JUST TRADED '15 STI for '17 BRZ
 

After reading/viewing everything I could find published about the '17 performance pkg BRZs and getting a huge amount of help & direction from a post I made here about 6 weeks ago, I picked up an Ice Silver PP BRZ yesterday!
Drove from KY to Charlotte NC to get it. I'd worked out a deal I cd live with via email and a couple phone calls with Williams Subaru, took a deep breath and made the trip. All the numbers were the same once I got there and I was out and driving in just over 2 hrs, maybe a personal best for me at a dealership.
Put about 150 miles on it yesterday with a big, stupid grin on my face. Even topping out at around 4K rpm, the car is just a pleasure to drive. Such great steering, gearbox, brakes, interior, seats, driving position. The big surprise was how quiet it is on the road. Not that the STI was a bad driving experience at all, but I'm bonding with this thing hard!
My calculation was that I'd be trading exceptional power and an adequate chassis for an exceptional chassis with adequate power. So far, it feels like that's what I've done :D
Thanks to everyone that chimed in on my original posts, you're a good group!

I live in KY also (just south of Louisville), there has been very little choices if any locally to purchase one of these cars and was tempted to drive a few hours to look for one myself. I'm glad you found one you liked! The local dealerships care very little about these cars and it's sad when you pull up on the lot and a salesperson automatically assumes you want anything else. The rare occasion you see one on the lot they are confused why you would want it. "But it only has 200hp" was something I've heard twice from some salesmen.

I hope to see your silver BRZ around! :thumbsup:

Congrats on the ISM PP BRZ! I mentioned that car in the thread above. They seemed pretty easy to deal with. I ordered the same car from my local dealer. Should be here in March.

very nice, the car looks slick in silver. I did the same thing I'm not looking back; I am so happy with the BRZ.

Wow. That's a big change. Nice car!

Nice congrats and welcome!

Nice choice, great color! I'm surprised to hear you say how quiet it is on the road--a number of reviewers had mentioned that the performance package adds much better ride quality, but I wasn't expecting it to make someone say that it's quiet, haha.

These cars look great in silver, it's the color of my 2013 BRZ

Quiet on the road?? hardly. this is one of the noisiest cars I've owned. My Tundra Pick Up is far quieter than this. Forget about using the hands free at highway speeds, most people will hang up....
But a great car and I enjoy it. Congrats on your purchase!

Nice! Congrats on the new PP BRZ, looks great.

Thanks man!
The 2 local dealers get no real allocation on BRZs, maybe 3-5 a year if that. The local "B" dealership sells for MSRP (their sales mgr told me so) and the local "H" dealer, where I bought my STI new, lied to me about his invoice price (like that's a huge mystery anymore and no one knows but the dealer?) and then lowballed my trade- Williams' price was $2300 better than his. And I guess $4300 less than Mr. MSRP?

Honestly, that was the big surprise for me! I don't know about Tundra pick-ups or other MY BRZs, but after 2.5 years in the STI, the BRZ ride quality on the new dampers and noise level over railroad crossings, 2-lanes and interstate was dramatically better. Have put 500+ miles on the car in the past 36 hours.

JSube - was your STi red? I think I saw you there Saturday. I was there to talk about an incoming car and looked at a silver one that was there. My wife said someone was buying it and pointed at someone.

Find it kind of funny to see this thread. Beautiful car enjoy it

I knew all the names and places you were talking about. :thumbdown: When asking questions at the "H" dealership that nearly redirected me out the door. I even got in touch with someone there when I was ready to purchase and only had a question about when I could expect to see a PP BRZ and was told they would get back with me. Guess what, they never did.:iono: I got tired of looking around and got impatient and went with the local B dealership. Not quite as high as MSRP but close enough.

I'm getting nothing for my trade in though because it's got some miles and no one wants it other than a few private buyers. I think a laughable $400 or so was what I've been told from trade in, pretty sure the metal goes for about that much and the car still runs fine.

