US Subie relocating to Dublin.....!?!?

S

STI Ltd Type US

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Greetings from San Francisco Bay Area!!!

There is a very high likelihood that my wife and I will be relocating to Dublin in early 2008. That being said, I have a 2007 STI Limited that I'm quite attached to, so I'd like to bring it with me to Ireland. I've owned this amazing car a bit over 12 months, but I've only driven 5000 miles due to extensive business travel.

Last month we spent 3 weeks on holiday in the UK, mostly London and Scotland, and I saw quite a few lefties on the road...so I know it's do-able. I'm also aware that I need to install the side repeaters, which isn't a problem, I can do that here. The only mods to my car are tinted windows, upgraded brake pads and a stainless APS 3" turbo back exhaust with a Cobb Access Port and custom pro-tuning. The car runs well and makes good power (no detonation, 10.8:1 AFR) and is set up to run on crappy 91 octane California gas. Can I assume that your petrol is better than the junk they sell here in the Republic of Kalifornia?

Other than than the side repeaters, what else would I need to do to import my STI into Ireland? Does Ireland have emissions testing and is my exhaust legal? I've kept my complete stock exhaust and it would only take a few hours to change it back if necessary.

So, what do you guys think? I'm going to have more questions and I thank you all in advance for your time!

Cheers,
:guinness:

SeanL
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Firstly, why anybody would want to move to Ireland is beyond me. Secondly, nice car.

Now, you wont need side repeaters as long as the front ones can be seen flashing when viewed from the side.

Ireland does have emissions testing and stupid cops who dont like loud exhausts or tinted windows so you will have to consider that.

Also, Ireland being the Rip Off country that it is, Insurance is no different. You have to think about who will insure you in Ireland. The Insurance business in Ireland is a joke and you will find it difficult to get cover. You will also have to declare the modifications which will add 00000's to the premium.

We have mostly 95octane gas so you will need a remap of the ECU.

As for changing over the plates...you say you have owned the car for more than 12 months in the States which means if/when you bring it over to Ireland you will not have to pay VRT to get a Licence plate.

I hope that helps somewhat, Im sure others can add to that.
 
welcome to the forum mate! have a good stay, and lovely motor!
 
welcome along..we will soon have 99.2 octane fuel available at the same price as regular so a remap should see you making good extra power :thumbsup:
 
welcome along. Just wait until you get that car on some irish back roads, you will be doing 5,000 miles per month! :D
 
I think your rear indicators are red (am I right?) OUrs are amber over here, so the rear light clusters might need to be replaced.

Don't worry too much about the noise and emmissions, they are not that strict. Initially you'll get a warning, so don't panic about it really.

I agree with above though, why move from California to rip off Ireland? Fancy doing car and gaff swap?
 
just one more thing, i dont know about the states but over here we put salt on our roads in winter so ya might consider getting it undersealed, although it doesnt cost much

it was the shot of the exhaust that made me think of it, god thats a clean car

:thumbsup:
 
Thanks for all the replies!

To answer some of the questions in no particular order:

-Yes, the rear indicators are amber, I just checked.  The brake lights are red, but here in the states most turn signal indicators are amber, so I should be OK there.

-Regarding the side repeaters, The '07s front indicators *are* visible when viewed from the side, so perhaps I don't need to install any additional lighting?  If I'm going to install side repeaters, I'd rather do it here in Cally than have to scramble once I arrived.  the JDM side indicator kit isn't very expensive here.

-The 3" APS exhaust isn't much louder than stock at idle and part throttle, and it has a high flow catalytic converter, so it's environmentally friendly (I did say I'm in California). It's also not all that visually different than stock either, not compared to some of those loud racy exhausts I've seen on other Subies.

-Are lightly tinted windows (35% light penetration) considered illegal?

-Just how diffiicult will it be to buy insurance?  Here in the States I pay around $1200 USD per year for full coverage on the Subie.  Should I expect that number to double in Ireland?

-Regarding your fuel, does anyone know if the US based octane ratings are calculated the same way as Ireland?  The highest grade gas in CA is 91 @ $3.39/gallon.   Other states have higher quality 93 octane.  However, I'm able to buy 100 octane unleaded at a specialty station near my house for only $2.50 more per gallon.  My tuner can easily modify my existing map and scale it up or down a bit to accomodate different fuel quality, and the Cobb Access Port allows me to upload the new map either real time or I can flash it as the base map.

-I don't like the sound of that road salt, reminds me of when I lived in New Hampshire.   During winters in New England the really nice cars are kept garaged and off the road.  I had a 4wd SUV and so my rwd Mustang 5.0 never saw snow or salted roads.   The Subie won't be my only car in Ireland either, and I have no plans to drive it on salted roads.  Are the roads salted from December to March? 

-For those who want to know why I'd move from Northern California to Ireland.....it's all about the opportunity.  The opportunity to work Europe (I am in IT Sales), the opportunity to live in another culture where everything's not McSupersized, and off course the opportunity to drive on Irish backroads, not to mention exploring the UK and the Continent.   

So, bringing my STI over with me still seems feasible, I don't see any show stoppers yet....

Thanks!
 
Hows it going mate, lovely machine :thumbsup:

Regarding the salted roads, in the ROI they do put salt on them, not where I live in dublin though, some of the county councils use "grit" ( very fine sand ) but most of them use salt.

There is however alot of garages that have under car washes, alot of people use them at the end of the colder season to wash away the salt..

One things for sure, your car won;t be any way near as clean underneath as it is in the picture above if you bring it to Europe!
 
Welcome and enjoy

Great looking car.Should frame 2nd pic and put on mantelpiece.Wont look like that for too long.

They only occasionaly salt/grit rode's so good wash should be ok

:smokin:
 
Welcome to the club. You must be insane if you want to move to ireland but if you do we will welcome you like only the irish can. Nice car too :subaru: :subaru:
 
I can't believe all this negative crap about not moving here. OK the cost of living is way too high and the government officials are bent (he is from the states, so he will be used to that) but I think Ireland is a fantastic country to live in. We have a beautiful countryside, the roads are getting better, we have the ISDC, and we brew Guinness here, what more could he want. He should be encouraged to bring all those American $$$$$$$ with him so that he can join the club :D
 
Welcome along man Lovely motor,as regards Insurance it's pot luck when you ring them there a shower of cowboys........Don't get any of us started on it or it'll ruin your thread :D :thumbsup: :subaru:
 
welcome along :thumbsup:

moving here isn't so bad :) where else on the 'old continent' I'd be able to drive "without" driving licence ??? LOL

very little salt on Irish roads.
Windows tint is still questionable and is in most cases up to cops.
Insurance is expensive. Depends on your age, job, location, driving experience, car spec. Check online quotes to find out what you can expect.

lovely machine you have there :subaru:
 
Welcome type us!! to Ireland and the club :thumbsup:
Never mind all the "rip off" talk! Ireland is a great spot to live.
Regarding cost of living, Yes things are more expensive but we get paid more than most! It's all swings and roundabouts!
Insurance wise! If your car was jdm or irish you would expect to pay more or less the same I dont know about US spec(Wrong hand drive)
About the wrong hand drive part! I would seriously consider selling your pride and joy over there (where it's worth something) because you would have no resale value here!!! And you could buy a similar RHD scoobie over here or import one from japan to arrive as you do! and then You can have some fun trying to repicate your US spec car!
I'm saying this because I really think It would be very hard to enjoy a nice blast along your new irish backroads when It's very difficult and to safely overtake All the slow cars (evos) :D :D
Dan
 
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