Juan

I read the whole thread and have two things to say: My '05 O.B.'s gas pedal has FAR too little resistance to it and the Sub tech says there is nothing that can be done about it because it is a fly-by-wire system and the spring at the pedal arm is what it is. I am doomed to constantly 'floating' my foot on the gas pedal; no rest in sight. OnStar is ALWAYS on. Police have used the system, in co-operation with OnStar, to monitor the conversations of vehicle occupants. However, in certain states they, the police, are no longer allowed to do this because the monitoring interferes with the operation of the OnStar system as a whole and people pay for the ENTIRE service. We can't have the police seizing services from folks without due process, can we? Juan

How about just tell us, here, any unusual things about the car(s)? I want to know if Carfax is worth it and what kind of weird stuff these cars have wrong with them. Juan

That's funny. Pay extra for a functional ashtray? What is this world coming to? How much extra would that set me back on the Pilot? Heard today that the grill on the B9 is meant to represent Subaru's aviation heretige. I bet the WWII fighters they built had ashtrays. They did build fighter planes, didn't they? Please tell me they made fighter planes. Juan

Just because: has ANYONE ever seen a car without an ashtray? Just askin', Juan

Subaru has produced the world's first AWD mini mini-van with a third seat for the dog. What could be sweeter? I mean, it's got a full-size spare tucked under it? Oh, bye the way, how long will it take for me not to be a 'new user'? Am I on some sort of probation during which I may be discharged without cause? Juan

I, too, will feel cheated if my '05 O.B. bulbs do not fail. I want what is coming to me! About how many miles will I have to wait? Juan

I sat in one today at the dealership. If you like lots of nice, shiny headlamps then this is the rig for you! If you like a "third" row of usless "seats" taking up usable space, this is your rig! If you like to smoke, this rig is not for you: It has no ashtrays! I'm guessing Subaru figures soccer moms don't smoke. Still, its nice to have something to dump change into. Darn! I didn't even bother to look at the MSRP! How much are these things going for? Juan

The key blank you need is actually Datsun/Nissan key DA25. It's a very common Axxes brand key blank. I have occasion to make keys where I work and made my own from just such a blank for my '98 Legacy L. Worked like a charm. However, I have had quite a few Subaru owners come back to the store to have their keys re-cut because they don't work. I would recommend going to Wal-mart, K-mart, Home Depot, Lowes or any large retailer which duplicates keys. Keep having your key re-cut until it works (keep your receipt and any "packaging"/bags and UPC bar codes). If the key doesn't work on the second try, don't return to the store during the same time of day as the last time you had the key made i.e. avoid having the same person who mis-cut your key try again. Don't tell the 'new' key maker that you've had the key made more than once. Just tell him/her it doesn't work. They may get 'snippy' after the third /fourth time. If so, get a refund and move on to the next retailer and keep trying. You will eventually find someone who has the skill to duplicate your key. Good luck, Juan

Guess it's just me. Juan

Yeah, my new '05 OB auto does the same thing. Same five-mile hill I come down everyday from work never gave me ANY cruise problems in my '98 L wagon. Now I can't even use the cruise control on the same stretch of highway on my way home because the bump-jerk-stammer-blurp while cruise is set sounds likely to damage something. No problem going up hill. Juan

Well, I'm sorta stuck with it. Still, I think I've solved the problem: I take it up to speed and set the cruise control. Then I simply use the brake pedal and cruise control lever to regulate my speed. That way I don't have to tweak my knee. It's much easier to constantly hold my foot over the brake than "float" it, cocked, over the gas pedal: throttle with gas pedal, set cruise, brake, reset cruise, increase speed using cruise lever, coast using cruise lever, brake, reset cruise... You get the picture. I wonder why the dealer didn't tell me about this simple fix? Spread the word! Juan

blu, Do you find that you must always have your gas foot cocked to the right and that you must have it at "full attention", never able to relax it, thus tourqing your Knee? I can't get over this. Juan.

Don't take it personal, man. Well, unless you have to. I guess. Jab was at how lame it was to have Armstrong pushing Subarus. You do know he doesn't have his 'beans' anymore, don't you? I see that as a definate advantage in such a pounding men's sport, but not so much in the selling of Subarus. Bye the way, don't you find my 'lesbian' comment offensive as well? Juan

Have had my '05 O.B. for two months and 2,600 miles. Drive one for about six miles before you buy. Take it through town, not on the freeway. You will find that you may not "fit" the vehicle. The pedals are layed put weird and your foot will get tired holding the gas pedal at "float" so as to not depress it with the wieght of your foot -you can never relax it. You will also notice that that your pedal foot must remain at a cocked twenty-degree right angle in order to maintain any chance of getting to the brake pedal by rocking on your heal from gas to brake. This is because the brake pedal is a good two inches above the gas pedal while driving. Adjusting the steering wheel and the seats won't help. You'll just find your knees hitting the steering wheel column or you'll be in the back seat. The HUGE rearview mirror makes you duck to see under it on uphill, right turns. It is greatly underpowered due to its weight. Step into the throttle and the engine races, RPM clips and drops back down: but nothing happens. You had better plan on using the rear wiper. The rear window is a rain magnet. Subaru warns you never to put tire chains on it. Dealers will take you to side and say, "Use cable chains" *wink* *wink*. Still just look at the clearance from tire to frame. You can't get two fingers in between there. If you do use chains and something goes wrong, guess what? I just mean to say that my old one, '98 Legacy L wagon, was MUCH more enjoyable to drive: much more driver friendly. I miss it. This thing is a chore to drive, not a joy. Still, if you (and everyone in your family who may drive it) 'fit' the vehicle, it may be good for you. For $24,000+ you're new 'Utility Vehicle' (DMV clasifies the O.B.s as trucks now) should be a joy to drive, not a chore to drive. Juan

