[Lookin4SVX]

Hello everyone, I am a new member here. I joined because I was in search of an SVX. Let me give you some background on me.

I totaled my 2001RS coupe in a snowstorm in Feb of this year. Insurance cut me a check for $7800, so I began looking for another 2000-2001 2 door RS 5speed. I found this to be an impossible goal. They were either too expensive, or in too bad of shape. Well I knew I was sticking with a Subaru, after driving the impreza for the last 9 years, I could not go back to fwd. I went and looked and priced some new impreza's and legacys. I liked the legacy alot but the car payment and insurance would have been tough if work doesn't stay steady, so I am unwilling to take on that risk. I also really do prefer a 2 door car, so the search for a coupe continued. Guys over on NASIOC asked me if I looked at an SVX yet. I did want an SVX when I bought the RS, but they were to expensive then. So I began to do some research. Now that they are so cheap, I decided I was going to buy one. I ended up buying an 92 SVX on 3/08/10, from a person on here.

I was directed to here from NASIOC site where I was a member. NASIOC had been the greatest resource for my car for the last 9 years, it is a great Subaru website, but it is fail when it comes to SVX. I spent about a week, a good 30 hours, reading these forums before I joined. After I joined I still did not post anything in fear of the "use search" nazi's I seen in so many threads. I decided that PM would be the best route. Right now I have 107 Private Messages, and this is only my 30th post. I have found a lot of useful info on here, but I find getting to it is not easy. I agree with the guy that said you need to redo the Technical Q&A subforum and the How To's. When I go to the "How To" subforum, I see 5 "how to's", and I have my settings to show me everything "from the beginning". This forum has helped me to understand the problems I can expect to run into with this car. It even provides some good answers on how to repair or replace things that go wrong. It just needs to be but together in a more usable way. Since I was without a car, I was not working so much, so I had time to go into the technical forums and just read every post from the beginning to current. After reading basically everything on this forums technical subforum, I was left with this feeling of uncertainty. It seems a lot of things are argued about. Sometimes there is a general consensus on a fix, and other times it seems like a crap shoot. There should be a sticky for known fixes with writeups. For example, I have that intermittent wont start when warm issue. I think I have gone through every wont start thread on this board and I still don't know if I should just bosch mod my ignition, or pay to replace the ignition switch or ignition inhibitor switch. I don't want to just start replacing switches and relays till it works, but it seems this is the normal method for solving this issue? Moving on.. I do feel a lot of the members here are generally nice and helpful people. When I do post it is to try and ask a question that I cannot find the answer on my own. All the people that have responded to my posts have been very helpful, and I do appreciate their effort to help me get this SVX back to perfect running condition.
Over all I would say that the older threads seem to have more back and forth to them, more users where around back then it seems. There were more posts about non technical issues. The more resent posts seem to be from people like me, new to the SVX, needs work, mechanic has no clue on parts for it, so we come here. We mostly hang out in tech forum and parts for sale. So yes, even as a new member I see the changes happening here. It is true what you guys are saying about the new blood. There are/is going to be, many new owners as the older members sell off their cars. The car is now cheap, stupidly cheap, $1500-2000 running condition, cheap. These cars are going to get bought by teenagers choosing between an SVX and a used Chevy Cavalier or Toyota Corolla. That is their price range. It is only going to get worse from here.
I am not part of this group, I am 32. I bought mine with intentions of returning it back to its original glory, with some improvements over stock. I payed $2,500 for mine, she is going to need some work, but I knew that going into it from my research on here. I am going to have the valve cover gaskets, both front calipers, both ball joints, and both outer tie rod ends replaced. Parts are ordered from SubaruParts.com, they come in weds, took 14 days to process, and 5 more to ship. Which was no surprise to me, once again thanks to this forum. Its a slow leak, but I am going to fix it all now while I have the rest of the insurance money on the Impreza to pull from. So yes, I just dropped $1300 into my $2,500 car. Mechanic says everything else seems to be in really good shape. Interior is GREAT shape. Only issue inside is the driver's power seat sometimes doesn't want to slide backwards. Probably just a loose solder connection or some corrosion, I got to get in there and check it sometime. Transmission seems strong, shifts good, but I have always had a manual. This is my first automatic, lack of a 3rd pedal has caused me to break check a few people behind me as my left foot smashes the brake pedal to the floor by mistake when approaching yellow light. For this and other reasons (weight, millage, weight) I want a 5 speed. When this transmission goes, I hope "OT" is still around to do a 5 WRX speed swap. I expect my total for all repairs to be about double what I payed for the car. That is assuming I throw $3,000 paint job on my $2,500, 18year old car.
Everyone I know thinks I am crazy to be willing to throw money into this car. You guys on here understand, and that is why I like it here. At home I keep hearing "your never going to get that money back when you sell it". They don't understand, I have no intentions of ever selling it. I like it because its rare, and it is only going to become more rare as teenagers drive them into the ground and they end up in junkyards as parts cars. I love this car, never before have I just got up at 3am feeling the need to just get out on an empty highway. They just don't understand, this car fits a perfect spot for me, it will be my ultimate highway cruiser. I work on the road, mostly highway driving between locations, I put 210,000 on my 2001 RS in 9 years, and she ran perfect, with a slow oil leak.
This board is great resource to us new to the SVX. Their is a lot of knowledge in this board, and the members seem more than willing to share it. Members here genuinely love their cars. I guess you would have to love these cars to stay an owner as repair cost and gasoline prices rise. I really like the SVX love on this board, you guys go out of your way to try and keep them from the scrapyard. I understand now how you can want to have more than one. I already have felt the need to try and rescue another one, but I have to get this one fixed first. I had asked to change my username awhile back, but I have decided to keep it. I think I will always be lookin4SVX.

Well their you have it, a new members view of things.