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Comments
I didn't think this was any big deal, though. The 2 or 3% I'll get on the balance (I "financed" 24k @ $1k/month for 24 months)couldn't be much. I suppose some finance type with an H-P doing regression can tell me the numbers. I'd guess I've saved a $200 at most on this. But as they automatically deduct it and I don't even have to write checks it was a painless way to make some money.
I still think using the Subaru Credit card to earn Subaru Bucks @3% of spending is more exciting. I'm sure I'll max out the $500 yearly rebate. I've already bought a bunch of accessories and maintenance things with my first batch of free Subaru money. I'll be saving these in the future for future repairs/service. They are "good" for 4 years from the time you receive them.
On the Turbo noise, it could be the wastegate, hard to tell w/o hearing ti directly.
Dash noises. I get a crackling from the SVX when it's heating up in the winter. Not sure if that's the same noise you are getting.
-mike
It's been awhile since I did a pure-highway run; will be heading for the ocean in a few days, though. Meanwhile, my 4600-mile overall average is 20.3, in mostly freeway driving at 65-70.
2) Winterforce tires
Good to see a solid review of these; they're probably what I'll buy. Interior noise levels obviously matter to me, but I'm more forgiving with winter tires because I only mount them when conditions require and then immediately swap them back off when things clear up. So far our winter has been too mild to buy dedicated tires just yet.
3) Rattles - still got that snapping and popping from the dash...Minor rattle from drivers door at elbow height.
I still have four distinct rattles (dashtop in airbag area, both front doors, and now instrument binnacle). Been working 55-60 hrs/wk for a year now, and just haven't had time to get the car in for anything that can be posponed.
4) Defroster - When up country this week I hit some foul weather the defroster couldn't keep up with
As noted above, we've had a mild winter - nothing yet here that the defroster couldn't handle. I do often have to run the A/C to keep up with fogging, but that's not surprising.
should I be having the dealer take a look?
Are you getting a reasonably even distribution of hot air from both left and right defroster outlets at the windshield base, or can you feel any perceptible difference?
5) Turbo / engine noise - when I accelerate steadily to 5500 rpm, I get a really loud rattle from the engine - is this wastegate noise? I seldom push the engine past 5k, (maybe twice since I've owned it)
Is this under full or part throttle? I've briefly visited the redline at WOT maybe a half-dozen times. Under full throttle, mine sounds sweet and the sound just gets better the higher it goes. It's under part throttle that I'm not wild about the engine note above 2500-3K RPM. That's partly why in normal stay-with-traffic driving I typically upshift at 2500.
I wonder if maybe the heatshield around your turbocharger might be loose enough to cause the noise you described.
several thousand feet of elevation - no loss of power at all vs NA engine. I loved it.
Almost makes you want to move to Denver, eh?
jb
My brother in law was killed by a scofflaw street racer two years ago this week. It takes every ounce of self control I possess to not explode when I read comments like this one.
Grow up, people. These are public roads, not private racetracks.
Keep it at the track for safety sake.
-mike
If I see you racing, count on a call to 911 with your plate numbers.
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Some posts are now gone. Take it to the track!
Steve, Host
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Shall we get back to the XT now?
Steve, Host
Steve, Host
At least not without cc'ing management....
Steve, Host
-mike
I know y'all aren't jealous of the SRT-4....
Here's a link for any dying to talk about Street racing - how to cut down on it.
Steve, Host
-mike
The "virtues" of the auto climate control have been mentioned here before so I won't belabor them more than I just did.
However, I like to drive w/o a coat on long trips, but what I've noticed is that as the temp gets colder (20's) and my speed gets faster (70-80) I have to really crank the heat manually to get a comfortable temp.
Forget the auto-control entirely its useless, at least in this car in that situation .... which is the follow-on to my earlier defroster problem - I had the system in defrost only, temp at max, and fan on high. The driver's side was fine, but I was depending on the windshield washers to prevent ice from forming on the passenger side.
BTW - my speed was in the low 40's at that point.
First time I've ever had that happen. Don't know if the road conditions were just right or the system is lacking the punch required. Not sure I'm going to pursue it with the dealer as I can't even begin to imagine him fixing it.
This is more a cautionary tale for my fellow posters - a good reason to keep the w/w fluid filled and carry a spare gallon.
Larry
Whatever it is doesn't seem to have an effect on power.
If the wastegate is fluttering too much will that cause an OBD-II code? I'm thinking of getting a scanner.
