Subaru Impreza WRX Wagon

esqknight

I'm waiting for my WRX Silver Sedan (auto) to come in, now with the February allocation. It was supposed to have been in this month, but my understanding is that my car missed the boat
Ira was going to try to find one for me in a dealer swap, but it seems like my particular combo is in scant supply (he found three that came in so far, but all as sold units). I guess I'll just have to wait (not so) patiently.

Eric

hypov

That's mike's (Paisan) buddy.
Good guy... patient, you're in good hands. :-)

-Dave

bluesubie

esqknight - I test drove a silver auto sedan in Flemington about 3 weeks ago. It might have been sold though. I don't know if I would actually get it though since it had 40 miles on it at the time and may have been test driven hard.

If you're curious about other dealer's supply, call 1800Subaru3 and ask them to do a search for you. Maybe their search could be broader than Ira's.

-Dennis

paisan

Cool, I'd be curious to have a little drag with you sometime after you break it in. Just to compare the AT WRX v. AT XT6, also I'm gonna bug you to go to auto-x too!

-mike

cinosweive

I haven't quite fully evaluated the fuel gage yet. Like most cars the tank appears to be about 1/3 full at the 1/2 mark. In mine, the fuel light comes on with about 2 to 3 gallons left in the tank. 6 gallons seems excessive - maybe you can take it to the dealer for an adjustment?

1subydown1togo

Shalom;
My fillups usually take 12 gallons, and that is without the light going on...I would have it checked out at the dealer.

hunter001

Whenever I see some person in an SUV weaving all over the road, with a number of near-misses happening, I marvel how none of these near misses are going to be coming up in "statistics", especially since every single one of those "near misses" could have resulted in a "hit" thus could have potentially bolstered statistics. Also, even after an accident happens, would people who are injured, come up in statistics or would only the dead have the honor to make it into a "statistic" ? Also, after the accident, would the perpetrator admit to have been twiddling with the radio/yakking away on the cellphone (thus coming up as a cellphone statistic) ? So in such cases, where the perpetrator does not admit to being on the cellphone (as I believe almost all cases would be), would he escape being categorised under the "cellphone caused accident" statistic ?

My personal opinion is that many of these "statistics" are flawed and not worth paying too much attention to.

Later...AH

Karen_S

Don't forget tonight's chat!



KarenS
Host
Owner's Clubs

saintviper

Well, just got back from a week long road trip. Took my blue wagon from Manitowoc WI, (Near Green Bay) to L.A. and back in 7 days. Nearly 5000 miles in total.

After all those miles, all I can say is that I love this car. I spent 22 strait hours driving on the last stint. Today, by back and rear are not sore at all. In fact, they didn't get sore at all on any point of the trip. I wondered if the seats had enough lumbar support when I got the car, but I guess I have an answer now.

The car was a dream to drive in the mountains. Over the Vail pass at 10,000+ feet, I could accelerate up 6% grade hills at will. I was leaving cars with V6's and V8's behind in the dust. Never saw most of them on the way down either. Drove up to Mount Wilson when I was in LA. WRX wagon is great in the twisties too. Pulled up to a stoplight next to a new RSX. The ensuing race to the speed limit wasn't even close. I had over a car length on him. (Must have been a non-type S model). The relatively light clutch action was also nice when sitting in LA traffic on several occasions.

Gas milage was actually pretty good. On the way out, I had my mountain bike on the roof rack and averaged about 23mpg which was a little disappointing. On the way back, I took the rack and bike off and carried them in back (gotta love all that room in the wagon), and averaged 28mpg which allowed me to easily go 350 miles on a tank (thats more like it).

Only 1 real complaint about the car on the whole trip. The interior lighting is not very good. Many controls are not lit and neither are the coin tray on the right of the steering wheel, or the ash tray. (Makes it hard to dig change out for the tolls at night.) I also wasn't crazy about the map lights. Rather than just lighting a small area to read by, they light up the whole interior of the car. Nice for a dome light but usless as a map light. Oh well, minor problems. Overall, I can't imagine a car I would have rather had for a trip like this.

bluesubie

Welcome back and thanks for the trip report.

The new Impreza's are way more well lit than they used to be. My car doesn't have a cargo light, glove box light or map lights.

-Dennis

1subydown1togo

It would be a nice improvement if they lit up the window and door switches also...

saintviper

I also spent most of the first day driving through a snowstorm in Iowa and Nebraska. I probably saw at least 100 cars in the ditches along the way, and definately no less than 50 semi trailer trucks buried in the snow in the medians, (sometimes in groups of 3, and once in a while completely upside down.) The WRX had no trouble in these conditions, even on the stock RE92 skins. I took it easy and actually got passed by quite a few cars and trucks, but then again, I didn't end up in the ditch.

jimmyp1

Did you ever sleep? At an average of 60 mph, which is hard to do, that's a little under 12 hours of driving during every one of those seven days! You were in my old stomping grounds about 25 miles prior to Vail pass (exit 205 Silverthorne/Dillon). Even in my old Turbo Legacy w/ only 160 hp, I could leave any 230hp or less n/a car in the dust. Turbos really shine at those altitudes. Glad to hear the subie did well.

