[e]tx

I currently drive a 2004 STi and its a bit pricey and a little too stand out for where I'm moving to, currently I live in Colorado and everyone's got an STi or Evo. I've always loved the fbody Camaro and am thinking about selling the subie and getting into some American muscle.

Are they easy to work on yourself? I'd like to do some basic bolt on mods myself and also do the general maintenance. The STi is not so easy to mod yourself besides the exhaust since I was never brave enough to swap the turbo or anything.

Are the parts an arm and a leg or are they reasonable?

Is there a certain good year or bad year Camaro? My 04 has a transmission "design flaw" that they fixed in the later years.

They seem to be pretty fast with just a few bolt on mods, I'd like to get a stock one and start from stock to full bolt ons to maybe a supercharger in the end, hopefully for less than an arm and a leg. Thanks for looking!

TyCZ28

stick with 99+ 01/02 if you can at all because of the LS6 intake... the 98's theres nothing wrong with them they just made major improvements in the heads after the 98 and the rod bolts wernt as good.

LS1's are sooooo easy to wrench on yourself but dont try any hard launches like you would in your subie... youll snap the rear end with good power...

ive ran my buddies 05 cobb stage 3 sti a few times... he pulls like 2-3 cars on me from the start till i hit 3rd and then just blow past him at about 80... you will miss the cornering coming from a wrx tho... these cars were meant for strait line hauling a$$

[e]tx

Id be curious to know what mods your car has done and what the STi has done? Stage 3 could mean a bunch of different things.

I would be alright without the handling as long as I could get some stiffer suspension and get that hop feeling you get when you hit bumps in the road. I've got coil overs on it right now and there set pretty stiff. Things tend to break when you go hauling *** around corners too much anyway. Its how I ruined my stock suspension in about 25k miles. Started making noise like they were heading out.

TyCZ28

mine is
98 SS
Longtubes
ORY with Kooks muffler
Lid - ported T-Body
emissions delete and tune
t56 with Monster Level-2 clutch and a Tick MC

he says his had "upgraded turbo, stock longblock, FMIC, downpipe and full exhaust, and a tune..." his car is a beast but cant keep up on top end...

TyCZ28

and i mean like these cars dont corner haha... they understeer and if you give too much gas cornering your very likely to end up spinning out unless you can control a slide hahaha

[e]tx

Yeah I notice that with my STi too, she pulls good til about 3rd or 4th gear then its like the power is all gone. I like the idea of the v8 Ive seen the videos on youtube that **** just hauls *** all the way to top speed.

Probably a newb question but the t56 is the manual tranny in the Camaro's?

Pretty sick your car with not that many mods does that to his STi, with that turbo he probably needed oil lines and maybe bigger injectors and the intercooler plus turbo plus exhaust isn't cheap at all, even if he bought used. Plus you still have to get a tune. At least I could mod the Camaro a little before I got a tune without the engine trying to blow itself up.

I can handle a slide, actually looking forward to one.

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

There were no major improvements in the heads for '99-'00 at all. The only difference between the 806 heads for '98 and the 853 heads for '99-'00 were the valve covers with center bolts and provisions for coil rails. Internally, the heads are the same. The only improvements came with the casting process used on the 241 heads from very late '00 through '02, and the power "advantage" of the 241s is marginal. Either way, all the heads have equal potential once ported, and they are all interchangeable with any other model year so long as you have the correct valve covers and coil rails to add to a '98.

'00+ received better flowing exhaust manifolds than the '98-'99 cars, but this doesn't matter if you plan on headers anyway.

'01+ received the LS6 intake, but this is a common and easy enough bolt-on for the earlier LS1s so it's not really a reason to buy/not buy any model year IMO.

'98 rod bolts are a bit weaker, but that's only a concern once you start to rev the engine above the factory limiter, which is not necessary until you do a cam or heads/cam.

Some people see the '98 PCM as a problem, because it's not quite as advanced as the newer PCMs, but this doesn't become a concern unless you are planning a major build or serious forced induction that requires some extreme tuning. For a common street build, any good tuner can do just fine with the '98 PCM. A lot of people are convinced that they *must* swap to a newer year PCM, but there are plenty of '98s with strong builds and factory original PCMs doing just fine.

There are actually some disadvantages to the newer model years as well, the biggest one being the bubbling roof issue. This problem affects all '99+ cars, and even some of the '98s built in 05/98 or later. But the vast majority of '98s are not subject to this issue. Here is a link to learn more about this issue:

https://ls1tech.com/forums/16606709-post1789.html

'98s also come stock with an Auburn posi, rather than the Torsen of the '99+ cars. Personally I prefer the Auburn, as it's quieter and more predictable.

'98s have a more accurate temp gauge.

'98s and '01/'02 come with larger stock fuel injectors than '99/'00.

'98-'00 have stronger stock flexplates than '01+.

'98s have a steel gas tank vs. plastic on '99+.

'98-'00 stock cam has a slightly more aggressive profile than the truck cam used on the '01+ models. Not anything to be concerned about if you plan a cam swap anyway.

'98-'00 throttle body has a smaller cam and thus provides a slightly more responsive throttle feel.

There are some other cosmetic differences between the years in terms of interior and exterior colors, and quality/style of certain trim pieces (window trim on the '01+ cars is lesser quality, '01+ cars receive a different rear view mirror, and some other minor changes)

[e]tx

Sounds like the 98 is one hell of a car!

