strongesthiro

I have an 06 S2000 as my only car.
Daily driving my s2000 has never been an issue and I love the car.
But I'm at a point where I want to fix it up.
The thing that bothers me the most is that my car has 103,000 miles.
Which means I will be putting expensive parts on my car that would eventually worth more than the car itself.
Also, modification to increase HP is close to impossible (btw, I'd never spend 11k on turbo/fi).
So the high mileage and the lack of mod potential is steering me away from my S2.

I have recently taken interest in the new '16 STI.
I'm interested in STI because it's a new car with mod potential and decent fun factor.
After my s2000, I've yearned for something with a little more hp and 4 doors is a plus too.
But, the STI will put me on a heavy financial plan and I've heard driving it isn't as fun as the s2k.
Also, I see STIs everywhere and I heard modding it too much may cause the engine to blow up.

So my questions are:
1) Is an STI worth the extra bucks - especially with the outdated engine?
2) Has anyone switched from S2k to STI and felt happy about the switch?
3) If I didn't really care about the AWD or the 4 doors, how would STI and the s2000 stack up against each other in terms of fun factor and just as a car in general
4) Is reliability of an STI something to worry about?

Sylvan

I don't have any experience with an STI but an 06 S2000 with 100,000 miles is still pretty "young" in my book and is still worth a decent amount. I wouldn't get freaked out at all about the mileage.

Bullwings

1) No
2) I went Porsche 951 -> GRB '09 STI -> '06 S2000
3) If the STI doesn't have awd or 4doors, then what does it have? A boosted motor that goes boom. If you don't care for awd or 4 doors, I can't see why you'd want an STI.
4) Yes. It's the main reason i got an S2000, followed second by cost.

If you want to mod and have fun, spend on suspension and take the car out to some HPDE events. You might re-think more power after that. If you already do HPDE events, then don't bother with an STI, it won't survive them. Buy a second car if you really need four doors.

fusionchickenleg

Have you driven one? The driving dynamics is totally different in the STI than a sports car with low center of gravity and shorter wheelbase and chassis balance

If you don't care about the AWD or 4 doors I would look into c5 / c6 Corvettes, if you go for the base models with either the LS1 or LS2 / 3 the cost of entry is much cheaper than a '16 STI, and the mod potential for Vettes is almost endless and they can be made dominant performance-wise for not much money if that is your priority. C6 z06s cost about what an '16 STI costs now so that's another consideration as well; in the dry the performance is in another galaxy

Not sure what you are looking for most in your next car but if you wish to keep the sports car formula but with improved mod potential that won't break your bank it's hard to look away from Vettes

You can also do the new V8 Mustangs or the 370z, among many other options, I'm partial to the Vettes because after a similar line of thoughts as yours I went for a C6 and now am in a C6Z and haven't looked back

Chuck S

If I had to chose between these two as my only car it would be the STI. But what's the purpose of either? Lots of ego (AKA horsepower)? There is always a faster car next year. And the year after that. The newest S2000 is 8 years old. Don't expect it to beat newer cars or cars with lots on money dumped into them. Even the STI needs lots of aftermarket work to compete in rally work. Look at at all the work the Speed Academy guys did on their FRS to make it competitive. Not a car I'd want to drive daily.

You can get an astounding increase in'06 S2000 mid range power with nothing more than a K&N intake, high flow cat, and freer flowing exhaust (Tanabe Medalion Touring is still quiet enough to live with every day) and a Gernby FlashPro tune. But you're still left with a 2-seat roadster for better (roof down) or worse (roof up! ).

-- Chuck

JUSTINTHECOASTIE

1st post and wants to get rid of the S2000?

CosmosMpower

It's been a while since I owned a S2000 but I have a 16 STI Limited right now which I'm selling. The car honestly feels too high strung for a daily driver for me. If that's the 'fun' factor you're looking for you'll like it a lot. It feels like a race car disguised in a sedan body.

Handling on the STI is excellent as is the torque. The steering is very sharp, the gearing is very aggressive in the low gears, it feels urgent all the time. If that's what you like about the S2000 you'll like that about the STI. The tech goodies are also pretty cool which aren't present in the S2000. If you don't need AWD or 4 doors I'd get a used Boxster or Cayman S instead though.

I wouldn't worry about reliability too much. People make it sound like every single one blows up but there are lots of cars running around that are doing just fine. It's fast enough for me so I didn't feel the need to mod mine and Subaru will absolutely stand behind the warranty if you don't mod the car, they are known to even honor the warranty once (good will) even if you mod it and blow it up.

strongesthiro

Thank you everyone for your replies.
I honestly love my s2000, but I really want to modify the car.
Whether it's getting rims, suspensions, flash pro or intake, I want to customize it so it becomes more my car than it already is.
Like I said initially though, the only thing that's bothering me is the 103,000 mileage on my car.
Also, the car is 10 years old so there is normal wear and tear.
By the time I get my car to where I want it to be, I would be closer to 200k mileage.
I know my car is a fun and reliable but after 200k mileage I don't see much life left...
What do you guys think?
If you had a bone stock S2000 with 103,000 mileage would you keep it or get a new car?

white98ls

What about a... wait for it... lower-mileage S2000?

Frankly though, I'd keep yours. How would you be closer to 200k once you finish the build? How much do you drive?! Would it really take you 5-10+ years?

My AP1 is 14 years old and has 68k on it, and I actually have thought about making it strictly a track car but it still feels "too nice" for that in my book. It drives and feels like new, and I know it has a whole ton of life left. Even with 103k, I wouldn't worry. If the compression is good, go for it. Absolute worst-case scenario, a fresh engine or rebuild isn't anywhere near the expense of switching to a brand new STi and the associated depreciation and other costs.

strongesthiro

Well lower-mileage S2000 is hard to find.
I found a dealer selling an 05 with 17,000 miles, which is beautiful but for $31,000! I almost considered it but 05 is not as good as 06 and I can't justify the price tag.
But you might be right, I'm more convinced in keeping my s2000 now. hahaha
I just wished bolt ons would gain us more hp...
I hate feeling fast and getting smoked