02 WRX vs 04 SRT-4 vs 05 MUSTANG

Hey I'm new to this and ive been looking at these 3 cars... srt4, wrx, mustang. They all have their pros and cons and i cant seem to decide which one to go for. Money is a big issue I wont likely be buying any of them brand new. I will be using it as a daily driver and will be racing it lots as well. Also Ive heard bad things about the subaru wrx trannies dieing early. any help would be apprechated. Thanks.

Hey I'm new to this and ive been looking at these 3 cars... srt4, wrx, mustang. They all have their pros and cons and i cant seem to decide which one to go for. Money is a big issue I wont likely be buying any of them brand new. I will be using it as a daily driver and will be racing it lots as well. Also Ive heard bad things about the subaru wrx trannies dieing early. any help would be apprechated. Thanks.


well if you're going to buy used and money is an issue go for an srt4 they have rather bad depreciation making them a steal used. Just make sure it hasn't been abused.

thanks man im leaning to the srt-4s because of the money issue im just not sure if their gonna be reliable or not.. and i really like the idea of having a awd wrx just that i heard their not the most reliable.

thanks man im leaning to the srt-4s because of the money issue im just not sure if their gonna be reliable or not.. and i really like the idea of having a awd wrx just that i heard their not the most reliable.


subaru is generally known to have realiable cars. You might want to ask the subie guys if there are any wrx with weak trans.

About Srt4s they are very reliable unless they have been abused. An 04 would be nice if you can find a cheap one. Main differences are a front quaife, stronger half shafts and bigger injectors. Not that 03 are bad by any measn though. you can still get the quafe for them from mopar.

I dunno there are some really cool looking '05 Mustangs that I have been seeing done up by the shops and they are starting to even convince me...I know it doesnt have IRS but it could...for a price...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v513/NISSANSPDR/Random%20Pics/stang.jpg

Hey I'm new to this and ive been looking at these 3 cars... srt4, wrx, mustang. They all have their pros and cons and i cant seem to decide which one to go for. Money is a big issue I wont likely be buying any of them brand new. I will be using it as a daily driver and will be racing it lots as well. Also Ive heard bad things about the subaru wrx trannies dieing early. any help would be apprechated. Thanks.

I was in your exact same position last year, debating the WRX or SRT-4...

http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=131968

I might be selling my '04 SRT-4 later this month. It's never been taken to the drag strip or anything like that. I'm older than most of the "SRT-4 crowd" if you know what I mean. The only time it's been driven hard is a few freeway runs up to about 110mph. I'm sorta anal about my car so it's in perfect condition. It's fully loaded...sunroof and side-airbags. It's a great car and it hauls all sorts of ass but I just need something that handles better, rides a little softer, and doesn't make as much noise. The modifications are in my sig. I was gonna sell it for $19,500 OBO with all mods. Without the mods I'll do around $17,000. It has 22k miles. I bought it for about $23k in October of '03. If this is more money than you wanna spend check out the buy/sell section of the SRT forums. People post SRT-4 sales in there all the time. Many under $15k. Good luck.

No offense to your SRT4 man...but if you bought it for 23k and want to sell it for almost 20k...w/22k miles and mods that do NOT increase the value of the car...19.5 is alot to ask...

As a guy who sold a modded car...dont think that you are going to regain that money you spent on those mods w/them on the car...probably better off selling them separate and getting your car back to stock

:2cents:

No offense taken. I've never sold a modded car before so you probably are right. I assumed some people who plan to race it would prefer the mods to stay on the car but then again some would not. As it is right now I was planning to return it to stock (except for the lowering springs, BOV, and STS), grab my ankles, and take what the deaslership gives me when I trade it in. I'm not looking to make money. The buyout on my loan is about $17,500 and I've spent about $2,500 on mods. I'll probably try my luck on autotrader or something like that with the mods on. If I don't get any bites I'll return it to stock, sell the mods and trade it in.

also you have a 03 which made less power and has no limited slip differential.

also you have a 03 which made less power and has no limited slip differential.

It's an '04...has LSD and the 577cc stage 1 injectors. Well it did have those injectors until I put stage 2 in. Anyways...I don't want to hijack this dude's thread. It's a good question. I'll start another thread when I'm ready to sell the car asking how I should do it.

ahhh then that changes the situation alittle bit then. but i mean that car new is around 21000 bucks. its only a year old. so i guess you might be able to get 17K for it stock. and maybe 19K for it modded. but do you really have 2K worth of mods on it?

ahhh then that changes the situation alittle bit then. but i mean that car new is around 21000 bucks. its only a year old. so i guess you might be able to get 17K for it stock. and maybe 19K for it modded. but do you really have 2K worth of mods on it?

With no options the MSRP for an '04 SRT-4 was $20,995. With sunroof and side airbags it shoots up to $22,860. My mods are...

