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I am about to get my P's in a few months and i am looking to spend about 15-16k on a car.

Ideally my car would be a 99' rex but as i live in Victoria i cant drive a turbo
So I was thinking of getting an 03 impreza RS (model after bug eyes) in manual. What do you think of this car compared to the 03 RX or GX or any other cars you can think of?

best non turbo subaru i ever drove was a 1995 RX limited edition....
absoulutly amazing. and value was about 3 grand so im looking to buy it when its on sale next

P platers and even some L platers I know have over 17k cars!?

What happened to 'bombing' around in a bomb as a first car?

I know its not what what you want to hear but I'd be buying something cheaper that won't kill you financially if it gets used up .

In a way learning to drive is like learning to walk all over again again , nippers waddle all round the place but still find floor with face for a while .
Trust me there's no joy in scratching or dinting you first car , its a bit easier to stomach if shes an old cheap preloved car with pre existing war wounds .

This bit isn't aimed at you personally but the things I see red P platers doing nowadays defies belief . I'd rather see them driving cars that were underpowered under braked and handled terribly , the reason being that a healthy lack of confidence in the mechanical horse is a good thing and teaches the novice driver theirs and the machines limitations .
I think more modern cars give new drivers a false sense of security and that sometimes makes them push harder trying to find the limits . If the bar isn't set very high the "over achievers" usually scare themselves or have the odd connection at lower speeds - walk away type impacts .

A carbed or MPFI NA L Series may not be a bad first choice , steep maint learning curve is a good thing too .
Cheap to get into and tonnes of cheap spares about the place .

A .

thats what i was sort of getting at...
i payed 600 for my l seires cause i like the car
but you might like a more modern car hence the RX

Being under 25 is gonna make you're insurance premiums real high. Im 24 with a clean driving record and i pay $1100 a year for my $11000 Outback. When i was 17, they wanted $1200 to insure my $4000 L series. Seeing it was less than 5 grand, i chose to 3rd party insure it only. If you were to insure a $15000 car (which id suggest you do), it would cost you a fortune.

For a first car, id suggest a Gen1 liberty. They can be had for less than $5K and are very reliable and easy to work on.

Toyota corrola VVTI

I have one for work , manual , 620ks out of a tank of fuel city running

shuns seagull>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

lol sorry...
no offence jjust thinks its funny hes trying to turn somone away from subarus here

I'm on my red P's in NSW, and fortunately drive a nice Liberty Gen 3 RX Wagon 2000, which is a great car.

However, i personally do not have to pay the insurance, which is currently comprehensive, but we are reconsidering to 3rd party ( if I hit a Ferrari i wont have to foot the bill, but i'm not covered if i total my car)

The RX is a good car, with enough go in the high revs. Plenty of gadgets such as cruise control, climate control, ABS... It is great on space, i can even put a single mattress in the back for a comfy sleep. AWD makes for great handling, but the turning circle is not great.

The downside is the 2.5l engine can be a little thirsty, especially if you are keeping the revs high, but this can be counteracted by driving behavior.

To date i've had my P's for 4 months, driving around 400-600+ km per week. I haven't had any serious incidents, apart from a scratched bumper, which was a result of my impatience (admittedly I made a poor decision) and someone reverse parking failing to check their blind spot/mirrors. It caused a few scratches on the front bumper, which was disappointing for my pride and joy. Which does back up the argument of not overspending on your first car, however it depends on what you are personally using the car for.

If I hadn't wanted the liberty wagon space, i was keen for a 2003ish Impreza RS 2.5, which would be great fun for a N/A, i would recon. In saying that, I think it would be a nice car, but maybe a little thirsty, but reconsider your budget (if you can XD) and maybe buy something a bit cheaper for your first car.

Good luck!

I had a 92 Gen1 Liberty GX AWD as my first car and i loved it. After selling it i bought a 2001 VU SS, then had a Brumby, and now at 25 i have gone back to 92 Gen1 RS turbo. The Gen1s are such brilliant cars, if you go for the GX AWD you basically get electric everything as well as cruise control, and they are'nt complete slugs either with the 2.2. As a few of the guys have said above, going for an expensive, later model car may have consequences financially(unless you're loaded).

Hope this helps and good luck with your car search

Brett