Subaru Crew Cafe

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  • lucien2lucien2 Member Posts: 2,984
    for those reviews!
  • rshollandrsholland Member Posts: 19,788
    Many of the DVD players were rated very highly. Those I mentioned seemed to be their best picks because cost, versatility, etc. They were the only ones to get a "color-coded" recommendation by CR.

    Bob
  • locke2clocke2c Member Posts: 5,038
    I wouldn't buy an AWD S-class. I wouldn't compare an AWD Mercedes to a Subaru, either. ;)

    -c
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Why wouldn't you buy an AWD S-class? I'd love to get an S500 4-matic :) Or an E500 4-matic :)

    -mike
  • p0926p0926 Member Posts: 4,423
    Personally, I can't see myself behind the wheel of any Mercedes! Just not my style. A BMW maybe, but not a Mercedes.

    -Frank P.
  • rshollandrsholland Member Posts: 19,788
    http://www.theautochannel.com/F/news/headlines.html

    Plus a Honda-released sketch over at nabisco.

    Bob
  • locke2clocke2c Member Posts: 5,038
    Oh I'd definitely buy a new C32 AMG over an M3. Neither is near light enough to be seriously sporting-- yes, it's true, shame on BMW for porking it out-- so why not get all that yummy supercharged low-end torque. All those chumps bringing E46 M3s to the track are just crazy... get a real racecar, build a Factory Five maybe. At least use a Corvette or similar true sportscar.

    But anyway in the S, I'd go straight for the S600. Big, bad, comfy. Twin turbo V12 speaks for itself... A lawyer here at work drives a year (or two) old S500. It's nice.

    -c
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Can you get the S600 in 4-matic? :)

    Yeah the other thing about track... Get a POS cause if you are serious about tracking, you'll wreck your nice $40K sports car.

    -mike
  • originalbitmanoriginalbitman Member Posts: 920
    I am looking for a low end PDA for my wife. Just address book stuff... unless it has color and can view dig photos. Any suggestions?

    bit
  • kenskens Member Posts: 5,869
    bit,

    For simplicity, the Palm OS devices are pretty good. You should be able to find a low-end color Sony Clie or Palm that should meet your needs for around $200-300.

    I personally use a PocketPC since my office uses Microsoft Outlook.

    Here are some good links to start:

    http://www.brighthand.com/
    http://www.pdabuyersguide.com/
    http://www.pdabuzz.com/

    Ken
  • kenskens Member Posts: 5,869
    I recently learned that my company switched rental car providers from Hertz to Avis/Budget. With Hertz, I used to be able to call ahead and reserve an OB Wagon or Forester. Avis and Budget pretty much only offer American models. Yuck.

    Ken
  • hondafriekhondafriek Member Posts: 2,984
    Indeed Ken, think Malibu,yuck yuck yuck!:-)

       Cheers Pat.
  • subearusubearu Member Posts: 3,613
    You can pick up a b/w Palm m-series for $100 or so. Some might have color.

    -Brian
  • ladywclassladywclass Member Posts: 1,713
    I have a Palm that I got last year for Xmas .. one step up from the Zire ... no color and it works great for schedule, address book, notes, etc ... has some really nice features .... was about $100 ... and it can be expanded
    (have to admit that if i did it again, i'd go up one step to color ..lol)
  • twrxtwrx Member Posts: 647
    Basic palm Zire-2 mb, B&W, rechargeable=$79

    Best cheap color: Sony Clie PEG SJ 25-16mb, memmory stick expansion slot, 320x320 hi res screen, rechargeable=$150

    Also consider next Sony up the line with same features but OS 5.2 and 200mhz processor. $179

    New fast ARM processor Palms worth extra $. I have older Sony with 33 mhz Moto Dragonball processor and Handspring Treo 600 with 144 mhz TI ARM. There is a world of difference.

    TWRX
  • locke2clocke2c Member Posts: 5,038
    I'd just get a palm phone. Several techie friends have them. Me, I can't be bothered. But they love them.

