Test drove some new soobs!

[Fairtax4me]

My store participated in a huge multi-dealership sale this week. 4 different dealers with just about every manufacturer you could think of. There was the American trio, Honda, Nissan, Subaru, Toyota, Mitsubishi, Kia, Chrysler, Cadillac, Lincoln, Mercury, Mercedes Benz, Lots more but I can't think worth a flock right now. Each dealer only got to bring a limited amount of cars from their inventory because of the size of the lot where the sale was held. Subaru (one of our sister stores) brought their whole inventory, about 35 cars at the beginning of the week. They left with 8. Just completely annihilated every other brand there in sales volume.

I got a chance to drive a few of the Soobs that were there.

They are:

2010 Outback

2010 Forester

2010 Impreza OBS

2007 (used obviously) Forester XT

 

The 2010 Outback. I liked this one, comfortable ride, a fair amount of room in the front seats as well as the back, plenty of head room, and a ton of cargo space to boot. The CVT is strange, definitely takes some getting used to when driving. You put your foot down and it goes Vroooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooommmmmmmmmm, and you're going about 45 mph. The "manual" shift option, is just as weird. The split second it takes to change "gears" the car feels like it actually accelerates better/faster than when it's just in "gear". Decent power in the 2.5. I didn't get to drive the 3.6 but I bet that would have been a monster. The CVT makes a funny whistling or whirring noise when you;re driving though kinda like a turbo on a big diesel truck. You hear it wind up and down depending on engine speed. I thought it was kinda cool. But for those who don't care to hear the rumble of the engine or the whine of the "gears" you turn the radio on and it all goes away.

 

2010 Forester. This one was probably my least favorite of the bunch. It just felt... cheap. The doors are clangy, the seats are hard, the engine is almost obnoxiously loud, and SLOOOOOW!!! Did not care for the acceleration at all in this one, nor the exterior styling for that matter. The interior was kinda plasticky feeling, and the center console was creaking. Might have just been that one I dunno, but I was overall un-impressed with the "Oh 10" Forester. ("Oh 10 is kinda of an inside joke at work)

 

2010 OBS. This one was expectedly simple. Yet it all fit together pretty well. It felt cheap and plasticky but you know what it's a $19k car. Albeit the price tag is a bit higher than I would want to pay, it does have that Subaru feel to it under all that new jazz. Leather heated seats, nice sound system, 170 horses galloping under the hood, and with the 5 speed manual it was quite a fun drive. Actually felt extremely similar to my 96 Legacy space wise inside. Also has built in roof rails, and the slightly raised stance makes it lean just a hair in the corners. It feels like a good dirt road car, so getting out to the country for a day of biking or hiking is easily done with this car.

 

The 2007 Forester XT. If you can get beyond the fugly headlights, it's a really good looking car. And just an absolute blast to drive. Tuuurrrrbooooooo... :drool: Plenty of power in this one. 5 gears of hard acceleration as long as you're over 2000 rpm. If the turbo ain't spooled you ain't goin NOwhere. :-\ (typical turbo lag) Car drove smooth, the seats were comfortable, nice sound again, and lots of cargo room in the back. Hangs corners like it's on rails, and just enough lean to let you know you're pushing it too far before it slides out from under you. If I were in the market for a new(er) Subaru, this would be the one. If they had had a bit smaller price tag on it, I would have said screw the payment and jumped in. $400 a month for 5 years? WORTH IT! (not really) But honestly I think if I could find one in good shape, maybe a year or two older for the older body style, and about 7 grand cheaper (this one was tagged at $21k) I'd probably go for it.

[Subarupusher]

The wife and I always thought the Forester was comfortable and well made until we test drove a 2010 Forester and a 2010 Outback on the same day. The Outback does make the Forester seem cheaper on the interior and a little bit stiffer on the ride. But you are paying thousands of dollars more for the Outback and they are selling here in the NW as fast as they arriive and thus not a lot of dickering. The Forester has a nice selection and is definitely easier on the pocket book.

 

I have the CVT in the Legacy and it may be a little louder and constant but I have gotten used to it and now I notice the "clunks" in normal AT shifting when riding in other cars or driving a vacation rental.