Subaru XT Turbo Forester

bluesubie

"...and they can't get enough cupholders..."

Hey, I resemble that remark! I ordered UK rear cupholders for my Rex. ;-p

-Dennis

ateixeira

I swapped my single cup holder for the dual one from the 2001 Forester. Took my dash apart to do so!

Even on my wife's Legacy, I got the trim and cup holder from a 2001 and added it to her 2003, so she also has an extra cup holder.

Maybe all those cup holders are part of the reason we don't fit in the seats! We can't stop eating or drinking, LOL!

-juice

rickrover

I'd have opted for a Forester STi instead of my WRX STi in a heartbeat. Theoretically you could swap all the STi hardware into a Forester. Makes me want to start looking for a totalled STi with the mechanicals still intact. Then find a nice Forester transplant recipient. :-)

dnestr

I found broken cup holders in my almost new Isuzu (was purchased in the US, in excellent condition, no one scratch on the body or inside). They were the only thing out of order. Perhaps, Juice is right - cup holders are a great favorite of yours, guys:-)

f1_rox

I have a clicking sound coming from the right rear end. It is apparent when there is a slight movement, like reverse, launching, and small bumps. I'm not convinced that it is the suspension because there is no noise when I go over larger bumps. Anyone experiencing the same clicking noise? It sounds like plastic touching with something...

bobshere1

Maybe all those cup holders are part of the reason we don't fit in the seats! We can't stop eating or drinking, LOL!

-juice

        McDonald's announced today that they are eliminating "Super Sizing".....

ateixeira

orders one of those new salads

:-)

-juice

ezshift5

.....our particular favorites contain reference to the "Teflon" and 'tupperware' lower body cladding on the Forester X........ez

miamixt

Sounds painful? however I hear a Clicking whenever I am cleaning my XT's Mud flaps. You might check and see if the Mud Flaps are secure as they are made out of Fiberglass or Plastic, just press on them to see if this might be the sound you are hearing.

ateixeira

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item- =2464146341&category=31868

Suspension too.

-juice

dnestr

Seems, an elk was caught on the roof.

raybear

In the Bronx? That car hit a hooman!

dnestr

OK, then let it be an old blind horse ran away from the Bronx Stables. Does it exist there?:-)

rickrover

I saw that STi on Ebay too - the front buckets should bolt right into a Forester as well.

The cheapest 03 new body style Forester I've found is $13k - a base model with 25k miles on it - perfect transplant recipient.

Actually that drive train should fit into any old Impreza.

I'd prefer to bolt it into a base Forester - steel wheels and all - talk about a sleeper.

Your 911 - Corvette - M3 - just got SMOKED by a Forester X.

paisan

my guess is the wiring harness is a bit toasty, not to mention the PITA it will be to get working right. It is doable, but will cost about 4K-5K in labor.

-mike

ateixeira

They do say it runs...

-juice

oregonboy

"Sweet dreams are made of this,
Who am I to disagree?
Travel the world and the seven seas,
Everybody's lookin' for something..."

james

ateixeira

Sounds like harmless fun to me given the traffic conditions. And a little cat and mouse is not the same as street racing.

-juice

akasrp

FYI for any iPod owners.
Just slipped on a black iSkins and plugged in an iTrip FM transmitter.
Plays well via the XT’s on-board FM.
iPod stashes neatly into ashtrayless ‘hole’ (remove the ashtray insert), dash storage bin (preferred as iSkins very non-skid on the mat inside the bin) or cupholder.
I was dubious about FM quality ‘transmitted’ sound but am pleased. Great way to have MP3 flexibility without resorting to surgery or transplants.
If you already have the 'pod it's a no-brainer at $30...

Rock On,
srp

ps: Yesterday's fill-up ($2.17 91 Octane Costco) Average MPG 20.5 in mixed driving.

samiam_68

Looks like my 5MT XT's gas mileage is improving with warmer weather - 22.5 at last fill-up, 70/30 hwy/city. Cruise control on at 70 for about 80 miles.

subearu

stever

Let's not relive the street racing stories again, whether you think they were racing or not.

Steve, Host

p0926

Just finished a trip to NC. Since I've made this trip numerous times in the past and have always gotten good mileage I made a conscious effort to stay off the boost this time just to see what kind of mpg I could get. Well by averaging about 65 mph on the hwy I was able to get 26.3 mpg. 350 on the trip odo and the low fuel light wasn't even on. Anybody been able to top that?

-Frank P.

subearu

That is excellent mileage. So, you basically kept 'er under 3k RPM's and shifted early, all while being light on the pedal?

