Subaru Crew Cafe

lilbluewgn02

we've had Geico for around 20 years now...never a problem, raises have been few and far between, and when Susan's car was damaged, they were very quick to send out an adjuster...got the check on the spot.

ateixeira

ateixeira, "The Forums Test Drive Team" #184, 1 Nov 2006 9:01 am

Drove one for another one of those test drive offers.

-juice

rsholland

http://www.drive.subaru.com/CurrentIssue.htm

Some neat pixs of old Subie concept cars in here.

Bob

once_for_all

I like the STX concept...looks like it had the cabin from the Forester, which might have made the Baja more successful (more headroom, for example).

John

tsy

What model Sonata did you rent? The LX has bigger wheels and lower profile tires- it handles quite nicely for a family sedan. It's quite nicely put together too- no squeaks and rattles (at least for the day I had one). It's certainly more than adequate for most families.

tom

tsy

Hey, has anyone here tried Rallycross? It looks like it could be fun but I don't really know a lot about it. It might be a good excuse to buy a nice used Subie! (I found a couple of Imprezas for about $6000)

tom

rsholland

When the Baja debuted, many of here at Edmunds were deeply disappointed, as the STX concept—which we were well aware of—promised so much more.

The STX had a dual-range tranny, a supercharged engine and a midgate that fully folded down. The Baja, when it debuted had none of those features. Only 2 years later did it get a turbo, which was too little, too late.

The Baja could have been sooooooooo much better when it debuted.

Bob

lucien2

Hands down the most fun I've had in a car without getting in the back seat. It is more punishing on the car than autocross though, so just be aware of that. But you'll learn a lot about car control in low traction environments, and it is always fun to get subies dirty! Now that everything is turbocharged, there's too much emphasis on the cars as shiny tarmac bahnburners; the cars really shine in the dirt.

Take all season tires though, or a worn set of snow tires. I ran a used set of rally tires once, that was awesome!

bigelm

My friend from the Mazda dealer calls me Friday afternoon at work and tells me the MS3 just arrived. So, I decided to head down there after work.
I test drove the MS3 and as much fun as it was to drive, it was still the same inside (which I knew). I was saying to myself that I need to focus on comfort (being 6'5") and just knew that I couldn't hold on to the 3 any longer. So, the general manager (friend of mine) said, "I know you're disappointed the MS3 not having a mooroof but go test drive it, it might change your mind." I gotta admit... it's leaps and bounds from my SP and it's turbo character is impressive. But one thing I noticed is that in the MS3's test drive, the growling noise, yes I said "noise", becomes annoying after awhile. Maybe I'm getting old, but the cabin was vibrating too much with the engine and exhaust vibrations. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it in the beginning, but if I'm going to cruise with my family, I don't want to constantly be telling my wife "what did you say?", "speak louder"... Like I said, I must be getting old but I really enjoyed the comfort and quietness of the MS6. Needless to say, Mazda threw out a 25% MSRP on the MS6 that same day, Friday. It still hasn't hit me yet, but in my garage sits a beautiful Black Cherry MS6.... MSRP ~$32k, walked out with it for $25k with my trade-in.

The space and comfort in this car is amazing. Sound deadening is right where I like it to be. You hear the turbo but you don't get the cabin shakes like on the MS3. I think Mazda just took the power on the 3 and didn't really 'balance' it to the character of the car. But in any event, like I said, the MS3 is very nice, but I'm enjoying a much more 'grown ups' car.

Still waiting for Subaru to answer to this or any of the vehicles in this category to offer better interior space and comfort. In the meantime, I have to spool in this car for now ;-). Until then....

subearu

Congrats. It's a sharp car and is crazy fast with that motor. Pics please, btw, that is a sharp color.

Interested in your impressions with the AWD system and different weather, that is one thing I haven't tested on the MS6 (the track was dry when I drove it).

-Brian

locke2c

Yep, they are discounting the heck out of the MS6s that remain. My ex-wife ditched her '00 Miata and got a pearl white MS6 about 3 months ago.

Congrats!
~Colin

bat1161

I have a question for those who have travelled overseas, specifically to Europe. I am going to Hungary and Austria for two weeks next September with my wife and sister-in-law. I am looking at car rental prices and found a company that has reasonable rates.

My question is which is more practical a 1.4l engine or a 1.8l? The price difference is approximately $100 for a two week rental. I remember when I rented in the UK years ago a friend recommended going for the larger engine saying I would need the power for the motor ways. BTW, the 1.4l is a Opel Astra Wagon and the 1.8l is a Citroen C5 hatchback.

I know I have a while to go, but I try to plan my vacations in advance.

Mark

ateixeira

Congrats on the MS6. I agree that with current discounts it's a better value than the MS3, which will be near MSRP for a while.

I guess the Legacy GT was too small?

