- Winter is here folks regardless
of your opinions on it. I hate it. The days of mowing lawn and taking Instagram story posts are over. Replaced by the depressing
mornings of waking up when it's dark out, and going
home when it's dark out. I've cried, I run on sun, and I need it. I must remain a light shade of pink and constantly be burnt, all right? It's just a thing up North. Things just don't seem to last often. We end up missing them because we do not properly
enjoy them, all right? There are car generations out there that we took for granted, and now we look back and think, we didn't deserve you. I'm Alex. @AlexFi on Instagram, and today we're gonna be
talking about a car generation that we wish we could have gotten back. A generation of Subaru
that we all wish we owned since like the first snowfall, and then once it just depreciated we wished we could have bought it, and appreciate it we're like. (bleep) It's just like, gosh, darn it. And just, it was a car that
you could properly make a good daily driver that
you wouldn't feel bad if it met a snow bag. A car that makes every
high schooler happy. It makes every sober mom cry. Ladies and gentlemen, we're gonna be talking
about you wanting to own a blobeye or Hawkeye Subaru WRX STI. (car engine roaring)
(upbeat music) And if we're just jumping into this video, one, two, clap, down, up. Hey, how's it going? Hello. If you just
subscribe that'd be cool. And if you're looking for after market wheel tires suspension, be sure to slap us up (claps) like Dakota slaps the wheel. All right, be sure to hit us up we're at www.fitmentindustries.com. We have everything you
could possibly imagine for your newly acquired
Subaru WRX STI acronyms, or otherwise. We do have everything. Plus we've got deals
going on all month long because we got November is
black Friday, cyber Monday, but we just put stuff all over so if you don't wanna wait, you can actually pick something up. Taking it back to the '90s,
best generation ever. All right. The Subaru WRX hit puberty through the world rally championship and took Colin McRae,
to is highway of fame. All right. It was a converted
WRX at Subaru factory that had more ponies,
a firmer transmission, a shorter shifter, and a lightweight
electromechanical differential. This was what made the STI. For those that wanted a
slightly more aggressive WRX, the STI was it. And Subaru squeeze that
trim dry, where it could. The brand, which was barely climbing out of its own marketing trouble, found tons of love in
the aftermarket scene through its world rally activities,
and off-road tomfoolery. This newly uniquely sounding
and oddly planted sedan would capture the heart of
enthusiasts around the world. And had people that they too thinking they could be in next Colin M on a snow road, back end road at eight o'clock at night and Wisconsin. Spoiler alert they couldn't,
but it was cool thought. And even though the STI and Signia was somewhat new for the market, the W's that Subaru would
take home spearheaded the rest of the consumer interest in these cars, dubs or dubs. Subaru would go on to win the 2001 and 2003 world
rally championship. And with it, people rushed
to the Subaru dealer to be met with a very happy Subaru WRX with some big ass headlights, bagel circle boys that
weren't really aggressive. I mean, look at it is, it sounds like it'll rip your face off, but no eyelids are gonna make
that front end look angry. It was just a thing that the
new beginning years of WRX, just kind of look. It was like the big brother of the Miata plus a crease along the middle. It was just, that's what it looked like. Still, the 230-ish horsepower
that came out of the then WRX was enough to make people love the car. Even with its odd, quirks, and features that would make Doug DeMuro cry, and dealerships cheer for the
amount of unreliable issues that came from the
first-generation. Money. But then Subaru did
something truly magical. They did something truly incredible. They did something that
not many car manufacturers nor movie producers can do these days. They created a facelift in
2004 that was nearly better than the first one in every single way. The second generation
facelift was the voice drop that the car sorely needed. The minor design was redone
by McLaren F1, Peter Stevens, which made it properly aggressive. And you can get it with
an all weather package, a spoiler, a stereo, a
redesigned front seat, a larger scoop for the intake. It had neat headlights, neat taillights, and some cool fog lights with
only 7,400 ever being made. Finding one of these cars is now a little bit more of a rarity, but totally worth it because
it had a $31,000 price tag at the time, and now it
