I'm not big engine guru here but for what is's worth, alot of people are saying that the new 2.5L from nissan is not the best engine for tuning. Actually, they said that the exhuast system is very restrictive and alot of HP can be gained there but I digress. Compared to the SR20 engines, it's not as bullet proof in higher HP applications. The SR20 was good for 400+ HP without having to take the engine apart. I read something about the new 2.5 having thinner cylinder walls and **** like that. It was in Sport Compact car about a year ago.

I love WRX's. I refuse to go and test drive one becuase I know I'll do something stupid like trade in my Protege for one! Seriously, I think for anyone with a new(er) car that wants more power should wait before thay trade in a 1-2 year old car. You loose so much money without really getting your money's worth out of the car. In the next year or so you will have Evo VII, RX-8, WRX STi possibly, Turbo MP3 possibly, Neon SRT possibly, Nissan 350Z, 2 series BMW possible, Audi A2 or A3 possibly, RSX Type R possibly and probably a ton of other cars we don't know about. I know that every year there will be something else better in the future comming out but the near future holds alot of performance cars that we did not have access to. It seems performance cars are making a comeback! I hope the SUV dies!!!

 

The Neon SRT is a definite. It's supposed to be on showroom floors by the end of the year. I'm glad some people are talking about it outside the Neon boards. Strike a little fear in the competition ;-).

 

Yup, saw it at the Chicago Auto Show yesterday. I must say it look pretty damn nice. More aggressive front and back, better seats, swapped out that damn boat steering wheel for the wheel from the eclipse/stratus/sebring. They didn't have ANY info on it though- but from what I've read in mags, it'll be out later this year w/215hp and a price substantially less than a WRX (under $20k supposedly).

-Hubb

 

Yep. The hp figures are floating anywhere between 205 and 220, and the sticker is $19,995.

 

The Neon SRT will have the power no doubt about it. I heard 0-60 times of 5.9 seconds which sounds a little optomistic. Even if it's around 6.5, that's damn fast. I think the neons short comming will be its lack of a LSD. Can you imagine the torque steer and tire spin on a car with this much power? You can forget about powering out of corners. My protege makes a wopping 122HP and I understeer like crazy comming around corners when I'm on the gas. Granted, I'm not a race car driver but still.

I guess if it sells for under 20K USD, you could probably easily cough up the extra 1000 bucks for an aftermarket unit.

 

As much as I like MP5 I would swap for a WRX

 

If I could have bought a WRX wagon for $17.5k like my P5 I would have done it.

For the price, I just don't think you can beat the total package that is the P5.