Going to test drive an 09 WRX tomorrow

[Arkaign]

Originally posted by: bananapeel42
Either way, great job on the new WRX! I like the styling.....

:thumbsup:

Agreed! Wonder how this would post on the 'Ring?

 

[zerocool84]

Originally posted by: Arkaign

Originally posted by: bananapeel42
Either way, great job on the new WRX! I like the styling.....

:thumbsup:

Agreed! Wonder how this would post on the 'Ring?

In the R&T article, the Cobalt SS was right on it's heels WITHOUT the LSD so I'd say it's a decent handler

 

[Dman877]

Well I got to test drive an ugly-as-sin silver 4-door today. Salesmen even let me go alone. I had no problem with the seats, plenty of side bolstering imo. The cabin is pretty roomy, I'm about 6 feet and the seating position was so low I had about 8 inches of headroom which is unusual.

The car handles well. It does everything as well as my TSX but with less body-roll.

The engine doesn't sound good though. It's a lot like the last Subaru 2.5 I drove in that the racket it makes doesn't encourage a lot of revving. Power was good but quite... choppy. It's like hitting the vtec on my car but it happens like 3 or 4 times as you go from2k to 5k (didn't go higher). I expected some turbo lag but it seems like it's more than just that.

The shifting action is as expected. The 5-speed is vague at best. Launches are a bit tricky because the throttle/engine rev's so unevenly. After 4 years of using the sweet 6-speed in my car, it was quite disturbing. I think I could get past it though.

Anyway, I agreed to buy one but when they searched New England for a blue 5-door, they came up empty. This was after telling me they had them on the lot. Next shipment isn't due until March. So much for that. They tried to get me to buy a blue 08 sti they had on the lot but as I see it, there really isn't any reason to go with an STI over the WRX unless you race and I don't.

 

[chris7b]

dealers in Los Angeles are offering 8k off MSRP + 0% finance for 63 months on 08 STi. That would bring it close to WRX price.

 

[Dman877]

If they were doing that kind of deal here, I would probably jump on it. With interest and everything, the deals they offered me would have ended up at about 30k for the WRX (they only had 5-doors with premium packages which add's 1500$ of stuff I didn't really want) vs 39k for the STI.

 

[ballmode]

Trannys are made of glass, before of 2nd gear

 

[StageLeft]

Holy heck that is VERY FREAKING fast for a car costing that much that is a sedan and actually a guy could possibly convince his wife to let him get one.

 

[Demo24]

Originally posted by: Dman877
Well I got to test drive an ugly-as-sin silver 4-door today. Salesmen even let me go alone. I had no problem with the seats, plenty of side bolstering imo. The cabin is pretty roomy, I'm about 6 feet and the seating position was so low I had about 8 inches of headroom which is unusual.

The car handles well. It does everything as well as my TSX but with less body-roll.

The engine doesn't sound good though. It's a lot like the last Subaru 2.5 I drove in that the racket it makes doesn't encourage a lot of revving. Power was good but quite... choppy. It's like hitting the vtec on my car but it happens like 3 or 4 times as you go from2k to 5k (didn't go higher). I expected some turbo lag but it seems like it's more than just that.

The shifting action is as expected. The 5-speed is vague at best. Launches are a bit tricky because the throttle/engine rev's so unevenly. After 4 years of using the sweet 6-speed in my car, it was quite disturbing. I think I could get past it though.

Anyway, I agreed to buy one but when they searched New England for a blue 5-door, they came up empty. This was after telling me they had them on the lot. Next shipment isn't due until March. So much for that. They tried to get me to buy a blue 08 sti they had on the lot but as I see it, there really isn't any reason to go with an STI over the WRX unless you race and I don't.

Ask a WRX owner whats the one thing they regret about when buying their car, and most will tell you that they didn't buy an STI. I should know, I'm part of this group. Sure the WRX is a fun car and it never fails to entertain, but the STI is just so much more solid. Yeah the WRX beats it to 60mph in an all out clutch dump with only 1 shift. But to be honest while having a 2nd gear that goes to 70mph sounds fun, it's not so much in real life due to the speed difference between 1st & 2nd which makes it very hard to shift smoothly. 2nd could be so much more if it only went to about 50-55.

