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Old 10-03-2012, 07:46 AM   #26
a2cpc
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Of the cars you listed I would go with the WRX(I am on my 3rd one). Of the cars not listed I would also look at the Abarth. Only 160hp but easily upgraded to180. Lots of fun to drive, good mileage. I have seen people talking about how much fun it can be in heavy traffic areas.
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Old 10-03-2012, 07:52 AM   #27
cnguyen
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I'd never get a Subie without the AWD. Especially if it snows.
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Old 10-03-2012, 10:11 PM   #28
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I just checked Ford's web site and they show an ST in stock at a nearby dealership. Going to try and test drive it tomorrow.

I've generally had good luck at dealerships so far. I think that's because I'm going with my dad. I wonder if any dealership would even acknowledge me if I was flying solo.
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Old 10-03-2012, 11:02 PM   #29
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tippy25 View Post
I just checked Ford's web site and they show an ST in stock at a nearby dealership. Going to try and test drive it tomorrow.

I've generally had good luck at dealerships so far. I think that's because I'm going with my dad. I wonder if any dealership would even acknowledge me if I was flying solo.
Since you're young, you catch a lot of flak for several reasons...most of it stemming from credit history. I know if I walked in to get a 2013 WRX tomorrow, I'd get denied any sort of loan even though I've been working for almost two years now.

If you're willing to wait, you might be able to just get a decent used car to drive around for now until you establish enough credit to get a proper loan.
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Old 10-03-2012, 11:09 PM   #30
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Before you step into the first dealership you really need to figure out your financing plans. If your family is part of a credit union I would start there. At least have a place to start and then allow the dealership the opportunity to do even better.
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Old 10-03-2012, 11:11 PM   #31
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You live up north, get a nice used awd Subaru and find tips on here for picking a good one.

Ford?

Seriously?

You will regret that purchase, believe that.
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Old 10-04-2012, 07:32 AM   #32
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pwain View Post
Before you step into the first dealership you really need to figure out your financing plans. If your family is part of a credit union I would start there. At least have a place to start and then allow the dealership the opportunity to do even better.

no doubt. your best bet is to walk in with pre-approval from your bank. even better a site draft. then the dealer knows your a serious buyer and you have that leverage too.
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Old 10-04-2012, 08:54 AM   #33
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Speed 3 is an impressive little car, with great hp, and outstanding handling. The focus st will we very similar, and should be a great value.

If you want hp, and don't care about mpg, get the wrx. brz is probably more than you want to spend right now.
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Old 10-04-2012, 09:14 AM   #34
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Originally Posted by Jack ffr1846 View Post
Cheap focus is cheap and you'd know it if blindfolded and left in one.
I've driven every single car in the list presented by the OP. The Focus ST has the best interior of any of them, hands down. Oh and Ford listened to that Recaro petition, unlike Subaru.

You owe the ST a test drive, it's a REALLY nice car.
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Old 10-05-2012, 10:24 PM   #35
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Heard from the credit union today. I'm approved for $25k. Big help right there.

Sat in the ST today. Those seats were awesome. While I wasn't able to drive it today, since it was in the showroom and not out on the lot, I did schedule a test drive. It certainly made an argument for itself tonight. While there were a couple things I liked, there were a whole bunch of features that I either didn't want or didn't need, and there were some things about it that struck me as a little odd. For example, when you fold the rear seats down, there's like a 4-6 inch drop from the floor of the trunk to the seat backs, and they don't lay flat. The fuel numbers surprised me, too. 23/32. That's pretty damn good.

2 Subaru dealers near me have some WRXs in transit, so I'd like to take one of them out for a spin, too. I'm suddenly leaning toward a new WRX because the 2011/2012 ones seem to be appreciating.
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Old 10-05-2012, 11:11 PM   #36
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You're in New Jersey, considering a front wheel drive car, over an AWD car. Also the Subaru will hold its value better.

Snow alone makes this a no-brainer.
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Old 10-13-2012, 12:08 AM   #37
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The Focus ST is absolutely a nice car. The interior is phenomenal. The touch screen is cool, and the steering wheel has a great feel and a bajillion buttons. The seats are glorious, and the styling is pretty aggressive. And the sound system, man is that great. I like the Ford.

However, there were also things that I didn't like. The FWD was rather FWDish despite some of the tech to make it feel better. My test drive was after it rained and although it stopped an hour or so before my test drive, the roads were still a little moist. I really tested the traction of that thing. It did a lot of spinning, and when it did grip, the car would slam. It was rather disconcerting and I kind of felt like I was breaking things. I think this was the diff causing this. The pedal placement was also poorly done. The gas and brake pedal locations made heel-toeing exceedingly difficult as the brake pedal was so much further forward than the gas.

The Ford also had a few things I neither needed nor wanted. The touch screen, while nice, would rarely get used after initial setup. The gauge layout was unoptimized (really like having the tach front and center). And how I had to position the seat meant that every time I went to look out the side window, I got a face-full of B-pillar.

