't remember running hot, I think in general they are "warm" cars maybe, but the engine temp was never anything out of the ordinary.
 

SwiftGTI

Go Kart Champion
Location
Mid-Atlantic
The gearbox feels like shifting through a box of rocks and my friend constantly complains about how hot the car runs.

That's strange. The shifts in my 09 STI were bolt-action smooth with positive engagement into each gear (and this coming from someone who's driven and owned a bunch of Honda and BMW stick-shift cars).
 

GiGi GTI

Ready to race!
Location
NJ
runs hot? not familiar with that - had two Stage 2 STI's, don't remember running hot, I think in general they are "warm" cars maybe, but the engine temp was never anything out of the ordinary.

I definitely think it runs hot, or at least stays hot afterwards. We have one and it can be used as a heater for an hour after it's off. It could just be because it's somewhat thin on body in order to keep lightweight.

STIs are total beasts, but not the same league as a GTI. I would never daily drive an STI, but it's an absolute blast for an adrenaline rush.
 

maxtdi

Go Kart Champion
Location
Nor-Cal
I wonder what the differences between the old and newer ones are. The new ones look slightly more "cushy". You drove a 2011, right?

Very few... the ones got some new fancy bushings etc, but no extra power since 2004.
 

bequietanddrive

Ready to race!
Location
Tampa ,FL
That's strange. The shifts in my 09 STI were bolt-action smooth with positive engagement into each gear (and this coming from someone who's driven and owned a bunch of Honda and BMW stick-shift cars).

It's very possible that my friends has an aftermarket short shifter, as he purchased the car used. This could explain the notchiness of the gearbox.

And yes, under hood temps are very high for some reason. You can literally feel the heat radiating from the hood when standing next to it after driving. He also complains that the heat radiates into the car but I haven't felt it.

I'm not trying to knock the car too much, I was looking at them before my gti but I decided I didn't want to shell out 32 grand on a used model when I got my GTI for 23k. Plus, after I drove a chipped GTI I knew the power would be very satisfying. I'm still very satisfied :)
 

VWTN

Ready to race!
Location
TN
I've driven an 04. It was a blast in a raw sort of way. I enjoyed it. I did see a video somewhere that had 2 pro racers, one in a WRC Subaru and one in a stock STI. They gave the stock some insane amount of head start and the guy was driving the wheels off of it but within, what seemed like, seconds, the WRC was caught up and gone. Interesting to see the differences in a true race car and arguably, as-hard-as-they-come street car.
 

Do Work Son

Go Kart Champion
Location
Northern VA
Driven a 400hp Evo, that'll put hair on your chest. Theeeeeen you feel all the switches, the Fisher Price steering wheel, the 1950's radio, and the clutch necessary for 400hp with AWD. I wasn't too envious.

My other friend's Z06 - same story. Fast, handles great, and feels like it was put together with super glue and toothpicks.

I wanted a daily driver, not a track car. I'll go buy an E46 M3 someday and strip it down to have fun.
 

Gunkata

Drag Race Newbie
Location
Lombard, IL
what year Z06? I've only driven the C5 and yeah, it was pretty shitty inside/feel and shifter wise, etc. But I hear they make great track cars, and my C6 Z51 was essentially the same car.
 
Top