Stage 2 w/o toys: $800
DC Sports Exhaust: $750
Eibach Springs: $275
DC Sports strut tower bars: $250
Mopar STS: $100
Forge BOV: $150

...plus all the little things like new shift knob, end links, K&N air filter, polyeurethane bushings, a Mopar BOV I have sitting around. Damn. I didn't think I spent this much money on my car. My wife is right. I have a problem. LOL.

With no options the MSRP for an '04 SRT-4 was $20,995.

So I guess they can no longer claim that it's the fastest car under 20k...


:disappoin

So I guess they can no longer claim that it's the fastest car under 20k...


:disappoin

No that ship sailed after '03. I'm sure MSRP is higher for '05 too but I'm not sure how much exactly.

Hey Steiner. What was it that made you choose the SRT-4 over the subaru?

Hey Steiner. What was it that made you choose the SRT-4 over the subaru?

Obviously price was a huge one. I didn't have anytime to save for a down payment because my previous car was a lease. When somebody totals a lease you don't get any money back. Only the title holder recieves money.

But in all honestly I could have afforded both cars. The SRT-4 just felt like, above all else, it was built to haul ass. It sounded mean. The torque was amazing. It was responsive. The gauges were well placed and easily readable. It also just felt a helluva lot quicker and lighter.

The WRX is no slouch, but it felt like it needed to be coerced to go fast. You had to put the pedal to the medal to wake up the turbo. The SRT-4 was also noticeably quicker than the WRX at partial throttle. I've never raced one but my coworker has an '03 WRX and he even admits that it's no competition.

Different strokes for different folks though. What part of the country do you live in? I'm in CA and I also own an SUV so all wheel drive is not mandatory for me. I say that, but I'm selling the SRT-4 to buy an Evo or STi. I'm still debating which one.

The mustang GT would prolly be the best choice, you cant argue with 300 horses. As for the base Mustang V-6, i'd take either one over it.

man i still dont know what to do! i want a wrx more.. just cuz if someone asks me what kind of car i have id rather say wrx then a srt4.

man i still dont know what to do! i want a wrx more.. just cuz if someone asks me what kind of car i have id rather say wrx then a srt4.


word of advice(and this aplies in life in general). Dont make decisions like this based on what other people think. If they choose to be ingnorant and call the srt4 "just a neon" or other stupid stuff, let them be, and you enjoy your car.

word of advice(and this aplies in life in general). Dont make decisions like this based on what other people think. If they choose to be ingnorant and call the srt4 "just a neon" or other stupid stuff, let them be, and you enjoy your car.

Thanks for that man. I also want the subie because of the all wheel drive.. we get some crazy snow and i think itd be nice to have.

Thanks for that man. I also want the subie because of the all wheel drive.. we get some crazy snow and i think itd be nice to have.


that is certainly a factor. But the best think would be to test drive them both. We can give you our opinions but there is no replacement for personal experience.


I've drove both cars and they are both great, but I do prefer the srt for the exact reasons steiner gave. It reponds instantly while the wrx needs a bit of encouragement. But again try it for yourself.

that is certainly a factor. But the best think would be to test drive them both. We can give you our opinions but there is no replacement for personal experience.


I've drove both cars and they are both great, but I do prefer the srt for the exact reasons steiner gave. It reponds instantly while the wrx needs a bit of encouragement. But again try it for yourself.


yeah ive never drivin either of them... how was the handeling of each?

yeah ive never drivin either of them... how was the handeling of each?


actaully i prefered the srt4 handling too. It was very fast to respond to imputs and its body controll was also superior. The wrx seems too softly dampened. Part of the reason were probably the tires the srt4 was running on stock bfg kdw while the wrx was on some soft al season.

actaully i prefered the srt4 handling too. It was very fast to respond to imputs and its body controll was also superior. The wrx seems too softly dampened. Part of the reason were probably the tires the srt4 was running on stock bfg kdw while the wrx was on some soft al season.


Hey thanks a lot Neutrino! Im gonna look for a Srt4 but i'll take whichever one i can get the cheapest.. I love both of em.

If you get a lot of snow where you live and this car will be your daily driver then I would recommend the WRX. It's real easy to wreck an SRT-4 in bad weather if you aren't carefull. I'm always super cautious when I drive in the rain.

I can't really address the handling aspect between the 2 cars because I never got a chance to push either car in the turns. I can tell you that the SRT-4 handles better than my old Spec V. If you're more interested in handling than straight line performance the WRX is a better fit. Either car's suspension can be improved dramatically with aftermarket parts, but at some point the WRX will distance itself from the FWD SRT-4. All wheel drive is simply a better platform.

However, if you're looking for fast from the factory and an inexpensive aftermarket then go with the Neon. If the word "Neon" makes the hair on your neck curl then there's nothing I can do to change your mind except blowing the doors off your new WRX. :D

Steiner I think putting down a FWD layout has become more of a fad.


