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Comments
definitely lighted switches...it's tough to find stuff at night
improved lighting modules for all cars: both main and fogs
if possible, fold down rear seats for legacy sedan
As said before, AVCS and double AVCS
larger standard wheels/tires package comparable to JDM and EDM, and improved braking modules
Nuff said
On a whole 'nother note... SNOW! We got a bunch last night... 6 inches in our yard... up to 11 or 12 inches in the northwest part of town. It's so cool how winter driving in my OB is such a non-event
Cheers!
Paul
Loosh: this ain't Europe. ;-)
Hmm, dinner with speakers, I'm not sure how much time we'll have on the 6th. Maybe on the 7th, when we'll be browsing the show. What time does the show shut its doors? We could do a chat 2 hours after that, say 7pm if they closed at 5pm. Who needs food? LOL
-juice
There are few storage areas compared to most cars.
Follow the lead of Honda and forget the ashtray, make that another storage area.
Put at least the small roof console of the Forester in these vehicles as well so there's space dedicated to glasses or other small items.
Make the flip down above the rear view mirror large enough to completely shield the gap between the sun visors. As it is there are gaps large enough to cause serious sun issues which is what it's supposed to address.
Put pull out extensions in the sun visors so when they are swung in front of the door window they cover totally.
Put a second smaller visor behind the primary one so you can shade both front and side at the same time for driving in twisties.
Make the windows both auto up and down from the main controls and light all switches as well as a lighted ring around the ignition switch. Make the ignition switch light timed delay like the dome light so you have time to get the key in after you shut the door.
Put defrosters in both door mirrors that work with the rear window defroster. There are lots of mornings when the dew is on them just like on the rear window.
Greater variation in the intermittent speed of the wipers.
I doubt there is over $100 cost to Subaru to implement every one of these suggestions and I'd gladly have paid another $150 for my car if it had all these features.
-Brian
Eric
P.S.: I know Juice's story was extremely funny and creative, but don't forget my post.
Here it is again..
Not balanced you say? Well riddle me this: why is the engine in the front of the car--OK OK easy to access.
Maybe for performance models: put the engine behind the front wheels for more of a 50/50 weight distribution. Others already do it--Acura NSX, Infiniti G35, Honda S2000 etc.
Possibly for STI models and/or the B11S...
Thoughts?
Eric
I understand that there are changes brewing with all our flags, so no PRC flag is in the pipeline.
Remember the mantra... change is good, change is good...
Steve, Host
I say Edmunds and SoA should come up with custom World Rally Blue baseball warm-up style jackets with appropriate logos for Edmunds, Subaru of American and , of course, SUBARU CREW,for Juice , Bob and Patti, with their names sewn on, of course, and matching ball caps . And then there needs to be an advance photo shoot so they can make life size paper cut-outs that will be on the floor in Detroit so Juice, Bob and Patti can go to lunch, etc., and in the meantime every Crew member who visits can be photographed with our VIP members in front of a new Legacy GT!
Get this taken care of and we can talk about hybrid diesels and roadsters later!
They couldn't have found better representatives!
Mark
I already included VTD in my wish list: subearu Nov 21, 2003 4:26pm
-Brian
Subaru would lose my wife as a customer.
Bob
At 8:07 pm Thursday, November 20, We welcomed Paul Edward Tyler Johnson into the world. A lot of names for a little boy; 6 lb., 6 oz., 19" long. Dubbed "cute and feisty" by his nurses.
Not named for the Crew's Paul (sorry ;-)) but his maternal grandfather. Edward is his paternal grandfather's name (as well as his father's). Tyler, although very trendy these days, is actually a family name. My mother's mother was a Tyler, descended from US President John (as in "Tippecanoe and...too!") and English peasant rebellion leader Wat.
Mother and baby are still resting in hospital and are scheduled to come hom on Monday. Dad is at home, feeding the cat and getting the house in order for the homecoming, with hopes to get a nap in somehow.
I spoke to juice a few minutes ago and he told me about Bob's and his invitation to the Detroit Auto Show from SoA. What a coup for both of you - especially with no "photo embargo." Congrats and don't forget to bring lots of film and/or a big memory card or two. Will try to catch up on the rest as time permits. As I told juice, I have plenty of time to offer my SoA product suggestions to him, and most of mine have been pretty consistent anyway.
Ed
Bob
I'm so glad everyone is great and healthy!
Do try to get some rest before he comes home.
Brogan & Brooke say hi!
-Brian
Craig
Thanks,
Ed
-Colin
All those names and not a Dave, Steve, Mike or k among them. ;-)
DaveM
P.S. Congrats to juice and Bob too!
Eric
I miss the "Dysfunctional Family Circus" and its sick sense of humor, though I can understand how the authors of the original strip would not be pleased.