The STI has the better drivetrain, suspension setup, brakes, tires, etc. It's not pointless.

 

[Dman877]

You don't have to convince me that the 6spd is better than the 5spd. I'll agree with you on that. The rest, though, is pointless FOR ME. I don't race, either on tracks or public roads. I don't drive at 10/10th's either. In light of that, the WRX offers everything I need and I'd rather not pay a lot for the extra hardware that comes with the STI.

If I could get an STI for 8k off msrp as someone suggested above (that puts it at ~29k after fees) it would be hard to pass up. Here, though, the lowest I've seen them go for is ~32k after fees. Then there's the higher insurance and higher gas costs as well as the whole STI image thing that go with it.

The deals they offered me after trade-in:

5-door WRX w/premium pckg - 292/48 mo's w/3000 down
- 245/48 w/5000 down
STI (didn't check options) - 371/54 mo's w/5000 down

I could afford the STI but I would feel kind of silly paying more for the same usable performance I'd get with a WRX...

 

[StageLeft]

If I were in your shoes I'd also do the WRX. It is simply tons cheaper and most of your miles will be spent going the same speed a soccer mom drives her kids around at, so the STI benefits are likely to go mostly unused. Especially brakes/shocks, hell the WRX will be no slouch around corners, so how fast on public roads do you really want to go?

 

[TehMac]

I like the Sedan better than the Hatchback, but that's my opinion, so w/e.

 

[Koing]

Originally posted by: Skoorb
If I were in your shoes I'd also do the WRX. It is simply tons cheaper and most of your miles will be spent going the same speed a soccer mom drives her kids around at, so the STI benefits are likely to go mostly unused. Especially brakes/shocks, hell the WRX will be no slouch around corners, so how fast on public roads do you really want to go?

Indeed.

Most cars neer see the light of day on a track...

Koing

 

[Dman877]

Pulled the trigger on a Blue 5-door WRX. They said yesterday they wouldn't get any until march but they found one this morning. It's the base model too (every other 5-door hatch in New England has the premium package which I didn't want).

Unfortunately, the car is still at the port right now. Should take delivery later this week.

 

[Funyuns101]

very cool! pics for later plz 🙂
if you don't mind me asking, how much did you end up spending?

 

[ayabe]

Originally posted by: DEMO24

Originally posted by: Dman877
Well I got to test drive an ugly-as-sin silver 4-door today. Salesmen even let me go alone. I had no problem with the seats, plenty of side bolstering imo. The cabin is pretty roomy, I'm about 6 feet and the seating position was so low I had about 8 inches of headroom which is unusual.

The car handles well. It does everything as well as my TSX but with less body-roll.

The engine doesn't sound good though. It's a lot like the last Subaru 2.5 I drove in that the racket it makes doesn't encourage a lot of revving. Power was good but quite... choppy. It's like hitting the vtec on my car but it happens like 3 or 4 times as you go from2k to 5k (didn't go higher). I expected some turbo lag but it seems like it's more than just that.

The shifting action is as expected. The 5-speed is vague at best. Launches are a bit tricky because the throttle/engine rev's so unevenly. After 4 years of using the sweet 6-speed in my car, it was quite disturbing. I think I could get past it though.

Anyway, I agreed to buy one but when they searched New England for a blue 5-door, they came up empty. This was after telling me they had them on the lot. Next shipment isn't due until March. So much for that. They tried to get me to buy a blue 08 sti they had on the lot but as I see it, there really isn't any reason to go with an STI over the WRX unless you race and I don't.

Ask a WRX owner whats the one thing they regret about when buying their car, and most will tell you that they didn't buy an STI. I should know, I'm part of this group. Sure the WRX is a fun car and it never fails to entertain, but the STI is just so much more solid. Yeah the WRX beats it to 60mph in an all out clutch dump with only 1 shift. But to be honest while having a 2nd gear that goes to 70mph sounds fun, it's not so much in real life due to the speed difference between 1st & 2nd which makes it very hard to shift smoothly. 2nd could be so much more if it only went to about 50-55.

The STI has the better drivetrain, suspension setup, brakes, tires, etc. It's not pointless.