    -Colin
    ps Mike, nope the S500 is as far as you get with 4Matic. It's fairly lame anyway as far as AWD goes, unless they've significantly changed it recently.
  • lucien2lucien2 Member Posts: 2,984
    Hopefully today, I will hand over my ageing Kyocera 6035 and receive a new Samsung i500 palm phone. Not as cool as the new Kyocera, but I now get a company phone and the company is with Sprint..so I get what I can.
  • twrxtwrx Member Posts: 647
    Actually I think it is cooler than the Kyocera 7135. I looked at the Samsung and the Kyocera. The Kyocera is still somewhat larger than what I would prefer. The Samsung is so small I did not notice it was a Palm device until I read the specifications card next to it. I really like a phone that will fit into my pocket easily. However for a lesser price Sprint had the new Treo 600. I chose the Treo 600. It is all it is made out to be. Super fast OS, decent download speed for mobile net, screen small but very bright, sharp and legible, plenty of RAM plus SD card slot, phone works really well and navigation makes good sense. Only complaints are that the camera is pretty lousy (but I have a Pentax Optio 330 three megapixel camera so who cares.) the keyboard buttons are small and a bit hard to read even with the night lighting, and the SD card can be popped out too easily. The way the Blazer browser displays pages is really amazing and makes quite a few sites really useful. In short the PDA/phone/moble net-email device has really arrived.

    TWRX
  • robr2robr2 Member Posts: 8,805
    My wife loves the Palm M130 I gave her last year. Color screen, nice size. Off course it's now discontinued but overstock.com has blemished ones for $110.
  • subearusubearu Member Posts: 3,613
    for her at home business and works great for to-do list, calendar, and contacts. That's all she wants/needs it to do.

    -Brian
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Friend of mine wrecked and totalled his S2000 at the track, now he races an old CRX Si, which is much smarter if you think about it.

    Pat/Ken: ask for the new Malibu, it's a Saab 9-3 clone with a fairly torquey V6. A *lot* less yucky than you'd think. OK, the tires and interior are still yucky, but it doesn't drive that way.

    Anyone ever use a Blackberry? I can get one, but I'm wondering if it's worth the trade offs. On the plus side:

    * e-mail pushed to me
    * calendar pushed also
    * works as a phone and has some PDA functions

    But...

    * not a very good PDA
    * not a very good phone (no speed dial for #s in directory)
    * no numeric keypad
    * service may not be as good with T-Mobile
    * bulkier than my current Nokia phone
    * I'd lose the 3 car chargers we already have

    I'm leaning towards NOT getting it, but it would be free, and I could e-mail the Crew right from the Detroit Auto Show floor.

    Opinions? Is it just a lame toy, and I shouldn't fix what ain't broken (my phone works well now)?

    -juice
  • lark6lark6 Member Posts: 2,565
    Given my shortened memory due to middle age and first-time fatherhood, I also am considering a self-gift of a PDA. I need something that I can sync up with my PC and download my schedules, while having the capability to send e-mail and schedule meetings, etc.

    I would definitely want to be able to use it in the car, in an airplane, etc. (Gotta use thouse aux 12V outlets in the Forester for something.) It should also have, or at least be compatible with, international power outlets.

    Something like the HP Pocket PC or its ilk would seem to suit me. Thoughts?

    Ed
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    I set up a Treo Handspring for one of my users with T-Mobile. That is my other option. She doesn't really like it.

    E-mail is cumbersome, at least linking it up with our office is. Hotmail was easy, though still not "push" technology like Blackberry.

    I had set up a Clie for my old boss last year, with Bluetooth and infra-red wireless and all. He was only getting 9600 speeds, and it was also cumbersome with our e-mail system.

    -juice
  • locke2clocke2c Member Posts: 5,038
    we have a legion of blackberrys here, were an early adopter back in 2000 or 2001. they have become rather good for email and calendar, boy it was awful in the early days, but are still pretty lame for other PDA functions compared to a palm or pocketPC.

    being a citrix guru, if I wanted something like that my desire would be a pocketPC riding on the 3G wireless networks. that's plenty of bandwidth for me to use every app I need, the real app not some mickey mouse version of it. :)

    I prefer to be not that connected, not that accessible. we call them 'crackberrys' for good reason. :-P
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Citrix here, too.

