Seriously any thing over 300 and close to 30 is what I want. Alright so I just got done filling up my tank with 4.559 per gallon premium fuel and got to thinking there has to be a better way of having my cake and eating it too. I easily commute 85 miles per day and do several trips to the surrounding states each month. I thought I saw a post awhile back where a bigger turbo allows for good mpg at moderate cruising speeds (below 80) on the freeway but when you wanted to open it up you could get big HP to cure the goes fast needs. Is this a dream or is it possible? I really like my 04 JBP STi. It is honestly the best car I have ever owned and I do not want to get rid of it just cause the powers that be are playing with fuel prices for political gain and other nefarious purposes. I've got a 67 bug that I could probably run on windshield washer fluid and everclear and get better mileage but i'd go crazy feeling like I was falling backwards with all of the traffic passing me on the interstates. Besides the bug has no A/C and there may be an issue of CO infiltrating the car. Any ideas? I seriously started to look at a Fiat Abarth as an option. I went out to the drive way and sat in my car for a bit and that was that. There has got to be a better option than selling the STi. I guess I should just quite my gripping and make more money so it does not matter what anything costs! Thanks in advance for your input. Michael
swap in 07+ sti trans, make everything as efficient as possible, buy a 35r rotated kit and run it on ~15psi to keep you motor healthy and you wouldnt need a crazy fuel system that is almost always less accurate then a lower setup.
I don't think you are going to be able to get 30 no matter what you do. Especially if any of your time is spent driving in traffic. Spending a ton of money to switch a turbo or transmission is not a good idea. It will take forever to reach the breakeven point from the gas savings. Just enjoy your car. And enjoy it even more if you don't have any payments. Buying a new car that gets better mileage but has a monthly payment is also a bad idea.
First....its not going to happen. Second to even get close you would have to get really wild. I would really have to sit down and analyze it but I would say 12 to 1 compression, short duration cams, big turbo setup to basically keep you out of boost, huge backside (T4), a very free flowing exhaust, and a properly geared transmission. Now that you have done all that its going to be the worst subaru you have ever driven.
Thanks for the input I think that I will change the plugs, intake and refine the tune. If that gets me to a good spot then I'll spent the rest of the effort on the Bug. The best way to add 50 - 100 hp to your STi is to drive a 67 bug for a week or two and then drive your STi again! BTW- is the BRZ getting a direct injection system? M-
Ariel Atom..30mpg and up to 300hp..But 300hp is a lot more affective when the whole thing only weighs about 1300 pounds lol
On a 2.5L not gonna happen. The absolute best I ever got in the Subaru was 29 mpg and that was on the 18g Ej205 cruising home taking it easy after Scott Siegel tuned it.
I had one tank on my Subaru where I got 33mpg, but I was driving home from Augusta, had forgot my wallet so I knew I couldn't fill up. I slip streamed semi's all the way across I-20, by far one of the most boring drives of my life. I also never took the car over 2500 RPM. If that's something you want...go for it.
mini cooper s or the rsx-s is a good alternative... it may not have the horsepower that you are looking for, but they are sensible fun; they are a blast to drive and easy on the gas.
i'd recommend buying another car, daily drive it. I couldn't stand the thought of a boring DD so I spent a little more for a used Mini S. 07+ are turbo, 36 mpg hwy, I've been getting 30-32 daily, even sitting at lights constantly. and it handles better than my subaru ever dreamed of, so there's that too. Seems the most cost effective
Have you had any major issues with the Mini yet? I only ask b/c I did some research for a friend and I found very few people that had good things to say about their reliability. /threadjack
Hmmmm buy another car. That means.....1) potentially another monthly payment, 2) potential insurance hikes due to a newer car potentially Not cost effective at all esp if the OP's car is paid for.
Well, the maintenance if you take it to Mini/BMW is outrageous, not going to lie. The more experienced people I talked to had nothing bad to say about its reliability. Mine is solid with 80k miles. There is really one main problem that pops up, the timing chain. Should be replaced every 35k miles. Yea.. Mine was done by previous owner, through the dealership and she paid $2200. Now, Mini also quoted me for a $90 oil feed line to be replaced for $1100. I bought the feed line and return line from a local Mini performance shop and did it myself for $75 + oil change. Took a couple hours only. They do work for a lot cheaper than the dealer can, so it probably wouldn't have been bad taking it there.
Do you have anything intelligent to add about the OP? Maybe about how he should go about his goal? Or are you going to bring your stupid shit here too?
that's what...about once every...3 years? that's absurd. is the motor THAT stressed? :| It's a valid point, back off.
