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Comments
Can't afford the WRX...I don't race and no one would bother with me anyway. I'm pretty much settled on the OBS.
-Caroline
sorry guys... ignore the post from the CEL/tire size guy (picosanchez)... it was one of my buddy's trying to scare me because this is what we're expecting the dealer to say
i'm sure they'll point to the one change i made just to say i should've stayed with OEM stuff
my CEL went out yesterday and i'm going to get the reading on the weekend from my dealer... there is tonnes of info on check engine lights on i-club - hope they nail this problem soon
The Outback Sport has everything I need in a small but useful car. But MAN!!!...on a silver OBS the fabric was a light colored woven color and it was UGLY! I always thought the two tone treatment as kind of gaudy but the seat fabric takes the cake. For that reason alone I'd skip the OBS and get a TS wagon.
The only problem with the RS is that it will be mistaken for the WRX, people left and right will probably try to race you. Otherwise it's good value if you just want a compact AWD sedan.
The carpeting, headliner, and sun visor are cheap-cheap, but that's about it.
I thought it had a nice, quiet ride, a smoother shifter, and a more upscale feel to it. I kind of wished it were quicker, but then again I'm the kind of buyer that would get a WRX all the way.
-juice
Bob
I didn't mind the interior fabric of the WRX, but I am certain that velour like material they used for the trim will be an infernal lint collector. I would have opted for leather, but it's simply not offered. The salesman muttered something about this fabric working better with the side impact air bags (?). Anyone know more than this?
SPT had leather in its catalog for the 2001 and earlier Impreza, so it's just a matter of time.
Of course there is always the aftermarket.
-juice
But what about options on Canadian cars? I asked my dealer and he said he didn't know if we could get all the stuff like stereo upgrades, air filtration and armrest extension to name a few. Does anyone know? Perhaps he is just misinformed? The brochure makes no mention of options.
Also, how does rain and snow getting into the hood scoop affect the intercooler etc?
We didn't talked price since I have yet to drive the car. Unfortunately, we only have one dealership here, and the next nearest is over 8 hours away, so I doubt I will get it for much less than MSRP.
"It's just a car, it's not my manhood".
"One mans trash, is another mans treasure".
I looked at the invoice and the shifter plus installation is $332, hope it is worth it. The car came into the states with no toys on it, and all the options that I am getting are being installed by the dealer, so they are charging labor too! sounds like a snow-job, but it is not too much. The shifter must be back-ordered, I won't be able to get it for about 4 weeks!
Meanwhile, the RS interior isnt two toned, its all black, and its got the same cloth as the WRX exept its black instead of blue (which actually looks better IMO). The rear drums are a big issue for me, along with the lack of leather wraped steering wheel, ugly wheels on the OBS, the extra-un-needed ground clearance (higher center of gravity), the UGLY 2-tone color (IMO), and other small things like the cool sedan fender flares...
Hey, its a great car, the seats are fine and cozy, but the RS is just sooo much more cozy and better too me for just so little more money. The OBS anyway is designed for an older, different crowd, who wants function more than fun...
If the TS was the same as the RS in terms of interior, brakes, suspension, etc., I would buy that in a second! But, since its not, same with the OBS, its worth the money for the RS.
And the RS is not a poser, its what got the WRX here. And list another sedan under $20k thats not FWD :P
What, exactly, does the 1000 mile break-in period accomplish?
DjB
Keeping my Passat's clothi interior clean is an ongoing nightmare. No exageration.
Frankly, I'd take a good "leatherette" (vinyl) over cloth any day of the week. Good leatherette is a very popular option in European cars. BMW, Audi and MB all offer it here in the US as well.
The objective of the breakin period is to allow the valves, piston rings, etc. etc. .. time to "seat". If this isn't done, the engine will wear prematurely.
- hutch
I have no argument that leather looks and feels luxurious..
but come on, WRX is not intended to be a luxury car..the cloth in the WRX is specially designed so that it has a lot of butt-grip when we're tight cornering..
for those who are still whinning...go buy an audi or BMW...even if you can change the cloth to leather in WRX, you will later add more complains about the interior overall quality...
trust me..there will be more excuses for luxury oriented people..
Leather is cool to the touch when it is 90? Is that when it is parked in the shade? I live in an area where summer highs get into the low 100's and the winter lows are in the teens. Leather may feel luxurious and be easy to clean, but during the summer, you don't want to plop down in the driver seat with a pair of shorts on unless you want to jump back up and dance for a couple minutes . . . and the leather seats get down right cold and slippery in the dead of winter. Now, if the leather was a nice suede with a little grip to it, then that would be nice . . . but you lose the cleanability when you use the suede.
Cloth in the WRX is specially designed? By whom? Jacklyn Smith's K-mart collection?
BTW, you can pay to have an aftermarket person do the leather but it's gonna look tawdry, as 99% of aftermarket add-ons do. Leather in particular always looks cheap when done aftermarket.
BTW, yeah I got other complaints about the WRX interior, but the leather is the chief one. The tacky center console plastic, the horribly designed seats, the dash layout. I could go on and on, but if it had leather I could put up with the rest of the car's poor interior attributes.
Regardless, when it's all said and done, cloth to me is low rent, ugly, hot and stain susceptible (can't keep the fairer sex from doing stupid things like bringing coffee into the car).
BTW, around my area it rarely, if ever, breaks 90 and on rare occasions it slips below 40 degrees in the dead of night.
- It's ANYTHING but cool in the summer.
- I slid around in so much when performance driving that I had bruises from banging my legs around.
- Thanks to the fact that it's so darn hot, I sweat like crazy in the car, and then it has the unfortunate side effect of "retaining" odours.
- In the winter, leather tends to be icy cold.
I can't believe that your experience with leather is so completely contrary to mine. Somebody must be wrong here.... even other leather lovers will concede to some of my above points.
I'm sorry, but I find it completely ridiculous so much ink can been shed on "leather" Gimme a break!
If you happen to fit the leather seat snugly, then yes, you won't slide around. Although I never claimed that the fabric was designed to be grippy... Plant your butt in the WRX seat and you will see that the fabric is especially grippy.
The people who don't appreciate the WRX as it is should just go and buy their BMW and Audi's. Meanwhile, I'm still trying to find somebody who will sell below list here in the snowbelt.
People tend to love the WRX for its seat and driver position. Ronin, you're a bit weird. I think we all know you won't buy a WRX. Too bad, you'll be missing out on one of the best driving experiences and best performance values around (if that sort of thing matters to you). I think you should give it up.....your interior priorities and opinion of the interior fall on deaf ears since many people are drooling over the performance and driving aspects of the car (and the looks are far secondary)
Frank
I absolutely agree with warpdrive. For those who don't like it, go buy yourself a German clone and stop your complaining. I've never seen people waste so much time trashing something as I have seen them spend on the WRX. If you don't like it, fine. But I have to wonder why you feel you need to sit here and spend all your time saying how much you don't like it. Go buy your Audi and be happy with yourself.
Basically, if everyone loved the Rex, everyone would buy one (or at least try to). I, for one, am glad I don't like a vehicle that satisfies all tastes, because then I'd just be boring.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
BTW, I don't live in a climate that gets hot or cold. I live near the beach in So. Cal. That's why leather has zero drawbacks for my lifestyle.
Who is Subaru trying to kid?
Does anyone at Subaru have ANY experience or training at MARKETING? For $34,995, I can buy half a dozen far superior cars....for example the PASSAT turbo, etc. If Subaru is not careful, they
will be the next victims of the next DOW stock market plunge.
Subaru.....W-A-K-E U-P !!!! Make your prices
competitive, or go B-A-N-K-R-U-P-T.
PICENO
The main point I'm trying to make is that the WRX is a DRIVERS car. Subaru doesnt even have close to the "status" symbol of Audi - however I can care less about status. I want a lean mean driving machine. When I see other WRX's on the road I expect those people to be DRIVERS, not people who think a vehicles sole purpose is to get from point A to B in the most luxurious way possible.
Leather or 0-60 in 5.6 seconds? I'll take the HP thank you.
IMO, the WRX is not the type of car you lease. It begs for customization, mods, etc., and you can't do that stuff if you don't own it. Residuals are just guesses at this point - they have no idea what actual resale will be like.
My take on leather? I prefer cloth. Yes, leather is easier to clean and does not stain, but it's hot in the summer, cold in the winter, and yes, slippery.
I have a Miata with leather and would gladly trade for cloth seats. On sunny days my back gets sweaty, because they are not perforated. Yuck. On cold days, the seats are ice-cold, since they are not heated.
My Forester has cloth and I have no complaints (or stains, for that matter).
Now, if you prefer leather, fine, just try to get perforated ones with heated seats.
-juice
here
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
-juice
Also, you didn't account for the fact that we get two pricey options standard that the US guys don't get :
Free rear spoiler, something like a $400 USD option.
and a cold weather package (heated seats/mirrors) which US guys CAN'T get.
I disagree that a turbo Passat is nicer. It's nicer in the sense, "I want a nice cushy family car" but add AWD to an Audi (the WRX's closes competition in sportiness) and you're easily also near the 40K mark for a much slower car. Passat is still FWD unless you buy the $40K 4-Motion. Passat and WRX have two completely different purposes. One's an upscale family sedan and the WRX is a practical sports car. The WRX is still a bargain considering its sporting intentions. Name any under $50K Cdn sedan that will get you 5.7 seconds 0-60? If you're not impressed by the performance of the WRX, then there are nicer cars for *you* including the Legacy which is the Passat's direct competition.
If the Subaru was priced too high, why are they so hard to get right now in Ontario? Everybody's charging full price for one.
Stephen
Check it out and let us know what you think. Just follow the link in the Additional Resources bos on the left sidebar of this page.
Pat
Host
Sedans and Women's Auto Center Message Boards
Sorry, had to throw out some sarcasm
Yup with our Canadian Pesos our Impreza is $35K plus 15% tax in Ontario. OUCH!
I just clicked that link and it works for me.
Anybody else having problems?
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
-juice
Thanks bowenx for your response on the Short-thow.