-juice

tsy

Thanks Loosh. It looks like a lot of fun. I figured it would be tough on the car but hey, that's what Subies were built for!

tom

tsy

Congrats on the new ride! I really like the 6- I wish the LGT handled more like it. And with the deals on them right now- I could certainly see the temptation!

Much more sophisticated than the MS3 too.

tom

lucien2

it's tough here in mid-a becaue the course is a ProRally Special Stage. In other parts of the country it can just be a muddy field, which isn't nearly as hard on the car.

lucien2

I'm inclined to say neither, you're better off with diesel. Otherwise, I don't think the hp difference is enough to trump the Astra's utility and drive experience over the heavy, dated C5

bigelm

I'm enjoying this car more than I thought. The discount was too rediculous to let up. I will have some pics up by the weekend ;-)

I sat in the Leg and it was too uncomfortable for me. Legroom was less than my Mazda 3 (about 2"). Rear legroom was embarrassing.

The MS6 just hugs the road and curves with ease and no efforts. To me, it almost feels as if it's not even FWD bias. I guess with the TCS and LSD, it tames the whole FWD character of the vehicle.

The black cherry is just stunning. I was driving tonight and in the light, it appeared to be purple. It's crazy, I like it!!! :-)

robr2

IMHO, I'd get the Citroen. The Astra will arrive here in the US as a Saturn (albeit with a bigger engine) and you'll be able to sample it. I doubt you'll ever have a chance to drive the C5 again.

bat1161

Thanks Losh and Rob. So I have one vote for the Citroen and one for the Astra. I guess I'll have to read up on the two and see if there are any advantage one has over the other.

Mark

bat1161

Elm,

Congrats on the new car! Enjoy it in Ga.

Mark

ateixeira

Go for the French car because they are so bizarre and memorable, you can't possibly be bored with them. :P

My brother has a Xsara Picasso mini-minivan thingy, the one that looks like an egg. I'll never forget driving that thing.

Two cool items - 3 individual rear seats and the outboard ones have folding trays like airlines use.

-juice

lucien2

I'd agree with you if it was anything other than the C5. The rest of the line up is fresh, funky, and largely innovative. The C5 has't been re-done yet. Then again, that could be a plus, as it will be er, Frenchier than the others.

The Astra may be a Saturn soon, but from my experience, there is little correlation between EDM models and the USDM counterparts. Suspensions are softened, gearings are changed, engines revised, and the USDM versions inevitably feel like mush in comparison. Although my experience is limited to VW and Nissan/Renault.

ateixeira

They are trying to change that, and let Saturn be the real Opel, no longer the watered down one. The L series for instance just was not as interesting as the Opel Vectra.

-juice

once_for_all

geez, I can't handle it anymore. Too many discussions. Must be at least 30 Subaru discussions alone to catch up on and I have already deleted most of the Tribeca ones.

John, :sick: with post overload

subearu

The one thing I noticed with the MS6 at the Zoom-Zoom Live event was that the front pushed more than I expected through the turns, though the tires did have some of the blame for that.

-Brian

locke2c

it's a bit heavy, it has performance all-season tires, and it's setup for a bit of understeer for a safe Joe Public handling feel.

~c

lucien2

anyone having problems? It won't "remember" me, and it is only on the 3rd or 4th attempt that the login "sticks" and allows me to post.

hammerhead

I'm logging in okay, but I'm getting inundated with a lot of topics in 'My Tracked Items' that I have not heretofore tracked. I'm having to manually untrack from them, and some of those I have to request 'track' then 'untrack' to get rid of them. Also, after I've read some tracks, that topic vanishes from my list (this one, for instance) until there's another post to be read.

A little confusing, somewhat frustrating, but hopefully I can finish purging all these extra topics soon.

Cheers!
Paul

p0926

Yeah I hear you John. While I can see where some people prefer the utility of having a separate discussion for each topic, there's a lot to be said for keeping one general forum for each model. I find that with the new format, I'm much less likely to click on and read every single topic so I'm actually reading less posts than before and by extension, less likely to respond to questions. So hosts, what's the harm in Edmunds allowing us to have both options? :confuse:

-Frank

bigelm

it's a bit heavy, it has performance all-season tires, and it's setup for a bit of understeer for a safe Joe Public handling feel.

Ditto

Thanks for the congrats guys ;-)

grahampeters

G'day

I'd go for a diesel if you can get one. peugeot usually have good fleet spread and very good diesels.

Cheers

Graham

ateixeira

Growing pains, perhaps.

What I find annoying is that when threads are moved my Tracked Items says I have not read them yet. So I'm re-reading MY own posts.

Now I just look at the date, two-clicks (in and right back out) updates my Tracked Items.

Sort of a pain but hopefully in the long run things will settle down.