Thanks for the personal attack but I honestly was just trying to have a simple conversation and pointing out that it wasn't really an economical idea.....which was 'part' of the OP's question.
That's why nearly every post above mine said expect to pour tons of money into the car. When I take into account the estimated $1600 a year I'm saving in gas by buying the mini.. I'm thinking a cheaper beater pays for itself within a year or two. By the end of my 4 year loan, it will have paid for half itself. Not bad, considering I splurged and got a nicer used car.
I've always gone by the "buy a 2-3 year old used car that's nicer than the brand new car you want" policy...it's always worked in the past....until now.
Ok lets lay all the cards on the table. Total made up numbers here.... $1600 savings in gas a year $350 monthly payment $30 hike in insurance That makes it.... $4200 more a year in payments $360 a year more in insurance minus $1600 gas savings $2960 more spent Assuming STi is paid for even at the higher gas you are still saving money to keep the STi. The OP states that he likes his STi and really doesn't want to get rid of it for the sake of rising gas prices. You can dump tons of money in anything but in the end you will NEVER EVER get your money back regardless. It is pretty much always true that it's more economical and financially responsible to just keep what you have and truck on. Now there are other factors that warrant needing another car or a different car but the OP hasn't stated that he needs anything. Just his concern for MPG and would like to have the power he has now.
No, seriously anything useful? The whole point of the thread was to have 400hp AND have 30 MPG. Where's the cost of that in your equation. Make sure to take into account the cost of getting 400hp the normal ways in my plan.
Title states 400 but I take that as "I love my STi....it makes the power I want but the MPG concerns me." Your mini doesn't have that since you used it as an example. It doesn't even have 200hp in stock form iirc. Far cry from 300+ and I'm sure to get it there isn't cheap either which doesn't fit the OP's equation. So I ask STillGruven.....what mods are all done to your car? Are you protuned? If not it's amazing what proper injector and MAF scaling will do to your fuel efficiency while at the same time making more power.
That's why I recommended two cars. I'll let you take over since you have better ideas for getting him 30MPG and you just don't seem to understand**. :wavey: edit: **I'm better explaining something in person
two cars to get to 400hp? that doesn't work. your logic is flawed....they both might as well get 15mpg too....you know, to get the 30mpg the OP wants. stop the bickering and the snide comments and get something constructive in this thread, please.
While valid here's the issue.....seems he wants a DD that does it all. While 30 mpg is a stretch stock turbo Sti's can get 25-26 mpg (however I've seen reports of 30) but that's if you aren't playing around. The most I seen was Doug's old 08 stating I believe 34 mpg but that thing on his car had to be inaccurate due to bigger injectors altering the OEM algorithm.
Ehh petro is a neccessary evil. Power...unless you're towing something or racing, it's really a nice to have. Keep the STi and play the price game. You could go with a really big turbo setup and stay out of boost...this was a concern for me too, gas mileage, but to hell with it. 4.50 -10. a gal...if i have to drive i have to pay. Those commutes are a son of a bitch too which i can relate to. I moved closer to work and if you travel state to state, you could keep your STi and buy a impreza and make it look like an STi. Gas mileage solved and you still have the STi for when you home.
some one said buy a vett. this is the answer. though its a different car from a subie. test drove one a while back. lugged it into 6 gear at 50mph it was barely turning 1000 rpm. similar gearing to a honda crx hf i had a while back. but the lower gears allows the 450hp motor to work and it has gobs of torque. cheap to work on too. as an aside someone mentioned minis. i had a m3 for a while. right before the warranty ran out, i sold it. probably the best economic decision i ever made. bmws and minis have outrageous maintenance fees once you get off warranty. about the vette, buy a slightly used one and it will retain its value. lots of folks buy vettes and they are only driven on weekends when its nice, the rest of the time they stay in a heated garage. find someone trading up from one of those. STI/WRX with its settup and awd and smallish motor doesnt work well as a high performance car with good mpg if you say out of the accelerator. and there is no economically feasible way to make it do so thats worth while. have the money, buy a second car (prius C) and spend money on modifying your subie for fun performance. i have a honda fit that is my drive around car and keep my wrx in the garage and drive it when i want to have fun.
current mods Hello CelticPride and All, Yes - I like the power I have - of course more would be better. The whole initiator of this thread was the 4.55 per gallon cost of fuel and the potential for much higher prices later Engine Mods are light. Prodrive downpipe and free flowing Cat in the mid pipe. Protuned by Mike Sargent. Original plugs are still in at 74,000 miles. They will be the first thing I take care of!!! Thanks for the input! Michael