Larry
Larry
-mike
Larry
If you also hear an occasional "crackle", get a vacuum. Suck out the Rice-Crispies your kid spilled.
Keeping the tach below 4k has proved near impossible. There’ve been a couple of times where the engine revved past 4k before I knew it and I even hit 5k once (for a split sec). I’m trying to be good but gee, why does the XT make it so darn hard?
For all you fence sitters contemplating taking the plunge, here are some observations comparing the new Forester XT to the previous S version:
Build quality – has been improved overall with a more solid thunk when you close the doors and the interior is noticeably quieter. Nary a rattle or buzz either. But the current hard plastic dash isn’t as nice as the softer more pliant covering from the previous model. The quality of the visors and headliner has improved slightly (from being something you’d expect on a $8k Korean model to a $12k one ;-)
Acceleration – There is no comparison :-) Seriously though, the 165 hp NA engine provides adequate acceleration but once you’ve driven the turbo there’s no going back. On my trip, there is a stretch of road going up to a gap, that the old Forester always had a tough time with. It’s a 3-mile incline that approaches a 10% grade at the top and includes several speed-robbing curves. To maintain momentum with the S, I always ended up downshifting to 4th before I made it to the top. The XT on the other hand, just yawned and kept on pulling :-)
Highway cruising- The XT felt like it could effortlessly maintain 80 mph all day long. And while the XT isn’t the quietest vehicle out there, I’m perfectly satisfied. Tire, wind and engine noise are all noticeable but not to an annoying degree. Because of the complaints about the high revs at cruising speed, I did an experiment to see how much noise the engine was making while going 70 mph. So while on a long steep mountain hwy descent, I put the clutch in and coasted. There was a slight reduction in noise making its way into the cabin but probably only by a decibel or two.
Climate controls – Still getting used to them but they’re nice and modern looking and they function fine in manual mode (I was forewarned about the auto-mode so I’ve avoided it thus far). The fan on the highest setting is definitely quieter than before.
Driver’s seat ergonomics – I thought I’d miss the fore & aft seat height adjustment but I really can’t complain about the XT’s seating position. In fact, for the first time ever, I don’t have the seat all the way back so either I’m shrinking or they’ve added more leg room. Also, I wasn’t fatigued at all after a 3 1/2 hour drive.
Back seat leg room – Is still tight but has also noticeably improved. Sculpting the front seat backs made a difference.
Sound system- I’m quite satisfied with the sound quality (the Mormon Tabernacle Choir singing Handel’s Messiah sounded great) but the complaints about the display being hard to read in direct sunlight are accurate.
What’s been decontented – the center console coin storage, the handy storage cubbies in the armrests, cassette player
What use to be standard but is now optional – splash guards, cargo tray, rear bumper cover
What’s been added as standard equipment – cargo cover, center console net storage pocket, WB on radio, fuel door release
And one final thing, they got rid of that goofy full-size headrest for the rear-middle seat and replaced it with one that is far less obtrusive :-)
-Frank P.
Interesting about the back seat, Frank. I didn't notice a big change.
FWIW, I removed both rear headrests since the kids are in child/booster seats. Visibility is better without them. One fits in the spare well/cooler, the other in one of the bins in the back.
Our Legacy has a better solution - you can mount the headrests upside down, on the back of the seats. It robs a little cargo room but it's an elegant solution.
-juice
New buyer and I love it. I just have one question. When I depress the clutch to shift up the RPM stay at the previous level for about 1 to 2 seconds. The XT surges/lurches due to the RPM's not falling in a normal fashion. Is this just me being picky or should I have this checked?
Enjoy,
Bart.
Bart- That doesn't sound normal. Have a mech test drive it with you.
-Frank P.
Seats: I've got the PP with leather. For me, the seats are the weak link for long trips. I always knew the seats were hard, but I was hoping that the conventional wisdom that firm seats are more comfortable for longer trips would hold true for the XT. Not.
My butt started getting sore after 50 miles. Taking my wallet out of my back pocket and putting the seat heater on the low setting helped reduce the pain. I know removing the wallet sounds like a no brainer, but in 20+ years of driving this is the first car that I have felt a need to do so.
Stereo: I got well acquainted with the 6 disc changer. I am pleased. The stereo solves any problems associated with noise at higher speeds.
Power: We all know that this sucker has lots of power. On the open highway I typically limit myself to the upper 70s to 80 to avoid undue attention from the police. The problem I used to run into down South is getting caught behind slower traffic in the right lane but then not being able to easily merge with cars running 80+ in the left lane. Now as the commercial says, I have my "burst of power" and I can easily squeeze into the fast lane to get around the slow pokes.
Range: Running in the upper 70s to 80 my fuel economy with the AT was in the low 20s. This gives me about 320 miles of comfortable range. I admit that I am no catheter wearing, pill popping he-man road warrior, so 320 miles or 4 hours of driving works fine for me, giving me an opportunity to stretch my legs (required as detailed in the first comment) and ingest / expel some caffeine.
Climate control: This system has been much maligned on this board, so I thought I would add something positive. I am a hot natured person, so living down south I find myself running the air in my cars year round. Every car I have ever previously owned picks up some engine heat on the ventilation setting even in the coolest position, so pretty much anything over 60 degrees needs open windows or ac for me.
When running the Subie on manual control, it lets in relatively unadulterated fresh air. Therefore, I can withstand relatively warmer temps without hitting the ac. Of course, this is irrelevant in the auto mode, which seems to engage the compressor all of the time.
Hope the holidays are going well and safely for everyone.
-Frank P.
Bob
I'd be, too, with numbers like those. Your 2-tank average is 13% higher than my 4600 mile long-term mostly-highway average of 20.3 - and I never exceed 70mph and rarely exceed 3000 rpm.
Several of us have commented on the same thing. To get a smooth upshift, I have to wait a full second longer between gears for the engine revs to drop sufficiently. Others have indicated that this may be an emissions-control "feature".
Jack- I've exceeded the EPA estimates on every car I've owned so I can't say it came as a surprise. I'm hoping to get 25-26 hwy if I keep the speed down to around 70 and go easy on the gas (easier said than done!).
Re the RPMs: I did notice a couple of times the RPMs actually jumped when I went to shift (say from 4k to 4,5k). I attributed it to my not getting off the gas fast enough but now you have me wondering. Do you suppose it has anything to do with the drive-by-wire?
-Frank P.
I think the main problem is that the seats are just hard for my tastes. I have not sat in cloth to see if they are better. I will be interested to get your comments on your aftermarket leather seats when they are installed.
It it my understanding that a lot of times you get a higher grade of leather with the aftermarket and I would not be surprised if you get some more padding.
I assume that they are compatible with the air bags. I think initially, that caused a problem for the aftermarket guys (when cars started getting side airbags) but hopefully they got this figured out.
I'll 2nd the wallet-out-of-the-pocket idea, but mainly that's with my Miata. I have leather there and it's uncomfy even for a 13 mile commute. With my Forester I'm OK for a short drive but remove it for a long one, so it's actually a lot better.
I wonder if the BOV (blow-off valve) is working properly, given RPMs don't drop right away when you shift.
-juice
-Frank P.
That's exactly how I drive all the time, but I consistently get only about 21.
Re the RPMs: I did notice a couple of times the RPMs actually jumped when I went to shift (say from 4k to 4,5k). I attributed it to my not getting off the gas fast enough but now you have me wondering. Do you suppose it has anything to do with the drive-by-wire?
Maybe, or maybe an emissions component. Watch your tach during upshifts as you come off the throttle; if yours is like Bart's and mine, you'll see a good half-second - maybe longer - where the engine stays at the previous RPM before it finally begins to drop.
I've mentioned several times that following just about every normal upshift after the clutch is re-engaged, the engine on mine "surges" (cycling through more-then-less-then-more throttle) for several long seconds - as if I was getting on and off the gas, even though I'm not. That definitely feels to me like the electronic throttle can't decide on a stable position.
I don't think that's it, because the issue occurs even at light-throttle upshifts, where the turbo was nowhere near producing even low-level positive boost. I'm more inclined to suspect the electronic throttle in combination with some annoying emission-control characteristic.
I also notice the RPM hanging for a second or so during shifts - last couple of manual transmission cars I've owned also did that, I've read elsewhere that meeting EPA specs is the usual culprit. Like most things, I've gotten used to it...
_____
On another note, I have been reading with interest about the MT and the revs staying high between shifts. I have noticed with the AT, sometimes if I punch it off the line and then back off the throttle (to try to get it to shift to 2nd before reving too high) the revs will stick and the transmission will hang up a moment before shifting. I just figured I was confusing the transmission when I lifted my foot, but maybe this is a related issue.
-juice
-Frank P.
IIRC Frank managed 33 mpg on his old one? I could never match what you got.
-juice
Mine is silver, btw - I've never seen another XT on the road & only a couple NA Foresters...
Where's that 7 seater?
-juice
-Frank P.