WTF Subaru? v. Car shopping

NYSpeed Automotive
1

So I’m looking to get out of the Jetta. It’ll be mostly my car, but ideally something for the wifey to take to the southtowns (for work) on shitty/burly/hairy/snowy days. So we need something:

-Reliable
-Safe
-AWD/4WD
-Manual Transmission (actually her requirement, she’s never driven auto in her life)
-Usefully large (think midsized SUV, large wagon, etc)
-Easy for her to drive (she’s used to small sedans/subaru wagons. Never driven anything “truck-like”)
-15k at most used, 20k at most new

So what do we find that is absolutely fucking perfect? Northtown has a pair of 2006 Subaru Baja 5MT’s on their lot that they’ll get rid of for a few thousand below sticker. So I do some checking and they were never crash tested, but they’re Legacy Outbacks with a pickup bed. In 2006 Subaru redesigned the doors a bit and side crash tests improved dramatically.

Perfect! Just barely within our price range, reliable, good on gas, easy for her to drive, AWD, manual transmission, absurdly useful, should be just as safe as the legacy.

BUT SUBARU DIDN’T PUT THE FUCKING SIDE AIR BAGS IN THE BAJA!!! :rubicant:

What the fuck?! Subaru’s are typically the safest cars on the road, yet they build a brand new car in 2006 with only 2 front air bags?

So now I’m back to trying to figure out what to do. The woman doesn’t want a Subaru wagon because that’s all she’s ever had and if we’re going to drop 20g’s she wants to be excited. Fair enough I guess. The only other car I can think of that’s useful, safe, reliable, manual, and reasonably in our price range are Hyundai Santa Fe’s and used Honda CR-V’s. Neither of us want a Hyndai and the CR-V doesn’t excite me much at all. Plus they’re damn near impossible to find with a stick. Anything else that’s big-wagon sized or larger is auto-only, or marginal crash test ratings, or both.

:picard:

None of it may matter because I have to sell my Jetta to be able to do anything, but we’ll see. There’s an '04 Explorer with 20k miles for sale nearby that I could probably get for about $13k. Maybe I’ll just bring it home and tell her to sit on her clutch foot.:nono:

2

You need good snow tires, not AWD. I though you were smart enough to know that, and not buy into the whole AWD 4wd thing. :gotme:

Keep your options more open.

X…

3

Yep, I agree. But the big reason why I want her to have 4/A wheel drive is so that I don’t get a phone call at 3 in the afternoon with her on the other end of the line saying “Jim I’m stuck in my clients driveway. Come help me!” :ham:

But that’s a good point. Maybe that’s what will give. Gotta compromise somewhere…

4

I will say this.

I just picked up a '96 Subaru Legacy Outback wagon.

It is a blast to drive. Handles awesome despite it’s long wheelbase and being on high-profile all-seasons. Solid gas mileage.

That said, good snows will get a FWD through nearly all weather conditions too, but once you go AWD, you don’t go back. You notice the difference in handling, even on dry roads. And in the snow, it makes a HUGE difference in control on snow-covered roads. You have more control in turns, and also using engine braking with AWD allows much more control on hill descents and stopping in the snow.

Edit - ANd this is coming from someone that spends their winters driving thru the WNY snowbelt region on a daily basis.

5

How about a Forester?

6

[quote=“MXS,post:5,topic:33045"”]

How about a Forester?

[/quote]

.

7

Oh, and the outback, you can lay the seats flat, and lay down completely with the hatch closed. And I’m 6 feet tall.

Tons of interior room. Back seat area is very generous in terms of legroom.

The Forester has a slightly shorter wheelbase, but still tons of interior space.

8

you need to come buy a 4 motion passat from me…

call the haus,
ask for steve…

forget northtown

9

what about a forrester xt? i want a orld rally blue one so bad…

edit: mxs is smarter and faster than me

10

Wait for the forester sti?

