Wrecked Donar Car? Also, what are the changes made to use differnt years

[nikbrewer]

I am starting to save for my 818s. I am just looking around the internet, and it seems i can find several wrecked wrx's or imprezas in salvage auctions for reasonable prices. Is there a reason i could not use a wrecked car as a donar car? Most of these are running and driving, just some front or rear body damage.

Also, since i will probally order my kit before i have a donar, what are the major changes from 02-05 and 06-07? I can understand the turbo, as its probally differnt exhaust. I just dont want to order one kit, find a donar, and have them not match up

[JAubin]

Many people (myself included) use a wrecked donor. You can read up and maybe decide which year donor makes the most sense for you. You don't really need to have that info to get a spot in line. More info on model years, etc. can be found here: http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/content.php?517-The-Basics-Read-this-if-you-re-new-to-the-818-(AKA-FAQ)

[JAubin]

That said, the "Basics" thread now that it's a blog post, the links aren't working correctly for me... This is very helpful for comparing model years.
http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showthread.php?8209-Donor-Parts-Guide

[wleehendrick]

I am starting to save for my 818s.

Welcome!


Is there a reason i could not use a wrecked car as a donar car?

That's what most of us do; it's a shame to gut a driveable WRX. Take a look at some of the threads here on prepping donors to see what's involved with a front-end collision (likely damage to required parts), high mileage (engine rebuild) or snow belt (rust/corrosion) donor, or consider a donor pallet. My donor was a low-mileage, rear-ended CA car, so everything needed for the 818 was fine, just regular maintenance work and a little degreaser to clean things up.


Also, since i will probally order my kit before i have a donar, what are the major changes from 02-05 and 06-07? I can understand the turbo, as its probally differnt exhaust. I just dont want to order one kit, find a donar, and have them not match up

That's been covered before, take a look here for a good explanation:

http://818donors.com/general/2002-2005-wrx-vs-the-2006-2007-wrx/

Since the wait list is now over a year long, my recommendation is to put your deposit down now. I'm sure you can change the order to account for the donor you find. FYI, my delivery is in October (I put my deposit in on Day 1), but I've yet to be contacted to finalize my configuration.

[Mechie3]

The other thread has more info, but to just cover one item you touched on.

The turbos are the same. Ok, they're very slightly different due to a jog in the compressor housing, but they're both the same TD04 turbo. The motor is what was different (2.0 to 2.5). There are far more differences though, so check out the links above. Just didn't want that one misconception to get carried on.

[Xusia]

In addition to what has already been stated (all good info), I would not wait until delivery of your kit to get your donor. That is, order your kit NOW, then immediatley start shopping for a donor. You'll have about a year, so time is on your side. About a month before your kit is ready, FFR will need to know which donor you have so you'll need to either have one by then, or commit yourself to a particular subset of donor variations.

[nikbrewer]

thanks for the advice. I will try to get a deposit on a kit in the next month, then i can start looking for a donar. I really need to sell my 1979 mini project, but that should not be too hard

[wleehendrick]

I really need to sell my 1979 mini project, but that should not be too hard

Ohh... an original Mini! My wife would be all over that, but we don't need another car!

[nikbrewer]

Ohh... an original Mini! My wife would be all over that, but we don't need another car!

but its small, hardly takes up any space