-Brian

p0926

Well I "tried" to keep it under 3k rpms ;-) However, I didn't make any particular effort to shift early. Basically I just tried to accelerate smoothly and used the cruise control as much as possible.

-Frank P.

bsumpter

On highway trips I'm consistently in the 25-26 mpg range, running around 70-75 mph on cruise. Nothing ever lower than 25 on 100% highway tanks...

I've noticed my mileage has climbed slightly in the last month or so - I've gotten 23 mpg on the last 5 tanks in a row, where it was usually right at 22 before. I'm at around 15,500 miles now, maybe the engine has loosened up a bit finally.

jchagtdi

Last October, I test drove a brand new Forester XT 5 speed. I agree with the Forum member who said "don't drive one unless you plan on buying it....everything else jut seems slow now"

 My only issue with the XT was the short gearing of the 5 speed, and my perceived ill-mated combination of the engine and tranny. The only time I could smoothly shift the XT, was when it was not in boost. When I would wind it up to redline, the shifts were very herky-jerky. The short throw shifter and the copious torque made the XT very difficult to shift smoothly and drive aggressively simultaneously. Has anyone driven both the Forester XT and Baja Turbo 5 speed? I have always owned stick shift cars, but my idea of a smooth shift, and the XT's idea are two polar expectations. I love the diabolical thrust of the 2.5T, but I'm thinking the automatic may be the better choice for me.

The salesguy drove the car off the lot and for the first few miles, and he too could not shift the car smoothly while the turbo was on boil. I'd love to hear from any 2.5T 5 speed owners. Do the gear changes get smoother as either the clutch is broken in or you get more familiar with the right RPM/clutch action?

I am also considering a WRX wagon. Can someone who has driven both the XT and WRX compare the driving dynamics between these two.

Thanks!

raybear

Never had a problem.

jumper3

Go for the 5 speed! I now have 9000 miles on my MT Java Black XT. I remember my test drive when I was embarassed by how poorly I thought I was shifting despite years of having driven stick shifts... I practically gave the poor sales guy whiplash (alright, maybe some of it was on purpose) but the point is that I did get used to the uniqueness of the XT's 5 speed and my shifting is 100% smoother. Interestingly I find that I shift smoother when I'm more generous with the gas pedal than when I'm just boringly driving like I would with any other generic stick shift.

bluesubie

I used to own a WRX but now have an XT partially due to the high WRX thefts in my area.

The XT is trickier to get a smooth shift under hard acceleration. After some practice though, it all comes together. :-)

The WRX is the better handler, especially in the twisties. It's also a little easier to shift smoothly and the turbo lag can work in your favor cruising at slow speeds around town. The WRX gets slightly better gas mileage, depending how heavy your foot is.

The XT gets the All Weather Package that I've wanted ever since my wife got her 99 OB Ltd. The XT is also roomier and is virtually lag free. I don't think I can go back to a 2.0 turbo. There's an old thread here about WRX vs. XT if you look around.

-Dennis

ateixeira

Wow, Frank, you should patent your driving technique!

-juice

kens

Yes, the XT MT is difficult to shift smoothly, especially 1->2. But I find that even with my paltry 165HP 98 Forester S MT, I find 1->2 to be quite rough under hard acceleration.

Jack B would have had a great answer for that one. Where's he been?

Ken

ateixeira

HAL got him. LOL

-juice

ateixeira

True, you have to account for load on the engine, and more importantly throttle position. Certainly if it's lugging that's not good.

Consider this - your mileage going up hill is much worse than going down hill, even at the same rpm. It's the fuel required at that rpm that deteremines actual mileage, not the rpm itself.

The theory may apply in steady-state cruising on a flat surface within a certain rpm range, maybe 2000-redline.

-juice

carliker

I'm usually in the RX-8 threads so I apologize if this question has already been answered. However, I don't understand why Car & Driver states the 0 to 60 time for the Subaru Forester XT as being 5.3 seconds (check article of 5 best trucks) when that is absolutely absurd when considering HP (210 HP), lbs of torque (238) and the weight of the car (over 3200). That's clearly the 0 to 60 speed of the STI (300HP/300 lbs. of torque), but C&D publishes that it's the Forester XT numbers. This would be more than just a typo since C&D states it in more than one place or article. Every other magazine or article I've seen states it being in the mid six second range (6.4 to 6.7) which seems to be more realistic. Motor Trend states the 0 to 60 time as actually being 8.5 seconds. What is going on here with Car & Driver? I'd be interested in hearing thoughts on this from people who have seen the C&D articles. Their credibility seems faulty.

once_for_all

My recollection is that they did a 4,000 rpm clutch dump in 1st gear.

