TL's new Daily Driver *DUW*

[Lincolnmania]

i feel old ugha.......the spare was easy to get at

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bgd73/248744102/

[torquelover]

How did the tire deal with the heat?

88Vic, it's true the STi is now only a 5-door. If I could swing the $38k starting price right now, there's not a chance I would go for it. They're going to loose a lot of sales with that one, which is already apparent seeing 4 outside, and 1 inside, the dealer for sale. They used to be hard to find.

[88Vic]

People who would normally buy an STI are gonna look for used models or get an Evo.

[Lincolnmania]

used to work on a bunch of old scoobydoos.........all the spares looked perfect

[Laura]

Its a hatchback with a rounded back end. Yours looks much better.

[1987cp]

Hey, hatchbacks FTW!!111!!!

[Laura]

Yeah I know lol but not this one

[MrMarquis]

My girlfriend has a Subaru in their yard that has the spare under the hood. I ain't gotta clue what model it is, but I'd drive it. It's been sitting there for three years and needs work.

I was lookin' at the new Subarus...But decided on something different...Should be here in a couple more weeks.

[torquelover]

Yeah I know lol but not this one

This is true. Kinda like a modern day 4 door Pacer. I like the utility, but draw the line at some point.



It looks better in WRX or STi form. Subaru should have lengthened the rear, but cropped it instead. A true Impreza Wagon with a formal roof line would have been sweet.

I was lookin' at the new Subarus...But decided on something different...Should be here in a couple more weeks.

Oh, the suspense! Post it up when it comes home.

[1987cp]

RICE!!!!!!

[torquelover]

[1987cp]

[torquelover]

Update after 600 miles:

The thing is more efficient than I thought it would be. Having AWD that is always locked in and also having one of the only engines in it's class that's bigger than a large soda bottle, the EPA rates it as 20/27. I found that with my normal driving style, which is heavy throttle at all times unless braking, I am averaging 23 MPG in my daily stop-and-go commute.

If I can somehow stand to do it for more than a day or two, shifting at 1800-2000 RPM with a fairly heavy throttle gets me around 29-31 MPG. It's pretty pokey shifting so early, but the 2.5 liter H4 doesn't seem to have a problem lugging around.

Since it only has 170 HP/TQ, with always-engaged AWD, breaking the tires loose is not an option. Even in the rain, I can take sharp 90* corners in town at WOT without any drama whatsoever. No sliding, understeer, or oversteer. It just goes. I have experimented with launching the car. Slipping the clutch a tad gets the car off the line pretty well. I accidentally did a high RPM clutch drop which produced a brief yowl from the tires, and then 1st gear was done before I cleared the intersection. Pretty brutal, so I don't ever plan to do this again, since clutch and drive shaft failures are common for this platform after repeated redline launches.

Did some light off-roading. There was a service road that was undeveloped, and consisted of deep mud and ruts. Taking this route would save me quite a bit of time, so I went for it. It made it through, with pretty much zero drama. I did spike the throttle once, which sent a hunk of mud into an open rear window and into my Daughters mouth. She was having a blast up until that very moment. If I ever do it again, the windows will be up, LOL. I don't think I'll do it again, though, after seeing all the mud stuck to, and flying off of, the car. I think it took almost $10 in quarters at a self-serve car wash to remove 98% of the debris. If you Google "Impreza + mud" you'll see a bunch of Subie drivers in incredibly ridiculous terrain getting stuck .

The car has been pretty good so far. Some likes:

Better than expected economy and power.
Smooth ride and lots of wheel travel.
Light and extremely accurate steering.
Interesting sounds from the engine/trans.
Somewhat uncommon out here.
MP3 and WMA capability.
Awesome headlight output; able to see clearly at night in the rain.
Easy to get the booster seats and kids in.
Super rigid structure; feels bank vault-like.
Insanely tight turning radius.
Short gearing.
No bump steer.
Crazy traction.
Surprisingly fun to drive.

Some dislikes:

Crazy traction.
Short gearing.
The "Drive by Wire" throttle.
Projector headlight's cut-off too low.
Ivory interior color. (WTF were they thinking?)
Ricer aphrodisiac at stoplights.
Windshield creaks on colder days.
Super-light steering and clutch.
Huge key fob and keyless entry.
Stereo is a little muddy.
The shift action is too notchy and vague; doesn't like to be rushed.
Everyone asks "Is that your Focus?".

That's all for now. No vids yet, which is fine since I don't think anyone would be interested in them. So far, I like the car, especially considering the price.