The Ford is still a great car, but those things I didn't like were the things that were highest on my list of important features/capabilities. They were also the things that the WRX got right. It was a good bit more spartan in there, and the sound system wasn't even close to the quality of the Focus ST, but at the end of the day, the WRX made me happier than the Focus ST. I pick up my 2013 WRB Hatch at 4pm Saturday. That's suddenly today, so I'm going to go try, and likely fail, to get some sleep.
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Old 10-13-2012, 08:56 AM   #38
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NICE! congrats on the purchase. you will love the car. Stereo is really an easy and fairly cheap fix. post a few pics when you get it.
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Old 10-13-2012, 09:13 AM   #39
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Web Foot STi
If there is snow in the driving mix then AWD does not count for squat. The new WRX comes with summer tyres.

Depending on how much of the white stuff you get determins on weather you buy all seasons, or pure winter tyres.
While this is true, I went right from the dealership to Firestone where I purchased ultra-high performance all season tires for $525 out the door. I proceeded to sell my brand new OEM tires for $500. So, it just takes a little work but can work out to a wash.

Last edited by Decipher; 10-13-2012 at 10:30 AM.
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Old 10-13-2012, 10:31 AM   #40
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Congrats on the purchase. Pics are mandated!

I think you will realize you made the right choice, especially with the hatch. It's a car you can grow in to as life and needs evolve.
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Old 10-13-2012, 07:21 PM   #41
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Today is a good day.







Don't mind the oil stain on the road. That was from my old car.
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Old 10-13-2012, 07:46 PM   #42
mastercaster
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debadge that baby. it will look great. i took all of mine off and it really cleans the ass end up.
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Old 10-13-2012, 08:12 PM   #43
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Congrats, I got mine like 3 weeks ago, already tinted, tail overlays, all. 4 speakers replaced, 4 channel amp done and new tweets. And debadged most of the badges. I am in south jersey too.

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Old 10-13-2012, 10:21 PM   #44
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tippy25 View Post
Today is a good day.







Don't mind the oil stain on the road. That was from my old car.
Quote:
Originally Posted by tippy25 View Post
- Subaru WRX (sedan, hatch is ugly IMO)
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Old 10-15-2012, 09:59 PM   #45
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Originally Posted by SW21MR2 View Post
I was the same way when I first started considering a 2013 hatch. At the time I started the thread, I was looking at 2008-2010 used models, and they're ugly IMO. It took me a couple days to figure out why I liked the 2013 hatch but not the 2010 hatch since it's roughly the same body style. The 2011+ hatch looks much better with that changed front bumper.

The dealer decals are going to go this weekend. I'll do some photoshop wizardry to see how it looks with other badges removed. Now for the n00b question. What's the best way to remove badges? Fishing line and Goo-Gone?

Last edited by tippy25; 10-15-2012 at 10:17 PM.
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Old 10-15-2012, 10:21 PM   #46
dsn112
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I used heat and a plastic pry tool. Came off easy

Shouldn't need photoshop, plenty of pics here.

IMO they went nuts with the badges. Having the word Subaru on the left with a huge Subaru logo next to it is a bit redundant, and then having the impreza on the right is also overkill.
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Old 10-15-2012, 11:25 PM   #47
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Congrats on an AWESOME decision.

Car looks great man, enjoy!!

DO NOT USE GOO GONE. Your car is new enough, just use a hair dryer / low power heat gun if needed, and peel the letters off. Then use like Rain-X bug remover or something low impact to take off any residue. There are a lot of helpful tips out there if you search. I think it looks best with just 'WRX' on there, the rest is all just 'stuff'.
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Old 10-16-2012, 06:44 AM   #48
mastercaster
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tippy25 View Post
I was the same way when I first started considering a 2013 hatch. At the time I started the thread, I was looking at 2008-2010 used models, and they're ugly IMO. It took me a couple days to figure out why I liked the 2013 hatch but not the 2010 hatch since it's roughly the same body style. The 2011+ hatch looks much better with that changed front bumper.

The dealer decals are going to go this weekend. I'll do some photoshop wizardry to see how it looks with other badges removed. Now for the n00b question. What's the best way to remove badges? Fishing line and Goo-Gone?
i debadge all of my vehicles. this is by far the easiest one ever. cut them off with fishing line, then a standard hair dryer provides plenty of heat to take the rest off. just heat it up and rub/roll the adhesive in one direction. i literally had all of mine off in 15 minutes. when i was doing my horn upgrade, i was going to remove the front wrx emblem while i had the bumper off, but forgot. so that one will have to wait until another time. you have to get that from the inside of the bumper.
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Old 10-16-2012, 07:56 AM   #49
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I didn't even use a hairdryer. Just floss to get it off and spare my fingertips then roll.
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Old 10-16-2012, 11:40 AM   #50
mastercaster
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the heat just makes it that much easier though.
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