That's amazing:lol:! Yep, that was me. I think the sales mgr mentioned someone was looking at it, so I guess that was you.
Another thing, on a 10 min. test drive with the salesman, dude pulls up next to us at a light and says "Hey man, love your car. I had one just like it that was totaled last week when this guy ran into me!" Then the salesman starts telling me about having a dash cam in his car to record crazy Charlotte drivers!!

Wow, I didn't even know any '17s in any trim had been in town yet. Yeah, it's always a risk to drive somewhere to buy. I've done it 3 times now, 2 with trades, and have been lucky. I know a great shop in Louisville if you don't want the dealer's guys messing with your car. PM me for a name if you want

i drove from nashville to louisville to buy a cpo forester for the wife from huffman and they had a great price on it and seemed like decent guys.. though they did make a bit of money on me buying the wrap warranty after a long travel day and lack of care to google what the price out on the interwebs was..

i wonder if people who think a 2017 is noisy ever plugged the sound tube :/

I bought my '15 STI from them and had a good salesman & a good experience. About 15 minutes of him going back & forth with his mgr and then me writing the numbers I wanted on a slip of paper and then the mgr saying OK.

But the STI was sitting right in front of them, so I think the advantage for them was clear. For BRZs they have very little allotment and their interest goes way down. The Charlotte dealer was real easy to work with because everything (my car and their car) was on the lot

Nice! I'm in a similar boat going from a Mustang Cobra to the BRZ. Seems every time I drive the car it takes hours for the stupid grin on my face to dissipate. I can't wait until it's all broken in and I can really have some fun.

Yeah, I'm grinning like chimp half the time:D
Oncoming motorists probably think I'm on the phone

poor comparison with a body on frame vehicle..compare the 86 with other affordable coupes & cheap performance sedans (like Civic Si + STI) and the 86 is fine..

The problem I had was they tried to sell me on a Forester when I wanted a BRZ! LOL I didn't go back to the dealership for a follow up after telling them I didn't want to buy that day just wanted some questions answered and I got to sit in the car for a bit and look it over. I did call them back to ask a few more questions (about the PP) and the salesmen I spoke with told me all about resale value of Subarus vs Nissans. Then stated that some of the other cars on the lot had more HP if I was looking for something fun to drive. I told him that I was still interested and he acted like he had something he had to do. I requested that he call me back or email me about the PP release date and ordering as soon as he could and told him, "I'm a serious buyer and want to purchase soon." before I let him go. No call, no email. :mad0260:

what are the chances he truly plugged the sound tube? Anyone that bothers to log on, read forum posts, then write a comment on interior noise levels, and does not mention the sound tube at all, has little to no probability of having first addressed the sound tube. It would be ridiculous to rate the sound level having plugged it and not mention it, so therefore it is not plugged according to behavioral science probability.

It is more quiet than most cars in the 24-28k dollar range. I did tests with a bunch of 2017 cars on test drives and recorded objective results.

so would you say im crazy for even considering an STI over a brz?

brz probably more fun, cheaper, and they have a yellow edition thats calling my name (its the only way to get the performance package in canada)

buuuut STI can fit a baby seat... which means i'd actually get to drive it a lot more.. right now im forced to do must commuting in the wifes honda fit. booooring.

i dont like that the STI is still using that ancient engine.. but it is way faster. and and has a upsides.. big brakes, center diff you can control.

id probably take a WRX due to its new motor.. but the biggest downside to the WRX is smaller brakes, open diffs front and rear, and a viscous coupling center diff... i dont know if i can bring myself to buying one when i know the STI exists.

considering this is a brz forum, im sure i know what everyones going to say.. just thinking out loud i guess..

nice car though. didnt think theyd look that nice in grey

What made you switch from STI? i am currently looking at some STI's, patiently waiting for a FA20 STI.

Are those downsides really relevant on the WRX though?
How often are you going to change the diff bias?
Are you going to track your car hard enough that you need the sti brakes?

