By accessing this website, you acknowledge that Edmunds and its third party business partners may use cookies, pixels, and similar technologies to collect information about you and your interactions with the website as described in our
Privacy Statement, and you agree that your use of the website is subject to our
Visitor Agreement.
Comments
Wondering how come the improved the HP output (via decreased backpressure) did not translate into improved 0-60mph #'s (6.3 listed on Subaru's website, which I assume is off a manual?)
The MPG looks much better though (21/26) although I've been averaging 20/25 on the 2005 FXT (3700miles and still grinnin')! I think it just reflects the taller gearing.
Anyway, the thermometer is now reading 78-79F...still a bit off, but we'll see.
Gearing is taller so off the line it's probably same as before. Subaru used to rate 0-60 at 6.1s officially, so it's actually 2 tics slower, i.e. insignificant.
-juice
In central Illinois most service stations sell a 10% ethanol blend of fuel for all their grades of gasoline (including premium). What effect will using a 10% ethanol blend of fuel have on the performance and maintenance of the Subaru Turbo engine? Anyone have experience with this blend of gasoline in their XT?
If ethanol is a problem I'll have to do some research to locate a station that regularly carries "straight up" gasoline with no ethanol.
Thanks for any help you can provide!
-Brian
-juice
DW's MPV (as well as our previous vehicles) drink the 10% stuff too.
-Brian
http://www.epa.gov/orcdizux/rfgecon.htm
ethanol = 76,100 BTU per gallon
gasoline = 114,000 BTU per gallon
a 10% ethanol blend would have 110,210 BTU per gallon, which is a 3.3% reduction in energy content. Your mileage will vary. :P
james
It's true I'm concerned about emergency maneuvers in this vehicle, but I was just as concerned driving my Jeep, Mountaineer, RAV4 and Maxima. Not that concerned driving my BMW. It's also true the RAV4 has VSC, which I believe all Subaru models should come with standard. But that doesn't mean it's a death trap.
The gearing on the RAV4 is fairly similiar to the XT. Definitely could use a 5th gear, but all in all I'm getting about 24 mpg at this point.
If anybody else has had a bad experience with emergency maneuvers or fish-tailing in the Forester I'm sure we would all like to know.
i seem to recall this last winter driving in lots of snow. my honda odyssey with fwd required extreme concentration to try to keep on the road. the forrester was downrite fun to drive in the snow especially kicking the backend out around corners then mashing to gas to do a very controlled power slide thru the corner.
i have driven the subaru thru intense rain but i dont think we could ever match florida rain intensity. the subaru and odyssey both are very capable in heavy rain but the subaru handles much better in the rain.
on dry pavement the only problem i have with the subaru is when i have come from driving another vehicle. it takes a few to get reacquainted with all the power that is available rite now. but there are good problems and bad ones :P
do i feel it is as tossible as an EVO/STi? no way, but then again i usually drive the odyssey and find the subaru fxt great fun after driving the minivan.
This caused me to start to think that the tires were at fault. Looking at reviews of the Yokohama Geolander G900’s on Tire Rack simply floored me. There are few Forester owners who have anything good to say about these tires. Upon speaking with a Tire Rack representative he called the Geolanders “truck tires”.
He suggested Bridgestone Turenza LS-T in the standard factory tire size of 215/60R16.
I have the following questions. First does anyone have another suggestion for an all season tire that you are happy with? Has anyone used the Bridgestone Turenza LS-T? Relative to size selection I see on this board that some have put 225/60 R16 tires on the XT. What is your experience? They are claimed to be 4% larger in overall diameter. Any effects on fuel consumption, noise, warranty (both factory and extended)? Do they fit in the wheel well and not rub or upset the struts? Was there a substantial handling benefit?
I looked at this board before buying my XT, I think the message count was 600 or so. I hope that the XT enthusiasts out there will continue to offer great advice.
Elissa
Synthetics in general flow better at lower temps, so I don't think you'd notice too many problems. I did find, that even with New England winter in full force, the Quaker State 5w30 full synthetic had trouble meeting its viscosity specs when I had the oil analyzed by Blackstone. Their response was something along the lines of "its barely meeting viscosity specs".
I've actually had better luck switching to a syn-blend 10w30, even through the winter months. However, we seldom go below zero in the Metro Boston area.
Syn-blends are often regarded as the best (or worse) of both worlds. I figure its whatever works.
Good luck
Larry
Chuck
I have had BStones LS-Ts on a Mazda Tribute & Dodge Caravan. I expected to keep both vehicles years, but got disenchanted with both. Proably have a total of about 30,000 miles on the LS-Ts. No complaints about them, they were defihitely a step above the Firestone tires that came on the Mazda, quiet, smooth... They are expensive, but if you have high annual mileage or plan to keep the vehicle for 60,000+ miles they will serve you well & be a good value. You can get them at Costco & the Expert Tire shops will iusually match the Costco price. Or get em from Tire Rack. If I recall correctly the BFG Traction TAs have edged out the LS-Ts as the top T speed tire in the owner reviews at Tirerack and are about somewhat less expensive.