What are some of the sticker prices you are seeing on Tribecas? Saw on Motor Week, PBS, that these things start at $31,000 and top $38,000 with all the bells and wistles. The narrator also said it looked like an Edsel. Just for the heck of it, did you all know that this thing is named after an area of NY City/lower Manhattan? ++" Its handsome, solid warehouse and loft structures, after having been abandoned a generation ago, were discovered in the 1970s, 80s, and 90s to be ideal not just for artists and small-business entrepreneurs but, most importantly, for growing families as well."++ Go figure. Juan

I'm certain that if you buy one of these everyone is going to ask you how you like your new KIA. Still, maybe there are enough lesbians and nutless bicycle riders out there to actually make this offering viable. (sorry, I just had to dig deep in my search for reason.) Juan

Got a new OB just like you, Spider. Had it for a few months, now. Some things that, well, suck about it: 1. Can't see around the large rearview mirror when turning right uphill. You have to duck under it to see. The auto dimming feature is a joke. Give me the mirror from my old '98 wagon; one that I could just about see through and that "flipped" to dim. Trust me, after a few weeks, you'll never look at the compass on it anyway. 2. The gas pedal is so sloppy that it is impossible to relax your foot/leg/calf as to NOT accelerate. Because of this 'slop' (and the fact that the brake pedal is full inch-and-a-half above the gas pedal at rest), heel-to-toe braking and accelerating is nearly impossible and causes extreme ankle/leg fatigue. If you do find that happy spot where this is possible, you'll pratically be in the back seat and unable to reach the steering wheel. This from a car with 8-way seats! The best you can do is hope to drive where you can set the cruise control and relax. Try doing that off road. Which brings me to the third thing. 3. Their is no such thing as an 2005 Outback wagon. Unless you have an Imreza, you don't have a wagon you have an SUV, a UT. You'll see this when your registration arrives and your insurance premiums will reflect this. This thing is heavier, handles worse and is MUCH more sluggish, even with a 2.5 engine in it, than my '98. I used to be able to play a tune on the '98s auto simply by needling the throttle; heel-to-toe I might add. This thing just winds up real fast and then lets you down. I could sportshift it I guess, but, this too is a joke. You can't grab the shifter for support while "sporting" whithout shifting it At least with my '98 I knew which gear I was in by the POSITION of the gear shift lever, not some number on the dash which doesn't even light up until you shift while IN sportshift mode. .Wait 'til the day you don't realize you left it in sports shift or that it slipped into sport shift. You'll be turning 5 Rs before you realize it. Not good. 4. Keyless entry fob is so touchy that simply slipping it into your pocket will, more than likely, unlock your car as you walk away. The only real way to make sure you're car is locked while you're away is to hold the car key in your hand as you walk away and slip it in your pocket after you're fifty yards away. OR, toss the fob and only use the key. Still, I like the safety features, AWD and the ground clearance. It is quieter. Oh, and the headlights look cool. However, I wish I had my '98 back. It was much more fun to drive. I'm just saying don't assume, anymore, that just because it's new and Subaru that it's going to be as good as the one you had before. Juan

The '98s all had alternator recalled. I became aware of this when alternator started grindind 20 days outside of 3-year warranty. Dealer wanted to charge me for it. I stood my ground and service made some "phone calls". Service came back and said they got the "go-ahead" to replace it for free. He knew all the time there was a recall out on it. I am surprised you didn't blow the computer or something when you jumped it. I hit the "virgin" switch on top of the steering column and drained the battery. I charged it overnight and it wouldn't even idle the next day. Flat-bed tow, three days in the shop (charged me for cleaning the injectors and replacing sparkplug wires) and they had it nailed down to a blown computer. Surprising enough, the $600 computer was still under 6-year 60,000 mile warranty. Maybe standing my ground on the alternator flagged my service record and they didn't want to mess around. Or maybe, because of that "flag", they just wanted to soak me for injector cleaning, plug wires and three days without my car. Go figure. Still, I should have pressed them for towing bill ($75). Juan

Wouldn't Subaru America directly contact me if there was recall on my new OB? Dealer sends me a yellow postcard marked " URGENT SAFETY RECALL" on my new '05 OB 2.5i telling me to call them. I bought it a few weeks ago in Gresham Oregon. The postcard is postmarded Salem, Oregon. Kinda startling. Called the number on the postcard -it was the dealer- and was transferred to the service department. They wanted my VIN to proceed. I told them goodbye (They would already/still have my VIN after only five weeks.) Is the dealer/sevice deptartment tying to play me for something: spook me into an extended warrenty or something? Or, at worst, is someone phishing for my VIN? What's going on here? Juan

Just got my DMV registration for new '05 Outback 2.5i and it is classified as a UT. My "98 was registered as a SW (station wagon). What's up here? Is Subaru tryin' to fly under/over the radar on something? Clearly the '05's are station wagons. Maybe something to do with emission/safety regulations at play here? I'm thinkin' I'm payin' too much for insurance because it's classified as a UT here in Oregon. What do you think? Juan