    The Treo has better browsing, still only so-so. That's the one I sent test messages to this very Town Hall a while back.

    -juice
  • p0926p0926 Member Posts: 4,423
    Juice- I've got a BlackBerry thru work. Your pros and cons pretty much sum it up. It's good for staying connected via email, gives full accessibility to everything in Outlook and is a so-so phone but it's really only marginal as a PDA. I've got an iPAQ that's a much better PDA. Oh yeah, the BlackBerry is only B&W too.

    -Frank P.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    I would get the new color ones, but functionally they're similar.

    I heard they might stop making hardware altogether, and market their service and servers only.

    I'm leaning towards keeping my phone.

    -juice
  • rshollandrsholland Member Posts: 19,788
    is a brochure that gives a brief description to all the 2004 models, which it does -- except one model: Nowhere in this brochure is there any mention or picture of the '04 Baja Sport. Every other Subie model is mentioned, including abbreviated specs, except the Baja Sport.

    Now on the the SOA web site the Baja Sport is mentioned, including MSRPs; why then is it not mentioned in this brochure?

    Bob
  • hondafriekhondafriek Member Posts: 2,984
    juice I did as you suggested and took a Malibu for a test, yes I agree that it is light years away in terms of handling and other improvements from the model it replaces.

     But and this a big but it has got to be the homliest thing on wheels I have seen in a long time, now it is a car makers perogative to make ugly cars but in this instance GM has abused the privilige,it reminds me of other clunkers they have designed recently like the Olds Achieva, or the last Buick Skylark.
    The buick prompted one Auto tester to say it was the only car he had ever seen that looked like it had a migraine headache.

    Personally if it had the heart and soul of a BMW M car and the fuel efficency of a prius I would pass, I could not live day in and day out with a car that did nothing for me visually.

     The present Legacy sedan does not do much to get my Mojo going but the wagon in my opinion anyway is one of the best looking wagons out there, so I can happily live with the Titan for years I know I will never be bored looking at him.

     Also in terms of price the Malibu in Canada is competing with the Accord EXL, and Camry LE V6.
    in terms of general refinement it has a long way to go to match these two cars, the wheels section of the Ottawa Citizen testerday had the as tested price of an LT Malibu at $31000CDN, GM still has a tendency to have the controls all over the place, and I found the interior to be generally cheap looking.

     GM needs to find out how Honda and Toyota and Subaru for that matter take basically the same interior materials and make them look expensive while GM succeeds in making them look bargain basement.

      Cheers Pat.
  • rshollandrsholland Member Posts: 19,788
    http://www.automobilemag.com/news/news_05_2/
  • rshollandrsholland Member Posts: 19,788
    http://www.kenkon.com/collection/act156/
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Bob - slow sales? Maybe they're only showing the turbo to draw more (i.e. some) attention to it.

    Pat: yeah, styling leaves much to be desired. Inside, too. The old Malibu actually looked better, but the new one feels better in every way. I'm glad you drove it, 'cause at least you don't think I'm crazy when I say it actually is a decent driver. ;-)

    GM is slowly killing Saturn. Rebates on the brand was a big mistake IMO. The Relay is pure badge engineering, and with a not-so-good van to begin with. It's too narrow, not unique to Saturn, even the side panels are not dent-proof.

    Equinox will kill the Vue, it's bigger and will be cheaper. Vue needed Honda's V6 to go sporty, that's embarassing. Saturn was supposed to compete with Honda.

    Ion is awful, in many ways. And it's not even a unique platform. L series has never sold well, not even when new.

    So, to summarize, they have 4 products that compete poorly, are not unique to the brand, and the brand itself has given up its identity with rebates and steel sides on some models.

    What's left? A good sales model. GM should apply the sales model to other brands. GMAC is to financing as Saturn is to sales.

    -juice
  • rshollandrsholland Member Posts: 19,788
    Sat in one Saturday. $43K for something that has about the same cargo space as a Forester. For $43K there's a whole slew of SUVs I'd buy before this one.