Oversized tires should not affect your warranty. Your gas mileage will be about the same (fewer revs per mile, but they are a bit heavier & because of the larger tire patch, more road friction/drag). Noise will be about the same. You may be able to detect slightly slower acceration in top gear.
I considered upsizing to 225s also, but decided to stay with the 215s due to concerns over clearance. I know juice upsized to 225s on his '98, but that was on aftermarket wheels with some additional offset, if memory serves me well.
I am happy with the Contis, and just recently put a set on my wife's '03 Outback.
I hope this helps.
Len
I have no idea what you paid new for the car, when you sold it, or what condition it was in exclusive of mileage when you sold it; hence I can't comment on your trade-in value.
I'd hardly call Foresters of any trim level death traps, however. The combination of very good crash test results and the cars' maneuverability and lower center of gravity compared to its competitors makes for a pretty safe ride. The only major safety feature the cars lack IMO is rear side curtain air bags, though I imagine the lack of some sort of available stability control puts off those who feel it absolutely necessary.
Not only did I lose Control in it once, but the final straw was fish tailing for miles in a blinding Rain storm following an 18 Wheeler on the Highway, and even he was having problems at 25 MPH.
I'm sorry but to me this says more about your driving ability and judgment than the vehicle you were driving. Following an 18-wheeler even in light rain is going to kick up more spray in your windshield than if you were driving with no vehicles ahead of you. If conditions were so bad that you and other drivers were having problems maintaining control - vehicle speeds aside - why not pull off the road and ride out the storm? No question there are conditions that are unsafe for any vehicle. As for what caused your "fishtailing" I really have to question. Stock, unmodified Foresters are set up to understeer, not oversteer. Overcompensating perhaps?
And the Gearing, at least on the A/T 04 was Horrible, a Rocket Ship off the line, no Question about it, and that's about it.
This I'll concede to you to some point. The 4.44 gearing makes for a quick car but not an economical one. That the 4.11 gearing is now available for 2006 serves as evidence that someone was listening to the consumer. Nonetheless you only had 8K miles on the car, hardly enough to consider the drivetrain broken in. I as well as many others can vouch that the fuel economy in these cars steadily improves as they get fully broken in. With my first Forester (non-turbo) I saw steady increases until 16-18K miles; my current Forester (XT) has improved steadily and still does at 13K.
By the way does anyone remember Jack Brown aka "Ballistic"? He was a charter member in this Group, and then we never heard from him again.
Can you promise to do the same? I agree these cars have their faults and I'm no blind flag-waving cheerleader about them. Making blanket statements about what you see as problems without specifics serves no one - neither current owners or prospective buyers nor the company that makes the cars. On the other hand it may make you feel better about your decision to sell the car.
I hope your replacement car is more satisfying to you. Maybe you could tell us about that and what makes it better than the Forester it replaced?
Ed
Subaru should warn us that driving in mud can cause dirt.
(for honesty, I was in full control when I went off the road; there was no sholder, and just a grassy/muddy field. Actually, I was in control all of the time with the car...It was just that if I had stayed on the road, I would have been in control right into the tailpipe of the other car. Also, if you must respond to email while driving, pull over!)
Did you actually get into an accident with your FXT? If you didn't, and you were driving outside the parameters of common sense, that only tells me the the FXT is an excellent handling SUV able to partially compensate for the inexperienced driver.
If you were unhappy with so many aspects of the FXT - why did you buy it in the first place? What is the purpose of test drives and other forms of research?
Since you bought a car to replace the Forester, I'm sure the handling characteristics will be different. Also, 1/3 the price suggests 1/2 to 1/3 the power. You won't be able to break the tires loose on that baby even if you fed it a bowl of Wheaties every morning. The FXT has a LOT of power, and must be driven with that consideration in mind.
Best of luck with your new car, and I'm sorry your experience with the FXT was so negative.
Automatic - oops, never mind.
By the way, the auto isn't geared as short as the manual. JB complained about the 1st gear ratio in the manual tranny specifically, a problem the taller 1st in the auto does not have.
Can we assume your 140hp non-Death Trap replacement got more than 5/5/5/5 stars from NHTSA crash tests? ;-)
-juice
Actually, it is. ;-)
The SAE specifies a range for each weight of oil. M1 30 weights are on the thin side of that range. German Castrol Syntec 0W30 is thicker at operating temp. than M1 10W30 and is nearly a 40 weight (that's why it doesn't have the energy conserving starburst).
M1 10W30 would be fine anywhere in the U.S. in the winter, IMO. I think the pour temp is around -45F.
-Dennis
1) Replaced stock rear sway bar with STi RSB (20 mm), plus collars and endlinks. This corrected the understeer problem. It makes the car track significantly better around curves. The difference was immediately noticeable. This is a relatively inexpensive modification. I think the RSB, endlinks, and collars cost about $130. Installing them is something that most people can probably do themselves (not me, unfortunately!). 2) Replaced stock tires with Falken-Ziex 512's. This also improved the handling. They feel very secure in bad weather. Definitely worth it. (These particular tires are also inexpensive -- about $55 each).