has a $30,000 price tag. Now it had a $31,000 price tag, had a 2.5 liter turbo
charged engine, six speed, limited slip differential, Brembo brakes, BBS wheels, and kisses
from Petter Solberg, Richard Burns and column McRae. It made everybody happy. Anybody that wanted to feel
like they had a race car, but not a race car, this
was a car that you bought. 300 horsepower and 14 and
a half pounds of boost made this thing fun,
quick, blast to play with. Biggest downer was the car came initially with a five by 100 bolt pattern. What? They switched it out, they got the five by one 14.3 eventually, but it's just the thing that
you don't wanna keep in mind. From 2004 to its inevitable demise, to a hatch, non-hatch
thing, is pretty sweet, but still not as subtly
Subaru as the JD gen, there are a few key differences
as the year passed on. 2005 they switched to a five
by one 14.3 bolt pattern. Yes! All right. 2006 we see the torque split become more front heavy
from 35 to 65 to 41, 59. And in 2007, they got taller
gearing and a new ECU. However, the most well-known distinctions during these years, were the looks. And I would argue that these are some of the best looking
generation STI ever made probably besides the GCA. In 2005, they began
adjusting the color flares, a spoiler colors, the diffusers more. From 2004 to 2006,
you'd see super changes, to eyes, butts, and side
markers to make it even cooler. 2006 would see the big change
from the blobeye design, because if you look at the headlights, they looked like a blobeye. First gen, pre-facelift, bug
guy, looks like a bug guy. Subaru's are a creative folks, but in 2006, they introduced
super angry headlights. The Hawkeye design. A trim headlight that
blended into the front bumper up into the fender liner. And, Oh my gosh, they were beautiful. This generation Subaru STI hit the natural depreciation curve up until about the mid 2010s. When for some reason they stopped early. And nowadays picking up a
properly clean 04-07 STI can more than some of the MSRP
that when they were released, and I am not kidding. It makes me sad, 'cause I
was actually looking at one. But we're not here to talk about you wanting to know the history of these blue and gold
neighbor wakers. Okay? You want that? Go read a
goosebumps book or something. I used to cheat on those, every time I die, just go backwards. No, we're going to talk
about you wanting to own one of these bad boys. So you want a Subaru WRX
STI blobeye slash Hawkeye. Hawkeyes are begging. Well set down your
favorite ring line joke, and grab your fav brake cleaner because we're about to jump
into what it's like to own one of these. All right? If you've managed to jump
into one of these STIs, congratulations, you've
picked up a bagging car that will treat you right, as long as you keep these few
maintenance things in mind, because it's fast, yeah. Because Subaru's are Subaru's
timing belts and water pumps must be religiously taken care of. Seven years or a 105,000 miles, every time, no matter what, no
excuses, got to get it done. Recommend a hundred cages to be safe. Understand that higher mileage STIs may suffer from fifth and sixth
gear, sink rows going out. It's just a common issue because WRX is love to
swap these transmissions, finding them to replace
or to do a full rebuild can be expensive because the WRX market drove up the STI transmission market. Rust Canon does hurt these cars too. Most notoriously around
the spoiler mounting areas, rear fender liners, and door jams. So because these are
all in the drive sedans, oh there's a hair in my eye, oh. "No one makes me bleed my own blood." Because these are all wheel drive sedans, they were used for their intended purpose. And it's important to
get the car on a lift, to get the full inspection of the car prior to dumping 25 to $30,000
into a 16 year old Subaru. Very important you say that out loud because it's gonna help you make sure you make the right purchase. Oh, and four, you own
one of the best sounding, four cylinder turbo cars out there. The proper exhausts and headers
will make this thing rumble in the most harmonic way possible, and just make anyone smile
when they're driving it. All right? The boxer horizontally
opposed flat engine paired with is on equal length
headers is the Subaru gods passing down a sound
that we do not deserve, but we get anyway. There's a few times where
they just get it right. They got it right. Comes from the fact that
the cylinder one and three are at a different length
than the cylinder two and four for the headers causing
two different wavelengths to interact through the exhaust system. Who wants to be a millionaire. You can call me when you win that. But the noise itself is what