Truth is: yes on paper its inferior to AWD and RWD but that does not stop many FWD cars to be very competitive.

The 03 srt4 light modded getting 8th overall in the One Lap (it beat many RWD sport cars). Neon ACRs doing amazing in autox. FWD Alfa Romeo killing BMW in european racing champioships.

Just because something is in theory inferior will not always translate in real life. Otherwise porsche would not use anymore macpherson struts in 911 or corvettes would stop using leaf springs.

True for many people will not be as enjoyable to race a FWD but personally I find it tons of fun. I've been autox-ing a pig understeer fwd car and with the risk of sounding imodest I've become quite good at trailbraking (don't worry i know i'm not a pro driver) and I enjoy tremendously when i know i used the perfect moment and perfect pedal presure to rotate the car into the corner while losing as little momentum as posible.

So skateordie...did you find a car yet?

Steiner I think putting down a FWD layout has become more of a fad.

You're probably right when it comes to the handing department. However AWD and RWD are a much better and more efficient way of putting high amounts of horsepower to the pavement. I'm at about 315hp/340tq at the crank and forget about it. I don't even bother off the line. I'm saving the clutch for the next guy. Wheel hop is also nightmarish unless you replace the motor mounts. This is a freeway car IMHO. I accept that and I'm perfectly fine with it. Out on the open roads I can get 30mpg and still outrun most everything I see.

[QUOTE=Steiner]So skateordie...did you find a car yet?

haha no steiner still not sure what to do.. i have another post going it includes rsx's and nissin sentra spec v as well as the wrx and srt4. so confused buddy...

haha no steiner still not sure what to do.. i have another post going it includes rsx's and nissin sentra spec v as well as the wrx and srt4. so confused buddy...

I had a Spec V before the SRT-4. No comparison man. My wife could beat a Spec V with my SRT-4 and she doesn't even know how to drive stick. :grinyes:

I don't too much about the Acura RSX except that it's a 2 door, costs more than an SRT-4, and it is slower than everything except the Spec V. I think you had the right idea when you compared the WRX and SRT-4. I was in your same position about this time last year and, if going fast is a priority, there are no other options in the $20k-$25k range.

BTW...have you looked at the Ion Redline or Cobalt SS. My brother is a fleet manager for a couple Saturn dealerships in Utah and he let me test drive an '04 Ion Redline. It's supercharged so it doesn't have the low end grunt of the SRT-4, but it has a nice top end and it handles extremely well. People are getting them new for $18k. Rather than buy a used SRT-4 or WRX (which would both cost around $17k-$18k) you might wanna check out the Ion Redline. For the same price you get a new car, fresh warranty and a good modding platform.

I had a Spec V before the SRT-4. No comparison man. My wife could beat a Spec V with my SRT-4 and she doesn't even know how to drive stick. :grinyes:

I don't too much about the Acura RSX except that it's a 2 door, costs more than an SRT-4, and it is slower than everything except the Spec V. I think you had the right idea when you compared the WRX and SRT-4. I was in your same position about this time last year and, if going fast is a priority, there are no other options in the $20k-$25k range.

BTW...have you looked at the Ion Redline or Cobalt SS. My brother is a fleet manager for a couple Saturn dealerships in Utah and he let me test drive an '04 Ion Redline. It's supercharged so it doesn't have the low end grunt of the SRT-4, but it has a nice top end and it handles extremely well. People are getting them new for $18k. Rather than buy a used SRT-4 or WRX (which would both cost around $17k-$18k) you might wanna check out the Ion Redline. For the same price you get a new car, fresh warranty and a good modding platform.

Thanks for that! yeah ive heard about the redline but Im not sure if its available in Canada? Not too sure if i'd trust saturn either? like subaru have a past and you know its fairly reliable. Also dodge has Mopar and the viper so they know what thier doing with performance cars... anyway im gonna check out some info on the Ion Redline! thanks

i thought the Mustang GT was 24 grand

Nope, MSRP for a GT Deluxe is $24,995.

Alright, my recommendation of the choices given is the SRT-4 for your needs. I personally think that you should go for an SVT Focus, unless you are only concerned with straight line performance. If you are going to street race the WRX is horrible from a dead stop unless you want to put a new clutch in every 6 weeks because you have to launch it at such high rpms. The SRT-4 is better than the WRX in a straight line, and the Mustang GT is better yet. If by racing you mean autoX or the like then the Mustang is ok, and really niether of the other cars are all that great in the handling department due to their front weight bias. So if all you want is straight line performance go with the Stang or SRT-4, if you want a great car for twisties or the track I would go with an SVT Focus.