MonmouthCtyLS7

iTrader: (6)

Yea I was also curious of the "major" improvements in the heads from 98-99 myself

bristol16

iTrader: (36)

I bought my '02 Z28 a few years after selling my '06 Evo IX MR so I've had experience on both sides of the fence. The cars pull totally different...my Evo pulled hard as hell once the boost kicked in (2500-2800rpm) and the Camaro would rather blow the rear tires off as soon as I push the gas. The Evo handled better for sure and was a good daily driver because you could just keep out of the boost if you wanted to and get decent MPGs out of the 2.0L. If you can trade the sound of a turbo spinning for the sound of a V8 roaring and don't mind the sacrifice in handling it's not a bad trade. The torquey LS1 is a great engine all around and will be easier to work on than your Subaru. The EJ series motor in your Subaru is known for some small issues as well as breaking piston ring lands and it's not easy to put cams in because of it's horizontally opposed setup.

My Evo had intake, full Buschur exhaust (including downpipe and hi flow cats), HKS 272 cams, boost controller running 23psi, custom tune, walbro 255 pump, SSQV and it made 330hp/363tq and pulled my buddies '99 bolt on A4 Z28 with a cam.
My Z28 just has intake and full exhaust (longtubes, hi flow cats, stright pipes from there back).

Personally, I would much rather have my Evo back but I am very happy with my Camaro. You may want to test drive a few before you decide to change.

castine917

2004 sti stock suspension had issues with going bad and clunking. Our 05 sti suspension went bad real quick too. Loved the rush from acceleration. Fuel was better than formula. Had more room in rear seats for friends/kids.

98 formula with auto was a nice engine/ trans combo but I didn't like the "feel". Was nothing bad about it but, I felt awkward driving it.

2004 STi and its a bit pricey and a little too stand out for where I'm moving to??????????
Are you moving to a muscle head only trailer park? Drive the car YOU want.

[e]tx

Im heading for Georgia so maybe there will be a little of that. Also the WRB paint and gold BBS's paint a target on my back with police. When I bought the car in Texas it wasn't long before I was pulled over and told "your car stands out like a sore thumb."

Originally when I was looking at cars I actually wanted an fbody Camaro but found a good deal on the STi and just pulled the trigger. Now I'd like to try out the other side of cars since I've had my fill of the awd turbo scene. Never drove an evo but I hear they drive different than subies, (open diff vs closed diff). The subaru can be a pain in the *** to shift sometimes.

RedHotG8

iTrader: (1)

The CTS-V/GTO/G8 have a V8 so those are other options to consider. Some of them have bigger LS motors than the Camaro and handle much better too.

JD_AMG

You're half right.
From the factory the non-1LE equipped cars handle pretty poorly, mainly due to terrible shock valving and generally soft suspension (mostly the shocks though). A properly setup one will handle lightyears better than stock, and surprise quite a few higher end cars. Simply throwing some koni SA's on will have the car driving completely different.
Its very simple to set one up right too, Sam Strano has done all the leg work (and proven so with multiple national SCCA champions with his Z28). No cutting/hacking/welding, just simple quality bolt in suspension and sticky tires.
Heres a quick clip of him auto-xing:
Same car/driver on a track chasing down a passing (yes thats right) a 911 GT3 driven by a track instructor.

And here is a member on here (strano equipped car) playing with an STi on a backroad:

From the factory those cars feel better, and the V actually handles better (the others are on par at best) but mod for mod a 4th gen fbody ends up on top. All these cars compete in the same auto-x class (f-stock) and guess which one dominates? The 4th gen...

RedHotG8

iTrader: (1)

Auto-x is parking lot racing. Put all those cars on a real race track and the 4th gen will come in last.

JD_AMG

Not even close kiddo.
The 4th gen has a big weight advantage and is able to fit wider tires all around. That alone is enough to make the difference.

TyCZ28

regardless.. if you wanna auto-X and road race get a vette.. if you wanna o stupid fast in a straight line the camaros are king... they can be made to handle well but still nothing compared to an STi.. ive driven a car with full tubular suspension, bilsteins and BMR springs... was better but i still couldnt hit a corner as hard as i could in an STi

JD_AMG

Vettes have more potential for sure, but again a correctly setup Fbody will hang with a bolt on C5/C6 in corners. Sam's Camaro was running with his friends modded C5 Z06.
The Sti is going to corner much different being AWD, but you are still comparing a poor setup.
Tubular suspension means squat, especially if its using poly bushings. Bilstiens are mediocre, a great stock replacement shock. And BMR springs are a little rear biased.
Im talking more about something like:
Koni SA's
Strano springs
Strano swaybars
Fays2 watts link
17x11 wheels all around with 315/40/17 R compound tires.
Those are the major hitters right there.

RedHotG8

iTrader: (1)

A few hundred pounds mean a lot at the drag strip but not on a full size race track. All the cars I listed will out handle AND out power the Camaro so it doesn't stand a chance in a road racing track. It's obvious you don't know much about cars.....

The Caddy CTS-V holds the fastest lap time at Nuremberg with a time of 7:59 on factory tires.

TransAmWS.6

All the cars you listed also cost nearly 2-3x as much as an F-Body, except the LS1 GTO's, and those definitely do not perform as well as LS1 F-Bodies in really any category. When it comes to flat-out bang for your buck performance, dollar for dollar, you are going to have a tough time competing with the F-Body in any way with those cars you're talking about.