will convince 90% of people to pick one of these cars up. If you're looking to pick one up the easiest way to determine
which one is for you is dependent on how much you wanna spend and how raw you want it to feel. The 04s are known to be the most raw out of the Subaru STI platforms. As they still lack some
of the tech savvy parts that the future STI began to introduce. These days, the cars
were just rocket ships, and the 04 seemed to be a
little bit easier to find. However, the Hawkeye is one
of the more rare examples of the STI with only 4,500 of them being made in 2007 compared
to the 7,500 in 04 and 05. Blue with gold is the most common color, but sat and white pearl is the rarest. And if you pick up an STI, it's game on whichever one you want. White Pearl, beautiful. All right? It's like finally getting
your magazine in the mail with all the cheat codes
for GTA four. All right. You start getting everything,
get the motorcycles, the helicopters, the unlimited
ammo, you get flying tanks. Then you just end up
playing as a pedestrian following traffic laws
because you're bored. I've done that. All right? The aftermarket community
for the Subaru STI is like the same thing. It's just huge, and it
allows you to do anything. And they're quite frankly,
extremely supportive when you're trying to build your car, which is a little bit interesting. The STI community builds
anything and everything for these cars. First off, most people will opt for the BC race and coilovers,
and K wheels or ATS wheels, we launched all 1123.
You know what I'm saying? Check it out. And federal tires. Most
people attempt to keep the functioning styling of Subaru's unless they go with the air
suspension and show car style, but the car deserves to be fast as hell, and slightly scary the
whole time you own it. Both for it's ability to blow up and its ability to pull
trains on most cars when the motors get built. Cobb and parent parts flood
these cars, all right. Be sure that any of those
parts were properly installed. And if anybody just says that it needs a tune to be dialed in, you just need to put shoes on, your favorite running shoes,
abort, "Don't go back." The electronically controlled
center differential makes you feel like a prop rally car, even though most people will
never know how to use it. The 2006 upgraded two and
a half liter turbo charged 300 horsepower was an
impressive number back then, especially out of a four cylinder. These cars were just built
different. All right. The community that surrounds
these cars is also massive and they know everything about everything. They know more than probably
Subaru. I'm actually convinced. There's no way that they don't. If you found an STI, get the (mumbles) and I bet you the community will be able to tell
you the passenger door, engineer, designers', favorite color from may
of 2002 to June of 2003 prior to having him with his second child when it
changed from violet to black, because Subaru communities know
everything about these cars. Nowadays, these cars have found a cave, and they remain hidden from the world. Only to be occasionally seen
in a rusted haphazard way from an 18 year old or at a cars and coffee where it's hiding in the back of a garage is bone stock. Regardless of which,
if you pick up an STI, just be sure to always
remember the basics. Maintenance keeps these cars alive longer, but failure to do so and make
you cry with your wallet. They're expensive to keep alive, check the rack bushings, check your Syncros, check any oil leaks or weep it. This is common, especially with gaskets. No leaks are normal for these cars. Paint is a weak point for
Subaru and always has been. So be prepared for a correct or respray. There are no noisy and that's
normal, like rattling noisy. You're gonna hear struts
we'll clunk over bumps, and that usually requires
a rebuild as well. And of course get a compression test. You're spending $30,000
on a 15 year old Subaru. You can thank us later. Maybe buy us some ramen, check it out. You help me help you. Most jokes originate from some truth, but it's not the worst thing in the world, as long as you're patient,
and remember that, whatever you do, whatever you do, if there's anything you
take out of this video, do not make them equal length headers. Don't do it. But what do you think
about the Subaru STI? Let us know below. And if you're looking for
aftermarket wheels tires, especially be sure to check us out over www.fitmentindustries.com, I'm Alex from Fitment Industries,
and we will see you later. Don't do equal length
headers, please, please. Please! All right. Peace! (upbeat music)