Alright, my recommendation of the choices given is the SRT-4 for your needs. I personally think that you should go for an SVT Focus, unless you are only concerned with straight line performance. If you are going to street race the WRX is horrible from a dead stop unless you want to put a new clutch in every 6 weeks because you have to launch it at such high rpms. The SRT-4 is better than the WRX in a straight line, and the Mustang GT is better yet. If by racing you mean autoX or the like then the Mustang is ok, and really niether of the other cars are all that great in the handling department due to their front weight bias. So if all you want is straight line performance go with the Stang or SRT-4, if you want a great car for twisties or the track I would go with an SVT Focus.

true stock for stock the SVT focus outhandles the SRT4 however that is just because they slaped on so-so suspension parts stock on the srt4. They did that probably to keep the price as low as posible plus to sell their mopar suspension kits.


And its far easier to swap a suspension than to raise power levels of the the svt focus to the srt4's level. Reliably that is.


Bottom line the srt4 proved itself on enough events that require serious handling to prove that the "srt4 is good only for straight lines" myth is just that a myth.

Some examples:

the srt4 won 8th overall in the one lap in 2003:
http://www.caranddriver.com/article.asp?section_id=4&article_id=6862&page_number=6

it also demolished the group 5 scca Rally

While I agree with most of what you said there are a couple of things I want to address. First, all you need to put the SVT Focus in SRT-4's league in power is the JR supercharger kit, although torque is probably still lower, and it will still be reliable. The SRT-4 you provided a link for is quite impressive and put up some awesome lap times, however the thing about that car is it is modified, and was driven by DC engineers. My biggest problem with owning the SRT-4 isn't the car itself it is a great little car, but for the most part the type of people who drive these cars think they are the fastest things on the road, and they act like immature brats. I would also venture to say that the SRT-4 will most likely be the least reliable of any of the mentioned cars.

While I agree with most of what you said there are a couple of things I want to address. First, all you need to put the SVT Focus in SRT-4's league in power is the JR supercharger kit, although torque is probably still lower, and it will still be reliable. The SRT-4 you provided a link for is quite impressive and put up some awesome lap times, however the thing about that car is it is modified, and was driven by DC engineers. My biggest problem with owning the SRT-4 isn't the car itself it is a great little car, but for the most part the type of people who drive these cars think they are the fastest things on the road, and they act like immature brats. I would also venture to say that the SRT-4 will most likely be the least reliable of any of the mentioned cars.


It will not be as as reliable as the SRT4, if it were it would keep its factory warranty. Trust me I have plenty of experience with Zetec engines, i owned a car with one years and yes they have plenty of potential but most of them will not be even close in strength with the srt4 engine. There are out there srt4 running over 500 hp on stock internals.


And any car will have a-holes owners, than includes SVR focuses, evos, ferraris you name it. So its not the cars fault some drivers are stupid.

And if you going to call the srt4 unreliable post some proof. Fact is the drive train is simply bulletproof.

here take a look at the engine:
http://www.sportcompactcarweb.com/projectcars/0310scc_projneon/

and that car in the one lap is very lightly modded:
the only things upgraded over an 04 or 05 model are shocks stage 1 ECI and a removed cat. That is by any definition a lightly modded car.

The SRT-4 is a very versatile and reliable car. You can make either an 11-second-car or an autocross demon for about $30,000, including the cost of the car. That's pretty impressive.

i saw this Mustang GT in hot rod, that has just some light weight compoments and its make 12 sec run, thats pretty impressive to me. im not a muscle car guy , but you gotta have respect for this kind of performence at this kind of price. but i rather go with WRX sti , if thats an option.

It will not be as as reliable as the SRT4, if it were it would keep its factory warranty. Trust me I have plenty of experience with Zetec engines, i owned a car with one years and yes they have plenty of potential but most of them will not be even close in strength with the srt4 engine. There are out there srt4 running over 500 hp on stock internals.


And any car will have a-holes owners, than includes SVR focuses, evos, ferraris you name it. So its not the cars fault some drivers are stupid.

And if you going to call the srt4 unreliable post some proof. Fact is the drive train is simply bulletproof.

here take a look at the engine:
http://www.sportcompactcarweb.com/projectcars/0310scc_projneon/

and that car in the one lap is very lightly modded:
the only things upgraded over an 04 or 05 model are shocks stage 1 ECI and a removed cat. That is by any definition a lightly modded car.

