STI or MazdaSpeed3

[bryand8930]

Which should I buy? I am almost 20 and insurance is not an issue for me. The sti is a 2004 with 64k miles and the mazdaspeed3 is an 07 with 21k miles and has quite a bit of mods but is a friends car and he wants to sell it to me. Help me out with this decision!! haha

 

[acidbug]

If money & insurance is nothing..I would def suggest the STI.

STI has better aftermarket support and AWD.

 

[protege02]

ms3 because of mileage, but if you like paying or doing repairs, go for the sti. my vote ms3

 

[Fenrir]

Get what YOU want to get, not what some random internet board says you should. Drive them both, decide for yourself. Both cars have a strong community behind them.

 

[bryand8930]

I have driven both and they both have their advantages and I still have no idea which one to get mut as of right now i am leaning more toward the ms3...

 

[Fenrir]

You're not even 20 and you're getting a damn nice car with either. Wish I had that kind of money when I was 19.

 

[Aaron23]

What are the prices of each?

 

[bryand8930]

haha yeah...speed3 is 18,500 sti is 16,500-sti is stock but has some wear and tear

 

[fructus]

What mods are on the MS3?

 

[eg6motion]

IMO it would depend on the use. STi for sheer performance reasons. But as a daily driver...they have one of the cheapest interiors I have seen....and that plays a big factor for me when using it as a DD...which is also why I like the 5 door MS3 for space

 

[jred321]

honestly between those 2 neither.

the STI has too many miles for a strung out performance car and will probably start to get expensive real soon. being stock is a good sign but i'd still be worried it was beat on.

the MS3 i wouldn't trust because of all of the mods and the fact that many people have issues with them even in stock form. plus the price feels a little high to me for a 2+ year old car that was only $20k to begin with.

in general i'm not a fan of used performance cars that attract the younger crowd because more than likely it was beat to s*** and not well taken care of.


i would lean more towards a newer, lower mileage normal wrx, an S2000, a mazdaspeed miata, a GTO, an R32, an S4 (might be hard to find in the price range without dropping into the turbo 6 version), or a 350z. i feel that these cars attract more "grown up" buyers or are less strung out so i'd be more comfortable buying one of these used.

 

[Sport6]

Get the sti, save your parents the 2grand.

im kidding. get what you want. but as far as mileage the ms3 wins.

 

[mazdaspeedster3]

I love the 04-05 STI. If it is stock with all maintenance records do it! I wouldnt pay 16 for it though! Maybe 15K tops...

 

[MakeMeGoFast]

I may be stock but it may have been "returned" to stock. Go with the MS3

 

[MS3MB]

I was debating the same thing and I got the Speed3 and I have no complaints about it. If your interested in going fast speeds around corners or stuff like that then sti cuz of the AWD but other then that I would get the Speed3 because its newer and your at a lesser chance of running into engine problems

 

[JCell]

Sti

 

[Aaron23]

Yeah Sti the 2,000 you save you can fix up a little.

 

[MakeMeGoFast]

unless he is paying cash the 2k is minimal. even though I think the MS3 is the better buy, you being up north may justify the STi. Don't have to worry about the snow if you get any in Portland which means fun all year round. Maybe go on NASIOC.com and ask what the signs of abuse are so you can look for them.

 

[lantagne21]

Spend the extra few grand and go buy an '09 MS3 while you still can before the 2010 models start coming in (still not sure what Mazda was thinking when designing the front of those).

 

[madvillian]

STi!