Meh, if I had to make my purchase all over again, I'd still go with my '06 WRX over the Sti.

There's only one thing I wish I had and it's the 6spd and only because of it's inherent strength advantages. Luckily I've had no problems.

I've spent around $3,000 in mods and my car will give any Sti driver heartburn on the strip or the street.

AND I don't have to deal with the stupid wing, higher insurance, and I've still spent around $8,000 less than I would have for just a base STi.

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: ayabe

Originally posted by: DEMO24

Originally posted by: Dman877
Well I got to test drive an ugly-as-sin silver 4-door today. Salesmen even let me go alone. I had no problem with the seats, plenty of side bolstering imo. The cabin is pretty roomy, I'm about 6 feet and the seating position was so low I had about 8 inches of headroom which is unusual.

The car handles well. It does everything as well as my TSX but with less body-roll.

The engine doesn't sound good though. It's a lot like the last Subaru 2.5 I drove in that the racket it makes doesn't encourage a lot of revving. Power was good but quite... choppy. It's like hitting the vtec on my car but it happens like 3 or 4 times as you go from2k to 5k (didn't go higher). I expected some turbo lag but it seems like it's more than just that.

The shifting action is as expected. The 5-speed is vague at best. Launches are a bit tricky because the throttle/engine rev's so unevenly. After 4 years of using the sweet 6-speed in my car, it was quite disturbing. I think I could get past it though.

Anyway, I agreed to buy one but when they searched New England for a blue 5-door, they came up empty. This was after telling me they had them on the lot. Next shipment isn't due until March. So much for that. They tried to get me to buy a blue 08 sti they had on the lot but as I see it, there really isn't any reason to go with an STI over the WRX unless you race and I don't.

Ask a WRX owner whats the one thing they regret about when buying their car, and most will tell you that they didn't buy an STI. I should know, I'm part of this group. Sure the WRX is a fun car and it never fails to entertain, but the STI is just so much more solid. Yeah the WRX beats it to 60mph in an all out clutch dump with only 1 shift. But to be honest while having a 2nd gear that goes to 70mph sounds fun, it's not so much in real life due to the speed difference between 1st & 2nd which makes it very hard to shift smoothly. 2nd could be so much more if it only went to about 50-55.

The STI has the better drivetrain, suspension setup, brakes, tires, etc. It's not pointless.

Meh, if I had to make my purchase all over again, I'd still go with my '06 WRX over the Sti.

There's only one thing I wish I had and it's the 6spd and only because of it's inherent strength advantages. Luckily I've had no problems.

I've spent around $3,000 in mods and my car will give any Sti driver heartburn on the strip or the street.

AND I don't have to deal with the stupid wing, higher insurance, and I've still spent around $8,000 less than I would have for just a base STi.

Your insurance covers the mods? I thought they don't do that?

 

[ayabe]

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: ayabe

Originally posted by: DEMO24

Originally posted by: Dman877
Well I got to test drive an ugly-as-sin silver 4-door today. Salesmen even let me go alone. I had no problem with the seats, plenty of side bolstering imo. The cabin is pretty roomy, I'm about 6 feet and the seating position was so low I had about 8 inches of headroom which is unusual.

The car handles well. It does everything as well as my TSX but with less body-roll.

The engine doesn't sound good though. It's a lot like the last Subaru 2.5 I drove in that the racket it makes doesn't encourage a lot of revving. Power was good but quite... choppy. It's like hitting the vtec on my car but it happens like 3 or 4 times as you go from2k to 5k (didn't go higher). I expected some turbo lag but it seems like it's more than just that.

The shifting action is as expected. The 5-speed is vague at best. Launches are a bit tricky because the throttle/engine rev's so unevenly. After 4 years of using the sweet 6-speed in my car, it was quite disturbing. I think I could get past it though.

Anyway, I agreed to buy one but when they searched New England for a blue 5-door, they came up empty. This was after telling me they had them on the lot. Next shipment isn't due until March. So much for that. They tried to get me to buy a blue 08 sti they had on the lot but as I see it, there really isn't any reason to go with an STI over the WRX unless you race and I don't.

