hi guys, im a long time honda guy. who has always drove hondas, worked on hondas, lived hondas. but im getting tired of fixing my 02 civic SI. plus i just put a low millage 6-speed, new clutch, and new light weight fly wheel in it. and after a few weeks the tranny starts grinding 2nd. so i just put almost 1k into this tranny swap. so im getting purty tired of puting money into it.

what im thinking about doing is taking in trading in my civic to get a bug eye wrx. im wanting to know what i should look out for when getting a wrx. what are the comon problems? im probly going to get one with some miles on it, because i dont want to have to finace over 4K on it. so im just looking for some guidance from you wrx folks. let me know what the normal problems are.
Thanks

 

Check normal stuff like maintenance, receipts, how many owners etc. If the car has more than 105k, make sure the timing belt has been done. The transmission is the weak link in the car and it tends to be the first 'expensive' thing to go when modding. It's best to find one that hasn't been modded since you'll have a clean slate to start on.

 

ya im looking to get one thats 100% stock. i may even go with a wagon, as they seem to be easyer to find stock.

 

wagons are cool

 

Get a wagon, if i did it over again that what i would get. Cheaper insurance too.

Get an 03. The 02 unless one of the rare late (May02) had the weakest gears.
The 03 had RA length 1mm wider gears.

 

i have been trying to find a 03 but they seem like there harder to find. how easy is it to mess up the tranny in the 02s?

 

Depends on power level and how well you drive. I was at 300awhp for over a year and half then 336-350+awhp on the stocker for 6-8 months after that.

No hiccups. Although i have a late 02 and had the 1mm wider gears. The biggest problem is banging gears out. Driveline shock on an AWD system, the torque has to go somewhere the weakest part usually goes. Weakest being the gear tooth them self.

Just make sure you reduce driveline shock as much as possible and don't bang out third you should be okay.

 

10-4 ya i dont plan on doing anything to crazy to the car. i want it to be purty stock. probly just do the basic bolt ons. intake,exh, intercooler pipes, bov. and thats probly about it. i would be more then happy with 300whp. i would even be with 250whp. i just want to get a nice 4-door daily, with a lil balls.

 

Do not put a BOV on it they only do harm. They hurt MAF based cars.

Also, intakes usually reduce the overall performance also.
The stock airbox works really well under 330ish whp.

Stick to a drop in filter, Turboback exhaust and maybe some for m of EM and flash it STG2. Enough to run a 13 in a 1/4.

Have balls, 4 doors, a trunk, and don't have to worry about gears.

 

ya that would be plenty. i would be very happy with a 13 sec daily. i think im purty sure that i wont be braking any gears. but if i do, how much is it usally to fix it?