    BTW, BMW's new (and improved?) x-drive AWD (on X3 & new X5) is 100% RWD until slippage occurs, then power is sent to the front wheels. The old X5 had a 40/60 front-to-rear power split. Why the change? According to the BMW sales guy, this give a more RWD feeling and it saves gas. Well, uh, sure...

    Bob
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    It's also more likely to slip in the first place, but he won't mention that fact...

    -juice
  • locke2clocke2c Member Posts: 5,038
    $43k isn't at all surprising for a loaded X3 3.0i, considering the same stuff on a 330i catapults you into the 40s also as I noted a week and a half ago. :)

    didn't see an X3 when I was in there. I did see a Z8 Alpina though. 500HP, mmm-mmm good.

    -Colin
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Auto only, though. Commies!

    Gimme a regular Z8.

    -juice
  • locke2clocke2c Member Posts: 5,038
    it's the big beefed-out SMG though. so I don't mind as much. :)
  • erics6erics6 Member Posts: 684
    My new ride

    image

    to compliment the Outback and replace the Miata.
  • locke2clocke2c Member Posts: 5,038
    very nice P5. what options and how much? :)

    -c
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    I like those. And I'm not just saying that to be nice - check out my review on the Town Test Drive Team topic. Wrote that about 2 years ago.

    About the least torque steer I've ever felt with FWD, very well sorted chassis and handling. Fun to toss around, definitely not boring like most small cars.

    -juice
  • subearusubearu Member Posts: 3,613
    Was moving some files from our older computer (which will be Brookie's) to our new 3ghz. Found the BMWFilms d/l on it, which I'm sure some or all of us remember seeing. This one is my favorite, as well as probably my favorite 'old' BMW. ;-)

    http://usa.bmwfilms.com/clap.asp?template=archive&country=usa- - &film=star

    -Brian
  • locke2clocke2c Member Posts: 5,038
    best use of an M5 I can recall. :-D

    -c
  • kenskens Member Posts: 5,869
    Mazda makes some very nice compact wagons. The new 3 is going to be a very strong contender.

    Ken
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    C&D liked it, but felt even though it was quicker it lost some of the sharp-edged handling of the P5.

    -juice
  • erics6erics6 Member Posts: 684
    I got it for $10.8, with a decent trade price for my Miata. It has 29k and is pretty loaded. Only major option missing is the 6 disc CD player. A nice aftermarket tint job too. Great handling for a little FWD car. Not as well composed as a Miata, but close. A little shy on power, but fun to rev.

    This is one of two front-wheel drive cars I'd even consider owning. The other is the Mini. And if you throw reliability into the mix, the P5 is the only choice.

    I'm not really fond of the new 3. Have not driven it, but it looks big....kind of bulbeous. I'm sure driving dynamics are better, but I like the light weight and tossible character of the P5.

    -Eric
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    I know that the 6CD from the Tribute interchanges with the Miata. I'm guessing it fits the P5 also. You may want to check E-bay for someone that went with Sirius or another aftermarket unit to replace the stock one.

    Cheap for low miles, good going.

    -juice
  • hondafriekhondafriek Member Posts: 2,984
    Too have always liked that P5, if I had any mad money for a second car I would give a used one a serious look.

    juice, regarding the lighted visors, there is a pretty good install help over in scoobymods, I know this is probably heresy to post that over here, but if you look up Audio, security and lighting then Legacy visors it is all there.

      Look in the legacy Mods BTW.

      Cheers Pat.
  • rshollandrsholland Member Posts: 19,788
    http://www.subdriven.com/artman/publish/article_118.shtml
  • lucien2lucien2 Member Posts: 2,984
    other than his Dakar seat. New WRC rules are going to mean a lot of changes. It's a big part of why Tommi is retiring; Sainz will be next.
  • rshollandrsholland Member Posts: 19,788
    http://hondanews.com/Forms/corp/*ws4d-db-query-Show.ws4d?*ws4d-db- -query-Show***005782***-wieck_media***-***corp(directory)***.ws4d- ?corp/results(r)_text.html
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