|
I also had a 2005 STi that was pretty heavily modified and made 440whp/450wtq. That car was a blast to drive and I can say that I still regret selling it to this day. Would I buy it again if I had the chance now? Probably not... but I wish I would have kept it for a few more years. I had the best experience with that car because it was by far the most reliable modified car I've ever had, and I've had a few. I bought it new and put nearly 100k miles on it and honestly never had anything major break even with about half of those miles at the higher power level with constant abuse.
The M3 is a huge step up. The fit and finish of the car is in a different league to the STi and it's just a different car in terms of power delivery. The STi garnered a different type of attention than the M3 does. It was more of a teenage dude magnet which is not ideal... not for me anyways. My M3 gets a lot more respectful attention from the few that know what it is. Don't expect to be breaking records or snapping necks in the M3 but what I was after when I bought mine was the high revving, high piston speed V8 and boy does this car deliver on that front. I feel as though it's a much more mature car even though there are plenty of immature M3 drivers.
Overall I would make the choice to move from a STi to the M3 (and a few cars between: supercharged S2000, Z4M, and more) again because I am at a different stage of my life and it's a little more fitting for me now. The STi sure gave me a ton of smiles when I was younger though. What a great car.
Best of luck to you in whatever you decide.
|