Alright now I can see you know some things about cars and you seem to be pretty smart, but the SRT-4's drive train is far from bullet proof, it's a Chrysler product, and while I have much respect for things that were built by American workers, Chryslers drive trains are the worst of any US manufacturer by a long shot. I have a video that shows what happens when you run 500hp on the SRT-4's stock internals.
http://www.wrxfanatics.com/index.php?act=Attach&type=post&id=279526

Alright now I can see you know some things about cars and you seem to be pretty smart, but the SRT-4's drive train is far from bullet proof, it's a Chrysler product, and while I have much respect for things that were built by American workers, Chryslers drive trains are the worst of any US manufacturer by a long shot. I have a video that shows what happens when you run 500hp on the SRT-4's stock internals.
http://www.wrxfanatics.com/index.php?act=Attach&type=post&id=279526


Yes that guy is a known member of the srt4 forums and he posted himself the vid a while ago. He did not blame the car for the blow out, he stated quite clearly that he raced the car at the track all the time and abused it quite often and with that power level its not surprising to have the car quit on you. But the fact is that car lasted for quite a long time at that power level taking quite a bit of abuse.

BTW if that video is the one making fun of the srt4, the video has been discredited already. The video has been edited to make the srt4 look bad. The race with the van for example, it hapened at my local track Roky Mountain and I know the van driver, he is also a mopar guy the van is very quick running on the famous 2.2 turbo II chrysler engine and the complete video still show the srt4 winning, he just gota very bad start. Secondly that video with the srt4 blowing up was also edited. The car still ran a 12.9 with the engine blowing about at third of the track. So you can only imagine how fast that srt4 was to run 2/3 of the track wilth a blown engine and still pull a 12.9.


Lets take another super strong engine the 4g63 from the EVO, do you think running a 500+ hp level and racing all the time will last forever...no. And that is a legendary engine.

Also the group 5 SRT4s rally cars are runing the stock drivetrain and so far they have been super reliable. And there are very few things harder on a car than rally. Actually during rallies they did find a slight weakness in the 03's half shafts so all the 04 were updated.

Bottom line there is ample evidence of how strong the srt4 drivetrain is and so far I have yet to se any evidence against except for that doctored video.

To me, the SRT-4 isn't even a Neon anymore; it's a stripped-down, unapologetic, back-to-basics performance car that is designed to race hard and take it, and you can get it for just over twenty thousand. Sure, the interior is pretty crappy and the ride quality leaves a lot to be desired, but that's also why it's so cheap.

Yes that guy is a known member of the srt4 forums and he posted himself the vid a while ago. He did not blame the car for the blow out, he stated quite clearly that he raced the car at the track all the time and abused it quite often and with that power level its not surprising to have the car quit on you. But the fact is that car lasted for quite a long time at that power level taking quite a bit of abuse.

BTW if that video is the one making fun of the srt4, the video has been discredited already. The video has been edited to make the srt4 look bad. The race with the van for example, it hapened at my local track Roky Mountain and I know the van driver, he is also a mopar guy the van is very quick running on the famous 2.2 turbo II chrysler engine and the complete video still show the srt4 winning, he just gota very bad start. Secondly that video with the srt4 blowing up was also edited. The car still ran a 12.9 with the engine blowing about at third of the track. So you can only imagine how fast that srt4 was to run 2/3 of the track wilth a blown engine and still pull a 12.9.


Lets take another super strong engine the 4g63 from the EVO, do you think running a 500+ hp level and racing all the time will last forever...no. And that is a legendary engine.

Also the group 5 SRT4s rally cars are runing the stock drivetrain and so far they have been super reliable. And there are very few things harder on a car than rally. Actually during rallies they did find a slight weakness in the 03's half shafts so all the 04 were updated.

Bottom line there is ample evidence of how strong the srt4 drivetrain is and so far I have yet to se any evidence against except for that doctored video.

Quite honestly at this point it is too early to tell how reliable the drive train in the SRT-4 is being that the car is no more than two years old right now, it may be strong but as you should know a 500hp SRT-4 is not going to be any more reliable than any other 500hp 4cyl simply because the only way to achieve those type of numbers is with lots of boost, or nitrous.

Quite honestly at this point it is too early to tell how reliable the drive train in the SRT-4 is being that the car is no more than two years old right now, it may be strong but as you should know a 500hp SRT-4 is not going to be any more reliable than any other 500hp 4cyl simply because the only way to achieve those type of numbers is with lots of boost, or nitrous.

alright im still confused.. we got all this talk about the srt4 being shitty... but it seems theres not really enough proff to say its not reliable as far as we know so far they are f**king reliable right? anyway what about the wrx? i believe thats the car id rather have out of the 2.. but I dont how long its gonna last either.. Ive heard shitty stories about both being unreliable but in reality I think both are very reliabe cars? I know (superhighoutput and Neutorio or whatever) know their car shit. Just interested on your outputs of the wrx... i know (neut) perfers the srt-4 over the wrx.. just trying to keep this topic alive and find out more about the wrx.. Ive been searching all around the net and the automotive forums and it seems the 2002 wrx trannies seem to be made of poor quality (edmunds.com) car reviews.. Thats what the owners of the wrx's have been complaining about.. Not really sure about the srt-4 problems doesn't seem like there is as many.. but i got myself convinced on a wrx. Just want to know what everyone elses feelins are on this subject.. Id hate to buy it and it break down on my before i even pay it off.. then id be f**ked.

