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Comments
2 weeks ago we did 2 track days with BMWCCA and the 3 subies were lapping the M3s during the rain, and held our own in the dry
-mike
Great fun though. I've been going to Road America for years and it was great to finally drive what is considered one of the best tracks in the country, if not the world. I'm looking at club events to get some more track time with less traffic.
-mike
If you had to pick one between Pocono's, Lime Rock and Watkins Glen, which would it be? Have you been to all of these?
-Dennis
So far I've been to:
Limerock Park (2 days)
Virginia International Raceway (2 days)
Summit Point's Jefferson Circuit (2 days)
VIR is nice and long, and has less wear and tear on your car due to longer straights and less moves in power, the downside is that there are about 20 turns so memorizing the course takes more than the 2 days we were there. Paddock is pea-gravel, which is very nice if it's raining cause you don't sink into mud and what not.
Limerock is nice, relatively short, very nice area to hang out at and has only a few turns so you can master it pretty quickly w/o worrying about memorizing too much, and tons of run-off space. Paddock is dirt/grass but isn't too bad even in the rain, but can be a mess if it rains too much.
Jefferson Circuit is 1.1miles so its real short, but this is good for lower HP cars cause the straights don't allow the high HP cars to run away. Like limerock it's pretty technical and keeps you on your toes. Downside is not much runoff and the tire walls are only 1 layer thick with concrete behind it. The Paddock is grass so in the wet it gets ugly.
-mike
Has anyone here tried this? If so, will the recommended 48" crossbars work or do you have to buy longer crossbars?
DaveM
So far so good...
J0elboy
Other things the rep mentioned were installing the mount backwards so it could be inside the rails or sawing off the tail end of the mount leaving just enough space to secure the rear wheel to it so it won't interfere with the tailgate. I don't think I'll like the rear facing mount but will give it a look. I'll definitely look into the sawing of the mount. Anyone already try this?
As I was looking at a gear basket too, he recommended the Load Warrior as you mount the bikes to the top of it, which should alleviate the tailgate problem. The Load Warrior can be mounted farther forward on the crossbars too. I put that decision on hold for now but has anyone tried this setup?
I have heard from many people that fork mounts hold the bikes more securely than upright mounts so I went with fork mounts.
It's been raining since what feels like November of 2002 here in D.C. so as soon as I get a chance to play outside again, I'll let you know what works, doesn't work, etc...
I went with the STi, and it is only a tat louder than stock, with a lower/bassier burble, until WOT.
Power gain... butt-o-meter won't register the gain, but acceleration became linear. No more abrupt neck snapping when the turbo kicks in.
-Dave
The Viper rack is nice and does work with disc brakes. I'm not completely sold on discs though. They are heavier than standard ATB brakes and difficult to adjust. They are only really better in extremely wet and muddy conditions, or if your rim is seriously bent. I tend not to ride when it's like that. Mine make a ton of noise too which I haven't been able to tune out.
One thing with the Viper rack, while it does lock to the bars, if you pull on it long and hard enough, it will slide off. Inserting some double sided sandpaper in the mount helps with that.
I thought about cutting the tray on the mount down, but with a bike mounted, the tailgate would still hit the rear tire of the bike.
Sadly, I just crunched my rack last week when I forgot about the bike up there and drove under an 8 foot beam in a parking lot. The rack is pretty bent up, but still useable. Overall, I highly recommend this type of rack.
Brian
In all the years I've been driving with bikes on the roof, I was afraid something like this would happen one day...it's easy to forget you've got stuff up there!
Brian
We're considering getting a hitch on the Outback (too much weight for the WRX
I was also thinking about a hatch-mounted Saris Bones rack. I tried a Yakima hatch-mounted rack and ended up returning it because I didn't like it.
-Dennis
i live in the mountains, on top a mountain, but do a fair amount of interstate driving..sometimes 8 hours in a day. Im looking for a car that gets my pulse going on the curves of the 2 lanes yet treats me well on those long cruise-controlled drives? personally, i can live without a moon roof. plus, i think i would save about $6,500 or more on the difference between the brand-spankin new 04 forester XT premium and the 02 WRX with only 88 miles on the odometer.
survey says____________?