-juice

hondafriek

Yeah Loosh I have been having problems for a while, So has Steve AKA fibber2. It is getting old and is time it was fixed but I don't know if it even being worked on.

Just this morning it took me 5 attempts to get in, I usually get in on about the third attempt.

Cheers Pat

rob_m

Pat, it is caused by signal degradation where you are far away in Canada. hehehe. Rob

tsy

So they get second rate internet in Canada, eh?

Sorry Pat, couldn't help it. We're so close to Canada here I have a bunch of Canadian friends I tease a lot.

tom

tsy

Hi Collin, I'll try to be better about posting in the right place- gotten a little lax on my part!

Yeah, I figure rallycross is much harder on a car, but it does look like fun. I'm trying to figure out how to try it first. I'm waiting for next years schedule to decide if it's worth even pursuing. I figure I'd buy a used impreza, beef up the suspension and throw in a rollcage. Less than $10k. (Am I missing anything?)

I'm looking at a little over $10k to build up or buy a spec miata but the car might last longer. I also need to get my SCCA license- which will add another few $k to the cost. (We have a race school here near Seattle I'm planning on taking- they have Lotus Elans and Exiges!)

It must be driving this camry- certainly better than the last model but still a pretty boring ride. It's great for commuting but I do need a little fun from time to time.

tom

ateixeira

At first I was thinking "what is he talking about" but just now it lost track of my cookies and I had to login from scratch.

-juice

locke2c

I don't post as often, but I'm using firefox and haven't had login problems recently at all. I haven't had any problems since around the time Carspace went live in fact.

~c

hondafriek

Har! Har! Har! laugh, I thought I'd never start. I thought it might have been the resident brain surgeon was somehow at fault. You know to whom I refer Rob. I blame him for everything else why not this?

Cheers Pat.

lucien2

Well, like I said, how hard rallycross is on your car very much depends on the venue. Even with the toughness here in MD/VA, I still did 2 seasons in my daily driver. There is no need for roll cage, you won't ever get going that fast. I say, register for a race and go in whatever you have right now. Get a taste, and if you like it, pursue it more seriously. And pay attention to the rules too, because if you are going to go shopping for a dedicated racer it might as well exploit the rulebook.

I ran 3 weekends in our 1999 Outback one summer, then the next year in my 2.5GT. Once on RE92s, twice on medium compound rally tires. I had the bug bad enough at that point that I had bought a used set from a ProRally team and mated them to a free set of 15" steelies from a Nabisco mate. At the same time, I ran Falken Azenis on RS rims for autocross and track school.

Then we had a baby. :P

jfl

Then we had a baby.

It's okay Loosh. You'll get you life back in about 21 years. In the mean time, it's lots of fun in other ways. Live vicariously ... it's great when your kid's team wins a soccer game!

Jim

~4 years from release!

locke2c

I'd find someone willing to let you co-drive or at least ride along. Like I said, for me rallycross was mildly interesting but I'd rather be on a dirtbike.

If you look at a roadracing class, I would suggest something other than Spec Miata. I'd look at Formula Vee / Ford / Dodge depending on what's available and competed extensively in your region. They're tons faster, lighter, and they don't have near the body panels to be damaged.

Or how about a shifter kart? Good lord those things are fun.. and tiring! Depending on where you live, some locals could have their own tracks which you can probably run on much more frequently than getting on a public racetrack. A 125cc kart is by far the best bang for the buck.

~Colin

tsy

Loosh, there are good things about having babies too, even if it ruined your rally carrier. The reason why I'm looking at getting another car is I don't think my camry hybrid is up for autocross and definitely not rallycross.

Colin, If riding a "bike" is a lot more fun than riding my mountain bike- I'm sure it's a blast! I know my wife would kill me before I got on a bike though!

I've been looking at the different classes I could run on tarmac- it's just I happen to know someone who runs spec miata and is willing to help me get started (He also owns his own garage, which is convenient)

Maybe I'll look into drifting?

Thanks for the help- I have all winter to decide and build something up. I think I will try to contact someone and go for a ride at a rallycross before I buy something- that's a really good idea!

tom

jeffmc

Maybe you could get pointers from or a ride-along with Subie Gal (Jamie Thomas). She's local.

http://www.subiegal.com/

tsy

Thanks Jeff. Yeah, I know about her. I think I need to start slower though. It's a nice website with some good info and practical advice.

tom

rsholland

Jamie's a pretty neat person. Juice and I have been to several SOA events in which she was also at. Spent one evening at the hotel bar in Detroit in which she was pretty much the life of the party. A fun person indeed...

Bob

p0926

Had one as a rental the other week. While it had some nice features like lighted cup holders and a cooled glove compartment, the engine was a complete DOG! Man was I glad to get back to my Forester

-Frank

locke2c

But did it scare the s*** out of you?

~c

p0926

No, should it have?

Methinks I missed something...