What is your favorite Subaru model and why? (2013, auto, SUV)

[highlanderfil]

Originally Posted by PokerMunkee

I'm probably going to get a '15 WRX in 6 months. Really has grown on me and is a bargain for $32K loaded up.

I'm beginning to be more at peace with it, but for the wheels (too tiny) and total lack of any kind of visual cues on which to focus. It's just so...blah.

[vision33r]

Originally Posted by clutchrider

Forester STI. Never came to the states and I would have loved one.

Not that hard to build one, couple of guys have sourced parts and perform STI engine + tranny swap to build it. The good thing about Subarus is most of them are like legos and parts from different models same gen can be swapped in.

In another 5-6 yrs, you can probably build one for under $15k.

[jambo101]

Back in the Early 90s i had a Subaru Loyale, great little car and at the push of a button on the stickshift you had real four wheel drive,with 4 Bridgestone Blizzaks mounted i was the fastest car on the road in 2ft of snow., would have bought another but they stopped making it and brought out the more expensive Imprezza with something called all wheel drive.

[2tall]

Originally Posted by highlanderfil

Not sure what economy and supercars you've been driving... 268 hp and close to 30 mpg highway. I challenge you to find an economy car with that HP and a supercar, short of the Porsche 918, with that kind of mileage.

Full disclosure, I am a disillusioned WRX owner. I traded in an 80s Corvette for a 2005 WRX. The old ratty corvette was a superior performer in every category, with about the same MPG (Except it ran on 87 octane.)


Let's compare a few cars.

2015 wrx:
mpg: auto:19/25 man:21/28
hp: 268

Cars with significantly more power, and similar gas mileage:

2015 v6 mustang:
mpg: auto:19/31 man: 19/28
hp: 305

2015 v8 mustang:
mpg: auto:18/25 man: 15/26
hp: 420
(Notable because the automatic gets virtually the same MPG as the WRX, but has 152 more horspower.)

2015 Base Corvette:
mpg: 17/29
hp: 460

2015 Genesis Sedan v6:
mpg: 18/27
hp: 333
This car weighs 800lbs more than the WRX.


Let's look at a random car with similar hp:

2015 V6 Accord
Mpg: 19/31
HP: 250
Better mpg, and outweighs the WRX by 300lbs.

2013 Malibu turbo: (Most comparable car, but fwd)
Mpg: 21/30
HP: 259
Weighs 300lbs more than the WRX.


Now, none of the cars above are AWD. Obviously the AWD system hurts performance and gas mileage to a noticeable degree. But I have a hard time blaming the AWD system entirely, when much heavier cars do better.


Just for giggles:
2015 WRX STI
MPG: 17/23
HP: 305hp
^ About as much power (but same or less MPG) compared to mid priced sports cars in 1992.














PS- I like the SVX the best. It's still cool.

[Drover]

WRX for obvious reasons. Bug-eye version is my fave to come to the USA, also liked the first generation whose appearance was re-created here in the 2.5RS.

Come to think of it I wouldn't mind a first-gen 2.5RS is a rallycross/ice-trial toy. More than adequate power for the task, good low-end grunt for squirting out of tight corners with no turbo lag to worry about, and about 300lbs lighter than a bug-eye WRX.


ETA: Another Subie I really like (and almost bought one of) is the sleeper Outback XT with a 5-speed. Unfortunately they are extremely difficult to find and the lowest-mileage example I could find in my region had 25K more miles than my existing car and I just couldn't justify trading into a car with 25K more miles than my then-current ride.

Originally Posted by xjken

2005-2009 Legacy GT. In 2007 my wife was looking to buy a new car and I was seriously pushing for the Legacy GT. Test drove one of them five different times, mainly just to drive it. The wife thought they were a little small and opted for the Mazda 6.

Same story here. Wife really likes Mazdas, the 6 in particular. I was really pushing for a LGT. Met in the middle and ended up with a Speed6.

[phlinak]

Originally Posted by wcu25rs

I voted for the WRX/STi since that's what I own, but honestly, outside of the Tribeca, there isnt a single model I wouldnt own. I'm a Subie fanatic.