3) Replaced stock springs with Forester STi springs (note that they are "Forester STi" springs, and NOT "wrx STi" springs). The Forester STi springs fit perfectly on the FXT. They lower the car by about an inch, which makes a major difference in handling, but is barely noticeable in appearance -- the car does not look as if it's been lowered. I had been very bothered by the leaning of the car when going around curves. The new springs have remedied that. And, happily, the steering feels more precise. This modification was more expensive than the others (springs cost $360, installation took all day and cost accordingly), but was worth it.
If you are looking to improve your FXT's handling, I cannot recommend these modifications enough. It makes the car feel so much safer and more fun to drive.
I am happy to finally settle into my car that I have had for a little over a month, and enjoy driving it without ruminating over what improvements I want to make!
Today I was driving on the freeway in horizontal rain and I felt totally secure. That is a good feeling.
-juice
Post #6130 “the final straw was fish tailing for miles in a blinding Rain storm”
Hard to believe that the same person made both statements regarding the same vehicle.... am I missing something?
-Frank
John
Call 800-SUBARU3 if you want something soon, but you might get the standard PR response from them.
-juice
I'll wait for your response from Patti and the techs at SoA. If nothing shows up in a week or so I'll just reply again to one of these messages to bump the message back up in the thread.
Took my wife's 2005 FXS on a trip to Chicago this week. Much better than the 1994 Plymouth Voyager it replaced ... but not as nice as my 2005 FXT!
-juice
-Frank
By the way is there anyone we know of that doesn't live in one of these "Zones"?
TIA
Larry
Stacie
So - went to ebay and got an 04 WRX 6 CD w/built in cassette ( I still have a few laying around, somewhere...) It uses the dark LCD on lighter background display - much better in bright light IMO.
Also purchased a new under-seat amplifier that goes with it. (Found a real good sale at subiegal's place of business).
Took all of an hour and a half for the whole swap-over and subwoofer installation as well as some time to try a number of CD's to tweak the external bass gain and crossover frequency.
When I was done I was amazed at the results - the audio quality and depth of sound has increased by 100% ( okay its subjective, but its way better than before). If this hadn't worked I was going to trash the whole deal and get an aftermarket head unit with a decent display that would be visible in sunlight as well as sound good.
I'd like to know the technical details of how the head unit I pulled handled what went to the subwoofer (it has its own connector and built in amplifier) and what went to the door speakers. The door speakers sound much "richer" now. Also, with a CD that used to wreck the bass on the original system, the bass is now palpable and very pleasant.
The only thing that I gave up was weatherband, which I never used.
BTW - If you do look on e-bay you'll find very few of the double din CD / Cassette
players that came stock in the 03 Foresters. Having had an 03 XS Forester, I never did think the 04 XT sound system was an improvement. I think I've only ever seen one and it went for a lot more money than I wanted to spend. Total cost of used head unit and new amplifier was approx $230.
My only regret is that I didn't do it sooner. My system now sounds almost as good as the Kenwood that came stock in the ex's Hyundai Elantra GT. :P
Larry
Subaru isn't such a big brand that their equipment -- including the radio head unit -- has adapters readily available for them. I never did find a company that makes them or has substantial information about the pin connections.
There are web sites that show how to do a work-around, though, and I have a graphics file that shows the pin connections by name. You just have to buy a 13 Pin DIN (~$10 with shipping for the connector with pre-wired connections) and a 3.5mm extension cable/3.5mm-to-RCA cable (<$10). Just connect a couple wires from the DIN connection to the 3.5mm cable, pull the head unit forward, and plug in the DIN connection. From then on any sound input into the 3.5mm jack is overlayed onto the existing sound. I just play a CD with 74 minutes of silence that I created on my computer.
Email me if you'd like more information. You should be able to get my email out of my profile.
Kevin
Stacie
I remember seeing a 16 pin connector that had the standard RCA connectors on the other end, which would mean no soldering at all as you just need to purchase the RCA to 1/8 inch stereo headphone jack (which should be around $10). Of course, whether this was the right 16 pin connector for an 05 Forester I am not sure. As with anything I say or write, I reserve the right to be wrong.
Do the OEM tires suck? For spirited driving I'd say so, but they aren't dangerous - not a great choice for something with the XT's performance capabilities though. I replaced mine with ZE-512's at 34k. The 512's were a huge improvement in every area except one (I lost a slight amount of fuel economy, about 1 mpg), although they haven't lasted as long as I'd hoped. I'm at 60k now & they are at the treadwear bars with 26,000 miles on them, will be installing Traction T/A's in a couple of weeks. It'll be interesting to see how they compare
At 60k, it's been a great car so far - only two things have required repair. The rear diff was replaced under warranty at 33k, and I had a random cruise control disconnect issue that I finally traced back to the neutral safety switch (finally ordered the part this week in fact). Other than that, just normal maintenance...
Stacie
P.S. Took the 05XT on its first long road trip, 600 miles round trip to Southern Oregon, got 25mpg with ac on and avg speed of 78. Overjoyed to say the least.
O-60 was slightly slower, now 5.9 seconds, due to the more relaxed gearing. Still blisteringly quick, though.
-juice