Ask a WRX owner whats the one thing they regret about when buying their car, and most will tell you that they didn't buy an STI. I should know, I'm part of this group. Sure the WRX is a fun car and it never fails to entertain, but the STI is just so much more solid. Yeah the WRX beats it to 60mph in an all out clutch dump with only 1 shift. But to be honest while having a 2nd gear that goes to 70mph sounds fun, it's not so much in real life due to the speed difference between 1st & 2nd which makes it very hard to shift smoothly. 2nd could be so much more if it only went to about 50-55.

The STI has the better drivetrain, suspension setup, brakes, tires, etc. It's not pointless.

Meh, if I had to make my purchase all over again, I'd still go with my '06 WRX over the Sti.

There's only one thing I wish I had and it's the 6spd and only because of it's inherent strength advantages. Luckily I've had no problems.

I've spent around $3,000 in mods and my car will give any Sti driver heartburn on the strip or the street.

AND I don't have to deal with the stupid wing, higher insurance, and I've still spent around $8,000 less than I would have for just a base STi.

Your insurance covers the mods? I thought they don't do that?

No, I am not paying for that extra coverage. I was referring to the STi rates being higher than WRX rates.

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: ayabe

No, I am not paying for that extra coverage. I was referring to the STi rates being higher than WRX rates.

So what happens when you have a claim? doesn't that lead to finger pointing?

 

[bananapeel42]

Originally posted by: ayabe

Originally posted by: DEMO24

Originally posted by: Dman877
Well I got to test drive an ugly-as-sin silver 4-door today. Salesmen even let me go alone. I had no problem with the seats, plenty of side bolstering imo. The cabin is pretty roomy, I'm about 6 feet and the seating position was so low I had about 8 inches of headroom which is unusual.

The car handles well. It does everything as well as my TSX but with less body-roll.

The engine doesn't sound good though. It's a lot like the last Subaru 2.5 I drove in that the racket it makes doesn't encourage a lot of revving. Power was good but quite... choppy. It's like hitting the vtec on my car but it happens like 3 or 4 times as you go from2k to 5k (didn't go higher). I expected some turbo lag but it seems like it's more than just that.

The shifting action is as expected. The 5-speed is vague at best. Launches are a bit tricky because the throttle/engine rev's so unevenly. After 4 years of using the sweet 6-speed in my car, it was quite disturbing. I think I could get past it though.

Anyway, I agreed to buy one but when they searched New England for a blue 5-door, they came up empty. This was after telling me they had them on the lot. Next shipment isn't due until March. So much for that. They tried to get me to buy a blue 08 sti they had on the lot but as I see it, there really isn't any reason to go with an STI over the WRX unless you race and I don't.

Ask a WRX owner whats the one thing they regret about when buying their car, and most will tell you that they didn't buy an STI. I should know, I'm part of this group. Sure the WRX is a fun car and it never fails to entertain, but the STI is just so much more solid. Yeah the WRX beats it to 60mph in an all out clutch dump with only 1 shift. But to be honest while having a 2nd gear that goes to 70mph sounds fun, it's not so much in real life due to the speed difference between 1st & 2nd which makes it very hard to shift smoothly. 2nd could be so much more if it only went to about 50-55.

The STI has the better drivetrain, suspension setup, brakes, tires, etc. It's not pointless.

Meh, if I had to make my purchase all over again, I'd still go with my '06 WRX over the Sti.

There's only one thing I wish I had and it's the 6spd and only because of it's inherent strength advantages. Luckily I've had no problems.

I've spent around $3,000 in mods and my car will give any Sti driver heartburn on the strip or the street.

AND I don't have to deal with the stupid wing, higher insurance, and I've still spent around $8,000 less than I would have for just a base STi.

Curious, what are your numbers? Dyno, 1/4 mile? etc?

 

[kalrith]

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: ayabe

No, I am not paying for that extra coverage. I was referring to the STi rates being higher than WRX rates.

So what happens when you have a claim? doesn't that lead to finger pointing?

I'm not sure what you're getting at. Are you implying that one must report mods to the insurance company?

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: kalrith

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: ayabe

No, I am not paying for that extra coverage. I was referring to the STi rates being higher than WRX rates.

So what happens when you have a claim? doesn't that lead to finger pointing?

I'm not sure what you're getting at. Are you implying that one must report mods to the insurance company?