The 02 WRX had a lot of minor problems, but the 04-05 are pretty rock solid. Imprezas have a very good reliability record, and the customer service is top-notch. I doubt it could take 400 HP on stock internals and last for 30,000 miles with no problems like I've seen the SRT-4 do, but it certainly won't be breaking down constantly.

skateordie i do prefer the srt4 over the WRX but I do not think the WRX is a bad car in any way. Actually I like them quite a lot and their AWD drivetrain might fit your weather better.

Also Subaru is very we'ln known for their reliability, however I do not have any info on gearbox issues they might have had. Nasioc might be the best place to ask that particular question.

Powerwise as kman pointed out the srt4 is the better choice if you want to make serious upgrades. The WRX and even the STIs use opendeck aluminium blocks which are great for handling due to low inertia but are not the best for power. On the other hand the srt4 engine is built like a tank.

Alright now I can see you know some things about cars and you seem to be pretty smart, but the SRT-4's drive train is far from bullet proof, it's a Chrysler product, and while I have much respect for things that were built by American workers, Chryslers drive trains are the worst of any US manufacturer by a long shot. I have a video that shows what happens when you run 500hp on the SRT-4's stock internals.
http://www.wrxfanatics.com/index.php?act=Attach&type=post&id=279526

Alright, now I can see you don't know some things about cars and you don't seem pretty smart when you say that Chrysler drive trains are the worst. I will admit that they made one bunk transmission, the A-604 automatic. However, I have a lot of experience with a lot of Chrysler products. My family has never had a major problem with any of our Chrysler products that wasn’t driver related.

I have a feeling that you didn't even look at the article that Neutrino posted. I am sorry, but any "factory" four cylinder that can make 500HP on the stock internals and still make more than a few passes down the drag strip, that is impressive. Chrysler knows how to make strong engines. Any Hemi, the 340, the 360, the 440, the slant six, the common block (2.2L & 2.5L), the 318.

I could go on.

Also, Chrysler knows how to make turbo-charged four cylinders. They turbo-charged over two million of them in the 80s and 90s. In 1989 they introduced the common block, which is capable of taking around 500HP on the stock internals. However, the block is very strong, replace the rods and you could easily go even higher. The transmissions they used were very strong as well such as the A-413 automatic and the A-555 and A-568 manuals, which were designed by Chrysler and built by Getrag. They are forged assemblies and are VERY strong. I don't want to discredit the Zetec but there is no way that it could take that kind of power without serious work.

The fact is that Chrysler makes some of the stoutest drive trains out there. In the 60s and the 70s the 426 Hemi would be tested for durability by being put on the engine dyno, driven to 7000 RPM, and left there for about an hour or so. After the hour was up if the engine was still running it was good. That is what I call stout.

Don't comment on things you don't seem to know anything about. As for my opinion on this thread, Neutrino has said everything that I would have.

ok the svt focus is a nice handling car, and is in the guiness book of world records. #1 sold production car- just a fyi

but its a little harder to get the ford focus to run 13's or even low 14's with only a 60hp increase

while you have the stock svt focuses running high 15's and low 16's
http://www.car-stats.com/stats/showstats/showstatsgivenid.aspx

i think i'd rather go with the srt-4 or the stang.



Like most new car manufacturers, Ford produced the first production run of Focuses for the masses. Little did they know that it would become one of the hottest sport compacts overnight. While plans for the SVT performance model were still on the drawing board, our engineers were turning out supercharger systems for the current '00-'02 non-SVT models. Much like the SOHC Honda engine the Focus workhorse was designed for mundane driving with 103 hp at-the-wheels and 110 ft. lbs of torque. We selected the 45 cubic-inch Eaton supercharger as the perfect match of response and airflow capacity. The result: 150hp (a 50-percent increase) and 129 ft.lbs. of torque (25 more at 3500 rpm). Like the Honda twin-cam, the Focus signs off at 5200rpm due to a lack of airflow. At 7,000rpm the Jackson Racing equipped engine is producing 60 horsepower and 50 ft-lbs. of torque more than stock! 2000 Focus C.A.R.B. # D-344-8. 2001,2002 pending.

# Installation Time: 6-8 Hours

alright im still confused.. we got all this talk about the srt4 being shitty... but it seems theres not really enough proff to say its not reliable as far as we know so far they are f**king reliable right? anyway what about the wrx? i believe thats the car id rather have out of the 2.. but I dont how long its gonna last either.. Ive heard shitty stories about both being unreliable but in reality I think both are very reliabe cars? I know (superhighoutput and Neutorio or whatever) know their car shit. Just interested on your outputs of the wrx... i know (neut) perfers the srt-4 over the wrx.. just trying to keep this topic alive and find out more about the wrx.. Ive been searching all around the net and the automotive forums and it seems the 2002 wrx trannies seem to be made of poor quality (edmunds.com) car reviews.. Thats what the owners of the wrx's have been complaining about.. Not really sure about the srt-4 problems doesn't seem like there is as many.. but i got myself convinced on a wrx. Just want to know what everyone elses feelins are on this subject.. Id hate to buy it and it break down on my before i even pay it off.. then id be f**ked.