Jim

saintviper

I got out there in 2 days driving about 16 hours per day. I think I averaged closer to 75mph on the way out. The mountains just west of Denver slowed me down, (though driving through them was a blast, especially Glenwood Canyon). Once through them though, I could easily drive 90-100mph for extended periods of time in Western Colorado and Utah.

I used to say that I lived in the middle of nowhere because I moved to a small town in rural Wisconsin a few years ago, but now I really know where the middle of nowhere is. It's someplace in Utah.

Spent 3 days goofing around in LA, probably put 300 miles on just driving around town and in the hills.

I took the South route back going through Arizona, Texas, and Oklahoma. I took a little detour to see the Grand Canyon. Pretty spectacular, though I think Colarodo and Utah are right up there for impressive terrain. Spent a night in Albuquerque, then did a 23 hour stint to make it the rest of the way home.

Kind of nice way to see the country. The trip wasn't anywhere near as boring as I thought it would be. Having a nice car helped quite a bit I think. Kinda killed my aspirations for giving up computer programming to become a truck driver though.

paisan

I'm thinking of shooting out to SF before I go to Moab for the annual Isuzu off-road weekend. Contemplating the extra 1500 miles though.

-mike

saintviper

I did a little experiment on the way out and put the cap on an empty plastic Coke bottle at about 10,000 feet. Now that I'm back at home which is at about 500 feet, I pulled the empty bottle out. It's quite crushed. I haven't measured the volume yet but I bet it's at least half way crushed if not more.

That equates to how much power you lose at altitude unless you've got one of those snazzy turbos like the WRX does.

dsm6

is one of my favorite things. Don't spread the word, though - the traffic will just slow things down. Of course, if everyone were in a WRX, maybe traffic would speed things up?

jimmyp1

I mean when factoring in gas stops, restroom stops, meals (if not eaten in the car), sightseeing, slow-downs (like the storms you mentioned or the dreaded cone zones where you inevitably get stuck behind a semi doing 40 mph), etc. I'd be surprised if you managed over 600-650 miles for every 10 hours of travel time. Anyway, I'm just impressed with the headway you made.

For a N/A car, the numbers I've heard over the years are, in Denver (5280 feet msl) you've lost about 10-15% of your power. At Eisenhower tunnel, which you went through (11,111 feet msl), you've lost 25-33% of your power. So, take an M3, at what 333 hp in the Euro version? He's only got 222 hp at 11k+ feet. You're right in his league, for less than half price! And, throw in those snow storms you were talking about, he's a goner.

Jim

p0926

Jim- Back when I was younger, I once did 1000 miles in a 11 1/2 hour period! In that time I stopped exactly twice for a gas/food/restroom break with each stop only about 10 min. Like Saintviper, I was driving x-country out west in the winter so there was little traffic or construction to deal with.

-Frank P.

saintviper

Actually, I figure I averaged just about 65mph including stops. No construction on the way, but that storm in Nebraska did slow me up a bit. Not nearly as much as those people in the ditch though.

chaynes1

I was curious to know how maintenance-friendly my WRX is compared to the BMW I sold to buy it. Since the nearest dealer is way over the hill, I decided to change the oil myself at 3,429 miles. Was surprised to find an OEM oil filter here in "River City, Alabama (where Subies are scarce and Chevy trucks are plentiful)." Crawled under the little beast and saw the oil filter (Fuji baby blue) just behind the bumper on the right side of the engine, looking down at me. My old BMW filter wrench got it loose, though I had to cut the handle off about 2 " for clearance. The oil drain plug is on the left front of the engine, requiring very little effort to get at it. Well, a nice surprise....a 17 mm plug, just like the BMW. In a few minutes, I was good-to-go again with a fresh load of Castrol GTX. Could find no noticeable oil consumed in those 3,429 miles...still near the full mark on the dipstick (whew!). The underside construction seems about the same quality as my ex-BMW, maybe even a little better in the undercoating and suspension components. This might be the start of a great relationship! One problem...should I grind off the BMW logos on my new Subaru tools?

FWIW, when I got my new baby home last year, I found the transmission fluid level (5 sp) was down a full quart, so all you new WRX owners check behind the dealer 'lest they short you on make-ready.

narenji

Glad you like doing the maintenance... the subaru filter and drain plug are very easy compared to my other cars- 93 Mazda MX6 and the fiancee's 01 Protege ES. The only thing is that the filter drips oil when you remove it- so I've burnt my hands a little- next time I'm going to poke a hole in the filter before opening it. Have you looked into getting a fumoto valve to replace the drain plug? I might go that route myself. The valve replaces your drain plug and you just open the valve and the oil flows out. I've heard it works well.

chaynes1

Thanks for the tip on the oil drain valve. Where can I get one? Have used oil drain valves on some personal aircraft over the years (pricey!) but didn't think of using one on my autos. I keep a long insulated rubber glove around for gripping and removing hot oil filters. I also spun the filter until it was nearly off the stud, then brought it down "plumb" and slowly to the drain pan.

ltcolumbo

The only serious maintenance issue I see is the valve adjustment at 105,000 miles. It is not even on the maintenance schedule in my owners manual. Unless you do it yourself (special tools), YOU WILL NEVER KNOW IF IT WAS DONE! It's the kind of thing that a mechanic can get away with (flat rate?) and the customer will never know about it. NOT A GOOD THING!

locke2c

at 105k miles if you have the valve lash set, you'll certainly hear the difference in valvetrain noise if you have any idea what to listen for.

-Colin

ltcolumbo

.....unless they get tight from valve seat recession or valve face wear..... It's just such a time consuming process, I doubt each valve would be checked (and adjusted if needed) unless there was obviously some noise. And the noise might be a judgment call!! I know this because I used to work on Fiat DOHC engines in the '70s. I took the time to do it (rookie?) and the service manager wanted to know why it took so long for ME to do the service! And I didn't make as much money as the other guys (that didn't do it) because of my conscience! So, hope you get a conscientious mechanic (oxymoron?).

karl1973

Changing oil on the WRX is a snap compared to changing oil on my Miata. First of all, the Miata is low and can't get to the drain plug unless you have the car up, but the Miata is a little too low for some ramps (especially if you have the front air dam).
And once you drain the oil, you have to get the oil filter off, and the filter is buried somewhere inside the engine compartment, and to reach it, for me at least, I have to crank the front wheels all the way to the left and reach the filter from front right wheel well.
Once I can reach the filter, I have to turn it off and spill oil all over the place because the filter is mounted on the side of the block.
In contrast, changing oil on the WRX, I don't need a ramp, I don't spill oil all over the place (just place a pan underneath a twisted off filter), I can get it done in less than 15 minutes!!!

bluesubie

Here's a link showing installation.

http://www.scoobymods.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=169&referrerid=0

-Dennis

cinosweive

Funny you should mention you were down a quart on delivery of your WRX. My MT oil was down about 1/2 qt. I took it back to the dealer and they told me that they intentionally underfill it because they said it "circulated" better when low.

I never heard that one before. Could be BS - I donno. Another guy said if you overfill it oil will leak out of the vent tube. Never heard of that before either.

ateixeira

You can't really overfill if the car is on level ground. It'll just leak out the fill hole.

-juice

chaynes1

My Subie dealer said "Thanks, we'll look into it" when I told them my tranny was down a quart. Nothing about low oil levels circulating better (it's BS!).

Incidentally, what is the "real-world" mileage for changing the timing belt(s) on the WRX? I'm a bit paranoid about this because my (previous) BMW 528 belt broke early. With it having an interference engine, I had to replace all valve, etc. Is the WRX an interference engine? Comment anyone?

corkfish

Jeez, even my Sentra uses a chain.

paisan

Belts are lighter, less friction, etc. than chains, that is why they are used. The WRX is I believe an interference engine as are most DOHC engines. 105K I believe is the change interval for 50-state emissions vehicles because in CA the emissions systems have to be covered for 100K from the factory, and somehow the timing belt is related to the emissions system. I'd get it changed at around 90K personally just cause it's 1) a real pain even witha non-interference engine to have the belt break (had it happen to me 15K past due on my XT6) 2) it's very costly to repair on a non-interference engine.

-mike

stevesr0

I am considering the purchase of a WRX. Most of the comments about durability are favorable, except for threads on various web sites about many vehicles needing frequent wheel bearing replacements (at 5-20K intervals).

Are there any figures (eg, rate/100K miles) that would put this into better perspective (absolute and compared to other brands)?

Appreciate this info or reasons why MY WRX might/might not be subject to such a problem?

Thanks

Steve

paisan

Wheel bearings were only a problem on *some* subarus up to about 97. Post 97/98 they were installed properly @ the factory and haven't caused problems after that. Also on ones that were replaced @ dealers they would over-torque them causeing them to fail prematurely. Also this problem was most prevelant on SVXs which are heavier, have wider tires, and more horsepower than the WRX. I would not think 2x about getting a WRX especially not worrying about wheel bearings. There have been no reported cases of wheel bearing failures on the wrxs that I know of from reading all the edmunds, i-club and ultimate subaru message boards.