I had a '00 2.5RS that I bought with 49k. I sold it with 105k on it and the only thing I had to do it was an 02 sensor and a rear wheel bearing. So about $450 worth of unexpected repairs over 56k miles....not bad.

Ive had my current 03 WRX wagon since 58k and it now has 152k, and on it, Ive had to replace an 02 sensor, 1 upper radiator hose and both front axles(though only 1 boot was tore...might as well replace both). So about $500-$600 worth of unexpected repairs in nearly 100k miles.

Stuff like that is the reason why I'll probably own nothing but Subarus until they give me a reason not to.

I see that the Tribeca has not received one vote, which kinda surprises me.

Does anyone care to comment on why the Tribeca doesn't get any love?

I can understand why the Baja or Brat might get only a few votes because they're niche vehicles but for the 7 passenger Tribeca not get any votes? I must admit I'm somewhat surprised.

[2tall]

You know, the FIRST year Tribeca... I really liked that thing. The interior is fantastic. Daring styling too. Ugly, sure. But daring.

[highlanderfil]

Disclaimer: I didn't say that there aren't more capable cars than the WRX, nor did I say that there aren't ones with better MPG. I just said that your premise is flawed as there isn't a single supercar with better gas mileage, nor is there a single economy car with similar horsepower. You can still find, on balance, vehicles that have similar nominal HP and in some cases torque (which is the more important measure when it comes to off-the-line performance) numbers, as well as MPG, but they will not be in the categories you mentioned. Nor will most have AWD. All the cars you have cited, bar the sports cars, come almost exclusively with automatic transmissions (except the Accord which sells a tiny percentage of manuals) geared for fuel economy. The WRX was never supposed to be an MPG vehicle - different purposes entirely.

Originally Posted by 2tall

Let's compare a few cars.

Let's. Not a single car you've mentioned is a supercar or an economy car. Getting that out of the way, let's take a look at your list (btw, you ARE aware of the fact that horsepower is only a quarter of the story and that gearing, displacement, induction and driveline play just as substantial a role in both performance and gas mileage, right?):

2015 v6 mustang

2015 v8 mustang

2015 Base Corvette

Quite capable, but RWD and generally incomparable (although not as much as some of the other cars). In general, considerably more expensive (base-to-base), excluding the first one. Not one of them fits under "super car" or "economy car".

2015 Genesis Sedan v6

In what universe are these comparable? Again, neither super, nor economy.

2015 V6 Accord

FWD, horrible body roll, not performance, not economy, certainly not super. Have you driven one?

2013 Malibu turbo: (Most comparable car, but fwd)

How is a full-size car that is notorious for not making nearly the most of its 250 HP (same story with the lighter and smaller Malibu) "most comparable" with an AWD performance compact???

Now, none of the cars above are AWD. Obviously the AWD system hurts performance and gas mileage to a noticeable degree. But I have a hard time blaming the AWD system entirely, when much heavier cars do better.

AWD hurts performance? In what way, exactly?

^ About as much power (but same or less MPG) compared to mid priced sports cars in 1992.

I have no idea what this has to do with anything.

[fallingwater]

I bought my first Subaru in late 2012. We bought a 2013 Subaru Outback. I have owned a lot of cars and by far its my favorite. We definitely got our money's worth this winter! We have had record snowfalls this year and our county is pretty terrible about plowing our subdivision. There were many times we were one of the very few that got out. Even larger SUVs were stuck and we plowed right through with no problems. My only compliant is that snow seems to pack pretty tightly in the wheel wells and freezes there. It rubs the tires and makes an awful sound.

[wcu25rs]

Originally Posted by 2tall

I really want to love the WRX. But it has economy car horsepower, and supercar gas mileage.

you serious? 0-60 times are low 5's(heck, 09 and 10's were 4.7) which is the quickest in its class. Supercar gas mileage? I know mine is a bit older but many times Ive gotten 30mpg on the interstate on trips in my 03 WRX.