I can tell you that the SRT-4 engine and tranny are built like a brick shit house. Overengineered is the word a lot of the magazines and automotive gurus have chosen. The engine problems I've read about have been either a direct result of user error (overboost, detonation, bad AF ratio, water in the engine from a CAI, etc.) or freak occurences. Things like flywheels backing out or cyclinder misfires from the factory. Those things are so rare though.

I believe the transmission was pulled straight from their full size pickup line. Also the 2.4L was built to be able to withstand the additional torque and high end horspepower that would result from the staged Mopar upgrades DCX had begun designing and marketing even before the car had hit showroom floors. The internals are forged I believe. The weakest link is the skinny 6" rims and tires. My understanding is that federal safety laws prohibit the OEM from designing a car where the rim sits X distance from some other part in the suspension. A 7" rim would have violated that law. It's the reason why Mopar (an OEM) has never released a wider rim for the SRT-4.

I'm selling my SRT-4 because it would cost me close to $2,500 in suspension parts to get the car to handle like I'm envisioning. I AM NOT selling this car for any reliability or warranty related issues. With just exhaust and the Mopar stage 2 upgrade I'm pushing well over 300hp/320tq at the flywheel. I should be somewhere around 280whp/310wtq if I ever get the car dynod. If you are into modding your car FOR POWER I can't think of a more inexpensive car to do it with. In addition to being relatively cheap, the Mopar upgrades are all plug and play. I doubt you could SAFELY pick up 40hp/60tq for $750 with any other $20k car out there right now.

Alright, now I can see you don't know some things about cars and you don't seem pretty smart when you say that Chrysler drive trains are the worst. I will admit that they made one bunk transmission, the A-604 automatic. However, I have a lot of experience with a lot of Chrysler products. My family has never had a major problem with any of our Chrysler products that wasn’t driver related.

I have a feeling that you didn't even look at the article that Neutrino posted. I am sorry, but any "factory" four cylinder that can make 500HP on the stock internals and still make more than a few passes down the drag strip, that is impressive. Chrysler knows how to make strong engines. Any Hemi, the 340, the 360, the 440, the slant six, the common block (2.2L & 2.5L), the 318.

I could go on.

Also, Chrysler knows how to make turbo-charged four cylinders. They turbo-charged over two million of them in the 80s and 90s. In 1989 they introduced the common block, which is capable of taking around 500HP on the stock internals. However, the block is very strong, replace the rods and you could easily go even higher. The transmissions they used were very strong as well such as the A-413 automatic and the A-555 and A-568 manuals, which were designed by Chrysler and built by Getrag. They are forged assemblies and are VERY strong. I don't want to discredit the Zetec but there is no way that it could take that kind of power without serious work.

The fact is that Chrysler makes some of the stoutest drive trains out there. In the 60s and the 70s the 426 Hemi would be tested for durability by being put on the engine dyno, driven to 7000 RPM, and left there for about an hour or so. After the hour was up if the engine was still running it was good. That is what I call stout.

Don't comment on things you don't seem to know anything about. As for my opinion on this thread, Neutrino has said everything that I would have.

Fanboy alert! Listen pal you don't know what I know about cars, and as a mechanic who works with all brands of cars I can tell you for a fact that Chrysler drive trains are the worst among US manufacturers, this is not my opinion this is a fact. Look at any JD power report DC is the lowest among US manufacturers for long term reliability. How did I not look at the article when I responded to things I read in the article. Get your head out of your ass. You are right though Chrysler MADE some of the best drivelines to say they still do is a farce at best. Seriously get out of your fanboy reality. http://www.channel4.com/4car/news/news-story.jsp?news_id=10668

ok the svt focus is a nice handling car, and is in the guiness book of world records. #1 sold production car- just a fyi

but its a little harder to get the ford focus to run 13's or even low 14's with only a 60hp increase

while you have the stock svt focuses running high 15's and low 16's
http://www.car-stats.com/stats/showstats/showstatsgivenid.aspx

i think i'd rather go with the srt-4 or the stang.