-mike

p0926

locke2c

Steve, there's a good link within the last 30 messages or so in the discussion Owner's Clubs>Subaru Crew>General Maintenance & Repair.

-Colin

ateixeira

The 5/60 powertrain warranty covers it, and improperly installed bearing fail before that, so you'd know if you had a problem, and it would be covered.

IMHO it's not at all an issue that would keep me from buying a WRX. If fact, I'm not sure what is!

-juice

locke2c

err... sorry, forgot this is a WRX discussion. (I come in through all the Subaru Crew links.)

The 2002 Impreza, including WRX of course, have revised hubs and a new wheelbearing design. Hopefully Subaru has finally put an old issue to bed.

-Colin

stevesr0

Thanks for responses.

I must say the web pages I saw seemed more recent than 97. I will try to find the ones I saw and post addresses.

I sent a note to Subaru yesterday and today had a response signed by John Gergen (think that was his name). The quick response was appreciated, but the generic nature of the response was disappointing. He indicated that they did not have a signal suggesting a problem (but noted that the WRX was a new model).

Steve

djbrook

I am 6'5" tall. I test drove the 5 speed WRX and fell in love with it. Only problem (and for me this isn't minor) was that I was a little cramped as far as driver's legroom goes. Has any owner tried to move their seat back to get extra room? If you have, I would appreciate hearing your experience.

Thanks

stevesr0

I went back to look at the dates and models referred to with wheel bearing problems and it DOES seem that these are mainly NOT current issue.

However, at the i-club site, there have been continuing complaints about clutch problems ("decell noises") many of which responded to replacement of clutch with new design. This was said to be an issue that Subaru would prevent by changing the clutch put in at the time of manufacture.

Any insight about this form owners here?

Thanks

Steve

locke2c

Steve,

I think the clutch is fine. It is not a truly new design although no previous North American model has used a pull-type clutch... it's been that way on the WRX for years.

Most of what you see on the iClub is the result of careless or abusive driving. This is where the truth comes in though:

The WRX's manual gearbox is not durable enough to survive repeated abuse. There is a tremendous amount of strain on it when all four wheels have traction and there's a 227HP turbocharged engine at the other end. This isn't the same as dropping the clutch in a powerful RWD car, AWD changes everything.

So anyway, Subaru intentionally specifies a clutch firm enough for normal use but one that should lay down and die before the gearbox does, in case a brutal or careless driver is at the controls. This is not a new strategy for AWD cars, Mitsubishi did the same for their long-running Eclipse and 3000GT, Toyota's low-selling Celica All-Trac was the same.

I don't own a WRX so I haven't been following the WRX forum on the iClub much-- there's a pretty low signal/noise ratio. If you're not abusive on the clutch or expect it to survive repeated 4WD burnout starts, I think there won't be any problems with it. If you do have one-- since these cars are man-made, it could happen-- I think Subaru will take care of you.

-Colin

stevesr0

Thanks Colin, that sounds reasonable.

You say you don't own a WRX. What causes you to follow this board? I am not a WRX owner either, but I am considering a purchase.

Steve

locke2c

Steve,

The same thing that's made me rack up over 5k posts on the iClub... I like Subaru. I have a '99 Impreza 2.5RS. I've done quite a bit of work (not just modifications but repairs) on it and Imprezas owned by friends.

I might buy a WRX, but not right now.

-Colin

cptplt

My daughters cello does fit in the back (with seats up)!! Dunno how I managed to measure it before and think it wouldn't, but I took the cello case down to the dealer and checked it out physically. Just fits! But fit it does! A few years of fun for me and then she can trash the clutch when she learns to drive! I won't actually let her drive that thing on her own when she has her licence though. No kid needs more than 10hp/year of age! Anymore is suicide!

Now, the only real question is, to wait for STi or not. It is available as a wagon isn't it???

ltcolumbo

Have any "adult" owners put on the sti muffler? If so, just how much louder is it (subjective of course)? I would like to hear a little more exhaust note.

bluesubie

Happy shopping! :-)

-Dennis

locke2c

columbo-- I'm 26 and have heard the STi muffler in the car and outside of it.

it's louder but in my opinion not that much. it is a small change if you're looking for that and not a roaring, intrusive exhaust-- but be warned, it may be a small enough change that you could wonder if it was worth the $.

-Colin

stevesr0

I know the 99 RS is different from the 02 models, but do you have any feel for how the 02 WRX compares to your car in handling and steering?

Steve