[John M]

Originally Posted by gasstationboi

I have a VR-4 too, 93. they are to ****ing heavy!

...

besides the point, WRX stock turbos are two times bigger then a vr-4's turbo. VR-4's dont have intercoolers, they have two small seperate radiotors for each turbo (very ineffective incooling, however, the turbos are ****ing grape size) The trans. on the VR-4 is horrible..the 94+ with the getrag trans. is much better.

however, i love the WRX so much more, it feels more enjoyable to drive a WRX then VR-4

What is it about the weight that's holding you back? Just a MBC will net you 13.20s -- good luck doing that for under $1k on your WRX. Add a downpipe and you're doing 12.90s. Add some injectors and a fuel controller and it's mid 12s. I've done exactly that with a 92 and a 94 Stealth.

The stock intercoolers are not inefficient. There are many running in the 11s on the stock parts. One big IC or two small ICs equals the same amount of area. The bumper funnels a large amount of air into each IC. A cheap upgrade is using 2 stock DSM ICs with re-welded piping.

The turbos are tiny. They look like samples the factory would hand out showing what the real units would look like. They do spool instantly though, providing huge torque right off idle.

The transmission in any year is fine as long as you don't abuse it. If you shift it like you're rowing the car, you're going to eat a syncro. The 6spd's shorter gears let you get more out of the stock turbos by keeping them in their power range longer, but I do kind of miss a 5spd that does 70 in 2nd and 120 in 3rd.

If your WRX is more enjoyable to drive, your VR4 must be in bad shape. They are pushing 15+ years old these days and they need to be maintained. Too many people want to pick one up for $5-6k and expect a perfect car at that price, ready to mod.