Like most new car manufacturers, Ford produced the first production run of Focuses for the masses. Little did they know that it would become one of the hottest sport compacts overnight. While plans for the SVT performance model were still on the drawing board, our engineers were turning out supercharger systems for the current '00-'02 non-SVT models. Much like the SOHC Honda engine the Focus workhorse was designed for mundane driving with 103 hp at-the-wheels and 110 ft. lbs of torque. We selected the 45 cubic-inch Eaton supercharger as the perfect match of response and airflow capacity. The result: 150hp (a 50-percent increase) and 129 ft.lbs. of torque (25 more at 3500 rpm). Like the Honda twin-cam, the Focus signs off at 5200rpm due to a lack of airflow. At 7,000rpm the Jackson Racing equipped engine is producing 60 horsepower and 50 ft-lbs. of torque more than stock! 2000 Focus C.A.R.B. # D-344-8. 2001,2002 pending.

# Installation Time: 6-8 Hours

Just a question here but what does that quote from JR have to do with anything?

What a bunch of crap. It's just crap I tell you, Crap!

just posting proof of how much hp your getting from the jr supercharger

just posting proof of how much hp your getting from the jr supercharger
Oh ok, but those are the numbers for the non-SVT Focus. Here is a link to an SVT dyno. http://www.jacksonracing.com/CustomerService/DynoChart.aspx?Chart=995-100%20Dyno.gif

Fanboy alert! Listen pal you don't know...

You've been here what, less than a month? I suggest you type less and read more before making personal attacks...

http://www.ebaumsworld.com/forumfun/newbie4.jpg

Fanboy alert! Listen pal you don't know what I know about cars, and as a mechanic who works with all brands of cars I can tell you for a fact that Chrysler drive trains are the worst among US manufacturers, this is not my opinion this is a fact. Look at any JD power report DC is the lowest among US manufacturers for long term reliability. How did I not look at the article when I responded to things I read in the article. Get your head out of your ass. You are right though Chrysler MADE some of the best drivelines to say they still do is a farce at best. Seriously get out of your fanboy reality.

You know, you sound just like my brother in law who uses stupid statistics like that to say how reliable a car is. Stupid statistics like how they see a certain brands car on the side of the road or a certain brands car in the shop. That says nothing about reliability. How can you say that when you don't have any clue as to how well the owner is taking care of their car? My brother in law owns a Chrysler Sebring. He recently had the transmission go on him. He of course, like you, blamed Chrysler. Took it to a mechanic and the mechanic told him the same crap you just said. He said that Chrysler makes bad transmissions. He told me that his mechanic said that he sees that same model in all the time for the same problem. However, I feel that the problem was fixable and he didn't need a new transmission. When we were there getting it replaced I asked the mechanic how many Dodge Stratus he had replaced the transmission in. He replied that he hasn't had any in.

To me, that is complete bullshit since the Sebring and the Stratus are the same damn car. Same engine, same transmission, and they even roll off the same assembly line. This leads me to believe that the mechanic is selling bullshit to get people to buy crap they don't need. The fact of the matter is that my brother in law does not maintain his vehicles and doesn't know how. That is the problem, not the car.

All I know is that Chrysler products have never let me of my family down. The 4.7L V8, the 3.5L V6, and even the N/A 2.4L have proven to be good drive trains. We have owned plenty of different Chrysler products over the years. My Sebring has never let me down, my Dad's Jeep has never let him down, my Mom's 300M has never let her down, and my brothers Ram has never let him down. You can't beat personal experience which you don't have.

I don't believe that you read the article if you still don't believe that the SRT-4 drive train is stout. All the professionals would tend to disagree with you.

As for me being a fanboy, yes I prefer Chrysler products, but if I had the money I would have a huge car collection and the majority would NOT be composed of Chryslers.

Get over the fact that the only thing that ties the Focus to the SRT-4 is the price. The Focus can't compete and does not have the power potential without spending a lot of cash.

hey Steiner did u ever pick up your sti yet? or still debating if you should sell you srt-4 or not?

hey Steiner did u ever pick up your sti yet? or still debating if you should sell you srt-4 or not?

I'm about 95% set on an Evo RS. I told my wife I'd wait until after the holidays before doing anything though. Just too much going on this time of year, you know.

I'm about 95% set on an Evo RS. I told my wife I'd wait until after the holidays before doing anything though. Just too much going on this time of year, you know.

oh sweet that sounds wicked! what made you want the evo over the sti? its a little cheaper isn't it? performance wise their pretty close eh.

Oh ok, but those are the numbers for the non-SVT Focus. Here is a link to an SVT dyno. http://www.jacksonracing.com/CustomerService/DynoChart.aspx?Chart=995-100%20Dyno.gif


its still a 60hp increase




http://www.jacksonracing.com/SiteGraphics/Charts/995-100%20Dyno.gif

You've been here what, less than a month? I suggest you type less and read more before making personal attacks...

http://www.ebaumsworld.com/forumfun/newbie4.jpg

You should heed your own advice, because if YOU actually READ the thread you would see that I didn't make any personal attacks until someone attacked me. Also I am no n00b, I'm new to this site but I am member on various other forums and I am definetely not a n00b when it comes to automobiles. :loser: