Subaru (General)

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[Koo]

Did not know Subaru's six stars move around like the real thing in space!;)

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[Mr Krinkle]

http://carsmedia.ign.com/cars/image/article/702/702378/subaru-legacy-25-gt-2006-20060419031420693.jpg
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Subaru's Legacy is the last pretty car to be offered from the Paul Hogan/Lance Armstrong-backed manufacturer. Most of Subaru's cars get stuck with the "airplane face" or many panels of extra plastic body cladding, but not the Legacy. While the latest Legacy doesn't look as cool (in our opinion) as its boxier Japan-spec ancestors, the current Legacy still has a lot going on for it. The Legacy still has an attractive "face", a sleek and smooth shape and a powerful boxer engine. We must admit that we have a bit of a soft spot for Subarus, so we were pretty stoked when Subaru handed us the keys to its latest Legacy GT sedan.

Before we move on with this review, let us give you a brief insight as to how we view Subaru: We absolutely love old-school Subarus -- especially the ones found in Japan. We know we're alone in admitting this, but we think that hot-rod sedans and wagons are the absolute shizz-nit. Japan-spec Subarus -- especially the Legacy -- came with all sorts of performance-minded parts, such as aggressive aero kits, sport-tuned suspensions and powerful turbocharged engines. While Japan was getting fast and fun-to-drive Subies, U.S.-spec Legacies (Legacys?) were stuck with weak engines and bland styling. So when Subaru announced that a U.S.-spec Legacy was finally going to get a proper turbocharged engine, we were beside ourselves.

We've been waiting weeks and weeks to hop into this car, so we must be ready to gush praise, right? Well, this is not necessarily the case... Don't get us wrong, the Legacy is a fine car, but perhaps we let our imaginations determine how awesome the car was gonna be before we actually hopped inside one. We feel kind of let down, to be honest. The Legacy isn't the balls-out performance sedan that the 3.2-liter A4 or MazdaSpeed6 is, as the Legacy is a much milder ride.

Perhaps this "mild" ride is due to the automatic transmission our test car was equipped with. Yes, we said "automatic". Our 250 horsepower, 250 lb.-ft. torque sports sedan has a 5 speed slushbox -- emphasis on "slush". The Legacy's 2.5 liter turbo engine is similar to the one found in the WRX STI, but it feels so weak in the Legacy. It seems that the Legacy wants to shift up pretty early on, so the engine rarely gets a chance to get into its optimum powerband. In "regular" traffic, the transmission is always in a higher gear -- this may save fuel economy, but it makes the car feel sluggish and unresponsive.

We have had a few opportunities to "floor it" through an open stretch of road. Luckily we can actually feel the power here. When the Legacy gets the chance to run hard, it's like the car becomes "Mr. Hyde" when compared to "Dr. Jeckyl"-like behavior the car exhibits in normal driving conditions. The Legacy's auto tranny has a "sport shift" mode which can help things some, but we feel it still takes too long for the computer to downshift/upshift when we ask it to.

We know that we're among the few that will really feel let down by this auto tranny. People that purchase a Legacy for day-to-day errands will find this auto to be smooth and quiet. We don't buy cars for day-to-day errands -- especially when they're all wheel-drive and turbocharged. All wheel-drive turbo cars are supposed to be fun, and we think that the Legacy has the potential to be fun - it just needs to be equipped with the correct (manual) transmission. We'll be scoring a manual Legacy ASAP to see how right we are.

As we said, those that don't care too much about performance won't be let down by the auto tranny. The Legacy is a very nice car in every other aspect, and it's sure to win some fans. Our test car came equipped with heated leather front seats, dual-zone climate control, a 6-disc in-dash CD changer, navigation unit and more. The interior of the Legacy is a very nice and comfortable place to be -- we especially like the clean and thoughtful design and great outward visibility.

While we like the Legacy's interior, the steering wheel is a mixed bag for us. This, again, is due to the auto transmission. Like all sporty Subarus, the Legacy GT gets a Momo steering wheel, which we really like. However, this wheel has two sets of transmission-controlling buttons. Both the left and right spokes of the steering wheel have buttons which upshift and downshift the car. Using these buttons to shift isn't intuitive, especially as both sides have the same buttons and do the exact same things. It seems like a waste of space to us. We'd rather see the Legacy get paddle-style shifters (which are more intuitive) so that the "face" of the steering wheel can get "normal" audio controls.

Again, we're pretty sure that this isn't an issue with the manual-transmission Legacy.

Though it seems we're picking on the poor Legacy, we really like the car. It's stylish, has good power, has a nice interior, and its all wheel drive system kept us safe during SoCal's recent rainstorms. People looking for a fun and competent $30K sedan would be well-advised to check this car out. However, we feel that people wanting a fun drive should skip right over the auto-equipped car and choose a manual transmission.

[Mr Krinkle]

Subaru WRX TR review by ign.com.

Subaru WRX TR (2006)
Is this sedan tuner-ready or is it just a bare-bones economy ride?
by Justin Kaehler

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May 19, 2006 - Everyone knows all about Subaru's WRX by now. Since its introduction to U.S. shores back in 2001 (as an '02 model), car enthusiasts and "normal" folks alike have been enthralled with the Scooby's turbocharged engine, symmetrical all-wheel drive system and sedan/wagon practicality. In fact, it can be argued that it was the success of the WRX that encouraged more manufacturers to release small, sporty cars in the SUV-happy North American market.