Ed
Juice- wouldn't that be Rallye Sport with an "e?" He does have a Ford, you know.
I'm sure you'll truly love the incredible changes that are now coming your way. Please congratulate your wife for us too!
Patti
Cheers Pat.
I made my own and the time period is thirty seconds, in order to do this on the OEM unit all they have to do is change the discharge capacitor.
Cheers Pat.
Eric: I like the idea. VTD is already 45/55, with a rear bias. The term "Subaru AWD" is confusing because you're really referring to 3 completely different systems.
LOL Swampy!
I found a loophole on the name! I wanted Ed to use the name "Dave", or at least "Mike", you'll recall. Well, I got my wish, but not the way I thought I would. You'll recall another common demographic is we all have pets, right?
Well, riddle me this. Paul Edward Tyler = P.E.T. Coincidence?
sounds of a struggle, as men in white lab coats force juice back into his straight jacket
-juice
Patti
Another Paul is another Paul, and for all the right reasons!
Bubble gum cigars all around!
Cheers!
Paul
Having driven both, I think the main differences are this:
CRV - bigger, more room inside, nice backseat and good cargo room. Underpowered though, and the handling is pretty bad. Feels like driving a bus. The interior has a hose-out "vinyl" quality to it, which may be a plus or minus to some people.
Forester - smaller inside, and the back seat is very tight. Good power in the base models, outrageous power in the XT. Handling is excellent for a pseudo SUV, and it's a lot of fun to drive.
We test drove a CR-V in Aug 02, and both my wife and I were very underwhelmed. The lack of power and tippy ride/handling really turned us off. We test drove a Forester a few hours later, and both had a blast. Bought a Forester XS that night!
Bottom line, you need to test drive them both. The XT will knock your socks off, I am sure of it. The CR-V is going to be like driving a VW bus in comparison!
Craig
-Dave
But- --it would be nice to have you join our crew!
Patti
Craig
To Ed and family...congratulations to all of you on your new crew member.
Serge, Susan, and Michael
Patti
And even with a boost in horsepower this year it still feels underpowered.And as Craig pointed out the handling leaves a lot to be desired, but test drive both and form your own opinions.
Cheers Pat.
But I did drive both Forester and CR-V, and must agree with others that the CRV has some significant handling deficiencies. Its part-time "RealTime" AWD system is not as refined either, making it less off-road worthy.
Whew! So much happening here in the crew I'm having trouble keeping up.
thanks,
Craig
So now that we have the Forester and newborn in common, shall we move on to some turbo action?
Ken
Special congrats to Ed on the birth of his son. Life as you knew it will never be the same!
Juice and Bob: Lets really push those execs for the 7-seater. The Crew has lots of kids to move around -- we need that full-time AWD kid mover!
Jon
A big congraulations to you and the new family!
Can't wait until he can on backroad drives with us! :-)
-Dennis
Thank you all for the kind words and thoughts. I spoke to juice on Friday and hope to speak to more of you soon.
We expect life to be different but a good different. Sure some things won't be as easy to do (or won't be doable at all) anymore, but there will be plenty of new things to be done.
Ed
Eric: right off the bat, I'd cut that difference in half. If we look at real-world pricing, the CR-V EX 5 speed TMVs for $21,629.
The XT 5 speed has an incentive on it now, I've seen them for under $24k. TMV is $24,069, and Edmunds has not yet taken the current incentives into account. So the actual difference is less than $2k.
For that you give up some rear leg room and a picnic table, plus a small moonroof.
You gain:
* 16" alloys, vs. 15"
* bigger brakes with twin piston calipers
* 4 channel ABS vs. 3 for Honda
* About 90 real-world horsepower (dyno proven)
* About 100 lb-ft of torque
* heated seats
* heated mirrors
* front and rear windshield wiper de-icers
* rear Limited-slip Differential (open on Honda)
* 3 years roadside assistance (vs. zero)
* 5/60 powertrain warranty, vs. 3/36
* roof rack cross bars
* 900 lbs payload, vs. 850
* 2400 lbs towing, vs. 1500
* 150 lbs roof capacity, vs. 100 IIRC?
* full-time AWD vs. part-time
Both score well on safety (CR-V EX, at least). In bumper-basher tests the Forester suffers far less damage, due to the spare tire location on the CR-V.
I don't think the CR-V is underpowered, it's comparable to the Forester X. But definitely not in the same league as the XT, which easily outruns the Acura NSX and the Honda S2000 in a straight line.
If you want a quick Honda SUV, the closest you'll come is a Saturn Vue Redline, which uses Honda's 3.5l V6 from the Pilot is a lighter, smaller Vue body. I priced it out, and you can actually get a Forester XT for less, plus the Subie is still quicker..
-juice
Jim