I've heard that the handling on the XT will be good, but I'm not sure if it will be quite as good as the WRX wagon. Still, probably a good highway cruiser, and probably still pretty fun to wind around the twisties.
Unless the 02 is a sweetheart deal (several thousand under invoice), you can wait to see if you like the XT, and if not, get a WRX 04 wagon for a couple hundred over invoice.
and, sign up for the VIP plan now, so that in 6 months, that XT will be an invoice purchase.
Good Luck!
Ed
VIP info here:
http://www.imba.com/tcc/subaru_faq.html
Don and Ed - Thanks for the advice. Ed, I may take you up on that.
-Dennis
-Dennis
I felt our Forester was perfect when we had one kid (plus a small dog). Now it sometimes feels tight, with 2 kids.
So smaller than that I cannot imagine, especially since our dog is just 12 lbs.
-juice
BTW, I had a cat that was 16 lbs. and he was not overweight either. And my small cat is around 12 lbs.
DaveM
Sounds like a great case for a 5-speed Forester XT!
The MY03 Forester (non turbo version) measured a slalom time very close to a WRX. Combine that with it's better low-end torque and I think you'll have the combination of fun and practicality. Also, the 5-speed Forester invoice is $23.3 and MSRPs for $25.5.
Ken
Mark
I've had 3 bikes on my Forester, and it has no noticeable effect on handling. Of course you're not going slideways around turns, though.
I figure the bikes were about 80 lbs combined, that's not even two bags of sand. Max tongue weight is 200 lbs, and I've come close to that. It still didn't affect handling (just braking and acceleration with a 1500+ lbs load overall).
-juice
-Dennis
Anyone have a working hitch bike carrier on their wrx?
See, I told my wife the wrx would be just as practical as the trooper when I was convincing her to get rid of a perfectly good suv. Now I need to live up to my claim! (she wasn't buying into just the 'fun' factor so I had to stretch a lot of the wrx's 'practical' aspects)
Don
http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/search.php?s=&action=showresu- lts&searchid=1905735&sortby=lastpost&sortorder=descen- ding
-Dennis
Four bikes on the back of your WRX wagon will indeed affect handling. A few years ago I went to go mountain biking up in Tahoe with my wife and buddy. We loaded three bikes on my buddy's hitch mounted bike rack (Yakima + Subaru OE hitch, IIRC) and the combined weight noticeably cased the rear suspension on his Forester to sag.
I drove for a bit and noticed that the Forester was a bit more tail happy than usual. At night, people were high-beaming us because the tilt was enough to put the low beams into their eyes.
Too bad the US doesn't get the self-leveling suspension!
Ken
-mike
As for utility, the wrx actually is doing very well. The roof rack adds options the trooper didn't have. I brought my daughter's bed and mattress home on the roof of the wrx. (late 90's on troopers had no roof racks due to Isuzu's fear of false rollover reports)
Now I have to make use of all the 2" hitch attachments...Anyone know if there are reducer attachments for the smaller hitches?
-mike
MODIFICATIONS: synthetics in engine and tranny; replaced lousy tires with BFG KDWS - much better.
PROBLEMS: None whatsoever - no squeaks, rattles, brake issues, paint issues, never been back to dealer.
PLEASANT SURPRISES: The interior seems to be wearing very well - no signs of wear even on the side bolsters. Another, wife does not complain when we take my car; although does complain about my driving.
ISSUES: Weak A/C for Texas heat but with tinting is adequate, just slow. Audio system quality, but I am spoiled with wife's McIntosh in VDC.
OVERALL: Driving still fun as ever. Can carry four golfers and clubs - how much more practical can it get.
Mike
I just hit over 11,000 miles since August '02.
Different tires do make a big improvement!
-Dennis
Very good to hear about the lack of rattles, etc.
What were the stock tires you replaced?
What are your impressions of the heandling after 15k of experience...are you happy with the suspension?
I have not noticed any degradation at all of the entire drive train. That's what this car is about: great seats, excellent steering feel, and predictable stable handling. A good test for me is the lack of steering vibration feedback over bumpy stretches while excercising - very similar stability feel as my former MKIV Supra.
I wasn't talking about wear so much as your impressions after a year or so. Sounds like you're happy.