The tuning crowd has always been a big supporter of the WRX. Here in SoCal, we see dozens of highly modified Subies at every car show. What's not to love about this car? Stock the WRX comes with a bitchin' engine, a bunch of brand-name performance parts, superb handling and a very reasonable price. If the standard car isn't enough, the WRX has a plethora of aftermarket parts available from Japan, Europe, Australia and the U.S. If you ask us, the WRX is a damn-near ideal tuner car.

Subaru has embraced the tuner crowd, and for '06, it released a tuner-ready variant of its WRX. Creatively named the WRX TR ("TR" stands for "tuner ready"), this car is more or less a base version of the Impreza stuffed with the WRX mechanicals.

From the outside, people will notice that the TR is missing the WRX aero kit (there is no type of aero to be found on the TR), fog lights, spoiler and body-colored mirrors. On the inside, the TR is missing the Momo steering wheel, the Recaro-made seats and has a cheap-looking stereo system and HVAC controls. Subaru's reasoning for this makes sense though. The company figures that most tuners will be ripping these pieces out anyway, so it just won't equip them on the car. Of course, if these parts aren't on the car, the buyer won't be charged for them, either. It's supposed to be a winning situation for the consumer.

Subaru's press site doesn't have an image of the TR's cockpit, so we pulled this interior shot of a standard 2.5i Impreza. The TR comes with a manual transmission, of course, but the rest of the interior looks pretty much the same.

As we said, there's not much going on in the cockpit of the WRX TR. Everything is functional and easy to use, so we really can't knock it. However, it certainly isn't an exciting place to be. But then again, that's the idea. The buyer is supposed to buy the seats and other parts to make this cockpit cool.

As it is though, the TR's cabin isn't bad. We subjected our TR to a lengthy road trip. We packed our TR test car four deep and headed out towards Phoenix International Raceway for GT Live. Those that have driven on the 10 freeway from Los Angeles to Phoenix will know that this route is nothing but desert. According to the outside thermometer equipped on our test car (which we lovingly called the "Subrometer"), we were constantly subjecting our test car to 100-110 degree temperatures. Though the TR comes equipped with only a basic A/C system, it worked very well and kept us cool the whole time.

As we faced long, open stretches of highway, we liked to open up the TR whenever the opportunity arose. Even with four adults and luggage in the car, the 230 horsepower boxer four was able to hurl the car forward with ease. Our test car also came equipped with four-piston front brakes, so we could stop rather well, too. The 100-plus degree heat didn't seem to affect the engine or brakes at all, which was good for us. We sure as hell didn't want to get stuck 75 miles outside of the nearest rest stop...

We didn't really get a chance to try out the symmetrical all-wheel drive system... Well, we did have a very brief spirited romp through the open gravel parking lot of Phoenix International Raceway after GT Live... Yeah, we mis-behaved a little, but we found all four tires of the TR were able to find traction rather quickly making the car very easy to control. We're assuming that the WRX TR will also be easy to drive in the rain and snow -- but we'll have to wait until winter before we can test that theory.

All in all, the WRX TR is a nice car, but it feels kind of "cheap" given its $25,000 price tag. The interior is very economy car-like, the doors and trunk feel thin (though that may be by design -- you know, to reduce weight and all), and there aren't a whole lot of amenities. With the base price of the TR being just $500 less than the standard WRX, it doesn't seem like a that great of a deal to us. For just $500 more, one gets a factory aero kit, a nicer interior and cooler-looking (and more aggressive) seats.

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For our money, we'd pay the extra $500 and go with the regular WRX. However, if you're looking to pick up a Scooby as a project car -- a project car where you'll be ripping everything off/out anyway -- then the TR will suit your needs just fine.

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[meow]

wow really like the Legacy superb man...slick :thumbsup:

some how think the WRX looks funny without the spoiler :|

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[Koo]

2007 Subaru Legacy Facelift more power and beautiful than before, Yeah!=D> :) ;)

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[BlackTape]

not a big fan of subarus and the impreza looks awful with that flying vagina front grille. but the legacy, man that shit is hawt.

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[shadowdancer]

I not sure this is related anot. But I just post it here. Taken from:
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/239700/1/.html


Singapore-assembled Subaru rally cars to be distributed regionally
By Patwant Singh, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 06 November 2006 1908 hrs

SINGAPORE: Singapore's first foray into motor car assembly went into first gear on Monday.

The rally cars were put through their tests and passed with flying colours.

Its maker, Subaru, would ramp up production hitting up to 15 cars a month by next year.

Sentosa's Gateway car park was the venue where the rally cars roared into action.

From handbrake turns, to jumping over a ramp or even drifting, the cars did not fail to impress.

More significantly, the two rally cars are the first to be locally assembled at Toa Payoh.

More will roll off the assembly line starting next month and distributed regionally.

Glenn Tan, Chief Executive of Motor Image Enterprises, said: "Some of the problems we encountered were lack of skilled workers in the beginning, so we flew in a lot of overseas experts from New Zealand and Japan to teach us. We also had a bit of difficulty finding the right kind of tools because car assembly is not popular at all in Singapore."

Help came from the Economic Development Board which got the local industry involved.

The Board is also providing training grants to bring in expertise and train talent in Singapore.

The rally cars were not the only highlights on show.

Precision stunt driver, Russell Swift, also displayed his heart-stopping driving skills for the upcoming Singapore Motor Show.

Besides his signature two-wheel driving, the veteran stunt driver also plans to break a world record.

Swift said: "I set the record - it is 16.07 seconds to complete 10 complete revolutions with a car and that record was broken earlier this year and I am out to get the record back."

For more of such stunts, the public can head to the motor show which starts on Friday at Suntec City. - CNA/so


Do you think it will be popular?

[meow]

you mean the car or the car show? :D

[shadowdancer]

you mean the car or the car show? :D

Sorry, the cars :D