If it's going to be a DD (sounds that way), go with the WRX... unless of course you just want an sti.

That being said... a baby seat fits fine in the BRZ as long as you have the passenger seat all the way forward if it's rear facing.
Once it's forward facing, you have tons of room.

I went from BRZ to WRX... back to BRZ...

well i can tell you that the 86 twins work as an acceptable "family" car for what it is..there are some ergonomic carseats out there which fit quite well (front facing ofc) and putting it on the passenger's side is recommended since the passenger seat will automatically slide forward when you decline the seat all the way.. but if you are already questioning the practicality over driving dynamics then your mind is set :) driving dynamics is a bigger priority over practicality for me so the decision was pretty easy

the sound tube is indeed where some of the noise comes from but also the low resistance stock tires are noisy and both the automatic + manual trannies have been known for sounding noisy and clunky especially when cold...biggest problem is we just don't have any insulation but for what it is I agree it really isn't that loud, I still have my sound tube connected and I don't have a problem answering calls via the car's bluetooth mic (and I have the TRD exhaust)

i had an FRS until about a week ago.. unfortunately our little one is still rear facing.. and while you can fit a seat rear facing with the passenger seat all the way up.. it basically makes the front seat useless.

and you can never have too much braking or too many limited slip diffs :)

Of the now 12 sports cars I've owned in the past 25 years, the STI was the quickest. It was also the only AWD.
The fun of the power lasted about 2 years for me. Then I started to get tired of the immense mechanical grip of the car. I can see how rally driving is a blast, but on the street, and really, on track as well, the grip numbs the driving experience. I love the chassis of the BRZ. It's a hoot!

yes its always def easier to play ball with something on the lot. glad you ended up getting yourself in what you wanted though!

I'm nearly approaching one year DD my 2015 86. I also came from many variety of 250+ HP cars like the G35, GS400 through the years. Even though I do mainly highway commute, my 76 year old mom whom rides often when I need to do Costco runs, doctor visits hasn't really complained about the ride expect for very harsh roads and entering and exiting the car to my surprise the seats she mentions is quite comfy.


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Not at all crazy, STIs are special cars and they're still performance bargains compared to the competition, IMO. My primary motivation was to get back to a RWD, NA sports car that has room for a dog in back. Besides the BRZ, there's hardly anything new out there that qualifies. I kind fell out of love with the turbo and the AWD platform. I have a history of doing things like that, 15 yrs ago I had to buy an S2000 to realize I don't like convertibles. :bonk:

sound tube is removed and plugged. also installed underbody panels. I understand what the car is and realize it has zero sound deadening. I have driven new civics and a ford focus and they are noticeable quieter. Although I have not driven any other low cost comparable sports cars. So I can't really say if it's worse or better. Thats not the point.
But to say it's a quiet car. no way. lots of road noise. It a noisy car. that's the point.
I'm hoping different tires will make a difference at some point. I'm still running the oem's.
At 70-80 mph highway speed, the sound level is deafening. Especially on concrete highways. Hands free is useless and you need to crank the tunes up pretty high to drown it out. And I'm older and my hearing is already on the way out. LOL

I have Conti's DWS06 tyres because I live in the North East and plan using my 'zed all year and all seasons..

Car is not too loud to me?

Never rode with the OEM tyres to compare road noise differences..

Nothing wrong with considering it, but it depends on what you are going to use it for.

I was looking at both but decided I was not going to buy an ej25, so I would have to wait until they finally put a real engine in the STI. The FA20DIT is having some issues as well, I assume Subaru will figure that out though as time goes on.

The BRZ can fit a baby seat, there is a picture around here somewhere of a twin with two child seats in the back.

If it is just to be a commuting car it is perfect. Gets good gas mileage, fun to drive, cheap on gas,etc. the STI gets awful gas mileage even driven like a grandma because they've screwed with the tune to hit epa regulations rather than actually make the car better.