No, as in when something fails on your car, the insurance can deny the claim.

 

[kalrith]

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: kalrith

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: ayabe

No, I am not paying for that extra coverage. I was referring to the STi rates being higher than WRX rates.

So what happens when you have a claim? doesn't that lead to finger pointing?

I'm not sure what you're getting at. Are you implying that one must report mods to the insurance company?

No, as in when something fails on your car, the insurance can deny the claim.

I've heard of this from a warranty standpoint but not insurance. I've also never heard of someone filing a claim for a mechanical failure.

Edit: The only insurance application I could see is if it's ruled that the mods were the cause of an accident.

 

[ayabe]

Originally posted by: bananapeel42

Originally posted by: ayabe

Originally posted by: DEMO24

Originally posted by: Dman877
Well I got to test drive an ugly-as-sin silver 4-door today. Salesmen even let me go alone. I had no problem with the seats, plenty of side bolstering imo. The cabin is pretty roomy, I'm about 6 feet and the seating position was so low I had about 8 inches of headroom which is unusual.

The car handles well. It does everything as well as my TSX but with less body-roll.

The engine doesn't sound good though. It's a lot like the last Subaru 2.5 I drove in that the racket it makes doesn't encourage a lot of revving. Power was good but quite... choppy. It's like hitting the vtec on my car but it happens like 3 or 4 times as you go from2k to 5k (didn't go higher). I expected some turbo lag but it seems like it's more than just that.

The shifting action is as expected. The 5-speed is vague at best. Launches are a bit tricky because the throttle/engine rev's so unevenly. After 4 years of using the sweet 6-speed in my car, it was quite disturbing. I think I could get past it though.

Anyway, I agreed to buy one but when they searched New England for a blue 5-door, they came up empty. This was after telling me they had them on the lot. Next shipment isn't due until March. So much for that. They tried to get me to buy a blue 08 sti they had on the lot but as I see it, there really isn't any reason to go with an STI over the WRX unless you race and I don't.

Ask a WRX owner whats the one thing they regret about when buying their car, and most will tell you that they didn't buy an STI. I should know, I'm part of this group. Sure the WRX is a fun car and it never fails to entertain, but the STI is just so much more solid. Yeah the WRX beats it to 60mph in an all out clutch dump with only 1 shift. But to be honest while having a 2nd gear that goes to 70mph sounds fun, it's not so much in real life due to the speed difference between 1st & 2nd which makes it very hard to shift smoothly. 2nd could be so much more if it only went to about 50-55.

The STI has the better drivetrain, suspension setup, brakes, tires, etc. It's not pointless.

Meh, if I had to make my purchase all over again, I'd still go with my '06 WRX over the Sti.

There's only one thing I wish I had and it's the 6spd and only because of it's inherent strength advantages. Luckily I've had no problems.

I've spent around $3,000 in mods and my car will give any Sti driver heartburn on the strip or the street.

AND I don't have to deal with the stupid wing, higher insurance, and I've still spent around $8,000 less than I would have for just a base STi.

Curious, what are your numbers? Dyno, 1/4 mile? etc?

~around 280/290 at the wheels on a mustang dyno, my best 1/4 was a 12.7@106-ish.

i'd have to dig around a bit to get the exact numbers as I'm not at home right now.

This is running a Walbro FP, VF43(06-07 STi turbo), STi intercooler, Cobb TBE exhaust and a tune.

So more or less my car is putting down Stg 2 STi numbers.

 

[ayabe]

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: ayabe

No, I am not paying for that extra coverage. I was referring to the STi rates being higher than WRX rates.

So what happens when you have a claim? doesn't that lead to finger pointing?

Well it could, but I believe the actual policy is that in order to deny a warranty claim, Subaru has to prove 100% that whatever failure occurred was due to the aftermarket part.

But, I've not had to deal with that, I've got a mild tune and compared to a lot of people my car is barely modded since I'm basically using OEM Subaru parts aside from the exhaust.

 

[Dman877]

Originally posted by: Funyuns101
very cool! pics for later plz 🙂
if you don't mind me asking, how much did you end up spending?

With the fees and everything, I got it for 25k. Roughly 1k under MSRP for the car.