11

[quote=“BikerFry”"]

The woman doesn’t want a Subaru wagon because that’s all she’s ever had and if we’re going to drop 20g’s she wants to be excited.

[/quote]

.

12

I’ll pretend you didn’t just suggest another VAG product. :zong: I swore them off again Wednesday when coolant was spilling all over the driveway because I had to put the front lock carrier into service mode to replace a sensor coolant temp sensor that was sending a faulty signal to the ECU, that was held in by a plastic clip that broke when I tried to remove it. Ultimately replacing the sensor didn’t work and it now seems that I have an ECU problem, not a sensor problem.

Yeah I may have to chokeabitch until she gives and admits that a scooby wagon would be ideal, despite the fact that she wouldn’t be excited. (Her mom just traded in her 2003 Forester, and had about 4 legacy wagons in a row before that.) Granted driving the Forester kind of sucked, but just a short throw would probably help immensely. So would a turbo. :snky:

Do all Subaru’s have loose/sloppy feeling shifters? Is it just a soft bushing or something? I guess their new outbacks aren’t so bad, but the last couple of Subaru’s they had all felt like you were rowing through the gears with a dildo.

13

baja’s are hideous, i can’t believe you guys even considered them!

i’d love to rock a legacy/impreza wagon - can’t go wrong…

14

[quote=“BikerFry,post:12,topic:33045"”]

probably help immensely. So would a turbo. :snky:

Do all Subaru’s have loose/sloppy feeling shifters? Is it just a soft bushing or something? I guess their new outbacks aren’t so bad, but the last couple of Subaru’s they had all felt like you were rowing through the gears with a dildo.

[/quote]

Yes, alot of people just throw in the karboy bushings and that makes a huge difference.

15

[quote=“chino,post:13,topic:33045"”]

baja’s are hideous, i can’t believe you guys even considered them!

[/quote]

dot

16

Hahaha yeah, I guess I’ve got a thing for gay cars. Now about a Forester…

Does anyone have that photochop of the Subaru vs 350Z ad? The original said something like “The mighty 350Z just got smoked by a family of 4 and their golden retriever.” The chop read “The mighty 350Z just got smoked by 2 dykes and their cocker spaniel.”

Legacy wagon wouldn’t be a bad deal. But I was crawling around an Impreza wagon the other night that SI01 left unlocked :mamoru: and I was amazed at how little cargo room there really is in the little bugger. My trunk has more space than that hatch. I mean, it’s not “bad” but I’m looking to upgrade to something bigger.

Legacy wagon could work, Forester wagon could work, the woman won’t want either one, but she’s a sucker for a good sales pitch and features. :gotme:

17

what exactly does she need to lug around? the impreza wagon didn’t have sufficient space for it?

18

I don’t have the ad but that shit was silly.

I saw a WRB forrester xt sport at stpr and i have secretly wanted to buy one and slap gold wheels on it since. Since it would be cheaper to maintain than the steye i would have defintely thrown some fun stuff into it and make a sleeper.

[quote=“chino,post:17,topic:33045"”]

what exactly does she need to lug around? the impreza wagon didn’t have sufficient space for it?

[/quote]

Not a dead hooker cause lord knows i have helped jeff get rid of many of those.

19

This will be mostly my car. I like to do all sorts of shit to my house, so who knows. Rug doctor, 2x4’s, plants/bushes, dog crate, boxed up patio furniture, shelving, blah blah blah.

20

[quote=“BikerFry,post:12,topic:33045"”]

Do all Subaru’s have loose/sloppy feeling shifters? Is it just a soft bushing or something? I guess their new outbacks aren’t so bad, but the last couple of Subaru’s they had all felt like you were rowing through the gears with a dildo.

[/quote]

:lol:

My OB does have the massive dildo shifter, but it’s silky smooth in and out, and I can shift quickly, and have never missed a gear in it yet.

I’ve gotten quite used to it actually.