ok this is just a curious thought. i just wanna know what you guys think about this. is it worth it to invest thousands of dollars into a teg such as a gsr and build it and maybe even turbo it to be fast and handle well or to spend the thousands of dollars and maybe a little more to just buy a fast turbo car already such as a WRX or srt-4? im just wondering what input you guys have to say. no negative info thanks.

 

For the most part, a car is never a good investment. Although there are a few rare ones, no, they are not good investments. To answer your question, get whichever car is the most fun to drive. Personally, I've had too many bad experiences with mopar, but...get whichever you like more.

 

thats a pretty common debate. if i had the funds, i'd get an srt-4
tired of waiting to turbo my 95 LS. its just too damn slow.

 

it all depends on what u want to do. do u want to put the time and work into building up the car or do u wanna turn the key and go fast? its a simple as that. if u dont feel like waiting for the build save the money and spend it on whatever

 

I would never buy an SRT4, its a damn neon, fast or not, I don't care. A wrx is nice if u don't mind 25% drivetrain loss, but awd turbo is the **** and there is a nice aftermarket for it. Obviously u are on honda tech so our opinion is bias. personally I am about to sell my 99 Cobra to buy a GSR and boost it.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I would never buy an SRT4, its a damn neon, fast or not, I don't care. A wrx is nice if u don't mind 25% drivetrain loss, but awd turbo is the **** and there is a nice aftermarket for it. Obviously u are on honda tech so our opinion is bias. personally I am about to sell my 99 Cobra to buy a GSR and boost it.</TD></TR></TABLE>

^^ same story on srtforums.com
man y cant we just all get along?? evo owners hate sti's, and vice versa. srt-4 owners loathe honda's and honda owners think its a dumb neon on steroids.

im on both forums cuz i was gonna get the turbo neon before i got my teg. but dont get me wrong, my bias is towards honda. my boy got a 03 turbo si, 13.3 1/4 ET that spanks srt-4's on 7 psi. but just too much work (and money) to make a honda fast.
enough of me rambling on, do whatever u desire. just keep in mind any car can be fast with the proper funds.

 

Well, you are asking a honda forum, so the answers might be a little biased. The same would apply if you went onto a Subaru forum and asked the same question. I guess it all depends on what you want to do.

 

To tell you the truth, Dodge FINALLY built a worthy car. True, on the outside it's a neon. But the engine isn't the same that's under the parent car itself...The car is credited with loads of torque, something like 230~250. But lacks hp, somewhere around 200. SRT-4 will debate over and over that Dodge has built a better, quicker car. Yes, quicker but is it really better? To compare it to the other factory turbos, Evo's rated at 276 and Sti's at 300, the SRT-4 can't compare...so why compare a turbo car with a non-turbo'ed car? Honda has built hp'd cars from the factory (GSR = 170, Type-R = 195, Type SH = 200, Type S = 200, '05 Type S - 210). Sorry, but I've never seen an SRT-4 compare themselves with a TRUE factory turbo'ed car. The SRT-4 rates 0-60 around 6 secs, STI and EVO rates at 4.6. A factory non-turbo'ed GSR rates 0-60 in about 7 secs, and a Type S less than that.
I personally love building my car. Even if I had 22,000 to slurge on a stock SRT-4 I'd rather spend 3500 on a used hatch, drop another 3500 for a GSR motor, another 3500 for a turbo and 1200 to build the motor. Thus far that's 11,700, half the price of the SRT-4 that could very well have the braggin rights of EVO's and STI's...Damn, one could spend another 5000 on cosmetics such as body kits, paint, rims 'n wheels, gadges, racing seats, stereo etc etc and stil have money left over.
I'm not bias against the SRT-4, just american cars. no offense but my parent's alone have own 11 american cars that have broken down repeatedly. I've own three hondas myself. My first 93 4dr civic (sold), 95 2dr Civic and 95 4dr Civic. My brother owns a 89 hatch and a 94 accord. And the most we've had to repair was brakes, clutch cylnder, radiator and belts. Each of which was done by ourselves.
So honestly, it's really up to you. The SRT-4 may stand the test of time, but yet only time will tell. Honda has already proven itself as fact. Stick with the SRT-4 if you have the money and the need for instant speed. But go with a honda if you have the time and pride, it'll grow on you like a child or something. Cuz isn't that what it's all about anyway?

 

There are positives and negatives to either side, so its not a clear cut answer. It all depends what you want to do. If you buy a newer car, its going to be under warranty, so if something breaks, most likely your going to be covered. With that being said, the amount of money used to buy a newer car, when used to build up a motor, will almost always have the built car be faster. So, I think the performance/buck is better when you build yourself.

 

If u build ur car mostlikly u will have no debt...but turbo wasnt ment for these cars soo in the long runn ur killing ur engine...next if u buy a turbo car u will have a loan and loans suck!!!!!!!!!!

 

let's see.....
95 LS= $3500 to $4500
good turbo kit or custom setup= $2500 to $4500
motor preparation for higher boost= $1500 to $2500
$4500
$4500
<U>+$2500</U>
$11,500 and you don't have to pay the cost of insurance for a factory turbo car.

Neon srt-4 will run you anywhere from $21,000 to $26,000 and will still be slower than the teg above, plus you will have higher insurance....plus neons don't hold their value as long or as well as a teg

For me the choice is obvious

 

WRX. they sound mean as hell, they're already fast, you get a warranty, and you can RALLY, BABY! what's better than a nice, turbo, FWD Honda? a nice, turbo, AWD car, duh. don't get me wrong and all, honda's are nice, but my next car will be a Nissan. i'm tired of being slow, and i'm tired of having to live with either a car that puts down hella power OR can handle like a demon. i want both, and no understeer. hello, S14 + RB25!

 

id get the WRX...great potential..plus AWD=traction=great acceleration.

BTW 95lstegman..i think i raced you on university BLVD 1 day, bout 2 months ago.if it was you u got mad drivin skillz... we were side by side.u had a good pull ...if it was you.

 

university blvd? what school?

 

All I have to say about the SRT-4 is the warranty factor. I'm sure most of you have read this that for '05 they are dropping the warranty to I believe 3 years 30,000 miles? Someone correct me if I am wrong. As to the '04 that was I believe a 7 year 70,000 mile warranty due to way to many people blowing the motor's and tranny's and such?

 

And I almost forgot that my good friend has an '05 WRX and my 00 GSR with an AEM, wires and short shifter stays right with it from top end of 2nd gear on up.