Also, true hp for the XT is much closer to 245 according to some dynamometer tests.

John

njswamplands

rsholland

He's a CPA. We 've probably lost him until April 16th.

Bob

beanboy

Multiple XTs have done the 1/4 in under 14 seconds, it is at least a few tenths faster than the WRX to 60.

-B

jimqpublic

Most mags either publish the factory advertized 0-60 times or the non-turbo times.

Motor Trend probably had trouble finding the ignition key. Or maybe a Le Mans start.

C&D obviously wanted to see the most it would do. They had a note on their web page responding to some questions regarding the 5.3 second number. Definitely the XT and definitely multiple tries at getting the best acceleration. Also they might have mentioned using a correction factor, I don't recall.

Jim
Forester XT Auto

p0926

Yep, no doubt C&D did the clutch dump method to achieve the 5.3 sec 0-60 time. But they test all their cars using the same methods so you can do an apples to apples comparison. For example they tested a $95k Porsche Cayenne Turbo in the same issue and it achieved a 5.0 0-60 time (the Forester was actually 2/10 faster thru 50 mph). Also, you have to but get behind the wheel of a XT to realize that the Forester can haul [non-permissible content removed]. However, a 0-60 time in the low 6 sec range is probably more realistic for the owner who doesn't want to abuse his ride. The Motor Trend times are clearly for the normally aspirated 2.5L Forester.

So how is it possible to achieve those times given the stated weight to hp ratio? It shouldn't be which is why the commonly accepted theory is that Subaru under-reported the true hp & torque figures for the XT. Considering that the engine in the XT and 300 hp STi are quite similar makes that even more believable. The true hp for the XT is somewhere in the 240 range and the torque 250. Couple all that torque (which comes on very early) with the 5-speed’s extremely short gearing and you can generate some serious thrust.

-Frank P.

p0926

As others have pointed out, it does take a little while to get the hang of shifting the XT MT. Like Jumper3, my car salesman could have filed a claim for whiplash after my initial test drive (only slight exaggeration). But your shifting will eventually smooth out as you get use to the XT's unique gearing :-)

-Frank P.

jchagtdi

I feel better now. The head rocking kinda startled and spooked me when I drove the XT. I was thinking I had no ther choice than an automatic. Thanks for the info.

As far as different magazines posting different 0-60 times, I've seen a published 5.1 sec 0-60 time. Motor Trend compared the XT to the WRX and stated that it had "more space and more PACE" The numbers for the WRX escape me right now, but this implied that the XT was quicker than the WRX.
I have owned a quick car, a 2002 Nissan Altima 3.5SE. It had a published 0-60 of 6.4 sec. After driving the XT, there is no doubt in my mind that the XT can do the 0-60 in the low 5s. These XTs go like stink!

hypov

The numbers for the WRX escape me right now, but this implied that the XT was quicker than the WRX.

the WRX [0-60 @ 5.6sec] has 227 hp 217 lbs/ft while the XT pumps up ~250 hp ??? lbs/ft

-Dave

subearu

the XT has a 4.44 final drive, making it accelerate (along with 210hp on 'paper' or 240hp dyno'd) quickly. It's geared quick and spools quick. Plain and simple.

-Brian

hypov

anyone have the dyno'd numbers on torque?

-Dave

subearu

I read 250-ish for torque somewhere, but I have no idea if that was just in reading the forums here or in a Thursday chat window. It's 235 lb-ft on 'paper'.

-Brian

hypov

Thanks Brian

-Dave

zman

On my test drive (see post #3733) I noted some idiosyncracies with the F-XT (MT), which at the time I attributed to unfamiliar surroundings and urban driving. Now I read that a number of people had strange (rather humbling) test drives with the 5-speed.

Thanks for identifying that it really takes some getting used to. It looks like I'm going to have to spend a lot more time with this vehicle on my next test drive.

Also, I'm glad to hear that some of the gas mileage numbers are improving, particularly on the highway--with modest attention paid to the gas pedal.

This all makes me more optimistic as I set out to look at the '05 OB-XT in comparison to the '04 F-XT. (I really do want to keep driving a manual transmission). I know the OB-XT is not out yet, but any speculation on what I'll find in terms of handling vis a vis the Forester?

Zman

p0926

A word of caution regarding gas mileage, for whatever reason, many owners aren't going to get 25+ mpg on the hwy. It's always best to plan on getting the EPA avg and then you'll be pleasantly surprised if you exceed it.

IRT your handling question, I would expect the OB XT to be quieter and more refined but the FXT will be more fun to drive and manueverable due to its smaller platform.

-Frank P.

P.S. Did you move? I thought you lived in NH.